Cheltenham League Meetings

CHELTENHAM ASSOCIATION FOOTBALL LEAGUE

Minutes of the Management Committee Meeting at the Victory Club Cheltenham on Wednesday 24th November 2004 at 7-15pm

Attendees: G Cook, J Crowther, R Attwood, N Oram, L Fisher, A.Stiley, T Onions, J Hunt,
P Newcombe, P Tustain, B Hill.

Apologies: D Barrett

Minutes of the meeting held on Wednesday the 27th October2004 were read and accepted, with the addition of the fact that Mr Arthur Stiley had sent his apologies for his absence from the meeting.

Matters Arising.
Appeal by Prestbury Rovers against the fine imposed by the Management Committee at the last meeting for a breach of rule 10b - No first aid kit. Prestbury Rovers state that they did have a first aid kit at the match in question, which was a Senior Charity Cup match on Saturday, 16th October, and that at no time did the Referee at this match ask to see it or inspect it. The only explanation they can offer is that they only had 12 players for this match, which meant that the only substitute acted as linesman. This could have meant that if stoppages occurred when the linesman was on the opposite side of the pitch to the first aid kit, it would not have been brought onto the pitch and could have given the impression that it was absent. The match in question was Prestbury Rovers v Shipton Oliffe in the Senior Cup, refereed by R.Morris.
Given the contents of Prestbury Rovers letter, the Management Committee felt that it had no option but to rescind the fine imposed on Prestbury Rovers and to return the appeal fee in full. Arthur Stiley, the referees secretary, was asked to reiterate to the League's referees the fact that clubs should be informed at the time if they are to be reported for a supposed transgression of League rules.

Management Committee Vacancies

There had been two applications to fill the two vacancies on the League Management Committee. These had been received from Glenn Morrison, Secretary of Newton Heath FC, and Bob Overington, Secretary of Hatherley Rangers FC. A Sub Committee comprising the League Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer had met with the two applicants on Thursday, 18th November and minutes from this meeting had been distributed to all members of the League Management Committee. It was recommended by the sub committee that both candidates be elected to the Management Committee. It was proposed by John Crowther and seconded by Bob Attwood that the recommendation of the Sub committee be accepted and that both Glenn Morrison and Bob Overington be co-opted onto the League Management Committee. This was agreed unanimously

Correspondence:

Email from Bredon relating to their third teams Div 4 game against Smiths on October 30th. This fixture was due to be played at Bredon but was moved to Smiths when the wet weather caused the pitches at Bredon to be declared unplayable. Bredon were of the opinion that this game was a switch and that Smiths had become the home side. Smiths held that this was not a switch and that Bredon were using Smiths facilities for Bredon's home match and expected Bredon to meet the match expenses accordingly. The reason given by Smiths for this was that it was to avoid problems with the fixtures later in the season.
Email from Smiths Athletic relating to their Div 4 game against Bredon. This states that the game on October 30th was switched to Smiths because of Bredon's pitch being unplayable and that there is some confusion as to whose home game it was! The Bredon manager left early so the Smiths manager paid the ref but assumed that it was a Bredon home match so he didn't ring in the result. Smith's secretary did ring in the result, just in case, but rang in late. As far as Smiths are concerned, they did Bredon a favour that day and switched the game to ensure it was played. After the game, Smiths Secretary spoke to Bredon secretary who thought that the game was Smiths home game but agreed to reimburse Smiths cost of Referee and pitch - total £45 - if the league is in agreement.
After a brief debate, it was decided that the game played on Saturday October 30th, 2004, should be deemed to be Smiths Athletic's home game and that the return fixture would be Bredon's home match. The gratitude of the League was extended to both clubs for the efforts they had made to get the game played and as a consequence of this, it was decided that neither side should be charged for the late reporting of the result

Email from Tewkesbury Dynamos relating to the cancellation of their Division 5 match against Northleach Town Reserves on Saturday, 30th October. In this email, Tewkesbury Dynamos express their dismay at the lack of communication from Northleach on a day that saw Northleach travel to Cheltenham collectively in a bus that broke down just outside Cheltenham. Nothing was heard from Northleach by Tewkesbury Dynamos after approx 2.30 pm when a call to the Tewkesbury Dynamos alternative contact alerted him to the fact that Northleach were having difficulties. At this stage, Northleach thought that repairs would be effected and that the kick-off would have to be delayed. Tewkesbury gave up waiting for Northleach at 3.45 pm. Tewkesbury Dynamos believe that they are due an apology from Northleach Town for the inconvenience caused. A further email detailed information relating to the Northleach Town 1st team match at Bishops Cleeve the same afternoon
Email from Northleach Town apologising for their failure to arrive for their Division five fixture with Tewkesbury Dynamos on October 30th and detailing the circumstances that lead to their non arrival at Staverton
After considering this matter, the League decided that Northleach Town would be charged with breaking a fixture under the provisions of rule 10(f). It was agreed that the club was guilty of this charge and that a fine of £15 would be imposed but that no points would be deducted from Northleach Town Reserves. Northleach Town were thanked for their apology for the incident but the League expressed its hope that this apology would be extended to Tewkesbury Dynamos.

