Club Competition Rules 2020/21

1. Registrations & Nominations
1.1 A player is to be registered with the relevant Registrar at least 48 hours before he/she plays a league match with a club, provided that there has been no breach of Rule 2 – Transfer of Players. This is done by informing the relevant Registrar in writing of the name of the player(s) and the age grade that they fall under (e.g. U.14, U.16, U.18 or Senior).

1.2 Each season, clubs shall forward to the relevant Registrar, to arrive no later than 3 days before the commencement of the relevant league competition, a list of the full names of 11 bona fide playing members of each team, called nominated players.
(a) Clubs need not nominate players for their lowest registered team except where a club has a team in the U.16 Girls League.
(b) Where a club has more than one team in the U.16 Girls League 11 players for each team must be nominated, except for the lowest team. Players cannot play lower than their nominated team.
(c) U.16 are those born in 2005 or later.
(d) Players playing in the Senior Boys League need to be identified.
(e) Clubs which have Girls U14 league team(s) & U14 boys playing in the Senior Boys League; these players are not allowed play adult hockey.

1.3 Players nominated on a given team shall be ineligible to play for a lower team.

(a) Where a player plays 3 games at a certain level, they must be nominated at no more than the next lowest level.
(b) Any player nominated on teams in Women’s Divisions 1-6 cannot play in the U.16 Girls League.
(c) Where an U.16 player plays 3 games at a certain level, they must be nominated at no more than the next lowest level i.e. a club has 4 teams + an U.16 team – if the U.16 player plays 3 matches for that club’s 3rd team they need to be nominated at no lower than the 4th team which would then make that player ineligible to continue playing with the U.16 team.
(d) In respect of boys playing in the Senior Boys League & Senior Hockey:
(i) Players can play 3 consecutive matches at senior level, and on their third consecutive match must take a 1 week break from senior hockey (they can still play in the Senior Boys League/Cup during this break).
(ii) However, when a break of a week from playing senior hockey occurs at any time the consecutive sequence starts again from scratch.
(iii) This rule does not apply to boys who go to non-playing hockey schools.

1.4 For clubs with two or more teams in a particular division, players can only be listed on team sheets for one of those teams in the same division on any given weekend (Friday to Sunday), except where the player is making up a full team for the bottom team in a club.
1.5 The list of nominated players may be altered by 2 per team by giving 3 days’ notice in writing to the relevant Registrar.
Any player removed from a club’s nominations may play no lower than one team below the team they were originally nominated.
Where a team has altered its nominations, no further alterations shall be allowed for 4 weeks, other than dealt with in rules 1.6 & 1.7.

1.6 Where it is clear that a player will miss 3 or more consecutive matches through absence (except for International or Interprovincial duty), injury or suspension, clubs shall remove the player in question from the nominations immediately.

1.7 If a player does not play for their nominated team, or above, in any period covering 3 consecutive matches (except due to International or Interprovincial duty), the club shall be obliged to give a written explanation to the relevant Registrar and replace the player in question prior to the next match.

1.8 Where a player is removed from a club’s nominations due to injury, absence or suspension (including across seasons); on their return they may play no lower than one team below the team where they were originally nominated.

1.9 Nominations for a season may not be altered after 1st March.

1.10 Cup nominations shall be those applying to the league 3 days prior to the cup match in question that the team plays in. Each member of a team competing in a Cup competition shall be a bona fide member of the club represented. Additionally, for cup matches which are played after 15th November in a season, they shall have played in at least two league matches in the current season for the team, or lower team in the club, in question that are due to play in a cup competition (includes U.16 Girls & U15 Senior Boys games).

1.11 Any team participating in EYHL1 will not be eligible to play in any Munster Cup Competition.

1.12 Players can play for only one team in each cup competition.

1.13 Teams in breach of rules 1.1, 1.2 & 1.7 shall be dealt with by the Competitions Committee. The breach will be brought to the attention of the Competitions Committee by the relevant Registrar. The Competitions Committee shall award the points of all games where the club was in breach of the rules to the opposition and reverse the next fixture between the clubs. The Competitions Committee shall fine the club €100 for each breach of the rules 1.1, 1.2 & 1.7.

