1 minute read
FESTIVAL FORMAT
Here is some information about the matches you'll be playing and what to expect on the day.
We will be running the festival in accordance with the guidelines provided by the RFU in Regulation 15 and its associated Codes of Practice from here: www.englandrugby.com/governance/regulations/ Here’s a summary of the parts that are relevant to our festival:
Advertisement
1. Playing time
The maximum allowed playing time for each age group is as follows:
2.
Team size
The maximum size of the team on the pitch is: ensure no player exceeds the maximum playing time as set out above.
4.
Mixed ability
From the RFU Codes of Practice:
“The RFU believes in the playing of mixed ability teams, especially at primary school ages. Players should be grouped by their confidence, competence in the contact elements of the game, and emotional capability.”
We will not be separating the festival into streams, either by ability or experience. We are instructing referees to stop one-sided matches if the score difference exceeds six tries.
5. Scoring
No score for any match will be recorded by the festival organisers. The players know perfectly well who's won any given game.
6. Format (U7 - U10)
You'll see from the schedule that each team is in a group of 5 or 6 teams depending on how many teams entered. Every group will play a round robin: each team will play all the others in the group.
The duration of each match will be the number of games divided by the maximum playing time (e.g. U7 teams in a 6-team group will play 5 matches of 10 minutes). We'll play the games straight through without a half time to ensure the festival keeps to schedule.
3. Squad size
We're expecting 2 substitutes per team in each age group except for U10 and U11 where there may be three. We are relaxed about players swapping between squads, within their age group, but please
The U11 competition may involve smaller groups and longer matches with a half time. You'll be given full details in a separate sheet.
Enjoy your day at the Blackheath Mini’s Festival.