Email from Jo Herbert of Bourton Rovers registering her unhappiness at the fact that a fine was waived against St Marks for the late reporting of a County Cup result that went to penalties when Bourton were fined in similar circumstances.
The meeting noted the sentiments expressed by the Secretary of Bourton Rovers but felt that the League had not in a position to deal with this matter in the same way as St Marks as it had not been in possession of information that would have prompted this. As the communication from Bourton Rovers was not an appeal, the matter was not progressed further.

Email from Smiths Athletic requesting the rearrangement of their second team and third team games on Saturday, 26th March (Easter Saturday) but asking that their fourth team game on the same day be left unaltered. Also requesting the rearrangement of their 4th team game on Saturday, 2nd April due to a wedding.
In reference to rule 10(f), which provides that clubs with more than one team in the competition must fulfil their fixture obligations on a hierarchical basis, from the highest team down, the Management Committee agreed that if Smiths Athletic required the cancellation of two games on Easter Saturday, that this should be allowed but that it should be the 3rd & 4th team games which should be cancelled to leave just the second team game.

Email from Smiths Athletic giving preliminary details of a tournament that they are planning to run in memory of Peter Jurd. This tournament will be either 11-a-side or 6-a-side and will be run in aid of Winston's Wish, which was Peter's favourite Charity. The email seeks the permission of the Cheltenham League and Peter's widow, Anita, to go ahead and organise the event.
Return email from Anita Goodier expressing her delight at this proposal and the fact that she is sure that Peter would have loved the idea.
The League Management Committee welcomed this initiative with the provision that it should be held outside of the League Season to ensure maximum entry and minimum disruption

2 Emails from Cleevonians relating to the postponement of their match with Cheltenham Civil Service IV, which had been due to take place on Saturday, November 20th at Swindon Village playing fields. This game was postponed at 12.10 pm by referee Ken Perry. They state that they didn't ring details of the postponement through to the league because Mr Perry said that he would do this for them. They claim that 2 months is not long enough to have become acquainted with the rules. They also suggest that when the league's results spoke to the their secretary, Mrs Dorothy New, he was very abrupt and to the point with her and then put the phone down on her. They apologise to the league for not phoning details of the postponement through but ask that Mr Les Fisher also apologises for his abrupt manner on the phone.
Submission from Mr Les Fisher relating to the incident referred to by Cleevonians in which he reported that he had been verbally abused by an officer of Cleevonians during the course of a telephone call on the evening of Saturday, November 20th, 2004.
The League noted that the Referee, Mr Ken Perry, had indeed informed the Referees secretary that the game in question had been postponed. Mr Stiley was asked to stress to the Referee's community that they should not be taking on these responsibilities or handing out advice to clubs in such circumstances. After a consideration of the details of this matter, the Management Committee decided that Cleevonians should not be charged with the late reporting of the postponement of the match or with any other matter relating to it. However, the Committee did hold the matter of the verbal abuse to a League Official to be a serious matter and it was decided that Cleevonians should be charged in accordance with rule 5(h) - failing to satisfactorily attend to the business of the competition. Cleevonians FC was found to be guilty of this offence, which carried a penalty to be fixed at the Committee's discretion. This was set at £10 and the club were also issued with a warning as to their future conduct.

Fixtures:

The Assistant Secretary of the League, Mr John Hunt, reported that 60 matches had been rearranged for a variety of reasons over the course of the last month, although most of these had been in response to postponements or because of continued involvement in County Cup competitions. 13 games remained outstanding following postponements on November 20th and these would be rescheduled as soon as possible. All clubs were providing a rapid response via email to notification of fixture changes. It was reported that there were now no games scheduled for Saturday 25th December of Saturday 1st January.
A reminder was issued that the kick off for Charity Cup games in December and January is 1.45 pm

Rule Offences:
The Following clubs have been fined in accordance with rule 5h for the late payment of invoices: Fine £15: Falcons, invoice number 93 for £5.00, Naunton Park, invoice number 92 for £5.00, Charlton Rovers, invoice number 85 for £15.00, Rowanfield United, invoice number 81 for £10.00

The Following club has been fined in accordance with rule 5h for the failure to satisfactorily attend to the business of the League: Fine £10: Cleevonians

The following clubs have been fined in accordance with rule 10b - late start
Home Club: 23/10/2004 Charlton Kings: fine £7.50
Away Club: 23/10/2004 Tewkesbury YMCA: Fine £5.00

The following clubs have been fined in accordance with rule 10f - postponement. Fine £15
30/10/2004 - Div 5 Northleach Town

