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The Absa Premiership is under way, but some of us are being left behind, especially when it comes to the rules of the game. So we need to spruce up our knowledge – fast – before we fight over nothing.
So, following Kaizer Chiefs’ win over Black Leopards last weekend, tweeters went on a mini meltdown with questions about the legitimacy of that victory.
At the centre of the debate was the fact that Chiefs fielded four players who were not South African.
Amakhosi had Lazarous Kambole, Daniel Akpeyi, Leonardo Castro and Samir Nurkovic in their starting line-up. Supporters demanded to know how many foreigners are allowed in the starting line-up.
Detractors were quick to call for points to be deducted from Chiefs – but they hadn’t first checked the rules.
This raised the stress levels of some die-hard Amakhosi supporters, who could not imagine losing three points after such a hard-fought victory.
Some fans even had nasty words for the technical team, accusing them of not knowing the rules and regulations of the league.
But all they needed was a quick check of the NSL handbook on foreign players, which is clear on the issue: “A member club may not have more than five foreign players contracted with it at any point in time. A member club in the Premier Division may field any number of its registered foreign players in any particular match.
“A member club in the NFD may include a maximum of three of its registered foreign players in the starting line-up for each match.
“This restriction will not be applicable during matches in the NFD qualification competition, the knockout competition, which involves both the Premier Division and NFD member clubs, the promotion play-off or any replacement competitions.”
Knowledge of this rule would have put the matter to rest even before it started.
All the debate on social media got me thinking.
How much do supporters of the beautiful game actually know about the rules? Not much, I bet.
This is a bad reflection on all the stakeholders – the media, clubs and the PSL.
We are all to blame for this as we are not doing enough to educate the supporters, particularly when the rules change.
For many years, clubs were not allowed to field more than three foreign players but this rule has was amended on November 15 2016.
Unfortunately, some supporters were left behind and are still in the dark about the change, hence their misplaced calls for Chiefs to be punished.
It does not augur well for our league when issues that could easily be settled drag on and on.
Isn’t it time to educate each other regarding the football rules, just to refresh our knowledge of the game?
As much as the new amendments are posted on the PSL website, the onus is on the league and all stakeholders to make sure they filter through to the paying customers.
When there are amendments to the Fifa laws of the game, match officials visit clubs – so we are told – to keep them abreast of the latest developments. I think a platform should be created to inform and educate supporters as well so that they can argue from an informed point of view.
How often have we seen coaches and players alike arguing with match officials about certain decisions because they are ignorant of the rules?
Sometimes their behaviour incites supporters to go on tirades, but they also do not know the rules or how to interpret the laws of the game.
A good example would be last year’s controversy around Mamelodi Sundowns fielding Wayne Arendse, who initially was not on the match-day line-up.
The case dragged on and almost brought the league into disrepute.
The rules state: “Changes to the team sheet may be made at any time prior to the start of the match provided that the opposing team’s captain, the referee and the match commissioner are informed.”
But what happens when those tasked with making sure that these rules are adhered to don’t even know about them?
We cannot have a situation where the blind are leading the blind when it comes to the rules of the game.
The Chiefs incident is the best opportunity for us to start educating and informing the supporters about any changes. After all, it has to start somewhere.
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