EASTERN PENNSYLVANIA INVITATIONAL CLASSIC
2008 TOURNAMENT RULES
HEADQUARTERS 
937 Randolph Drive Yardley PA 19067 
Fran McDonald - Tournament Director phone: 267-934-0682 
Tyrone Stevens – Tournament Director phone: 267-566-4383


1. REGISTRATION
Tournament check – in will take place at Maccelsfield Park on River Road in Yardley, PA. Registration will be held after 4PM on May 11th and beginning at 6:30 AM on May 12th at the main pavilion . You must register at least one hour prior to your first game.

2. AGE GROUPS
Age groups are from U9 to U18.


3. GENERAL RULES

The Tournament Committee and YMS will not be responsible for any expenses incurred by any team, club or individual if the Tournament is cancelled in whole or part. The Tournament Committee’s interpretation of these rules shall be final and binding. The Tournament Committee reserves the right to decide on all matters pertaining to the tournament. Each team prior to the tournament must submit a roster. These rosters will then be used at registration as part of the player checklist. Rosters are limited to 14 players for age group of U9-U10 and 18 players for U11 and above. Up to 3 guest players will be allowed per team. It is expected that each team will participate in the customary handshake and exchange patches following the game. Trophies will be awarded to winners and runners-up in each division.


4. TEAM REGISTRATION AND ELIGIBILITY

All participating teams must be currently registered with their state association. All teams from outside Pennsylvania must have proof of “Permission to Travel” duly authorized by their state, provincial or country association at registration. A player card with photograph, duly authorized by state, provincial or national registrar must be presented at time of registration. A medical release form must be presented at the time of registration for all players participating in the tournament. A maximum of 3 guest players will be allowed. These players must be registered and carded in their state or provincial association. A player can only play for one team during the tournament. Internationals Teams must present proof of entry into the United States as well as the information listed above.

5. INCLEMENT WEATHER

In the event of extraordinary weather conditions (i.e. heavy rain, poor playing conditions), the Tournament Committee shall have the authority to change the above format as follows:
• Relocate and reschedule any game
• Reduce by up to 50% the scheduled duration of any game
• Consider a game complete that has been called by the official with 25% or less remaining unplayed
• Cancel any preliminary game(s) having no bearing on the selection of division winners

6. SUBSTITUTIONS

Substitutions may be made without limit, with the permission of the referee as follows:
• After a goal is scored
• At a goal kick
• On your own throw-in
• At the beginning of the half
• At an injury
• For a yellow carded player
• An injured player who is bleeding must leave the match for treatment and may return after treatment only after being checked by the referee or an assistant referee
• There will be no substitutions for a player who has received a red card and has been ordered from the field by the referee

7. PROTESTS

There will be no protests allowed.


8. GAMES AND EQUIPMENT

All uniforms must be numbered. In the event of conflicting color jerseys, home teams will change jerseys. All teams are responsible for their own insurance. In case of injury during travel or while participating in the tournament, Yardley Makefield Soccer and the Tournament Committee will not be liable. Players are REQUIRED to wear shin guards in accordance with FIFA laws of the game. Player identification cards and rosters may be checked prior each game and the numbers on rosters must match to the number on the players jersey. Game balls will be supplied by the Tournament. Casts, either hard or soft will be permitted only at the referee’s discretion
9. CONDUCT

Players, coaches and spectators are expected to conduct themselves within the spirit of the game as well as letter of the law. Coaches are not only responsible for their conduct but also the conduct of their players and spectators. Players, coaches or spectators ejected from a game by the referee must leave the field area. Anyone receiving a red card will be ineligible for the next scheduled game. The committee, in the event of fighting may take further action. No one will be allowed behind either end line. ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES ARE NOT PERMITTED AT GAME SITES.
It shall be solely the team’s responsibility to determine the status of its players. Any suspension from a tournament, local league, etc. is the responsibility of the team to notify the Tournament director of this suspension at the time of the player’s check in.
The Tournament Committee shall have a Discipline Committee of no less than three members. The Discipline Committee will review and rule on all reports of unacceptable conduct by players, managers, coaches, referees, spectators, etc.
Depending on the severity of the unacceptable conduct, the Discipline Committee may recommend a suspension of up to the duration of the tournament with further disciplinary action by the appropriate state or national association. The Discipline Committee’s recommendations must be made available to affected parties no later than prior to their next scheduled game.
Any coach or team official shall be held responsible for the actions of any individual(s) at any match that in the opinion of the referee is a supporter of that team.
At the conclusion of the tournament, passes will be returned to the coach even if suspensions have not been completed. A complete report will be sent to the appropriate state association within seven days of the conclusion of the tournament for possible further discipline.


