TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Sport Nights Ltd  (Trading as Netball Nights) Hereon, referred to as 'Netball nights' or 'Netball nights League'

Registered Offices: 27 Old Gloucester Street, London, W1CN 3AX

1.LIABILITY

1.1 Please note that Netballnights does not provide any insurance cover for teams to cover for personal injury. 

1.2 Netball nights cannot be held responsible for personal injuries and strongly recommend that teams take out their own insurance policies to cover such eventualities. 

1.3 Netballnights will not be held responsible/liable for any loss or damage for the performance of Netball nights Leagues obligations, or anything outside of Netballnights Leagues control. 

1.4 All players take part in the leagues entirely at their own risk. Netball nights League does not accept liability for any personal injury or loss/damage to property howsoever caused.

1.5 We recommend that players/teams take out their own insurance policies to cover such eventualities.

1.6 Without prejudice to the generality of our terms and conditions; Netball nights will not be liable for negligence or negligent of anyone carrying out work for our company, and has no liability for any losses, personal injury or death. This contract shall be governed by English Law and shall be subject to the sole jurisdiction of the English Courts.

2. TEAM CAPTAIN

2.1 It is the responsibility of the Team Captain to ensure that the team is ready to play at the scheduled time each week and that every member of the team is aware of and will abide by the rules herein.

2.2 A player wishing to question any of the League terms and conditions, must inform their team Captain – who is required to make their views known in writing to Netballnights League via the contact link below.

2.3 If a team wishes to change their team Captain at any point they must inform Netballnights League 

3. PLAYERS

3.1 All players must be 18 or over. All players must wear appropriate footwear and must not wear anything that is potentially harmful to them or others. Players who are more than 12 weeks pregnant may not take part as a matter of safety to themselves.

3.3 A maximum of 10 players are allowed to ‘register’ with each team; players cannot join a team at any point during the season unless given permission by the league co-ordinator. For a game to commence, however, a minimum of five players is required in each team.

3.4 A player can only be registered for one team in any given league.

3.5 If a team does not have enough players, then they can ask to borrow a player from another team – A “substitute” who must be registered with another team or into the training pool. However, if they are unable to find players, then the team may either play with a minimum of 5 players or concede the game 10– 0 (See paragraph 9.2 for details of the fees applied). 

3.6 Players should be of an appropriate standard for the division they are playing in, and Netballnights League reserve the right to ask a player to leave a team, if their skill level is deemed too high or presents a risk for other players due to their skill level being better matched to a lower division then they are playing in.

4. MISCONDUCT

4.1 All teams/players sign up to our Code of Conduct when they agree to play in Netball Nights League. This code of conduct can be found on our website and is provided for reading and to confirm acceptance by the individual at the time of registration. Players that do not adhere to this code of conduct, could be subject to disciplinary action as detailed below. It is the team organisers' responsibility to ensure that their team members are aware of this code of conduct. 

4.2 All infringements and misconduct will be dealt with by the umpires accordingly. The umpire’s decision is final.

4.3 In the case of serious misconduct or persistent rule-breaking, an umpire may order a player off-court. It is at the umpire’s discretion the length of time they must remain off. The offending player can only return on court: i) immediately after a goal has been scored, or ii) after an interval, following the end of their sending-off period.

4.4 If a report is submitted by an umpire regarding the behaviour/attitude of a player, Netballnights League may find it necessary to suspend that player.

5. MATCH FEES

5.1 Match fees are £45.00 per week for the duration of the season for Hemel and Folkestone and  £47.50 per week for the duration of the season for Aylesbury Leagues.

5.2 This will be made up of a £35-£37.50 fee for Netball Nights and a £10 fee to pay the umpire of the game on your behalf.

5.3 We act only as an intermediary for umpires, we will organise and arrange the umpire/s for your match, The umpire acts as an independent official and is not employed by Netball Nights.

5.4 The Seasons Match fees should be paid to Netballnights League 3 weeks before the start of the season unless other arrangements have been agreed beforehand.

5.5 If a team owes money to Netball Nights League for any reason, the team captain has the legal responsibility for the debt.

5.6 Although Captains have primary responsibility for payments due from the team, the liability of team members for any and all charges due from the team under these T&Cs is joint and several. This means that Netball Nights has the right to recover all of the fees due from the team as a whole from any of its members. 

5.7 If it is not possible to collect these fees, we may appoint an external debt collection agency to assist us in collecting monies due.

5.8 Without limitation of our rights, team members shall be joint and severally liable for our costs and expenses of collection and any interest accruing on sums due, including but not limited to the costs, fees or commissions of an external debt collection agency.

