Some viewers may have done a double-take early Saturday while watching the replay of Liverpool's first goal against Wolverhampton Wanderers to see if Fernando Torres was offside or not. With hair bobbing up and down, it was a female assistant referee who made the critical decision to keep her flag down, allowing Torres to run on and take a pass from Raul Meireles and for Torres to slide the ball into the back of the net.

Brazilian soccer assistant referee Nadine Schram Câmara Bastos worked the lines of Sunday's 2-2 draw between Campeonato Brasileiro Série A leaders Corinthians and mid-table Ceará. Given that it is still a rarity to see female match officials in top level men's matches, the dental assistant caught the attention of the cameras while in action.

The ballots have been tallied and we now know the finalists for the various end-of-season awards for Major League Soccer.

Last year it was easy to find some fault in the various finalists but this year, every award was fairly open enough.

2011 Major League Soccer Awards Finalists (Listed in alphabetical order by last name within each award category) Rookie of the Year Finalists – Winner to be announced Nov.

If you think modern-day tackles by the likes of Nigel de Jong and Ryan Shawcross are horrible, take a look at the above video from a 1970 Manchester derby where United legend George Best comes late to a ball and fiercely tackles City's Glyn Pardoe. The result was a horrific broken leg for Pardoe, a double fracture in fact, and the referee didn't even immediately stop the play to award a foul or red card.

TV presenters Andy Gray and Richard Keys were forced to apologies after they made sexist off-air comments about a female assistant referee during Liverpool's 3-0 win at Wolves on Saturday.

Sian Massey was the assistant in question, and the criticizing comments were made public yesterday.

TV presenters Andy Gray and Richard Keys were forced to apologies after they made sexist off-air comments about a female assistant referee during Liverpool's 3-0 win at Wolves on Saturday.

Sian Massey was the assistant in question, and the criticizing comments were made public yesterday.

Andy Gray has been sacked by Sky Sports according to Sky News.

The former Everton, Aston Villa and Wolves footballer, who rose to new fame as one of the top football analysts in the United Kingdom on Sky Sports, was sacked due to sexist comments made about female assistant referee Sian Massey who made her second appearance as an assistant referee in a Premier League match on January 22, 2011 for the Wolverhampton against Liverpool match.

Photo: Courtesy of Philadelphia Union and Donald Montague

On Saturday night, despite the loud presence of a Sons of Ben contingent, the Union finished the domestic leg of their preseason on a down note with a 1–0 loss to Orlando City SC. For Orlando—of the USL Pro League, the third division in the American soccer pyramid—it was both their first match and first win since the club was announced in October of 2010.

A video of Sky Sports presenter Richard Keys was released tonight revealing more sexist remarks made by the man who is at the center of the controversy that ignited Saturday after he and Andy Gray said several sexist comments about female assistant referee Sian Massey.

In the newly released video, Keys discusses one of Jamie Redknapp's ex-girlfriends.

U.S. Soccer referee Mark Geiger and assistant referee Sean Hurd have been selected to officiate the final of the FIFA Under-20 World Cup between Brazil and Portugal in Bogota, Colombia.
The match will be broadcast live on ESPNU and ESPN3.com on Saturday, August 20, at 7 p.m. ET.
The American referees, along with Canada's Joe Fletcher, have also been on the referee crew for a Group E match between Brazil and Austria, a Group B match featuring Uruguay and Cameroon and a Round of 16 game between Spain and Korea Republic.

Sian Massey, the female assistant referee who impressed many on her sophomoric Premier League appearance Saturday, has been the victim of several alleged sexist comments made by Sky Sports presenters Richard Keys and Andy Gray according to Mail On Sunday newspaper.

During Saturday's match at Wolverhampton Wanderers's Molineux ground, Massey correctly ruled that Liverpool's Fernando Torres was onside for the opening goal against Wolves.

Women don't know the offside rule As OTP reported yesterday, Sky Sports presenters Richard Keys and Andy Gray were caught on tape making disparaging comments about assistant referee Sian Massey, who officiated at the Wolves v Liverpool match. The audio of the duo's exchange has now surfaced and it's just as damning as the transcript [.

