To:Referees working the NCYSA State Cup

From:Paul James, SYRA

Re:Site info and procedures

PLEASE READ THIS DOCUMENT IN ITS ENTIRETY BEFORE COMING TO THE TOURNAMENT. IT WILL ANSWER A LOT OF QUESTIONS AND SAVE A LOT OF TIME.

If you have not yet set up a ref pay account in Arbiter please do so immediately as the State Cup will pay by ref pay this year.

To access a tutorial on how to set up ref pay click the link below:

This tutorial can also be accessed from your support tab in your Arbiter officials account.

Site Coordinators for all weekends of the State Cup are listed on the State Cup Info Page, including contact info:

If you have any problems after Thursday evening contact the coordinator for your site directly BY PHONE. Do not use email as it may not be viewed until Sunday evening.

This is your final information regarding the tournament this weekend at which you are scheduled to referee.

  1. Please make sure your cell phone # is updated in Arbiter, is the first or second number listed, and is marked public!!!!!
  2. Please check and PRINT your assignment schedule before leaving for the tournament. The copy you print on Friday will be the most up to date and accurate copy you will receive and will include all changes up to that point Remember, if you click on the schedule link to display your schedule, you then click on the link labeled schedule on that page to print out only the games of the tournament in a clear adobe pdf format report that will have all pertinent information. Schedules will not be provided at the Tournament so make sure you print and bring yours!!!
  3. Field locations and directions are found on the State Cup Info page which can be accessed from the Arbiter Central Hub on the State Cup Page. (DO NOT GO TO THE NCYSASTATE CUP WEB SITE---THAT INFO IS FOR TEAMS). You can also find playing site directions to any playing site by going to your game schedule in the Arbiter and clicking on the field site to produce mapquest directions to that playing site.
  4. If you requested housing, confirm that you ARE ON THE LIST POSTED ON THE STATE CUP INFO PAGE ON THE NCSRA WEBSITE. If you are not on the housing land you need housing contact me ASAP to be placed on the list. Hotel information is also located on the State Cup Info page and there are hotel direction links there as well. Be sure to check the State Cup Info page before leaving for the tournament to be sure nothing has changed.
  5. Referee payment is by REFPAY from the NCYSA office on the Tuesday after the weekend worked. You will not need to write your social security number when you arrive or sign your schedule copy in the site coordinator's manual. Just make sure to report any changes in your schedule throughout the weekend to the referee site coordinator so they can be made in Arbiter. All changes will be updated by the referee site coordinator by 8 PM Monday evening. If your schedule is not correctly listed in the Arbiter for what you actually did by that time make sure to notify me (Paul James) at by email before 10 PM Monday night. After 10 PM the payroll goes to NCYSA to initiate REFPAY on Tuesday morning. NCYSA cannot pay without having your SSN. Make sure you report any assignment changes or corrections throughout the weekend to the referee site coordinators to insure you receive proper payment. If you traveled more than 50 miles one way or were housed overnight, NCYSA will add a $10 per diem to your game total. This addition may display as a separate payment in your detail of game payment forms showing in REFPAY. If you were responsible for the cost of a non-referee hotel roommate, as requested by you, your share of the hotel cost will be deducted from your final payment.
  6. This tournament will follow the NCSRA Standard Tournament Protocols which can also be accessed from the Arbiter forms link. If you have questions please review that document and if the answer is not there feel free to contact me.
  7. Please check in with the site coordinator at Referee HQ at your complex at least 30 minutes before your first match or call him to let him know you are onsite.
  8. Reserve Official Assignments—All Reserve Official Assignments are reserve referee assignments. As a reserve you must check in with the site coordinator at least half an hour before the scheduled kick off. If you are needed as a replacement official on another field the referee site coordinator will alert you. Remain in the area of HQ until past the half time of all games running at the time slot for which you are acting as a reserve.
