A. Team rankings within the Competition will be decided by points with three points to be awarded for a win and one point for a drawn Competition Match. The Teams gaining the highest number of points in their respective divisions at the end of the Playing Season shall be adjudged the winners. Competition Matches must not be played for double points.
In the event of two or more Teams being equal on points at the end of the Playing Season, rankings shall be determined by the following criteria, in the order of priority they appear: (NB: for Regional NLS Feeder Leagues criteria 1 & 2 are mandatory: for all other Competitions they are optional):
1 Goal difference (where the goals scored against each Team shall be deducted from the goals scored by that Team with the most favourable goal difference shall be placed highest).
2 In the event of two or more Teams being equal, the Team which has scored the most goals during the Playing Season shall be placed highest.
3 In the event of two or more Teams being equal, the Team that has won the most matches during the Playing Season shall be placed highest.
4 In the event of two or more Teams being equal, the Team which has the better playing record against the other Team in their head to head Competition Matches during the Playing Season will be placed highest.
5 One-off fixture or play-off games as determined by the League management committee.
B. Automatic promotion shall be applied for and relegation shall be applied to all Divisions, unless the Management Committee decides otherwise due to circumstances peculiar to a Division.
Notwithstanding the above, the Secretary of any Club with a Team completing the season in a relegation position may write to the Secretary requesting the Teams continuance in the same Division for the following season, should a vacancy occur. Such decisions shall be made by the Secretary and ratified by the Management Committee.
i. Should one or more Teams withdraw from any one division after the Playing Season has commenced an equal number of Teams to those withdrawing in that division shall not be automatically relegated.
ii. Vacancies occurring after the conclusion of the Playing Season may be filled in any of the following ways:
1. retention of otherwise relegated Team(s);or
2. additional promotion of the next ranked Team(s) from the division below; or
3. election.
iii. The last Two Teams in the lowest division shall retire, but be eligible for re-election except as below, and be subject to the conditions of Rule22 (B) (i) above.
iv. When a senior Team is relegated to a lower division of which its reserve Team is a member, or entitled to be a member, such reserve Team must accept relegation to, or retain its position in, the next lower division; and should the senior Team be relegated to the lowest division its reserve Team automatically retires from the Competition.
v. Should either or both of the leading Teams in any of the divisions have its senior Team in the next higher division, promotion shall fall, at the discretion of the General Meeting, to the next highest Team or Teams in the division concerned.
C .In addition to the team(s) automatically promoted under Rule 22(B) a maximum of one further team shall be promoted by virtue of being a winner of a play-off match or series of matches (the play-offs).
D. In the event of a Team withdrawing from the Competition before completing 75% of its fixtures for the Playing Season all points obtained by or recorded against such defaulting Team shall be expunged from the Competition table. For the purposes of this Rule 22(D) a completed fixture shall include any Competition Match (es) which has been awarded by the Management Committee