NORTH CENTRAL HOCKEY ASSOCIATION INCORPORATED
(No:A 0001328Y)
2015
BY-LAWS OF COMPETITION
BY-LAWS OF COMPETITION
BY-LAW 1:General
1.1Definitions
1.2Interpretation and Application of By-Laws
1.3Officers Appointed by the Executive Committee
1.4Official correspondence
1.5Branding
BY-LAW 2:Conduct of Competition
2.1General Conditions of Play
2.2Umpiring
2.3Re-scheduling of Matches
2.4Forfeit
2.5Withdrawal and Late Entry of Teams
2.6Finals
2.7Tie-breaker Rule
BY-LAW 3:Uniforms: colours & numbers
BY-LAW 4:Grading
BY-LAW 5: Injury & Blood Rule
BY-LAW 6:Records
BY-LAW 7:Unforseen Matters
BY-LAW 8:Penalties
BY-LAW 9:Underage & Junior Competition
BY-LAW 10:Current Playing Season
BY-LAW 1:GENERAL
1.1DEFINITIONS In these By-Laws, unless contrary intention appears:
Associationis the name of the North Central Hockey Association Incorporated (NCHA) and is defined by the rules of that organisation.
Club means a hockey club which is approved for membership of the Association by the Executive Committee in accordance with the rules of the North Central Hockey Association Incorporated and which participates in a competition controlled by the NCHA.
Competition means the Open-age, Underage and Junior grades (including the Junior Lightning Premiership) played during the winter season and controlled by the Association.
Complete round means each time all teams have played each of the other teams beginning from Round one.
Delegate means the person elected or appointed from time to time by an Affiliate to act for and on behalf of that Affiliate and represent the Affiliate at General Meetings or otherwise.
Executive Committee is the President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer and Score Secretary of the North Central Hockey Association Incorporated elected annually to carry out delegated functions or powers of the Association.
Goal Difference is ‘Goals For’ minus ‘Goals Against’.
Match ratio is the number of Points Accumulated divided by the number of Games Played by each specific club.
Equalised Points is the number of Points Accumulated divides by the number of Games Played by each specific club by the number of rounds.
Playermeans a registered member of an affiliated club with the NCHA who has been recorded on an official score sheet.Once a player is a paid member of an affiliated club within the NCHA they are considered a member of that club for the duration of that current playing season. Members may play for other clubs with the permission of the opposing captain for that particular game day.
Team means a number of players registered with a club and designated by that club to represent it in a scheduled match of competition.
Vote Ratio is the number of Votes Accumulated divided by the number of Games Played by each specific club.
1.2INTERPRETATION AND APPLICATION OF BY-LAWS
1.2.1These By-Laws shall be read and interpreted in conjunction with the Constitution of the North Central Hockey Association Incorporated but not in any way be opposed to them.
1.2.2These By-Laws shall apply specifically to all competitions played during the winter season and controlled by the Association.They shall also apply to other competitions controlled by the Association.
1.2.3These By-Laws may be amended at the Annual General Meeting or at a meeting before the commencement of the playing season and they cannot be altered after the commencement of the playing season. Amendments must be ratified at the next NCHA Meeting after 21 days notice has been given to all affiliated clubs.
1.2.4The Constitution and By-Laws will be available on the NCHA website, any changes are made to the By-Laws, the Association Secretary must post the updated version on the website and send each club a digital copy.Clubs are to acknowledge their receipt of the documents.
1.2OFFICERS APPOINTED BY THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Officers may be appointed annually by the Association to carry out specified functions.The Executive Committee at its discretion may determine whether an officer shall be assisted in their duties by an appropriate number of persons who shall form a Sub-Committee with the officer as Chairman.Each officer shall report to the Association when required to do so regarding their activities in carrying out their duties.Any officer who does not perform their duties to the satisfaction of the Association may be removed summarily at any time without the right of appeal following a majority vote of the Association members in favour of removing the officer.
1.4OFFICIAL CORRESPONDENCE
1.4.1Any club matters that need to be treated as official correspondence to the NCHA should be completed by club executives (or a club appointed delegate) on appropriate letterhead and signed by club executives. Emails will be treated as informal communication unless an attachment is included on club letterhead.Official correspondence requires that the recipient acknowledge the correspondence has been received.
1.4.2Any matters that need to be addressed by the NCHA, including funding submissions, should be completed by NCHA executives, or a club appointed delegate and then signed, if required, by NCHA executives.
1.4.3Any official correspondence from the NCHA will be completed by an association executive and will be forwarded on NCHA letterhead either in writing or as an attachment on email and signed by the official.Official correspondence requires that the recipient acknowledges the correspondence has been received.