  9. Assessors will be working at this tournament and you may be assessed either formally or informally. No payment is required from the referees for this. These assessments are developmental only. Also, any assessment debriefing MUST NOT delay an official from attending to the duties of his next assignment or completing the match report. Assessors are aware of this and have received the same instructions.
  10. Fruit & Water should be available at Referee HQ throughout each day. Please drink as much as you need but try not to waste it, especially bottled water. If you take bottled water and do not finish it, kindly secure it in your referee kit so you can access it again and it does not get wasted by being mixed up with everyone else’s and thrown away.
  11. Lunch will be available each day from approximately 11:15 AM on. If the lunch is a specific type of sandwich, please take only one until we have determined that everyone has been fed. If you have a game upcoming, you should prepare and set aside for your return a lunch sandwich so you are not left out.
  12. Match Reports---Preprinted match reports should be picked up from the referee site coordinators at Referee HQ AFTER completion of your match and filled out there and returned immediately upon completion. Match reports MUST be completed before going to your next game.
  13. Game balls---These are provided by the tournament and may be picked up at Referee HQ, 2 per field, or if there are field marshal’s available they will distribute them. Check with referee site coordinators on arrival to determine which option we are using. Games must be played with the tournament balls if at all possible.
  14. Player passes are required and must be checked before each match. NO PASS = NO PLAY
  15. Adults may step in to coach if the carded coach is unavailable or sent off – the adult does NOT need to be carded. Referees should collect MATCH ROSTERS (no addresses) not TEAM ROSTERS (addresses) from coaches/managers before the game. When checking match rosters and player passes, make sure there are no NON-CUP players. Non-cup players are ineligible to participate in State Cup matches. (These players should not be listed on State Cup rosters provided by NCYSA staff.) Be sure not to keep player passes after the game ends, even for those players or coaches sent off, unless the send off involved an assault on an official or some other extraordinarily bad misconduct. U17 & U18 teams can have a 22-man TEAM roster, but only 18 may be on the MATCH roster. All twenty-two players may warm up before a match, however once the referee asks for the Match Roster, only eighteen players will be allowed on the field/bench area at that time. Players not listed on the Match Roster must change into "street clothes" (clothes distinctly opposite/different than the team is wearing), and move to the spectator side of the field.ANY PLAYER ALLOWED TO PLAY MUST BE LISTED ON THE APPROVED FINAL STATE CUP ROSTER. ADD ONS ARE NOT PERMITTED UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.
  16. In quarterfinal, semi-final and final matches, ties will be broken as per USYS National Championship rules, Rule 242, Section 2 a-c: U15 – U18 age groups play TWO COMPLETE 15 MINUTE OVERTIME PERIODS. If the match is still tied, “FIFA Kicks from the Penalty Mark” rules will apply in order to determine the winner. For U13-U14age groups play TWO COMPLETE 10 MINUTE OVERTIME PERIODS. If the match is still tied, “FIFA Kicks from the Penalty Mark” rules will apply in order to determine the winner.
  17. For the Finals weekend only, in all Semi-Final and Final matches, games should begin with a FIFA World Cup style walkout.
  18. Please remember to bring the game balls back to the referee tent. There will be 2 game balls per field. If a ball is lost in the woods, please let an NCYSA staff person know the general vicinity.
  19. PLAYERS who are sent off will be escorted to an area designated by the Tournament, and must remain in that area until the completion of their team’s match. The ejected player may attend the next scheduled Cup match in street clothes.
  20. ADULTS who are sent off, whether it is the COACH or PARENT, must be “out of sight and sound” of the facility (i.e. must COMPLETELY LEAVE THE COMPLEX) immediately. The sent off adult is NOT allowed back to the facility until COMPLETION of their team’s NEXT scheduled State Cup match. Failure to immediately leave the complex could result in termination of the currently played match. If necessary, the referee can choose not to restart the match until satisfied that the adult has left. Exception: if a coach is sent off and he/she coaches another team, that individual will be allowed on the sideline for his/her other team’s match while serving the suspension.
  21. Be sure to smile and have some fun this weekend. Thank you for working at the State Cup.