A decision on referee Graham Poll's future at the World Cup will not be made until next Wednesday following his controversial handling of the Croatia against Australia clash.

Poll handed three yellow cards to Croatia's Josip Simunic in the 2-2 draw but did not send the player off until after the final whistle.

The FIFA referees' committee said in a statement on Saturday that Poll was an "exceptional referee" and a "great sportsman" and added that he was likely to overcome the situation "thanks to his strong personality and love of the game".

However, Poll has not been allocated any matches in the first knockout round that starts on Saturday and continues until next Tuesday.

Poll met the referees' committee on Friday and, in the statement, FIFA say he explained that he wrote down the name of Australia defender Craig Moore when booking Simunic for the second time.

The statement continued: "The experienced official is disappointed at having committed the error, the first such mistake in his 26-year career.

"The FIFA referees' committee also recognised the oversight and the fact that none of the match officials at the stadium picked up on the error."