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The fracas that ensued during the ill-tempered league clash between Bidvest Wits and Cape Town City has come back to haunt Wits players Sameehg Doutie and Ricardo Goss.
The PSL on Thursday confirmed that it has instituted charges of misconduct against the duo after they allegedly assaulted referee Masixole Bambiso during the fixture that Wits lost 2-0 in Cape Town last Saturday.
Video footage from the match shows Doutie and Goss taking turns pushing Bambiso, who at the time was already surrounded by four more Wits players.
The two players face a possible a ban if found guilty.
According to the National Soccer League handbook’s Article 58 under “specific sanctions”, misconduct against a match official carries between a four-match to a six-month ban, depending on whether the offence is deemed unsporting conduct or assault.
The handbook states:
. In addition to the automatic suspension which may have been incurred in accordance with these rules, any person will be charged by the league, and on a conviction will, besides a fine, be suspended for:
. At least four matches for unsporting conduct towards a match official; and
. At least six months for assaulting a match official.
In November last year, the PSL disciplinary committee handed Cape Town City’s Mpho Makola a six-month ban for assaulting referee Abongile Tom.
The midfielder – who ironically featured in the games against Wits last weekend – had initially escaped with just a yellow card during his team’s Telkom Knockout last-16 loss to Kaizer Chiefs in October.
However, Makola successfully appealed his ban, which was subsequently overturned by the Safa appeals board and reduced to four matches after City argued that the charge of assault was harsh‚ and that misconduct was an appropriate sentence.
Makola returned to the field this month.
In the case of Wits, it will depend how Doutie and Ross will argue their case but their actions come at the time when their team needs no disruptions as the Clever Boys are still in contention in the Absa Premiership title race.
The Clever Boys are 10 points adrift of leaders Kaizer Chiefs but Wits still have three games in hand due to their participation in the CAF Confederation Cup.
