Lamontville Golden Arrows coach Steve Komphela has lambasted young referee Jelly Chavani for being disrespectful during their Telkom Knockout fixture against Polokwane City over the weekend.
The 23-year-old yellow carded the Abafana Bes’thende boss for leaving his designated area on the touchline a few times and also sarcastically asked him if he wants to take the whistle.
This irritated Komphela and he says Chavani, who has vast experience from refereeing lower levels of the game, needs to be better than that when he deals with players and officials in the Premier Soccer League (PSL).
Arrows won the game 1-0 at the Sugar Ray Xulu Stadium in Clermont, progressing to the quarter-finals of the annual tournament after an additional 30 minutes of extra time were needed.
However, Chavani’s moment of madness for Komphela happened early on during the game, which left the former Free State Stars and Kaizer Chiefs coach visibly upset on the sidelines. He says he cannot tolerate such behaviour.
Chavani began refereeing in the GladAfrica Championship during the 2015/16 campaign. A season later (2016/17), the official from Chavani Village in Limpopo, was given the nod to officiate in PSL matches as well and was involved in five league games.
Despite his quick rise up the ranks, he still needs to stay humble, according to Komphela. – Report by Thahir Asmal
