Rooney warned temper could result in early KO

Wayne Rooney has been warned he must keep the lid on his emotions or risk a re-run of the red card misery he endured at the last World Cup.

Rooney's volatility was on display again in England's final warm-up match on Monday, a 3-0 win over local club Platinum Stars in which he was booked for dissent and was guilty of several challenges that could kindly be described as over enthusiastic.

Jeff Selogilwe, the match referee, received an apology and Rooney's shirt after the match. But that did not prevent him from issuing a warning to the Manchester United striker, who was sent off in England's 2006 quarter-final defeat by Portugal.

"I was very disappointed in Rooney because he is my favourite player," Selogilwe said.

"He is a good player when you see him on the TV, but when you see him on the pitch, he just keeps on insulting the referees.

"To me it looks like Rooney insults people and fouls other players. If he insults a referee like me then he will use that vulgar language to other referees as well.

"He must learn to control his temper. He could get sent off in the World Cup, especially if he uses this kind of language."

Rooney's importance to England was underlined again on Monday when his entrance as a second-half substitute - combined with a half-time rollicking from coach Fabio Capello - sparked a significant improvement in their performance after the interval.

The striker set up Joe Cole for the second goal before scoring the third himself with a fine volley.

Afterwards, Rooney shrugged off concerns over his on-the-field discipline, insisting he was just raring to get started with the real action, which for England means Saturday's Group C match against the United States.

"We are ready, these are preparation games for us for the big one now coming up on Saturday," Rooney said.