LEAGUE CONSTITUTION
Last updated: 30/03/24
NAME
The League shall be the “Thanet and District Netball League”.
OBJECT
To promote interest in the game of netball in the East Kent area.
MEMBERSHIP
Team membership:- full membership of the League shall be restricted to bona-fide clubs whose headquarters are within the defined boundary.
Bona-fide clubs to be determined at the discretion of the Committee.
OFFICERS
The Officers shall be:-
1. Honorary President
2. Honorary Chairman
3. Honorary Vice Chairman
4. Honorary Secretary
5. Honorary Treasurer
6. Fixtures Secretary
7. Umpiring Secretary
All Officers must have previously served on the Committee. In the event of an Officer resigning, the Committee shall have the power to appoint a successor.
EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
1. The League shall be managed by an Executive Committee consisting of the Officers and up to 8 Members, all to be elected at the A.G.M. The formation of the League Committee should be by ballot.
2. Not more than 2 members of the same team shall be eligible to serve on the Committee concurrently.
3. A Quorum shall consist of 5 Committee members.
4. The Committee shall meet regularly, meetings to be convened according to necessity and at the discretion of the League Officers.
5. The Committee can if required, call a division meeting to which all teams must send a representative and at which matters affecting that division can be discussed.
6. All Committee Members shall attend meetings on a regular basis.
7. No Committee member who is also a member of a club shall vote on a matter directly concerning his/her club.
8. All matters discussed by the Committee shall be minuted, and a copy of the minutes circulated to each Committee member.
9. All Committee members who have equipment belonging to the League should ensure this equipment is insured under their house insurance policy in case of damage.
POWERS OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
1. The Executive Committee shall have the power to apply and enforce the Rules of the League, shall have the power to co-opt, and shall also have jurisdiction over all matters affecting the League, including any not provided for by the Constitution. All decisions of the Committee must be notified, in writing, to all concerned within 7 days.
2. Should it come to the notice of the Committee that any club/team/individual is guilty of bringing the game into disrepute during the current season, the Committee shall have the power to evict that club/team/individual from the League, and to bar that club/team/individual from entering the League for the coming season. The Committee shall also have the power to penalise individual players by way of fines and/or suspensions, in the event of players being guilty of bringing the game into disrepute.
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
The Annual General Meeting will be convened giving 14 days notice to Team Secretaries. All teams are required to attend. Members of teams shall also be eligible to attend, but only one individual representative from each team shall have a vote.
The Agenda of the Annual General Meeting shall include:-
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Minutes of the previous A.G.M.
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President’s Report
3. Chairman's Report.
4. Treasurer's Report.
5. Secretary's Report.
6. Amendments to the Constitution.
7. Election of Officers & Executive Committee.
8. Re-election of Existing Clubs.
9. Election of New Clubs.
Nominations for Officers and Committee members shall be submitted to the Secretary of the Committee 7 days prior to the meeting.
Nominees shall be proposed and seconded and shall have indicated their willingness to stand. In the event of insufficient nominations being received before the A.G.M., nominations may be received from the floor, each nominee being proposed and seconded, and indicating his/her willingness to stand.
Any Club failing to send a representative (for whatever reason) to the A.G.M. may, at the discretion of the Committee, be barred from entering the League for the coming season.
Voting on all items on the Agenda, Election of Officers, Committee Members, election of new Clubs, re-election of existing Clubs and amendments to the Constitution shall be decided by a show of hands, unless a ballot be demanded by at least one third eligible delegates present, or at the Chairman’s discretion.
There will be a Commitment Payment of Fifty Pounds when entering your team to the League. This will be deducted from the total when paying your fees.
CHANGE OF RULES
A change of rules may be made at the A.G.M. Proposals for changes shall be notified to the Secretary in writing prior to the A.G.M. and shall be circulated together with the notice of the A.G.M.
LEAGUE MEETINGS
League Meetings will be called at the discretion of the Committee to discuss any matters that may arise. Teams who fail to attend a League Meeting will be fined £50.00. Failure to pay the fine to the League Treasurer within 10 days of the meeting will result in forfeiture of all points gained by the offending team and the restriction that no further games are to take place until all outstanding monies have been paid.
A person may only represent one team/club.
Clubs who wish to have an item included in the Agenda must notify the League Secretary, in writing, giving full details.
MATCHES AND CONDITIONS OF PLAY
1. All matches shall be played in line with the rules of England Netball, or as amended by this Constitution.
2. All matches to be played at a centralised venue and all fixtures dates and times to be arranged by the Executive Committee.
3. Except by permission of the Executive Committee, all matches are to be played on the dates specified in the Handbook, and are regulated by centralised timing. (See ‘Match Check List’).
4. If a team fails to honour a fixture, the defaulting team will forfeit 5 points. The opposing team will be awarded 5 points, and will receive, at the end of the season, a goal average to count towards the League Championship, Goals and Defence Cups.
