FHF General Rules Spring 2010

Playing Rules

All games will be played in compliance with the FIH Rules of Hockey, 2009-2010.

The purpose of these playing rules is to ensure fair play in a healthy, competitive atmosphere suitable for all members of the family. Players should treat everyone with respect, including spectators, umpires and opposing players.

Team registrations must be submitted to the Director of Competitions, Tracy Eggleston, with a check for the Team Fee by February 7, 2010. A signed copy of the acknowledgment of these rules must be submitted to the Director of Competitions when roster and check are submitted by February 7, 2010.

The number of teams in Division I will be limited to no more than four (4) teams.
The number of teams in Division II will be limited to no more than six (6) teams.
The number of teams in Division III will be limited to no more than six (8) teams.
The number of teams in Division IV will be limited to no more than four (4) teams.

All managers/captains for each team entered in the FHF leagues are required to attend a mandatory "Managers Meeting" on Saturday, February 7, 2010 at 2:00 p.m. at a place to be designated. At that time, all rosters must be completed and all league fees paid in order for the teams to be included in the schedule. Managers shall bring an example of the uniforms (shirt, socks and shorts/kilts) and uniform numbers to be used by their team during the season to the meeting.

An additional fee of $100 per team will be charged to those teams who require a late meeting.

The schedule will be posted on the web page by Monday, February 9, 2010. Only those teams who have had their rosters approved by the Director of Competitions and the Competitions Committee and who have paid the required fees will be included in the Spring Schedule.

For all teams who play with eleven (11), a minimum of seven (7) players are required on the field at the scheduled game time to avoid a forfeit. For all teams who play with seven (7), a minimum of five (5) players are required to avoid a forfeit.

Playing Eligibility

1.    No player may play on more than one team in the Adult Teams Leagues.

2.    All rosters will be reviewed by the Competitions Committee to assess the eligibility of players in the respective division commensurate with the players’ skill level, experience and ability.  Where necessary, players will be assigned based on their ability and experience.

A team is not required to have a goalkeeper. See the following explanation.

From the Rules of Hockey, 2009-2010.
2.2 Each team has a goalkeeper on the field or plays only with field players.
Each team may play with:
– a goalkeeper with goalkeeping privileges wearing full protective equipment comprised of at least headgear, leg guards and kickers and a different color shirt; or
– a goalkeeper with goalkeeping privileges wearing only protective headgear and a different color shirt; or
– only field players and no player with goalkeeping privileges and therefore no player wearing protective headgear or different color shirt.
A team may change between these options by making a substitution.

Players, managers and coaches for the teams who are playing shall sit in the covered player pavilion area. Players shall substitute by entering and leaving the sideline between the ends of the players’ pavilion.
Coaches shall not stand on the turf but remain on the pavers or the bench.
The substituting players shall stand on the pavers and not on the turf.
The area in the center of the turf is reserved for practices during the short-field games.

Last day to add players to a team roster is four weeks before the end of the season provided the team does not exceed the maximum number of players on their roster.

All additions to rosters must be completed per the Player Registration form. The form must be submitted to the Director of Competitions prior to the commencement of the match and the player actually playing in the match. If the Director of Competitions is not present to receive the Player Registration form, one umpire of the match must initial the form, and acknowledge that the addition was made prior to the player participating in the match. This acknowledgement can ONLY be made on the Player Registration Form. The player must also have evidence of FHF Membership.

Only players listed on a team's official roster are allowed to play for that team.

In order to participate in semifinal and final matches, a player must have played in a minimum of four regular league season matches.

All players using profanity will be green carded and a warning by the umpire for the first infraction. Repeat infractions will result in the escalation of penalty cards. Repeated unsportsmanlike conduct will be accordingly penalized.

No smoking is allowed inside the chain linked fenced facility.

No cats, dogs or other pets shall be permitted inside the chain linked facility of the Field Hockey Center, which is part of the Moorpark College. Pets may be kept in the designated area outside the Field Hockey Center.

Advance Notice Forfeit - Any team that notifies the opposing team and the Director of Umpiring by Thursday 9:00 PM preceding their match on Sunday of their intent to forfeit shall forfeit their teams match by a score of 0-3. No points will be deducted from the forfeiting team.

