DSSC

Dynamic Sport & Social Club Official Inner-Tube Water Polo Rules

All players MUST sign a waiver release form either online or hand written in order to play Inner Tube Water Polo. NO EXCEPTIONS!! While every effort is made to make this a safe experience, we are dealing with water and there is more potential for injury/death in a pool environment.

  1. Six players from each team play at a time (at least 2 women per team). The officials must be alerted on a dead ball before all substitutions. One player must exit before another player may join. If one team is found to have more than 6 players, the other team will get the ball.
  2. Players must sit in the tube with arms and legs hanging outside. You may hold the ball in your lap or in your hands. A player may not touch the ball if they are outside their tube.
  3. Play starts by lining up on the sides of the pool. The official will blow the whistle and toss the ball into the center of the pool. Players may push off the walls to try to get to the ball first.
  4. Each game consists of two 20-minute halves of running time and a 3 minute half time. In the event of a tie, there will be a sudden death over time.
  5. A ball thrown out of play will be awarded to the opposite team.
  6. After a goal, play begins with a throw from the goalie in the same style as basketball.

Team Requirements

  1. A team consists of 9-12 players. Teams must have a minimum of 3 women on their roster.
  2. Teams may play a legal game with a minimum of 4 players, although 6 is the maximum. In the event a team has only 1 female, they may play short handed, but will forfeit if they have no women present to play.

Equipment

  1. Dynamic will provide inner tubes, balls, and tape to distinguish players. Each team must use the same color tube for all players.
  2. Players playing in the first game will need to blow up their own tube and players in the last game will need to deflate their tubes.
  3. NO JEWELRY is allowed, period.

Substitutions

  1. A team must notify the official of all substitutions. No player may enter the pool without first asking for a sub.
  2. Teams may substitute:
    1. After a goal
    2. Out of bounds
    3. During time outs
    4. Upon injury

Length of Game and Timing

  1. Each half will be 20 minutes in length with a continuous running clock. Half time will be 3 minutes with both teams exchanging ends afterwards.
  2. Each team is allowed one 30-second time out per game.
  3. Ties will result in a sudden death over time which is GOLDEN GOAL

Rules Clarifications

  1. Free throws are awarded for violations from the point of interest (and behind) the spot of infraction. During a free throw, the offense has 5 seconds to pass the ball to a teammate and the pass may not be guarded. The defense must be at least 3 feet away from the thrower. Goals may not be scored from free throws.
  2. Goalies may not leave their tubes to stop shots. If this occurs and the shot is unsuccessful, the player who shot initially is awarded the ball and the goalie issued a warning. 3 Repeated offenses will result in a penalty shot.
  3. Goals are awarded only when the entire ball crosses the goal line. A player who shoots must remain in their tube until the ball crosses the goal line to count, otherwise it will be no goal.
  4. After a goal, the goalie will retrieve the ball and may play it upon retrieval.
  5. A team may only have one designated goalie and a foul will be called if the referee deems more than 1 goalie is in the net area.
  6. Players may not hold the ball under water, but may push it on top of the water.
  7. Players may not be stationary with a ball for more than 5 seconds. If this occurs, a free throw is issued to the opposing team for delay of game.
  8. Any player falling out of their inner tube may not influence the game in any way until getting back in in a legal manner.
  9. You may not contact any player at any time. You may hold a player’s tube to prevent them from moving, but only if they have the ball. A player may push a player’s tube to move them at any time.
  10. If two opposing players have possession of the ball, the referee will determine who got to the ball last, and award it to that team for a free throw.

Fouls and Misconduct

  1. 1. Players may not push, hit, dunk, or tackle any other players with or without the ball. This is a NON-CONTACT sport. If a player is in control of the ball, the PLAYER may not be touched except for incidental contact. Excessive contact will result in a penalty shot and the fouling player’s ejection from the game. Further action including being kicked out of the league may occur if the foul is deemed excessive.
  2. 2. POWER PLAY: A power play occurs for every 3 fouls a team commits. During a power play, the player who committed the 3rd foul is sent out of the pool for 2 minutes. At the end of two minutes, during the first stoppage of play, the player may come back into the pool. Any player may come in after the power play, not just the player who committed the foul.
  3. 3. A technical foul is a non-contact foul by a player for any behavior deemed by the Official to be unsportsmanlike. A player that receives an unsportsmanlike technical foul will be ejected. A penalty shot will be awarded and any player in the pool at the time of the foul may take it. We are here to have FUN, so don’t be “that guy.”

Playoffs and Scoring

The top 4 teams will play in the end of season playoff tournament based on points. A regular season win =3 points, ties=1 point and a loss=no points. A tie at the end of regulation results in sudden death overtime which is GOLDEN GOAL, but will not last more than 5 minutes. If a tie after overtime occurs in the playoffs, a 3-person shootout will occur in traditional shoot out format.

In the event of a 2-way tie, the standard tie-break rules for DynamicSSC will take effect. Visit our policy section for more info.

HAVE FUN OUT THERE!!