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You are here: Home / Open Threads / You be the referee

You be the referee

by | 61 Comments

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Watch this 15 second clip.

I just saw this clip. It will be on multiple clinics over the next three years as it is a great clip for a few things.

Now watch it again.

What do you have?

I have immense respect for the referee.

The referee has a good goal and a lot of problems to sort out.

The first thing to notice is that the referee was slow on the whistle. I have at least three fouls. The first challenge as the ball was received was iffy. #8 got a bit of a push/shove and then #20 tried to wreck the attacker. Each time, the referee waited to see what was going to happen. #19 Green just kept on advancing at speed and under control. So each time the referee held the whistle. Beautiful refereeing.

Now the first two challenges are either sloppy or cynical play. #8 was getting beat so she reached out with her arms to push and hopefully disrupt the attack. That could be a yellow. At this level of play I don’t think it is, but I could see it without a problem.

Now #20 is the interesting one. She is the last defender in proximity, she is losing the foot race and she gets desperate as the attacker is moving directly onto goal with the ball at her feet and entering prime scoring territory. She makes an extremely dangerous tackle. The ball is pushed away from the attackers’ feet before the tackle was made so there is no fair challenge on the ball. The first leg sweeps the attacker’s rear leg sending her to the ground and the trail leg comes in very high and contributes to pushing the attacker down.

This is an atrocious tackle anywhere on the field. The attacker had no ability to defend herself and the combination of a low-high impact point means this is a potential leg breaker. I would be a little less mad if both of the defender’s legs impacted on a single side of the attacker instead of capturing her leg in one position.

Yet the attacker got up and continued her attack past a half-hearted defensive attempt in the box and put the ball in the corner for a good goal. There is never a situation where taking the ball out of the back of the net advantages the fouled attacker.

Now I hope the referee came back for #20. I have, in my mind, a Serious Foul Play red card. That is a tackle that should never be attempted anywhere on the field. I don’t have a Denying an Obvious Goal Scoring Opportunity red card as the opportunity was not denied. But if the referee misses the Serious Foul Play, then they only have a Caution for Unsporting Behavior to come back to.

I just wanted to highlight this clip as it is one of the most beautiful goals I’ve ever seen.

Open thread

Reader Interactions

61Comments

  2. 2.

    debbie

    Nevertheless, she persisted. Good for her!

    ETA: You know when a player puts both arms up like #20 did that she’s committed a blatant foul.

  5. 5.

    bystander

    All afternoon I’ve been hearing the name Donald Chump Jr. Did I think that up myself or did some wag plant it in my subconscious?

  6. 6.

    TenguPhule

    Speaking of Referees, the Fix is in on the “Voting Fraud Commission”

    Kobach’s team was “putting together information on legislation drafts for submission to Congress early in the administration,” Kobach wrote to transition team member Gene Hamilton in an email. “I have some already started regarding amendments to the NVRA [National Voter Registration Act] to make clear that proof of citizenship requirements are permitted (based on my ongoing litigation with the ACLU over this).”

    The email was released on Friday as part of that ACLU lawsuit and was first published by the Huffington Post.

    Someone tell me how we’re supposed to have free and fair elections next year with these fuckers.

  7. 7.

    Yarrow

    @TenguPhule: Speaking of Kobach, I posted this at the end of the previous thread:

    A disciplinary office operated by the Kansas Supreme Court has opened an investigation into Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach after receiving a complaint.

    Keri Strahler, 47, of Topeka, said she received a letter over the weekend that says allegations she made against Kobach “will be investigated” and that an investigator would be in contact with her. Strahler said Monday that she has not yet heard from anyone at the court since receiving the letter Saturday.

  8. 8.

    germy

    Cats and dogs united against drumpf:

    NEW YORK (AP) – New York state’s top Democrats are teaming up to fight the GOP health care bill.

    Gov. Andrew Cuomo, state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie spoke out against the bill at a rally Monday in the city.

    Cuomo and Schneiderman said the state will challenge the bill in court if it passes Congress. They said they can’t stand by while Republicans in Washington vote to cut health care coverage and funding.

    De Blasio told the crowd that the decision to postpone a vote on the measure provides more time for opponents to organize.

    The Democrats warned the bill would take away vital Medicaid funding, restrict coverage of reproductive health programs and undermine the finances of local health care providers.

  9. 9.

    TenguPhule

    @Yarrow: Between this and Sessions giving Robbery under Color of Law the nod and wink, I dread what today’s third story of evil will be.

  12. 12.

