‘One day someone will be held accountable’: Sukazi on poor match officiating
With the standard of match officiating in the PSL dropping, leading to wrong decisions and controversies, TS Galaxy boss Tim Sukazi reckons that the poor refereeing shenanigans have been happening for so many years.
This comes after South African referees have been heavily criticised lately following countless controversial decisions taken in the field of play since the start of the new 2023/24 season.
Some of the poor decisions have seen other referees in the SA top flight facing the music [getting suspensions].
In August this year, we witnessed how Sekhukhune United was hard done by the referee’s decision to allow a goal after goalkeeper Badra Sangare was visibly pushed by Gabadinho Mhango while he was in control of the ball.
This incident led to Siyabonga Nkomo and Thamsanqa Sebati receiving a 16-week ban after awarding the controversial goal.
The very same month, referee Abongile Tom and his assistants Zakhele Siwela and Khamusi Razwimisani were suspended after SAFA’s referee committee review picked errors in Mamelodi Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs league clash.
However, the bad decisions taken by the match officials are a blessing in disguise for other clubs that get to benefit from the referees’ decisions, while the other teams suffer the most.
TIM SUKAZI ON THE STATE OF MATCH OFFICIATING IN SA
When Sukazi was asked what he thinks about the state of match officiating in our country, the Rockets president did not beat around the bush and revealed why the quality of refereeing has dropped in the PSL.
“Look, the state of refereeing is very disappointing. But it’s not for the first time. Four seasons ago, I spoke about it,” he said.
“So, it seemed like no one was prepared to listen. The media also never drove it in any direction.
“Now that some of our best teams have been affected by this, only now everyone wants to talk about it.”
Sukazi continued: “It’s been like this. Is it part of our culture or what is it? There are people who should know this, and there are people who will be held accountable one day for this kind of situation. I have no doubt about it. It’s been like this for years since ever TS Galaxy became a professional team. We saw it in the NFD.
“So, it’s not a new situation it’s just that now by God’s doing probably he has exposed it via the big clubs. At the same time, there’s no consistency.”
TIM SUKAZI ON WHAT COULD BE THE SOLUTION
He went on to touch on what could be the solution to the problem. However, Sukazi insists that it will take time to deal with the matter.
“Solution, you know when a root is deeply rooted it becomes very difficult. It can take years rather than months to resolve it,” he added.
“But then, are there people willing to resolve it? Because we have seen blatantly the beneficiaries of the system. You know them, we know them, lots of them.
“So, people have created their own existence in the football landscape through such. Therefore, do you think it can be resolved? Will there be a will power, but at the same time I will give the benefit and utmost trust to those who are responsible for appointing referees.”
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