First of all, is this a fair rundown?
“Things finally boiled over between the rivals in the 89th minute when Ruiz and Clark got tangled near the far post. While Ruiz was on the ground, Clarke kicked him in the right shoulder and was summarily sent off by Gonzalez with a straight red card. Clarke had previously been shown yellow in the 81st for a professional foul.”
“Ruiz was also sent off after the melee with a straight red after kneeing Clark in the back after the play. The Guatemalan international had been booked in the 17th minute, an infraction that put him over the limit for yellow card accumulation. He will now miss FCD’s next two matches.”
This came at the end of the Houston Dynamo’s 3-0 drubbing of the free-falling FC Dallas. The thing is, I’ve seen the video several times now and what I saw was Ricardo Clark just hauling off and kicking Carlos Ruiz while he was on the ground – kicking him hard and with as much intent as you’ll ever see on a soccer field. The baffling thing comes with this not matching my perception of Clark as a player; by that I mean Ruiz must have done something seriously painful for Clark to react as he did.
Whatever Ruiz did, though, it doesn’t really matter. What Clark did was flat-out dangerous. What if Ruiz sees it coming, moves the wrong way, and the kick contacts his head – which is how “el Pescadito” sought to make it look in a twist that is more than a little ironic. I suspect – no, I know – a fine is coming and a whopping one at that, along with a suspension. So, good as Houston looked, and good as I suspect they’ll be heading into the end of the season, this won’t help them.
Whatever happened, I’m still trying to get my jaw back up to where it should be. What a moment of madness that was.
Oh, and Dallas looks like they’ll exit the playoffs as meekly as they have the past two editions. Sad….
Filed under: analysis, discipline, FC Dallas, Houston Dynamo, Major League Soccer, MLS playoffs | Tagged: Carlos Ruiz, Ricardo Clark |
Center Holds It 
I HATE Dallas. They’re the only team in MLS I genuinely despise. Boring, ugly play and extremely questionable ethics. Whatever Ruiz got, it was far less than he deserved. Maybe if more players let him have it physically. he wouldn’t flop so easily. I wish I could kick him myself.
(Wait, did I just say that? Am I sounding cynical and bitter? Okay, yeah, whatever.) And for the record, I haven’t seen the play. But it sounds wonderful.
My goal is to see Dallas not even MAKE the playoffs.
I think the knee to Clark’s back came before Ruiz went up for the header. It’s more or less typical of the kind of play Carlos was engaged in all day, or at least the final 85 minutes of the game. Not to defend Rico’s actions too much, but he did with his foot what I’d love to do with a baseball bat.
Ruiz spent most of the game throwing some baiting shots at Robinson, Ching and Clark. Sadly ERob was able to laugh him off and Ching Kong just walked away. Rico, the guy you’d think would just get up and move on, pulled the trigger on a hell of a kick. If he had made contact with his head it would have been assisted-living time for Carlos… Not our proudest moment.
But if anyone wants to take up a collection to help pay Rico’s fine, count me in. Maybe we can call it the “He Did It For the Fans Fund”.
What Ricardo Clark did to Carlos Ruiz is what all of Chicago has been wanting to do to him for years.
All joking aside, I saw this happen and at first I had no idea whatsoever made Rico so effing pissed. I mean, I’ve never seen rage like that on a soccer field. And to flagrantly kick Ruiz as if he was trying to clear him off the line was downright shocking. But from what I saw, Ruiz clipped Clark right before going up for a header taking Clark down and giving himself an open header. That alone doesn’t justify Clarke’s reaction in my eyes so if there was anything else that went on to provoke the kick, I didn’t see it.
And FCLouie, if I had money, I would glady make a donation, alas I don’t. But I can donate a baseball bat. Wood or aluminium?
The thing is, you cant really tell what Ruiz did from the telefutura video. Being there, it was obvious that Ruiz hit him hard in the back before he went up for the header and then came down on top of him after he missed it. What Rico did wasnt right, but I cant say that I would have had any restraint whatsoever either. I’m just glad the ref caught what Ruiz did, that bastard deserves worse. And come on, how are you gonna act like he kicked your head when every angle shows he hit his shoulder? He did the same crap earlier in the game and fell over in the penalty box twice. Go to Italy, asshole.
Shit. Maybe I ought to forward this comment thread to Ruiz. It’s clear he’s held in – well, let’s say it – dangerously low esteem by MLS fans. Ruiz is a dirty player, but I kinda like him for it. There’s nothing like a good villain.
I’ve just watched the highlights video. I loved it!! Stunningly beautiful play, Ricardo!
I’ll contribute to that fund myself, and let’s hope that MLS takes into account what a slimy worm Ruiz is when they mete out punishment.
[…] everything down to the Rico Clark incident (I posted on this earlier, but feel compelled to link to that post again because the comments it received makes Witness Relocation seem like a good call for Carlos […]
Ruiz deserved what he got, the punk. What has not been fairly emphasized was how Ruiz gave Clark the business on that play before taking him down and then falling over him despite nobody touching him! When Clark got up, he was justifiably pissed. Then that flopping candystriper Ruiz, who clutched his face despite being kicked in the shoulder (!), kneed Clark in the back for a straight red of his own. Ruiz had already gotten a yellow earlier in the game and will miss the next two, one for yellow accumulation and another for the red. Personally, if he was going to do it I wish Rico had kicked him harder. Those fast-falling candystripers are in serious trouble now, after spending their DP on that wastrel Denilson, who wasn’t even the best Brazilian on the field yesterday, and Ruiz being out for two games, those guys may not get any more points in the regular season. Dynamo are so deep they can survive the temporary absence of Clark, but that’s not the case with Ruiz in Frisco now is it?
Out of curiosity, who do you see filling in for Clark? Last year, there was Serioux for MLS Cup. And Clark was gone quite a bit this summer, but I don’t recall now who it was that covered for him.
I’m gonna say Mulrooney even though he seems to be playing in the back line. What they could do is put Waibel in as right back and push Mulrooney in that defensive mid position. Ianni can also find his way in the backline freeing Mulrooney to claim Clark’s spot.
I’ve been a closet Houston/San Jose fan for the past few years so I kinda know the team a little bit. Shhhhh….
No speculation involved, Mulrooney to Clark’s spot Waibel resumes his position at right back. The only potential source of weakness is in right mid, which desperately needs Mullan’s mobility to effectively control the right side of the field. I would make the argument that losing Clark is less of a problem then losing Mullan due to the knowledge and levelheadedness Mulrooney brings to Clark’s position. We have no such easy replacement for Mullan except maybe Holden, but then we have to cross our fingers that Davis is in 90 minutes worth of game shape. It goes on and on…
It’s nice to have such a deep bench. Which I’m sure all the expansion drafts will help us with. Dangit.
What about keeping Corey Ashe on one of the flanks? He seems to be doing well. Or sub him in when Davis is out of gas. Also, Jaqua is no slouch at right midfield. I know he’s better as a target forward, but he’s not inept at right mid (at least when he was in Chicago).
[…] $10,000. Clark just decided to take a boot at Ruiz while he was on the ground by the goal, really a boneheaded move. Check this out — it’s pretty […]
L@urie,
Go fetch me a sandwich and then go take care of your cats.
good sports massage…
[…]9 Quite great article. I actually basically became aware of an individual’s b 1f[…]…
Hi, yes this post is really fastidious and I have learned lot of things from it concerning blogging. thanks.