We here at Sounder at Heart like to keep tabs on our former players. So it was with some interest that we saw Andy Craven taking to Twitter to issue a public apology:
(1/2) I didnt represent my club & fans w/ integrity this past game and Im sorry.
— Andy Craven #99 (@andymcraven) May 1, 2017
(2/2) Im blessed to be w/ @fccincinnati and will work hard to earn back the respect of the fans & club.
— Andy Craven #99 (@andymcraven) May 1, 2017
To say we were a bit taken aback by this is an understatement. Whatever you may have thought of Craven’s skills, he never gave off any hint of being a dirty player. That got us scrambling to find out what he was talking about. Twitter didn’t let us down:
RED CARD. ANDY CRAVEN WITH A DISGUSTING ELBOW.
— Brotherly Game (@BrotherlyGame) April 29, 2017
Oh, that doesn’t sound good. But surely, there’s something like a reasonable explanation ... so we looked for video. We found it. Here’s the incident:
Craven clearly lines up his opponent and knows exactly what he’s doing here, even if he almost immediately seems to realize he messed up. That the referee is right there and immediately issues the red illustrates just how brazen this was.
What prompted it? Hard to know.
A few moments earlier, Craven was jostling with another player. Not only was it a different one than the guy he clocks here, but Craven had only even entered the match about 20 minutes earlier. It’s a strange thing to do and seemingly out of character.
Either way, Craven will rightfully get a suspension for this.