Perth Youth Futsal Newsletter

January 2005

Website address: scottishfutsal.co.uk Contact Number: 07812 688 149

Welcome to the new PYF 2005 Futsal season and our very first newsletter, which has been designed to give you a background history of PYF and Futsal, as well as update you with what is planned for this new season.

History of Futsal and PYF

The term Futsal is the international term used for the game. It is derived from the Spanish words for soccer, FUTbol, and indoor, SALa.

The origin of Futsal can be traced back to Montevideo, Uruguay, in 1930 when Juan Carlos Ceriani devised a five-a-side version of football for youth competition in YMCAs that could be played on basketball-sized courts, both indoors and out, without the use of sidewalls. Once Ceriani got the ball rolling, Futsal gained rapid popularity throughout South America, particularly in Brazil, then spreading all over the world and now includes UEFA European and FIFA World Championships.

Perth Youth Futsal was formed in 2001, and our leagues were the first youth leagues in Scotland and have been running since November 2001. As well as our Friday night youth leagues, our under-19 select team also plays in the adult Scottish Futsal League, whilst PYF select teams have also featured in both youth and adult International tournaments.

PYF runs 2 seasons annually – Spring & Winter. Initially we ran 2 age groups: 11-14 & 15-17 but such is the appeal of Futsal in Perthshire that we have had to expand the age groups and we now run 3 age groups: 10-12, 13-15 & 16-19. We also continue to run an Under-19 select team who play in the Premier League of the adult Scottish Futsal League.

A major recent development has seen the Inland Revenue award PYF charity status. This is seen as a major step in ensuring the long-term future and growth of PYF.

For the 2005 season, as well as holding the league and shoot-out competitions, we will also be introducing 2 new competitions which are sure to appeal. The ‘Time-Trials’ will test the skill and fitness of teams, whilst the ‘Scorecasting’ will test the general football knowledge of the teams.

ID Cards

All team managers will be issued with ID cards for players and officials – these must be produced to get into Bells.

No one will be admitted without an ID card. Replacement cards will be charged at 20p each.

Behaviour

All teams MUST have an accompanying adult supervising them - it will be up to the teams to provide the adult. Failure to do so will result in them being expelled from the league.

All players will be expected to remain on the spectators bench until their kick-off time - no wandering about. Failure to do so will result in them being expelled from the session. Also, all players must ensure they do not litter - anyone found littering will result in his team being suspended for the next session.

Players must not use footballs off-court - those found doing so will be expelled from the session.

Abuse to Bells Sports Centre staff or PYF officials will result in the whole team being expelled from the league.

Fixtures

Teams will be provided with a comprehensive fixture list at the beginning of the season. In addition to this, articles should appear in the Friday edition of the Perthshire Advertiser. It is also hoped to include articles in the Courier and Evening Telegraph newspaper – details will be announced once agreed.

Registration

All players must be registered before they can play for a team.

All players must submit a completed Parental Consent form before they can play for a team.

Players can only register for one team at any point in time, but will be permitted to change teams after cancelling their previous registration.

Players can only play for one team during any one session.

A team found guilty of playing a non-registered player, or one who hasn’t submitted a parental consent form will automatically lose 3 points and 3 goals for each game affected, regardless of outcome or duration.

Format & Rules

League

The league games will be played in accordance with FIFA rules, with the following exceptions:

Games will consist of one period, played in a league format. 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw.

Teams will face each other twice during the season, with each team playing twice per session.

Teams must consist of at least 5 players - Less than 5 players results in a 3 – 0 loss.

Players can only play for the team they are registered under.

If a team fails to turn up without prior notification, they will be expelled from the league.

Teams must be ready to start their games on time – a goal will be awarded against a team for each minute (or part of) they are late – if a team is more than 3 minutes late, or have less than 5 players, then a 3 – 0 win will be awarded to the opposition. The official timer will commence at kick-off time, so any late shows will result in reduced playing time.

The competition winner will be the team with the most points at the end of the season. In the event of a tie in points total, goal difference will count. Should this fail to separate the teams, a sudden-death penalty shoot-out will ensue.

No shoulder charges. No sliding tackles and No playing the ball whilst lying on the ground. No tackles or attempting to play the ball from behind! Players are permitted to slide in order to bring the ball under control, but only if there are no opponents nearby.

Each team will be permitted 2 team fouls per game – the 3rd and subsequent fouls will be punished by a 10 meter ( or nearer if the offence was closer than 10 meters to goal ) penalty.

If a player is sent off, he may be replaced after a minute has passed. The player sent off will take no further part in that game.

At free kicks and corners, attacking teams have 4 seconds to play the ball once in possession and opponents are at least 5 meters away.

At kick-ins, the ball must be on the line and feet not inside the court, otherwise possession reverts to the other team.

Goalkeepers must restart play by throwing the ball. Also, they cannot pick up pass backs. It is an offence for the goalkeeper to throw the ball beyond the halfway line without it touching another player or the court within his own half. Infringements will be punished with the award of an indirect free kick to the opposition at the point where the ball crossed the halfway line. During open play, a goalkeeper my drop kick the ball over the halfway line but the ball must strike the floor before he kicks it.

No swearing or dissent at all.

It is the responsibility of each team manager / captain to ensure their team is aware of the rules.

Shoot-out

The shoot-out competition will follow the same fixture list as the League competition.

They will be held at the end of each League fixture and consist of a maximum of 5 attempts per team to score from the Long Penalty mark (10-meter line) within 3 seconds, either by dribbling or a direct shot. Rebounds are not permitted. Only one attempt per player and teams with less than 5 eligible players at the end of the league fixture will only be permitted to take the corresponding number of kicks.

The shoot-out competition will be played in a league format. 3 points for a win, 1 point for a draw.

The competition winner will be the team with the most points at the end of the season. In the event of a tie in points total, a sudden-death shoot-out will ensue.

Time Trials

A new concept for this season, it is designed to test the fitness and skills of each team on a weekly basis

Teams will be faced with an obstacle course which involves fitness and ball drills, and will be timed to measure how quickly they can complete the challenge. The course will be changed from session to session. Points will be awarded on a pro-rata basis (depending on the number of teams in the league), with the fastest team gaining the most points (ie. The fastest team in a 8 team competition will get 8 points, 2^nd place will get 7 points etc. etc.)

The competition winner will be the team with the most points at the end of the season. In the event of a tie in points total, a time-trial will ensue between the teams tied for the lead.

Scorecasting

Another new concept for this season, this will be a light-hearted competition where teams will be asked to predict the score of 5 professional football games. Points will be awarded as follows: 1 point for the correct outcome, 1 point for the correct home score & 1 point for the correct away score, awarded on an individual game basis.

The competition winner will be the team with the most points at the end of the season. In the event of a tie in points total, then those teams will be declared joint winners.

T-Shirts

Plans are underway to offer PYF T-shirts for sale to all players. Costs will be notified in due course and advance orders will be accepted once the full details are available.