Before starting a game, the Minor Officials should make sure that there are at least three stop watches - one to track the main game time, and at least two to track penalty times when they occur.

Running the Game Timer

For the most part, games will be run straight time. The only time the clock will be stopped is when a time-out is called, or if the referee requests it, such as in the case of an injured player. In some instances, the referee will keep time on the field if there are not enough volunteers to help out in the timekeeper's box.

Where this role becomes important is when there is 30 seconds left in any given quarter or half (whichever is applicable). When this happens, the timekeeper will notify the referees on the field of this by saying, "Clock is on the field". Once this is done, the timekeeper will step on to the field and run alongside the nearest official - this will usually be the trail official when there are three referees, and, of course, the official on the bench side when there are only two referees working a game.

From this point, the timekeeper will notify the referee as to when there is 25 seconds, 20, 15, and then they will count down from 10, followed by saying "time" when time has elapsed.

Timing of Penalties

The biggest thing to remember when timing penalties is that the player's penalty will not start until they have entered the penalty area, they are sitting down, and the play has restarted. All of these criteria must be met, or their penalty time will not start.

It is the penalty timekeeper's responsibility to let the player know when they have 1 minute left, 30 seconds, and, similar to above, 25, 20, 15, 10, 5, and then count down as follows: "5, 4, 3, 2, 1, release". This lets the player know that they are released from the penalty area, and under no circumstances can they enter the playing field early. If this happens, the timekeeper should notify the referee of this, so he can penalize the player for an additional 30 seconds for illegal procedure.

If there is a player that is going to enter the play as a substitute for the penalized player, they can do this when there are 5 seconds left in the penalty. At that time, the substitute can go down on one knee in the exchange area, and once the penalty is done, he or she can step onto the field, while the penalized player will return to his player's bench.

Lastly, if any player has four personal fouls, the penalty timekeepr should notify one of the referees on the field, as that player will be ejected from the game upon committing a fifth personal foul.