Heads must roll over Rangers’ 12th man
UPSETS, surprises and drama are some of the words that can best describe the recently-ended MoMo Cup.
Congratulations are in order for champions Nsingizini Hotspurs, who were the last team standing ahead of big guns in Moneni Pirates and Mbabane Highlanders. Rangers completed the line-up in the four-team tournament and they were the only side from the country football second-tier. The champions may be still wet behind their ears, but they have made a strong statement about their readiness to leave a mark on the big stage. Rising to the occasion after being out of league action for about a month was remarkable. The Shiselweni-based ensemble’s league games had been postponed several times before the MoMo Cup. As a result, their match fitness was questionable. Under the guidance of Malawi-born gaffer Gerald Phiri Senior, they had the perfect game plan.
Thrashed
Their journey started in the semi-final against Rangers who were thrashed 3-0. Then came the big moment for Hotspurs when they had to face Moneni Pirates. The latter brushed aside favourites and fellow giants Highlanders 5-4 after penalties in their semifinal. The game had ended 1-all after regulation time.
Against Pirates, Hotspurs faced their toughest test. The ‘Sea Robbers’of Moneni expectedly proved to be a hard nut to crack. The latter were the automatic favourites after the elimination of Highlanders and had flawlessly blended youth and experience. They gave a good account of themselves before losing 1-2 after extra time. Despite the physicality aspect, it proved to be a memorable final.
Despite the success of the tournament, there are glaring frailties that cannot be ignored. Never mind the drama of taking the final to extra time, much against the rules and regulations of the tournament. Outside the decider, there was one incident that had a potential to ruin the entire tournament on top of bringing the country’s football into disrepute. In the semifinal between Rangers and Hotspurs, the unthinkable with a capital letter ‘U’ happened. After a double substitution by the losing side (Rangers), only one player left the field of play. As a result, Rangers played about 20 minutes with an extra man and it took an uproar from fans for referee of the day Celumusa Siphepho to see the regrettable blunder. Yes, it was a blunder not a mistake. Imagine if Hotspurs were trailing when the incident happened. Were they going to accept the end result?
Then there is the element of bringing football into disrepute. Even before the tournament could finish, this publication was inundated with calls from journalists in SouthAfrica who were enquiring about the incident. Yes, news travels very fast in this digital age.
Water
Such incidents water down the efforts being made by the Premier League of Eswatini (PLE) in professionalising the game. The incident came at the time when the PLE had launched a magazine show on pay-per-view-channel SuperSport. It is broadcast to millions across Africa and beyond. And the PLE is lucky that the producers from Media Mora, who were gathering footage of the game will have to remove the part on the embarrassing incident. The biggest mistake the tournament Management Committee (MC) can do is to sweep the incident under the carpet. Why the MC does not have power to punish the referees, the matter should be taken up with the National Referees Committee to ensure action is taken against the match officials, especially the referee. This is dereliction of duty at its worst. Based on the seriousness of the incident, it cannot go unpunished. Outside the ‘12th man’ incident, the tournament MC should do a serious introspection. It was a first edition, but some decisions left much to be desired. In upcoming editions, they should avoid using stakeholders, as means to an end. An award for the best public relations officer (PRO) was introduced midway through the tournament alongisde that of the media. Why not introduce it when the tournament starts? Was it an award or incentive? No wonder a little known PRO ended up getting the accolades. Talk about surprise awards.
For the media, it was even worse, as ‘apples were compared with bananas’. How can you compare television or radio to a newspaper? If out of the blue they decided that they wanted to incentivise the media, they were supposed to separate print from broadcast. Another option, like in the Ingwenyama Cup, was to introduce an award for best reporter. Having one media house award makes a mockery of the tournament.
After all, it is a learning curve for everyone, but it becomes a problem when the missed opportunities overshadow the good things.