Hlungwani says Sundowns penalty should have been ruled out in MTN8 final

Former Premier Soccer League referee Victor Hlungwani says Orlando Pirates were wrongly penalised after a controversial late decision in their MTN8 Final defeat by Mamelodi Sundowns.

Mamelodi Sundowns won 2-0 at a packed Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, with Teboho Mokoena opening the scoring before Iqraam Rayners converted a stoppage-time penalty.

The spot-kick, awarded by match official Abongile Tom, became the defining talking point after the referee judged that Mokobodi had been fouled. Hlungwani, now a television analyst, believes the incident should have been stopped earlier because of an infringement by Sundowns attacker Siyanda Ndlovu.

Speaking on SoccerZone, Hlungwani said Tom failed to identify the initial offence in a sequence that led to the penalty.

“We see Mokobodi falling down and a penalty is given,” Hlungwani said.

“When we go step by step, we see that Ndlovu is holding [Mokobodi]. Okay, holding him as no impact, fine. Then what does he do? He stamps on him as he is trying to move, even on the hand. So an offence has been committed already, where the referee should have killed it there.

“So the referee saw him jump, but he did not see the stomping there. You can’t stamp on someone’s hand. So here a penalty was given, an incorrect decision.”

Hlungwani’s assessment means the late penalty, which allowed Sundowns to confirm victory, should not have been awarded. He argued that the referee focused on the later contact and missed the action that had already brought the incident into question.

The decision came in the closing stages, when Pirates were already trailing, meaning the error was unlikely to have changed the outcome of the match.

Sundowns’ victory delivered their second MTN8 trophy since the competition became part of the PSL era. The result also denied Orlando Pirates the chance to win the trophy for a historic fifth consecutive time.

The final defeat adds to the controversy surrounding a match in which Sundowns ultimately secured a comfortable scoreline, despite the late officiating decision becoming the main focus after the final whistle.