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NHSC RULES
Eligibility:
  • TEAM ELIGIBILITY: The NHSC is open to any varsity level homeschool team throughout the USA.
  • AGE:  Players shall be no younger than 12 years old and no older than 19 years old throughout the duration of the NHSC.
  • HOMESCHOOL DESIGNATION: Players shall be homeschool students, with the majority of their education managed by their parents/gaurdians. [EXPERIMENTAL RULE FOR 2011: Each team is allowed two roster positions for players whose homeschool designation is unclear or who attend a school that does not offer the sport of soccer.]
  • TEAM MEMBERSHIP:  Players must be active members of their team/club for the 2011-2012 academic year.
  • GRADUATE STATUS: Players who have graduated from high school are not eligible to participate in the NHSC.
 
Insurance/Medical Release:
  • TEAM INSURANCE: Each team is required to provide evidence of liability insurance coverage for their team and players ($1,000,000.00 per occurrence, $2,000,000.00 aggregate). Proof of insurance shall be submitted to the NHSC one week prior to the tournament.
  • MEDICAL RELEASE: Each team must have in their possession (on site) throughout the NHSC a signed medical release form for each team member participating in the NHSC.
 
Refunds:
  • REGISTRATION FEES: Teams that withdraw from the NHSC prior to the registration deadline will receive a refund of their registration fee (minus any applicable processing fees). Teams that withdraw from the NHSC after the registration deadline will receive a refund only if a replacement team is registered in their place.
  • CANCELLATION OF NHSC: No refund is guaranteed if any or all of the NHSC is cancelled due to weather or other unforeseen circumstances. Any
    potential refund will be determined within 60 days of the NHSC once all invoices are paid and final budget is approved by the NHSC Event Committee.
 
Rules of the Game:
The NHSC employs National Federation High School(NFHS) rules, with the following modifications:
  • DURATION OF GAMES:  All games will employ 35-minute halves. For championship games that follow the Closing Ceremony, 40-minute halves may be employed with the agreement of both teams' coaches.
  • TIE GAMES:  Pool play games ending in a tie will be scored as a tied game.  Playoff games tied at the end of regulation time will be decided by the
    NFHS penalty kick procedure. Championship games played after the     Closing Ceremony that end in a tie will employ two 7 minute overtime periods, followed by the penalty kick procedure, if necessary.
  • DISQUALIFIED TEAM MEMBERS:  The NHSC has adopted the policy recommended by the NFHS whereby a team member disqualified under Rule
    12.8.2-4 shall be barred from participating in the next contest.
  • PROTESTS: The NHSC does not recognize protests.
 
Tournament Format:
Boys and Girls Championships will include the following features:
  • COED TEAMS: Coed teams will participate in the Boys Championship.
  • PRE-TOURNAMENT SEEDING: Teams will be ranked and seeded into pools based on their season record and the strength of the game schedule
    from their most recent season.
  • DIVISIONS: Multiple divisions may be employed based on the number of teams participating. Each division will be comprised of a maximum of twelve
    teams and a minimum of four.
  • GAMES: Each team will be guaranteed 4 games, weather permitting, with a goal of no more than two games played per day.
  • PLAYOFF SEEDING: Pool play will be utilized to seed elimination playoff brackets. Championships comprised of only one pool will employ a round-
    robin system. Pool winners will be determined by points accumulated during pool play.
  • POOL or ROUND ROBIN SCORING SYSTEM:
      - 3 points awarded for each win
      - 1 point awarded for each tie
      - 1 point awarded for each shutout (including 0-0)
      - 1 point awarded for each goal scored (up to 3 goals)
  • POOL PLAY TIE BREAKER SYSTEM: In the event of a tie within a pool, the following criteria will be used (in the order listed) to determine the winner:
      1. Head to head competition
      2. Cumulative goal differential (maximum 3 goals per game)
      3. Fewest goals allowed
      4. Most goals scored (maximum 3 per game)
      5. Modified NFHS Tie Game Procedure (penalty kick procedure only) [Scheduled 45 minutes prior     to start time of affected playoff game.}
  • In the event of a tie where cross-pool ranking is required, criteria #2 - #5 will be used to break the tie. In the event of a tie to determine seeding positions within a playoff group, criteria #2 - #4 will be used, with any further tie being determined by pre-tournament seeding.
  • SUB-DIVISIONAL PLAYOFF: Championship divisions with multiple pools will be subdivided into 2-4 elimination playoff groups. First place pool teams
    will compete in a "Gold" playoff group, second place pool teams will compete in a "Silver" playoff group, etc.
  • PLAYOFF TIE GAME PROCEDURE: Modified NFHS Tie Game Procedure (penalty kick procedure only)
  • BALL HOLDERS: Each team is required to provide one ball holder for each game played.
  • AWARDS: Winners of each playoff group will be eligible for individual and team awards. Other team and individual awards will be presented based on the number of entries in each division or playoff group. Team sportsmanship and indidual all-star awards will be presented for each division.
 
Delays/Cancellations:
  • LIGHTNING: The NHFS lighting guideline will be used when lightning is witnessed by game or tournament officials within close proximity to tournament
    facilities. Participants will be asked to take shelter and the game be suspended as per the guidelines.
  • INCLEMENT WEATHER: In the event of inclement weather, the NHSC Tournament Director or Event Committee will have the authority to:
      -Relocate or reschedule any game
      -Change the duration of any game
      -Cancel any preliminary game or reduce the number of scheduled games.
      -Determine an appropriate format for advancement of the playoff schedule.
  • SUSPENDED GAMES: If a game is delayed or suspended prior to completion of the first half of play, every effort will be made to reschedule the game
    if it has a direct bearing on advancement within the tournament. Suspended games will restart with the same score and time remaining.
  • CANCELLED GAMES: Any game terminated after one half of play will be considered an official game and will retain its score at the time of cancellation.
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