1.14 Teams in breach of rule 1.3, 1.4, 1.8, 1.10 & 1.12 shall have the match awarded to the opposition. For league matches, the team will also be deducted 1 point. Additional defaults by the same team will carry an increasing penalty, which shall be an increment of one added point to the deduction of points for previous offences. For cup matches, the offending team will not be allowed to participate further in that cup competition (Plate games).

1.15 The Competitions Committee shall reserve the right to veto any Club’s nominations and may impose conditions on certain nominations with a view to ensuring fair competition.

2. Transfer of Players
2.1 No player shall play for more than one club during the season in Branch competitions without the consent of the Competitions Committee.

2.2 When a player wishes to transfer from one IHA affiliated club to another at any time of the season or between seasons, the club which the player wishes to join shall make an application for the transfer in writing to the relevant Registrar. This is done by fully completing and submitting the MBHI transfer form which can be found on the Branch website.

2.3 The club which the player is leaving shall not cause any unnecessary delay in the process of the transfer. Clubs (including underage Clubs) that cause any unnecessary delay shall be deemed to have brought the game into disrepute, and the matter shall be reported to the Management Committee who shall deal with the matter in accordance with Article 24 – Discipline, of the Branch Constitution.

2.4 An application for a transfer shall not normally be necessary if the player has not played in Branch competition for one whole season or more.

2.5 If a club plays a player before he/she is properly transferred, the Competitions Committee will:
• Remove any points gained by the team on which his/her name appears on the team sheet
• Deduct an additional point from the infringing team.
• Award the opposing team a win.
(a) For a second and/or subsequent breaches of this Rule, the penalties as outlined above will apply together with an additional deduction of an increment of one added point to the deduction of points for previous offences for each breach of the Rule. Rule 7.6 applies after a third breach of this Rule.

2.6 A player may only play for one club in any Branch Cup Competition.

2.7 Transfers shall not normally be approved after the 1st of January in any season. Exceptions may be allowed by the relevant registrar for cases involving the inter-county change of residence of the player involved.

Note: Please refer to HI rules for the IRISH HOCKEY LEAGUE and Irish Cup competitions and to HI/EHF rules for International transfers where qualification for European competition is involved.

3. League Rules
3.1 A team shall consist of a maximum of 18 players

3.2 League points are awarded as follows:
• Win = 3 points
• Score Draw = 2 points
• Scoreless Draw = 1 point
• Defeat = 0 points

3.3 Competition hockey shall commence and end on the instruction of the Competitions Committee
(a) The League shall consist of a number of Divisions dependent on the number of participating teams in any season. Leagues shall consist of 8 teams, where possible.
The Girls U16 League shall consist of 2 Divisions dependent on the number of participating teams in any season.
(b) Only the 1st Team of a club may play in Division 1 of the League.

3.4 On completion of the League Competition, the team with the lowest number of points shall be relegated, except in the Lowest Division. However, if there is no team eligible for promotion no relegation will take place.
Promotion & Relegation will apply in the following way:
(a) The teams that win their respective divisions are promoted and shall replace the team which is relegated from the next highest division.
(b) 2nd placed team will play a play-off with the 2nd last placed team in the higher division.
(c) For Division 1-2 only. – If the winner of Division 2 is a club’s first team they are promoted to Division 1. If 2nd place in Division 2 is also a club’s first team, they will play a play-off with 7th place in Division 1. If a 2nd XI team win Div.2 and a 1st XI team finish 2nd, that 1st XI team will be promoted (women)/play a play-off with last place in Div.1 (men).
(d) *** All of the above is based on the assumption that the net effect movement between Division 1 and IHL is zero (i.e. no team is promoted/relegated to/from IHL; or 1 team is promoted and 1 team is relegated to/from IHL; or 2 teams are promoted and 2 teams are relegated to/from IHL). For a net effect movement of +/-1 or +/- 2 and for how promotion/relegation will be applied at the end of the 2020/21 season, please see Appendix A to this set of Competition Rules.
(e) Play-offs shall be organized by the Competitions Committee and shall be organized in line with Cup Rules below.
(f) In the event of 2 or more teams achieving the same number of points for a position that impacts winning the league, qualification for an IHA competition, promotion or relegation there will be a play-off for the position in question. Playoffs for league position shall be organised by the Competitions Committee and shall be organised in line with Cup Rules below.
(g) Teams will play the following season in the Division in which they are placed in from the previous season following promotion/relegation has been applied. NO appeals to move will be considered.
3.5 In the event of a club withdrawing a team from competitive hockey, the team to be withdrawn should be from the lowest level unless otherwise approved by the Competitions’ Committee. All matches played by the team in question shall be declared null & void.

