VEHICLE CITY SOCCER
OFFICIALS ASSOCIATION
2009 – 2010
INTERSCHOLASTIC SOCCER
RULES BOOK INSERT
MHSAA RULES AND REGULATIONS
For Athletic Directors, Coaches and Officials
OUT OF SEASON PRACTICE DURING THE SCHOOL YEAR
(3 PERSON RULE & 4 PERSON EXCEPTIONS)
MHSAA Handbook Regulation II Section 11(H), Article 2(a): Outside the school season during the school year (from Monday the week of August 15 through the Sunday after Memorial Day observed) school coaches are prohibited from providing coaching at any one time under one roof, facility or campus to more than three (or four) students in grades 7-12 of the district or cooperative program for which they coach (four students if the coaching does not involve practice or competition with students or others not enrolled in that school district).
SOCCER SEASON LIMITATIONS
First Practice/Tryouts may commence as follows:
Fall: The 16th Wednesday before Thanksgiving (
Spring: Second Monday after March 1 for all sports (March 15, 2010).
First Competition may commence as follows:
Fall: After 7 days of practice for team and not before 9 calendar days (
Spring: After 7 days of practice for team and not before 9 calendar days (
Number of Competitions: A high school may have any number of soccer teams but no team or individual is to exceed 18 contests in addition to MHSAA tournament games.
Scrimmages: Teams may participate in a total of four (4) scrimmages. No more than two of the four scrimmages may occur prior to the first contest.
WEATHER CONDITIONS
Do not ignore severe weather conditions. Be prepared to abandon a game if necessary. When lightning is observed or thunder is heard and the contest is suspended, play may resume when lightning has been absent from the sky and thunder has not been heard for 30 minutes. See the 2009-10 Officials Guidebook (on line at MHSAA web site) and the 2009-10 Handbook for length of game delay policies for regular season contests.
MHSAA RECOMMENDED GAME PROCEDURES
It is highly recommended that a school administrator or designee (an employee of the school district, but not a soccer coach) attend all regular season games particularly when there are known strong rivalries. Notify the officials and coaches of the opposing team of whom and where the person will be throughout the event. Urge leagues to adopt this policy.
Leagues and school districts are encouraged to conduct preseason meetings for players, parents and coaches in all sports to emphasize good sportsmanship, safety, liability concerns, risk management and rules of the game. Such meetings should take place in each sport in a separate meeting. Encourage officials to be invited to speak at preseason meetings.
Notify the MHSAA if league/conference games or other contests are officiated by the three-whistle system; the MHSAA wants input with regard to the positives and negatives or the system. (The three-whistle system is allowed by National Federation).
PERSONNEL, FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT
The TEAM AREAS AND OFFICIALS AREA must be marked or fenced or roped so that the areas can be identified.
No soccer games, freshman through varsity shall be started without compliance with National Federation rules requiring an adult or responsible/knowledgeable scorekeeper who will record goals scored, cautions issued, disqualification of players or coaches, and the starting and ending times of players serving the 10-minute yellow card sit-out rule.
The home school timer shall be the OFFICIAL TIMER. The official timer will also be responsible for timing the 10 minute cautioned player. A scoreboard clock is official time.
The OFFICIALS AREA shall be equipped with a scorekeeper, score sheet, table, chair and sounding device used for substitutions.
By National Federation rulebook standards, two BALL HOLDERS are required.
Enforce the 10-foot distance from TOUCHLINE rule for spectators. It is recommended that a rope, fence or other means is used to keep spectators the required distance away from the touchline.
PLAYER UNIFORM REQUIREMENTS
Both stockings shall be the same color.
Shoes must be worn.
At regular season games and MHSAA tournament games, the home team shall wear light jerseys and stockings and the visiting team shall wear dark jerseys and stockings.
At MHSAA tournament games, the team in the top line of the bracket is the home team and therefore will wear light jerseys and stockings.
