The priority for all participants is to enjoy the games and have fun. Everybody should play the game in the spirit of the sport and should at all times play to eliminate the opposition with the ball in their possession.
It should be accepted by everyone that the referees will not be able to see everything that happens and will get calls wrong. They will be trying their best and players should do the same
1.0 BASIC RULES
1.1 Each match squad will comprise of a minimum of 6 players and a maximum of 9 players
1.2 For each game a team will comprise of 6 players. At least one of these players must be the opposite sex to the other 5
1.3 Teams will compete to eliminate the opposition by either
1.3.1 Hitting them with a ball (Directly or after one bounce)
1.3.2 Catching a ball thrown by the opposition
1.4 Once a team has a ball in their possession they have 5 seconds to attempt a throw at the opposition. If the referee deems a player to have held it for longer than 5 seconds then the ball will be 'dead'
1.5 When a team has only one player remaining that player must stay within the ACTIVE ZONEarea. If the player survives for one full minute all players from both sides re-enter the game
1.5.1 At all times this player must be seen by the referees to be attempting to eliminate a member of the opposing team. If a referee judges that this player is time wasting 10 seconds will be added to the clock for each offence
1.5.2 At all times the players' team mates must be actively retrieving balls and placing them back into the active zone. If a referee judges that the team are time wasting 10 seconds will be added to the clock for each offence
1.5.3 If more than three offences (as stated above) occur during the time period, the point will go to the opposing team. This will discourage a time wasting culture
1.6 A team wins the game when all 6 of the opposition’s team have been eliminated
1.7 A player may only leave the boundaries of the court in order to retrieve a ball. The player must both leave and re-enter the playing area via the back line of the court
1.7.1 When a team, or both teams, has only one player remaining the SAFE ZONE will operate and become a court boundary. As above, if crossed that player will be eliminated
1.8 Once the ball is retrieved the player should not make an attempted to throw the ball at the opposition until they have re-entered the playing area.
1.8.1 If they make an attempt whilst still off court and hit a member of the opposing team the player WILL NOT be eliminated.
1.8.2 If the throw is caught by the opposing player then the thrower WILL BE eliminated
1.8.3 If the player retrieving the ball is hit whilst outside of the boundaries the player WILL BE eliminated
1.8.4 If the player retrieving the ball catches a throw whilst out of court the thrower from the opposing team WILL NOT be eliminated
1.9 Any ball within either the ACTIVE or END ZONES must be played as soon as possible. A ball inside the SAFE ZONE does not need to be played and remains dead until retrieved. If all 3 balls are dead within the SAFE ZONE the referee will stop the game and the balls will be placed in the END ZONE of whichever side of the court they are on. The referee will then resume the game from this point
2.0 COURT LAYOUT
2.1The game will be played within the yellow court boundaries
2.2 Markers will be used to define the areas of the court into its 3 zones
A) SAFE ZONE
B) ACTIVE ZONE
C) END ZONE
2.3 Each team will begin with all 6 members of their team behind their END ZONE
2.4 Three balls will be evenly spaced by the referees along the centre line of the court
2.4 The referees will check each team is ready, once confirmed, a whistle will be blown to begin the game
2.5 The teams will attempt to retrieve the balls from the centre of the court, once retrieved the ball must go back into the teams END ZONE before it becomes active
2.6 Once the balls have come into play the whole court becomes active. Only when a team has one player remaining will the SAFE ZONE operate
3.0 OFFICIALS
3.1 Two referees will oversee each Dodgeball Match
3.2 One referee will stand at the half court line on one side of the court, with the other referee on the opposite side
3.3 One referee will use a stop watch to monitor the length of the set (10 mins)
3.4 The other referee will use a stop watch to monitor the one minute count down when a team is reduced to one player
3.5 The referees will only touch the balls when
3.5.1 They are replacing the balls along the centre line of the court between games
3.5.2 When a player has been judged to have been in possession for more than 5 seconds and they receive the ball to pass back to the opposition
3.6 Any decision a referee makes is final and will stand
3.7 Any player judged to be using excessive abusive, foul or derogatory language towards a referee, opposition member or team mate will receive a warning from the referee.