5.9 Netball Nights will usually apply credit to an account where necessary rather than issue a refund. On this occasion a refund is the best course of action, this will only be issued back to the card on which the payment was originally taken. A refund can only be made to the individual requesting the refund, this must be requested via email: info@netballnights.com

6. DURATION OF A MATCH

6.1 Each match consists of four 8-minute quarters. The start and finish of play will be signalled by the umpire’s whistle and will run to a set time, and there will be a two-minute break between quarters, during which teams swap ends.

6.2 Substitutions can only be made during breaks unless replacing an injured player.

7. UMPIRES

7.1 Each match is controlled by two umpires. The umpires are on court to ensure safe and fair play, through enforcing the official rules of netball. The umpire’s decision is final. Please respect their decisions.

7.2 The umpires also keep track of whether a team arrives late, and any disciplinary issues that arise – all of which will be fed back to the organisers of Netballnights League.

7.3 Umpires are independent officials, who are not employed by Netball Nights. However, this does not lessen their authority to call games off due to safety concerns.

8. START OF PLAY

8.1 Please ensure that all players arrive at the venue at least 10 minutes in advance of their start time. The team needs to have their nails checked by an umpire, hair tied back, jewellery removed and bibs on – ready to start on time – as this enables maximum playing time for all teams. You Must have already warmed up off-court before these checks.
NB: Each Netballnights League kit bag includes a Nail Care Kit – Nail Files, nail clippers and nail scissors.

8.2 Team organisers need to find one another and do the toss in advance or the game start time. The winner decides whether to have the first centre pass or choose an end to shoot at first. If they choose the centre pass, then the other team picks which end to shoot – and vice versa.

8.3 The games commence on the umpire’s whistle, and the official England Netball rules apply. These are summarised on our Rules and regulations page.

9. LATE ARRIVALS AND CANCELLATIONS

9.1 If a team arrives late, but before the end of the first break late team starts FIVE goals down. If a team arrives after the first break the game is conceded 10 – 0 and the late team must pay the opposition’s match fee, in addition to their own match fees.

9.2 If a team cannot find enough players for a particular match , then they will be charged the full match fees amount as stated in 5.1- and the game is conceded 10 – 0.

9.3 If a conceding team gives less than 24 hours’ notice, they will be charged the oppositions match fees in addition to their own match fees, unless they are able to host a friendly game with covering players.

9.4 Should a team need to concede their match then they must email Netballnights League via our email Info@netballnights.com or Whatsapp us. . Teams SHOULD NOT POST ON FACEBOOK  to cancel a game . Netballnights League will then make appropriate arrangements with the team  for the cancelled match.

9.5 A team may only concede one match in any one season at Netballnights League, and will incur a £30 fine if they concede more than one in a season.

10. INJURY

10.1 There is no injury time. Therefore, if a player is injured the clock will not stop, although every effort will be made to resume play as soon as possible. If an injured player is unable to continue playing, a substitution should be made without further delay. If the injured player’s team does not have any substitutes, then the players on court, from both teams, can swap positions.

10.2 In the event of serious injury Netball Nights League will decide whether the time remaining will be played at a later date. If more than half the match has been played then the score at time of injury will stand.

10.3 There are First Aid Kits in every Netball Nights League kit bag, at every venue. PLEASE NOTE: If a player is injured during a match, it is the teams responsibility to look after their players. Umpires are not there to administer First Aid

10.4 If an injury occurs, it is for the team to complete an accident report form so that it can be validated by Netballnights  - https://forms.gle/kU1t2V3szvwF4Noq8 

11. SCORING AND FIXTURES

11.1 5 points are awarded for a win, 3 points are awarded for a draw, Then the standings will be decided my Most wins, then Total Goal Difference.

11.2 Up-to-date fixture lists and league tables will be displayed online at www.netballnights.com 

11.3 The length of each season is dependent on the number of teams in each division.

11.4 If a team joins the league late, or a team for whatever reason has played less games than the rest of the league, then Netball Nights League will calculate that teams points using our average score spreadsheet. The spreadsheet takes into account the number of games played against the number of games in the season, and averages out the points scored for the games played. This will be done at the end of the season, and the league table adjusted accordingly.

13. OUTDOOR NETBALL / WEATHER + CANCELLATIONS 

Should the weather cause problems here is how Netballnights League communicate any match cancellations:  However rain will not make us cancel matches, especially if it is due to clear.

13.7 If an evening or specific games re cancelled the League co-ordinator will let all affected Teams know via SportsPlus App and also Post on Facebook. Captains will be asked to confirm that you have relayed the message to your teams.

