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Phunya Sele Sele has lost her refereeing hearing over a technicality that causes Masandawana to keep the Nedbank Cup trophy
Bloemfontein Celtic has lost the Premier Soccer League (PSL) refereeing hearing against Mamelodi Sundowns.
Phunya Sele Sele protested the eligibility of Sundowns defender Tebogo Langerman to participate in the Nedbank Cup final earlier this month.
Langerman collected five yellow cards before the final and the experienced player was suspended for the game played at Orlando Stadium in Soweto.
The match ended in a 1-0 victory for Sundowns with Langerman as an unused substitute.
The case was referred to urgent arbitration and Celtic have lost their hearing on a technicality over the late filing of their “protest.”
This was confirmed by Celtic CEO Khumbulani Konco when he spoke on Metro FM’s Marawa Sport worldwide Friday afternoon.
“The arbitration sat down and the referee said we should have filed a complaint 30 minutes before the game. We lost the case,” Konco said.
“I’m disappointed in PSL prosecutor Nande Becker. When it comes to other teams, he becomes a Lion, but when it comes to Sundowns he becomes a cat.”
The Sundowns are said to have admitted guilt for including a suspended player on their team sheet.
Becker oversaw a case involving Sundowns playmaker Gaston Sirino during the recent 2019/20 season.
Sirino only received a two-game suspension for hitting SuperSport United duo Dean Furman and Clayton Daniels during an MTN8 match in September 2019.
The Uruguayan player was also fined R75,000, of which R25,000 was suspended for 24 months.
In addition, the Sundowns were found guilty of discrediting the league and fined 200,000 rand, of which 150,000 rand were suspended for a period of 24 months.
Sirino scored the only goal of the match when Sundowns defeated Celtic to clinch the fifth Nedbank Cup a few weeks ago.
The victory saw Sundowns complete a hat-trick after winning the PSL title and the Telkom Knockout Cup in a single season.
While Celtic qualified for next season’s Caf Confederation Cup by virtue of being runner-up in the Nedbank Cup.
Sundowns will represent the country in the Caf Champions League after lifting their third PSL title.
