:: George Coates Trophy ::

The subscription fee shall be £10. Cheques made payable to “The George Coates Trophy” must be received before a club plays its first game. Payment of this subscription assumes acceptance of these rules. Subscriptions to be sent to the treasurer;

Mark Fletcher
1 Victoria Grove
Fairfield
Stockton on Tees
TS19 7EL
The final will be played on the ground of Stockton C.C. in August.
The Rules and Regulations as drawn up by the Committee shall be imposed on all competing clubs by the Competition Secretary.
Any person playing in this competition shall be a duly elected member of the he wishes to play for. A person shall only be registered with any club at one time and may not play for more than one club in this Competition in one season.
For the first round matches a player must not have played, or been selected to play in a postponed game, more first eleven games than second eleven games. For subsequent rounds, a player must have played, or been selected to play in a postponed game, more second team games than first team games. League games only qualify under this rule and under no circumstances may a professional or overseas player be allowed to compete. (Overseas players as defined by the ECB eligibility regulations as not being qualified to play for England).
Up to and including semi-finals, midweek games must consist of not less than 20 overs and not more than 25. Weekend games shall consist of not less than 20 overs and not more than 40. An individual bowler may not bowl more than one quarter of the agreed overs (i.e. max 5 in a 20 over game, or 6 in a 24 over game).
The duration of the final shall be 40 overs. Only under exceptional circumstances would the secretary allow a game of less than 40 overs and then only when approached by both captains in agreement with their proposal.
Midweek games to start at 6.00 p.m.. Any team not having a minimum of 9 players changed and ready to play at this time must give choice of innings to their opponents.
The Competition Secretary must be notified as soon as possible of the date and venue of the games. In the case of a postponed or cancelled match, a replay must be arranged within eight days of the original tie. Additionally, the winning club secretary must inform the Competition Secretary within 48 of the completion of the tie.
The closing dates for rounds must be strictly adhered to. If this is not the case, and the home club have offered a minimum of two dates to the visiting club then the home team may lodge an appeal to the Competition Secretary immediately. Alternatively, the visiting club may lodge an appeal if they have not been offered two dates. The Competition Secretary under normal circumstances may eliminate the defaulting club.
The games will be played under the Laws of Cricket as laid down by the MCC 2000 code with the following amendments;

Play may not be abandoned for inclement weather or light until 60 minutes after the scheduled start of play.

A grade ‘A’ cricket ball sanctioned for play in each club’s own league must be used.

Special attention is brought to the preamble of the laws “The Spirit of Cricket”.

Umpires are instructed to apply a very strict and consistent interpretation of the laws relating to “wide balls”. Also, should the ball pass over shoulder height of the batsman standing upright at the crease the umpire should call and signal “wide ball”.

The side scoring the most runs, irrespective of wickets lost shall be deemed the winners. However, should scores be level at the end of the game, the side having lost fewer wickets shall be deemed the winners. Should this still not provide a winner then the side having scored the most runs at the end of the penultimate over shall be deemed the winner and additionally, the number of wickets lost will be taken into consideration should the scores still be level. This “countback” to continue for the end of each over until a winning side is chosen.
ECB fast bowling directives and ECB helmet wearing directives will be enforced in this competition.
Umpires for all matches except the final must be arranged by the home club. The umpires for the final will be appointed, and paid for, by the Competition.
An umpire who is an official associated with a club shall not under any circumstances be allowed to stand in a match involving his own club. Home clubs should provide two clean white coats and a minimum of five matching, serviceable bails. Umpires fees shall be £8.00 for a midweek game and £14.00 for a weekend game. Umpires in the Final shall receive an inclusive fee of £25 plus a momento. Reasonable travelling expenses will also be paid to umpires. Should an umpire have to officiate without a partner he should be paid 1.5X his fee and officiate at the bowlers end at all times.
All disciplinary matters will be dealt with by the appropriate committee of the Durham Cricket Board. Additionally, the George Coates Trophy will recognise the decisions of that committee.
The winning club will receive prize money of £150 and the runners-up will receive £75.
The winners will also receive the George Coates Trophy and will retain it for a period of one year. It is the responsibility of the winning club to ensure that the Trophy is suitably insured for this period

Rules