Goats vs Ball Boys. Who Ya Got?

Chivas USA's Mario de Luna (center) will get a call from the Disciplinary Committee (AP Photo)

There isn't much going well for Chivas USA these days.  Despite the strong start to the season under Chelis as coach, they find themselves on the bottom of a stacked Western Conference, three points back of their LA neighbors the Galaxy for the final playoff spot.  Their situation was made worse on Sunday when they took a 3-0 thrashing at the hands of the Portland Timbers at Jeld-Wen Field.

Unfortunately for the Goats, matters became even worse late on as frustrations started to boil over.  Defender Mario de Luna shoved a Portland ball boy when the ball boy refused to give him the ball, for a Portland throw-in.  Anecdotes from folks who were at the stadium vary, but some reports are even saying that the 4th official instructed the ball boy not to give the ball to de Luna, as it was a Portland throw.  It would be hard to argue that the ball boy was obstructing a restart, since it was a Portland throw.  However, it should be said that any altercation with a ball boy is unacceptable. Period.  Ask Eden Hazard of Chelsea, who was trashed for a ball boy incident even after the Swansea ball boy admitted that he was trying to obstruct play in favor of his team.

I, for one, am getting tired of this nonsense that crops up every once in awhile.  There's just no need for it.  I don't care if the ball boy is a kid or a teenager, there's no reason for an adult, de Luna, Hazard, or Colin Clark, to get into an altercation over this.  If there's a problem, the player needs to bring it to the attention of the referee, not shove or kick the ball boy.  Be an adult, an realize that the cameras are indeed rolling.

I watch a ton of MLS, practically every match over the course of the week with MLS Live, and thankfully, these incidents are far from the norm.  However, MLS should come down harshly on these guys.  Maybe a bit more time needs to be spent training the ball boys too.  I've seen plenty of clueless ball kids at RSL matches.  I don't think I've ever seen one try to obstruct play intentionally, but there have been a few who just don't seem to have their head in what they're doing.

In this particular incident, the ball boy wasn't hurt.  Chelis also checked with the ball boy to make sure he was ok, which is nice.  Still hopefully the league will take some action so this particular black eye on the game goes away completely.  There's just no reason for it.  I get that late in a match tensions run high, but again, you're supposed to be an adult, make the right decision. 

De Luna was given a yellow card on the play and will now miss Chivas USA's next match against Real Salt Lake next Sunday.