- These rules are to read in conjunction with the current USFA competition rules.
- Dates of Alliman Shields Competition
a) The first Sunday of every month of the year, except January, Mother’s Day, long weekends and major championships. Dates for the upcoming year are to be notified three (3) months prior to commencement. The year commences 1st January and completes 31st Where agreed, Allimans may be held in conjunction with major metro controlled events.
b) A notified date shall not include any date which has been allocated to another championship event except as in (a) above. It shall also not include any date which has been previously notified by any club as a veto date. Veto date must be notified to committee at least four (4) months prior to the upcoming competition year.
c) Alliman Shields must be held on the notified scheduled dates.
d) Allimans will start and finish at the following times
- January, February, March, April, May, June – 8am till 1.15pm
- July, August, September, October, November, December – 8am till 1.15pm
These times may vary only where an Alliman is conducted in conjunction with a major Metro controlled competition normally 8am till 2pm or as otherwise notified at the venue.
- Decisions to Postpone Alliman Championships
a) The zone committee may cancel an Alliman Shield on the grounds of safety as follows:-
i. By unanimous vote on the previous day of the scheduled date.
i.e. Saturday vote by 4pm.
Conditions must be extreme.
Club Presidents or their elected Delegates to record their safety officers votes to the Zone Sports Secretary for vote tally and decision.
Zone Sports Secretary to notify all Club Presidents of the decision.
ii. Where a unanimous decision cannot be reached, all clubs must attend the scheduled event where a further safety vote may take place.
b) The Safety Committee of the Zone by way of a unanimous vote may stop an Alliman Competition whilst the event is taking place.
c) Venues may not be changed on the day except with the absolute majority vote of the members.
- Duties of the Safety Committee
a) The Safety Committee of the zone must hold a safety meeting at any competition when requested to do so by any member or office holder or when they themselves consider it should be held. The Safety Committee comprises one (1) Safety Officer or nominated person from each attending club. Votes are one (1) per club.
b) The Zone Safety Committee will not ask for or take any notice of any members attempt to influence their decision on a club basis. The Zone President or Sports Secretary will request the committee to have a meeting with a view to making a safety ruling. The President will advise the committee of the latest weather forecast. No member is then to interfere or harass any safety officer in an endeavour to influence his or their decision. The decision to hold the competition must be by a majority In the case of a tied vote, the competition will be cancelled on the grounds of unsafe conditions.
- Grades & Categories
i. Categories shall include:
- Masters – 55 years of age and over
- Veterans – 45 years of age to under 55 years of age
- Seniors – 25 years of age to under 45 years of age
- Intermediate – 18 years of age to under 25 years of age
- Junior – 16 years of age to under 18 years of age
- Sub Junior – 15 years and under
Categories will remain unchanged during the competition year.
i.e., whatever category a competitor started in, remains.
ii. Grades shall be notified by the Sports Secretary as A, B, C, D grades.
- Sign On
a) All competitors must sign on at the competition venue in person prior to the scheduled start time.
b) Roll call will commence 10minutes prior to the scheduled start time. When roll call is complete the sports secretaries will rule a line underneath the last name on the respective clubs sign on sheet.
c) Any competitor who arrives after the completion of the sign on must personally enter the sign on ring and sign on to the sign on sheet underneath the line.
d) No one else can sign on late competitors.
e) If it is found that a competitor was signed on at the roll call whilst not present, they will be disqualified and their score removed from all individual, club scores and team scores if nominated.
Action may also be taken against the person who signed them on.
