It’s harsh to say Ntwari is a bad keeper – Tovey

Having leaked 11 goals from seven matches across the league and the Carling Knockout by now, new Kaizer Chiefs goalkeeper Fiacre Ntwari is already under scrutiny, with many fans – especially on social media – questioning his ability and competence.

However, legendary Chiefs defender Neil Tovey has leapt to Ntwari’s defence, insisting it was too early to conclude that Rwanda’s No 1 was not good enough for the Soweto giants, who have had renowned shot-stoppers like Brian Baloyi, Rowen Fernandez and Itumeleng Khune, among others.

“It’s quite harsh to say the keeper hasn’t done well so far. He had not done too badly up until the Sundowns game [where they lost 4-0 in the Carling Knockout quarterfinals on Saturday]. It's quite harsh to start criticising him now,” Tovey told Sowetan on Tuesday.

“Yes, he should be keeping more clean sheets, but you can’t blame it [that he’s kept just one clean sheet from seven games] only on him. There are a lot of factors in him failing to keep clean sheets... Remember they’ve also scored a lot of goals [12 in seven games], so it means their approach leaves them open at the back when they attack. It’s normal.”

Tovey reasoned most goals Chiefs have conceded so far were due to a “lack of communication” among defenders. “The team is in a rebuilding phase, so they’re bound to have challenges like lack of communication at the back, where the combination is new. I think most of the goals they've conceded are due to lack of communication and organisation at the back,” he said.

Meanwhile, on Tuesday Chiefs released a statement to apologise for their fans' behaviour in Saturday’s 0-4 drubbing by Sundowns, where there were a few pitch-invasion incidents with missiles also being pelted at match officials by their angry supporters.

“Kaizer Chiefs would like to sincerely apologise to all our stakeholders, sponsors, the PSL, Safa, and our loyal supporters for the disappointing incidents witnessed on Saturday during the Carling Knockout Cup quarterfinal match against Sundowns,” Chiefs' statement read.

“While it was a beautiful day for football, it was unfortunately marred by behaviour that has no place in our beloved game. The invasion of the pitch and the throwing of missiles onto the field are completely unacceptable.”

Ntwari's games at Chiefs so far (league unless stated)

September 14:  Gallants 1-2 Chiefs

September 25:  AmaZulu 1-3 Chiefs

September 28: Chiefs 1-2 Sundowns

October 19: SuperSport 0-4 Chiefs (Carling first round)

October 26: SuperSport 1-0 Chiefs

October 30: Magesi 2-2 Chiefs

November 2: Chiefs 0-4 Downs (Carling quarterfinal)

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