Township Rollers veteran player Joel Mogorosi has been slapped with three match suspensions and also charged money amounting to P5 000 after the Premier League disciplinary committee found him guilty of using offensive language against match official, Gilbert Leteane.

Mogorosi was said to have used offensive language towards Leteane shortly after he was carried off the stadium in a stretcher after he sustained a broken leg injury on October 22 when his team played against premier league rookies Sharps Shooting Stars.  The former Senior National Team captain has been given a total of 10 working days to lodge an appeal if he so wishes.

Prior to his downfall, Mogorosi was the assistant captain to defensive midfielder Maano Ditshupo. It is not clear if the player, experienced as he is, will out rightly resume his duties when he returns to the field of play. His verdict was passed approximately two weeks after his coach Nikola Kavazovic was equally found guilty on a single count of dragging the name of football into disrepute. He was charged P10 00 for contravening article 25.6 of BFA play rules and regulations, a verdict he said he would not appeal. The BPL disciplinary committee said the Serbian born coach used demeaning words towards Sharps when he allegedly said he did not even know its name.

Mogorosi who is believed to be healing from a fractured leg faced four charges of misconduct, to which the player pleaded guilty almost immediately when he took the stand in October. The premier league prosecutors dropped the first two charges with the conviction that they technically carried the same sentence.  

The first count that Mogorosi faced was misconduct against the match official which contravened Article 49 of the BFA disciplinary code of 2016 as read with article 25.6 of the BFA play rules and regulations. The words he said to the match official, Gilbert Leteane have been seen by WeekendSport and therefore can only reveal they are obscene. On the second count, Mogorosi was charged for making damaging statements against BFA match officials contrary to article 14.3 of the BFA play rules and regulations.

However, the prosecutor tried him on the last two counts on which the ruling relied upon. On the third count Mogorosi was charged for using abusive language against match officials contrary to article 14.4 of the BFA play rules and regulations. The last charge that Mogorosi had to answer was similar to that of his coach, Kavazovic. He was therefore nailed for bringing the game of football into disrepute, contravening article 25.6 of play rules and regulations. This charge relates to what the player posted on his facebook account minutes after the game played on October 22.

It was not clear by press time which games Mogorosi would miss. This is also because the player has yet to heal from his injury and be certified fit to go back on the field. Before encountering such a fall, Mogorosi was a strong earlier contender for the Premier League Golden Boot. He remains at four goals, three goals behind pace setter Keoagile Kobe. Mogorosi signed a 1 year contract with Rollers in June after the club nearly parted ways with him. He was linked with Sharps and Gaborone United but Rollers’ failure to recruit a competent replacement meant that his stay was extended by another year.