1) Eligibility
For participating in Netball Singapore Tournaments/ Carnivals:

• All players shall be members of affiliated Clubs/Associations/Teams and no Clubs/Associations/Teams shall be allowed to participate in the competition unless all subscriptions and entrance fees have been paid before the competition closing date.
• Teams list with the details of player’s name and NRIC/FIN/Passport numbers must be submitted upon registration.
• A Club/Association may send in as many teams as it chooses but each team entered for the competition must comply with Rule 2.
• Netball Singapore shall have the sole and absolute authority to decide whether a team or a player may play in any competition, and which Division they should play in the Leagues.

2) Registration of teams
In any League / Carnival:

• Each Club/Association shall submit an official entry form for each team accompanied by the relevant registration fees for a competition.
• Entry forms, team lists and fees must be submitted to Netball Singapore on or before the closing date. Upon request for changes in team lists after closing date, Netball Singapore reserved the rights to reject.
• Special requests for changes in the team list must be submitted to Netball Singapore, and approval will be granted on a case by case basis. Such special requests can only be made prior to the 1st scheduled game of the competition.
• No changes, amendments or adjustments can be made to the team list after the first scheduled game.
• No player will be permitted to play in a competition unless she/he has been registered with a team.  Should a team field an unregistered player, the results of the matches played with the offending player will be nullified and the opposing team will be given the winning points. In addition, for leagues, the offending club will have 2 points deducted from their total accumulated round robin points.
• A player is free to play with any Club/Association/Team. Once she/he has been registered with a team for a competition, she/he will not be permitted to represent another team as a player in the same competition.  Any player who violates this rule will be barred from the rest of the competition and the results of the matches played by the offending player will be nullified. In addition, for leagues, the offending club will have 2 points deducted from their total accumulated round robin points.
• Registration of players in leagues

• Netball Singapore reserves the right to field the national/training squads as guest teams in any competition.  Results (scores) of the guest teams should be computed but final standing (ranking) of the team would not be taken into consideration.

3) Safety on court
In any League / Carnival:

• Players who are pregnant will not be allowed to play in the competition.  The concerned player has an obligation to inform the Events Department and the Technical Committee of her status and shall discontinue her participation from the competition.
• A player intending to use/wear any form of protection or support (on medical grounds) which incorporates any hard material or metallic parts or pieces must obtain approval from the Events Department, who will consult the Umpires’ Sub-Committee (USC).

The concerned player shall:

• Inform the Tournament Coordinator in writing with supporting medical documentation.
• At the request of the USC, fix an appointment to meet the USC to examine the protection/ support and determine whether it would be safe to allow the use of such protection/support.
• The USC shall have the authority to allow, restrict or refuse the use of such protection/support in the competition and shall inform the player in writing of their decision together with any terms and conditions thereof.
• The player shall prior to the commencement of a game, report to the Umpire on duty to produce a copy of the written approval for verification.
• USC shall determine the validity period of the approval.

4) Cancellations, Postponements, Walkovers & Withdrawals
During any Tournaments / Carnivals

• The Tournament Official on duty shall have the authority to stop, cancel or postpone any games due to unforeseen circumstances and /or inclement weather.
• Any team giving a walkover shall notify Netball Singapore at least 5 working days before any league game.  When a team forfeits the game, 2 points shall be credited to the opposing team.  The team forfeiting the game shall have 2 points deducted from the team’s total accumulated points.
• If a team fails to give 5 working days’ notice for a league game walkover, the team will have to pay a penalty of $50.00 (for umpire fees) in addition to the deduction of 2 points from the total accumulated points.
• A team that withdraws after the closing dates will still bear the tournament and umpiring fees.
• Netball Singapore reserves the right to make exceptions for teams that have players affected by the National Team training or playing programme, for example overseas training camp.

