French striker Thierry Henry may soon rival Douglas Jardine, Deigo Maradona and the 1919 White Sox for notoriety. His 93rd minute handball which took France to the 2010 World Cup and knocked out Ireland was a case of blatant cheating. More than that, though, it turned the spotlight once again on inept officiating.

Sport has always been a bastion of hidebound conservatism; the last to embrace change and do away with traditions that exist only because “that’s the way it’s always been done.” But football must ask itself if it really wants to be more reactionary than even cricket.

It is time for football to embrace video replays and not just to shut up Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson — a perennial moaner about officiating. Ferguson will find something to grouse about even if referees are allowed to consult technology. Maybe Sir Alex will want the screens to be in high definition or maybe he will call into question the eyeglasses of off-field referees. The point is, such complaints will be seen for what they are: sour grapes.

The ideal compromise for football can be found in tennis. Each player is allowed three incorrect challenges per set. This simple solution has been so successful that even Marat Safin can no longer lash out at chair umpires — this season all he could do was look heavenwards and blame the gods. Teams should be allowed to appeal to the on-field referee and linesmen for goal line decisions, off-sides and fouls. The appeals should be swift — no waiting to see if they can get an advantage without the appeal — and the video referee  should only overturn decisions that are blatantly wrong. In 50/50 decisions, the call made by the on-field referee should stand.

Until such changes are introduced, umpiring decisions will continue to spark international incidents. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto once threatened to break off relations with Argentina because he felt one of their umpires had cost Pakistan an Olympic hockey gold, and French President Nicholas Sarkozy has been forced to apologise for Henry’s hand ball. It’s time to put an end to such nonsense.