Late Forfeits - Any team forfeiting their team’s match after Friday shall:

1.    Forfeit their match by a score of 0-3.

2.    Three points shall be deducted from their team’s total.

3.    Forfeiting team will be fined $50 which will be deducted from the forfeit fee that will be collected from each team in the beginning of the season along with the team registration. At the end of the scheduled league the forfeit fee will be returned if not applied towards a forfeit in the league season.

All League Players must wear Appropriate Matching Team Uniforms as defined below and as approved at the Managers’ Meeting. Captains/Managers are advised to bring extra uniforms to all their matches so that all players may participate. Any changes in uniforms must be approved by the Competitions Committee.

For a player to participate in any adult division game shin guards are mandatory, mouth guards are strongly advised.

For a junior player to participate in a game, shin guards and mouth guards are mandatory.

1.    All League Players jerseys must be matching in design and color. Furthermore, all jerseys must include numbers on the backs. The size of the numbers must be large enough to be visible to both umpires from anywhere on the field. The player’s jersey number must accompany their name on the roster and stay constant throughout the season unless changed on the official team roster.

2.    All player’s shorts/kilts, shirts and socks and the number on the uniform must be matching in design and shade of color. White socks are discouraged as it makes it difficult to see a white ball at times.

3.    Mouth guards are mandatory for junior players and strongly advised for adults.

Umpires will be instructed to not allow any players who do not have the properly matching uniforms from participating in any league match. No Exceptions.

The Competitions Manager (Tracy Eggleston), Adult Divisions Manager, Raj Jinderpal, Adult Leagues Chief Umpire (Ravi Kanwal) or any member of the FHF Competitions Committee may intercede and restrict at any time, any player who does not meet the uniform requirements as outlined above from participating in any match.
Team rosters will be kept at the FHF office at the field and access will be provided to managers, committee members and umpires. Questions regarding eligibility must be addressed before game time to avoid delays or forfeits.

All players must be registered with FHF in order to play in the FHF league.  They must be able to show proof of registration with a pictured identity card.

FHF Individual Player Registration Dues are as follows:

Over 19 years old by Jan 1st 2010 - $40.00

16 to 19 years old by Jan 1st 2010 - $20.00

13 to 15 years old by Jan 1st 2010 - $15.00

12 years old and under by Jan 1st 2010 - $10.00

Each Adult Team shall pay an additional Volunteer Assessment Fee of $150 which will be refunded when the assigned volunteer task is completed and acknowledged, in writing, by the Director of Volunteers.

Each Junior Team shall pay an additional Volunteer Assessment Fee of $100 which will be refunded when the assigned volunteer task is completed and acknowledged, in writing, by the Director of Volunteers.

Player Registration forms are available from the Director of Competitions or at the snack bar on game days.

Team captains are required to present all his/her team's players registration cards and a game card to the umpires ten minutes before each match for player registration verification.

Goalkeepers playing on two teams are advised to either give their cards to the captains of their upcoming match for every match or request another spare card at a nominal fee of $5.

Lost player registration cards can be requested by notifying Debbie Scott at debbie@eaglebeardesigns.com and paying a $5 processing fee.

The Team Registration Fee for the 2010 Spring Season is $1150 for all teams in Divisions I, II, III. The Fee for Division IV Teams is $100 per player including the player registration fee.

A representative of the Director of Competitions shall meet with the team managers ten minutes before the scheduled game at the officials’ area. Managers will present the player cards and the representative will compare them to the Team Player List. Only those players who are on the Team Player List, have current Player Cards and are dressed according to these Rules will be permitted to play.

The Director of Competitions, Chief Umpire or any member of the FHF Executive Committee may intercede and restrict at any time, any player who does not meet the player registration requirements as outlined above from participating in any match.

Division I

1.    D-I teams are allowed a maximum of 20 players per team roster.
2.    U.S. National Junior and Senior Squad players shall only play in D-I and in no other adult division.
3.    Players listed on other adult team rosters may not play in Division I.

