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San Francisco Soccer Player Knocks Out Referee Over Foul Call

SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) - A referee at a soccer match at San Francisco's Crocker Amazon Playground on Sunday was kicked in the face by a player who was angry about a foul called against him, police said.

The attack was reported at about 9:45 a.m. at the park, located at the corner of Geneva Avenue and Moscow Street.

Investigators learned that the referee had called a foul against a player, who was so upset at the call that he "performed a martial arts kick" to the referee's face, police said.

The ref was knocked out for a few seconds, and the player fled before he could get back up. However, the player failed to pick up his ID card that he had left at the registration desk, and the card has now been booked into evidence, police said.

The referee was taken to San Francisco General Hospital but was not seriously injured, according to police.

(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services may have contributed to this report.)

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