Match officials, hooligans spoil the broth

11 Jun, 2017 - 00:06 0 Views
Match officials, hooligans spoil the broth

The Sunday News

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Phineas Mukwazo
ONE of the 10 golden rules of the FIFA Fair Play concept stipulates that there is a need for every member of the football family to observe the Laws of the Game.

All games need rules to guide them. Without rules, there will be chaos. The rules of football are simple and easy to learn.

We are encouraged to learn them as they make us understand the game better so that we become BETTER players, BETTER administrators, BETTER supporters et cetera.

It is equaly important to understand the Spirit of the rules, that they are designed to make the game more fun to watch and more fun to play, more fun to officiate.

By sticking to the rules, the game will be more enjoyable and once the game is over all stakeholders will leave the stadium a happy lot with no losers but the game being the ultimate winner.

But happenings of late where two games involving perhaps the largest football institution in the country, Highlanders, were abandoned are really cause for great concern.

Admittedly referees are there to maintain discipline and fair play as they are the ‘custodians’ of the game, but we are afraid that in recent years they have been behaving as loose cannons.

Lest we forget that at one stage ZIFA roped in foreign referees to officiate local matches.

Match officials have the ‘full authority’ to enforce the rules of the game in connection with a match to which they have been appointed and their decisions regarding facts connected with play are final in so far as the result of the game is concerned.

But we are very much afraid to say that most of them are doing so to the detriment of both the good name of the local game and the rules governing the game.

Over the years there has been something fishy going on in our football, that matches were being decided by referees, and not the abilities of the teams.

Over the recent years match officials have been the sources of ugly scenes at our matches, virtually inciting fans into bloody clashes through malfeasance.

We reminisce about the times of Paul Pretorious, Premji Giga, Thabani Mkantjo, Felix Tangawarima, Godfrey Kandawatsvika, among others, when refeering was a field of noble professionals who had the interest of the game at heart, where a blunder was an alien concept and the man in the centre carried out his duties with utmost expediency.

The above referees knew that their actions could soil not only the image of the game, but its value as entertainment for all, and above all its supreme role as a unifier.

Its high time bad performers were weeded out of our game.

And then our so-called fans!

They call themselves football fans, but to the contrary they are not. A soccer fan is “supposed’’ to be an ardent follower and admirer of the game.

Nowhere does the definition suggest that a fan is an ardent disciple and admirer of the sport who must turn violent when matches are lost or decisions go against their clubs.

But going by the conduct of them lately, one can only at best, describe them as hooligans not fans.

How can they dare call themselves fans when all they can do is to cause mayhem at soccer matches, hurl missiles at player, rival fans, and match officials and get matches abandoned?

How dare they call themselves genuine fans when they demand victory at all costs at every soccer match? No you can’t win them all.

You don’t deserve to be fans, you are hooligans.

What we need are genuine fans. People who have respect for property, safety for other spectators, themselves, and everyone else.

Granted referees do err at times coaches can as well make astounding decisions, fellow (misguided of course) spectators can make can make provocative gestures, but surely there are many civilized ways of making your feelings known.

Resorting to violence certainly is not one of them.

Enough is enough Dear referees and hooligans, you have disgraced the game in the country and your clubs for so long.

You are not only turning the beautiful game into a violent sport, but you are also chasing away genuine fans like Yours Truly. You are chasing away sponsors.

You are burdening your clubs with unnecessary fines. You are doing harm to the image of your beloved country.
The world is watching. Caf is watching, Fifa is watching. Genuine football fans are worried.

We do not want a repeat of the 2000 National Sports Stadium disaster in which 13 fans perished in a stampede, a result of riotous behavior by you hooligans.

We don’t condone the performance of the referees who make obvious mistakes. They need to be professional but they are human too.

When the outside world scrutinize our game, just like the local authorities, it does not worry about the performance of the referees but the conduct of the fans.

Referees can be dealt with without anyone other than themselves losing sleep, like being overlooked for international assignments.

The clubs need the fans and the game needs them too.

By all intents and purposes fans should rally behind their teams, enjoy the game and celebrate victories late into the night if they can.

But if your team loses or you feel shortchanged in anyway, for the good of the beautiful game, please take it in your stride, it’s only a game.

Say no to violence. Be that as it may the future of our game lies in the conduct of you match officials and also you the fans.

Please don’t spoil the broth!
@pmukwazo

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