- Sign Off
a) Competitors must be in the weigh-in ring with their fish, at the end of the competition prior to the timekeeper notifying the end of the competition, they must then sign off without delay. In the case of a competitor’s boat breakdown, the boat towing or helping the broken down boat or any other boat or person requiring emergency assistance will not be penalised for such assistance. If assistance is given to boats or persons outside our sport, the assisting crew will have to verify such assistance was necessary and was the sole cause of their being late. This can be done on the day by bringing the persons to the weigh-in ring, or requesting them to attend the ring on the day, or by way of a statutory declaration to be supplied to the next Zone Meeting, by either the assisted persons, or visual witnesses to the event. The Zone Committee decision in this matter will be final.
b) In the case of a broken-down competitor’s boat giving their fish to another boat to return to the weigh-in ring, the assisting boat divers must be back in the ring with their own fish before the sign-off time. The divers must then notify the timekeeper that they have a broken down-boat’s fish aboard. They then have five (5) minutes to bring those fish to the ring to be weighed and credited to the broken-down boat’s divers.
c) The only persons authorised to declare divers late at the competition will be:-
i. The Zone Sports Secretary
ii. The club sports secretaries or nominee of both the captains of the day.
It is the diver’s own responsibility to see his fish in the ring, and his name is marked off as signed off. Official time will be notified by the timekeeper prior to competition start and on completion.
- Protests on Fish
i) Any financial member may protest against any fish weighed during a competition. The objection must be made whilst the fish is being weighed in and is still available. No fee is required. The Zone President or next highest office holder if the President is not present shall immediately convene a committee of enquiry to decide the matter. If the fish is rejected, the owner may appeal to the next full committee meeting. The remainder of the owner’s fish will be weighed and scored depending upon the full committee ruling regarding disqualification.
ii) Competitors are responsible to see that their fish are properly recorded by taking the spare score sheet, and must protest any discrepancy prior to their fish being removed or mixed up with other fish.
iii) All protests must be lodged prior to the weigh-in being completed.
- Voting Rights
Club votes at Zone Meetings will be decided by the number of registered financial AUF members of their clubs on the basis of one (1) vote for every five (5) such members. At such meetings only the President’s casting vote will apply in the event of a tied vote.
- Salt Water is not to be poured out of fish bins or other containers within the weigh-in area whilst in the weight-in ring.
- No club or outside raffle tickets will be sold in the ring at any Zone Championships and Allimans.
- In important matters voted on at Zone Meeting, the President may if he feels the vote does not reflect the member’s wishes, submit the matter to the members at the next zone competition following the Zone Meeting. The members vote in this matter will be binding on all zone members. The vote taken will be on the basis of one (1) vote for every financial member at the zone competition. The member’s decision will override the committee meeting if in conflict.
- Competitors are not permitted to enter the water prior to any competition, except to launch their boat. They may use a face mask to observe the visibility of the water, but not be fully immersed. They may also swim ashore and back to their boat when boats are anchored offshore at the weigh in venue.
- Fish scoring scales and minimum weights used on the score sheets or any other rule as set out in this document will not be altered during the course of a competition year unless ;
i. New Fisheries laws, minimum weights or lengths are implemented that apply to fish on the score sheet.
ii. Or at the final meeting for implementation at the commencement of the following year.
iii. Or if a safety issue requires a rule change to protect the members or public
- Captains of the day will appoint one (1) timekeeper each prior to the commencement of the event. Their decision at the final time will be final.
- A competitor will be directed to a set of scales on which to weigh his fish, and then will not be allowed to have his fish reweighed on any other scales.
- Membership
All divers must be financial members of the NSW USFA to compete in the Alliman Shield.
A new diver has until the next zone meeting to pay his NSW USFA membership if he has Competed in an Alliman competition without being financial.
If the membership is not paid by the next zone meeting after the competition the divers scores will be removed from all categories – individual, grades, age, teams and club scores.
Members transferring clubs during the financial year will not have their fish scored for their new club for a period of three (3) months, or the expiration of that competition year, whichever comes first.
- Fish not listed on the Sydney Score Sheets will be listed at the same scale as shown on the nearest zone which lists this fish, or as agreed at a Committee Meeting by a majority vote.
