The football
Football is, of course, the heart of our league, and it’s essential that everyone involved; coaches, managers, parents, and carers understand the expectations, FA laws and league regulations. In particularly it is useful for parents to know the laws specific to their child's age group as well as the coaches and managers.
Familiarity with these rules is crucial for ensuring a safe, fair, and enjoyable experience for all players. To support this, we’ve made these guidelines easily accessible below, so you can quickly find the information you need.
rules of play
Click on the age group you are associated with to explore the Rules of Play further for that specific age group.
Under 7s
Age Groups, Playing Times, Ball Sizes Etc:
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U7’s. 5 a-side, 15 minutes each way, size 3 ball
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For U7’s, 8’s teams 10 players can be registered with all players allowed to play on match days
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At all age groups substitutes will be roll on roll off at the referee’s discretion, any player substituted then becomes a substitute themselves
Rule 1 (b) Rules of Play
All matches shall start with a kick off on the half way line, the ball can be passed forward or backwards and there must be at least two touches of the ball from the team taking the kick off before a goal can be scored. After a goal is scored the match is restarted as above. Free kicks are direct with the exception of the new no heading rule (see below exact extracts taken from the FA website), opposing players must retreat 6 yards at all set pieces. The goalkeeper cannot handle the ball from a back pass, if he does a free kick shall be awarded on the edge of the penalty area nearest to where the offence took place All goal kicks shall be taken with the ball on the ground. The goalkeeper cannot score a goal from within the goal area, if the goalkeeper shoots and the only other player to touch the ball is the opposing goalkeeper the goal shall not stand and a goal kick shall be awarded to the defending team The Retreat Line rule will be applied at the above age groups. This will be no further than the halfway line and no nearer than one third of the pitch, this will be at the referee’s discretion.
New No heading & Kick In Rule
Deliberate Heading restart - Deliberately heading the ball is an offence punishable by an indirect free kick The indirect free kick is taken at the point where the ball was deliberately headed, except:
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Where a player deliberately heads the ball within their own penalty area, the referee will stop the game and restart with an indirect free kick to the opposition from the nearest side line of the penalty area where the offence took place
Touchline Restart - When the whole of the ball passes over the whole of the touchline, on the ground or in the air, instead of a throw-in, a pass-in/dribble-in is awarded. The kicker that takes the pass-in/dribble-in may touch the ball again before it is touched by another player. At the moment of delivering the ball:
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The ball must be stationary on the touchline at the point where it left the pitch; only the kicker may be off the pitch
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All opponents must stand at least five yards from the point on the touchline where the pass-in or /dribble-in is to be taken from
A goal cannot be scored directly from a pass-in and the ball is in play when it is kicked and clearly moves.