This information is applicable to anyone participating in the Western United Cup.
WHO CAN ENTER THE WESTERN UNITED CUP?
All female teams from clubs, academies, schools and teams are welcome to participate in the Western United Cup. Our goal is to give as many clubs and teams the opportunity to take part and compete.
WHAT'S THE ADDRESS FOR THE TOURNAMENT?
Morshead Park, also known as the Ballarat Regional Soccer Facility, is located at 910 Pleasant Street South, Ballarat.
Morshed Park Stadium is the home of Ballarat City FC.
DOES MY TEAM NEED TO BE AVAILABLE FOR ALL 3 DAYS?
Originally that was the plan however with Football Victoria scheduling finals for many girls divisions on the Sunday all teams will only be required to attend for 2 days.
U9/10 and U11/12 Teams will be required to play Saturday and Sunday only while U13/14, U15/16 and Youth Teams will be required to attend only on Friday and Saturday. This allows teams that qualified for their season finals to participate.
Teams will not be required to be on site all day. We will minimise the time that teams need to be onsite. Where possible we will try to accommodate requests however we cannot guarantee we will be able to fulfill all requests.
Generally all teams will play in at least 1-2 finals so please ensure you check your divisions finals formats prior to the event.
We understand that the first say of the tournament is being played on a work day during the school holidays and that it may be a challenge for some however we encourage teams to organise car pooling where parents are not available to bring their child themselves.
WHAT IS THE MAXIMUM NUMBER OF PLAYERS PER TEAM ALLOWED?
U9/10 and U11/12: 14 Players - 9 on the field and up to 5 players on the bench.
U13/4, U15/16 and Open: 18 players - 11 players on the field plus up to 7 on the bench.
Please note this is the maximum amount of players you will be able to register online.
WHAT IS REQUIRED BY TEAM MANAGER OR REP TO DO BEFORE THE EVENT?
- ✓ Register the team online and provide all details required
- ✓ Accept the terms & conditions
- ✓ Ensure you have sent the player registration link to your player's parent/guardians and that they have completed it.
- ✓ Collect 100-point ID check for all your players and bring copies to the tournament (refer to Proof of Age Policy)
- ✓ Review the COVID-19 policy on a regular basis on the website
- ✓ Like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram to stay updated
WHAT IS THE PROOF OF AGE POLICY?
Each coach/team manager of U10-U16 teams will be required to collect 100 points of ID for every one of their participating players and have copies of these documents at the tournament. If you are asked to provide proof of a player’s age you must do so with appropriate documentation that can be in the form of any of the following:
- Passport (100 points)
- Driving licence or Learner’s Permit (100 points)
- Birth certificate (50 points) plus any of the following:
- > Student card with photo ID issued by the school (50 points)
- > A recent school photograph with the name clearly shown (50 points)
- > Current library card with a photo (50 points)
- > FV ID Card (50 points)
Team Managers are entitled to submit ID checks for individual players on opposition teams. Any requests must be done with Event Staff and not directly with the opposition team. Please try to notify event staff before kick-off where possible.
The procedure for ID Checks that must be followed is:
1. The Team Manager is to approach the nearest event staff member and notify them that you would like to formally request an ID Check on a particular player(s).
2. An official ID Check form will need to be completed. A $50 admin fee will be charged
3. Once the payment has been made, the Team Manager shows the receipt to the staff member. Event staff will conduct the ID check with the team in question.
4. If the player in question provides all necessary documentation, and is found to be of the correct age, the $50 will not be refunded and proceeds will be donated to charity.
5. Should the player in question not provide the necessary documentation, or is found to be overage, the $50 will be refunded and that player will either not be allowed to play if the game has not started, or your team will be provided with the points if it is deemed as a forfeit.
Digital or printed copies of the required documents will be accepted provided they are in colour, clear and legible. Please ensure a team official has this available at each match if requested by tournament staff.
Any teams that are found to be providing incorrect documentation or purposely playing older players to gain an unfair advantage will receive a 0-3 loss for any games the older players participated in. The ineligible players will also be disqualified from the tournament and offending teams may be disqualified from the tournament and other affiliated events. These actions may also jeopardise the participation of other teams from the same club at future affiliated events at the discretion of Tournament Management.
ARE TEAMS ALLOWED TO REGISTER OVERAGE PLAYERS?
All overage player requests will be considered on a case by case basis.
It is important to note that for dispensation to be considered:
- The player must be registered in the 2023 winter season with the team that’s making the dispensation request
- A note attesting this is the case on official club letterhead signed by the President or Technical Director will need to be submitted via email to registrations@footballskool.com.au
- Any documentation related to the request needs to be submitted to registrations@footballskool.com.au . This could be a Football Victoria Dispensation Letter or Medical Certificate.
All requests must be completed online via the Cup Manager Portal when registering the player.
Any age dispensation requests need to be submitted at least 5 days before the tournament once all players in the team are registered. Overage players cannot play until they have been officially approved in the Cup Manager portal. Tournament Management reserves the right to apply any conditions it deems reasonable.
Team managers and coaches must ensure all players are registered and are the correct age for their age group and have the necessary documentation in case they are required to provide it to prove a player’s age. Please refer to the Rules of Competition for more details.
