SYDNEY, July 28: The Asian Football Confederation imposed one-match bans on three North Korean women players Friday for attacking the referee after a narrow loss to China at the Women's Asian Cup in Adelaide.
The confederation said North Korean goalkeeper Hye Yong-Han and outfield players Son Kyong-Sun and Song Jung-Sun were banned for violent conduct and would miss the playoff for third and fourth places in the tournament.
Television footage showed them attacking Italian referee Anna De Toni after a 1-0 loss to China in Thursday's semi-final, in which North Korea had an injury-time goal disallowed for an offside infringement.—AFP