Rules | Melbourne Dodgeball | The Premier Melbourne Dodgeball League

Glossary

Live Ball: A thrown ball which has not yet come into contact with the ground, walls, a player, or any other object.
Dead ball: A ball becomes 'dead' if it touches another ball, the floor, walls, a player, or any other object.
Catch: When a live ball thrown by the opposition is caught.
Out: If a player is hit by a live ball thrown by the opposition and does not catch it OR if the opposition player catches a live ball you threw, then you are out. Note: you cannot be 'out' if hit by a dead ball.
Block: A player may hold a ball and use it to deflect balls being thrown by the opposition.

Code of Conduct

Understand, appreciate and abide by the rules of the game and the honour system.
Respect the integrity and judgement of game officials and event staff.
Respect your opponent and congratulate them in a courteous manner following each match, whether in victory or defeat.
Be responsible for your actions and maintain self control.
Do not taunt or bait opponents. Do not use foul or abusive language.

The Honour System

The honour system is self-regulation of the rules.
Example: When a player is hit by a ball, without the referee's knowledge, the player will call themselves 'out' and leave the court.
Dodgeball relies heavily upon the honour system and players are expected follow it at all times. Teams which continuously breach the honour system may face expulsion from the league. Remember, dodgeball is about fun for everybody. Cheating is not fun!

Referees and Their Duties

All games will be supervised by a trained referee.
Rules are enforced primarily by the honour system. Players will be expected to rule whether or not a hit was legal or whether they were legally eliminated.
The referee's decision is final.
The referee may change possession of any number of balls at any time they deem necessary.
Referees may warn players and call a technical foul on those who display unsportsmanlike conduct.
Note: The referee is not required to warn a player before calling a technical foul.
Abuse of the referee by player, spectator, or anyone else can warrant the person being sent outside the venue.

Game Format

Each match is 40 minutes long.
A match consists of as many games that can be completed in the 40 minutes. No single game can exceed 5 minutes. No game will start with less than 5 minutes remaining in the match.
A game ends when all the players on a team have been eliminated, or when the 5 minutes is up, in which case the team with the most players left win the game.
When a team wins a game, they receive a point. At the end of the match, the team with the most points, wins the match. (If points are equal then it is a tie - except in finals where another game is played).
To start a game, each player must be behind their respective back line. The referee will place 3 dodgeballs 1.5m back from the centre line on each half court (6 balls in total).
The referee will start the match by shouting "ready, set, dodgeball" and blow a whistle, at which time players can rush to the balls.
If the 5 minutes is up for the game and there are equal players left on each team, then it will be "sudden death". All eliminated players can come back in, each team is given 3 balls, and the referee will blow their whistle to start. The team that has a player eliminated first loses the game.

Game Rules

The purpose of dodgeball is to eliminate the opposing players from the game by hitting them with a live ball below the shoulders or catching live balls that have been thrown.
If a player catches a live ball thrown by the opposition, then the player who threw the ball is out. Additionally, a team-mate of the player that caught the ball may come back onto the court.
When a player is 'out', they must raise their hand and immediately leave the court.
When a catch is made, the player who was eliminated earliest is the one who is able to go back on the court.
Any player intentionally throwing a ball at an opposition player who's hand is raised will be out.
Players may pass the ball to team-mates.
Players may place the ball on the ground.
Players are not permitted to kick the ball.
Eliminated players must not interfere with any balls while declared out.
A player may only hold on to a ball for 10 seconds before it must be thrown. After 10 seconds the referee will tell the player to throw the ball. If the player fails to throw the ball they will be out. Note: When the referee tells a player to throw the ball, the player cannot simply pass the ball to another team-mate or place the ball on the ground, the ball must cross the halfway line.
A team must not try to hoard all the balls. The referee may, at their discretion, redistribute the balls at any time to help provide a faster, free-flowing game.
Only the referee's whistle starts and stops the clock. If the referee blows the whistle to stop play, all balls are considered dead.
Substitutions can only be made in between games.
When a player is allowed to come back onto the court (e.g after a catch), they are not active in the game until they have crossed the outer boundary.

Dangerous High Throws

Players are forbidden from making throws that are aimed at a person's head. If a live ball hits the opposition in the head, they are not out, and the thrower will receive a warning.
If a player is ducking, crouching, or diving and they get hit in the head with the ball, then they are out, but the thrower should still apologize.
It is unsportsmanlike to aim a throw at someone's head when they are ducking, crouching, or diving.

Boundaries

During play, all players must remain in boundary lines unless it is to retrieve a ball - the boundaries are the outermost basketball lines and the halfway line.
A player retrieving a ball must immediately re-enter the playing field once having retrieved the ball.
Only one ball may be retrieved at a time.
The penalty for a boundary infringement is 'out'.
A player commits a boundary infringement if they:
1. Leave the playing field to avoid being hit or in an attempt to catch a live ball.
2. Have any part of their body in contact with the ground on their opponents' side of the court.

Equipment

The official ball used in league play will be balls approved by tournament/league officials.
The standard number of balls for a 12-player game is six.
Participants must wear non-marking closed shoes. No exceptions.
Sweatbands are recommended.

Waivers

All players must sign a waiver every season before playing their first game. The waiver can be found online, and must be printed off by the player. It is not the league official's responsibility to have waivers on hand at the venue.
Any player that subs in, even just for one game, must will out a waiver prior to playing.
The waiver outlines the league's liability and sportsmanship policies.

Forfeits

All teams are expected to be at the venue 10 minutes before their scheduled match time. The match will start at the discretion of the referee.
At match time, any team that does not have at least 4 players will forfeit the match - at the discretion of the referee.
If a team forfeits, they are required to pay the match fee before being allowed to play their next match.
If a team forfeits twice in a season, their status in the league will be under review.
If a team forfeits, the referee will organise a 'scratch match' to be played for the other team.
A forfeit is recorded as a 4 - 0 loss to the team that forfeited.

Rosters and Subs

A full team on the court consists of 6 players with a maximum of 4 males.
The minimum number of players required in order not to forfeit is 4 (at the discretion of the referee).
All players must have filled in registration forms and signed waiver before being allowed to play.
In the spirit of sportsmanship, when a team is struggling for numbers, captains are expected to replace players with a person of a similar skill level.
Teams may borrow players from teams that are playing before them (if they agree of course) on the condition that it is to increase your team to a maximum of 6 players. It is an unfair advantage if a team borrows players to bolster their line-up.
During finals, all participating players must have played at least 3 games of the regular season.

Finals

At the end of the regular season, the 4 highest placed teams on the ladder will play in the finals. The first week of finals will see 1st play 4th and 2nd play 3rd. The second week of finals will see the 2 winners from the semi-finals playoff to be Dodgeball Champions, while the 2 losers fight it out for 3rd and 4th spot.
For the teams that did not finish in the top 4 there will be Veggie Finals. The structure of the Veggie Finals will depend on the number of teams in the competition each season, but there will be a Veggie Champions match and a Wooden Spoon match.
Unless otherwise stated, all teams will participate in the Dodgeball Finals.