Players are allowed to participate in more than one team, as long as they are not in the same age group and they meet the necessary age requirements. i.e. an U12 player can play in an U12 and U14 comp but not in two U12 teams.
If a suitable age group is not available, the team may be placed in an alternative category in order to provide the most appropriate level of competition to the teams involved.
CAN I BRING MY OWN MARQUEE FOR MY TEAM?
Teams are welcome to bring marquees however they must not be placed within any fenced playing surface at Morshead Park.
Please ensure all BYO marquees are safely and strongly secured to the ground. The venue is quite open and high winds are common. The tournament will not be responsible for damaged, lost or stolen marquees.
Please remember to SLIP, SLOP, SLAP and keep hydrated.
DOES THE TOURNAMENT HAVE THE NECESSARY INSURANCE FOR PLAYERS IF INJURED?
The tournament does not offer player accident insurance cover to any participant.
Players, parents and coaches choose to participant in the tournament at their own risk and will be liable for the costs that arise from suffering an injury whilst participating in the event. It is the responsibility of parents to ensure participants are adequately insured including ambulance coverage.
We do however have Public Liability and Professional Indemnity Insurance.
WILL MY TEAM GET A REFUND IF WE NEED TO WITHDRAW FROM THE COMPETITION?
Before the event
As a general rule, we don’t provide refunds for teams who withdraw from the competition unless a replacement team is confirmed. If there are extenuating circumstances, please contact us as soon as possible so we can try to work out a solution.
During or after the event
Refunds will not be provided for matters concerning referee's decisions or any other similar matters. Refunds will not be provided to teams that are expelled from the competition due to a breach of the code of conduct.
WHAT HAPPENS IF THE TOURNAMENT IS POSTPONED OR CANCELLED. WILL OUR TEAM GET A REFUND?
Under these circumstances, the tournament organisers reserve the right to either retain the registration fee for the revised dates or to refund the registration fee after deducting an administration fee for costs already incurred for the organisation of the tournament which could not be recovered from third parties.
Should this occur teams will be contacted directly and provided with options.
***The tournament organisers are in no way responsible for injury or economic loss which may arise in the case of acts of terror, war, warlike events, civil war, revolution, pandemic, disease outbreaks or civil disturbances or because of the actions of the authorities, strikes, lockouts, blockades or similar events.**
DO TEAMS NEED TO CHECK-IN AT THE INFORMATION DESK?
All teams need to send a team official representative to check-in at the Information Desk, at least 60 minutes prior to your first game. This will ensure all your team’s paperwork (consent forms and team sheets) is in order and for you to collect your pack with the official lanyards and other important info.
CAN WE BRING ALCOHOL OR A BBQ TO THE VENUE?
The event will be fully catered. Full canteen services will be operational near all the fields serving delicious hot food and drinks (hot and cold), as well as yummy treats for those with a sweet tooth. Please support the local caterers.
THIS IS AN ALCOHOL FREE EVENT. Anyone found to be consuming alcohol will be asked to leave the venue.
BBQs will also not be allowed in the venue.
CAN WE BRING PETS TO THE EVENT?
Due to council regulations, pets cannot be brought into the venue during the event. Only official service animals can enter the event sites.
ARE THE REFEREES FULLY ACCREDITED?
All referees will be fully accredited for all official games.
However, each team playing in any 11v11 competition will need to provide an assistant referee for each of their games to assist the centre referee in running the lines. The centre referee has the right to approve or decline anyone to carry out these duties at his/her discretion.
Offside is being played in U12 9v9 matches however lines people will not be required however may be requested at the referee's discretion.
Accredited referees may be used as lines people for finals matches if available.
WHO DO I CONTACT FOR HELP?
You can contact us via email registrations@footballskool.com.au or our social media channels any time and we will respond to you within 24 hours.
Email is our preferred method of contact however for urgent enquiries you can contact us via phone 1300 436 682 during business hours Monday- Friday 9 am – 5 pm.
WHAT IS CUP and PLATE?
Following the round games, some divisions will be divided into Cup and Plate finals competitions.
The Cup competition will cater for the teams that finish in the top positions in their respective pools.
The Plate competitions will cater for the teams that finish in the lower positions of their respective pools.
This is a model that works well with other tournaments, whilst the pool games may not be as evenly matched, the Cup and Shield play-offs provide meaningful games for teams of a more even level.
Winners and Runners Up of Cup and Plate competitions will receive awards at the end of the competition which will be presented at the main stage following the finish of the final match.
CANCELLATION OF THE TOURNAMENT DUE TO FORCE MAJEURE*
In the event that the tournament can’t be held or is postponed due to events beyond the control of the tournament organisers (force majeure*) or due to events that are not attributable to wrongful intent or gross negligence or the tournament organisers, the tournament organisers cannot be held liable by the delegations for any damages, costs or losses incurred, such as transportation costs, accommodation costs, costs for additional orders, financial losses etc. Under these circumstances, the tournament organisers reserve the right to either retain the entire registration fee for the revised dates or to reimburse the delegations after deducting costs already incurred for the organisation of the tournament and which could not be recovered from third parties.
**The tournament organisers are in no way responsible for injury or economic loss which may arise in the case of acts of terror, war, warlike events, civil war, revolution, pandemic, disease outbreaks or civil disturbances or because of the actions of the authorities, strikes, lockouts, blockades or similar events.**