5) Games Fixtures
In any Tournaments / Carnivals

• For Leagues games, Netball Singapore will group teams within a division based on results achieved in the same competition from the previous year.  Each division can have a maximum of 2 teams from the same club. For Carnivals, teams will be seeded based on results achieved in the same competition from the previous year.
• Teams that came in 1st for in their respective divisions in the previous year will be promoted to the upper division the next year (except for Division 1). Teams that finished last in their respective divisions in the previous year will be relegated to the lower division the next year. However, for Division 1 teams, they may opt to remain in Division 1 as it is a criterion for participation in the NSL, as some of their players may be in the Opens/21s squad and unavailable to take part in the NL.
• All new teams shall be placed in the lowest division and Netball Singapore has the authority to promote the team to a higher division on a case by case basis.
• Existing clubs may opt to play in a higher Division, but not a lower Division on approval by Netball Singapore on a case by case basis.
• All League games shall consist of 4 quarters of 15 minutes. All Carnival games, with the exception of the beach netball festival, shall consist of 2 halves each with a minimum of 5 minutes. The duration of each half shall be decided based on the number of teams participating.
• Netball Singapore shall fix the dates, including reserve dates, venues and times of all matches before the commencement of the competition. No changes/postponement will be entertained after the fixtures have been finalized. Note the exception for National Team.
• Teams shall receive the fixtures at least 3 working days before the competition begins. Teams are to check the website or contact Netball Singapore if they did not receive the fixtures via email by the stipulated date.

6) Competition System

• The game of Netball shall be played according to the latest edition of the INF Rules of Netball.
• Teams and teams’ umpires shall report to the Tournament Officials/Umpire Official 30 minutes before the competition to confirm their playing time, umpiring time and court.
• Both teams are to submit a scorecard each to the Tournament Officials with results that have been verified by the other captain and countersigned by the umpire, immediately after the match.
• The teams must report at the assigned court at the scheduled time. Grace period of 5 minutes will be given for leagues. All Carnival games, with the exception of the beach netball festival will be given 2 minutes.
• Any walkovers shall be awarded by the presiding umpires
• In the event of a clash in colours, the first named team has the priority to choose their colour of uniforms and the other team must change accordingly.
• The duration of each game will be stated in the fixtures of the competition.
• Any matches played more than 2 quarters and uncompleted because of inclement weather or unforeseen circumstances shall be considered as completed and the scores accepted.
• Any matches played less than 2 quarters shall be postponed to a reserve date and replayed. In the event the postponed match is abandoned and played less than 2 quarters, a scoreless draw shall be awarded to both team. The date, place and time for the game to be replayed shall be fixed by the Netball Singapore/Official and the decision shall be final.
• Any carnival matches played past the half time mark and uncompleted because of inclement weather or unforeseen circumstances shall be considered as completed and the scores accepted.
• Any carnival matches before the half time mark shall be postponed to a reserve date/time and replayed. In the event the postponed match is abandoned or unable to be completed, a scoreless draw shall be awarded to both team. The date, place and time for the game to be replayed shall be fixed by the Netball Singapore/Official and the decision shall be final.
• There will be no Injury Time for Carnivals.
• The following scoring system shall apply for all league and carnival games unless otherwise specified:

• In the event of a tie on points at the end of pool rounds, the result of the game between the two teams decides the winner.
• If the two teams drew their match, or if more than two teams have the same number of points at the end of the pool rounds, goal average of the pool games will decide the placings (i.e. goals for divided by goals against)
• If goal average is identical, then goal difference will be applied (i.e. the difference between goals for and goals against)
• In the event of a further tie, the team scoring the most goals will be declared the winner.

KNOCK-OUT COMPETITIONS (LEAGUES)

• If the game ends in a draw, there shall be a four (4) minute interval at the end of full time. Substitutions and/or team changes are permitted;
• Extra time shall consist of two (2) halves of seven (7) minutes each, with an interval of one (1) minute at half-time. Teams shall change ends at half-time. The Centre Pass is taken by the team entitled to the next Centre Pass;
• During both of these intervals,  substitutions and/or team changes may be made (Refer to INF rules)
• In the event of a tie remaining at the end of extra time, play shall continue until one team leads by two (2) goals.

KNOCK-OUT COMPETITION (CARNIVALS)

• If the game ends in a draw, play shall recommence immediately without changing ends beginning with a centre-pass and the first team to score 3 goals shall be declared the winner.

