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24 July 2004
How bad can a referee get?
The box score: SJ 2, NE 2. Both of the Quakes' goals at 90+ minutes. Dayak
ejected for "serious foul play" and Donovan cautioned (and later
suspended) for getting on the ref's case. They say he threw a finger, and
probably he did, although I saw the ref whipping out his card on seeing the
Golden Boy applauding the linesman sarcastically for not calling back the final
goal.
Just when you think referees in the MLS can't get worse, a new low point is
reached. The report from the second row of section 107, with a fine look at
events in question is this:
- Dayak was shoving at Franchino in the box, true. Franchino was shoving at
Dayak. I was watching them in particular, given that they had been going at it
pretty well and the ref had given them a stern lecture not 30 seconds
previously. I didn't see any elbow get thrown, nothing more than what happens
every time someone goes up for a header in the box, but I could believe it of
Dayak. Didn't see it, but I could believe it. And given said stern
lecture, Dayak was asking for trouble, and a yellow (for persistent misconduct,
if nothing else) was warranted. A straight red seemed very harsh indeed, but
it is something Dayak seems to be making a habit of in his first game back from
injury, and frankly if he hadn't been sent off the Quakes would probably have
sleep-walked through the rest of the game too.
- The referee blew the call on DeRosario's first goal three times over.
Here's how it played out:
Franchino threw a deliberate elbow at Mullen's head, sending him
sprawling. Under the principle previously established, and for the fact that he
was generally laying waste to everyone in sight, Franchino should have been
sent off right there. The AR frantically waved his flag to report this gross
infraction to the CR, who (a) should have seen the infraction himself, it was
so blatant, and (b) should have seen the AR and made an advantage/no advantage
decision then and there. I was watching the CR the whole time so see when, if
ever, he would acknowledge the foul. He didn't look at the AR until DeRosario's
shot was past the goalkeeper. At this point he blows his whistle and starts
back upfield to acknowledge the goal. After several steps, he notices the AR,
mainly because New England defenders are whining at him and they all apparently
labour under the fond delusion that it was an offside call. So CR trots over to
AR to chat about the weather. It is at this point that fate takes a diabolical
turn and the ref's mind wandered into a poppy field: (1) he calls back the goal
and (2) he doesn't give the red.
- I would have sworn DeRosario was a step offside on the second goal and I
was looking straight at him as the play developed saying "get onside, get
onside". My son says he was played on by someone on the far side. Mebbe
so.
Capsule summary: I'd say that the ref robbed us of two points and a burrito,
but the Quakes didn't start playing until they got mad about the one-two punch
of the sending off and the blown call on the goal. Memo to Quakes: Next Game,
Start Mad. Memo to Dom: Next Game, Start DeRo.
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