Under 17 game on Sunday. Great game, tasty enough to be really competitive, but never really crossing the line. Towards the end green defender clears the ball for a throw, black attacker is there and I'm about ten yards away, they square up very slightly, something said between them and black attack puts his hands on greens chest. Now to me the green defender has moved into him and the action was more the black attacker putting his hands out to keep the green from going nose to nose with him. Cue the green bench going mad, "he's pushed him!" Etc etc. I give a couple of blows on the whistle, run a bit closer and tell them to cool it down and they both are getting on. Calling it a flash point would over sell it. It wasn't even hand bags in my opinion.
Throw is taken and green players and shouting about me talking to the black attacker and cards etc. I tell them to not be silly. Ball is lumped down field so I'm off. Next thing greens bench go mad again saying "HE''s PUSHED HIM AGAIN!" Now I turn round as I'm literally facing the other way and see nothing going on, they don't even seem to be that near each other. The green bench are going mental about it.
It's one of those moments you want to go over to the manager and just say, look mate I wasn't even looking in that direction, there's no way I'm giving it is there. They went on to win a good game, but the greens assistant asks after the game, nicely I might add, why it wasn't a red card. I said I didn't think there was anything to it. He then obviously said if you raise your hands it's an automatic red card regardless of the incident.
Throw is taken and green players and shouting about me talking to the black attacker and cards etc. I tell them to not be silly. Ball is lumped down field so I'm off. Next thing greens bench go mad again saying "HE''s PUSHED HIM AGAIN!" Now I turn round as I'm literally facing the other way and see nothing going on, they don't even seem to be that near each other. The green bench are going mental about it.
It's one of those moments you want to go over to the manager and just say, look mate I wasn't even looking in that direction, there's no way I'm giving it is there. They went on to win a good game, but the greens assistant asks after the game, nicely I might add, why it wasn't a red card. I said I didn't think there was anything to it. He then obviously said if you raise your hands it's an automatic red card regardless of the incident.
