Draft rules for Nationals

DRAFT rules announced for Nationals.

Based on Melbourne 2009 Rules and Current Practice.

Rules and Gameplay

Bike Polo is a game played in good spirit. The fewer rules and disruptions to play the better.
These rules are based on 2 years of bike polo in Melbourne. Keep it simple, keep it nice and keep playing polo.

Safety

• Mallet handle and handle bar ends must be capped.
• Exposed outer chain rings should be covered.
• Helmets required for Tournaments/Championships
• No t-boning/ramming. (Hitting the side of another bike with the front of yours)
• Stop play in the event of injury
• No mallet to body/bike contact.
• No mallets above handlebars.
• No throwing mallets.
• No mallets under (malleting) or through wheels.
• No dangerous mallet heads.

Gameplay

• To start the game, referee calls 3,2,1 (Polo/Go/Kill etc).
• Shuffling, dribbling and passing may be done with the side of the mallet.
• Games are 10 or 15 minutes or first to 3 or 5 goals.
• Games will be timed by the referee.

Contact

• Like to like only contact is allowed: mallet on mallet, body on body (hip n shoulder, no grabbing), bike on bike (wheel on wheel).
• Mallet hooking is encouraged.
• Mallet hacking behind the play is not cool.
• Moving picks/screening/shepherding is encouraged.

Goalies

• There are no special privileges or additional restrictions for goalies
• Any player on a team may act as a goalie at any time

Footdown / Tapping In

• If your feet touch the ground you cannot play the ball or obstruct other players untill you have tapped back in.
• Kicking the ball on the ground counts as a dab.
• Tap in points will be setup on either the boundary at the half line.

Airborne ball

• You may punch, slap or swat (but not grab or kick) an airborne ball to the ground.

Scoring

• Shuffles do not count as a goal.
• Scooping/Ball Jointing cannot be used to score
• Shots on goal must be done with the end of the mallet to score.
• You cannot feed yourself the ball through the goal then score or be in goals when scoring.
• To ensure an adequate break in play after scoring, both teams to return to their halves.
• Defenders cannot cross half till an attacker or the ball crosses half.
• Defenders/spectators to keep goal cones correctly in place.
• TO BE DETERMINED. Goals have a height limit of: (The Cones/1m/Handlebar Height/Shoulder Height/Infinite)
• Own Goals count (Keep the ball out of your goals)

Out of bounds

• Nearest player or preferably spectator to retrieve and return the ball to play by throwing gently without favour, not in front of goals.

Substitutions

• Gameplay will stop for injury or mechanical failure resulting from a crash.
• Gameplay will not stop for mechanical failure due to poor maintenance or equipment. Referees discretion applies.
• A team may only substitute players in the case of injury, or at the referees discretion for other reasons.
• It is the responsibility of the team playing to have a spare player, bike or wheels available for instant substitution.

Broken ball

• When a ball breaks, the possessing player or spectator may stop play to replace the ball otherwise the ball will be replaced when a goal is scored or when it goes out of bounds.