Stokesley League Rules 2007-08
1. NOMENCLATURE AND CONSTITUTION
(A) This Competition shall be designated the Stokesley and District Football League and known as the Hathaway & Cope Stokesley & District Football League and shall consist of no more than twenty four (24) clubs who shall be Full Member clubs and not more than four (4) clubs who shall be Associate Member clubs.
New Members are to be probationary members for one year, and should apply for Full Membership in writing at the next A.G.M.
All such Member clubs must be affiliated to an affiliated County Football Association and their names and particulars shall be returned annually by the appointed date on the Form ‘D’ North Riding County Football Association. The area covered by the Competition Membership shall be within a 20-mile radius of Stokesley.
This Competition shall apply annually for sanction to the North Riding County Football Association and the constituent teams of Member clubs may be grouped in one or more divisions, each not exceeding fourteen (14) in number
Member clubs shall not enter any of their teams playing in the Competition in any other Competitions (with the exception of F.A. and County F.A. competitions) except with the written consent of the Management Committee of the Competition.
(B) At the Annual General Meeting or a Special General Meeting called for the purpose, a majority of the delegates present shall have power to decide or adjust the compilation of the divisions at their discretion. When necessary this Rule shall take precedence over Rule 12.
2. ENTRY FEE, SUBSCRIPTION, DEPOSIT
(A) Applications by clubs for admission to this Competition or the entry of an additional team(s) must be made in writing to the secretary and must be accompanied by an Entry Fee of £20.00 per team which shall be returned in the event of non-election.
At the discretion of a majority of the accredited voting members present applications of which due notice has been given, may be received at the Annual General Meeting or a Special General Meeting. The Entry Fee shall apply.
All clubs entering the league shall do so as Associate Members for one year and shall attain Full Member status only after election thereto by an Annual General Meeting.
(B) The Annual subscription shall be £50.00 per club payable on or before the 1st July in each year.
(C) Each club shall within 7 days of the Annual General Meeting pay a Deposit Bond of £50.00, which shall be returnable to clubs on leaving the Competition provided they have fulfilled their fixtures and complied with the orders of the Management Committee.
(D) A club shall not participate in this Competition until the Entry Fee (as applicable), Annual Subscription, Cup fees and Deposit bond have been paid.
(E) clubs must advice annually to the Secretary in writing by the 30th June of its North Riding County Football Association affiliation number for the forthcoming Season failing which they will be fined £50.00 clubs must advise the secretary in writing, or on the prescribed form (SDFL 001) of details of its Headquarters, Officers and other information required by the Competition.
3. OFFICERS
The Officers of The competition shall be the President, Vice-Presidents the Chairman Vice-Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, and Registration Secretary to be elected annually at the Annual General Meeting. (N.B. Auditors are not Officials).
4. MANAGEMENT, NOMINATION, ELECTION
(A) The Competition shall be governed in accordance with the Rules and Regulations of The Football Association by a Management committee comprised of the Officers, (excluding Vice Presidents) and 6 members who shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting.
(B) Retiring Officers shall be eligible to become candidates for re-election without nomination. All other candidates for election as officers or Members of the Management Committee shall be nominated to the Secretary in writing, signed by the Secretaries of two Member clubs not later than 1st May in each year. Names of the candidates for re-election shall be circulated with the notice of the Annual General Meeting. In the event, at there being no nominations in accordance with the foregoing for any office, nominations may be received at the Annual General Meeting.
(C) The Management Committee shall meet monthly to deal with business as it arises.
On receiving a requisition signed by two-Thirds of the Members of the Management Committee the Secretary shall convene a meeting of the Committee.
(D) Except where otherwise mentioned all communications shall be addressed to the Secretary who shall conduct the correspondence of the Competition and keep a record of its proceedings.
(E) All communications received from clubs must be conducted through their nominated club Secretary.
5. POWERS OF MANAGEMENT
(A) The Management Committee may appoint such other sub-committees as they may consider necessary and may delegate such of their powers as they deem necessary to such committees The decisions of all such committees shall be reported to the Management committee for ratification.
(B) Subject to the permission of the North Riding County Football Association having been obtained the Management Committee may order a match or matches to be played each season, the proceeds to be devoted to the funds of the Competition and, if necessary, may call upon each club (including any club which may have withdrawn during the season to contribute equally such sums as may be necessary to meet any deficiency at the end of the season. (See Rule 6(e)).
(C) Each Member of the Management Committee shall have the right to attend and vote at all Management Committee Meetings and have one vote thereat, but no Member shall be allowed to vote on any matters directly appertaining to such Member or to the club so represented. (This shall apply to the procedure of any sub committee).
i) In the event of the voting being equal on any matter, the Chairman shall have a second or casting vote.
