The following articles are made up of excerpts from pupils at Grafton Primary School.
The result of last week’s African Cup of Nations (AFCON) final in Rabat has been overturned by the Confederation of African Football (CAF).
On January 18th Senegal were declared champions of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) final, after a challenging game held in Rabat, Morocco.
The result has since been overturned by the confederation of African football (CAF).
Senegalese players were angry after referee Jean-Jacques Ndala awarded Morocco a penalty which caused Senegal’s head coach to lead his team off the pitch. They stayed off the pitch for 17 minutes.
Brahim Diaz took his penalty in a chipped Panenka style and missed.The match ended when Pape Gueye of Senegal scored in the final minutes.
Two months later on 18th March, CAF decided to award the winning trophy to Morocco because article 82 states that any team leaving the pitch before the final whistle will be eliminated from the tournament.
Patrice Motsepe, the President of the Confederation of African Football has decided that Senegal will be stripped of its victory and Morocco will be declared the winners with a 3-0 victory.
The Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) said: “We welcome the decision of the CAF appeal board which confirmed that competition regulations were not properly enforced during the match.”
Agreeing with the FRMF, Edwin Fairbrother, after school clubs director at Grafton Primary School said: “I think it's ultimately right according to the rules.” Commenting on whether it was right for Senegal to protest, Fairbrother added: “'No, I do not think it was right, mainly because it's up to the referee.”
The Secretary General of the Senegalese Football Federation, Abdoulaye Seydou Sow, says it's “unfair, unprecedented and unacceptable which casts a shadow over African football.
Nasra Saleebaan, a teacher and avid football fan said: “The CAF decision to strip Senegal of the AFCON cup title is unjust. I watched them lift the cup and they deserved to win because they played with integrity, unlike the Moroccan side.”
Senegal has appealed to the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) and they have been given 20 days to appeal.
This article is a very newsworthy story that includes lots of detail and interesting quotations from relevant people. Congratulations!
The AFCON final result, that occurred in Rabat, was overturned by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) last week.
On January 18th Senegal were declared champions at the AFCON final held in Rabat.
Following a dramatic fall out between the two finalists Senegal and Morocco. Senegalese players, with the encouragement of their coach, Pape Thiaw, left the pitch in protest after a last minute Moroccan penalty. Morocco accepted the penalty, which Brahim Diaz missed with his Panenka style of penalty. Therefore the game was given extra time when Pape Gueye from the Senegal team scored the winning goal.
58 days later CAF stripped Senegal of the AFCON title because Senegal did not follow the rules and broke Article 82 which stipulates that if a team leaves the pitch their opponents will be awarded a 3-0 win. Morocco have now been declared winners of the AFCON.
There have been several different reactions to this shocking decision, some agree, and some are angry. The Secretary General of Senegalese Football Federation (FSF), Abdoulaye Seydou Sow, said: "This is an unfair, unprecedented and unacceptable decision which casts a shadow over African football."
The Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) commented: "We welcome the decision of the CAF appeal board which confirmed that competition regulations were not properly enforced during the match."
Edwin Fairbrother, after school club director at Grafton said: "I think it was ultimately right according to the rules." Commenting on whether it was right of Senegal to protest the penalty, he added: "No I don’t think that was right, mainly because it is up to the referee."
On the other hand, Nasra Saleebaan, Grafton school teacher, said: "The CAF decision to strip Senegal of the AFCON title is unjust. I watched them lift the cup and they deserved the win because they played with integrity unlike the Moroccan side."
Senegal has officially sent their appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and are now waiting for an answer.
This story makes great use of the 5Ws and solid quotations. Great work everyone!
The AFCON final result, which occurred in Rabat, Morocco at the Moulay Abdellah Stadium, was overturned by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) last week.
On January 18th, Senegal were declared winners of the AFCON final which came to a dramatic end when Senegal scored a disallowed goal, then walked off the pitch in protest at a last second Moroccan penalty, which Morocco missed, forcing them into extra time with a score of 0-0.
When Senegal returned to the pitch, a Moroccan player Brahim Diaz missed his Panenka style penalty. Senegal’s Pape Gueye scored the winning goal.
58 days later, CAF stripped Senegal of the title and awarded Morocco a 3-0 win. There are many mixed feelings about this decision, some positive and some negative.
Abdoulaye Seydou Sow, Secretary General of Senegalese Football (FSF) stated: "It was an ‘unfair, unprecedented and unacceptable decision which casts a shadow over African football."
Nasra Saleebaan, an avid football viewer, is against it. She said: "The CAF decision to strip Senegal of the AFCON title is unjust. I watched them lift the cup and they deserved the win because they played with integrity, unlike the Moroccan side."
On the other hand, Frank Murray-Brown, a teacher at Grafton and a football lover agreed with the decision and stated: "I agree with the decision. It showed bad sportsmanship to walk off the pitch in the middle of the match. We need to respect referees and their decision."
Senegal have officially sent their appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and are now waiting for a response.
This article is newsworthy with lots of detail and interesting quotations from relevant people. Congratulations!
