RA Soccer League Annual Meeting – March 1 2006
Minutes of Meeting – Men’s Divisions

Called to order at 7:03 PM – Bytown A

In attendance;
Villains, Black Knights, Rovers, Wanderers, Stats 1 and 2, First Decendents, Finance, Benders, Muskoka, Apec Athletic, Seals, Knobs, Rams, CIDA , Ottawa Valley United, Bytown FC

The Divisions were reviewed and some adjustments were made with teams changing divisions. A Managers’ directory was circulated and all teams were asked to update the information. Steve requested that each team assign a secondary contact. Communication will be improved with more than one contact per team.

OSA Registration Forms
All teams were issued 15 OSA Player Registration Forms and Waivers. It is the responsibility to ensure that these forms are completed as quickly as possible and submitted to Steve Mitchell. Teams that do not complete forms for regular players before the start of the season will not be allowed to participate in RA games. It is very time consuming to enter these players in the IT Soccer net system, so it is important to submit well before the scheduled start of the season.

An RA Official Team Registration form was also included in the package. Team managers are encouraged to complete the form and submit as soon as possible.

2006 Fee structure was presented.
Much of the discussion pertained to the inclusion of RA Membership fees in the team entry. The 642.00 for memberships is based on 15 players. Teams that register more than the 15 players will be charged an additional 40.00 per player. If there are players who have previously purchased memberships, the player will be refunded once the roster and full team payment is submitted, and we establish the membership status of the individuals on the roster. The intent of adding the membership fees is to ensure that teams and players are abiding by the regulations that all participants in all leagues must have valid Association Memberships. 

Referees
Although the frequency of referee “no shows’ has been virtually eliminated, there was some sentiments from the floor that there are some sub standard officials. Are there options for assigning officials?

Steve Mitchell indicated that prior to the season individuals leagues select officials from a “pool” of referees. If there are officials who are deemed inadequate to offer services to RA it is simply a matter of not selecting them. The down side of this is the reduction of officials available to RA, which may lead to the potential of “no shows”

Game sheets and Rosters
Steve Mitchell stressed the need for each team to be diligent in preparing the nightly game sheet in a clear and timely manner. Managers are required to ensure that each player is marked legibly on the sheet, with a clear number indicated. This sheet must be available 15 minutes prior to the game and presented to the game official.

A question from the floor asked what policies were in place for teams using ineligible players from participating in the games without appearing on the game sheet. Is the official required to check cards before the game starts?

“Steve Mitchell” It is up to the opposing teams to ensure that the players participating in the games appear on the sheet. If it is established the there are ineligible players, the team will forfeit the results of the game. Referees are not required to ask for identification, unless they are challenged by one of the teams. RA Photo Cards will be required for all active team players. Failure to produce a photo card on a challenge shall deem the player or team ineligible for that game. Team representative are asked to be respectful of the League and adhere to the Bylaws and policies of the League in regard to illegal players.

Can individuals play on more than 1 team?

“Steve Mitchell” No – players can only be registered on 1 roster, and therefore can play for 1 team only. Players are assigned to teams and registered with OSA prior to the season.

Facility Concerns
There is overwhelming concerns from teams and players that Field # 1 is in poor condition during much of the season. Steve Mitchell indicated that this field gets the same maintenance attention as all other pitches, but the fact that it is used 3 times more than the other 2 fields creates these conditions. This field has 3 games per night on Tuesday Wednesday, and Thursday night, versus 1 game per night on Fields 2 and 3. Steve Mitchell will present these concerns to RA management for their consideration.

Meeting adjourned 8:50 PM