The Ayr Adult Soccer League is a co-ed recreational league with the primary goal of providing exercise and recreation for members of the community. Players who join the league agree to abide by the code of conduct and to make the safety and enjoyment of the game their first priority.

1.0 CODE OF CONDUCT

• 1.1 Team captains will review the code of conduct with their team prior to the first game. Team captains will only field players who accept and abide by the rulings of the league.
• 1.2 Players who cannot abide by the rulings of the league may be suspended or removed from the league.
• 1.3 Players shall always conduct themselves in an appropriate manner. Complaints about behavior will be directed to their team captain.
• 1.4 Players shall refrain from arguing with other players, fans, or the referee at all times. The referee shall be responsible for conduct of players on the field and will be treated respectfully at all times.
• 1.5 Only team captains will approach the referee regarding calls made during games. Players must not dispute any rulings made by the referee. Yellow cards will be given to players who are argumentative during games. Captains should discuss rulings during half-time or post-game.
• 1.6 Players shall abide by all local laws, by-laws, policies and/or rental agreements at all times, during any and all league functions, which include but are not limited to: Annual general meeting, games, practices, end of year gatherings, etc. (Smoking and Alcohol are prohibited at our fields. Players may be removed from the league for violation of Township by-laws).

 

2.0 RULES OF PLAY

• 2.0.1 Standard rules of Football as set out by FIFA will be adhered to unless mentioned within this document.
• 2.0.2 Any and all decisions regarding interpretation of the rules shall be made by the team captains and the executive of the league. League rulings are final.
• 2.0.3 Players must wear proper soccer shoes and shin guards. Metals cleats are not permitted.
• 2.0.4 Players from both teams will remain outside of the 18 yard box on a Goal kick until the ball has left the box.

2.1 AGE LIMIT

• 2.1.1 Players must be at least 21 years of age, or turn 21 during the course of the season.

2.2 GAME AND SCHEDULE

• 2.2.1 Teams shall play one regularly scheduled game per week. Games are played on Sundays and as posted in the schedule published by the league.
• 2.2.2 Regular season games shall consist of two 35-minutes halves. The championship game shall consist of two 35-minute halves.
• 2.2.3 Points are awarded as follows: 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw, and 0 points for a loss.
• 2.2.4 Teams must field a minimum of 7 players to begin a game, including one female player. Teams that do not have 9 players, including two female players, 15 minutes after the scheduled start of the game will automatically forfeit the game and receive 0 points. After a forfeit, teams may mutually agree to play a friendly match. Teams may exchange players to balance team sizes. All league rules are still in force during friendly matches.
• 2.2.5 Players may sub on and off the field during the course of play, but must enter the field through the defensive half.
• 2.2.6 If your goalie is absent, a goalie must either be called from another team list or from the sub list. In the case of the goalie being injured but still able to play, then the goalie may play in the outfield and be replaced by another goalie.
• 2.2.7 Teams must only field players registered with the league or from the spare list who will be over 21 years of age during the course of the season.
• 2.2.8 A sub player may be called when a team is missing players from its drafted roster. A team may call up subs so that it has no more than 11 + three players, but in event the other opposing team does not have 11 + three the captains must come to an agreement to share any called up players. Any player in the league can sub for another team, as long as both captains agree to it before the start of the game and is communicated to the referee. A player that was ejected from a previous game or is serving a suspension may not sub for another team. Every attempt should be made to ensure that a sub of equal quality is called up to replace a player. Example: Do not call a 9-ranked player on the sub list to replace a player ranked with a 4.
• 2.2.9 Teams must start the game with at least two female players in the line-up. If a team cannot field at least two female players, they must play one player down until a female player arrives.
• 2.2.10 There must always be at least two female players on the field at all times. In the event that a team only has two female players on game day, they will NOT be required to stay on the field at all times. She shall leave the field as needed for rest breaks but the team will play a player down. If the team calls in another female but is over the sub limit, the two females must sub for one another. If the situation arises where one team is continually short female players, the league will look into the reason that this has occurred and take corrective action as required to correct the situation. Corrective action may include adding additional female players to the team, or removing male players from a team as required, or any other action the league executive and captains feel is fair and required. If a female player is not available for a game all attempts should be made to ensure a female replacement is called to fill in.
• 2.2.11 The offside rule will be addressed at the referee’s discretion.
• 2.2.12 A game is considered to be official if at least half of the game is complete. The referee and team captains have the discretion to shorten game play if necessary (e.g.: due to darkness). Games will be called off by the referee if lightning is in the area, or if there are any other conditions that make game play unsafe.
• 2.2.13 In the event that a game is not played or is called off prior to half-time, the score will be recorded as a 0-0 draw.
• 2.2.14 Play-off games cannot end in a draw. In the event of a tie at the end of regulation time, teams will play two 10-minute over-time halves. Over-time play is based on golden-goal—the first team to score wins the game. In the event that a tie remains at the end of over-time play, penalty kicks will decide the outcome. Teams must choose five players to take one penalty kick each, in alternating turns. At least 1 (one) of the 5 (five) shooters must be female. After five shots per team, the team with the most goals will be declared the winner. In the event that a tie still remains, teams will each select new players to take penalty kicks in alternating turns. Penalty kicks will continue until one team scores and the other team does not (golden-goal).
• 2.2.15 If a play-off game goes to penalty kicks, one of the first three kick takers must be female
• 2.2.16 All penalty kicks will be taken on the nets in the center of the field to allow for the best view for spectators

