Sophomores Emma Boersma and Sandor Pelle run to steal the ball from a John Adams Academy player.
“It was an atrociously officiated game,” senior Theo Kaufman said.
Kaufman was one of many soccer players who complained about biased referees at the Feb. 6 home game against John Adams Academy.
The Cavs won, 1-0, but their victory wasn’t easy.
According to Kaufman, the referees were calling all the fouls for the opposing team, but nearly none for the Cavs, even though Kaufman and coach Matt Vargo said the John Adams players were extremely physical.
“They were grabbing me, throwing me around and tackling me, (but) the referees weren’t calling it,” Kaufman said.
Sophomore Sandor Pelle – who scored the game’s only goal in the second half – agreed.
“(The John Adams players) were really dirty. They fouled and trash-talked a lot,” he said.
John Adams is the only other coed team in the Cavs’ league.
Kaufman said few other players besides Pelle and himself were disadvantaged by the referees, but the referees’ behavior still made the game “really bad to play.”
Unfortunately, the players couldn’t speak up against the referees either, or they would risk getting a yellow or red card, according to Kaufman.
Vargo told the Cavs to refrain from talking to the referees; instead, he and the other coaches talked to the referees.
After all, Vargo said, the referees are unbiased but also officiating the game in their opinion.
“They’re are calling the game as they see it,” he said.
Luckily, not all was bad for the Cavs. Vargo said that besides winning the game the team also improved slightly on communication, which has been an issue in the past.
Furthermore, players like freshman Frances Bridges, Pelle and juniors Michaela Chen, Jack Christian and Nate Jacobs had “great games” and performed “outstandingly,” Vargo said.
The Cavs played next against Buckingham Charter Magnet High School at 3:30 p.m. on Feb. 8.
—By Héloïse Schep