7) Umpires
Compulsory Team Nominated Umpires (with effect from 1 Jan 2017)

• In any competition, for any team appointing their own umpire(s), they shall submit the name of the umpire(s) before the closing date.  However, if any team intends to use more than one umpire in the competition then the team must register the names of all their umpires in the official entry form.  The nominated umpires must hold a Netball Singapore umpiring badge and have been actively umpiring games for the last 12 months.
• Only registered Netball Singapore umpires will be allowed to umpire. If the assigned team umpire is found not qualified under Netball Singapore umpiring system, 2 points will be deducted from the team’s total accumulated points and a penalty of $50.00 will be payable by the team.
• If a team umpire is late (for more than 5 mins) or fails to show up for his/her assignment, 2 points will be deducted from the team’s total accumulated points and a penalty of $50.00 will be payable by the team.
• If notice is given to umpires more than 90 minutes before the start of the first game, team umpire/Netball Singapore umpiring slot is not counted as taken/fulfilled.
• If notice is given to umpires less than 90 minutes before the start of the game, team umpire/Netball Singapore umpiring slot is counted as taken/fulfilled. (For Netball Singapore umpire, rainout payment will be made)

8) Discipline

• The Netball Singapore and/or the USC shall expeditiously, after conducting their investigations, refer all written protests, complaints, appeals by players, umpires, teams officials and/or tournament officials to  the Disciplinary Committee (DC) as and when appropriate.
• Any player sent off for the rest of the game shall automatically be suspended until DC has completed an investigation. The umpires concerned shall briefly indicate on the Netball Singapore scorecards the names of the players sent off and the reasons. The umpires shall inform the Technical Official after the game and submit a written report to the USC within 3 days.
• In the event that a player / official is under disciplinary investigation, he/she shall not be allowed to play in the competition.

9) Protest

• Any player, team, club, coach or any other person in any way or manner associated with Netball Singapore (“the complainant”) shall be entitled to submit written appeals or protests pertaining to that competition, to the Netball Singapore WITHIN 48 HOURS (excluding Sundays and Public Holidays) of the incident/decision together with a protest fee of $100.00.  The Netball Singapore shall look into the merits of the complaint or protest and if valid, the protest fee shall be refunded. Any complainant who submits frivolous appeals or protests maybe subjected to disciplinary action.
• In the event that the complainant is dissatisfied with the decision of the Netball Singapore, the complainant can appeal to the NS appointed Appeals jury. An additional appeal fee of $100.00 will be imposed. The NS appointed Appeals jury shall have the power to stay the sanction/punishment pending the investigation and review of the Netball Singapore’s decision.  The NS appointed Appeals Jury’s decision shall be final.

10) Miscellaneous Rules

• Insurance & Disclaimer of all/any liabilities – Netball Singapore, its sponsors and Sport Singapore shall not be liable for any accidents, injuries or losses of personal properties that may have been suffered during any of the competitions organised by Netball Singapore. Netball Singapore advise all participants to purchase insurance policies against injuries and/or any other losses that the individual deems necessary.
• Clarifications & Interpretations – Any concerns not provided for in these rules shall be dealt with by the Netball Singapore and in the event of any ambiguity and/or confusion in the interpretation and/or application of any rules, the Netball Singapore’s interpretation/ruling shall be final.
• In the event that there is an inconsistency between Netball Singapore Rules and INF Rules or any ambiguity or conflict between the rules, then Netball Singapore Rules shall prevail.
• By participating in the event, teams agree to grant Netball Singapore, Sport Singapore and its sponsors the right to use any photographs, motion pictures, recordings, or any other record of the Event for any legitimate purpose, including commercial advertising.

11) Definitions

• Goal Average is calculated by taking the total goals scored by a team divided by the total number of goals scored against the said team.
• Goal Difference is the total goals scored by the team minus the total goals scored against the team in that tournament.
• INF Rules means the International Netball Federation Rules
• A National Player is a player who is in the current Singapore Opens squad, or was in the Singapore Opens squad in the previous year.
• A 21&Under Player is a player who is in the current Singapore 21&Under squad, or was in the Singapore 21&Under squad in the previous year.
• Walkover means forfeiting a game in favour of the opposing team