Zinnbauer cries foul as Orlando Pirates' penalty claim vs Swallows FC was denied

Orlando Pirates head coach Josef Zinnbauer says his side should have been awarded a penalty against Swallows FC on Sunday afternoon.

The Buccaneers were held to a 1-1 draw by the Beautiful Birds in a Premier Soccer League (PSL) match which saw Zinnbauer's side denied what could have been the decisive opportunity to break the deadlock.

Frank Mhango sent a through pass to Fortune Makaringe‚ who bust into the Swallows box, but he was brought down by Tlakusani Mthethwa's challenge in the second-half. 

However, the match referee Jelly Chavani booked Makaringe for diving and Zinnbauer was disappointed by the officiating after Deon Hotto was also wrongfully ruled out for offside. 

"Clear penalty. Then Hotto in the last five minutes. Never, never offside. Then we had another chance for Hotto," Zinnbauer told SuperSport TV. 

"It was also unlucky. The weather. He was sliding. When you concede in the last minute, it's very disappointing."

The German tactician was also unhappy with the state of the playing surface as the two teams played on a pitch which was severely waterlogged throughout. 

"The first half was a problem with the field. It's very wet and it's not easy for the players," he continued. 

"We normally want more possession when we play at home. With this weather, it's not possible. The ball was stopping on the pitch."

Zinnbauer was also disappointed to see his side concede in stoppage time when Kamohelo Mahlatsi cancelled out Ben Motshwari's opener. 

"We had more opportunities. Swallows are a good team. I think we had to wait for a solution and possibilities to score. What's important is the result at the end of the day," he added. 

"The weather is not normal. It was not normal. You have to adapt to this field. I don't know how many times in the season you have such a field. I think it's not a lot of times.

"You have to adapt to this and then you can score. We scored first but we didn't defend enough in this moment and you give the points away."

Pirates will be in action on Wednesday as they take on Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila (TTM) in a PSL match at Thohoyandou Stadium on Wednesday.