15.MATCH OFFICIALS
15.1 Match Officials for all Competition matches shall be
appointed by the Appointing Authority.
15.2 No Club shall postpone a Competition match on account of
the apparent state of the ground. In the event that such
circumstances prevail, Clubs should comply with procedures
provided for in the document published by The FA "Recommended
procedure for the guidance of Clubs and Referees in determining
the suitability of grounds in adverse weather conditions". Should
the ground be declared unfit it is the responsibility of the home Club
to immediately advise the Competition, the Appointing Authority,
the visiting Club and the Match Officials.
15.3 In the event of any of the Match Officials not being in
attendance at the match or becoming unable to complete the
match the two Clubs, in conjunction with the Match Referee (or the
senior Assistant Referee who is to replace the Match Referee) must
agree to a substitute on the ground to prevent the match being
postponed or abandoned and such substitute shall be considered
a Match Official for the time being. Should the appointed Referee
fail to appear, the senior Assistant Referee should take charge.
If a substitute is not available the match shall be completed under
the control of the remaining Match Officials. In the event that a
Club, notwithstanding the provisions of this paragraph causes a
match to be abandoned by failing to agree on a substitute Match
official then that Club shall be charged with failing to fulfil a fixture
(Rule 8.6 refers).
15.4 Match Officials should be present at the appointment at
least 60 minutes prior to the scheduled time of kick-off. The
appointed Referee may be required to visit the ground earlier if
requested to do so by the home Club.
15.5 In cases where it is found necessary to stop play owing to
the weather or other cause, the Referee must wait a reasonable
length of time before deciding on abandonment.
15.6 Referees must report on the relevant form all cases where
teams commence a match late or without eleven players on the
field of play. Referees must also report their own or any assistant
referees’ late arrival in any matches, and notify those concerned at
the time of their intention. Assistant referees must also send an
explanation of their late arrival to the Appointing Authority in writing
by first class post within 3 days of the match.
15.7 The home Club will be responsible for paying the Match
Officials the fees and match expenses set by the Appointing
Authority on the day of the match in their dressing room, within a
reasonable time after the conclusion of the match (including
matches abandoned for any reason). In the case of a postponed
match, whether or not gate money is taken, any Match Official who
has travelled to the match will be entitled to claim travelling
expenses and half their match fee from the home Club. Where
provided by the home Club, each Match Official must complete and
submit a claim form for expenses.
15.8 The home Club shall be responsible for providing Match
Officials with distinctive flags of a suitable size in an acceptable
condition.
15.9 Three match balls proposed to be used in the match and, if
applicable, supplied by the Company under a ball sponsorship
agreement must be submitted to and approved by the Referee
before the commencement of the match in his/her dressing room.
15.10 The home Club shall supply to the visiting Club a minimum
of three practice balls for use prior to the start of the match. The
balls provided must be in good condition and, if applicable, as
supplied by the Competition under a ball sponsorship agreement.
15.11 Referees must report all breaches of Rule to the Competition
Secretary in writing within three days of the match on the
appropriate form by first class post.
15.12 Combination Divisions
Neutral Assistant Referees shall be appointed to matches. If
however they are not available competing Clubs will supply one
Assistant Referee each. A Club failing to supply
an Assistant Referee for the duration of the match when required
shall be fined in accordance with the Fines Tariff (Rule 15.3 refers).

16. WITHDRAWAL OF CLUBS
A Club must notify the Company not later than 31st December each
year of its intention to withdraw from the Competition at the end of
that Playing Season. Failure to do so will make a Club liable to a
fine in accordance with the Fines Tariff.
This Rule shall not operate so as to preclude promotion, relegation
or lateral movement of any Club to another competition in
accordance with Rule 13.

