Question Number: 23796

League Specific 8/19/2010

RE: Adult

Leigh Cook of Sydney, NSW Australia asks...

My son received a yellow card in a match which was his 5th for the season. This means he gets a 1 match suspension but he also received a second yellow in the match and was sent off. What I need to know is, does the red card wipe out all yellow cards he had received before and does the count start again. He was given a yellow card on his first match back and I have been told that the yellow card he got in the send off match did not count and this one now becomes the 5th. It means he will be suspended for the teams grand final in 2 weeks.

Answer provided by Referee Joe McHugh

Hi Leigh
That indeedcould be correct yet it is up to each individual league to decide how it treats the cautions. The two yellows that he received in the game I expect were treated as a dismissal and he received a suspension for that.
The next yellow card would then be added to the ongoing tally of cautions which was unchanged as a result of the two caution dismissal.

Answer provided by Referee Dennis Wickham

Each league is empowered to impose additional sanctions for sendoffs and accumulated cautions, and league rules will dictate how receiving a second caution in a match is treated.

Most of our local leagues will charge only the red card (and not count the second caution). Thus, a player who enters a match having accumulated three yellow cards and is sent off for receiving two cautions in the match will first serve the one match suspension for the red card, and will enter the next eligible match with four accumulated yellow cards.

However, the calculation is up to each league to decide.

Answer provided by Referee Keith Contarino

This is entirely up to your league. Our local leagues would only count the red and the first yellow but yours may differ.

You might want to address why your son has received these cards. If they are all for like infractions it may only require a specific modification of play on your son's part and he won't have to worry about accumulating these next season.