(D) The Management Committee shall have powers to apply act upon and enforce the Rules of the Competition and shall also have jurisdiction over all matters affecting the Competition including any not provided to in the Rules. Except where these Rules provide for the imposition of a set penalty any club, Official or Player alleged to be in breach of a Competition Rule must be formally charged in writing and given the opportunity to present their case before the Management committee. All breaches of the Laws of the Game, Rules and Regulations of The Football Association Shall be dealt with in accordance with F.A. Rules.
(E) All decisions of the Management Committee shall be binding subject to the right of appeal to the Board of Appeal In accordance with Rule 16. Decisions of the Management committee must be notified in writing to those concerned within seven (7) days.
(F) Four (4) Members of the Management Committee shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business of the Management Committee and three (3) Members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business by any sub committee of the competition.
(G) The Management Committee, as it may deem necessary. Shall have the power to fill in an acting capacity any vacancies that that may occur in their number.
(H) A club having failed to comply with an order or instruction of the Management Committee or failing to satisfactorily attend to the business and or the correspondence of the competition shall be liable to be fined or otherwise penalised at the discretion of the Management Committee.
i) In the event of a club being suspended by Durham / North Riding County FA and the league is in receipt of a club suspension by the County FA, the league will send a suspension form, informing clubs of suspended fixtures, defaulting clubs shall be charged an administration cost of £5.00.
ii) In the event of defaulting club not informing the league that it has fulfilled its obligation to the Durham / North Riding County FA as in 5(H)(i) then the club shall be fined a minimum of £10.00.
(I) All fines and charges shall be paid within 14 days of the date of posting of the written notification. Failure to pay a fine within 14 days will result in the club being suspended from the competition with immediate effect and imposed until the obligation is met
(J) A member of the Management Committee appointed by the competition to attend a meeting or match may have any expenses incurred refunded by the Competition.
(K) The Management Committee shall have the power to fill any vacancy that may occur in the membership of the Competition between the Annual General or special General Meeting called to decide the constitution and the commencement of the Competition season.
6. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
(A) The Annual General Meeting shall be held not later than 30th June in each year. At this meeting the following business shall be transacted provided that at least 60% of Members are present and entitled to vote: -
i) To receive and confirm the Minutes of the proceeding Annual General Meeting.
ii) To consider any business arising they’re from.
iii) To receive and adopt the Annual Report, Balance Sheet and Statement of Accounts.
iv) Election of clubs to fill vacancies (as recommended by the Management Committee).
v) Constitution of the Competition for ensuing season.
vi) Election of Officers and Management Committee.
vii) Appointment of Auditors.
viii) Alteration of Rules, if any (of which notice has been given).
ix) Fix the date for the commencement and conclusion of playing season.
x) Other business of which due notice shall have been given and accepted as being relevant to an Annual General Meeting.
(B) A copy of the duly audited Balance Sheet, Statement of Accounts and Agenda shall be forwarded to each club at least fourteen days prior to the meeting and to the North Riding County Football Association.
(C) A signed copy of the duly audited Balance Sheet and Statement of Accounts shall be sent to the North Riding County Football Association within fourteen days of its adoption by the Annual General Meeting.
(D) Each Full Member club shall be empowered to send two delegates to an Annual General Meeting. Each club shall be entitled to one vote only. Not less than fourteen (14) days notice shall be given of any Meeting.
(E) clubs who have withdrawn their Membership of the Competition during the season being concluded or who are not in continuing Membership shall be entitled to attend but shall vote only on matters relating to the season being concluded.
(F) All voting shall be conducted by a show of voting cards unless a ballot be demanded by at least one third of the delegates qualified to vote or the Chairman so decides.No individual shall be entitled to vote on behalf of more than one Full Member club.
(G) Any continuing Member club failing to be represented at the Annual General Meeting without satisfactory reason being given shall be fined £25.00.
(H) Officers and Management Committee Members shall be entitled to attend and vote at an Annual General Meeting.
7. AGREEMENT TO BE SIGNED
The Chairman and the Secretary of each club shall complete and sign the following agreement, which shall be deposited with the Competition together with the Application or Membership for the coming season, or upon indicating that the club intends to compete.
"We, A, _____________________ of _______________________ (Chairman) and B___________________ of _____________________ (Secretary) of the
______________________________ Football club have been provided with a copy of the Rules and Regulations of the Stokesley & District Football League and do hereby agree for and on behalf of the said club to, if elected or accepted into Membership, to conform to those Rules and Regulations and to accept abide by and implement the decisions of the Management Committee of the Competition subject to the right of appeal in accordance with Rule 16.
Any alteration of the Chairman and or Secretary of the above Agreement must be notified to the North Riding County Football Association(s) to which the club is affiliated and to the Secretary of the Competition;
(Note: The spaces above are intended for the inclusion of the signatures and addresses of officers and members).
