Highlanders may face a ban from participating in next season’s Chibuku Super Cup after their players forced the abandonment of their match against Simba Bhora at Wadzanayi Stadium on Sunday, September 22.
The quarter-final match was called off after 79 minutes due to a controversial penalty decision by referee Cecil Ngwezere.
The match was halted for 30 minutes when Highlanders captain and goalkeeper Ariel Sibanda refused to return to goal in protest of the penalty awarded to Simba Bhora.
The penalty was awarded following a collision between Highlanders centre-back Peter Muduhwa and substitute Tinashe Balakasi, who deceived the referee by falling inside the penalty area.
This prompted Highlanders players to protest and subsequently walk to their bench in discontent. When they returned, Sibanda still refused to take his position in goal.
After further attempts to engage Sibanda proved futile, the referee decided to end the match. The PSL disciplinary committee will now determine the outcome of the match to decide who will meet Ngezi Platinum Stars in the semi-finals.
According to Chibuku Super Cup rules and regulations, Highlanders could be expelled from this year’s tournament and cannot appeal the decision. The rules state:
If a team refuses to continue to play or leaves the stadium or the field of play before the end of the match, the team will be considered as having lost the match in question.
The match will be awarded to its opponents on a score line of 3-0 or more if in the case of an abandoned match, the winning team has already reached a higher score at the time the guilty team leaves the field of play.
The defaulting team shall be banned from participating in the next edition of the Chibuku Super Cup.
No appeals may be lodged against these decisions.
Highlanders fans who commented on the abandoned match claimed that their club is being treated unfairly. Wrote Milton Manyevere on Facebook:
Bulawayo teams must not compete from this tournament they must boycott coz we know how referees operate that’s why our country is divided. Harare teams, Mashonaland teams, Manicaland teams and Midlands teams are the ones who should compete in this cup.
Another football fan, Khulekani Mazibuko Hlambelo, commended Bosso players for their stance. He said:
It’s still okay. Someone has to take a stand for what they believe is right. For too long match officials have been making dubious decisions, and when coaches speak out they get penalised, and nothing happens to the match officials. Bosso had to take a stand rather than legitimising izinto zomnuko. Kudos to Highlanders. Asifuni bumbulu.
However, Dumisani Masilela believes that clubs must understand that the referee’s decision is final, and that walking off the pitch will not lead to any positive outcomes. He wrote:
The problem we have is players and administrators who lack knowledge of football rules and regulations, what does walking off the field of play benefit you when the match officials make a decision you do not agree with ??????
Another soccer fan, Jay Godfrey, asserted that referees struggle to officiate Highlanders matches because the club’s fans are often prone to engaging in hooliganism. He said:
The refs decision was very wrong but going out in protest was also wrong. Highlanders plays good football but is always undone by some of its overzealous fans which led the players to believe that violence is the way to go if things don’t go their way. As a ref, it’s hard to officiate a Highlanders match, especially at home. The refs must also be punished for poor performance.
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