The following clubs have been fined in accordance with rule 11a - Result Cards. Fine £5 for each offence:
No Score: 23/10/04 Div 1 - Northway (5-5), 30/10/04 Div 1 Northway (3-3)
No Referee Details 23/10/2004 - Div 1 Northway ( R.Morris), 30/10/2004 - Div 1 Northway
(S.Jacques)
No teams stated: 30/10/04 Div 2 - Moreton Rangers
No referee's Marks: 13/11/04 Div 1 - Northway
Incorrect Result: 13/11/04 Div 1 - Tewkesbury YMCA stated YMCA 5 Northway 0 when other way round

The following clubs have been fined in accordance with rule 11b - failure to phone in a result. Fine £10: 30/10/2004 - Div 5 Stanton. 06/11/2004 County Cup: Winchcombe Town, Northway (result phoned at 5.30 pm) Charlton Kings, Tewkesbury Dynamos, Finlay Rovers, Tewkesbury YMCA, Newton Heath. 20/11/2004 - Div 2 Bredon (no details of postponement), Div 3 Finlay Rovers, Div 4 Bredon (no details of postponement) Div 5 Cheltenham Saracens.

The following clubs have been fined in accordance with rule 11c - No Result Card. Fine £10: 23/10/2004 - Div 1 Hatherley Rangers, 30/10/2004 - Div 1 Hatherley Rangers. 06/11/2004 - Div 5 Northleach Town

The following clubs have been fined in accordance with rule 11f - no teamsheet. Fine £10.00 23/10/2004 - Div 4 Bredon III, Hi Tech Rangers, 30/10/2004 - Div 5 Cheltenham Civil Service 06/11/2004 - Div 3 Northway, Phoenix United, Div 5 Northleach Town, 13/11/2004 - Div 4 Belmore Jags Res, Tewkesbury YMCA Res. 20/11/2004 - Div 5 Cheltenham Saracens

The Following clubs have been fined in accordance with rule 13c - No Assistant Referee: Fine £5.00: 23/10/2004 - Div 5 Elmbridge OB, 30/10/2004 - Div 4 Hatherley Rangers, 13/11/2004 - Div 2 Brockworth Albion

The Following clubs have been fined in accordance with o rule 13J - No referee's Card: Fine £5.00: 06/11/2004 - Div 3 Phoenix United (Card arrived late), Div 5 Northleach Town, 13/11/2004 - Div 4, Belmore Jags, 20/11/2004 - Div 5 Cheltenham Saracens

Any Other Business:
The Chairman reported that it had come to his attention that the GFA seemed to have discontinued the scheme under which bouquets of flowers were sent to the widows of former officers. Mr Cook felt that, if this was the case, the league should take on this responsibility in instances in which former officers of the Cheltenham League were concerned. This was agreed. It was also agreed that this matter should be left to the Chairman.

Mr Les Fisher, in his capacity of Results secretary, reported that a lot of Referee's cards were being submitted without teamsheets. It was noted that the majority of the cards were bereft of any indication as to whether or not this was because the sheets hadn't been handed in. It was agreed that another reminder about the use of Results Cards be inserted on the next League Newsletter and that the League Referee's secretary should also pass the message on to the refereeing community.

Mr Fisher also reported that he had received a Referee's card from the referee for a match at Prestbury playing fields on Saturday, 20th November that had been postponed by the groundsman at 2.05 pm. On this card, the referee was claiming £8 fee and expenses. It was agreed that the league would pay this fee

Mr Arthur Stiley reported that the referee for the postponed Gas Green match at Agg Gardners on Saturday, 20th November, was claiming £7 expenses. It was agreed that the payment of this amount was the responsibility of Gas Green FC

Mr Stiley also brought the meetings attention to a list of amendments to referee's details with which he had furnished the General Secretary. It was agreed that these changes should feature in the next newsletter.

Mr John Crowther pointed out that players would be liable to a caution if they lifted their shirts over their heads on the field of play irrespective of whether or not they actually removed the garment. This was noted

Mr Crowther also reminded the meeting that players are not allowed to be present on the field of play with bloodstained kit, even if the source of the bleeding had been stemmed

Mr Stiley reported that he had received a report on a referee, who had been awarded a mark of two in a recent match, from a person who was other than the relevant club's secretary. It was agreed that a reminder would be placed on the latest newsletter reminding clubs that the league always deals with Club Secretaries in the first instance.

Mr Les Fisher reported that, following incidents the previous Saturday, his offices would be closed from 5.30 pm on match days. This gave an extra 15 minutes to clubs to ring results through late.

The Chairman extended his greetings for the season to all officers and clubs of the Cheltenham League.

NEXT MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEETING WEDNESDAY 5th JANUARY 2005
COMMENCING AT 7-15 PM

For your Diary the remaining meeting dates are:,
2005 Jan 26th, Feb 23rd, Mar 30th, April 27th, May 25th.
CLUB MEETINGS: 26th JANUARY 2005.
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING JUNE 8TH 2005.