    Hal

    Caroline O. @RVAwonk
    ·
    2h

    So they believe he fabricated those emails and framed himself?

    ….alrighty then.
    PublicPolicyPolling @ppppolls
    Nugget from our national poll coming out tomorrow- only 45% of Trump voters believe Donald Trump Jr. had a meeting with Russians…

  13. 13.

    TenguPhule

    @germy:

    Price saying insurance companies should just “dust off” their business practices pre-ACA?

    While evil, the standards have been raised so high recently that it doesn’t even make the top 100.

  15. 15.

    TenguPhule

    @? ?? Goku (aka The Hope of the Universe) ? ?:

    It’s simple. We get UN election observers to sit in.

    That isn’t even close to simple. Simple isn’t even in the same area code. Simple has to dial long distance and bitch about the terrible connection. There are lunar orbits closer to us then Simple is to that.

    /Thank you, thank you, please don’t throw the vegetables.

  17. 17.

    ? ?? Goku (aka The Hope of the Universe) ? ?

    @Hal:
    No, they don’t believe the meeting took place at all. They think it’s all lies by an evil media trying to destroy Trump’s presidency.

    The Trumps doesn’t need help to destroy themselves

  19. 19.

    ? ?? Goku (aka The Hope of the Universe) ? ?

    @A Ghost to Most:
    Half-snark, half-heartfelt. I don’t trust Kobach or anyone else on that commission, the admin (leadership), or GOP controlled Congress. They scare the hell out of me. Sometimes I wonder about law enforcement too, given public professments of love for Trump.

  20. 20.

    DaveInOz

    Nice piece of refereeing, There were a couple of iffy attempted challenges in it and I agree with you that the ref should have gone back after the goal and sent off no. 20.

  21. 21.

    Another Scott

    What was going at 3-4 seconds into that clip? Was green blocking blue from getting at the green attacker with the ball, or was blue all over the back of green? Seeing the flying blue defender get wiped out by the blue defender on green’s back was kinda interesting.

    I assume that green was blocking the blue defender to some extent, but it looks kinda like it was mainly the other way around. Either way, it’s not football play that I recognize (but I admit I don’t watch much of it any more).

    The ref should have run out of cards after all of that, but it was indeed an amazing goal!

    Thanks.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  24. 24.

    A Ghost to Most

    Me either (voter suppression cmte). Trying to learn more about Redneck Revolt. Their approach might work at changing “heartland” minds.

  25. 25.

    Villago Delenda Est

    Look, I’m not even a big football (soccer) fan, but even I could see that 8 and 20 were committing fouls.

    The goal is magnificent, as noted.

  26. 26.

    trollhattan

    1. I want to have #19’s babies and 2. #20 needs to go time out. For the rest of the match/tournament. That could have been career-ending.

    We were in Portland for the Thorns-Courage match (#5 and #1, respectively). What great futbol and what a great venue and crowd!

  27. 27.

    Starfish

    @TenguPhule: Numerous people from my state have unregistered themselves because my state is one of the three or so giving this admin a tongue bath about handing over data. Most of the newly un-registered voters are Democrats.

  28. 28.

    Uncle Cosmo

    Hasn’t your sport evolved to the point of incorporating delayed penalties a la ice hockey? If not, why not?

    (ETA: Even a certified non-fan of soccer can appreciate the rugged beauty of that sequence, toppd off with picture-perfect placement in the top left [right?] corner of the net. She. Would. Not. Be. Denied!)

  31. 31.

    Mnemosyne

    @Starfish:

    I would caution those people to be careful and keep a close eye on the news. I wouldn’t be surprised if the CO legislature makes it hard to re-register, or requires people to be registered at least a year prior to the next election.

  33. 33.

    trollhattan

    @Blue Galangal:
    Having just gone through the new-season shoeing of my soccer kid I can attest they’re (the shoe companies) mostly going for the salmon lure look now wrt color schemes. And they’re also going for that $300 rattling around in the parent’s pockets somehow left over from paying the club fee (ask me how I know).

  34. 34.

    TenguPhule

    @Mnemosyne: So their choices are being unable to vote or having their personal information be used for identity theft and fraud.

    Some democracy we have going here.

  35. 35.

    smintheus

    Great drive on goal and a neat score. But atrocious defending from start to finish. Looked like the soccer equivalent of the Washington Generals.

  37. 37.

    Major Major Major Major

    @Mnemosyne:

    I wouldn’t be surprised if the CO legislature makes it hard to re-register, or requires people to be registered at least a year prior to the next election.

    I would. The governor is a Democrat, and the House is under Democratic control.

