Not sure why this was written

Soccer official Dave Roberts has written this article complaining about two things:

1. A recent U-21 game between Israel and Belgium that he says a "second-tier" official Craig Thomson from Scotland bungled.

and

2. General complaints about officials receiving emphases and "watch-fors" in tournaments.

Some of his main points--most notably that officials will do whatever their observers say without quesiton rather than trust their own talents and horse sense--are fairly on the money. But could he have made them without trashing Thompson?

I'm not for the code of silence, and I won't deny a ref has screwed up if he has. But this felt bizarre to me.

Wow. What a bummer.

Even though I felt like I was so much better this year, I managed to drop significantly in the rankings on the varsity list. I went from the middle third to the bottom fifth. That's weird. I feel like my comments were pretty good, but alas, there I am, crashing down the list.

A closer look at the scores show some big surprises...one of last year's state finals officials is deep into the bottom half, and a first-year kid who really struggled through camp is solidly on the playoff list.

I feel a little frustrated because I don't get a sense from the (mostly very kind) comments that there's a consistent shortcoming that I can really work on.

In any event, these scores don't matter. I'm moving to a new town anyway. But it's a little slap in the ego. I wish I could go to camp...that'd help. But as is, we'll see how it goes.

It'll be a camp-free summer or Why I Should Have Lifted More

Made my debut with physical therapy today. I've come to the conclusion that those 37 years of never really working out may have been a miscalculation.

The pain in the back of my left knee is a result of weak muscles from the ankle to the hip. As a result, if I understood correctly, my hamstrings have totally tightened up to compensate. That's where the pain in the back of the knee comes from...tight, tight hamstrings. He talked a lot about my freakishly loose joints as well, and how they add to the work the muscles have to do.

The good news is that this is fixable. He's given me 10 minutes a day of exercises to do, which is eminently doable. The hip flexors and quads will be busted into shape. At the end of all of that, there shouldn't be any pain anymore..

We also talked at some length about shoes. Mine are too soft. I need to look more closely at the shoes that I buy. The problem is that I buy almost all of my ref shoes on line (I just love that patent leather). I haven't even checked to see if my ref shoes are supportive enough. I'd do it now, but the cat is asleep on my chest, and I'm resting my highly overworked legs.

So camp is out. That's okay...I'll take advantage of the rest time, and be sure to get in some fall work in the new hometown to allow everyone to get to know me.

Meanwhile, I'll be lifting my legs in various contortions. Ten minutes a day.

This ought to be good.

Gary Sheffield was suspended for threatening actions towards umpire Greg Gibson after Gibson ejected him. And if he's not exonerated, he's threatening to make himself look like an idiot.

From ESPN:

Sheffield suggested to the Detroit Free Press that he would expose a "conspiracy" within the game if he is not cleared of wrongdoing.

"Once they see the tape, and they still suspend me, then we're going to talk about this conspiracy that's going on," he said. "If it ain't no conspiracy, then I shouldn't be suspended at all."

I can't wait! Maybe they all met at Area 51 to help frame O.J.!