8. QUALIFICATION OF PLAYERS
(A) Contract players, as defined in Football Association Rules, are not permitted in this Competition.
(B) A registered playing member of a club is one who being in all other respects eligible has: -
i) Signed a fully and correctly completed Competition registration form in ink, countersigned by an officer of the club and who has been registered with the Registrations Secretary.
ii) And whose completed registration counterfoil has been received by the club prior to playing.
If a player’s age is required for registration purposes a competition must accept and birth certificate or a photocopy. In cases where the birth certificate is not available a Competition is required to accept a photocopy of the player’s passport or other official document issued by the Government Agency attesting to the player’s date of birth.
(C) A team shall not include any player who has taken part in any senior competition matches during the current season unless a period of twenty eight (28) days has elapsed since they played.
For the purpose of this Competition, a senior competition(s) is defined by NRCFA as Category A and B Teams.
(D) A player having taken part in matches for any club affiliated to any County football Association should not be allowed to join, be transferred to, or sign for a club in the Competition without first proving to the officials of the intended club that the player has discharged all reasonable financial liabilities to the previous club or clubs, and a club official may not accept such player's signature without first ascertaining whether such claims have been discharged to the satisfaction of The club or clubs, for which the player last played.
(E) A fee of 50p shall be paid for each player registered payable between 1st and 30th January in each year or be liable to a fine of £20.00. All registrations conducted 30th January and 16th March must be accompanied by the registration fee.
(F) Registration forms (SDFL 002) shall be obtained from the Secretary free of charge. Each club must have a minimum of 13 players registered with the Registration Secretary before 1st August each year or be liable to a fine of £10.00.
(G) The Management Committee shall decide all registration disputes.
In the event of a player signing a registration form or having a registration submitted for more than one club priority of registration shall decide for which club the player shall be registered. The Registration Secretary shall notify the club last applying to register the player of the fact of the previous registration.
(H) It shall be deemed misconduct for a player to: -
i) Play for more than one club in the Competition in the same season without first being transferred.
ii) Having signed for one club in the Competition, sign for another club in the Competition in that season except for the purpose of a transfer.
iii) Submit a signed registration form for registration that the player had wilfully neglected to accurately or fully complete.
(I) i) The Management Committee shall have power to accept the registration of any player.
ii) The Management Committee shall have the power to refuse cancel or suspend the registration of any player or may fine any player at their discretion proved guilty of registration irregularities. (Subject to Rule 16).
iii) The Management Committee shall have power to refuse or cancel the registration of any player found guilty of undesirable conduct (Subject to Rule 16) Undesirable conduct shall mean an incident of repeated conduct which may deter a participant from being involved in this competition.
(Note- Action under Clause iii) shall not be taken against a player for misconduct on the field of play until the matter has been dealt with by the appropriate Association and then only in cases of the player bringing the Competition into disrepute).
(J) Subject to The football Association Rules dealing with players without a written contract when a player desires a transfer, the club the player wishes to transfer to shall submit a transfer form (SDFL 004) to the Registrations Secretary accompanied by a fee of £5.0 (first transfer) £10.00 (second transfer during current transfer). Such transfer shall be referred by the Registration Secretary to the club for which the player is registered. Should this club object to the transfer it should state its objections in writing to the Registration Secretary and to the player concerned within seven days of receipt of the transfer form. Upon receipt of the club's consent or upon its failure to give written objection within seven days Registration Secretary may on behalf of the management committee, transfer the player who shall be deemed eligible to play for the new club from such date or seven days after receipt of such transfer.
No club in the League shall be allowed to approach any player who has played in a League game for any other club in the League during the playing season, without the sanction of the Committee of the club for whom such player played.
Any club shall be entitled to appeal to the Committee of the League where such sanction is withheld, and the Committee of the League shall have power to grant or withhold same. Any player shall be entitled to apply to his club for an open transfer at any time, and in case the Committee of the club refuse to grant the same, he shall be entitled to appeal to the Committee of the League, who shall have power to grant or refuse the same.
A player may not be registered for a club nor transferred to another club in the competition after 16th March each year except by special permission of the Management Committee.
(K) In the event of an objection to a transfer, the matter shall be referred to the Management Committee for a decision.
A club shall keep a list of the players it registers and a record of the games in which they have played, and shall produce such records upon demand by the Management Committee.
Registrations are valid for one Season only.
(L) A register containing the names of all players registered for each club, with the date of registration, shall be kept by the Registration Secretary and shall be open to the inspection of any duly appointed member club representative at all Management Committee meetings or at other times mutually arranged.
