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As you advance in your game assignments you will be expected to file game reports for the matches you officiate. These may
be as simple as a mail in or drop off game card to a full match report. One question that has surfaced is whether a referee
can downgrade a card after a match.
Law 5 makes it very clear: (1) The decisions of the referee regarding facts connected with play are final. (2) The referee
may only change a decision on realizing that it is incorrect or, at his discretion, on the advice of an assistant referee,
provided that he has not restarted play.
The USSF has written that to change a card is a serious referee error.
Your question:
We play for a U17 boys league in Eastern NY, our question is if the ref issues two yellow cards, which then becomes a
red and the player leaves the field and the game is resumed can the ref take away the red card after the game?
USSF answer (April 25, 2002):
If the referee issues a "second caution" to a player and shows the yellow card and then the red card, symbolizing
dismissal for committing a second cautionable offense in the same game, he may change his decision only upon determining that
he made an error and issued the "second caution" to the wrong player.
Here is an excerpt from the USSF publication "Advice to Referees on the Laws of the Game":
QUOTE
5.13 CHANGING A DECISION AFTER PLAY HAS RESTARTED
The only decision the referee cannot change following the subsequent restart is the scoring of a goal.
If the referee discovers only after play has restarted that the wrong player was cautioned or sent off, that earlier,
erroneous decision may be rectified. The referee's action may be based on information supplied by an assistant referee or
the fourth official.
END OF QUOTE
The referee may not change his decision after the game simply because he wants to be a "nice guy" or the player
apologizes.
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