FOOTBALL  NEW  BRUNSWICK
BANTAM  FOOTBALL  RULES  AND  REGULATIONS

                                                                                        Revised October 31, 2013
                                                                                                                 
Application of Rules and Regulations
These rules and regulations apply only to provincial playoff games between teams from two different conferences.

Bantam Playoff Structure
All three conference champions will advance to the provincial semi-finals. The seedings 
will rotate on a three year cycle as follows:

The semi-final will be 3 @ 2. The final will be the semi-final winner @ 1. 

Bantam Rules
Unless otherwise specified, games will be conducted in accordance with the 
Canadian Rulebook for Amateur Tackle Football .

Bantam Age Eligibility
(1) Players cannot be older than 15 on December 31 in the year of play.
(2) Any Bantam age player who dresses for a High School Varsity game, after September 30 in the year of play, will be no longer eligible to play Bantam football again that year. 

Bantam Player Weight Limits
There will be no weight limits. 

Converts
A kicked convert is worth 2 points. A convert by pass or run is worth 1 point. 

Number of Downs (New for 2008)
          For all games teams will play 4 down football with the one yard neutral zone. The offence must throw a legal OVERHAND forward pass on at least one of the first three downs in each series of downs. 
        Failure to do so will result in an "Illegal Procedure" penalty. Officials will not stop play until the ball is dead. Attempting to pass and getting sacked or being forced to run will not satisfy this rule. The ball must be thrown as a legal forward pass. A lateral pass will not satisfy this rule. Officials should point this out to a team that has just thrown a lateral pass. A five yard penalty will be applied and the down repeated. The offensive team will still be obligated to pass the ball again after the penalty has been applied.
        The defensive team has the option to decline the penalty, let the play stand and bring up fourth down. The offensive team can run the ball on fourth down.
        In order to avoid this penalty teams are strongly advised to pass on either first or second down. 
        The offence is not required to pass the ball in any set of downs that starts inside their own 15 yard line. 

High Tackle Penalty (New for 2008)

Length and Timing of Bantam Games
Games will consist of 4 quarters of 15 minutes each for a total of 60 minutes of playing time. 

Except for the last 3 minutes of each half, the timing of games will be "straight time". The time clock will run continuously  and only stop in the following situations:

(1) A team time out. Each team will have 2 timeouts per half.
(2) An officials timeout.
(3) A prolonged injury where a player is on the ground for more than 15 seconds.
(4) A prolonged officials conference or delay of more than 15 seconds.

During the last 3 minutes of each half the clock will stop after each play. It will start again in accordance with Rule 1 Section 5 Article 1 of the Canadian Rulebook for Amateur Tackle Football.

Mercy Rule
When a team has taken and maintained a lead of at least 30 points, the remainder of the game will be timed "straight time".

Postponed Playoff Games
All playoff games cancelled due to inclement weather must be replayed at the earliest reasonable opportunity. If the hosting team does not have a lighted field satisfactory for the rescheduled game it will lose home field advantage and therefore have to travel to the other team's home field to complete the game.

Recommended Setup for N.B. Championship Games
It is strongly recommended that the host team have a public address system in place at these games to introduce the team lineups and to do a play-by-play announcement. Game programs (typed team lineups will suffice) are also encouraged; as well as a visible scoreboard and a visible time clock. Coloured goal line pylons and yard line markers will also help present the professional image that we want to convey to the players and fans who attend the game.

Recommended Awards Presentation Procedure at N.B. Championship Games
At the end of the game, the two teams will shake hands and then line up on their respective 45 yard lines. Any player of the game awards will be presented first. Next the  silver medals will be presented individually. Each player should have their name called out and have their "moment of glory" when they are given their medal.  Then the gold medals will be presented in the same manner. Finally, the captains of the winning team will be called to midfield to receive the championship trophy and banner.

Official Football
The official game ball for Bantam play will be the Wilson TDS 1715 "official size" composite leather football. It is required that a new ball be used for each playoff game. 

Uniform Colours
Once the participating teams have been determined a comparison of uniform colours will be made. If they are too similar the hosting team must change jerseys to accommodate the visiting team.                             
Fair Play Award
Selecting this award is a very "subjective" and difficult process. Consequently the association hosting the provincial championship game award this banner to one of its teams and that it be presented at halftime of the championship game. This procedure will guarantee that each association gets a banner every three years. It should also ensure good attendance at the ceremony by the team winning the award. Criteria for selection is the 
Football New Brunswick Fair Play Code.

Appeals
Any appeals must be submitted, in writing, to the President of Football New Brunswick within 48 hours of the end of a game. The Executive of Football New Brunswick will rule on any appeals. Appeals cannot be made on the basis of alleged errors by game officials.