3.6 Unless otherwise agreed with the Competitions Committee, any new team entered into competitive hockey by a club will be entered at the lowest level.

3.7 The Competitions Committee can alter the format of each Division as required, subject to approval of the Management Committee.

3.8 U.16 matches shall consist of 4 x 15 mins quarters.

4. Cup Rules
4.1 The drawing and organising of Cup Competitions shall be the responsibility of the Competitions Committee. All cup draws shall be open draws without seeding. There will be a draw after each round up to semi-final.

4.2 Matches shall be played on the ground of the team whose name is on top.

4.3 The dates and venues for all finals shall be the responsibility of the Competitions Committee. All finals should be played in neutral venues where possible and shall be played on synthetic pitches.

4.4 For cup matches, a back-up pitch should be organised by the home team in the scenario that their home pitch should be unplayable on the day of the cup match in question.

4.5 Umpires for cup finals shall be appointed by the MHUA.

4.6 The duration of all cup matches shall be 70 minutes (U.16 matches 60 minutes). In the event of a draw the teams shall decide the result by a Shoot-out competition (no extra time) as per F.I.H. regulations.

4.7 A team shall consist of a maximum of 18 players.

5. Branch Trophies
5.1 All Branch trophies shall be perpetual challenge trophies and cannot be won outright.

5.2 All Branch trophies shall be signed for using the MBHI Trophy Receipt form.

5.3 All Branch trophies shall be returned to the Branch Hon. Secretary, clean & engraved, no later than 31st January the following year.

5.4 Clubs failing to adhere to this rule shall be subject to a €50 fine.

5.5 Where a Club permanently mislays a Trophy, the Club will reimburse the Branch with its replacement.

6. Fixtures
6.1 Fixture lists for the season shall be drawn up by the Branch Hon. Fixtures Secretaries. All communications in respect of fixtures will only be conducted between the Club’s Hon. Fixtures Secretary and the relevant Branch Fixtures Secretary.

6.2 Matches shall be started no later than ten minutes after the time specified, unless previously notified to the opposition and the umpires.

6.3 A match cannot take place without two umpires officiating. In the absence of umpire(s), it is the responsibility of the captains to agree umpire(s), from their panel if necessary.

6.4 All division 1 and division 2 league and cup matches shall be played on synthetic pitches.

6.5 All division 1 (men’s and women’s) matches shall be scheduled to start between 12 noon and 3:30pm on a Saturday. For matches to be played outside these hours (including midweek matches), a written application must be made at least seven days prior to the date of the fixture to the appropriate branch fixtures secretary and written approval from the appropriate branch fixture secretary must be obtained. Failure to comply shall be dealt with by the MBHI Competitions Committee.

Note: When Irish competitions are being played these matches will take precedence.

6.6 The home team shall give the time of the game to the visiting team (and MHUA for Division 1 and cup games) by 9pm on the Friday week (8/9 days) before the game, and if the team or umpires are travelling more than 50Km, the home team shall ask for their planned time of departure.

6.7 No fixture may start at a time that requires a travelling team to depart before 9.00am except with the agreement of both clubs.

6.8 For teams not covered under competitions rule 6.5, no game may start before 11:30 or after 4:30 except with the agreement of both clubs.

7. Postponements, Rearrangements & Forfeited matches
7.1 Teams involved in Irish Competition (Irish Senior Cup, Irish Hockey Trophy, Irish Hockey Challenge, Irish Junior Cup, Chilean Cup, Mauritius Cup) on a particular weekend shall have their Munster fixture on that weekend postponed. In this case the relevant Branch Fixtures Secretary will re-fix the game.
Where a team have 3 or more players missing for a fixture due to International duty (matches and camp only; NOT training sessions) they may request a postponement. The Branch Fixtures Secretary will fix the new date for this fixture.

