Middendorp Calls For Round-Table On Officiating

The Urban Warriors remain rooted to the bottom of the table following a 1-0 defeat to Mamelodi Sundowns, their third consecutive loss. The contentious nature of the defeat, fueled by a controversial penalty awarded to Sundowns, only served to amplify Middendorp's frustrations.

Choosing not to seek clarification from officials at half-time, Middendorp took aim at the South African Football Association (SAFA) in his post-match press conference.

"I read a lot from the technical director of SAFA, it's ok it's probably he's right and I've said it before, the quality of coaching should be better, more qualifications, more licences, no doubt about it. But who the hell is talking about crippling games, crippling the level of (talking about) referees?" Middendorp told the media post-match in a press conference.

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"Making it more professional, talking about making it more relevant, whose talking about this department? I think if you talk about crippling players, games, and clubs, I think we should really open a discussion," added Middendorp.

Middendorp highlighted the recent complaints from Orbit College, a team in the Motsepe Foundation Championship, further emphasizing officiating concerns in South Africa.

"It's not only me, I read it from Orbit, I read it from other teams consequently and I decided at half-time not to waste my energy with any decisions with these neutral people on the field," stated the former Kaizer Chiefs and Maritzburg United coach.