Maybe he was referring to this one which occurred in 2010 against the Galaxy I think the ref screwed up on both of them, and as we all know, two wrongs don't make a right.
I agree. It assumes that being good at soccer is a necessary condition for being good at reffing soccer. Playing and reffing are related, but are not identical. This would be similar to requiring players to have reffed at a high level before playing in MLS (although, that doesn't sound like a bad idea for some guys).
I'd rather nix a few guys who have been good in order to wash out the garbage that mostly populates the PRO reffing contingent. So we lose some guys like Geiger, but in the long run we'd gain guys who could at least have a higher level of respect from the players as a result of the refs having a higher level of experience playing the game. That's got to be the #1 problem right now, you can tell there is a complete lack of respect towards the officials from players and if Dunny is to be believed it's because the players don't see them as piers on the field from "being able to play the game" point of view. I think long run the league would benefit greatly from having refs who have at least experienced playing the game at a higher competitive level than whatever ayso or high school field they last played on. If a ref doesn't have the experience of playing at a high pace in a high pressure situation how can you expect him to consistently be able to control a high pace professional game? From a fan experience, watching the game, it seems that most PRO refs have big problems with consistency and dealing with the pace of game. Things get out of their control and they become whistle happy and ruin the game.
They don't have to be "good" at it, but they have to have the experience of PLAYING in those situations. I don't understand how one could be expected to administer/control a situation without have the experience of being/playing in that situation. My boss certainly wouldn't be able to guide me as an employee doing research without having been in my position and learned the things that I need to do.
Looking at the list of referees who have been in the center for the World Cup final only two of them make mention of a professional playing career. Nikolay Latyshev, who was in the center for the '62 final between Brazil and Czechoslovakia, played for 3 Russian teams before being a ref. George Reader, in the center for the '50 final between Uruguay and Brazil, had 4 appearances for Exeter City and Southampton between 1919 and 1921. So I would suggest to Dunny and the players that maybe the problem isn't with the officials, its with their own attitudes and they need to get over it.
That's the problem. The new law doesn't require possession. It requires the defense to make a deliberate play on the ball. And even that is pretty vague. Dunny discussed on OnFrame that opening your hips is considered making a deliberate play. Watch Olave again. When the ball is shot he opens his hips, shifts his weight, and his foot is in a trapping/deflection position. He moved out of the way of the shot. If he would've stood his ground I don't think the ref would've ruled the play the same as he did. Beckerman also lunged for the ball after it spilled through Olave's legs, and then he slid to kick the ball away from Wondo. The slide shouldn't count in this scenario, and the replay isn't clear enough to tell if Beckerman gets a touch on the ball when he lunges for it. Whether or not it is a bang-bang play, the new rule leaves enough gray area for the ref to have to make a judgement call in a split second. This is a perfect example of why the refs should be required to talk to the media and explain what they saw.
It's a terrible new rule. You're basically telling a defender to basically avoid the ball entirely. If anything, it gives the offense reason to just leave a player offsides, and just blast it towards the defense, since any decent defender will know they need to try and defend it, which means they 'deliberately' played the ball. The rule just opens a can of worms, because it's too vague. The ball is kicked into Olave. He didn't even react and start to turn until the ball hit him, which is going to be a pretty natural motion. He didn't lunge for it. He didn't kick a leg out or anything. The ball hits him, which is when he starts to turn, and by then the ball is already moving past him. How is that even remotely 'deliberate'? And how is Beckerman even a factor in all of that? I can't even tell if he got the ball or not, but once again, he's supposed to just stand there and let Wondo take a free shot? That's a load of crap.
I like that this happened right after this goal was scored by Everton against Man United We've created a damned if you do, damned if you don't scenario for a defender.