7.2 All applications for postponements must be made in writing using the official postponement form which shall be sent to the relevant Branch Fixtures Secretary.
(a) All applications for a postponement must be made to the relevant Branch Fixtures Secretary at least 7 days before the scheduled date. Applications for postponements are valid only if both clubs have specified an agreed date on which to play the fixture, subject to a deadline of 31st March. No application may be made unless this agreement is recorded in the application.
(b) The relevant Branch Fixtures Secretaries shall decide whether to grant the postponement or not. Branch Fixtures Secretaries will normally refuse to grant a postponement, even if both clubs agree, if in his or her opinion the reason for the application is inadequate.
(c) Once a decision is made on a postponement application, the Branch Fixtures Secretary shall notify the Hon Fixtures Secretaries of both clubs involved in the application. A refusal to grant a postponement may be appealed to the Competitions Committee within 24hrs of the refusal. The Competitions Committee will make a final determination within 24hrs of receiving an appeal.
(d) If the club seeking the postponement does not secure the agreement of the opposition club, the game shall go ahead as scheduled. If the game does not go ahead, the Competitions Committee will apply the forfeiture rules – 7.4, 7.5 & 7.6.
7.3 Branch Fixtures Secretaries shall not grant postponements if applications are not made 7 days prior to the date on which the fixture has been arranged, save in circumstances that are exceptional in the opinion of the relevant Branch Fixtures Secretary. In these cases, rearrangements will be set by the relevant Branch Fixtures Secretary.
7.4 Where a team does not play its scheduled match on the given week-end, without prior official postponement, they shall be deemed to have forfeited the match.

7.5 The sanctions against a team forfeiting a match are as follows:
• The opposition is awarded a win in the match;
• For league matches they shall be deducted one point for the first offence in the season. Additional offences by the same team will carry an increasing penalty, which shall be an increment of one added point to the deduction of points for previous offences.
• Receive a fine of €100
• In a cup match, the team will be unable to participate in any further part of the cup competition, e.g. a plate or runners up cup & are fined €100
• For the next game where the forfeiting team is scheduled to play at home against the team they forfeited to, the fixture will be reversed, and the forfeiting team will have to travel (this may carry to the next season if there is no home game remaining in the current season).
7.6 Clubs (including underage teams) that forfeit more than three matches in a season shall be deemed to have brought the game into disrepute, and the matter reported to the Management Committee who shall deal with the matter in accordance with article 24 – Discipline, of the Branch Constitution.

8. Pitch Unplayable
8.1 Where a team and/or umpire(s) is to travel more than 50km:
(a) If there is any doubt about the condition of a pitch due to weather, the home club shall ring the travelling team / umpire(s) before they are due to start the journey and either cancel or confirm the fixture.
(b) In the event that the away team has left and the weather changes to the point where the match cannot be played, the home team are obliged to contact the travelling team up to 1 hour before the planned fixture. This will only be valid in the case of unforeseen circumstances, and at all other times, 8.1(a) should be followed accordingly.
8.2 In the event that Rule 8.1 (a) or (b) has been used inappropriately the offending club shall be deemed to have brought the game into disrepute, and the matter will be reported to the Management Committee who shall deal with the matter in accordance with Article 24 – Discipline, of the Branch Constitution.

8.3 If the procedure in 8.1 above is not adhered to and the travelling team arrives, and the match is not played, the fixture will be reversed, and the home team shall be fined €100. If umpires arrive and the match is not played their expenses shall be paid by the home team.

8.4 If the procedure in 8.1 above is adhered to and the match is subsequently cancelled by the umpires, the match will be re-fixed at the original venue. The relevant Branch Fixtures Secretary will re-fix the match.

8.5 If a match is called off by anyone other than the umpires and in the umpires’ opinion called off needlessly, the Competitions Committee will reverse the fixture.

8.6 Clubs must provide the names and contact details of two members who may be contacted by travelling teams.

8.7 Where a team refuses to play a game after the umpires agree the game can go ahead, that team shall be deemed to have forfeit the game and the forfeiture rules 7.4, 7.5 and 7.6 shall apply.

8.8 Adverse weather warnings
(a) In the advent of an adverse red weather warning the Competitions Committee will unilaterally cancel all scheduled fixtures. The relevant Branch Fixtures Secretaries shall re-fix any games cancelled in such an eventuality.
(b) In the advent of an adverse orange weather warning clubs may seek a postponement of their scheduled fixture if the orange weather warning is scheduled during the time of their match and/or the time they are due to travel to/from the match. Agreement must be sought from the relevant Branch Fixtures Secretary before the game is officially called off. The relevant Branch Fixtures Secretaries shall re-fix any games cancelled in such an eventuality.

