CAMBS & HUNTS JOINT DISCIPLINARY COMMITTEE

 

DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURE

 

Discipline

 

The Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire Disciplinary Committee will hear all Disciplinary matters involving clubs, players and officials Competing in all Cambridgeshire & Huntingdonshire cricket competitions with the exception of Huntingdonshire youth cricket and inter schools cricket.

 

For the purpose of these rules the expression “player” shall throughout these rules be deemed to mean and include not only any player, whether professional or otherwise, but also any member or official of any club or if appropriate any other person involved in any incident of possible misconduct occurring on the field of play, or on the premises of the club as may be appropriate in the particular circumstances.  It is recognised that more than one player or more than one club may be tried at a hearing or appeal.

 

All Competitions will operate a disciplinary procedure based on the current version of the England & Wales Cricket Board’s (ECB’s) code of conduct.  The ECB Code of Conduct will be incorporated into the league registration form which players must sign stating that they have read and will abide by the Code of Conduct.

 

ECB Code of Conduct and Spirit of Cricket

 

The Code of Conduct incorporates the Spirit of Cricket, as set out below. It applies to all matches played under the auspices of the ECB and may be applied to cricket in general.

 

The Captains are responsible at all times for ensuring that play is conducted within the Spirit of Cricket as well as within the Laws.

 

Players and team must at all times accept the umpire's decision. Players must not show dissent at the Umpires decision or react in a provocative or disapproving manner towards another player or spectator.

 

Players or team officials shall not intimidate, assault, or attempt to intimidate or assault an Umpire, another player or spectator.

 

Players and team officials shall not make racially abusive comments nor indulge in racially abusive actions against players, officials, and supporters. clubs must operate an active open door membership policy whilst respecting player qualification regulations and welcome players / members irrespective of ethnic origin.

 

Players and club officials shall not use crude or offensive language (also known as sledging), nor make offensive or intimidatory gestures or hand signals, nor deliberately distract an opponent either verbally or by harassment with persistent clapping or unnecessary noise under the guise of enthusiasm and motivation of one's own side.

 

Players and club officials shall not disclose or comment upon any alleged breach of this code or upon hearing, report, or decision arising from such breach.

 

Players and club officials shall not make any public or press comment which is detrimental to the league, clubs or the game in general.

 

Players and team officials shall not use or in any way be concerned in the use or distribution of illegal drugs.

 

It shall be a disciplinary offence for

 

Any player in the course of or in connection with a match to misconduct himself, to offend against the Code of Conduct or to act at any time to prejudice the good name or interests of the leagues and

 

For any club to fail properly to control or discipline its players or to act in a manner calculated to prejudice the good name or interests of the league.  Any player or club committing an offence shall be liable to penalties in the manner described hereafter.

 

The Spirit of Cricket (Law 42)

 

The Captains are responsible at all times for ensuring that play is conducted within the spirit of the game as well as within the Laws. Umpires are the sole judges of fair and unfair play.  If an Umpire decides that the Code of Conduct has been broken or an act of unfair play has taken place, the following options are available:

 

1. Give an informal warning.

 

2. Give a formal warning to the player and inform the Captain that a formal warning has been given.  Give notification to the Disciplinary Co-ordinator that a level one formal warning was issued and details of the nature of the offence within seven days of the offence.  One would expect that in the majority of cases that a formal warning would have been preceded by an informal warning, but if necessary the Umpire has the authority to issue a formal warning without having issued any informal warnings.  A player receiving a total of three formal warnings in the calendar year will automatically be suspended from the next two weeks from all competitions covered by the Committee.  There is no right of appeal.  The Secretary of the player's club will be informed of any formal warnings and suspensions with seven days of the decision.

 

3. Make a report.  Inform both Captains that a report will be made.  If there are two appointed Umpires standing, they must both sign the report.  If possible, the Umpires should indicate the severity of the report against the ECB 4 levels of disciplinary offence.  In all cases all reports will be forwarded in writing to the co-ordinator within seven days of the offence, who will determine the appropriate course of action as described below.

 

4. In cases where no official umpires are appointed all reports will be forwarded in writing to the co-ordinator within seven days of the offence, who will determine the appropriate course of action as described below.