  38. 38.

    Baud

    Last week

    (Reuters) – U.S. President Donald Trump’s commission to investigate possible election fraud on Monday put a freeze on its effort to collect sensitive voter data from states in the face of growing legal challenges.

    In an email, the panel’s designated officer, Andrew Kossack, asked state elections officers to “hold on submitting any data,” the commission said in court filings.

    Several state elections officials confirmed receiving a letter from the panel stating that it would provide further instructions after a federal judge had ruled on a complaint filed by a watchdog group, the Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC), which is seeking a temporary restraining order.

  39. 39.

    West of the Cascades

    @trollhattan: 16,804 fans in attendance Saturday at the Thorns-Courage match! And a perfect afternoon for soccer in Portland (of course, every Saturday afternoon is a perfect afternoon for soccer in Soccer City, USA).

  41. 41.

    David Anderson

    @Another Scott: green at three seconds might be impeding the progress of her opponent but given the rest of that sequence I am not calling that. I do not think I have called an offensive player for that in my past 3000 games.

    I only have two potential cards. #8 yellow potentially and #20 easy red.

    @Uncle Cosmo: yep, the referee can decide to give advantage if in their opinion the fouled team is in better shape if play continues rather than stopping. The ref has a few seconds to see what way the play flows.

  42. 42.

    philpm

    My thoughts: good goal, yellow on the first defender on the studs-up challenge, red on the final defender for trying to break the attacker.

  44. 44.

    ? ?? Goku (aka The Hope of the Universe) ? ?

    @A Ghost to Most:

    I didn’t really care for the “upper-class liberals calling us rednecks makes us sad!” and WWC talk too much, but whatever changes hearts and minds for the better. At the very least, they’re anti-racist and, presumably, anti-fascist. That counts for a lot in my book

  45. 45.

    Bitter Scribe

    She’s a Spanish professional soccer player named Barbara Latorre. Hella cute too. (Oddly, her Twitter feed doesn’t include that video, or at least I couldn’t find it there.)

  46. 46.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    @Garbo: You should try women’s hockey, then. A bunch of ponytails hanging out from under the helmets.

    Minnesota standout Rachel Ramsey (daughter of 1980 Olympian Mike Ramsey) picked up the nickname Chris Pronger in a ponytail somehow, despite her game not in an way resembling his.

  48. 48.

    trollhattan

    @West of the Cascades:
    I’ve been watching match of the week on Lifetime since discovering it a month or two ago and everywhere else the crowds pale in comparison to Providence Park. I mean perhaps a third as many folks, if that in places like Chicago, Jersey, Orlando, Houston, D.C. We attended our first Thorns match a year ago and it was just as large–Portland should be proud of what they’ve built there. Just hope the league can survive with the “meh” attendance elsewhere.

  49. 49.

    ThresherK

    Without looking it up, is the scoring (aqua kit) team Barcelona?

    The other one, the blue and white stripes, I have no guess on.

  50. 50.

    hellslittlestangel

    It took me a while to figure out that you were using the words “defender” and “attacker” to describe people I thought were, respectively, attacking and defending. Sports is weird.

  52. 52.

    ThresherK

    @trollhattan: I’ve been watching them on Lifetime too.

    I single-handedly tried to make Arbitron think there were 20 million viewers for WUSA broadcasts to keep that league alive in the early aughts, but to no avail.

  53. 53.

    ? ?? Goku (aka The Hope of the Universe) ? ?

    @Major Major Major Major: Yeah. Whenever I think of rednecks, “southern/rural liberals” doesn’t exactly spring to mind. I generally reserve that term for KKK fascists and the like

  59. 59.

    Amir Khalid

    Now the first two challenges are either sloppy or cynical play. #8 was getting beat so she reached out with her arms to push and hopefully disrupt the attack. That could be a yellow. At this level of play I don’t think it is, but I could see it without a problem.

    I agree it was excellent refereeing to play advantage for three fouls in a row against that forward, but to this football watcher a foul is a foul regardless of what level the match is played at.

    @trollhattan:
    I miss the old days, when all football boots were plain black leather with a white logo on the outside and instep of the foot.

  60. 60.

    David Anderson

    @Amir Khalid: I agree it is a foul on #8. I am not 100% certain if it is a yellow card. It was an attempt at a cynical play. But the attempt barely had any influence on the movement of the fouled player. Foul yes, caution; I’m thinking about it as the international and professional games allow a good amount to just be run through

  61. 61.

    burnspbesq

    There was a very borderline screen by a member of the attacking team that also went uncalled.

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