By Ollie Irish

Keys: "Somebody better get down there and explain offside to her."
Gray: "Can you believe that? A female linesman. Women don't know the offside rule."
Keys: "'Course they don't.

We see that Andy Gray was sacked yesterday for the sexist remarks (cira 19060s) he made about assistant referee Sian Massey, who was helping to referee the Wolves vs Liverpool game on Saturday, and we thought she did a good job at the time. Sian Massey she obviously knows a lot about the offside [.

Photograph: TalkSport

Sky Sports presenter Richard Keys conducted an interview on live radio Wednesday to say sorry and to share his side of the story regarding the controversy that erupted Saturday and continues to this day regarding comments he made about female assistant referee Sian Massey and West Ham United vice-chairwoman Karren Brady.

An atmosphere of ‘hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil,' isn't an atmosphere of change or tolerance. Unseen, unheard, unsaid but still there and right or wrong, where will it go?
Former Sky Sports football analyst Andy Gray may sit (unemployed) and wonder why exactly he has lost his job.

Salomon Kalou's goal a minute from time helped Chelsea beat spurs 2-1 and close the gap on leaders Manchester United to three points, with the two sides set to meet at Old Trafford next weekend in a title decider.

Sandro gave Tottenham the lead when he fired an unstoppable half-volley past Petr Cech from 25 yards after 19 minutes.

The NASL announced Thursday afternoon that Strikers midfielder Eduardo Coudet has been suspended by the NASL for 6-games following last nights league match against the Puerto Rico Islanders.

According to witnesses and visible from the Puerto Rico Islanders highlight video on Youtube, Coudet protested a penalty kick incorrectly given by the referee.

The Chicago Fire have fallen into a predictable pattern, regardless of the ever-changing crew of personnel wearing the team's jersey.

Josh Wolff cancelled out Sebastian Grazzini's opener with a somewhat controversial equalizer, and D.C. United played the Chicago Fire to a 1-1 draw at Toyota Park Thursday night.

By IAN HOLLIDAY

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — For the third straight match, the New England Revolution scored first. And for the third straight match, the Revolution squandered its lead.

Recently signed designated player Milton Caraglio netted his first two MLS goals in the first half, and Dane Richards scored a brace of his own in the second as the Revs and the New York Red Bulls split the points Saturday night at Gillette Stadium.

By Alan Duffy

Alex Horne, with a little Madonna-esque microphone

FA big-wig Alex Horne believes that the much-debated goal-line technology could finally be introduced into top level football as early as next season. Horne says that if one of the current systems which are being tested is found to work reliably, then the technology is likely to be introduced.

Wait, what did you say Andy Gray was?

So, apparently there was a female assistant referee running the lines for the Wolves match. Having noted that she got a potentially tricky call right when judging Meireles onside in the lead-up to Torres' first goal though she then got a somewhat easier call on Maxi wrong as Torres rippled the side netting before everybody realised the play had been flagged offside I quickly forgot about her.

The boys have got form Sky Sports presenters Richard Keys and Andy Gray may have manage to steal the thunder of the weekend's Premier League fixtures with their sexist comments about female assistant referee Sian Massey, but it wasn't the first time the gruesome twosome have managed to offend the fairer sex with their punditry.

Sky Sports announced this morning that they have suspended presenters Richard Keys and Andy Gray due to the sexist comments they made about female assistant referee Sian Massey and West Ham United vice-chairwoman Karren Brady.

"I have spoken directly to both Richard Keys and Andy Gray this morning," said Barney Francis, managing director of Sky Sports.

Video of Andy Gray has been released featuring the Sky Sports presenter making more sexist comments about Sian Massey, the female assistant referee from Saturday's Wolves against Liverpool match.

The video segment was a pre-match interview conducted at Molineux. In the video (fast forward to minute 1:00), you can hear Gray being told that a female assistant referee would be in the match.

STARTERS
Honduras won the Central American championship on Sunday. Huge congrats to them. Cerveza Hurra!
dN
Dempsey and Spector scored goals again this weekend, while Jermaine Jones made his debut in England.
dN
The three favorites Japan, South Korea and Australia are all in the Asian Cup Semifinals, joined by big surprise Uzbekistan.

