WADWORTH BRISTOL COMBINATION
CUP COMPETITION RULES
COMBINATION CUP RULE AMENDMENTS IAN REED JULY 2019
1 MANAGEMENT
The organisation of the Cup, Vase & Bowl Competitions shall be under the control of a Sub-Committee appointed by the Combination for that purpose. The decisions of the Sub-Committee concerning any matters relating to the Competitions shall be final and binding on the participating Clubs.
Subject to the discretion of the Sub-Committee, any infringement of these rules may debar an offending Club from further participation in the Competitions.
2. CLUB ELIGIBILITY
(a) Clubs with 1st XV’s that compete at League Levels 5, 6 & 7 in the current season may enter the Cup Competition.
(b) Clubs with 1st XV’s that compete at League Level 8 in the current season may enter the Vase Competition. In addition, Level 4 clubs with 2nd XV’s that compete at Level 8 in the current season may enter their 2nd XV in the Vase Competition
(c) Clubs with 1st XV’s that compete at League Levels 9 and below may enter the Bowl Competition.
(d) Clubs competing must be members of the Bristol & District Rugby Football Combination to enter any competition.
(e) No Club may enter more than one team.
3. PLAYER ELIGIBILTY
(a) All players must be regular bona fide playing members of their Club and, in any matches played prior to 1st January 2022 MUST be 18 years or older. After 1st January 2022, players aged 17yrs old will be permitted, provided that all current RFU/CB age consent regulations have been complied with. In ALL matches, Front Row players and Front Row replacements must be aged 18yrs or older.
(b) No player who is, or has been contracted to or registered with, a club at Level 3 or above during the current season shall be allowed to play in any Bristol & District Rugby Football Combination Competition match.
(c) Having represented a Club in either the Cup, Vase or Bowl Competition, a player may not represent another Club in any Competition during the course of one season.
(d) If there is any doubt as to player eligibility or if a participating Club wishes to select a player who is not qualified under the above rules, all relevant details must be referred to the Cup Secretary at least fourteen days prior to the date of the match concerned.
4. ENTRIES AND DRAWS
(a) Entries must be in the hands of the Sub Committee by the date notified in writing to the member Clubs. Each entry must be accompanied by a fee, fixed by the Combination Management Committee prior to the commencement of a season's Competition.
(b) Clubs in all competitions may be seeded to a subsequent round. Seeding, if required, will be dependent on a Club’s league level during the current season. The draw for all rounds will take place on dates to be determined by the Sub-Committee.
(c) The team drawn first in each match shall be considered to be the 'home' team.
5 MATCHES
(a) The Sub-Committee will publish the dates by which all rounds will be played. In the event of a postponement, the fixture will be played on a date to be decided by the Sub-committee.
(b) All matches shall be played in accordance with the Laws of the Game. Players must wear own Club colours and, in the event of a clash, the 'away' team shall provide and wear distinctive jerseys.
(c) Referees for all matches shall be appointed by the Gloucestershire R.F.U. (Bristol) Referees' Society. Each participating Club must provide a touch judge in every round except for the Semi-Finals and Finals, when nominations will be made by the Referees'Society.
(d) Before the commencement of each match, each team captain must be able to provide the opposing captain with a list of his players and replacements.
(e) In matches other than the final, if the scores are level at full time, the team that has scored more tries shall go forward to the next round. If the number of tries scored are equal then the side with the more converted tries shall go through. Should this not produce a result the away team shall go through.
(f) The Finals shall be played on grounds to be selected by the Sub-Committee.
(g) In the Final, if the scores are level at full time, extra time of 10 minutes each way (with an interval of 5 minutes between end of normal time and extra time) shall be played. Should this not
produce a result the team that has scored more tries shall be declared the winner. If the number of tries scored are equal then the side with the more converted tries shall be declared the winner.
If in the Final a result has still not been achieved the match shall be declared a draw.
(h) The Hon. Secretary of the 'Home team' must advise the Hon Sec of the Cup Committee of the result within 24 hours of the match being played. Failure to do so may, at the discretion of the Cup
Committee, incur a fine of £10. In the event of failure to comply with this rule or non payment of any imposed fine, the Cup Committee may take action against the offending club in accordance with the provisions of Rule 1.
(l) All protests, and grounds thereof, must be in the hands of the Hon Sec of the Cup Committee within 48 hours of a match being played.
6. GENERAL
(a) Each season, Cups will be awarded to the winners of the Cup, Vase & Bowl Competitions, but they remain the property of the Combination and must be returned to the Hon. Secretary on
request. The insertion of inscriptions on all trophies is the responsibility of the Combination.
(b) Any surplus funds accrued at the end of the seasons Competitions shall be passed to the Combination.
(c) Any notices required under these rules must be in writing and addressed to the Hon. Secretary of the Sub-Committee.
(d) The interpretation of these rules will lie solely with the Bristol & District Rugby Football Combination Cup Committee and its decision will be final.
These rules are to be used from 2019 until further notice