Johannesburg — The newly-appointed chairperson of the South African Football Association (Safa) national referees committee, Victor Gomes is set to bring law and order into the game.
Safa held its first national executive committee (NEC) meeting of the year at the Radisson Hotel and Convention Centre in OR Tambo, Johannesburg, yesterday.
Part and parcel of the meeting were the 47 NEC members, led by the mother body’s president Danny Jordaan and its chief executive Tebogo Motlanthe.
The gist of the meeting was to map plans for Safa’s Vision 2030 after the last circular, Vision 2022, came to an end after the World Cup in Qatar late last year.
Safa, though, said they also wanted to strengthen their refereeing department and put more focus on women's football by appointing heads in each department.
The head of women’s football is set to be announced in due course, but Jordaan was proud to unveil Gomes, who was in attendance, as the new boss of the referees after replacing Natasha Tsichlas.
Resplendent in a Fifa grey suit, crisp white jersey and blue tie with small national flags, Gomes flanked the Safa boss as he pledged to bring change to refereeing.
“It’s still early, but all I want to say is that the same effort and commitment that I brought on the field is the same that I will bring to this department, the association and our country,” Gomes explained.
Gomes wore his heart on his sleeve during his refereeing career as he took no prisoners, easily splashing out cards when necessary.
His refeering career that lasted for nearly two decades earned him continental and international stripes as he was a Caf and Fifa accredited referee.
Regarded as the beacon of refereeing in continental football, after his exploits in the World Cup in Qatar, Gomes' retirement shocked the fraternity last year.
“I think I need to give back to football,” Gomes said, on taking an early retirement. “God has provided me with this (administrative) opportunity to give back as well.
“I have officiated in every single match at the highest level (including the recent World Cup), so I have to give back to the next generation so that they can do better than I did.”
Gomes said he’ll work hard to curb the challenges that are facing Safa’s special member, the PSL, particularly the absence of the video assistant referee (VAR) system.
“Obviously, we will engage the relevant stakeholders and it is something that I have already addressed with the NEC. It's going to be on my priority list,” he said.
Safa hasn’t confirmed when the VAR system will be implemented as there are many steps that need to be taken before it can be all systems goes.
“We have spoken to Caf and Fifa (about our decision to implement VAR). So we have to deal with the question of training officials as well,” Motlanthe explained.
“We’ll then lay out the rollout plan, which will be taken to both Fifa and Caf, looking at how best do we train, who do we train and where should we train.
“We are looking at having a right to say who’ll train. But Victor has said that’s his No 1 priority. So the next time he calls you (the media) he’ll say where we are.”
IOL Sport