The defaulting team shall also:-
i inform the FIXTURES SECRETARIES and the opposing team
ii be awarded the defence goals calculated on a seasonal pro rata basis
If the game is conceded after midday, the offending team must pay a fine of £20 to the League Treasurer to compensate both umpires.
If both teams concede simultaneously, the game will become void and points will be deducted from both teams.
ABANDONED GAMES
5a In the event of a match being abandoned after three quarters of the game has been played, due to causes over which neither team has any control, then:
i the exact time the match is stopped will be noted on the match card by the umpires
ii a proportional allocation will be added to both scores to reflect 60 minutes of play
5b In the event of an umpire being injured during the course of a game, the game will be replayed unless 5a applies.
SERIOUS INJURY
All injuries must be reported to the League using the ‘Accident Report Form’ on the League website Contact page.
A team may, in the event of serious injury to one of its players, elect to abandon the game. In such a case the team must notify the Fixtures Secretaries, within 24 hours, setting out the nature of the injury and the reason for abandoning the game.
The match scorecard must be sent to the Fixtures Secretary.
The Committee, at its discretion, will decide whether the match can be replayed.
NON COMPLETION OF FIXTURES
In the event of any club/team not completing 75% off their fixtures for the season, all points obtained by or against the defaulting club/team shall be deleted from the League Table. Also, any club/team who, because of forfeiture of points in 25% of their fixtures finish in a position which would mean relegation, shall remain in a higher division for the following season.
UMPIRES
i At least one playing team member (or dedicated non-playing member) must be suitably qualified to umpire for each team. Failure to provide an umpire for a game will result in a qualified member of the defaulting team being nominated to umpire. In the event of there not being a qualified umpire to stand down, the game is awarded against the defaulting team.
ii Teams who fail to notify their umpires that a game is conceded must pay that umpire if she/he attends the courts for the game.
iii All Umpires are required to attend at least one League Umpiring Forum a year.
iv All Umpires must umpire at least 5 games per season.
Failure to do so will result in forfeiture of the TDNL qualification. And reassessment required.
v All teams are expected to contribute to the League, those that do not yet have a qualified umpire or due to extenuating circumstances are unable to provide one, upon direction from the Committee, are expected to contribute by scoring up to 8 games per season.
There is no expiry date for the TDNL qualification or Europe Awards. However, in line with domestic rules guidance, umpires must consistently meet the requirements of the qualification/awards competencies which includes a commitment to staying engaged and up to date with any rules of netball updates.
MATCH BALLS
The home team shall provide the match ball, which must be of regulation size and correctly inflated.
RESULT CARDS
Both teams will be responsible for providing a score card which must be completed with all players FULL names and the printed names of both umpires.
Both teams must send a photo of both sides of the score card to ‘Scorecard WhatsApp Group’ within 24 hours of the match.
Failure to do so will result in a 1 point deduction.
The remaining score card must be kept by the losing team for the duration of the season.
FORFEITURE OF MATCHES
Matches MUST be played if at least 5 players attend. Failure to comply with this will result in the forfeiture of 5 points.
JEWELLERY
Umpires and team captains are to advise players to remove jewellery and gloves in accordance with the England Netball rules.
UMPIRE’S DECISIONS
The Umpire’s decision on court is final. No comments or arguments are allowed. Players can be sent off and reported to the Committee.
PROTESTS
Any disputes between Clubs, or complaints concerning teams or individual players shall be referred in writing to the League Committee by the Club Secretary. The Committee has the right to call on team captains, team representatives and umpires to attend any meeting that is convened to discuss a dispute in which that team is involved.
FIRST AID KIT
All teams, home and away, must have a first aid kit at all matches.
PREGNANCY
No member who is pregnant is permitted to play, but should it come to the notice of a team that a member of the opposite team is pregnant, the first mentioned team must refuse to commence or continue the game until the pregnant player is replaced. If the team in question will not or does not replace the pregnant player, then the pregnant player MUST stand down and the game continue without that player.
No person more than 20 weeks pregnant may umpire a League match.
UMPIRES FEES
Umpires should be paid a fixed fee per match as set out under the ‘Match Check List’ (which precedes the Fixtures in the Handbook).
LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP
1. The competition shall be decided on points. The Club gaining the highest number of points at the completion shall be adjudged the winner.
5 points for a win
3 points for a draw
2 points to a losing team if their score is within 5 goals of the opponents’ score
1 point for the losing team if they score 50% or more of their opponent’s score.
2. Should any two teams be level on points for a position in a division, the result will be decided on goal difference (goals for minus goals against).
3. Formation of League Divisions shall be the decision of the Committee. Such decisions to be regarded as final.
SUMMER LEAGUE and WINTER LEAGUE
All existing Clubs and new Clubs must apply to Enter the League by the closing date given. New Clubs must be prepared to play practice matches if required, to determine into which Division they should be placed.