- Line Fishing
No person in any boat competing, will be allowed to line fish, net, or any other method, other than spearfishing underwater using snorkel. This includes non-competitors. Protests in this matter must be lodged as in 7 (iii) and paragraph 2 of Rule 23.
Penalty is disqualification of all competitors in the offending boat.
- All Alliman Shield and Metro Zone events will be started from a controlled boat start, away from the immediate start / finish beach, and considering factors such as moorings, speed restrictions etc.
- Use of torches in Alliman competitions is not allowed.
- (i) Competitors who are late back shall not have their fish recorded except for boats giving proven emergency assistance (see Clause 6(a).
(ii) Competitors will have their lowest score of the year dropped from the aggregate score when the year’s final positions are being decided.
The lowest score dropped includes one only ‘non attendance day’ or ‘late back day’. So the dropped score will be either:-
- Lowest score where all events attended
- One late back score where all events attended
- One non attended where all other events attended
Cancelled competitions will not count in dropped scores, however, where more than three (3) events are cancelled; the dropped score rule will not apply.
Any disqualification other than ‘late back’ will not count as a dropped competition score. i.e. disqualification and lowest score will be dropped.
- Fish Cleaning
No competitor shall discard parts of cleaned fish at any venue or boat ramp unless cleaning facilities are used. Whole fish must not be discarded in any public area. Any breach to this rule is disqualification of all persons involved. Protests must be lodged as soon as possible.
- Banned Areas
No diving competitor is allowed to swim within a banned area during any competition or otherwise. Such person if found guilty will be disqualified. Any boat found with divers/swimmers within banned areas will be disqualified. That means every competitor within such boat.
Any person wishing to protest other competitors diving in banned areas must go over and notify the offending diver/boat captain and inform them that a protest is going to be lodged. The protestor must then identify the boat, location and persons in the banned area. Protests in this matter must be lodged as in 7 (iii).
Rumours or non compliance with protests will not be considered.
- Safety
Safety Rules are set out in the NSW SFA accreditation information pack and all rules are to be abided by all at all times. Clubs should have the information packs available for their members.
- Burlying
Burly must only be used by the individual competitor whilst in the water during the competition. Burly can only be obtained by using scoresheet listed fish speared on the day. i.e. No pre-purchased bait or otherwise to be used. No unlisted fish to be used. No crustacean, shellfish, urchins or other to be used.
Penalty is disqualification of the offender for the day involved.
27.Awareness of the Dive Flag – safety protests
i. A dive boat not displaying the ‘diver below’ flag must produce said flag upon request. If unable to comply, all divers in that boat are disqualified. Protest must be made by the conclusion of weigh in at the sign on area.
ii. Boat Flag must be displayed by dive boat as soon as a diver is in the water, boat crew is given one chance on this only for the day of competition.
iii. A diver who has a float flag that is not displayed for the good of their own safety, (safety meaning – the flag attached to float and is above the float and water line visible for drivers of vessels to see), or has attempted to fly a flag and misplaced it during the course of competition, will immediately return to their boat (shore if rock hopper) once they are aware of this detail. If said diver does not make headway back to their conveyance to either rectify the detail or to sit out the remainder of the competition, upon protest that diver will have cause for disqualification by Zone Committee.
iv. When Dive Flags are sighted in the area of a travelling boat, caution is to be displayed. Boat driver is to reduce speed and take a head count matching number of divers to floats. If not matched up, boat driver to place boat in neutral immediately, once heads are matched to floats then boat driver may proceed.
If dive boat has been deemed by witnesses not to adhere to the above (iii), they will have cause for disqualification by Zone Committee upon protest by these witnesses.
- Any competitor who is caught in the weigh in ring or at the competition venue(including in their boat ), with an undersized fish, breaks any bag limits or other fisheries regulations as determined by NSW fisheries laws and regulations will be disqualified from the competition on the day. Depending on the severity of the offence further penalties may be applied.