Former FIFA referee Ace Ncobo has weighed in on the controversial goal that sent Kaizer Chiefs through to the final of the Nedbank Cup. An 89th-minute Ashley Du Preez strike was enough to book a final berth for the success-starved Amakhosi.
Amakhosi will face crosstown rivals Orlando Pirates in the final set for 10 May at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban.
As the semi-final on Sunday approached full-time with a score of 1-1, Du Preez scored against Ronwen Williams from close range, following a beautifully executed cross from George Matlou.
Teboho Mokoena had scored a beautiful free-kick at the stroke of halftime. Wandile Duba equalised early in the second half of the match played at the Loftus Stadium.
However, it was the Du Preez goal that left Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso seething. “So when we work in a country that doesn’t have VAR, that’s what happens. Just go back and look at the images. You have the images, get the images from the TV, and there is a team that loses this competition due to mistakes from the referee.”
WHAT DID ACE NCOBO SAY ABOUT THE ASHLEY DU PREEZ GOAL
Ncobo has since shared his opinion on the goal on SuperSport TV. “The distance between the striker and the goal line is 10.4 cm. The distance between the defender and the goal line is 10.9 m. Who is closer? The one with 10.4 m – the striker is closer to that goal line than the second-last defender, and that’s all that matters,” Ncobo explained.
He further quoted the offside law, which says, “If the attacker is closer to the opponent’s goal line than both the ball and the second-last defender, that attacker is in an offside position. If he gets involved in active play, then a flag must come up.”
Ncobo, however, said the call was “not as blatant as people are trying to make it out to be.”
“The assistant referee is human; he was caught for pace. His football mind told him that the defenders would kick that ball out. So, that’s why he was just half a meter away from the offside line. That was offside. It should have been picked up as an offside. It was not a legitimate goal; it was given as a goal incorrectly.”
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