When Tanzania scored the equalizer it was cancelled on grounds that one of the players was offside. The players first attacked one of the assistant referees whom they accused of frustrating their scoring chances.
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Some CECAFA officials seen intervening to contain the chaotic scenes on the pitch.
Tanzania's U-20 women’s match against Ethiopia was on Wednesday thrown into
chaos after Tanzanian players protested the cancellation of their last-minute goal.
The first half ended in a goalless draw. In the second half, Ethiopia's goals
were scored by Mesay Temesgen and Nyabouny Yien, whereas, Tanzania's goal was
scored by Clara Luvanga.
However, when Tanzania scored the equalizer it was cancelled by referee Darlene Nduwayo on grounds that
one of the players was offside. The
players first attacked one of the assistant referees whom they accused of
frustrating their scoring chances.
However, after the game ended, the players still attacked the referees and
CECAFA officials stormed the pitch to calm the players.
The players were escorted to their bus but, they continued to hurl insults at the
match officials.
Tanzania's head coach, Bakari Shime says that the tournament has been
characterized by poor match officiating, which underscores the quality of women
football played within the CECAFA region.
Shime who condemns the conduct of his players says that they were carried away
by emotions due to poor officiating.
"They are human beings too who can also get offended and
easily react emotionally in the face of injustices committed against them,
therefore, I was incapacitated to block them from expressing how they felt at
that particular moment," he says.
Shime however expressed hope that his team is still part of the title
contenders and he will engage the players on anger management ahead of the
remaining games.
Ethiopia's head coach, Firew Hailegebral says that his team has
exhibited improvement in their first three appearances and he is optimistic
that they can manage to win this year's CECAFA title.