13.8 If the decision is made to play matches and the weather gets worse the umpires will make the decision at the start of the match as to whether it is safe for play to go on. If it starts raining partway through a match, umpires will stop play if they feel it is getting dangerous.

13.9 Matches may be postponed at the beginning of the evening if it is deemed that the ground is not playable. This will be decided by the league director and/or umpires on site. Umpires decisions are final and binding and will act as a decision made by the League Director.

13.10 If half the match or more has been played the score will count as will the game. If less than half has been played , the remaining quarters will be rescheduled.

14. WITHDRAWAL FROM THE LEAGUE

14.1 Leagues generally run for 10-16 weeks, and when a team registers they are committing to the whole season.

14.2 If a team decides to withdraw from the league mid-season, they shall be liable for payment of the whole season's match fees.

14.3 If a team decided to withdraw from the league they must inform the league coordinator no later than 2 weeks before the last game of the season. 

15. MATCH CANCELLATION PROCEDURE:

15.1 In the run up to match days and on match days themselves we monitor the weather at our venues very carefully via The Met Office and BBC as well as local  weather services and are in contact with the venues themselves .

Should the decision be taken to cancel a whole evening of matches:

15.2 Team Captains are sent a Whatsapp message in the Captains group informing them of the cancellation The Team captain should then communicate with their team.

15.3 The same message will simultaneously be posted on the main Netballnights League Facebook page

15.4 If the whole evenings matches are cancelled then these matches will be rescheduled at the end of the season if possible.

If the Umpires deem a change in the weather or any other situation warrants the cancellation of a match during play on the day then:

15.5 If half or more of the match has been played, then the score at the time of stoppage will be the final match result – full match fees apply.

15.6 If less than half of the match has been played, then that match will be rescheduled to the end of the season 

15.7 Netballnights League will Whatsapp Team captains and use the Facebook page informing about the cancellation for any remaining matches on the evening, and those matches will be aim to be rescheduled at the end of the season.

16. FURTHER INFORMATION

16.1 Netballnights League reserves the right to alter these rules at any time during a season, and will notify all Team co-ordinators of the amendments, via email . We may also need to change the match night, time or venue where necessary. It is the team captains responsibility to make their team aware of the changes.

16.2 Netballnights League may from time to time photograph or video participants in our leagues. This material will be used solely for marketing purposes both on and offline. Should participants not wish to be photographed or videoed, they should make this known to Netballnights League via our contact us page also see our Privacy Policy. 

16.3 Any complaints must be submitted in writing to Netballnights League via the contact us page.

17. COVERING PLAYERS 

17.1 Covering players must be registered in a team from the same league as the team they are covering 

17.2 Players from a higher league may not fill for any division below their own.

17.3 Players from lower divisions may play-up for higher division teams , they can play in their regular position but should not take the place of another available registered player ;if available. 

17.4 Players may also guest for teams within their own division. They should not take the place of any available registered player for that team.

17.5 Players guesting for other team, may not cover whilst another member of that team is available and present, they may cover if the available player is running late.

17.6 Should a registered team member come on at any point AFTER the covering player has played, except in cases of lateness, you will be deducted 5 points, if that player was available beforehand.

17.7 Any team that fields a player from another team or division whilst having an available registered player will be deducted 5 points

18. TRANS INCLUSION

18.1 We follow the England Netball Guidelines which can be found here https://www.englandnetball.co.uk/document/trans-inclusion-guidance/

18.2 Welcome everyone to play and enjoy netball equally, and accept anyone joining in the gender they identify with, whether or not transition is taking/has taken place and address that person accordingly. In most netball clubs this will be in the form of a transwoman (someone designated male at birth who wishes to identify with the female gender)

18.3 Transwomen will be able to play in friendly and informal matches, join in training sessions, become officials, coaches and volunteer, although they may not be eligible to play in competition* (see 18.4)

18.4 As an Adult league, A Transsexual woman over 16 and post-puberty (male-to-female transgender person) may compete in her affirmed gender in female or mixed-sex domestic competition by providing evidence that her hormone therapy has brought her blood-measured testosterone levels within the range of her affirmed gender or that she has had a gonadectomy (which prevents further production of male hormones). 

It should be made clear to the transwoman or girl that she is not entitled to play in female competition until she has provided evidence that the criteria have been met. She will be required to disclose medical information to support this.

For anything else, then please do get in touch on info@netballnights.com

By playing for Netball Nights you will be agreeing to this, you will have confirmed that you have read and understood all the above Terms and Conditions and agree to abide by them.