Carrick Rangers manager Stephen Baxter admits he’s in favour of VAR being introduced in the Irish League – but insists “I wouldn’t play” if his side were involved in a similar situation to the BetMcLean Cup final, feeling “you can’t cherry-pick a match”.

For the first time in a professional match in Northern Ireland, VAR will be used when Linfield and Glentoran meet at Windsor Park on March 15.

Northern Ireland Football League (NIFL) CEO Gerard Lawlor has revealed using the technology will come at no cost to either the organisation or the clubs participating with VAR operations handled by trained officials from outside the Irish FA.

However, the news has been met with widespread criticism, including from Glentoran manager Declan Devine, who claimed the East Belfast side were informed “three minutes” before it was posted on social media.

placeholder image — Carrick Rangers manager Stephen Baxter. (Photo by Andrew McCarroll/Pacemaker Press)

Lawlor suggested a potential scenario of introducing VAR for matches “where there’s real jeopardy”, such as the European play-off final, which Baxter’s men could be involved in later this season, if the upcoming showpiece decider is a success.

Baxter would welcome the implementation of VAR across the entire Irish League calendar as a tool to help officials, but insists having it in a one-off game is wrong.

“I wouldn’t play (if same VAR decision was made a couple of weeks before a final),” said Baxter on BBC Sportsound. “Why would you do it?

"You’ve played all season with no VAR, you either have VAR or you don’t, one or the other.

"I’m in favour of VAR if the whole league goes that way and we have league games with VAR – give the referees all the help they need because they need lots of it.

"To have it in a one-off game is a no-no. You either have it or you don’t, you can’t cherry-pick a match...what happens if it goes to a play-off game where it’s going to be the club’s future and they say ‘let's just do VAR’ and it relegates that team.

"It would sit uneasily (if it was introduced for European play-off final) because of the principle of it.

"If it’s going to help the game, brilliant, let’s do it, and if there’s money for it from UEFA and they want to give it to the Irish League to put VAR in, I would back that all day and say ‘that’s brilliant’ because it’ll help our game immensely.

"I would be behind that 100%, but you have to do it fairly across the board. You can’t cherry-pick.”