(M) A player shall not be eligible to play for a team in any ‘play off’ situation promotion or relegation deciding match (as specified in Rule 12(A)) unless the player has Played 3 games for that team in this Competition in the current season or unless at the discretion of the League Management Committee.
(N) A player who has played for a team in the first division seven (7) times or more shall not in that season be eligible to play in a lower division except by permission of the management committee
(O) A player shall not be eligible to play for a team in any ‘play off’ situation promotion or relegation deciding match (as specified in Rule 12(A)) unless the player has played 3 games for that team in this Competition in the current season or unless at the discretion of the League Management Committee.
(P) Minimum age to play in this league is sixteen (16)
(Q) Any team playing an unregistered or otherwise ineligible player or players:
i) May have the points gained in the match deducted from its total and will be fined and / or otherwise dealt with at the discretion of the Management Committee.
ii) In addition the team shall have three points deducted from its total at the discretion of the Management Committee and may be dealt with in any further manner which is thought to be fit.
iii) The Management Committee in exceptional circumstances may at its discretion, award any points deducted from a club under this Rule to the opponents in the match in question subject to the match not being ordered to be replayed.
(Note: For players under the age of 18 the provisions contained in Football Association Rules will apply).
9. CLUB COLOURS, CLUB NAME
(A) Every club must register the colour of its shirts and shorts with the Secretary by the date of the AGM who shall decide as to their suitability.
i) Goalkeepers must wear colours, which distinguish them from other players and the referee.
ii) No player, including the goalkeeper, shall be permitted to wear black or very dark shirts.
Any team not being able to play in its normal colours as registered with the Competition shall notify the colours in which they will play to its opponents at least 3 days before the match.
If, in the opinion of the referee, two clubs have the same or similar colours, the away team shall make the change. Any team not having a change of colours or delaying the kick-off by not having a change shall be fined £5.00.
The Secretary of the Competition may request shirts to be submitted if complaints are received as to lack of distinguishing colours and the management Committee may refuse to permit any shirt or shorts as they think fit.
i) Shirts must be numbered.
(B) Any club wishing to change its name and or colours must seek permission from its affiliated County Association and from the Management Committee.
10. PLAYING SEASON CONDITIONS OF PLAY, TIMES OF KICK-OFF, POSTPONEMENTS, SUBSTITUTES
(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 Secretary, or at a meeting specially convened for that purpose, to be held no later than seven days proceeding the concluding determined by the Annual General Meeting.
(B) All matches shall be played in accordance with the Laws of the Game as determined by the International Football Association Board.
Clubs must take all reasonable precautions to keep their grounds in 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 re-played, the Management Committee shall have power to order the venue to be changed.
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 duration of 90 minutes unless a shorter time (not less than 70 minutes) is mutually arranged by the two captains in consultation with the referee prior to the commencement of the match, and in any event shall be of equal halves.
The times of kick-off shall be fixed by the League Secretary. Any club failing to commence at the appointed time may 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. Goal nets must be used.
(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 League Secretary.
(D) The Secretary of the home club must give notice of its 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 three (3) clear days prior to the playing of the match. The away club 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 boast the strength of another team or lower. 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 played.
In the event of a club playing in any match with less than 9 players, they may be fined £5.00. A minimum of 7 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. Not withstanding 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 opponents 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 fixtures, 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 £5.00 or otherwise dealt with by the Management Committee.
Notice of postponement of any match must be given without delay by the postponing club; (or notice of a club being unable to fulfil any match must be given 2 days prior to the match by the club) To:
i) The League Secretary,
ii) The secretary of the opposing club and
iii) The match officials.
Any club failing to comply shall be dealt with by the Management Committee who may inflict a minimum fine of £10.00 and or any other 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 agreed by the League Secretary.
The Management Committee shall review all abandoned matches and in a case 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 opponents and / or take what other action they may deem necessary.
In cases where a match is abandoned owing to the conduct of both teams or their club members, the Management Committee shall take such action, as they consider appropriate. Such action is subject to any disciplinary action taken by the appropriate Affiliated Association.
(G) A club may at its discretion and in accordance with the Laws of the Game use 3 substitute players in any match in this Competition who may be selected from 5 players.
The referee shall be informed of the names of the substitutes before the start of the match.
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 5 minutes duration, but it shall not exceed fifteen minutes. The half time interval may only be altered with the consent of the referee.
11. REPORTING RESULTS
(A)The Registration Secretary must receive within two days excluding Sundays of the date played (i.e. by Tuesday for Saturday matches, Thursday for Monday matches and Saturday for Wednesday matches.) the result of each competition match in the prescribed manner. This must include the forenames and surname of the team payers (in block letters) and also the referee’s markings required by Rule 13, or any other information required by the competition.
i) The prescribed manner – Each club must take a match card (SDFL 003) to every match, At the end of the match both clubs must complete their match card by listing Christian and Surname (in block letters) of their own club players taking part in the match, the referees mark out of one hundred, and the result and scorers(s) must also be added. In addition, a nomination must be added in the space provided for the opposing team’s man of match (MOM). The card must then be exchanged with the opposing club representative so that the opposing clubs details can be submitted as outlined in this paragraph.
