Home MLS Montreal Impact Suspensions for Impact playoff meltdown have a familiar ring to them

Suspensions for Impact playoff meltdown have a familiar ring to them

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The Montreal Impact’s flameout in Houston will have lasting repercussions.

The Impact lost its MLS Eastern Conference play-in game by a 3-0 count Thursday, but also endured the embarrassment of finishing the game with just eight men. Nelson Rivas saw two yellows, while both Andres Romero and star Designated Player Marco Di Vaio were sent off for an 89th-minute incident, instigated by Romero kicking at the Dynamo’s Corey Ashe, who was down on the field.

The league’s disciplinary committee has decided that both Romero and Di Vaio will serve another two games each on top of the automatic one-game bans. So, each player will be banned for the first three games of the 2014 regular season.

The Impact have been fined $25,000 and Impact coach Marco Schallibaum is out another $2,500. Di Vaio got dinged $1,000, while Romero got a $250 fine.

Houston coach Dominic Kinnear was banned for one game because he came onto the field of play. He will serve that in the Dynamo’s playoff match this weekend against New York.

Another thing to consider. Friday marked the final day for MLS award voting. Now, we know that the playoffs aren’t supposed to influence the vote. But, for those voters who held off till the last day, were any of them swayed to vote for someone other than Di Vaio on the MVP ballot, based on his scoreless, petulant performance in Montreal’s most important match of the year?

With Mike Magee and Camilo also at the top of the scoring charts, but neither of their teams making the playoffs, Di Vaio had the edge of being on a post-season-bound team. But, it blew up in his face last night.

And, we’re all humans. Will the last-second voters be able to put it out of their minds?

This isn’t the first time the Impact have been censured for the team’s behaviour in a playoff ouster. After a 2010 USSF-Div. 2 playoff loss to Carolina, in which an Impact goal was disallowed — and Montreal also claimed one of Carolina’s goals was offside — the team charged the match officials.

Current Impact Sporting Director Nick De Santis was banned six games, and players Richard Pelletier (six games), Hicham Aaboubou (four games) and Adam Braz (three games) all received heavy suspensions, which were served at the beginning of the 2011 NASL season.

This Impact team bears no resemblance to the Impact team of 2010-11, but the spirit of petulance remains.

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5 Comments

  1. francis

    November 12, 2013 at 5:10 pm

    Lol. Funny how people can generalize a whole SEASON and a whole team on a single incident in a single game, made by a player who is not an IMFC player at heart. F— Romero. But having said that, he was probably trying to get the ball at the end of the day, maybe the kick out was a red, maybe a yellow. What made it an “event” was Ashe’s reaction. Going absolutely mental. I pity his gf if she breaks a glass or anything, what a nutjob. Having said that, Di Vaio got carried away there. He tried to calm things down at first, but he allowed himself to be dragged into a confrontation by Ashe.

    Anywho, i find it laughable that MLS fans dont see the inequality in this league. Inequality in itself isnt a problem in a liberal/independent league structure. But the fact is since MLS HQ controls almost everything in MLS (salaries, transfers, media, etc, etc), it has a responsability to be as un-biased as possible. It’s not only the Impact that get the short hand of the stick. MLS keeps modifying their rules as soon as it advantages one of their marquee american clubs. It’s clear for all to see.

  2. Reg Dunlop

    November 3, 2013 at 5:43 pm

    Yes Francis, it’s just bad officiating that has forced Montreal to amass a record of thuggish petulance unmatched by any other professional team in Canada or the U.S. No other team has questionable calls go against them in key matches. Your players and staff are perfectly entitled to disgrace themselves by committing gutless fouls, just as they are perfectly entitled to chase match officials halfway across the pitch and physically abuse stadium staff and spectators. They can’t possibly be expected to control their emotions and act like professionals, it’s not their fault.

  3. cwell

    November 2, 2013 at 12:54 pm

    Francis, That may be so, but the fact remains that Romero kicking the Houston player like that is unacceptable. And then for Di Vaio to attempt to scratch a player’s face? I was very disappointed.

  4. fanboy

    November 2, 2013 at 5:32 am

    Boo hoo francis “everyone hates us” …

  5. francis

    November 2, 2013 at 12:50 am

    Who gives a … No one associated with MLS wouldve voted for Montréal anyways. They’re always under represented in their video productions, fined more severely than others (the laughable, Schallibaum over the touch line ban, whilst every coach does it at least once per game) and MLS even admitted to getting multiple PK non-calls wrong in the last month of the season.

    Also. Funny how the 2011 meltdown was due to a total f*** up by the officials as well.

    I follow your site and your articles because im interested in the development of Canadian teams, but I should know better than to read your opinions on IMFC.

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