Division II

1.    D-II teams are allowed a maximum of 20 players per team roster.
2.    A D-II player that is deemed over-qualified for this division by the Competitions Committee shall be prohibited from participating in D-II and be required to play on a D-I team.
3.    Any player that is not allowed to play in D-II by the Competitions Committee can appeal to the FHF Appeals Committee for reconsideration citing just cause, medical reasons or otherwise.

Division III

1.    D-III teams are allowed a maximum of 20 per team roster.
2.    A D-III player that is deemed over-qualified for this division by the Competitions Committee shall be prohibited from participating in this division and will be required to play on a D-I or D-II team.
3.    Any player that is not allowed to play in D-III by the Competitions Committee can appeal to the FHF Appeals Committee for reconsideration citing just cause, medical reasons or otherwise.
4.    No Junior Player shall play in this division in any capacity.
5.    No D-III player shall play in any other team except D-IV.

Division IV

1.    D-IV teams are allowed a maximum of 12 per team on their team roster.
2.    All D-IV games will be played on a short field.
3.    D-IV teams are allowed up to seven players on the field at one time.
4.    D-IV is for new players such as parents and for players over 50 years of age.
5.    No goalkeepers shall be allowed to play on Division IV teams. All shots at the goal must be pushes.
6.    A D-IV player that is deemed over-qualified for this division by the Competitions Committee shall be prohibited from participating in this division.
7.    No player under 30 year of age shall play in this division in any capacity.

Junior players may play in the Junior Leagues on Saturday and on one Adult Division I or Division II team on Sunday.

Note: Any exemptions and waivers approved by the Competitions Committee will be written and published on the FHF website.

Each of the teams permitting a player to play in two different teams shall forfeit all their games in which this player participated.
Exception: Visiting guest players may play with the concurrence of the opposing team captain/manager as long as they are compatible with the respective division level of play.
No manager, shall contact, recruit, or induce current or past junior division players from other FHF Club’s geographical area without the written consent from the respective Commissioner.
The above player violation forfeits are non appealable.
The Rules Committee members shall have the authority to enforce the rules.

Only a Team Manager shall have the authority to file an appeal on behalf of his team. All appeals pertaining to: Rosters / Player Eligibility / Rules / Match Results, must be submitted within 24 hours from the time the match in question ended, via USPS (must be post marked by the next business day), UPS or Fed-Ex to 17895 Sky Park Circle, #B, Irvine, CA 92614, no later than the next business day along with a $100 fee which will be refunded if the appeal is upheld or forfeited if the appeal is denied. A copy of the appeal must also be sent via fax (949) 752-8467 or email to raviandsonia@yahoo.com by the end of the next business day.
All appeals must include the following information: Reason for filing appeal, date & time of match, both umpires' names, complete details of the appeal, name of person filing appeal, title of person filing appeal, contact address, telephone number(s) & email address of the person filing appeal and action requested.
The Rules Committee will consider all appeals and a resolution/decision will be forthcoming within 48 hours from the time the appeal along with the $100 fee is received.

Any appeal:
1. Not accompanied with the $100 fee or
2. Not sent by the next business day or
3. Not emailed/faxed by the end the next business day,
and will not be considered for any action whatsoever. All three stipulations above must be met for any appeal to be considered.
Players appealing their eligibility to play in any division must do so in writing without any fee or encumbrances.

Disciplinary & Other Appeals
All appeals must be in writing and must include the following information: Reason for filing appeal, details of the appeal, name of person filing appeal, title of person filing appeal, contact address, telephone number(s) & email address of the person filing appeal and action requested. All appeals can be mailed to Ravi Kanwal, 17895 Sky Park Circle, #B, Irvine, CA 92614 or emailed to raviandsonia@yahoo.com.

Rules Committee Disciplinary Committee
Mano Aaron, Chair                        Ravi Kanwal, Chair        
Tom Harris                                   David Harris            
Bill McGuigan                               Harminder Momi
Shawn Nakamura                          Jyoti Aaron

Competitions Committee Appeals Committee
Tracy Eggleston, Chair                  Randy Sundeen, Chair
Paul Bandal                                Kaily McGrath
Ravi Kanwal                                Stan Saez    
Raj Jinderpal                                Gabriel Scally