TEAM COLOURS
All team colours must be registered with the League, and both team colours and team names must be acceptable to the Committee. Playing uniforms will consist of skirt/shorts & top or dress and bib. Colours, once registered, can not be changed without prior consent from the Executive Committee. In the event of two teams having the same or similar colours, the home team shall make a change to an alternative colour bib. Any team refusing to make the change shall be dealt with at the discretion of the Committee on receipt of a written complaint.
SUBSCRIPTIONS
1. All clubs/teams shall be required to pay a subscription to register with the Thanet & District Netball League for the current year.This fee to be paid to the League Treasurer by the given date as notified by the League Secretary. Failure to pay by the given date will result in forfeiture of all games played by the offending team and a restriction on any further games taking place until the outstanding monies are paid. At the Committee’s discretion, continued non payment could result in forfeiture of that team's membership of the League. This ruling shall also apply to the payment of court fees and any other fees or payments due.
2. A reduction in subscriptions will be made for Junior Teams. A Junior Team is defined as having at least 7 players 16 years or under.
3. Occasionally the League may wish to donate a sum from League funds to a charitable cause. The Committee will decide if the state of funds warrant this. Suggestions from member clubs will be welcomed as to which charities will benefit.
4. The Accounts of the League shall be audited annually by one independent auditor, who should be suitably qualified and these accounts should be presented at the A.G.M.
REGISTRATION
1. All players must be registered with the Fixtures Secretary on the official form, or by notification to the Fixtures Secretary by website contact form, phone, text or email.
A player may be registered immediately prior to a game, this being shown as NP on the score card.
2. A player can only be registered with one team (unless a ‘Floater’, see para. 3 below). Should a player wish to transfer to a new team, then the player (or the team to which she is transferring) must notify the Fixtures Secretary of the transfer in writing. A period of 7 days must then elapse before the player is deemed to be transferred, and thus eligible to play in the new team. The Fixtures Secretary will notify the teams from which the transfer has occurred.
The transferring of players can be one way only.
3. On official notification to the Committee of the disbanding of a team, the players of that team shall be eligible to register for any other team in the same or a higher division.
4 All players must be aged 14 years and upwards to play in the Thanet and District Netball League.
5. Any infringement of the above Rules, 1 - 4, will result in the deduction of points to the infringing team.
FLOATERS
Individual players not registered with a team may register separately with the Fixtures Secretary as a ‘Floater’. This enables the player to play for any team, in approved divisions, subject to certain limitations as set out by the Committee and published separately in the League Handbook and on the League website.
A player already registered with a team may not play as a floater. They must first de-register from the team. De-registration is the responsibility of the player, not the team.
To de-register, the player must contact the Fixtures Secretary and complete a Floaters Registration Form.
Before being permitted to play as a floater, the player must await confirmation from the Fixtures Secretary as to which division(s) she is eligible to play in.
Floaters should only be used by a team if genuinely short of players. Infringement of this rule may result in a deduction of points.
TROPHIES
The Officers of the League Executive Committee shall be trustees and legal owners of the property including funds of the League (or competition) and shall deal with the same according to the instructions of the Committee. The trophy or trophies are invested in the Thanet and District Netball League as Trustees, and if, for any cause, the competition shall be discontinued the trophy or trophies shall be held in trust or dealt with as the League may decide unless the donor, if there be one, attached to this gift any specific conditions in the event of the appropriate competition ceasing to take place.
A trophy can not be won outright by any club. At the close of each competition awards shall be presented to the winners.
Individuals from the clubs holding trophies owned by the League shall arrange to include the full value of such trophies in their own household insurance to cover loss or damage by fire, burglary or accident. Should any trophies be lost or damaged, the club holding such trophies will be deemed responsible for their replacement at full value.
LIABILITY
The League accepts no responsibility for injury to any player or for loss or damage to equipment or property belonging to its members. Clubs or individuals should arrange their own insurance.
SPECIAL GENERAL MEETING
A Special General Meeting will be called by the Secretary at the written request of at least two thirds of the registered teams. The Committee may arrange a Special General Meeting as it deems necessary. At least 7 days notice, together with an Agenda for the Special General Meeting shall be sent to the Secretaries of all registered teams.
CESSATION OF THE LEAGUE
If at any time the number of clubs in the League shall be one or less, the League shall be deemed to have ceased to exist.
If the League ceases to exist at any time for any reason, all monies held by the League shall be used to pay all debts and liabilities incurred by the League or properly incurred by Officers of the League on behalf of the League.
Any further monies held by the League or by Officers of the League on behalf of the League, after all debts and liabilities of the League have been paid, shall be donated to an appropriate charity.
PRESENTATION NIGHT
All teams are required to send a minimum of 2 representatives to Presentation Night. Failure to comply will result in a fine for the offending team.