Niagara Falls Soccer Club

I.APPLICATION FOR MEMBERSHIP

Application for membership must be made on the approved Membership Application Form, completed fully, and accompanied by the appropriate Membership Fee. The Executive may authorize early registration deduction for more than one player per family.

Application for House League Membership may be made at any time. Normally, membership application registration shall be held in the last week of August for indoor play and the first week of January for outdoor play. Travel registration (it Tryouts) will begin after league play.

Applications may not be accepted for previous Members with fines or balances owing, until monies owing have been paid in full.

II. MEMBERSHIP REGISTRATION

GENERAL

Registration fees shall be set by the Club Executive
The Club shall have one common player registration form for all programs
Players registering are not guaranteed a position on the team of their choice for House League play
Applications will not be accepted by email or fax
The deadline for travel registration will be set by the Vice President
NFSC will make every attempt to have players placed on a team, regardless of gender
For House League, a female player may play down one age group, and a male player may play up one age group after authorization from the club
Players may not be permitted to register for part time play
All registrations will be at full fee until July 31st
All House League players registering after July 31st will pay 80% of the appropriate fee, rounded up to the nearest dollar amount
All NSF and/or returned cheques will be assessed a $20.00 administrative fee
Applications for Travel registration for the outdoor season will not be accepted after the final date set by the Ontario Soccer Association (normally July 31st)

PAYMENT

Full payment for registration must accompany the registration form. Payment must be made by Cash, Cheque, Credit or Debit card
Cheques post-dated after May 31st will not be accepted, UNLESS AUTHORIZED BY THE PRESIDENT OR VICE PRESIDENT
Any outstanding fines or administrative fees shall be added to the registration fee accompanying the application. The balance of said Club registration must be paid in full prior to OSA registration for league play
In cases of demonstrated financial hardship, the respective PRESIDENT or VICE PRESIDENT may authorize registration fee assistance

REFUNDS

All requests for refunds must be in writing, indicating the reason for such request. Refunds will be authorized for the following circumstances:

When a player trying out for a competitive or recreational team is not selected, and the Club is unable to offer a suitable alternative
When the parent of a player identifies a specific site and the Club is unable to offer a suitable alternative
When a player suffers a season-ending injury, attested to by the attending physician prior to July 1st

Refunds will not be made for the following circumstances:

When a player transfers to another Club
When a player is disciplined by the NSA/OSA
All other requests for co-sponsorship refunds shall be assessed on merit and approved by the Club President and Vice President. Refunds will be processed, business permitting, as soon as possible.

III. COACHES

Application to coach a Club team must be made on the approved Coach/Manager Application Form and completed fully.

NO REPRESENTATIVE COACH, OR REPRESENTATIVE TEAM OFFICIAL WILL BE AUTHORIZED TO CALL OR GO TO THE NSA, UNLESS CALLED BY THE NSA (IE:DISCIPLINE)

Please notify the NFSC registrar/Vice President regarding any documents.
Coaches shall be appointed by the Executive for a term of one (1) season. Upon accepting such appointment, Coaches will follow all published rules set forth by The Club and it's governing bodies.

Head and Team Coaches of competitive and recreational teams must be qualified in accordance with OSA requirements.

Coaches are expected to encourage their top players to participate in League, District, Provincial and National development programs. This includes releasing their players from team commitments to participate in the activities of those programs from which they have been selected.

The Head or Team Coach and Manager shall be jointly responsible for control of their players and supporters at any games played by their team.

Coaches flagrantly violating Club policies, procedures or guidelines may be subject to disciplinary measures.

Head Coaches are expected to attend all meetings called by their respective Leagues, Club, President, Vice President or Representative Directors.

IV. COACH DEVELOPMENT

The development and education of coaches shall be the primary responsibility of the Vice President, Girls and Boys Technical Directors and Girls and Boys Rep Directors. These parties shall arrange or hold coaching clinics at intervals throughout the year to educate Head and Team Coaches on technical and strategic skills development.

Team Coaches should utilize the service as an advisor and consultant in the development of players.

Coaches are expected to upgrade their qualifications by participating in the Canadian Coaching Association and the Canadian Soccer Association sports specific courses.

V. TEAM SELECTION

Head or Team Coaches are responsible for the selection of their respective teams and in accordance with Club Policy and Guidelines.