9. Unfinished Matches
9.1 In the case of unfinished matches, the Competitions Committee shall, at its discretion, and having regard to the circumstances in which the match remained unfinished:
• Re-fix the match
• Reckon the result of the match as per the score at the time the match was stopped.
• Reckon the match as a draw.
• Reckon the match as forfeit by either or both teams.

10. Result of Matches

10.1 Match cards shall be kept of every Branch Fixture which shall include the full names of the players on the panel, the name of the competition, the venue, date & time of the fixture. The number on every player’s shirts shall match the number opposite that player’s name on the match card. The match card shall be completed by both teams and handed to the umpires prior to the start of the match by the Captain of the home team.

10.2 At the end of the match the umpires shall enter the score, name of scorer(s), mark any disciplinary card(s) used, sign, and return the card to the Captain of the home team.

10.3 Both teams must send a photo of the match card to their relevant registrar. For matches played Friday Saturday or Sunday of a particular weekend to be received no later than 8pm on the Sunday of the weekend. Matches played at any other times the card must be received within 24 hours. If the card does not arrive in time, the relevant club shall be fined €20 for the first offence by a team & €40 for each subsequent offence. The original of the card is to be retained by the Home team in case it is needed at a later date.

10.4 The home club shall communicate the result of a match (or news of its postponement) to Sports Manager and to the relevant Branch Fixtures Secretary as soon as possible. Where news of a match result or postponement is not communicated to Sports Manager and to the Branch Fixtures Secretary by 8:00pm on a Sunday (for weekend results), the relevant club may be fined €50.

10.5 The match card should be an accurate record of the match played. Any deliberate falsification of entries on match cards shall be dealt with by the Competitions Committee who shall reckon the match as forfeited by the offending team and may report the issue for further sanction to the MBHI Management.

10.6 Notwithstanding 10.2 and 10.5 above, a score greater than ten goals, or a difference greater than ten goals, shall be reduced accordingly and the reduced score shall be entered on the match card. The score submitted to Sports Manager shall be that entered on the match card.

11. Clothing & Equipment
11.1 Every affiliated club must have two sets of distinguishing colours that are registered with the Munster Branch.

11.2 Any change of colours by a club must have prior consent of the Munster Branch Management Committee.

11.3 Full Club uniform must be worn by all teams. Where colours are similar the visiting team must change tops & socks. Any visible clothing including bicycle shorts, skins or bodywarmers must be of a similar colour to the players’ team strip.

11.4 Players in all divisions of the League, and in all cup competitions, shall wear numbered shirts with no numbers duplicated. Failure to comply with this rule will result in a fine of €100 to the relevant club.

11.5 Captains must wear a distinctive armband or some other distinguishing item that clearly identifies them.

12. Discipline
12.1 A Disciplinary Panel of a minimum of five persons (5) will be elected at the Annual General Meeting.

12.2 Any player who receives a red card in a game shall be deemed to have brought the game into disrepute. The report of the red card decision shall be given to the Hon. Secretary of the Munster Branch within 72 hours. The Hon Secretary will forward the report to the Chair of the Disciplinary Panel.
(a) The player who received the red card shall serve an automatic one match ban and any additional ban as decided by the management’s disciplinary committee. The Disciplinary Committee (panel) shall hold its hearing into the matter within 7 days of receipt of the report.
(b) Attendance at the hearing shall include the relevant player accompanied by a person of their choosing, and in addition it may include the relevant umpires and such persons as deemed appropriate by the Disciplinary Panel. Any extension of the one match ban will be notified to the Player and the Hon. Secretary of the relevant Club within 72 hours of the hearing by the Hon. Secretary of the Branch and copied to the relevant Registrar.
(c) If a non-nominated player receives a ban, the Registrar shall decide the team on which the player serves it, taking into account on what team that player usually plays.
(d) While the player is serving his/her suspension, he/she may not play for any other team in Munster competitions until his/her suspension is served.

12.3 A player who having accumulated three yellow cards in a season shall have the matter reviewed by the Disciplinary Panel. Any match suspension(s) from play resulting from this review will be processed as defined in 12.2.

