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Sikhumbuzo Moyo, Bruce Ndlovu, Sports Reporters

THE Zimbabwe referees Committee has reacted with shock the failure by officials who handled the tension filled Ngezi Platinum and Dynamos league match to caution a blood thirsty Dynamos defender Godfrey Mukambi for headbutting an opponent in a shocking off the ball incident.

The match was handled by Brighton Chimene who was the centre referee, Bongani Hadebe who was the first assistant, Tapfumaneyi Mutengwa the second assistant while Brighton Wagoneka was the fourth official with controversial former referee Masimba Chihowa being the match commissioner.

“This is inexcusable, match officials should have picked the incident. These are cases where in other leagues, if competition rules allow, additional sanctions are imposed by the competition organizer,” said the Zimbabwe Referees Committee vice chairman Gladmore Muzambi after being shown the video clip of the former Tsholotsho defender’s shameless act on Clive Augusto in the 51st  minute when the two title chasing teams were still tied nil all.

If not for the wonders of modern technology, it is an incident that would have probably gone unnoticed.

It came in the 51st minute of an ill-tempered match that saw Dynamos fans lose their marbles towards the end of a match that had the blue shirted boys chase shadows all afternoon long.

With the referee’s eyes transfixed on proceedings elsewhere on the pitch, it took SuperSport’s lens to catch Mukambi’s shocking act of on-field violence.

It was an embarrassing act that foreshadowed the despicable actions of the Harare giants’ fans that went berserk and invaded the pitch when the match, a potential title decider, was in its dying stages.

A replay of the incident saw the Dynamos defender leap into the air and deliver what appeared to be particularly painful head butt on Augusto who clutched his head in agony afterwards.

It was an act one would expect from a seasoned street brawler and not a professional football player turning out for one of the country’s biggest soccer institutions. It deserved a red card or more.

Chimene and Chihowa were earlier this year publicly blasted by the PSL disciplinary committee for their failure to report incidents of crowd trouble by FC Platinum supporters during the platinum miners’ league match against Highlanders at Mandava Stadium.

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