adminChipo Sabeta Harare Bureau
CAPS United have lodged a formal complaint against referee Makonese Masakadza accusing him of “inappropriate conduct” towards their players and biased officiating. Masakadza was the referee in the ill-fated Easycall Cup semi-final clash between Makepekepe and league champions Chicken Inn at Barbourfields Stadium in Bulawayo that ended prematurely after Caps United supporters turned violent while their team was trailing 3-0.
They accused Masakadza of bias, saying he had denied them three clear penalties. Caps United, who were trailing 0-2 at halftime, made a verbal complaint to match commissioner Ndabezinhle Ncube. Masakadza waved away three penalty appeals when fullback Ben Nyahunzvi handled inside the box twice.
“We’ve lodged a complaint with the Premier Soccer League match delegate,” said Caps United manager Shakespeare Chinogwenya
“Our message isn’t to complain about the outcome, but against the way Masakadza handled the match. We aren’t bad losers, but we want to lose fairly. By half time, we had made a verbal complaint to the match commissioner that we’ll be playing under protest. After the match was abandoned, we made a written complaint, which we submitted to the referee and PSL, although they had initially declined to sign upon receiving it. The match delegate will pass the complaint to the responsible authorities. We expect Masakadza to co-operate fully and welcome the opportunity for the facts to be established.”
The news that The Green Machine made the complaint rounded off a dramatic day, which saw the Lloyd Chitembwe coached side losing their unbeaten run.
In the report, Makepekepe strongly disputed Equatorial Guinea forward Tony Fugo’s yellow card for alleged assimilation.
Fugo was booked after falling under a challenge from Chicken Inn defender Lawrence Mhlanga.
Caps United also felt aggrieved that Nyahunzvi’s handballs were ignored, as television replays suggested the referee got his decisions wrong.
“It’s a shame that a game like this had to be decided in that manner by officials. Surely the match was beyond my control. My players were also frustrated. They (Chicken Inn) score three goals from open play, but we feel hard done by a number of questionable decisions, which I feel the whole stadium was there to see,” said Chitembwe.
“They were leading by two goals and we were denied two clear penalties when their defender handled inside the box. On the first incident, he was a bit far from the box and I gave him the benefit of doubt, unlike the second one. He was right in front of the scene.
“That decision could have changed the complexion of the game. We had an upper hand in the second half. Surely when the referee watches it, he will realise he has made big mistakes.”
Frustrated Caps United fans threw missiles onto the pitch and Chicken Inn goalkeeper Elvis Chipezeze appeared to be hit as he celebrated his side’s third goal in front of the visitors’ fans at the Mpilo End. The match commissioner refused to comment on the violence that erupted thereafter.
Online Reporter