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AN AMATEUR football referee was left bleeding after being punched in the face by a player who was sent off during a friendly match in London.
Satyam Toki, 28, a father-of-one originally from India, said he was unsure whether to press charges after the attack in Acton, which left him with cuts to his face.
The attacker, who was playing for east London-based Sunday league side Sporting Club de Mundial has not been named but is believed to work in a school.
Mr Toki, a train conductor who lives with his wife and one-month-old daughter in west London, said he had asked the player several times to control his language and stop complaining, eventually giving him a 10-minute sin bin.
“He started walking towards the bench and while walking away he threatened me to see me after the match,” Mr Toki said.
“That was the point where I showed him the red card and got punched immediately in the face. I almost lost my vision for a couple of seconds, followed by excessive bleeding.”
In a statement, Sporting Club de Mundial said: “We as a club would like to publicly state that we categorically condemn the horrific actions by one of our players towards the referee.”
It added that the player had been “completely removed” from the club, which was formed last year by popular football publisher Mundial.
The club added that it had offered assistance to the Ref Support UK charity, which provides training and other forms of help to referees.
The incident came as the boss of the Referees Association warned that a match official would eventually be killed unless more serious punishments were handed out to those who abuse them.
Police and ambulance workers attended after the Acton attack, which saw the match suspended, but Mr Toki said he was unsure whether he wanted to pursue the incident any further.
“It has been reported to the FA and they are dealing with this matter as a matter of urgency,” he said.
“I have had the suspect contacting me apologising for his actions and begging me not to press charges as he will lose his job as a schoolteacher.
“Though he assaulted me, I am still thinking about his career and don’t want anyone to lose his job.
“But on the other side, if I don’t press charges in the future, he might do the same thing to another referee. Or even [worse] to schoolkids where he is a teacher.”