12.4 The match in which the player serves any match suspension(s) from play shall be decided by the Registrar. The club of any player subject to a match suspension(s) from play is responsible for ensuring that the player does not play until the match suspension(s) from play is served. If a player plays before the match suspension(s) from play is served, then additional sanctions may be applied by the disciplinary panel including increasing the match suspension(s) from play for the player and/or deciding that matches played by the team that played the suspended player should be forfeited.

12.5 Only those named on the match card and who are involved in the match are permitted to take a position in the allocated area for teams at the side of the pitch. All other persons not named must be outside the playing area. Failure to comply with this Rule will result in a fine of €500 for the relevant Club.

12.6 Appeals
The procedures to be followed in respect of appeals is as per Article 26 – Appeals, of the Branch Constitution.

12.7 The coach, manager, physio, doctor (if appropriate) and substitutes must remain on the bench at all times during the match other than for a substitution or to treat an injury. In these instances only, the appropriate personnel may leave the bench. The coach may never leave the bench during the match.

13. Umpires
13.1. All clubs with teams in any Munster Branch Division 1 and 2 league MUST have at least one graded umpire (minimum Grade 3) per team (from its list of named umpires) to be available to take umpire appointments for the MHUA every week during the season.
13.2. The Munster Branch shall have the power to discipline and/or fine any club, in breach of this rule.
Notes:
Although the minimum Grade for umpires nominated to the panel by clubs is Provincial Panel C (Grade 3), if a club nominates someone who has only passed the Introductory Umpire Course but has not yet been ‘assessed’ they will be admitted to the panel as a ‘candidate’ umpire. If following an assessment, they are deemed to be competent they will be regraded to Grade 3 and included in the MHUA appointments panel. If not, the club will have to nominate another umpire.
In order for a club to meet its umpiring commitment they may wish to nominate more than one umpire. This may be a prudent step, to cover periods of unavailability. Any umpire who wishes to make themselves available for both Men’s and Women’s panels may do so, but a general principle is that their primary commitment is to the panel they are nominated to. No umpire may be nominated by a club for more than one panel or for more than one team or by more than one club (clubs should seek the agreement of the umpire before nominating them to an umpire panel to ensure there is no misunderstanding). As with all nominated umpires, the club will still have an obligation to ensure that they can still provide cover for any period of unavailability.
As the MHUA appoint to matches played anywhere in Munster, clubs must ensure that their nominees are willing to fulfil this obligation when asked. If an umpire fails repeatedly to fulfil appointments, their club will be reported to the Munster Branch, as being in breach of this rule.
It is recognized that from time to time an individual’s personal circumstances may mean they have to decline an appointment. On such occasions the Appointments Secretary may excuse the nominee, provided they have declined no more than 2 appointments out of 5 and have a valid reason.
This rule, for Division 1 teams, will be implemented starting season 2018/19.
For the 2019-20 season, it is planned to introduce this rule to Division 2 teams.
For the 2020-21 season, it is planned to introduce this rule to Division 3 teams.
That said, there is an expectation that all clubs will endeavour to engage in this process from the start, taking advantage of the rules courses and umpire grading opportunities.
Any club in breach of this rule will be reported first to the MHUA by the Appointment Secretary. If agreed by the MHUA, the Chair of MHUA will make a recommendation to the Munster Branch for sanctions to be levied on the club. The nature and severity of the sanctions will be at the discretion of the Munster Branch, but similar models implemented elsewhere have resulted in fines and points deductions. It is expected that the Munster Branch will impose similar sanctions on clubs who do not fulfil their responsibility under this rule.
13.3 A Match day Misconduct offence, detailed below, is introduced into Munster Hockey as part of the disciplinary procedures of Munster Hockey.
An MMO is issued if a match umpire decides that behaviour by a player or team official, would have led to a red card had it occurred during the match. It may only be issued on the day of a match, excluding the time from the start to the finish of the match, and it can be issued to any intended or actual participant in the match. Examples of when MMOs are issued include such things as verbal abuse to an umpire or players threatening or fighting with each other after the final whistle has gone, and any abusive behaviour in the confines of the pitch.

14. Fines
A club with outstanding unpaid fines will be ineligible to take part in any Munster Branch competition, in the following season, until such fines have been paid in full.