1.4.3Clubs must nominate at least one electronic contact address to disseminate NCHA information that is current and regularly checked.
1.5BRANDING
1.5.1Any branding, naming or sponsorship arrangements entered into by the NCHA must be approved at a general meeting or by the Executive Committee after consultation with all clubs.)
1.5.2The current year sponsorship funding from the Charlton and District Community Bank, Bendigo Bank for junior development is to be divided on receipt of the funding payment.
(i) 50% of the funding is to be forwarded immediately to the JCC committee to assist with funding of the current year’s JCC program.
(ii) The other 50% remains with the NCHA Senior body to fund junior development within the Association, within the current calendar year.If the NCHA Senior body is unable to utilise this allocation of funding within the calendar year, the remainder of funding will be forwarded to the JCC committee, following the NCHA AGM, which occurs prior to the next season.
BY-LAW 2:CONDUCT OF COMPETITION
2.1 GENERAL CONDITIONS OF PLAY
2.1.1The Executive Committee of the NCHA will determine the grades of competition for the current playing season at the Annual General Meeting or at a meeting at least 21 days prior to the commencement of the playing season.
2.1.2The grades, times of play and any specific conditions relevant to each grade will be included in By-Law 10:The Current Playing Season.
2.1.3Teams in each grade will compete against each other in line with the NCFL draw and play a final series to determine the Premiers of each grade (unless otherwise stated in By-Law 10).
2.1.4There will be two standards of playing conditions that can be applied to each competition which will be included in By-Law 10.
(i)Women, Men, Underage and Under 13 competitions will play full field, 11 players per team on the playing field and 5 interchange players, rules as per current FIH rule book
(ii)The informal Minkey competition will be played across the field in ¼ of the playing area with 6 players per team on the playing field and played by modified rules (9.3.1)
2.1.5During the Competition four points shall be awarded for a Win, two points for a Draw and zero points for a Loss and a Bye
(i)If teams in any competition play the same number of games in a season, then the positions on the ladder shall be determined by the highest number of points awarded.If two or more teams have the same points, then the positions shall be decided by the highest ‘Goal Difference’.
(ii)If teams in any competition play a different number of games in a season, the positions on the ladder shall be determined by the highest ‘Equalised Points’.If two or more teams have the same Equalised Points, then the positions shall be decided by the highest ‘Goal Difference’.
(iii)If two or more teams have the same ‘EqualisedPoints and ‘Goal Difference’, then the order of the teams shall be decided by repeating the process using only the results of the matches between the teams involved.
2.1.6 Prior to the commencement of any official match a Technical Bench, consisting of one representative from each team must be set up at the designated interchange area. The Technical Bench Officers (TBO’s) must:
(i)in the first minutes of the game do a check of players indicated on the starting line–up to make sure that the players with the corresponding numbers are on the field;
(ii)check that each player entering the field of play has the correct shirt number recorded against their name on the match card. Any player taking the field during a match without their name being entered on the score sheet shall be ineligible for Association Best and Fairest votes for that match.
(iii)record the time of play, including time off and on indicated by the umpire, notify the umpire when there is two minutes to go and when the designated period of play has ended. Each half will finish the umpire’s whistle. The technical bench must also record any goals scored and any other details as may be required by the Association.
(iv)shall be responsible for administering any suspension resulting from a yellow card. Umpires control the length of time for yellow card suspensions and will notify the Technical Bench Officers of the time penalty imposed on a suspended player. The Technical Bench Officers will allow the suspended player to take the field of play after the time penalty has elapsed.A temporarily suspended player (yellow card) should have the availability of a seat alongside the technical bench, and may be provided with additional clothing/drink by the team manager. Green cards receive an automatic 2 minutes suspension. The time is not started until the player is seated and quiet next to the bench. TBOs automatically send the player back on at the end of 2 minutes.
(v)A permanently suspended player (red card) should remain outside and completely away from the team bench area (preferably the change rooms).
(vi)check players substituted under the ‘blood rule’ for any remaining blood prior to their return to the field.
(vii)Should there be a red card, write notes about the incident as soon as possible after the event. Remind the umpire to send in a report to the Association
(viii)It is the responsibility of the TBO to control any unauthorised entry on to the field of play. In the case of injuries, anyone entering the field of play must be invited by an umpire.
2.1.7At the conclusion of every match, the two officiating umpiresand both team Captainsmust check the details on the score sheet are correct and sign in the designated place to confirm their acceptance. Such lists are prima facie evidence of the result and that the player so named played in the match and are therefore official players of the Association.
2.1.8The home club shall be responsible for supplying a new ball for each senior match being played on the day.If the opposing team captain is dissatisfied with the game ball, the home team shall replace the ball with a new one.
