It was an under 14 match and in the first half the striker knocked the ball out of the goalkeeper's hands intentionally so I cautioned him - no arguments. In the second half there were various decisions with which he did not agree and there was a lot of low level dissent from him so I put him on a final warning. Then, with about ten minutes remaining and his team 1-0 up, I awarded a free kick near the touchline and he kicked the ball off the pitch which rolled down a hill. I would have cautioned him again, but nobody reacted (apart from his dad who was standing right next to the incident, obviously aware that he would have to pay the fine!) so I took the view that sending him off would be relinquishing all match control. The old adage, if they don't want it don't give it.
Was I correct, or was I wrong in basing my decision on people's reactions?
Was I correct, or was I wrong in basing my decision on people's reactions?