 

Upon the receipt of a written report, the Co-ordinator will liase with the Chairman and they will jointly determine the severity of the offence.  If they decide that a fixed penalty is applicable they shall issue their verdict to the Secretaries of the club involved within seven days of receipt of the report. There is an automatic right of appeal. 

 

If it is decided that a fixed penalty is inappropriate, a formal hearing will be held.  The relevant player and club will be informed of the hearing date, time and venue within seven days of the decision to hold a formal hearing.  Hearings will normally take place with 14 days of receipt of report.  In very serious cases, the Cambs & Hunts Inter League Management Committee have the right to impose an immediate interim ban on player or club pending the formal hearing.

 

Hearings

 

The Disciplinary Committees shall each consist of

 

A Chairman who will have a casting vote.

 

A Co-ordinator who shall be non voting.

 

Three representatives to be appointed from a panel of agreed representatives, but not from a club that operates in any league division of the club involved.

 

Plus a Welfare Officer if there are any youth issues who shall be non-voting.

 

The player or the club shall be entitled to attend the hearing (in the case of a club by its Secretary or other official) to be legally or otherwise represented, to call witnesses, present written statements from witnesses and object with validity to any member of the Disciplinary Committee.  The decision of the Disciplinary Committee, after listening to the objections will be final and binding, pending an appeal.

 

The Disciplinary Committee shall have the power to impose one or more of the following penalties in the case of a player:

 

Expulsion from all competitions all Cambridgeshire & Huntingdonshire Cricket Competitions or the ECB with the exception of Huntingdonshire Youth Cricket and Inter Schools Cricket.

 

A ban of one or more weeks played under the auspices of the leagues, the ECB.  All or part of the ban may be suspended for any period including going into the next season.

 

A fine of not more than £150.

 

A reprimand.

 

Costs.

 

The Disciplinary Committee shall have the power to impose one or more of the following penalties in the case of a club:

 

Expulsion from Cambridgeshire & Huntingdonshire Cricket Competitions or the ECB with the exception of Huntingdonshire Youth Cricket and Inter Schools Cricket.

 

A deduction of league points.  All or part of the deduction may be suspended for any period including going into the next season.

 

A fine of not more than £500.

 

Costs.

 

The decision of the Disciplinary Committee will be given orally at the end of the meeting and will be given in writing to the player and the Secretary of the club involved within 7 days of the date of the hearing.

 

Appeals

 

The player or club have two avenues of appeal only:

 

Against the verdict by introducing new evidence or additional witnesses.

 

Against the severity of the sentence by quoting mitigating circumstances.

 

Notice of appeal must be given in writing to the Disciplinary Co-ordinator within 14 days of the date of the hearing together with a deposit of £50.  Upon giving notice of appeal any penalties shall be suspended pending the hearing of the appeal, unless the Cambs & Hunts Inter League Committee deem the alleged offences to be so serious that a ban must remain in place.  Appeals will normally by held as soon as possible following a formal appeal notification.

 

The Appeal Committees shall each consist of

 

A Chairman who did not chair the original hearing who will have a casting vote.

 

A Co-ordinator who shall be non voting.

 

The Chairman of the Cambs Cricket Association or his deputy.

 

The Chairman of the Hunts County League or his deputy.

 

Plus a Welfare Officer if there are any youth issues who shall be non-voting.

 

The player or club involved in the appeal have the same rights of representation as the original hearing..  The decision of the Appeal Committee will be final and binding.

 

The Appeal Committee has the power to waive, increase, or leave in place any sentence imposed by the original Disciplinary Committee.  In addition, the Appeal Committee may impose further penalties such as costs or making a suspended sentence immediate.  The Appeal Committee also have the power if they consider the appeal to be without merit to order the forfeit of the deposit. 

 

Fines and costs

 

The members of any Committee and any Umpires or Scorers called to give evidence will automatically be awarded travel expenses; the costs will reclaimed against those found guilty.

 

All fines levied will be automatically increased by £50 for non-payment after 21 days.  Fines still outstanding after 28 days will incur an automatic 25 points deduction for the club involved.  There is no right of appeal to these additional penalties.

