Management Committee Policy Decisions:


League Competition Rules:


1. Decisions relating to Fines contained in the Rules of the Competition.
  The Rules of the Competition are governed by the Standard Code of Rules issued by The Football Association through the Essex County Football Association Ltd. Some Rules contain fixed Fines for breaches and others are at the discretion of the Management Committee. Breaches of Rules with fixed Fines will be dealt with by the Management Committee by the issue of a Fine Notice advising the date by which the Fine must be paid. In the event of a Club breaching a Rule with a Discretionary Fine the Club will be notified in writing of the breach of Rule and requested to respond in writing and/or appear before the Management Committee as may be appropriate. Upon receipt of representations by the Club the Management Committee will then communicate their decision, including the Fine (if any), in writing to the Club.
The following is a summary of the Rules that contain Fines.

ClauseReasonFine Amount
2 (e) Failure to provide ECFA Affiliation by deadline £5.00
5 (h) Failure to attend to correspondence or instruction Discretion
5 (i) Failure to pay fines by due date Up to £50.00
6 (h) Failure to attend AGM £20.00
8 (i) Failure to release Registration Counterfoil for Player transfer £20.00
8 (k) Failure to maintain adequate Club records Discretion
8 (o) Unregistered / Ineligible Players Discretion
8 (q) Failure to provide Registration Counterfoils on Match Day £20.00
  Failure to countersign opponents Match Result Sheet £10.00.
10 (b) Late kick off £5.00
  Failure to provide goal nets &/or corner posts £5.00
10 (d) Failure to confirm fixture by due date £5.00
10 (e) Playing with less than 9 players (each missing player) £5.00
10 (f) Failure to fulfill fixture Discretion
  (Standard fine £20.00 + £25.00 expenses to opponents)  
  Postponing 1st XI and playing 2nd XI £5.00
  Failure to notify postponement Discretion
11 (a) Late Match Result Sheet £5.00
11 (b) Failure to telephone match result Discretion
11 (c) Incorrect / Incomplete Match Result Sheet £5.00
13 (c) Failure to provide Club Assistant Referee £10.00
13 (e) Failure to pay Referees fee £5.00
13 (h) Failure to explain low referees mark £10.00
14 (b) Withdrawal of Club / Team after AGM  
(i) Club/team after Start of Season £50.00
(ii) Team before Start of Season £20.00
(iii) Club before Start of Season after 1 Aug Pre-season Account
18 (b) Failure to return Cup/Trophy £10.00
19 Failure to be represented at Special General Meeting £10.00

League Cup and Charity Cup Rules:


ClauseReasonFine Amount
3 Withdrawal from Competition Discretion
5 (e) Ineligible Player(s) Exclusion from
  (plus Fines at discretion of Management Committee Competition
6 Failure to provide Club Assistant Referee £10.00

All decisions of the Management Committee are subject to the right
of appeal to the ECFA in accordance with Rule 16



