SEND-OFF OR NOT?

Question:
My son is a goalie on his team. At a particular game, we were playing during a rainy day. The white line on the 18 was not visibly able to be seen due to so much rain. He reached down and picked the ball up with his hands just past the 18 line. The ref gave him a red card and threw him out of the game saying that he tried to stop the other team from scoring a goal. It was a playoff game and he became very upset. Was the ref correct in giving him a red card?

USSF answer (March 12, 2010):
We cannot say that the referee’s action was correct unless someone can answer the question, “But for the handling, would the ball have entered the net?”

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