I can't tell. I watched it a few times but couldn't tell what happened. Sub graphic went up and player went on. Then I counted 11 red shirts (plus GK).
Red was really good. Penalty was really good (yeah, he got a touch, but he fouled him)--though is that only not DOGSO because of the angle? All the actual considerations/conditions were met. Thought all the cautions I've seen on the MLS site were good, even if the first one on KC was just a "control" card. Potential, yes. But I'm not sure his histrionics are going to go over well with the players in the league. I felt he was over-the-top with both the penalty award and the red card--and even in his body language for a couple of of the yellows. This may sound nuts, but I see a little Marco Rodriguez in him. He's going to get almost everything "right," but he may have to tone it down to succeed in the league and be able to manage a match. Just my first impression, of course.
Have all the Newbies this past week done a good job? I haven't heard of anything terrible, just the veterans making mistakes. Also maybe the players will appreciate his histrionics...since they're prone to it themselves
I've only seen highlights and heard things second-hand, so I might be going out on a limb, but I don't think Fotis Bazakos had a good game. Everything does look and seem like Stoica and Rivero did well, though.
He missed a red card with Scott if that was his game yeah. Other than that though I didn't hear anything too much about that game. The Seattle fans were happy at least.
This, of course, brings up an interesting question that rarely gets discussed. We, as referees, can pick apart 90-minute performances and make an overall judgment as to the quality of officiating. But how many "game-critical" calls can one referee get wrong in a game before it becomes possible to overcome? One? Two? Three's no way it can be three! So he missed a blatant, clear-as-day red card (for me, what made it worse was how adamant and forceful he was with the Dallas players about his decision). If that's it, and for the sake of argument's sake he managed the rest of the match well, can we still say he had a good match?
For you yeah clear-as-day red card...I totally get that. For the average MLS referee? I mean just look at what they've been letting people get away with.
I understand the general point you're making but I'm going to be honest--I think that's the worst actual true tackle we've seen this year (not an elbow or stomp or lunge).
So, errr. yeah. just ignore this post. lol. Me playing CSA Referee Committee didn't go to well. I wont say who the crew is because it isn't published yet, but yeah, La Rikardo might actually be from Canada......
I SEE dittmar strikes again. How does he do it. opening 2 stadiums in 1 year and he is not that good of an AR. I guess since he is in the league he can get away with the wrong mechanics and use of wrong hand
You know what I've decided I hate? The part of the MLSSoccer.com game preview that shows how many games, reds, and PKs a referee has had. If it's a referee's first game, announcers and biased media will use it as an excuse to look for everything they can to find fault in the referee's performance. If someone decides the referee's ratio of reds or PKs to games is too high, they'll use that to find fault in a referee if he happens to give a red or PK. It's crap.
I disagree and I think that sort of attitude contributes to the low opinion and lack of respect referees have. The reasons for the obsrevation might be different and a bit nuanced, but it doesn't take a referee to know when a referee is struggling and overs his head.
You're going to have a tough time convincing anyone besides a referee that the media don't have business evaluating a referee's performance.
I agree, but if an uneducated observer knows that a referee is in his first MLS game, he'll be quicker to start bashing on a referee's performance than he would otherwise. The stats need not play a role.
I completely disagree with this statement. The top referees are putting themselves out there - the players, coaches, owners, and league administrators put their trust in the referees. Every person involved in the sport has 'business' evaluating a referee's performance.
There are some things that some people just don't understand though. You can see that with the players who become commentators and spout ridiculousness ever week.
If that were the case then referee assignments would be done by popular vote among interested parties. Instead, referee assignments are made by people who are directly involved with formal evaluation of referees. Peter Vermes' comment about Rivero's red to Espinoza was obviously ridiculous and incorrect but it was almost certainly biased by the fact that this was Rivero's first MLS game. A San Jose commentator felt the second caution in Allen Chapman's first game, which was an easy call, wasn't even a foul. Jason Kreis said he considered pulling his team off the field after Bazakos' DOGSO-F red to Olave against San Jose. Maybe if these people would show themselves to be a little bit more mature and knowledgeable about refereeing I'd be more inclined to accept what they have to say. But most of them are clueless about most things pertaining to referees. These guys need to worry more about the game at hand and less about referees.
I think the point La Rikardo was trying to make is that the announcers might know a lot about players and coaches and the like, just from being around the game. Stats, at that point, color opinion that has been formed through direct observation. But with referees, very few announcers and media pay enough attention to individual referees to form specific personal opinions on them. So the stats aren't helping to accentuate or color an opinion--they are just immediately relied upon whenever something controversial comes up because the announcers don't have more in-depth analysis. You hear something like this, in at least one game, every week. I get La Rikardo's frustration. I also agree that we're a stats-based sporting culture and providing them is inevitable. So other than just saying something like "I wish announcers paid more attention to referees so they were more informed before they start spouting off based solely on stats," I don't think it's much to get worked up over.
Folks, MLS (and all professional soccer) is a business. An entertainment business. Lions v Christians. David v Goliath. Everyone involved, from the league, the team management, coaches, players and reporters want things stirred up. If people think the games are dull, people don't watch the games. In the old NASL (Pele, Beckenbauer, et al.), the league actually asked the referees to give more cards because they felt it made the games more dramatic. If you choose to be involved in professional sports in any way, including as an official, you are going to be criticized by anybody and everybody. It just goes with the territory, but you also have to keep your head about you and not worry about what some commentator says.