The controversial decision to award Orlando Pirates a penalty in the Nedbank Cup quarter-final against AmaZulu has brought mixed reviews from experts, with former referees Ace Ncobo and Victor Hlungwani’s verdicts at odds.
The Soweto giants progressed to the semi-finals of the competition after an empathic 4-2 win over Usuthu at a sold-out Moses Mabhida Stadium last Saturday.
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Makhehlene Makhaula, Kabelo Dlamini and Patrick Maswanganyi (brace) were the scorers for Pirates.
One of the major talking points from the encounter was a penalty awarded to Bucs when defender Taariq Fielies was adjudged to have fouled Makhaula in the penalty area. The spot-kick, later converted by Maswanganyi, would ultimately go a log way in changing the complexion of the match.
Speaking on SuperSportTV’s ExtraTime, PSL CEO and retired referee Ncobo said Pirates deserved the penalty because although Makhaula had not been pushed, he had been held.
"We did not speak about a push, we spoke about holding," Ncobo explained.
"The infringement is holding, that’s what we speak about. That’s where the critical differentiation is."
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Meanwhile, fellow retired referee Hlungwani explained on SABC Sports' SoccerZone why he believes there was not enough contact to warrant a penalty.
"Here is the Pirates [incident] where we see Makhaula chest-trapping the ball and there was a touch or some holding on the shoulder," Hlungwani said.
"That holding, we will just call it a touch. Now that touch does not have an impact on Makhaula playing the ball, but he decided to make a meal out of it. So, no foul here.
"On this one, we are taking on new considerations that talk of impact. So, impact means if they touch you, does that stop you from going to the ball? So, this was just a touch.
"That’s why the referee fell for it and gave a penalty, but when we look at it here, we see that there was no impact on the contact that warranted a penalty."
Pirates will meet Chippa United at Nelson Mandela Bay stadium for the semi-finals of the Nedbank Cup.
KickOff readers, which of the two conflicting verdicts from the former top referees do you go with? Let us know in the comments section below!
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