Appendix A
Men
Division 1:
• 8th relegated (only if no team is promoted to IHL and a 1st XI team win Div.2)
OR
• 8th place vs. 2nd Div.2 (only if no team is promoted to IHL and a 2nd XI team win Div.2 & a 1st XI team finish in 2nd place)
Division 2:
• 1st promoted (1st XI team only).
• If a 2nd XI team win Div.2 and a 1st XI team finish 2nd, that 1st XI team will play 8th Div.1 in a play-off; OR if there is promotion from Div.1 to IHL, that 1st XI team will be automatically promoted.
• 6th place vs. 2nd Div.3 in a play-off
Division 3:
• 1st promoted
• 2nd place vs. 6th Div.2 in a play-off

Women
A. For zero net effect movement between Division 1 and IHL (i.e. no team is promoted/relegated to/from IHL; or 1 team is promoted and 1 team is relegated to/from IHL; or 2 teams are promoted and 2 teams are relegated to/from IHL):
(i) Promotion/Relegation is as per Rule 3.4 (except for Div.5 and 6, where 1st & 2nd will be promoted and 3rd will play the 2nd last placed team in the higher division in a play-off). This applies if there is no promotion from Div.2 to Div.1.
(ii) However, should there be promotion from Div.2 to Div.1, (i) above still applies but there will be no automatic relegation in Div.2 and instead 8th Div.2 will play 2nd Div.3 in a play-off.

B. For net effect movement of +1 between Division 1 and IHL (i.e. no team is promoted and 1 team is relegated to/from IHL; or 1 team is promoted and 2 teams are relegated to/from IHL):
Division 1:
• 7th relegated + 6th place vs. 2nd Div.2 (only if 1st XI teams finish 1st and 2nd in Div.2)
OR
• 7th place vs. 2nd Div.2 (only if a 2nd XI team win Div.2 and a 1st XI team finish in 2nd place)
Division 2:
• 1st promoted (1st XI team only) + 2nd place vs. 6th Div.1 (only if 1st XI teams finish 1st and 2nd in Div.2)
OR
• 2nd place vs. 7th Div.1 (only if a 2nd XI team win Div.2 and a 1st XI team finish in 2nd place)

• Relegation as per Rule 3.4

Promotion/Relegation for all other divisions will be as per Rule 3.4 (except for Div.5 and 6, where 1st & 2nd will be promoted, and 3rd will play the 2nd last placed team in the higher division in a play-off).

C. For net effect movement of +2 between Division 1 and IHL (i.e. no team is promoted and 2 teams are relegated to/from IHL):
Division 1:
• 7th relegated
• 6th place vs. 1st Div.2 (1st XI team only)
Division 2:
• 1st place (1st XI team only) vs. 6th Div.1
• Relegation as per Rule 3.4

Promotion/Relegation for all other divisions will be as per Rule 3.4 (except for Div.5 and 6, where 1st & 2nd will be promoted, and 3rd will play the 2nd last placed team in the higher division in a play-off).

D. For net effect movement of -1 between Division 1 and IHL (i.e. 1 team is promoted and no team is relegated to/from IHL; or 2 teams are promoted and 1 team is relegated to/from IHL):
Division 1:
• No relegation
Division 2:
• 1st promoted (1st XI team only)
• 2nd promoted (1st XI team only)
• Relegation: a) if no promotion to Div.1 = relegation is as per Rule 3.4.
b) if 1 team promoted to Div.1 = relegation is as per Section A(ii) above
c) if 2 teams promoted to Div.1 = no relegation
Using the relegation criteria in Div.2 above, for Divisions 3 – 6 the following will apply:
a) Promotion/Relegation as per Section A(i) above.
b) Promotion/Relegation as per Section A(ii) above.
c) Div.3: 1st and 2nd promoted + 3rd place vs. last place in Div.2 in a play-off. 9th place relegated. 8th place vs. 3rd Div.4 in a play-off.
Div.4-6 – 1st and 2nd promoted + 3rd place vs. second last place in higher division in a play-off. Last place in Div.4 and Div.5 relegated.

E. For net effect movement of -2 between Division 1 and IHL (i.e. 2 teams are promoted and no team is relegated to/from IHL):
Section D, above, applies.