17. PROTESTS, APPEALS
17.1 All protests, claims or complaints relating to these Rules and
appeals arising from a player’s contract shall be heard and
determined by the Board, or a sub-committee duly appointed by
the Board. The Clubs or players protesting, appealing, claiming or
complaining must send two copies of such protest, appeal, claim or
complaint and deposit a fee which shall be forfeited in the event of
the protest, appeal, claim or complaint not being upheld, and the
party not succeeding may, in addition, be ordered to pay the costs
at the direction of the Board.
17.2 All such protests claims complaints and appeals must be
received in writing by the Competition Secretary within fourteen
days of the event or decision causing any of these to be submitted.
17.3 The Board shall also have power to compel any party to the
protest to pay such expenses as the Board shall direct.
17.4 Any appeal against a decision of the Board must be lodged
with The FA within fourteen days of the posting of the written
notification of the decision causing the appeal, accompanied by a
fee which may be forfeited in the event of the appeal not being
upheld. A copy of the appeal must also be sent to the Competition
Secretary.
All appeals to The FA must be lodged in accordance with the
appeals procedure detailed in the Appendix to these Rules or that
in force at any one time.
17.5 A Club, on giving fourteen days’ notice to a player to
terminate his player’s contract, must state in the notice his right of
appeal to the Board and also the address of the Competition
Secretary to whom he must appeal. The notice must advise the
player of the necessity of forwarding two copies of his appeal with
the deposit fee specified in the Fees Tariff, to the Competition
Secretary within seven days of the receipt of the notice from the
Club. A copy of such notice must be received by the Competition
Secretary within seven days of the sending of the notice in order to
be valid.
17.6 A player on giving fourteen days’ notice to his Club to
terminate his player’s contract must also notify the Company and
The FA of the reasons for the termination of the agreement. . A copy
of such notice must be received by the Competition Secretary
within seven days of the sending of the notice in order to be valid.
17.7 If the recipient of a notice referred to in Rules 17.5 and 17.6
above wishes to do so, he may appeal against the relevant notice
within seven days of the date of sending of the notice in writing in
duplicate to the Competition Secretary with an appeal fee.
17.8 The Club or the player as the case may be shall have further
right of appeal as set out in Rule 17.1 above.
17.9. An appeal by a contract player against a fine or suspension
imposed by his Club under Football Association Rule C1m must be
made within seven days to the Competition Secretary.
17.10 If so requested the Board may arbitrate on any disputes,
protests, appeals, claims or complaints between two member
Clubs in which event both Clubs shall send a non-returnable fee.
Such arbitration shall be final and binding upon the parties to the
arbitration.

18. MISCONDUCT OF CLUBS, OFFICERS, PLAYERS
Any person charged and found guilty of bringing the Competition
into disrepute and any Club officer or member charged and found
guilty of misconduct as defined by the Board or of inducing or
attempting to induce a player of another Club to join his own Club
shall be liable to such penalty as the Board shall deem appropriate.

19. TROPHY
The Company shall present to the Winners and Runners Up of all
divisions in the Competition fifteen souvenirs, fifteen for the players.
Additional souvenirs cannot be presented except by consent of the
Board, and then at the expense of the requesting Club.
In addition, a Competition championship trophy and runners-up
trophy will be presented as and when the Board determine.
The Clubs concerned will also receive a permanent souvenir.
The trophies are the property of the Company and may never be
won outright.
The recipient Club shall be responsible for engraving their details on
the trophy before returning same.
The following agreement shall be signed on behalf of the winners of
the trophies:
"We, A.B. the .……… of …………………………………Football
Club, C.D. and E.F members of and representing the said Club,
having been declared winners of the
[ ] Trophy and the same having been delivered to us by
the said Competition, do hereby on behalf of the said Club, jointly
and severally agree to return the same to the Competition
Secretary, on or before 1st March next in good order and condition,
suitably inscribed, in accordance with the Rules of the Competition
and if the said 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."
Any Club not returning the Competition trophy by the due date,
returning them in poor condition or without being engraved will be
fined in accordance with the Fines Tariff.