St John Bosco Football Club is affiliated with the Sutherland Shire Football Football Association, which in turn is affiliated with Football NSW, and as such all the higher-level laws, by-laws, rules and regulations apply to St John Bosco Football Club. In addition to these St John Bosco Football Club has its own specific rules and regulations to complement the above in order to define its own parameters around specific principles.

One of the key principles is participation according to the St John Bosco Football Club Code of Conduct. There are many different groups of people involved in St John Bosco Football Club and it is incumbent on individuals in each of the groups to participate in accordance with the Code of Conduct.

Foremost, all people that have or could have an identifiable representation with the St John Bosco Football Club must conduct their activities in accordance with the rules and regulations of the club including the Code of Conduct.

Any act, or omission to act, which brings St John Bosco Football Club into disrepute is a breach of the Code of Conduct. The requirement to uphold the Code of Conduct shall apply at all times and at any place and is not limited to just venues or events organised by either St John Bosco Football Club or the Sutherland Shire Football Association. Breaches of the Code of Conduct may be subject to varying degrees of disciplinary measures taken by the Club in its own right depending on the severity of the situation.

The following points are common to all groups including Players, Coaches, Managers, Supporters and Spectators, Ground Appointed Referees and Committee and must be upheld by everyone at all times:

All participants must:

• Conduct their participation in a fair and honest manner;
• Respect the rights, dignity and worth of all participants regardless of their gender, ability, cultural background or religion;
• Not engage in verbal abuse, intimidation, offensive language or behaviour, harassment or violence against any other Player, Team, Coach, Manager, Referee, Supporter, Spectator or any official of St John Bosco Football Club and its associations;
• Act in a manner that is considerate of the rights of the neighbouring residents, businesses and others that may be adversely affected;
• Conduct their involvement at all times so as to enhance a good reputation for the. St John Bosco Football Club;
• Not engage in activities that undermine support for St John Bosco Football Club; and
• Not engage in, or otherwise condone, actions or activities that either brings or could bring St John Bosco Football Club and or football generally into disrepute.

In addition to the requirements of the General Code of Conduct all Players must:

• Play the Game in the spirit intended;
• Play to the Rules;
• Play as a member of a Team;
• Accept and observe the rulings of the Referee, Linesmen and other adjudicating officials at all times;
• Treat the Referee, Linesmen and other adjudicating officials with respect at all times; and
• Comply with any reasonable requests for assistance when asked by an official of St John Bosco Football Club.
  

In addition to the requirements of the General Code of Conduct all Coaches must:

• Be, or endeavour to become, competent at coaching at the appropriate skill level of the Team they coach;
• Be equally dedicated to all Players in the Team they coach;
• Foster good sportsmanship and team spirit;
• Complete and sign Football NSW's Prohibited Employment Declaration Form and thereby agree to comply with the requirements of the Child Protection (Prohibited Employment) Act 1998;
• Report all incidents of any kind of abuse of both minors and adults to the Committee;
• Attend all matches, or if unable to attend, then assign the role temporarily to another competent responsible adult;
• Maintain close liaison with the Manager on all matters;
• Ensure that information for the Committee is alway forwarded through the Manager;
• Ensure that all Players are as far as possible entitled to equal time on the field;
• Ensure that no Player is excessively played in an allocated position against his/her wishes.

In addition to the requirements of the General Code of Conduct all Managers must:

• Be the representative of, and on behalf of, the Team they represent;
• Be contactable to receive information and to relay information to the Team;
• Ensure that the Committee always have your current contact details;
• Complete and sign Football NSW's Prohibited Employment Declaration Form and thereby agree to comply with the requirements of the Child Protection (Prohibited Employment) Act 1998;
• Report all incidents of any kind of abuse of both minors and adults to the Committee;
• Attend all matches, or if unable to attend, then assign the role temporarily to another competent responsible adult;
• Maintain close liaison with the Coach on all matters;
• Ensure that all information concerning Players is passed on to all Players in the Team, or their parents where the Players are minors;
• Only allow registered and eligible Players to play in your Team;
• Ensure that lending and borrowing of players is done in accordance with the Association's rules;
• Ensure that all pre- and post-match procedures are carried out;
• Ensure that all other administrative matters are carried out appropriately; and
• Ensure that all Match Fees are paid in full by the due dates.

