Whine Of The Ancient Mariner

So, I'm watching Seattle and New England on ESPN2, and New England acting head coach Paul Mariner was sent off by referee Baldomero Toledo just before halftime, presumably for mouthing off about two "controversial" calls. Mariner was acting as head coach because Steve Nicol was suspended by the league for "verbally abusing" an official.

What I'm wondering is just how Mariner could object to the calls that got him his walking papers. The final straw appeared to be a yellow card to Edgaras Jankauskas for a deliberate handball that was pretty obviously deliberate. This may have just been a boiling over of emotion that started with the penalty kick awarded when Fredy Montero was kicked in the midsection. The laws of the game state:

A direct free kick is awarded to the opposing team if a player commits any of the following seven offences in a manner considered by the referee to be careless, reckless or using excessive force:

• kicks or attempts to kick an opponent
• trips or attempts to trip an opponent
• jumps at an opponent
• charges an opponent
• strikes or attempts to strike an opponent
• pushes an opponent
• tackles an opponent

Now, the only question here is if Steve Ralston, who very clearly kicked Montero in the midsection was careless, reckless or used excessive force. That might be slightly gray, since Ralston didn't seem to notice Montero bearing down when he wound up and went to whack the ball. But he whacked him pretty hard, and not seeing him could be seen as careless, so it didn't seem like that much of a stretch, except maybe to chronic complainers like New England's coaching staff. Or John Harkes, who keeps calling the penalty "controversial" during the broadcast.

I was also curious about the yellow card to Fredy Montero for knocking the ball out of Matt Reis' hands in the second half, and there I think maybe Harkes and JP Dellacamera have a point saying it shouldn't have been yellow. Interfering with the goalkeeper as he tries to distribute the ball is an indirect free kick, but the Laws of the Game do not mention "Goalkeeper Interference" as a situation where you can receive a yellow card, and that's what the match tracker is calling it. The best you might be able to come up with is unsportsmanlike behavior.

Although, now that I look at the actual Laws, there's nothing there that says a deliberate handball is an automatic yellow, either. The only provision is that it's a red card if it's a deliberate handball that denies a goal-scoring opportunity. Then again, there's nothing that calls out diving, either. So the Laws of the Game may not be the ultimate reference guide here. Of course, if the link that says "Rules of the Game" on MLSNET.com actually led to the rules of the game, that would help.

There's a weekly review of MLS referees that's on the Internet, and maybe I'll remember to check it after this weekend's matches are over to see if these were considered to be the right calls when they get reviewed. In the meantime, New England Revolution coaches really, really need to just shut the hell up.