3.7.1 If this behaviour then persists the referee will eject the player from that set. This player cannot be replaced and the team must play the rest of the set with 5 players
3.7.2 If a player who has already be ejected from a set continues to use excessive abusive, foul or derogatory language in subsequent sets they will be ejected from the game. This player cannot be replaced and the team must continue with 5 players
4.0 WINNING AND POINTS
4.1 Each match will comprise of 5 sets, each lasting 10 minutes.
4.2 Whichever team has won the most games within the 10 minute period will win that set
4.2.1 If teams have won an equal amount of games within the 10 minute period the winner will be decided by the team with the most players on court when time elapses
4.2.2 If the number of games is tied and teams have the same number of players on court all players return to the game and play sudden death i.e. the next team to eliminate a member of the opposition will win the game
4.3 Each team will play every other team once. A team will be awarded a point for each set they win. The team who wins the most sets will be awarded a bonus point for winning the match. i.e. if a team wins a game 3-2 in sets the winning team will acquire 4 points (3 sets plus 1 win bonus) towards their league position
4.4 If two teams end the season with an equal number of points the team who has won the most sets will be placed higher, after this the team who has won the most games will be placed higher.
4.5 If the two teams have the same points and have won an equal number of sets and games then the position will be decided via the head to head between the two teams
5.0 Knock Out Event
5.1 At the end of the season the team who finish top will be crowned league champions and a knock out stage begins
5.1.1 The teams who finish in positions 1 – 4 will be entered into the Cup knock out
5.1.2 The teams who finish in positions 5 – 8 will be entered into the Plate knock out
5.1.3 The teams who finish in positions 9 – 10 will play a wooden spoon match
5.2 Each knockout game will be played as a best of five match so the first team to win 3 sets will win the match and advance
5.3 All other rules will be the same as regular season games
6.0 GAME PLAY
6.0 Throwing
6.1.1 Once the game has commenced the object is to eliminate the oppositions players by either hitting them with a ball or catching a ball thrown at you
6.1.2 You must throw a ball which you are in possession of with 5 seconds of gaining possession of the ball and:
6.1.2.1 Your throw will eliminate a member of the opposition team if its hits them either directly or indirectly (via a ball held by the defence), below head height (clothing is part of the person) and they do not catch the ball.
6.1.2.2 Your throw will eliminate a member of the opposition team if it bounces once and hits them below head height (A ball caught after bouncing will not eliminate the thrower)
6.3 A ball becomes dead once it bounces more than once or strikes a non playing surface
6.4 If a ball you are holding becomes dead (held for more than 5 seconds) you must give the ball to the opposite team:
6.4.2 If you keep hold of the dead ball and use it to defect an incoming ball you WILL BEout
7.0 Catching
7.1 If a player catches a ball which has been throwing by the opposition then the thrower is eliminated and the team who have caught the ball can reinstate an eliminated member of their own team
7.2 The first reinstated member must be the player who was eliminated first. A team cannot choose who to reinstate
7.3 If a ball is thrown and strikes a member of your team (Who becomes eliminated) and the ball is then caught before hitting the floor or a non playing surface then the thrower will also be eliminated and the catching team may reinstate a member of their team
7.4 If a ball is thrown and strikes a member of your team without hitting the floor (Who becomes eliminated) and then the same ball hits another member of your team (and they do not catch) they will also be out
7.5 If a player makes a clean catch within the playing area and then subsequently steps outside of the playing area they WILL BE eliminated and the catch WILL NOT count
7.6 If a player makes a catch in midair and lands outside of the playing area the catch WILL NOT count and the player WILL BE eliminated.
8.0 When Eliminated
8.1 If a player is eliminated they must leave the court and stand in the outside areas (they can act as a ball retriever)
8.2 If a team makes a catch the first player eliminated may then return to the game
8.3 If players do not re-enter the game in the order in which they were eliminated the illegal player will be ejected from that game and the team will continue with 5 players
9.0 Miscellaneous
9.1 If a team has more than 6 players those not participating in the game may act as ball retrievers.
9.1.1 Once they collect a ball it must be returned to the area of play straight away. If a ball is not retrieved the ball will be 'dead' and handed to the opposition (referees discretion)
9.1.2 Ball retrievers must stay at either side of the court so it is clear who is still in play.
9.2 A player may use a ball in their possession to deflect an attempt from the opposition, if the deflected ball then:
9.2.1 Hits the player who has deflected the ball and they do not catch it they WILL BEeliminated
9.2.2 Hits another player on the team and the ball is not caught the person struck by the ball WILL BE eliminated
9.2.3 Results in that player who is deflecting dropping the ball in their possession theyWILL BE eliminated
9.2.4 Results in that player who is deflecting dropping the ball loosing control of their held ball they WILL BE eliminated
9.2.5 Is caught be another member of the team after the deflection then the thrower WILL BE eliminated