I know next to nothing about soccer and its rules, but the Canadian goalkeeper was previously warned about hanging onto the ball for longer than the rules dictate. Then she admits she was warned, but thought they would never actually enforce the rule. So, you feel even if you break a rule, it shouldn’t be enforced because it’s rarely done? I remember Charles Barkley complaining about being called for a charging foul in a big game. Barkely clearly knocked down the man guarding him, but thought the ref calling him for charging was “taking the ball out of the hands of the players.” This sounds like a similar situation where a player is upset that they’re not allowed to violate the rules.
Add to that - the Canadians were playing a good game. The goalie didn’t need to hold on to the ball those extra seconds.
Some people just can’t stop themselves from being pricks.
I know a lot about officiating sports, and the ref in this match was horrible.
Even though McLeod was verbally warned at half time, the next step should have been a yellow card. That would have made the point that the ref was serious. Going straight from a verbal warning to awarding an indirect free kick is inexcusable.
The ref also allowed way too much rough play throughout the match.