 

The Co-ordinator to keep a record of all proceedings and notify all competitions of action taken.  The Co-ordinator will also manage any monies due in a reserved fund.  All cheques will be made payable to “C&H JDC”.  Distribution of any accrued monies will be back to the leagues by agreement at the end of season Cambs & Hunts Inter League Committee meeting.

 

Fixed Penalties

 

The following offences are “fixed penalty” offences and carry the following penalties:

 

Time wasting by either side                                                         Captain £25 fine

 

Abuse of cricket ground, equipment or clubhouse                     Player £25 fine

 

Showing dissent at an umpire’s decision                                    Player £25 fine

 

Using language that is obscene, offensive or                                Player £25 fine & 1 week ban

insulting and/or the making of obscene gestures

 

Captain not following the instructions of an Umpire                     Captain £25 fine & 1 week ban

 

Inappropriate and deliberate physical contact                         Player £50 fine & 2 week ban

between players in the course of play

 

Throwing the ball at or near someone in an                           Player £50 fine & 2 week ban

inappropriate and dangerous manner

 

Anything that results in a ball being changed                           Captain £25 fine

apart from under normal circumstances

 

Anything that results in a bowler being taken off                        Player £25 fine & Captain £25 fine

 

Anything that results in penalty runs apart from                      Player £25 fine & 1 week ban

hitting a helmet on the ground

 

Breach of ECB Youth Guidelines                                             Captain £50 fine & 2 week ban

 

The following offences are deemed to be “immediate hearing” offences that carry much higher penalties:

 

Any offence reported by an Umpire as “multiple” or “serious”.

 

Abuse of an Umpire.

 

Any offence that has Child Welfare issues.

 

Any act of violence, attempted act of violence or threat of violence.

 

Any incident involving racism.

 

Any repeat offences within 3 years.

 

 


Appendix

 

Breaches

 

Certain conduct whether on or off the field of play amounting to a breach of the Laws of Cricket, and/or the spirit of cricket has been categorised within 4 levels. Details of the breaches within each of these levels are set out below:-

 

Level 1

 

(a)                 Time wasting by either the fielding side or batting side

(b)                 Abuse of cricket ground, equipment or fixtures

(c)                 Showing dissent at an umpire’s decision by word or action

(d)                 Using language that is obscene, offensive or insulting and/or the making of obscene gestures

(e)                 Excessive appealing

 

Level 2

 

(a)               Showing serious dissent at an umpire’s decision by word or action

(b)               Inappropriate and deliberate physical contact between players in the course of play

(c)               Charging or advancing towards an umpire in an aggressive manner when appealing

(d)               Deliberate and malicious distraction or obstruction on the field of play, regardless as to whether such conduct is deemed unfair under law 42.5

(e)               Throwing the ball at or near a player, umpire or official in an inappropriate and dangerous manner.

(f)                 Using language or gesture that is obscene or of a serious insulting nature to another player, umpire, referee, team official or spectator. (It is acknowledged that there will be verbal exchanges between players in the course of play. Rather than seeking to eliminate these exchanges entirely, umpires will look to act under directive 2.6 when this falls below an acceptable standard)

(g)               Changing the condition of the ball other than is permitted in Law 42.3

(h)               The bowling of fast short pitched balls that results in the bowler being disallowed from bowling further in that innings

(i)                 Causing avoidable damage to the pitch contrary to laws 42.13 and/or 42.14 that results in a five-run penalty being awarded

 

Level 3

 

(a)                 Intimidating an umpire or referee

(b)                 Threatening to assault another player, team official or spectator

(c)                 Using language or gesture that offends, insults, humiliates, intimidates, threatens, disparages or vilifies another person on the basis of that person’s race, religion, sexual orientation, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin

(d)                 The deliberate bowling of high full-pitched ball contrary to law 42.8

 

Level 4

 

a)            Threatening an umpire

b)            Physical assault of another player, umpire, official or spectator

c)         Any act of violence on the field of play

d)         Using language or gestures that seriously offends, insults, humiliates, intimidates, threatens, disparages or vilifies another person on the basis of that person’s race, religion, sexual orientation, colour, descent or national or ethnic origin