Failure to do so will incur a £10.00 fine any third & subsequent offences the club shall be dealt with as the Management Committee decide.
(B) The home club shall telephone the result and a match report of each match to the designated press officer no later than 6:15pm for Saturday matches and by 9:15pm for mid week matches. In addition all clubs participating in County games must telephone the result and a match report. Failure to report shall incur a fine of £10.00.
(C) The match result notification, correctly completed, shall be signed by a responsible member of the club. The Management Committee shall have the power to take such action, as they deem suitable against a club which submits an incomplete form or incorrect information.
12. DETERMINING CHAMPIONSHIP
(A) Team rankings within the competition will be decided by points with 3 points to be awarded for a win and 1 point for a drawn match. The teams gaining the most number of points in their respective competitions at the conclusion shall be adjudged the winners. Matches must not be played for double points.
In the event of two or more teams being equal on points, team rankings will be decided by goal difference.
In the event of two championship contending clubs being equal on points at the conclusion of the season then team rankings shall be decided by a championship play off match.
(B) Automatic promotion and relegation shall be applied for the first two (2)and last two (2) teams in each Division except as provided for hereunder, subject to the provisions of Rule 1(b).
(i) Should one or more teams withdraw from any one Division after the fixtures have commenced an equal number of teams to those withdrawing in that Division shall not be automatically relegated.
(ii) Vacancies occurring after the conclusion of the season may be filled on any of the following ways:
(a) retention of otherwise relegated team(s)
(b) additional promotion of the next ranked team(s) from the Division below
(c) election
(iii) The last two teams in the lowest Division shall retire, but be eligible for re-election except as below, and be subject to the conditions of paragraph (B)(1) above.
(iv) When a senior team is relegated to a lower Division of which its reserve team is a member, or entitled to be a member, such reserve team must accept relegation to, or retain its position in, the next lower Division; and should the senior team be relegated to the lowest Division its reserve team automatically retires from the Competition.
(v) Should either or both of the leading teams in any of the Divisions have its senior team in the next higher Division, promotion shall fall, at the discretion of the General Meeting, to the next highest team or teams in the Division concerned.
(C) In the event of a team not completing all of its fixtures for the season all points obtained by or recorded against such defaulting team shall be expunged from the competition table.
(D) Refers to Leagues with more than one division.
(E) In all cases where a club has failed to complete its fixtures during the season, the record of the matches played by such club shall be deleted from the League table if more than two matches remain to be played. If a Club has only one or two matches unplayed points will be awarded as follows: -
i) If a club was not in default lost or drew the first match, the point's value of the League for a drawn match shall be awarded to such club.
ii) If a club which was not in default won the first match, the point’s value of the League for a win shall be awarded to such club.
iii) If a club which was not in default had not played either match, the points value of the League for a win shall be awarded to such club.
13. REFEREES
(A) Registered Referees and Assistant Referees for all matches shall be appointed in a manner approved by the Management committee and by the sanctioning Association(s).
(B) In the event of the non-appearance of the appointed Referee the appointed Assistant Referee shall take charge and substitute Assistant Referee appointed by the competing teams. In cases where there are no officially appointed Assistant Referees, the clubs shall agree upon a Referee. A Referee thus agreed upon shall for that game have the full powers, status and authority of a registered Referee.
(C) The Management committee may if they consider it desirable, or upon application by the two competing clubs appoint assistant referees, if available to any match. Where assistant referees are not appointed each club if numbers permit, shall provide club assistant referee.
(D) The appointed Referee shall have power to decide as to the fitness of the ground in all matches and the decision shall be final subject to either in the case of a ground of a Local Authority or the owners of the ground, the Representative of that body is the sole arbiter and whose decision must be accepted unless the ground is declared fit for play.
(E) Match Officials appointed under this Rule shall be entitled to charge standard class public transport expenses or private car expenses of 20p per mile and any other permitted expenses actually incurred together with the following match fees: -
i) Referee £15.00 registered Referees appointed by the Management Committee as Assistant
ii) Referees £7.50 subject to any limits laid down by the sanctioning Association(s).
The Home club shall pay the officials their fees and expenses immediately after the match.
(F) In the event of a match not being played because of circumstances over which the clubs have no control the Match Officials, if present, shall be entitled to half fee plus expenses only. Where a match is not played owing to one club being in default, that club shall be ordered to pay the Officials, if they attend the ground, their full fee and expenses.
