The saying goes: What is good for the goose, should be good for the gander.
But unfortunately, the double standards which prevail in the local amateur football scene, do very little to grow the game nor for its image.
Just last week Hanover Park FC was found guilty of lack of security at their Downberg Road home venue which led to an assault on the captain of FN Rangers, Chad Robertson during their ABC Motsepe clash late last year.
Hanover Park was slapped with a R20 000 fine for this attack and the lack of security – and rightly so as it should never have happened, not on a football pitch.
So, Friday Hanover Park FC was convincingly beaten 4-1 by Junction Rovers in Heideveld when the ABC Motsepe League resumed following the Festive break.
No Bones with Jones has established that Rovers’ fans did exactly the same ‘offence’ – the only difference was that fortunately there were no incidents which took place.
So, here’s the question: Does this mean that Junction should not be combed with the same brush because nothing happened? Is this not a violation or breach of the policies and rules? Does it mean that the football authorities will only lay down the letter of the law when something serious or drastic happens?
The bottom line is that there should be consistency shown from the football authorities as the competition is tough and the demands huge for success – otherwise the game will continuously be plagued by controversy.
Meanwhile, Hanover Parks Chairman Rieduwaan Anthony dismissed claims that his players deliberately underperformed during their shock loss against Junction.
It was rumoured that some of the players were unhappy with the hierarchy’s decision to bring in one of their senior players, Craig Joemath (pictured), who was on trial with Pretoria Callies.
Joemath was flown back on the 11th hour after his expected move to Pretoria Callies hit a snag. Upon his return he was given the captain’s armband which did not sit well with some of the players.
Hanover Park FC’s big boss, Wanie, as Anthony is known, has dismissed this notion but pointed out it was nothing but a “bad day at the office.”
“It can never be as the boys played their hearts out,” Anthony told No Bones with Jones. “In my opinion the referee allowed two offside goals – the second one the assistant had his flag up and was overruled by the referee.
“The management of Junction was rude, the spectators all in the playing area swore at the officials. There were other factors. But ja, we take the loss on the chin and move on,” Anthony added.
Junction’s chairman, Dawood Johannes, was probed on the incident, but he refused to honour his right of reply.
His coach Chrissando de Weber said he was pleased to have humbled his former star-studded Hanover Park FC club.
“We worked really hard during the Festive break and last night (Friday) was the fruits of their labour,” De Weber told our website. “Our fitness also carried us through as we got stronger in the second half and as the game went on.
So yeah, I’m happy and we can build on this. We also need to thank our fans who played a huge role in getting the better of a quality team,” De Weber concluded.
