To your sixth point, we are finally going to get back to where I usually lie with /u/secretlyadog comments, as I honestly usually find myself silently nodding in agreement with you as I lurk like a creepy dude. In my small mind, I constantly wonder when Higuita is going to stop making his reckless challenges ALL OVER the field. I love higuita, he is great, but its like his ego can't accept getting beat and every time he does he makes a very senseless challenge that is an obvious call. And he is just an example, I love the passion of our young team, but IMO we DEFINITELY play like a young team and have all of the reckless abandon of such. Just last week after a game my brother texted me(who actually lives in O-town and gets to go to all the games) wondering my opinion on whether or not Heath was the right guy to get the team in shape in this regard, because we are halfway through the season and TBH we have not seen a single ounce of improvement in terms of discipline. In fact, I think it might a more defensible argument to show that Kaka of all people has even become more reckless over the course of the season and that we have in fact become a very aggressive and poorly disciplined team. I don't like that. I don't think it's really true, but I absolutely wish we were more disciplined. My theory on this, btw, is that we are young, we mostly consist of players from different cultures that have played a different style than the MLS, and that they are incredibly motivated and passionate to win some games(which I'm on board with) so I'm willing to take this as the flaw of my team, because even when its hurting us I LIKE IT, as I've never once complained that Higuita isn't busting his fucking ass out there, and he is the son of a soccer legend, so I think it could be easy for him not to try, but he works his fucking ass off, and I love it. All of that being said, I think we are still disagreeing on a main point--While I concede that our team absolutely makes a lot of stupid and senseless challenges that have should and have led to problems for us, I also think that has led to a repuation in which we get unfairly officiated against in other calls, which is the crucial difference that I THINK we are arguing about. I don't dispute that our players make bad challenges, I disupute that Kaka or Larin should have had a straight red, I dispute that Rivas' obvious DOGSO last week was missed, but the judgement that he is a flopper. To your reference of week 1 against NYCFC, I encourage you to rewatch that match, as a STH of NYCFC who has seen every single one of their matches, I have watched it multiple times in and out. We received almost half of the entire leagues, still to this day, of the bookings for simulation in that game, and the one on brek has him receiving contact inside the box quite clearly. The rules stipulate that there can't be contact, so at most it can only be a no call, but he receives a yellow from the outset. These sorts of things add up in the mind of a fan, and that mind is admittedly biased, but that doesn't neccessarily make it inaccurate. I think people are upset because they don't think it is legitimate that Orlando has the most Red cards of any team in the MLS. 6(and 3 in a row) is absolutely ridiculous. Ted Unkel gave tonights red, and he was the fourth official tonight for a reason, because he has already been showing a very poor performance this weekend as a center referee.
I am going to start being a little more spotty in my responses because this is getting long. To your Boden comment, totally agree. Boden absolutely deserved that second yellow, and him having an original yellow is absolutely irrelevant. I think his first yellow was "soft" but I don't really care, I think all of that should have happened, excellent argument.
The Kaka comment. Whoosh this is a tough one. I really don't think it was a red, I really don't, but I honestly don't even think the replay shows contact, I'm not sure how everyone says it does, I mean its very probable, but to me the angle of the camera has the leg of the player obstructing where his leg lands so its all guesswork. that being said, ok fine, red card. But lets put it in context. A player, who by all counts is one of the most dignified players to ever play the game and has won every single award there is to win in soccer(except for the coveted MLS ones) has all of the sudden lost his mind and is becoming this aggressive, angry leg stomping person? The shove down leading up to it was bad, agreed, but if again, you watch the replay, he was clearly getting into a very lenghty and drawn out argument with the referee about the calls, and how bad is it that a guy like Kaka is losing his nerve in the first half of a game with the referee? He has played at levels that are orders of magnitude higher than the MLS and been far more composed, so what does that honestly say about the administration of this league? The way I choose to interpret it(and I will admit my bias now, I think the MLS is one of the most terribly run organizations on the planet and I fucking HATE garber) is that the MLS is just not a very well ran league and the officiating is terrible, and that coincides with my experience.
To your point about "playing the refs". I think I see where you are coming from and I agree to the extent at which I think I understand, you definitely need to take it into account. But if that accounting requires you never make a tackle in the box, you never swing your arms while running, you never make a slide tackle period, well then in my opinion you aren't playing soccer and the league is a joke. That being said, we could do better and I agree and I think Orlando does whine to much, I just don't think that criticism is that valid right now because it take away from the larger issue(IMO) that Orlando has something legitimate to complain about right now.
your next point you rope me in with some people that I won't care to try to understand.
Your next point about Collin though, brings me to my point about certain players. I'm glad you mentioned Collins questionable red card in week one, because if you didn't see tonight, he got kicked in the head which is most definitely the obvious definition of a red card and of course that did not happen. This further reinforces the unequal application of the laws, in my opinion.
your next point seem to center around a single point, that we aren't selling our fouls enough Again, I would reference you to the game that you have been bringing up against NYCFC, where we again received almost half of the entire league's amount of cautions in a single game for simulation. We have been warned as a club, that we are not to sell any foul or to try to manipulate the game in any way as we will be booked accordingly for it.
To your last questions - The Ramos points. Why you got to attack my favorite player? No defense, he obviously fucked up. I still love him and think he's amazing(not to say that you dont). Absolutely no need and it hurt the team, but he is literally and has been since he signed last year my favorite player. I think I answered the Kaka one, but to reitireate one of the most consummate professionals to ever play the sport was annoyed by the lack of ability of the officiating. Larin- um because he had like 5 yards ahead of K and almost stripped the ball but barely missed and still didn't touch the player and in no leauge other than the MLS would that ever be a red card. I live in NYC and watched the game live on the NYC feed and even the NYC biased commentators were apologizing for that card the ENTIRE FUCKING GAME so where are you coming from? Hence my Tom traxler comment, as he seems to be the only human other than you who though that shit was warranted.