10. Playing Season. Conditions of Play Times of Kick-off Postponements Substitutes
10. (A) The Annual General Meeting shall determine the commencing and concluding dates for the ensuing season which shall be in accordance with Football Association Rules. No Club shall be compelled to play after the concluding date. Original fixtures arranged by the (Fixtures) Secretary, or at a meeting specially convened for that purpose, to be held no later than 15th July, must not be arranged for a date later than seven days preceding the concluding date determined by the Annual General Meeting.
i) The length of playing season will be notified at the AGM for the following season. The Playing season for 2010 -2010 shall be the 1st Sunday in September to the 3rd Sunday in May a seven day over run may be permitted with the permission of the League Management Committee. No other fixtures will be permitted without permission from the League Management committee.
(B) All matches shall be played in accordance with the Laws of the Game as determined by the International Football Association Board or, for Mini-Soccer, the Laws of Mini-Soccer as set down by The Football Association.
Clubs must take all reasonable precautions to keep their grounds in a playable condition. All matches shall be played on pitches deemed suitable by the Management Committee. If through any fault of the home team a match has to be replayed, the Management Committee shall have power to order the venue to be changed.
(i) All matches that are not played on a senior ground must have one side of the field completely roped off at least one metre from the field of play. Failure to do so will incur a £25 fine. Where if possible all spectators must stand. The other side of the field of play must have a technical area for each team at least one metre from the field of play and ten metres either side of the centre line where only five substitutes and three officials from each team must keep behind at all times.
(ii) All officials to have an identity badge, which will be provided by the league registration secretary after submitting two current photographs. All Identity badges must be displayed at all times. Failure to do this will incur a £10 fine.
(iii) One official must be a registered first aider, who must when treating players carry a complete first aider bag.
(iv) All officials are required to behave in a responsible manner at all times.
The Management Committee shall have power to decide whether a pitch and/or facilities are suitable for matches in the Competition and to order the Club concerned to play its fixtures on another ground.
All matches shall have a duration as set out below unless a shorter time (not less than 30 minutes) is mutually arranged by the two Clubs in consultation with the referee prior to the commencement of the match, and in any event shall be of equal halves.
For Mini-Soccer – The maximum duration of play shall be two halves of 20 minutes each way. The maximum playing time in any one day for under 7 and under 8 age groups is 40 minutes and for under 9 and under 10 age groups is 60 minutes.
For Youth football – The duration of play shall be as follows unless it is mutually agreed by all parties to reduce the time. For under 11 and under 12, 30 minutes each half; for under 13, 14, 35 minutes each half and under15 and under 16, 40 minutes each half; under 17 and under 18, 45 minutes each half.
The minimum time for any game will not be less than 20 minutes each half for players in the under 14 age group and below and 25 minutes each half for all other age groups.
No player under the age of 17 as at midnight on 31st August in any season shall be permitted to play more than one game or, in the event the competition allows the playing of a double-header, ie: two separate matches, 100 minutes per day in this Competition.
The times of kick-off shall be fixed by the A.G.M. or the Management Committee. Any Club failing to commence at the appointed time shall be fined a sum not exceeding £10.00 or be otherwise dealt with as the Management Committee may determine.
Referees must order matches to commence at the appointed time and must report all late starts to the Competition.
The home team must provide at least two footballs fit for play and the referee shall make a report to the Competition if the footballs are unsuitable. The size of football to be used: For Mini-Soccer, size 3 for players in the under 7 and 8 age categories; size 4 for under 9's and 10s. For youth football – size 4 for those playing under 11, 12, 13 and 14 age groups; size 5 for all other age groups. Goal nets must be used.
(v) All fixtures must be started with the league sponsored match balls, referees are to report to the competition if this is not carried out.
(vi) Captains must wear armband, referees are to report to the competition if this is not carried out.
(C) Except by permission of the Management Committee all matches must be played on the dates originally fixed but priority shall be given to The Football Association and all relevant County Association Cup Competitions. All other matches must be considered secondary. Clubs may mutually agree to bring forward a match with the consent of the (Fixtures) Secretary.
(i) No fixture may be cancelled due to player or officials holidays.
(ii) The League Management Committee will advise all members of any dates when fixtures will not be played e.g. Christmas, Easter as soon as possible.
(iii) No Clubs may change grounds without permission from the League Management Committee.
