Share

Harrison lashes out at ref

Johannesburg - A controversial early decision has left Golden Arrows coach Mark Harrison fuming after his side's crushing 3-1 defeat to SuperSport United in their Premiership clash in Atteridgeville on Saturday night.

Bongi Ntuli was fouled by Ronwen Williams who charged out his box, and though he was shown a yellow card, Harrison believed the SuperSport goalkeeper should have been sent off.

"If we want to talk about the game, let's talk about the decision in the first 10 minutes," he said afterwards.

"How is the goalkeeper still on the field, and at the end of the game he's showboating. That's what I don't like about the game.

"The referee made a poor decision. He should have been off the pitch and that's a game-changing decision."

SuperSport coach Cavin Johnson admitted it was a poor call, but insisted the match officials should have halted play when the ball was delivered to Ntuli.

"I thought it was offside, and I think the referee knew he had made a bad decision," Johnson said.

"The fact that Ronwen came out, yes, under normal circumstances he should have gotten a red card, but I thought once he gave the offside, and it was offside, he decided 'what do I do now?'.

"Football gods are sometimes on your side and in that moment the gods of football were on our side."

Matsatsantsa climbed to second place in the standings, two points behind pace setters Mamelodi Sundowns, though four of the top six teams held a game in hand.

"It was a home game and we won the three points, and for that we are happy because it puts us at another level now," Johnson said.

"We were on the back foot because we lost very poorly to Moroka Swallows (3-0) and Platinum Stars (2-1) and the team is showing they can come back."

Arrows, meanwhile, were left flailing in the relegation zone after their sixth defeat in nine league matches this season.

"We'll keep working on a day-to-day basis," Harrison said.

"I've been at the club three or four weeks now. We've got lots of time and we'll keep working at it.

"There's been a massive improvement and I can see there are a lot of positives to take."

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Voting Booth
Should Siya Kolisi keep the captaincy as the Springboks build towards their World Cup title defence in 2027?
Please select an option Oops! Something went wrong, please try again later.
Results
Yes! Siya will only be 36 at the next World Cup. He can make it!
26% - 1273 votes
No! I think the smart thing to do is start again with a younger skipper ...
29% - 1470 votes
I'd keep Siya captain for now, but look to have someone else for 2027.
45% - 2248 votes
Vote
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE