Rules
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Tournament Rules
CONDUCT
Coaches and Players
Coaches are not only responsible for their own conduct, but also for the conduct of their players, parents and spectators. Players and coaches ejected from a match (Red Card) must sit out the remainder of that match plus the next match. All red cards reported on the game card will be evaluated by the Tournament Committee for appropriate suspension. The Tournament Committee reserves the right to impose a two game suspension for violent misconduct or no game suspension for a professional foul. Players and coaches ejected for assault MUST AT LEAST sit the next two (2) tournament matches. Red cards issued after the end of regulation play or as a result of physical assault are subject to review by the Tournament Rules Committee and a more strenuous penalty may be imposed. Teams who swap/share/transfer/double roster players will automatically forfeit that game when brought to the Tournament Committee attention.
Others
Spectators, parents and coaches may be ejected for unruly behavior.
GENERAL
The Tournament Committee’s interpretation of these rules shall be final and binding. The Tournament Committee reserves the right to decide all matters pertaining to this tournament.
Awards
First place trophies will be awarded to division winners.
Arrival
Teams should arrive at the scheduled field 30 minutes prior to game time to be checked in by the appropriate official. Teams may warm-up in any area other than the field of play and directly behind the goal area while a game is in progress. Teams automatically forfeit if late for scheduled game time. We permit a 15 min delay to allow for traffic, etc.for the start of the tournament only. All proceeding games you will have 5 mins or the team that is late will forfeit.
Protests
No protests will be allowed.
Team Field Position
Players and coaches of both teams will be on the north or east side of the pitch. Parents and spectators will be on the opposite side for the entire match. Coaches or spectators are not permitted to coach from the spectator side of the field. Coaches and players must remain between the penalty line and their side of the mid-field line. Coaches may not coach from below the penalty line. No spectators are permitted to stand behind the goal area.
Forfeits
A team shall be allowed a 5-minute grace period after the scheduled kickoff in the preliminary rounds before the match is awarded to their opponents.(15 mins after the start of tournament) A minimum of 3 players constitutes a team, and if 3 players are present the match may not be delayed. If during the course of the match a team falls below the minimum 3 players, the game will be forfeited to their opponent. A team that has forfeited a game may not advance to the finals. If an apparent group winner forfeits, the group team with the next best record will be declared the group winner. A forfeit in the preliminary rounds shall be awarded as 3 points for a win with the score 5-0.
Points
At the conclusion of the preliminary matches, each team will be ranked according to their performance. This ranking will determine the teams that will meet in the semi-final or the final matches. The ranking criteria are as follows:
- Win – 3 points
- Tie – 1 point
- Loss – 0 points
- Win by forfeit – 3 points
The team with the most matches points finishes first. A match that has been cancelled by the Tournament Committee will be awarded a 0-0 tie.
Tiebreaker
In the event of a tie within a division, the following tiebreaker rules will be applied in order:
- Winner of head-to-head competition
- Least goals allowed during the preliminary matches
- Goal differential.
- Penalty kick shoot-out.
If 3 teams are tied for any position, the above process will be used, except head-to-head competition will be eliminated and the first tiebreaker will be least goals allowed. If there are field capacity issues all champions/winners will be determined based on total point value at the conclusion to all group matches. Meaning there will be no need for playoffs to determine champions.
DIVISIONAL PLAY
Division of 4
Each team will play a 3 game round-robin schedule. The Division winner will be the team with the most points.
Division of 5
Each team will play a 4 game round-robin schedule. The Division winner will be the team with the most points.
Division of 6
The division will be split into two groups of 3. Each team will play a 2 game round robin schedule. The first place team in each group will play the second place team in the other group in a semi-final match. The winner of each of those semi-final games will advance to the final. The third place team in each group will play in a consolation game.
Division of 8
The division will be split into two groups of 4. Each team will play a 3 game round robin schedule. The first place team in each group will advance to the final.
Division of 12
The division will be split into 4 groups of 3. Each team will play a 2 game round robin schedule. The first place team from each group will advance to semi-final matches. The winner of each of those semi-final games will advance to the final. Second and third 3 place teams from each group will each play a consolation game against a comparably ranked team from a different group. |