Arrows hit back after being robbed of goal

ELEVEN Arrows could have suffered their most brutal loss to Sport Klub Windhoek (SKW) if they had not gone on to win 6-5 on penalties in the semi-final match of the Cell One NFA Cup on Saturday.

Orlando Pirates beat Ramblers 3-2 to book themselves a spot in the final.They will meet Arrows in Windhoek on June 27.Arrows were unfairly punished for a clear goal through a lovely header by striker Muna Katupose, which was disallowed in a rather questionable and controversial manner.Referee Reinhold Shikongo first awarded the goal scored in the last minute of extra-time in the second half, but decided to call it off after his assistant David Shaanika requested an audience while the Arrows players and supporters celebrated.Apparently Shaanika informed him that the ball hit the side netting and should not be allowed. But that decision was wrong as Katupose clearly elevated himself to send a snap flicker past goalkeeper Sven Wiedenroth The clear goal was also witnessed by several sports journalists who camped behind the SKW goal at that point.The decision once again exposed poor judgement and a high level of incompetence on the part of Namibian referees and their assistants.That decision by the two men surely goes down as the biggest blunder in domestic football this year and that cost Arrows a clear win.But they were indeed compensated for the unfairness after all their players slotted their five allotted penalties before the agile Virgil Vries produced a stunning safe to win the match.Vries, who kept his side in contention for most of the first half after being under attack by SKW, dived in the right direction to save Gunther von Hundelshausen’s shot.The win now puts Arrows into the final of the lucrative cup competition despite a below-par match in normal time that ended 0-all.PIRATES ‘LIVEN’ UP Orlando Pirates set the house on fire with their scintillating performance to oust a determined Ramblers side in normal playing time. Even veteran defender Mohamed Ouseb produced his old sparkle and was rewarded with a goal, while the other two came via Klaas Blom and Samson John.Pirates put attacked mercilessly and looked the better side in midfield, while the counter-attacks by Ramblers did not work out cleverly.But Ramblers did not fail to score as their captain Nelson Akwenye scored through a penalty, while counter-attack specialist, Jeremia Baisako, headed in from close range.The match was such that the thousands of Pirates supporters had everything to cheer about as they dish out some excellent football in a long time.Ramblers hanged in there, but the pressure from the Buccaneers was just too much and could not keep up with the pace.The two sides clashed in a league match last weekend and Ramblers won 2-1, but this time, Pirates were simply in a commanding form. But credit should also go to Ramblers who gave a good fight to bring the best out of Pirates. corry@namibian.com.na