(G) A Referee not keeping his engagement and failing to give a satisfactory explanation as to his/her non-appearance may have his/her name removed from the list of Referees and the fact reported to the Association with which he/her is registered.
(H) Each club shall, in a manner prescribed from time to time by The Football Association, award marks to the Referee for each match and the name of the Referee and the marks awarded shall be submitted by to the Competition on the prescribed Form provided. Clubs failing to comply with this Rule shall be liable to be fined or dealt with as the Management Committee shall determine.
(I) No official of the League, who is a Referee, shall be appointed to officiate in any match connected with such League unless the appointed Referee intimates his inability to officiate within twenty-four hours prior to the match.
(J) The competition shall keep a record of the markings and on the Form provided by the prescribed date each season, shall submit a summary to the North Riding County Football Association.
(K) Referees and Assistant Referees shall be supplied each season with a copy of the competition rules free of charge.
14. CONTINUATION OF MEMBERSHIP OR WITHDRAWAL OF A CLUB
(A) After 31st December in the current Season a club intending, or having a provisional intention to withdraw a team from the Competition on completion of its fixtures and fulfilment of all other obligations to the Competition must notify the Secretary in writing by 31st March each Season or be liable to a minimum fine of £75.00.
(B) A club shall not be allowed to withdraw any or all of its teams from the Competition after the Annual General Meeting for the following Season. Any club infringing this Rule shall be Liable to a minimum fine of £250:00 per team and shall also be liable for its share of any call, which may be made under Rule 5(B).
(C) The Membership for the coming season having been decided at a Special General, Meeting held for that purpose not earlier than 30th April not later than 30th June or at the Annual General Meeting held not later than 30th June the competition shall have the right, irrespective of other provisions in this Rule to refuse to permit a club to withdraw its team(s) in order to join another Competition and may hold the club to its engagements.
(D) In the event of a Member club which is an un-incorporated association withdrawing and / or disbanding it shall be immediately liable to discharge all its financial and other obligations to the Competition.
In the event that any such obligation remains undischarged after a period of twenty-one (21) days then such obligation shall be met by the then current club Members. Excluding those under the statutory school leaving age. Until a Member’s, pro rata obligation is discharged in full the Member shall not be allowed to participate in the Competition, which may apply to the clubs parent County Association for a suspension order.
15. PROTESTS AND APPEALS
(A) i) All questions of eligibility, qualifications of players or interpretations of the Rules shall be referred to the Management Committee.
ii) Objections relevant to the dimensions of the pitch, goals, flag posts or other facilities of the venue will not be entertained by the Management Committee unless a protest is lodged with the Referee before the commencement of the match. Any club lodging such protest and not proceeding with it shall be deemed guilty of a breach of this Rule and shall be dealt with by the Management Committee.
(B) Except in cases where the Management Committee decide that there are special circumstances, protests and complaints (which must contain full particulars of the grounds upon which they are founded) must be lodged in duplicate with the League Secretary within 3 days (excluding Sundays) of the match or occurrence to which they refer. A protest or complaint shall not be withdrawn except by permission of the Management Committee. A Member of the Management Committee who is a member of any club involved shall not be present (except as a witness or representative of his club) when such protest or complaint is being determined.
(C) Any dispute occurring between clubs in the Competition shall be referred for determination by the Management Committee whose decision shall be binding upon all parties subject to Rule 16.
(D) No protest of whatever kind shall be considered by the Management Committee unless the complaining club shall have deposited with the League Secretary a sum of £10.00. This may be forfeited in whole or in part in the event of the complaining or protesting club losing its case, the Competition shall have power to order the defaulting club or the club making a losing or frivolous protest or complaint to pay the expenses of the enquiry or to order that the costs to be shared by the parties.
(E) All parties to a protest or complaint must be afforded an opportunity to make a statement when the protest or complaint is being heard and must have received 7 days notice of the hearing, together with a copy of the submission. When dealing with a protest or complaint the Management Committee shall take into consideration the possession by the protesting or complaining club of any information which, if properly used might have avoided the protest or complaint.
16. BOARD OF APPEAL
Within 14 days of the posting of written notification of any decision of the Management Committee or the Competition a club Official or Player against whom action is taken may appeal against such decision by lodging particulars in duplicate with the Secretary of the North Riding County Football Association, including a fee of £25.00 for adjudication of a Board of Appeal. The grounds of appeal shall be in accordance with FA Rules. The Board of Appeal may order the appeal fee to be forfeited and shall decide by whom the costs of the appeal shall be borne. The decision of the Board of Appeal is final and binding on all parties concerned.
