SA referee Abongile Tom’s whistle kicks-off CHAN at Mandela Stadium
South African referee Abongile Tom did not disappoint inside the very Algerian stadium named after his great compatriot Nelson Mandela on Friday evening.
Abongile Tom’s blew the whistle to signal the start of the seventh edition of the African Nations Championship (CHAN) finals at Nelson Mandela Stadium in Algiers.
The FIFA referee Abongile Tom was reportedly assertive in the opener, which the hosts Algeria won 1-0 over their neighbours, Libya.
The Fennecs won the opener courtesy of Aymen Mahious’s 57th minute penalty at the venue, which the Algerian authorities named in honour of South African icon Nelson Mandela.
tom did not hesitate to award Algeria the penalty after Libya goalkeeper Muad Allafi brought down Mahious.
ABONGILE TOM MADE NO MISTAKE HE POINTED TO THE SPOT
“Referee Tom Abongile made no mistake when he pointed to the spot,” CAF website reports.
Tom is the only South African selected to the officiating panel for the tournament, which runs from January 13 to February 4 2023.
The South African had the company of Angolan Ivanildo Meirelles de Oliveira as the first assistant referee and Ghanaian Kwasi Acheampong Brobbey as the second assistant referee.
Samuel Uwikunda from Rwanda and Egyptian Mahmoud Ashor were the Video Assistant Referees.
CHAN is a tournament which is exclusive to home-based players.
The current edition involves teams drawn from the continent’s 18 nations.
WHY BAFANA BAFANA ARE NOT PART OF CHAN
Bafana Bafana missed out on qualification to the CHAN finals in Algeria after losing to Angola 6-1 on aggregate over two legs.
The action continues on Saturday when Ethiopia face Mozambique at Mandela Stadium in Algeria.
Another match scheduled for Saturday sees the Democratic Republic of Congo hosting Uganda at Stade du 19 mai 1956 d’Annaba.
Morocco are the holders of the CHAN championship.: Morocco, Sudan, Madagascar, Ghana. Group D: Mali, Angola, Mauritania. Group E: Cameroon, Congo, Niger.
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