3.0 CARDS AND PENALTIES

• 3.1 All rulings on the field are at the discretion of the referee. Players will have 8 seconds to put the ball back into play by throw-in, free kick, corner kick, goal kick, etc. as decided by the referee. The referee will give a warning, prior to issuing a yellow-card.
• 3.2 Slide tackles and aggressive play will not be tolerated and may be subject to penalty as described in the following sections.
• 3.3 No player shall go to ground (with the exception of the goalkeeper) for ANY reason during play regardless of proximity to another player on the field. If a player goes to ground, the referee shall stop the play and award a direct free kick to the team that did not go to ground. If a slide is performed inside one’s own 18-yard box, the referee will award a penalty.
• 3.4 In the event of a rule infraction or misconduct, the referee has the discretion to issue a card to the offending player.
• 3.4.1 Yellow cards are issued for serious infractions such as slide tackles, aggressively disputing calls, taunting players or fans, etc. The referee will record the name and number of the offending player and this information will be tracked by the league. Players who receive a yellow card will leave the field for a period of five minutes,(this does not apply to goalkeepers, another player on the field may sit in lieu of the goalkeeper) and their team will play one player down for the duration of the penalty. Players who receive two yellow cards in one game will be shown the red card, and ejected from the game, and their team will play the remainder of the game one player down (this includes the goalkeeper).
• 3.4.2 Players who receive three yellow cards will have an automatic review of their behavior within the league. The disciplinary committee will review the circumstances around the yellow cards and determine if any further discipline is required. Further discipline can range from 1 additional game suspension up to and including removal from the league.
• 3.5 Red cards are issued for unacceptable conduct or behaviour such as fighting with a player or intentionally harming or attempting to harm a player. Any play(s) that result(s) in a red card being shown to a player by the official will result in the following: The player is to leave the playing surface and the spectator area (this includes goalkeepers). Once the player has left the playing surface the game shall resume with the offending players team playing down one person. All red cards are to be reviewed by the executive and the captains whose teams were not involved in the game in which the red card was issued. This group will then receive a report from the referees and captains involved. The group will then determine if supplemental discipline is required. Supplemental discipline can range from a 1 additional game suspension up to and including removal from the league. Please note that all red cards DO carry an automatic one game suspension. All supplemental discipline will be determined by the group mentioned above.
• 3.6 In the event that a player receives a game suspension, they can elect to challenge the ruling, and must request that the league Vice-President and President will convene a meeting to discuss the appeal. The committee’s resulting decision will be communicated to the player and is final.
• 3.7 If any player on the field of play asks for 10 yards on a direct free kick, then the kick-taker must wait until the referee blows his whistle. Otherwise, the kick-taker may take the kick at their discretion.

4.0 REPLACEMENT PLAYERS

• 4.1 Injured players/No shows – If a player becomes injured during the season and is no longer able to play or a player that signed up during registration fails to show up or stops coming out the captain of the player in question is to forward an email to the league President and Vice President, who will then review the situation and advise the remaining captains of the situation. Possible solutions will then be discussed. Possible solutions can include: doing nothing and not adding any players (if fielding a team is not an issue) adding a player from the sub list to a team on a full-time basis or adding a player from outside the league (both options will be determined by the availability of additional players)
• 4.2 Non-Competitive teams: If a Captain feels their team is not competitive (and has a problem with this) then they can ask the league to assist in making the team more competitive. The league with the input of the captains can then determine the course of action that should be taken.
• 4.3 Replacement Players for Playoffs: If a player is missing due to injury prior to the start of playoffs, then a captain may ask for a replacement player, but the injured player must be out for the entirety of the playoffs and is not allowed to return if a replacement player is assigned.

5.0 ALCOHOL

• 5.1 In accordance with city and league by-laws, there is to be NO alcohol on the fields, parking lots, or on the property of the North Dumfries Community Complex
• 5.2 Any player caught in possession of, or consuming alcohol will receive;

o 1st Offence – A one game suspension to be served the following week of play
o 2nd Offence – A two game suspension to be served on the following two weeks of play
o 3rd Offence – A suspension for the remainder of the current season

• 5.3 If a suspension occurs at the end of your teams season, the suspension will carry forward to the next season.
• 5.4 If a 3rd offence occurs on one of your teams’ final 3 games of the season, in addition to the suspension for the remainder of the season, a 3 game suspension will also occur at the beginning of next years season should you choose to rejoin the league.