17. EXCLUSION OF CLUBS OR TEAMS MISCONDUCT, CLUBS, OFFICIALS, PLAYERS
(A) At the Annual General Meeting or Special General Meeting called for the purpose, Notice of Motion having been duly circulated on the Agenda, the accredited delegates present shall have the power to exclude any club or team from further membership which must be supported by (more than) two thirds (2/3) of those present and voting. Voting on this point shall be conducted by ballot.
(B) At the Annual General Meeting, or at a Special General Meeting called for the purpose, In accordance with the provisions of Rule 19, the accredited delegates present shall have the power to exclude from further participation in the Competition any club whose conduct has, in their opinion, been undesirable upon a majority of two thirds of the votes cast. Voting on this point shall be conducted by ballot. A club whose conduct is the subject of the vote being taken shall be excluded from voting
(C) Any official or member of a club proved guilty of either misconduct, other than field offences, or of inducing or attempting to induce a player or players of another club in the Competition to join them shall be liable to expulsion or such penalty as a General Meeting or Management Committee may decide, and their club shall also be liable to expulsion in accordance with the provisions of Clauses (A) and (B) of this Rule.
(D) Any club or team failing to complete 75% of its fixtures in any season shall (Unless the conditions are beyond their control or the accredited delegates present at the Annual General Meeting or Special General Meeting decide otherwise by a majority of two-thirds of the votes cast) be debarred from membership the following season.
18. TROPHY: - LEGAL OWNERS. CONDITIONS OF TAKING OVER, AGREEMENT TO BE SIGNED. AWARDS
A Competition Cup or Trophy shall be vested in the Association sanctioning the Competition as trustees. If a Competition is to be discontinued for any cause the Cup or Trophy shall be returned to the Donor, if the conditions attached to it so provide or otherwise dealt with as the Association may decide. At the close of each Competition, awards may be made to the winners and runners up if the funds of the Competition permit.
The following agreement shall be signed on behalf of the winners of the Cup or Trophy: -
“We A ___________________ and B______________ the Chairman and Secretary of _______________________FC members of and representing the club, having been
declared winners of ___________________Cup or Trophy, and it having been delivered to us by the Competition, do hereby on behalf of the club jointly and severally agree to return the Cup or Trophy to the Competition Secretary on or before 16th March each year. If the Cup or Trophy is lost or damaged whilst under our care we agree to refund to the Competition the amount of its current value or the cost of its thorough repair.”
All trophies shall be returned by 16th March each year complete with appropriate club / players name engraved in the correct manner, or by 1st August for any club that has withdrawn from the competition any club failing to do so shall be fined £25.00
19. SPECIAL GENERAL MEETINGS
Upon receiving a requisition signed by two thirds of the clubs in membership, the Secretary shall call a special General Meeting.
The Management Committee may call a Special General Meeting at any time.
At least 7 days notice shall be given of either meeting under this Rule, together with an agenda of the business to be transacted at such meeting. Each Full Member club shall be empowered to send two delegates to all Special General Meetings. Each club shall be entitled to one vote only not less than 7 days notice shall be given of any Meeting.
Any continuing Member club failing to be represented at a Special General Meeting without satisfactory reason being given shall be fined £25.00.
Officers and Management Committee members shall be entitled to attend and vote at all Special General Meetings.
20. ALTERATION TO RULES
Alterations shall be made to these Rules only at the Annual General Meeting or at a Special General Meeting specially convened for the purpose called in accordance with Rule 19. Any alteration made during the playing season to the Rule relating to the qualification of players shall not take effect until the following season.
Notice of proposed alterations to be considered at the Annual General Meeting shall be submitted to the secretary by 1st May in each year The proposals together with any proposals by the Management Committee, shall be circulated to the clubs by 14th May and any amendments thereto shall be submitted to the Secretary by 28th May. The proposals and proposed amendments thereto shall be circulated to clubs with the notice of the Annual General Meeting. A proposal to change a Rule shall be carried if two thirds (a majority) of those present and entitled to vote are in favour.
A copy of the proposed alterations to Rules to be considered at the Annual General Meeting or Special General Meeting shall be submitted to the sanctioning Football Association 14 days prior to the date of the meeting.
Any alterations or additions decided upon at any meeting shall not become operative until the approval of the Association issuing sanction shall have been obtained.
21. RULES BINDING ON CLUBS
Each Member club shall be deemed to have given its assent to the foregoing Rules and agreed to abide by the decision, of the Management Committee subject to Rule 16. Each Member club must abide by any issued Football Association Code of Conduct.
22. FINANCE
(A) The Management Committee shall determine with which bank or other financial institution the funds of the Competition will be lodged.
(B) All expenditure in excess of £100.00 shall be approved by the Management Committee. Cheques shall be signed by at least two Officers nominated by the Management committee.
