The Chibuku Super Cup quarter-final between Simba Bhora and Highlanders at Wadzanai on Sunday, September 22, was abandoned after 79 minutes due to a controversial penalty decision by the referee.
According to The Herald, referee Cecil Ngwezere called off the match after a 30-minute stoppage, during which Highlanders captain and goalkeeper Ariel Sibanda refused to return to goal in protest of the penalty awarded to Simba Bhora.
Before the penalty decision, there had already been a five-minute stoppage due to skirmishes in the stands.
When play resumed, it lasted only two minutes before Ngwezere awarded a penalty for an incident that appeared to have occurred outside the box, as confirmed by television replays.
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.
Meanwhile, the winner of the Dynamos versus Yadah match will face Manica Diamonds in the other semi-final.
Manica Diamonds advanced by defeating FC Platinum 1-0 at Sakubva Stadium, with Tawanda Macheke scoring the decisive goal in the 17th minute and holding on until the final whistle.
The clash between Dynamos and Yadah was postponed due to Dynamos’ commitments in the CAF Confederation Cup.
Simba Bhora coach Tonderai Ndiraya expressed confidence that they would have won the match had play resumed. Said Ndiraya:
This is bad that we advertise local football in this way. The fans watching (on ZTN) and the fans paying their hard-earned money to come and be entertained but we give them this, it is very unfortunate.
Whilst I would not want to speak on behalf of Highlanders, I think it’s bad for our football.
Coming to the match itself, the first half was a bit of a balanced affair but I thought we had better scoring opportunities than Highlanders.
We were playing against the wind and it was difficult to defend but we defended resolutely and ended up creating those scoring chances at the other end.
When we came for the second half we changed and we were pushing forward, putting Highlanders under pressure, and because of that, they conceded the penalty.
Unfortunately, it had to end this way but I have a strong feeling we would have won the game if play had resumed. The referee’s decision is final and we have to respect it and move on.
Highlanders coach Kalvin Kaindu expressed disappointment that the match did not end properly, saying it was a bad advertisement for the game.
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