Cautions can sometimes wait

I've had some questions recently about what might be called 'delayed' cautions. These are where the referee decides a player has committed a cautionable offence whilst the ball is in play, but doesn't stop play immediately as it would be taking away an advantage from the opponents. 

Let's say a player commits a reckless tackle worthy of a caution, but the ball still goes to an opponent who is in a good position. The first question is: can the referee when play finally stops, go back and
caution the player for the original offence?

The answer is in Law 5 of the Laws of the Game which says 'The referee takes disciplinary action against players guilty of cautionable and sending-off offences. He is not obliged to take the action immediately but must do so when the ball next goes out of play'.

There was an unusual example recently on television when David Elleray reached for his notebook after a goalkeeper had committed a reckless challenge outside his penalty area. The fouled player saw the opportunity of a quick free kick while the goalkeeper was out of his goal. David Elleray allowed him to take it rather than delay the kick to administer the caution. He then cautioned the goalkeeper
the next time play stopped. 

In that case it was simple to remember who the guilty person was. The challenge sometimes for the referee is to remember the player, bearing in mind play could go on for some time. Many referees will
shout to the offending player something like, 'I saw that number 7, I'll be back to deal with you later'. The player is then aware that he is going to be in some sort of trouble. Referees aren't obliged to do this but it does fix in their minds the number of the player so that when play finally stops they get the right one.

The second question is, what happens if the player whose original offence was worthy of a caution, commits another cautionable offence before the game is stopped. Does this count as two cautionable offences and a sending off, even though the referee has not shown the yellow card for the first offence? 

The law doesn't say that a player must be cautioned for the first offence before the second one can be taken into account. It merely says, 'A player is sent off and shown the red card, if he receives a second caution in the same match.' A player can be sent off for two cautionable offences at the same incident, even before the referee has got his notebook out of his pocket. 

An example earlier this season involved former Royals' favourite, Darren Caskey, now with Notts County, who made a reckless tackle in their FA Cup match against Southport. The referee thought this required a caution but, before he could issue it, Caskey adopted an aggressive attitude towards his opponent. The referee considered this unsporting behaviour and Caskey was shown two yellow cards in quick succession followed by a red. 

Players need to remember this. If they protest too loudly at the referee's decision, when being cautioned, they could find another
yellow card coming out for dissent.

The Laws say a referee can also delay a sending-off but this is not usually advocated. If the sending-off offence is serious foul play, it might invite retaliation or retribution. Also the offending player may make a vital contribution to the game between committing the offence and play next stopping. 

I heard recently of a case where a player committed an sending-off
offence but the referee decided to play an advantage. The opposing team wasted the opportunity and the ball went back up the field and the player who should have been sent off, scored. He then thought he got the red card for scoring a goal.

Dick Sawdon Smith

© R Sawdon Smith 2003

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