Nedbank Cup: Fans Divided As Orlando Pirates Earn Penalty Against Sekhukhune Utd

Nedbank Cup: Fans Divided As Orlando Pirates Earn Penalty Against Sekhukhune Utd

Byron Pillay
updated at May 27, 2023 at 6:50 PM
In this article:
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  • Sekhukhune United players and coach were upset after Orlando Pirates were awarded a penalty
  • Victor Letsoalo was adjudged to have grabbed the ball in the penalty box, which led to the spot kick
  • Thembinkosi Lorch earned praise from fans for his quick thinking but others believe it was sneaky

The Nedbank Cup final will be remembered for one big moment; Orlando Pirates’ penalty.

The Buccaneers trailed Sekhukhune United before the halftime break but were awarded a spot kick, which many felt was a bad call.

Victor Letsoalo, Thembinkosi Lorch, Orlando Pirates, Sport, Sekhukhune United, Nedbank Cup, Final, Goal
Victor Letsoalo and Thembinkosi Lorch were involved in a big talking point during the Nedbank Cup final, and fans are divided over who was at fault. Image: @TiyiBevhula/ @iDiskiTimes
Source: Twitter

The penalty was awarded after Pirates’ man Thembinkosi Lorch tried to dribble his way in the box, and appeared to kick the ball against the hand of a Sekhukhune player who was injured on the ground.

The referee immediately pointed to the spot, leaving many Babina Noko players infuriated.

Replays showed that the player, Victor Letsoalo, reached out to touch the ball to stop the game, but didn’t make contact with the ball.

Coach Brandon Truter also showed his frustration as he believed that Lorch deliberately kicked the ball against Letsoalo to earn the penalty.

While many of social media agreed with him, others felt that Letsoalo was the guilty party.

Here's how fans reacted to the incident:

@NgobEzakhebu:

“He tried to reach the ball. I also saw that the ball never touched his hand at all. And it’s not the referee to judge a penalty, it was the linesman.”

@Harvey_Bongz:

“The Ref has ruined the game!!”

@Bashinda:

“Sekhukhune you're on your own Pirates is playing with 12 men ngo ref.”

@innocentdeyi:

“This was a Sekhukhune foul in the first place, but what can we say, this is Pirates. Throughout the tournament they have been benefiting from the poor refereeing.”

@andile_mnqobi:

“Penalty, he reaches for the ball and makes contact.”

@Khumbu_M:

“Not even VAR can save SA Football.”

Terrence Dzvukamanja grabs late winner

Terrence Dzvukamanja is Orlando Pirates’ hero.

The forward scored a late goal to gift the Buccaneers the Nedbank Cup final in the last minute of the game.

Pirates and Sekhukhune United were level after 90 minutes and with six minutes of time added on, it looked like the final would be headed to extra time, Sports Brief reported.

Authors
Byron Pillay photo
Byron Pillay
Byron Pillay is a sports writer and Head of the Department at Sports Brief (joined in 2022) with over 10 years of experience in community journalism and a degree in journalism from Caxton's Cadet School.
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