TAUNTING - HANDBOOK REGULATION V, SECTION 3
Taunting includes any actions or comments by coaches, players or spectators which are intended to bait, anger, embarrass, ridicule or demean others, whether or not the deeds or words are vulgar or racist. Included is - conduct that berates, needles, intimidates or threatens based on race, gender, ethnic origin or background, and conduct that attacks religious beliefs, size, economic status, speech, family, special needs or personal matters.
Examples of taunting that would lead to ejection include but are not limited to, 'trash talk'; physical intimidation outside the spirit of the game; reference to sexual orientation; 'in the face' confrontation by one player to another; standing over/straddling a tackled or fallen player.
TAUNTING IS A FLAGRANT UNSPORTSMANLIKE OFFENSE!!!
In all sports, officials are to consider taunting a flagrant unsportsmanlike offense that EJECTS the offending contestant or bench personnel from that contest/day of competition (and also the next day of competition). A warning may be given but is not required before ejection.
At all MHSAA tournament venues, tournament management may give spectators one warning for taunting. Thereafter, spectators who taunt others are to be ejected by security.
MHSAA ADOPTIONS OF NATIONAL FEDERATION OPTIONS
The following NF options will be used in
Require players to sit out 10 minutes (Including all shootouts if 10 minutes of clock time have not been served) for a yellow card offense.
Two 15-minute sudden victory overtime periods are optional for regular season games and required for MHSAA tournament games.
Players are allowed to wear soft and yielding ski caps during inclement weather. Caps must be alike in color.
Allow leagues and individual schools to use the three-whistle officiating system.
The officials’ jurisdiction extends to a soccer field’s immediate surroundings and is defined as the officials’ locker rooms and parking sites and the areas between the soccer field and them.
Required Official’s Uniform: The interscholastic soccer official’s shirt shall be yellow with black pinstripes. If an alternative shirt is necessary, the alternate shirt may be red with black pinstripes or black with white pinstripes. The traditional black or fuchsia shirt may also be used as an alternate shirt. The color chosen will be not similar to either team’s jerseys; and if there is a conflict, the officials will change. All officials at the game shall wear the same color shirt.
GOAL DIFFERENTIAL RULE
During the regular season FOR ALL VARSITY GAMES and all MHSAA tournament games, the GOAL DIFFERENTIAL RULE MUST BE USED. A game is ended when a team is ahead by 8 goals or more anytime after the first half is completed. For any non-varsity games, the point differential rule MAY be used by league or conference adoption or mutual agreement of the competing teams. Notice of the use of this option to the game officials is required before the start of the game.
COMPLETED GAME VS. SUSPENDED GAME
If conditions make it impossible to finish any game, the head referee shall declare it a completed game if one complete half or more of the game has been played. The score at the time of the suspension of play will be the final score (NF Playing Rule
If one half has not been completed, and a MHSAA tournament game is suspended, it will be resumed from its point of suspension on the next playable day. The host athletic director will arrange the time for the resumption of the suspended game after consultation with the athletic directors of the participating school teams.
Resumption of suspended regular season games will be determined by the athletic directors in accordance with MHSAA Handbook Regulation II-11-D.
REMOVING TEAMS FROM THE FIELD - REGULATION V, SECTION 3[A]
If a team is removed from field in protest, the game is forfeited to the opponent and the coach and principal must appear before the Executive Committee of the MHSAA to indicate why additional action should not be taken. This is for all contests. The officials and opponents may be required to attend.
MHSAA TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
At all MHSAA Soccer Tournament games the school principal, athletic director or other noncoaching faculty member of the school with a letter of authorization from the school principal, must BE PRESENT AND IDENTIFY himself/herself to the game management.
By Representative Council action of May 2000, the start of the game will not be delayed; however, schools not complying will face MHSAA administrative disciplinary action.
For any District which involves schools of the
For the Division 4 District involving
Artificial turf surfaces may be used for all levels of MHSAA tournament games if approved by MHSAA staff in charge of soccer. (May 2003). If the hosting school can make arrangements, a competing school may practice on the host artificial turf field if the competing school has not already played on an artificial turf field that season.