Coaches must ensure players they wish to include on their team are properly registered with the Club and OSA prior to first league game of the season. Players not registered with the Club will not be permitted to register for a team or participate in league play.

Players and Coaches who violate the above section may be subject to disciplinary measures (NYSL, NRGSL, SRSL, OYSL, OSL, CSL, PVSL, AND OSA).

Coaches should also be aware that they violate the OSA insurance policy by allowing unregistered players to play or practice.

VI. TEAM REGISTRATION

A Team Registration night will be selected by the Club and Coach. All Club and Team Rules and Regulations shall be offered to players and parents.

Registration shall include and OSA player identification card, a passport style photograph, proof of birth date and a properly completed OSA registration form signed by the Club Registrar. Proof of birth date normally required is a birth certificate or copy thereof. Previously registered players may use their OSA player identification card as proof of birth date.

Club teams that do not meet the minimum player requirement will not be allowed to register or participate in league play.

NO PLAYER WILL BE ADDED TO ANY ROSTER UNTIL REGISTRATION HAS BEEN RECEIVED IN FULL, AND THE CLUB/TEAM RULES HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED BY THE PLAYER, AND PARENT/GUARDIAN.

VII. PLAYER DEVELOPMENT

The development of all youth players shall be the prime responsibility of the Coach. The Coach shall provide expertise and guidance in setting the team program.

COACHES SHALL UTILIZE THE 'S TECHNICAL DIRECTORS, VINCE STRANGES AND SAM PATTERSON AND TONY VISCA.

VIII. TRYOUTS

All registered players must be permitted equal opportunity to try out for their targeted team. For those players not selected, the coach shall:

Inform the player, in confidence, as soon as possible
Provide the reason for non-selection and inform the player of the next best opportunity for him/her
Inform and provide player details to the Coach of the secondary team (if any)
In the event that the player wishes to terminate his/her membership, the Coach must advise the player of their agreement to a no-refund policy for leaving NFSC
In the event the player is a youth, then all discussions are required to be in the presence of the player's parent/guardian

Club teams will normally be formed on a single, straight forward age-group basis. Youth players are normally expected to play in their own age category/division. The Vice President must receive, in writing, any youth players wishing to play outside their own age category.

IX. GUEST PLAYERS

Definition of a "Guest" players- Any player who is not a current Member of the NFSC and has been requested to play with a NFSC team, or a current NFSC registered player who has been requested to play with a team other than an NFSC registered team.

Coaches shall not commit to any Member to "guest" without consent of that Member
Players who are requested to "guest" on other teams are expected to inform their coach
Coaches and players are expected to recognize Club loyalties
Practice shall not be recognized as a sufficient reason to refuse a request for a guest player
Coaches shall not attempt to coerce any player to "guest" against their wishes
Coaches shall not use guest players to the detriment of their current roster
The Club expects Coaches to consider Club players before approaching non-Club players
The Club expects players to place their Club team requests before that of non-Club teams
In the event of disagreement or other issue between coaches the appropriate Vice President shall arbitrate
Any forms required can only be signed by the President or Vice President (it: TRP forms)

NOTE: This policy shall not override playing-up policies governed by the OSA Constitution and By-Laws.

X. FIELDS AND SCHEDULES

For competitive and recreational teams, league schedules and venues are assigned but the respective leagues. Practice facilities are assigned by the Club. Teams may be required to share practice fields.

XI. TOURNAMENT AND CUP GAMES

Teams entering tournaments or other competitions are expected to fulfill tournament and cup obligations. Teams defaulting on their obligations may be subject to disciplinary measures.

XII. REFEREE DEVELOPMENT

All Club assigned Referees should be qualified, in accordance with OSA requirements, to the fullest extent possible. The Club shall identify individuals interested in refereeing and they will be offered official Referee qualification courses. The Club will validate that Referees have paid all fees prior to referring on Club fields.

Referees are expected to inform the Referee Assigner, as soon as possible, if they are unable to fulfill their assigned obligations.

Coaches are expected to inform the Referee Assigner in the event that their home game is cancelled or rescheduled, for any reason.

Coaches are expected to inform the Referee Assigner in the event of a Referee not showing for an assigned game. Referees shall be paid in accordance with the Club Referee Payment Schedule.