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County Misconduct Procedures The following is a general guide to the procedure which follows reports of misconduct. All misconduct charges are dealt with by the relevant County Football Association. Note that this page is only shown as a guide, and is tailored towards the Amateur Football Alliance, although most other counties will follow very similar procedures. For the definitive details on misconduct, including details on appeals, you should refer to your County Association Handbook. For more details from the Football Association click here. Introduction Misconduct cases are handled according to Football Association guidelines:- “Memorandum of Procedures for dealing with Misconduct occurring before, during or after matches and committed by players of clubs dealt with by County and Other Affiliated Associations but not by the Football Association”. This
sets out the delegated powers which all Affiliated County Football Associations
have to follow when dealing with misconduct. These are always set out in the AFA
Handbook. The
Charging Procedure When a Caution is received in the County Office its details are entered into the computer system. Sending off offences are dealt with similarly, except that the General Secretary will determine the correct charge or charges to be issued according to the FA Standard Punishments before these are also entered onto the computer system. If
there is any conflict of interest, then the Chairman of Discipline or Senior
Director will adjudicate. These charges are then send out to the Secretary of the Club concerned. All charges are accompanied by an administration charge (currently £10.00). Answering
a Misconduct Charge Once a club have received a misconduct charge it should be passed on to the individual(s) concerned and they normally have 14 days to answer the charge. There are five options: 1. Plead Guilty to the Charge and Accept the Standard Punnishment. 2. Plead Guilty to the Charge but request a Personal Hearing to make a verbal plea of leniency. 3. Plead Guilty to the Charge but submit a written plea of leniency. 4. Plead Not Guilty to the charge and ask for the case to be dealt with in writing (a "Non-Personal" Hearing). 5. Plead Not Guilty to the charge and Request a Personal Hearing. If the Charge is accepted then the punishment (fine and/or suspension) simply progress. Alternatively a Non-Personal hearing (a written plea of mitigation) can be offered or a Personal Hearing may be requested. If a Personal Hearing is requested, the applicant must send a hearing fee in advance which may or may not be returned after the hearing. Personal Hearings Personal Hearings are held because individual players or clubs feel they have a case to make having been accused of some form of misconduct. A player red-carded is dismissed and is allowed to have a personal hearing to challenge the charge. At a hearing a player may conduct his own defence, or may be represented by another, who conducts the player's case (though the player must still attend). The player may call his choice of witness(s), including from amongst the opposition. Opposing team witnesses are not called by any County Football Association. Hearings are heard before a commission. The Referee's Role Referees
are always expected/requested to attend Personal Hearings as they are normally
the key witness. A referee attending a Personal Hearing will always have his
travel expenses paid. A referee may be represented by a member of a Referees’
Association or accompanied by an observer. An Assistant Referee or Fourth
Official may be asked to attend if circumstances dictate,
e.g. if there has been an assault on the Referee. The
Referee's role is quite clearly set out in Football Association and Referee's
Association publications. The Referee is independent and is present only to
answer questions addressed by the Player or Commission concerning his
Report. The Referee is a witness to what he reports. It should be noted that a charge
is not automatically dismissed if the referee is not present. The Commission's Procedure Subject
to the Rules of The Football Association, a Commission may adopt such procedures
at a Personal Hearing of a Charge as it considers appropriate and expedient for
the just determination of the Charge brought before it. A
Commission is not bound by any enactment or Rule of Law relating to the
admissibility of evidence in proceedings before a Court of Law.
It is important to understand that a Commission is not a Court of Law. It
is an important element of Disciplinary Commissions that they are conducted
according to a standard procedure. In this way, a level of consistency and
transparency is maintained. Players and others who appear before Commissions are
entitled to this. The
evidence from the referee, players and any other witnesses are heard. At this
stage the Referee has fulfilled his role and is asked to leave. The Commission
will either find the case proven or not proven. If the case is proven, the
Commission will determine the punishment and advise the player (or club if a
club charge). Only the player/club and/or representative are involved in this
process. The Commission will listen to pleas of mitigation and also have the
player's/club's record to refer to. It is obligatory to point out that the
player (or club) has the right of Appeal. Non-Personal Hearings A non-personal hearing follows a similar procedure except that written submissions only are considered. The player/club do not appear and nor does the referee or any other witness. From the reports submitted the Commission determines whether the original charge/punishment was appropriate. Appealing
against the Decision of the Commission An
Appeal, is a procedure entirely divorced from a Personal Hearing and deals with
a decision made by a Disciplinary Commission and which affects the Appellant and
with which he disagrees. The AFA does not hear Appeals on disciplinary
decisions. Any appeal arising from a Disciplinary Commission is made to The
Football Association. Confidentiality/Publishing
Reports of Hearings The
proceedings of a Disciplinary Commission (and an Appeal Board) take place in
private. All oral or written representations and documents created in the course
of any proceedings are confidential between The Association and the individual
or body concerned. All evidence and representations shall be privileged. Each
Participant (including player and referee) are deemed to have consented to this.
The County Football Association has the power to publish in any manner considered appropriate reports of hearings. Within the AFA these generally take the form of Minutes to AFA Council Members. Any misconduct data which is asked for (a number of Leagues ask for such information) will always be in non-specific form and may only be published on condition that it is repeated in the form provided. For
anyone else, including players, clubs or referees, to publish the proceedings of
a Disciplinary Commission is a breach
of the FA Rule & AFA rules on the confidentiality of the process. Inexperienced
Referees Where a recently qualified, young or inexperienced referee, is asked to attend a Personal Hearing or an experienced referee attending for the first time, the AFA office will always try to explain the process and on the night, the Chairman of Discipline will again go through the procedures. Youth Referees or Players When
young referees or players attend a hearing, we always try to ensure that a
parent or guardian (or, if appropriate a representative from their local Referees
Association) attends and if appropriate, our Child Protection Officer will be
asked to attend. The Commission members will be drawn from those who have
attended the FA Child Protection workshop. Serious Cases In more serious cases, in particular where there has been an assault or criminal damage (fortunately still a rarity in the AFA), we always contact the police and the FA Compliance Unit for advice and information – the key is to ensure justice is done.
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