2.1.9A representative of the home team shall forward the result of each official match and the best and fairest votes to the Association Score Secretary, at the time and method agreed upon at the Annual General Meeting or a meeting prior to the commencement of the season by the current score secretary.The original score sheets must be sent via mail to the Association Score Secretary no later than theTuesday after the match was played.
2.1.10The Best and Fairest winner for each grade will be the player with the most votes, unless teams have played a different number of games per season. If teams have played a different number of games in the season, the player’s total votes will be divided by the number of games played by the team the person played for and the player with the highest “Vote Ratio” will be the winner. A forfeit is a game played. If a player plays for more than one club, affiliated with the NCHA in a playing season, they can only accumulate best and fairest votes when they play for the club they have played the majority of their games for in that current season.
2.1.11In any competition where an age limit is specified the player must be under the age set at the 1st of January in the current playing season.
2.1.12A Tribunal System will be available to deal with situations where an Umpire has invoked their right to report a player or to issue a red card and deem the player disqualified from receiving the NCHA Best and Fairest award.(By-Law 2.2.7 and 2.2.8)
(i)The NCHA executive must be notified within 48 hours of the clubs intention to seek a tribunal hearing.
(ii)The NCHA executive must organise a Tribunal hearing within 7 days of this notification, and if possible before the offending players team is scheduled to play another match.
(iii)A 3 member panel will be arranged by the NCHA Executive Committee to adjudicate on the Tribunal.These members must be independent and both parties involved in the incident must agree on the Tribunal members chosen. One of these members shall act as the chair of the Tribunal panel and the Association Secretary will take minutes.
(iv)The reporting Umpire must make a statement of the report to the Tribunal, followed by the offending player and then the defendant. Each party is allowed to have an Advocate and each Advocate is allowed to call one witness.
(v)The Tribunal will make a decision on an appropriate penalty for the offence and inform all parties of the outcome before they leave the Tribunal hearing.
2.1.13Before the commencement of the first match on any scheduled playing day both clubs must be satisfied that the field will provide a safe and fair environment for all. For minor issues the ground conditions should be addressed and the game commenced as soon as possible.
2.2 UMPIRING
2.2.1Each club shall be responsible for providing one umpire for each match and they shall wear the prescribed uniform of a fluoro or neon colour. A fine may be imposed if clubs do not comply (consistent with 8.1)
2.2.2Umpires shall be responsible for keeping their own record of goals scored during the game and consult with each other as to the correct score at half time and the final score after the game.
2.2.3Umpires shall be responsible for confirming the final game score on the official score sheet.
2.2.4At the conclusion of each match the presiding Umpires (or a person appointed by the umpire at the beginning of the game and agreed on by both umpires) shall each give Best and Fairest Votes after consultation and discussion with each other for the three best and fairest players on the field.In the Underage competition votes shall be awarded to the two best and fairest male and female players on the field.Votes shall be recorded on the Association’s official Best and Fairest Award card which shall be supplied by the home team.The Umpires must each sign the card, place in the sealed envelope provided and return with the official score sheet.The home team shall be responsible for forwarding these votes to the Association Score Secretary with the match results.
It is imperative for confidentiality that votes for all teams are kept separate and that all home clubs supply an envelope for the Umpires, at completion of voting, to place the votes in the envelope and seal. These votes should not be opened before the last home and away game for the season. A separate envelope should be provided for each grade of competition awarding a Best and Fairest award at the completion of the season. In exceptional circumstances the Executive Committee have the discretion to open votes prior to the last home and away game if it is likely to compromise the integrity of the voting process or the NCHA presentation day and must maintain the confidentiality of the voting system.
2.2.5During the finals the NCHA Executive will appoint Umpires to officiate at these matches and shall be responsible for paying travelling expenses and associated costs.
2.2.6The NCHA will appoint an Umpires Convener at the AGM (or at a general meeting if the position is unfilled).Every club must supply a representative to attend meetings convened by the Umpires Convener or the NCHA will impose a fine (consistent with 8.1).
2.2.7(i)If an Umpire awards a red card to a player during a NCHA game, the offendingplayer will be ineligible to receive Best and Fairest votes in that game.
(ii)If deemed necessary the offending player may be taken to the Tribunal, as in 2.1.11, to determine their eligibility for the NCHA Best and Fairest award in that current playing season.
(iii)A report of the incident must be completed on the back of the official score sheet and forwarded to the Score Secretary.A report must also be forwarded to the NCHA executive committee within 48 hours by the Umpire who issued the card. The Executive Committee shall notify the President of the club where the offending player is registered.