Sky pundit made a day of it at Molineux If Richard Keys and Andy Gray were hoping the sexism row would blow over, they are going to have to wait a bit longer. New footage has now come to light of Gray taking another pop at female assistant referee Sian Massey before Liverpool's game at [...]

By Ollie Irish

Assistant referee Sian Massey in action on the touchline during Wolves vs Liverpool. Massey was the target of sexist comments by Sky's Andy Gray and Richard Keys, for which the pair were suspended.

Liverpool's Raul Meireles scores their second goal of the game at Wolves, with a perfectly executed dipping volley.

Sky Sports presenter Andy Gray is under increasing pressure after Sky News unexpectedly broadcast fresh footage of him making sexist remarks about assistant referee Sian Massey.

STARTERS
Netherlands & Bayern Munich captain Mark Van Bommel has been sold to Milan.
-Message to all Serie A players - go buy some bigger shin and ankle guards.
dN
It will be Japan v Australia for the Asian Cup championship on Saturday morning.
STORY OF THE DAY
I never like it when someone loses their job, but Andy Gray has been justly fired by Sky Sports for horrible comments he made about a female referee and other sexist shit-talk.

You and the OTP Podcast go together like leather and ready salted The Off The Post Podcast is much like female assistant referee Sian Massey: its knowledge of the game is questioned by some, it causes divisions in footballing circles, and (as far as we know) Andy Gray isn't a fan. In this week's [.

Andy Gray's sacking this evening came as a major shock to the football world. The Scotsman had been the face of Monday Night Football since the concept existed and a major player in the rise and dominance of Sky Sports the past few seasons. Some of his phrases have since become infamous from the moment he uttered the likes of 'take a bow son' and 'you don't save those'.

Liverpool's renaissance under Kenny Dalglish continued as victory over Fulham lifted them into their highest Barclays Premier League position of the season.
It was not the most notable of performances, although there were plenty of spells of good football from the hosts, as John Pantsil's second-half own goal divided the teams.

By Geoff Reid

This past week has not been the best for Sky Sports back in England, with the sacking of long time expert Andy Gray, and the resignation of Richard Keys for off air comments made about female assistant referee, Sian Massey, during last Saturday's Wolves versus Liverpool Premiership match.

Like you, I'm proud to live in a country where ignorant, worthless loudmouths could never trash an assistant referee purely on the basis of her gender.
Unfortunately, that's because, unlike England, MLS doesn't have female assistant referees running the sidelines, and hasn't since WUSA started.

Sexism? Boo! Free t-shirts? Boo- no wait...Yeah!

*cough*

Woo!

And so it came to pass. Another day and another piece of high-quality linen to be bazooka'd across the heavens and into your living rooms, courtesy of the good folk at Philosophy Football. Here's their blurb followed by a dastardly scheme to get your paws on one.

AC Milan's Gennaro Gattuso grabbed the throat of Tottenham assistant manager Joe Jordan and headbutted the Scotsman during Tuesday night's Champions League match at the San Siro.

Gattuso became incensed during the match after Tottenham players and staff complained about an over-the-top tackle by former Arsenal midfielder Mathieu Flamini on Vedran Corluka.

What a game!
Five goals, three reds, an imperious performance by Shafiq Ghani culminating in two goals, the second hotly contested by Geylang players who carried the protest on after the game, the on-looking Pele and Eric Cantona must have wondered why half the stadium was empty.
The Eagles must have got stuck in the traffic 'cos they never turned up first half.

Richard Keys has sparked more outrage by accusing Liverpool fans of seeking revenge before the Heysel Stadium disaster.
Richard Keys suggested the ugly riot that left 39 Juventus fans dead was part of a payback for beatings Liverpool fans took from Roma fans.
Tragedy struck when a wall collapsed as fans clashed before the 1985 European Cup Final at the Brussels ground.

RoM is launching "Swear Watch" this weekend following the two match ban for Wayne Rooney. He was charged with using "offensive, insulting and/or abusive language" in our 4-2 win over West Ham.

Referee Lee Mason did not hear the swearing and did not see the swearing but in his match report claimed he would have sent Rooney off if he had.