(C) The financial year of the Competition will end on 31st May.
(D) The books, or a certified balance sheet, of a Competition shall be prepared and shall be audited annually by some suitable person(s) who shall be appointed at the Annual General Meeting.
23. DISCIPLINE
All fines, suspensions and payments imposed upon clubs, Players, Referees or Officials by the League Committee must be reported by the Secretary of the League to such club, Player, Referee or Official within seven days. All fines and payments must be made, to the Secretary of the League within one month after adjudication, and if not paid during the period the facts must be reported to the Secretary of the Association with whom the club affected is affiliated, within seven days, in order that the defaulting club, Player, Referee or Official may be suspended. When it is necessary to report the facts to the County Association, as above, the amount shall be doubled and the Association shall add any other amount, the Council may decide. If the facts are not reported within seven days of the expiration of the month from the date of the fine being imposed, the suspension of the defaulting club, Player, Referee or Official will not be enforced.
APPENDIX 1- CUP RULES
Note The Standard Code of Rules will apply to all cup competitions in full;
Any rule not covered herein will be covered by the cup competitions rules of the North Riding County FA Ltd.
1. These Competitions shall be called the Stokesley League Challenge Cup, the Arthur Reed Memorial Shield, the Cliff Wells Trophy, the Wilf Leader Trophy, Harry Moore Trophy and the Des Clements Memorial Trophy.
a. The constitution of the competitions shall be in the case of a single division: -
i. The League Challenge Cup shall be competed for by all clubs in the league, the losing teams in the first round shall take part in the Cliff Wells Trophy Competition.
ii. The Arthur Reed Memorial Shield shall be competed for by all clubs in the league, the losing teams in the first round shall take part in the Wilf Leader Trophy Competition.
iii. The Des Clements Trophy will be contested by the previous season League Champions and League Cup Winners, in the event of this team being the same the management committee will decide who contests the competition. The tie will be a curtain raiser to the season. There will be no award of individual mementoes.
b. The constitution of the competitions shall be in the case of a two divisions: -
i. The League Challenge Cup shall be competed for by all clubs in both divisions, the losing teams in the first round shall take part in the Cliff Wells Trophy Competition.
ii. The Arthur Reed Memorial Shield shall be competed for by all clubs in the league,
iii. The Wilf Leader Trophy Competition will be an autumn competition contested by the division two teams.
iv. The Harry Moore Trophy shall be a spring competition contested by the division two teams.
v. The Des Clements Trophy will be contested by the previous season League Champions and League Cup Winners, in the event of this team being the same the management committee will decide who contests the competition. The tie will be a curtain raiser to the season. There will be no award of individual mementoes.
2. The entrance fee for the two main trophies, i.e. the League Challenge Cup and the Arthur Reed Shield shall be £10.00 each. Payable not later than 1st July each year.
3. The competitions shall be under the control of the Management Committee, which shall have full powers to deal with all matters relating to the Competitions in accordance with Standard Code of Rule 5.
4. The competitions shall be played on a straight knock out basis over one leg unless otherwise stipulated by the Management Committee.
5. A player to qualify for these competitions must be a registered player with the club and must have played at least one league game for that club before the cup game.
For semi-final and final ties, then a player to be eligible must have played four (4) games.
a. Team lists to be exchanged before all cup games.
b. Completed Team Lists must be given to the League Secretary Before all Cup Finals.
c. All Players playing in Cup Finals must be identified on Team sheets by name and shirt numbers.
6. In all games if scores are level at the end of full time 90 min, extra time of 15 minutes each way will be played. All final ties to be decided by penalties if drawing at the end of extra time and if a replay is not possible.
7. All un-played games to be reported to the league Secretary in writing within two days excluding Sundays as in accordance with Standard Code of Rule 10.
8. Final ties to be played on a neutral ground. Semi finals ties to be played on neutral or mutually agreed ground whenever possible.
9. Protests must be made in writing to the league Secretary, accompanied by protest fee of £10.00 within 2 days of the match to which it relates, in accordance with Standard Code of Rules 15.
10. Referees fee to be £15.00 plus expenses and Assistant Referees fee to be £7.50 plus expenses as in accordance with Standard Code of Rules 13, to be paid by the home team except for semi finals of the main cup competitions and all Finals when these expenses shall be met by the league.
11. (A) Cup matches shall be played. In the event of a club failing to keep its engagement the defaulting club will be asked to attend a Management Committee Meeting.
(B) The Management Committee shall have power to inflict a fine, disqualify the defaulting club; order the defaulting club to pay any expenses incurred by the opponents or otherwise deal with them. The Management Committee shall have power to order a match to be played on a neutral ground or on the opponents ground if they are satisfied that such action is warranted by the circumstances.
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