…says Malawi football needs to be fixed…
Silver Strikers head coach Pieter de Jongh says he will not stop ranting until football authorities change how the game is run in the country.
The Dutch citizen has been making headlines in the local media for all the wrong seasons after he collected three yellow cards and a red card in three out of the four TNM Super League games.
He received his marching orders during his side’s 3-1 away win to Ekwendeni Hammers on Sunday.
But responding to the development, De Jongh says he was surprised to watch a video clip of officials from Mighty Tigers and Mighty Mukuru Wanderers fighting on the touchline in full view of the referee, but no cards were shown to the people involved in the fight.
He also questioned as to how a referee in the same match would flash two yellow cards to the same player who refused to go out.
“This is in the Super League of Malawi. It is not Kenya or South Africa. It is Malawi. Officials from two teams engaged themselves in a physical fight, but no cards flashed. This is not De Jongh, who was only seeking clarification from the referee, he is given marching orders.
“In the same match, the same player is given two yellow cards, but he is not sent out. Now I hear referees association demanding for my suspension for simply seeking clarification, yet the same referees can not do things correctly? So I should remain silent when things are going astray?”
“I will not remain silent, I won’t be quiet until football changes in Malawi. There is unfair, so why should I be watching wrong things? I will not remain quiet,” he said.
On his booking on Sunday, De Jongh feels his sending off was harsh and unfortunate, considering that he was within the rules of the game.
“I got sent off last weekend for two incidences where firstly at half time i approached the referee to ask as to why they never added time at the lapse of the first 45 minutes and secondly i was booked for lodging a complaint on an offside situation. If you look at the two incidences, I was only trying to ask what could have helped my team do well. I do respect referees, match officials, the media, and all stakeholders involved in the game, but all i look forward to is fair play”, he added.
He also took a swipe at the media for not writing about the incidences that happened at Mpira Stadium.
“A player is given two yellow cards, but he is not sent off. Officials from two teams fight in full view of the referee, but they were never sent off, but then you read about me in the papers instead of talking about what happened at Mpira Stadium, is that fair? I thought you should have published that, but nothing was written. I respect everyone, but the media should also be fair,” he continued.
He was also quick to defend his comments made about the condition of Mzuzu Stadium, in which he said, “Even his dog can not play on that surface.”
“If I ask you, is the stadium fit to host matches? Chimwemwe Idana, one of the best players, was afraid to play there because of the poor condition of the pitch. I made fair comments about the facility. It’s not fit to host games. You saw it, we all saw it, there was nothing wrong with what I said,” he further explained.
The Central Bankers were scheduled to play Tigers on Saturday but the game has been canceled by Super League of Malawi due to Kamuzu day celebrations on Saturday at Bingu National Stadium in which they will face FCB Nyasa Big Bullets and De Jongh says he is looking forward to the game.
“My team is in great shape after our match last week. The confidence levels are high, and we are in great spirits. I must say there are good teams in the league, and each match is very different. We respect each and every opponent. The team we are to play is made of youngsters who are strong on the ball, and they are a very good opponent.”
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