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Eddie Chikamhi Senior Sports Reporter
COSAFA Referees Manager, Felix Tangawarima, has hailed the performance of his protégé Victor Gomes in the Africa Cup of Nations final as a huge success and a victory for the whole of the Southern African region.
Gomes took charge of the deciding match between winners Senegal and Egypt and did not put a foot wrong in an exemplary display of officiating along with his assistants, Zakhele Siwela from South Africa, and Lesotho’s Souru Phatsoane.
Gomes was groomed through the COSAFA age-group tournaments and began refereeing on the international stage under the guidance of retired former Zimbabwean referee, Tangawarima.
“It was a big, big honour for the COSAFA zone and Victor did not disappoint,” Tangawarima told The COSAFA Show.
“We are very happy with his performance.
“Officiating in a AFCON final, with the entire world watching … he represented himself and South Africa very well.
“Gomes is a highly intelligent referee, and he listens. He did everything that he was advised to do on this big stage, and he is very mature. He is a particularly good man-manager. He manages the players very well and has a sense of responsibility. That has helped him a lot.
“The three match officials who were officiating, they are all products of our Under-17 competition. They have been through our age-group tournaments and now onto the world.”
But while some of the referees in the region have been advancing, Zimbabwe has been struggling in that area, with corruption at ZIFA making the situation worse.
Online Reporter