2. Other Policy Decisions, Club Administration & Match Procedures
A The area from which Competition Membership is accepted shall be such that all grounds are within the districts covered by the SS0 to SS9 Postcodes. Member Clubs may agree to accept Clubs who play outside this area when considering the election of such Clubs at the Annual General Meeting. [Rule 1(A)]
B When a Club has failed to comply with the same Rule on four occasions during the course of a season further breaches of the same Rule in the same season may result in the Fine for that Rule being doubled. This provision will not apply to breaches of Rule 13(C).
C Competition Subscriptions and Cup Fees [Rule 2]
Subscriptions and Fees are due on 1st August and must be paid by no later than 1st September or such date that is shown on the Pre-Season Account. Failure to pay will result in the Club being excluded from the Competition and any Fixtures scheduled during the period of non-payment being treated as unfulfilled in accordance with the provisions of Rule 10(F).
D Procedures to be followed for the Registration of Players. [Rule 8(B)]
(i) Registration Forms are supplied free of charge and can be downloaded from the Competition Website (www.southendsunday.co.uk) or by post from the Registration Secretary. Clubs are required to register a minimum of twelve (12) players for each Team by no later than 1st September. Failure to register Players by this deadline may result in Fixtures being treated as unfulfilled under the provisions of Rule 10(F).
(ii) During the course of the season, Registration Forms must be received by the Registration Secretary no later than 7pm on the Wednesday prior to the Sunday that the Player is required to be eligible to play. Registration Forms submitted by post will be deemed to have been submitted on the day of the post mark on the envelope. No Player will be registered between the hours of 7pm on a Friday and 9am on a Monday.
(iii) Registration Forms submitted by post must carry the correct postage and Clubs must provide an addressed envelope with correct postage for the return of the Registration Counterfoils (IDs). The Competition will not be responsible for the non-delivery of Registration Forms or return of Registration IDs due to insufficient postage being applied to the envelopes. Clubs may telephone the Registration Secretary to confirm that Registration Forms have been received and to make arrangements to collect Registration IDs in the event of there being insufficient time for the Registration IDs to be returned by post. Any queries relating to the registration of Players must be dealt with by telephone or in writing and not by personal callers (other than for the pre-arranged collection of Registration IDs).
(iv) The signing of a Registration Form by the Player and Club Official signifies that the Player has discharged his financial responsibilities to his previous Club(s) under the requirements of Rule 8(D). Clubs may submit details of Players with Debts to Essex County F.A. who will place the Player under suspension until the debt is cleared. The Competition, in conjunction with other local Football Leagues, will maintain a List of Players with Debts that will contain details of those Players that have left Member Clubs owing money. The Registration Secretary will check the List when processing Registration Forms and any Player with a proven Debt may be charged under the provisions of Rule 8G(iii) and H(ii). The Registration Form will not be accepted until the Debt is cleared and/or any suspension imposed by Essex County F.A. has been lifted.
(v) Except by special permission of the Management Committee, the last day for registration shall be the last day of February. In the event of the last day of February falling on a Saturday or Sunday, the last Friday of February shall be deemed the last day.
E Procedures to be followed for the Transfer of Players during the season [Rule 8(I)]
The Club to which the Player wishes to transfer must complete a new Registration Form which must be signed by the Player and the Secretary (or other Officer) of the new Club. The Secretary (or other Officer) of the Club from which the Player is transferring must sign the Release Section of the Form signifying that the Player has fulfilled his financial obligations to the Club and release the Registration ID. The new Registration Form and existing Registration ID must be sent to the Registration Secretary in accordance with the procedures outlined in para (D) above.
F Eligibility of Players for League Cup and Charity Cup Competitions
The eligibility of Players participating in these Competitions shall be determined in accordance with the provisions of Cup Rule 5 which are contained in this Handbook after the main Rules and Regulations.
G Fixtures for League Competition and Cup Competitions
(i) The Fixtures Secretary will issue a Fixture List covering a designated period with Matches allocated on a Home & Away basis. Clubs wishing not to be allocated a Fixture on a given date must give at least six (6) weeks notice to the Fixtures Secretary. [Rule 10(A)]
(ii) The Home Club must confirm the Fixture by telephone with the Away Club and the appointed Referee on the Monday prior to the date of the Fixture. If you are only able to leave a message, you must ask for the Away Club and/or the Referee to call back to confirm the Fixture. [Rule 10(D)]
(iii) In the event of a postponement of the Fixture, the Club withdrawing from the Fixture must advise their opponents, the Referee, the Fixtures Secretary and the Referees Secretary immediately they are aware that the game will not be played. [Rule 10(F)]
Both Teams must complete a Match Result Sheet without any Referee or Player information and use the Comments section of the form to advise the reason for the postponement of the game. The form is to be sent to the Registration Secretary as outlined in the following para (H).
H Match Day Procedures
  (i) Each Club must take a Match Result Sheet and the Registration IDs for those Players who may participate in a Match to every game including those games played in the Essex County Cup or Trophy Competitions. [Rule 8(Q)&(R)]
  (ii) Each Club must telephone the Match Results Secretary between 2.30pm and 4.00pm on the day of the Match and provide the result and the names of the goal scorers [Rule 11(B)]
I Match Result Sheets
  (i) Each Club must send their Match Result Sheet to the Registration Secretary to arrive no later than the Wednesday immediately after the day of the Match. [Rule 11(A)]
  (ii) The Match Result Sheet submitted for any Fixture will be deemed to be the definitive presentation. Any discrepancies arising regarding Player eligibility will be decided by the Management Committee on the information submitted on the Match Result Sheet.
  (iii) If a Match is abandoned, a fully completed Match Result Sheet must be submitted showing the score at the time of the abandonment.
J In Matches to which a Registered Referee is appointed (or if so requested by the volunteer official) each Club must provide a competent Assistant Referee. The Referee must include the name of the Club Assistant Referees on his Result Report Form and award a mark (0/10) reflecting their competence.
K Registered Referees appointed by the Competition shall receive a Fee, inclusive of all expenses, of £30. The Fee for a "double-header" is £40. The Home Club must pay the Referee immediately after the conclusion of the Match.
L The Management Committee shall seek to maintain a balance in the number of Teams in each Division in order to provide whenever possible a sufficient number of Matches during the course of the Season to enable Clubs to secure a level of income to meet their expenses. This may be achieved by Clubs accepting voluntary promotion to a higher Division after the Constitution is agreed at the Annual General Meeting and before the commencement of the Season. [Rule 12(B)(ii)(b)]
M The Management Committee may, subject to the finances of the Competition permitting, make awards as follows,
  (i) Current Officers and other members of the Management Committee, having served on the Committee for a minimum of three years, may each be awarded a Competition Tie. Ladies, so qualifying, may be presented with a similar suitable award.
  (ii) Current Officers, other members of the Management Committee and Club Secretaries who have given the Competition good service and support for a minimum of fifteen years in any, or a combination of any, of those capacities may be awarded a Competition Tankard. Ladies, so qualifying, may be presented with a similar suitable award.
  (iii) Players who have represented the Competition on at least five occasions, dating from September 1989, may each be awarded a Competition Ties.