Regional & Semifinal Competition - If schools competing in Regional & Semifinal play are more than
Regional, Semifinal and Final Tournament officials will be selected by the Soccer Officials Selection Committee.
TOURNAMENT WITHDRAWAL POLICY
Tournament management is to contact the MHSAA office if a school withdraws or fails to show for scheduled competition after the draw is completed for team sports or the pairings, heat assignments or flights are determined for individual sports of the first level of the MHSAA tournament in that sport. The MHSAA staff person responsible for the sport will request from the school principal a written explanation for the no-show/withdrawal. If the reason is determined to be unacceptable by MHSAA Staff, the MHSAA Executive Director will place the school on probation for the next two school years. A second offense within the two-year probationary period will cause the school to be prohibited from tournament play in that sport for the two years following the second offense.
TOURNAMENT PROGRESSION
When the score is tied at the end of regulation time, the referee will instruct both teams to return to their respective team areas. There will be five minutes during which both teams may confer with their coaches and the referee will instruct both teams as to proper procedure.
There shall be two 15-minute sudden victory overtime periods.
o A coin toss shall be held as in Rule
o If a tie still exists at the end of the first 15-minute overtime period, teams shall change ends after a 2-minute interval.
If the score still remains tied, all coaches, officials and team captains shall assemble at the halfway line to review the procedure as outlined below:
o The referee shall choose the goal at which all shots from the penalty mark shall be taken.
o Each coach will select any five players, including goalkeeper, on or off the field (except those who may have been disqualified) to take the shots.
o A coin toss shall be held. The team winning the toss shall have the choice of kicking first or second.
o Teams will alternate kickers. There is no follow-up on the kick.
o The defending team may change the goal keeper prior to each/any penalty kick.
o Following five kicks for each team, the team scoring on the greatest number of these kicks shall be declared the winner.
o Add one goal to the winning team score and credit the team with a victory. An asterisk (*) may be placed by the team advancing to indicate the advancement was the result of a tie breaker system.
If score remains tied after each team has had five shots from the penalty mark:
o Each coach will select five different players than the first five who already have kicked to take the shots in a sudden victory situation, wherein if one team scores and the other team does not score, the game is ended without more kicks being taken.
o If the score remains tied, continue the sudden victory kicks with the coach selecting any five players (except disqualified players) to take the next set of alternating kicks. If a tie still remains, repeat 3a until a winner is determined.
DISCIPLINARY PENALTY PROCEDURES
Yellow Card Caution: (
A cautioned player shall be substituted for IMMEDIATELY and may not return until 10 minutes of playing time has elapsed.
When timing 10 minutes it: Carries over to second period,
Carries over to the overtime periods,
Carries over to shoot-out to break a tie,
Does NOT carry over to next game.
The timer shall keep time for the required 10 minute sit-out period.
Yellow/Red Card Disqualification:
(Yellow & Red Cards Shown Simultaneously)
For a subsequent caution or excessive celebration, a player, coach or bench personnel shown be shown yellow and red cards simultaneously, be disqualified for the remainder of the game, all subsequent competitions that day, and is also INELIGIBLE for the next day of soccer competition. The player disqualified may be substituted for.
Red Card Ejection:
If a player or coach or bench personnel receives a RED CARD (Red Card Displayed Alone), they shall be denied participation for the remainder of that competition, all subsequent competitions that day, and are also INELIGIBLE for the next day of soccer competition. The ejected player may NOT be substituted for; their team plays “short.”
COACHES & OFFICIALS PROCEDURES FOR NEXT GAME
INELIGIBILITY:
It is the responsibility of the coach to withhold himself/herself or that player from the next game and/or next day of soccer competition.
It is the responsibility of the coach to notify the athletic director that he/she or the player is being withheld from the next game and/or next day of soccer competition.
It is the responsibility of the referee to notify the school both by phone and in writing (Officials Report Form obtained from MHSAA Web) of the player/coach who was ejected and under what circumstances.
It is the responsibility of the referee to notify the MHSAA in writing (Officials Report Form obtained from MHSAA Web) of the player/coach who was ejected and under what circumstances.