Referees are being asked to add the precise seconds lost to substitutions and injuries to tackle time-wasting in the SPL, where ball-in-play is worryingly low compared to Europe's top leagues.
Why the change matters
That's the gist of what IFAB and the SFA have been saying, with referees asked to be more exact with stoppage time so teams cannot get away with killing the clock. It's sensible. A game with only about 50 minutes of the ball in play needs sharper management.
Who benefits?
Teams that sit in and try to run the clock do. Celtic have been the prime example in recent months, with other sides sitting off them and making the game ugly. When you look at results from around half time to the end, things shift; Transfermarkt's 'Table by minutes Scottish Premiership' puts Celtic seventh over that period, with 34 points.
That suggests there is a motivation for opponents to slow things down when a draw suits them or when they are behind and want to make a point hard to break. The more minutes that are eaten up, the more the late-game picture can be skewed.
What it means for Rangers
What it means for Rangers is plain enough. We've often been the side ahead by a couple of goals, and that reduces the incentive for opponents to waste time. That probably explains why we have not needed frantic late scrambles as often; our late goals have mostly come in games where we were comfortable rather than during manufactured long stoppages.
There is a wider point too. Do lower-table teams waste more time when a draw suits them? It would make sense: if sides are drawing or behind, delaying restart can be a low-risk way to hold on for a point. Add those minutes up across a season and the effect on late-game standings becomes noticeable.
I'm not suggesting we become obsessed with the clock, but accuracy in added time is a practical fix. If referees credit the actual seconds for substitutions and stoppages, the incentive to cheat the clock diminishes. To be fair, it's a step we should welcome if it protects fairness and the flow of the match.
On details, we've scored 7 injury-time goals this season while Celtic have 8; context matters because most of ours came when games were already comfortable. Those little edges change how late minutes play out.
Small changes to how time is kept could tidy up a season full of ugly finishes. As a fan I want contests decided by quality, not clever delaying. Let's hope the officiating keeps up.
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