Whilst a Code of Conduct for Supporters and Spectators is difficult to enforce, all registered and associated parties have a duty to encourage them to observe St John Bosco Football Club's expectations in terms of their conduct. In addition to the requirements of the General Code of Conduct all Supporters and Spectators must:

• Behave in a sporting manner and acknowledge skill and achievement in a positive way;
• Not enter the field while a Match is in progress;
• Remain behind the spectator line, or remain at least 1.2 m away from the side line where it is not marked;
• Not hinder or affect the game in any way even when behind the spectator line;
• Not stand behind the goal line while a field is in play, and remain silent if passing behind the goal of a field in play;
• Not verbalise any Players, Referees, Coaches, Managers, other Spectators or Supporters, Officials of St John Bosco Football Club or any other persons so as to denigrate or victimise them; and
• Not engage in any post-match activity that could be deemed to bring the Club or the game into disrepute.

4.7 GROUND APPOINTED REFEREES' CODE OF CONDUCT

In addition to the requirements of the General Code of Conduct all Ground Appointed Referees must:

• Apply the Rules of the Game;
• Conduct the role of refereeing in an impartial and fair manner;
• Actively follow the play to ensure that all rulings are made from a suitable vantage point;
• Must limit talking to either team to that which is just necessary to conduct the game and to explain a ruling if questioned; and
• Carry out any referee related activities as instructed by the Committee person on duty.

In addition to the requirements of the General Code of Conduct all Committee Members must:

• Carry out their roles in a diligent manner to the best of their ability;
• Conduct their roles with support to agreed resolutions of the Committee;
• Not dismiss any issue specifically brought up for the attention of the Committee;
• Share knowledge of any issues brought to the attention for the Committee with other Committee Members;
• At all times act in an impartial manner with the interest of the Club set ahead of any personal objectives;
• Declare and abstain from activities that involves, or could be seen to involve, any conflict of interests until cleared by the Committee; and
• Support and uphold the rules and principles of St John Bosco Football Club including the Code of Conduct.

St John Bosco Football Club would naturally prefer that there were no breaches of the Code so that application of rigorous and formal processes to deal with such issues can be avoided. With an optimistic expectation it is hoped that issues that arise will be resolved in an amicable way through the application of common sense and direct dialogue in the first instance, and that repeat offences do not occur.

However, where repeated failures to abide by the Code of Conduct occurs, or where there is an excessive occurrence of issues attributable to an identifiable team or individuals then the matter will be investigated by the Committee to determine the appropriate measures to be employed to remedy the situation.

Not withstanding this, where a failure to observe the Code of Conduct is deemed to be sufficiently severe, even as a first offence, the matter can be taken directly to the Committee for investigation and resolution.

Whilst the Association already has a mechanism to deal with reportable infractions through their Disciplinary process, that process does not address St John Bosco Football Club's rules and Code of Conduct. Correspondingly, breaches of the Club's rules will be investigated and determined separately from the Association's Disciplinary Committee.

Incidents of failure to comply with the Code of Conduct that are either noticed by Committee members, or those that have been brought to the attention for the Committee, will be investigated. A Panel consisting of the Club's Executives and other Committee members as deemed necessary, chaired by the President, will investigate the matter. This may include interviews with the person(s) making the allegations and the person(s) subject of the allegation. The Panel alone will subsequently discuss and determine the matter. In their deliberation the Panel will consider the evidence presented and any history prior to the incident. It will also consider whatever ruling the Association's Disciplinary Committee have determined.

In determining the ruling the Panel will base their determination on the severity of the offence, the related circumstances and previous rulings in similar circumstances and whatever ruling the Association's Disciplinary Committee determined (if any). The ruling may result in any one or more of the following:

• A caution;
• A period of suspension from playing and / or other participation;
• Expulsion from the Club for the current season;
• Exclusion from future registrations or participation with St John Bosco Football Club; or
• Any other measure as agreed to by the Committee of St John Bosco Football Club.

St John Bosco Football Club will take every precaution to ensure that the investigation, deliberation and determination are fair and reasonable in the first instance. Correspondingly, the Panel's rulings should be considered as being final. However, in instances where it could be reasonably considered that the Panel has made a gross injustice, written appeals for leniency over the ruling may be lodged with the Executives of St John Bosco Football Club for a final ruling.

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