(D) The Secretary of the home Club must give notice in writing of full particulars of the location of, and access to, the ground and time of kick-off to the match officials and the Secretary of the opposing Club at least seven clear days prior to the playing of the match. The away Club and match official shall seek and acknowledge receipt of such particulars.
Any Club failing to comply with this Rule shall be liable to a fine of £10.00.
(E) Every Club shall play its best available qualified team or teams in all matches in the Competition.
(Note: The intention of this Rule is not to interfere with normal team selection by Clubs, but to prevent Clubs deliberately fielding a weakened team in order to unreasonably reserve players for another game or to boost the strength of another or lower team. It is NOT intended that Clubs MUST field higher team players in lower teams when the higher team has no engagement. If, in the opinion of the Management Committee, the substance or spirit of the Rule is obviously being disregarded, the Club or Clubs concerned may be called to account for its/their actions and shall be subject to such decisions as the Management Committee may determine, despite the fact that Rule 8 has not been infringed.)
In the event of a Club playing in any match with less than eleven players they shall be fined £10.00 for each missing player. A minimum of seven players will constitute a team for a Competition match.
(F) Home and away matches shall be played. In the event of a Club failing to keep its engagement the Management Committee shall have power to inflict a fine, deduct points from the defaulting Club, Award the points to the opponents, order the defaulting Club to pay any expenses incurred by the opponents or otherwise deal with them except the award of goals. Notwithstanding the foregoing home and away provision, the Management Committee shall have power to order a match to be played on a neutral ground or on the opponent's ground if they are satisfied that such action is warranted by the circumstances.
Any Club with more than one team in the Competition shall always fulfil its fixture, within the Competition, in the following order of precedence:- First Team, Reserve Team, A Team. Clubs in breach of this requirement shall be fined a sum not exceeding £200.00 or otherwise dealt with by the Management Committee.
Any club unable to fulfil a fixture must, without delay, give notice to the (Fixtures) Secretary, the Competition Referees Secretary, the Secretary of the opposing Club and the match officials. Any Club failing to comply shall be dealt with by the Management Committee who may inflict any penalty it may deem suitable.
In the event of a match not being played or abandoned owing to causes over which neither Club has control, it shall be played in its entirety on a date to be mutually agreed by the two Clubs and approved by the Management Committee. Failing such agreement and notification to the (Fixtures) Secretary within seven days the Management Committee shall have power to order the match to be played on a named date or on or before a given date.
The Management Committee shall review all matches abandoned in cases where it is consequent upon the conduct of either or both teams. Where it is to the advantage of the Competition and does no injustice to either Club, the Management Committee shall be empowered to order the score at the time of the abandonment to stand. In all cases
where the Management Committee are satisfied that a match was abandoned owing to the conduct of one team or its Club member(s) they shall be empowered to award the points for the match to the opponent. In cases where a match has been abandoned owing to the conduct of either teams or their Club member(s), the Management Committee shall rule all
points for the match as void. No fine(s) can be applied by the Management Committee for an abandoned match.
(G) A Club may at its discretion and in accordance with the Laws of the Game use three substitute players in any match in this Competition who may be selected from five players.
For Mini-Soccer – any number of substitutions may be used at any time with the permission of the Referee. Entry onto the field of play will only be allowed during a stoppage in play. A player who has been replaced may return to the play as a substitute for another player. A Team must not have a squad greater than double the size of its team in an age group. For Youth Football – for teams in the under 16 age group and below, a player who has been substituted himself becomes a substitute and may replace another player at any time subject to the substitution being carried out in accordance with Law 3 of the Laws of Association Football.
(i) In under U16, u15, u14, u13 five substitutes may be used. And roll on roll off substitutes may be used. Note: this does not apply to U18s matches where sanction by the football association will not be approved. Providing they have been nominated to the referee on the team sheet prior to the match.
The referee shall be informed of the names of the substitutes not later than fifteen minutes before the start of the match.
(i) Team sheets must be exchanged with referee and opponents, at least 15 minutes prior to the match or be fined £15.
A player who has been selected, appointed or named as a substitute before the start of the match but does not actually play in the game shall not be considered to have been a player in that game within the meaning of Rule 8 of this Competition.
(H) The half time interval shall be of ten minutes duration, but it shall not exceed fifteen minutes. The half time interval may only be altered with the consent of the referee.
(i) Match Officials are to be offered refreshments at half & full time. Failure to do so will incur a fine of £10.
