HAMPSHIRE MEN'S PLAYER ELIGIBLITY RULES
All Teams should remain conscious throughout their time in The Slam that the below rules are fundamental to the success of The Slam, and as such, a significant level of the health of the recreational game in the county. Therefore willful action against these rules will be viewed in an appropriately dim light and may result ultimately in expulsion from The Slam.
- HP-MPE.1 - Players must be regular playing members of the club to which the participating team is affiliated, who will be expected to honour the ethos and responsibilities of being a member of their club and this competition. The only exception to this is where a player plays more cricket for another club, but that club is not participating in The Slam. Note that rules HP-MPE.4 and HP-MPE.5 are relevant to ANY club that a player plays for on a weekend, not just the club that they represent in The Slam.
- HP-MPE.2a - No player shall represent more than ONE team in any ONE version of this competition in any single year.
- HP-MPE.2b - For 2023 ONLY, where a club enters two teams a player IS able to play for both teams in any single year in the group stages ONLY so long as they meet the eligibility criteria for the version they are playing in at the given time as per rules HP-MPE.4 and HP-MPE.5.
- HP-MPE.3 - It is not acceptable for any participating team to play players who are remunerated in any way to play cricket, irrespective of whether it is the competing team or another club who provides the remuneration to the player. For the avoidance of doubt, this includes (but is not limited to) the payment of match fees and/or travel costs; the provision of board and/or lodgings; or the provision of employment, or the ability to be employed.
- HP-MPE.4a - Under no circumstances should a player who has played in ANY Southern Premier Cricket League match (or equivalent), in the same season (for any club), be selected to represent any participating team.
- HP-MPE.4b - Teams may submit to the Competition Manager a request for players to be exempt from rule HP-MPE.4a whereby a player may have only played a very limited number of matches at this level of competition that would normally exclude them form participating in The Men's Cup. This should be submitted via the designated online form ONLY and any exemption is only confirmed once it has been confirmed by email or text to the requesting team.
- HP-MPE.4c - Any player that is not excluded from participating under rule HP-MPE.3 or HP-MPE.4a may participate in the competition.
- HP-MPE.4d - For the FIRST FIXTURE WINDOW OF 2023 ONLY the player's record from the 2022 season shall be utilised to assess whether a player is eligible to participate in The Slam unless the XI of the club in question was either promoted or relegated at the end of the 2022 season then the assessment will be made upon the division that XI is competing in for the 2023 season and NOT that of 2022. AFTER the first fixture window of 2023 is complete the player's record for 2023 only shall be used to assess eligibility.
- HP-MPE.5a - Any player who has played for their (or any) club in either Division One of The Hampshire Cricket League or Division One of The Thames Valley Cricket League (or equivalent) will not be permitted to bat higher than number 6 in the batting order, nor will they be permitted to bowl any earlier than the 13th over of an innings. In a shortened match the batting restriction remains but the bowling restriction should be altered by the same ratio that the match is reduced by.
- HP-MPE.5b - Any player who has played for their (or any) club in either Division Two of The Hampshire Cricket League or Divisions Two fo The Thames Valley Cricket League (or equivalent) will not be permitted to bat higher than number 4 in the batting order, nor will they be permitted to bowl any earlier than the 9th over of an innings. In a shortened match the batting restriction remains but the bowling restriction should be altered by the same ratio that the match is reduced by.
- HP-MPE.5c - For the FIRST TWO FIXTURE WINDOWS OF 2023 ONLY the player's record from the 2022 season shall be utilised to assess whether a player's participation is restricted in The Slam unless the XI of the club in question was either promoted or relegated at the end of the 2022 season then the assessment will be made upon the division that XI is competing in for the 2023 season and NOT that of 2022. AFTER the first two fixture windows of 2023 are complete the player's record for 2023 only shall be used to assess eligibility.
- HP-MPE.5c - Teams may submit to the Competition Manager a request for players to be exempt from part of rule HP-MPE.5a or HP-MPE.5b whereby the player may be a bowler of a high standard, but their batting would not be considered as such (or vice versa). This should be submitted via the designated online form ONLY and any exemption is only confirmed once it is has been confirmed by email or text to the requesting team.
- HP-MPE.5d - ANY player under the age of 16 on 22nd May 2023 will NOT be subject to rulings HP-MPE.5a or HP-MPE.5b and as such no Player Exemption request is required.
- HP-MPE.6 - Teams should declare to their opponents ALL players with valid exemptions prior to the toss being conducted of any match. For the avoidance of doubt this should include any players exempt due to being under 16 on 22nd May 2023 as per HP-MPE.5e.
- HP-MPE.7 - Any dispute regarding players who have played for a team in this competition is to be referred, in writing, to the Competition Manager only by the nominated prime contact for that team.