10. GAME REPORT

All field marshal game sheets must be returned to the site headquarters as soon as possible after a game. Both coaches must sign field marshal reports.

 
11. FAILURE TO SHOW AND FORFEITS
Teams will be allowed a 5-minute grace period after the scheduled kick-off time before the match will be awarded to the opponent. A minimum of 7 players constitutes a team and if 7 players are present, the game will not be delayed.
• In no case shall a team, which forfeits a game, be declared a division winner. If an apparent winner forfeits a game, the division team with the next best record shall be named division winner. A forfeit results in a score of 1-0.
• Any teams who forfeit games in preliminary rounds will not advance to the final.

 
12. PARKING
Park in designated parking areas only at any site or facility. Do not park on grass. Citations by local law enforcement officers will be issued for failure to observe local ordinances. Only cars with parking permits will be allowed into Macclesfield Park; all other cars must park at the designated off site parking facility. Shuttle buses will be provided for transportation to and from these facilities.

13. TEAM FIELD LOCATION
Both teams will stand on the same side of the field, with parents and fans on the opposite side.

14. RULES OF PLAY
FIFA Laws of the Game will apply as except as modified and described herein. Duration of games and ball size, by age group are as follows:
Division Length Ball Size
U16 -18 30 Minute Halves 5
U15 30 Minute Halves 5
U14 30 Minute Halves 5
U13 30 Minute Halves 5
U12 30 Minute Halves 4
U11 30 Minute Halves 4
U10 25 Minute Halves 4
U09 25 Minute Halves 4

Two (2) equal halves will be played, with a five (5) minute half-time interval. There will be a running clock at all times. Time will not be added for any reason.
** Ties will stand at the end of regulation play for any preliminary round matches. Semi-final and Final games tied after regulation will play two (2) equal “Golden Goal”, sudden death overtime halves of 5 minutes each half (10 minutes total), with no break in between halves. If a tie still exists after the overtime halves, the FIFA penalty kick format will be used to determine the winner. Penalty kicks will immediately follow the 2nd overtime half.

15. HOME TEAM
The Home Team appears first on the game schedule. The Visitor Team (the team listed second on the game schedule) will have choice of tap or end of field to defend at the beginning of the game.
The Home Team will be required to switch to alternate jerseys to accommodate color conflicts as declared by the referee. If the Home Team cannot supply alternate jerseys, the Visitor Team will change.

16. PRELIMINARY ROUNDS
In the preliminary rounds (games within bracket), teams will play in either a round robin or straight bracketed format. Ties will stand during preliminary rounds. At the end of preliminary rounds, division winners will be those teams with the most win/tie points in their division for round robin or the winner of their bracket for a straight bracket system . The following point system will be used to determine who advances.

17. DETERMINING WINNERS
Teams will be awarded points on the following basis:
• Three (3) points for a win (or a game forfeited to them
• One (1) point for a tie
• Zero (0) points for a loss
At the end of the preliminary rounds, the flight winner will be the team with the most points in their flight. In the event of a tie within a flight, the following criteria will be used to determine the winner:
1. Head to head competition (in the event of a tie among three (3) or more teams, this criterion will not be considered), then
2. Least Goals Allowed, then
3. Most Wins, then
4. Bonus points awarded *** (see below) , then
5. Most Shutouts, then
6. FIFA penalty kicks (at least 30 minutes prior to scheduled play-off round game)

*** Bonus Points – In the event of a tie after “Most Wins”, bonus points will be awarded for the following:

- Goal differential to a maximum of four (4) Bonus Points per game
- One (1) Bonus Point for each shutout

Example 1: A 5-2 win would result in three (3) bonus points based on goal differential.
Example 2: A 4-0 win would result in five (5) bonus points based on goal differential (4) and shutout (1). Five (5) bonus points would be the maximum amount awarded per game.
**Losing teams receive 0 bonus points, there are no negative points.
In the event of a tie among three (3) or more teams, once a tie is broken by the above system, and if ties among remaining teams still must be decided, those ties would be broken by starting again from the top (i.e. head to head competition) of the tie-breaking procedure. In the event that a Wild Card team must be selected for a semi-final game, the above procedure will be used across the entire flight.

Wild Card
If a Wild Card team must be selected, the Wild Card team will NOT be assigned to play against the winner of its own flight in the semi-final