SUMMARY OF LEAGUE MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEETING 30TH JULY 2020
Summary of League Management Committee Meeting 30th July 2020
The 2020/21 Season is likely to look and feel very different due to COVID-19. With this in mind the following matters were discussed and decisions made on Thursday night.
Cup Competitions 2019/20
The one outstanding Quarter Final and all the remaining known Semi Finals from last season will be played on 12th September 2020. If any team cannot play on this date then the fixture will be awarded to their opponents, unless the fixture is postponed by the League or the FA. This could happen in a local Lockdown scenario.
We have been having discussions with our friends at Aveley FC and Bowers & Pitsea FC and we are still hoping to stage the Finals at their grounds. We are aiming to start the Finals on Tuesday 6th October 2020 and finish by Tuesday 17th November 2020 at the very latest. We hope to be able to confirm exact dates once the Isthmian League fixtures are released.
Player Eligibility 2019/20 Cup Semi Finals and Finals
Usually players must have played three Essex Veterans League Competition games during the season in order to play in our Cup Semi Finals or Finals. Due to the current situation and the delay in completing the Cups the following eligibility criteria will apply:
1) Players must have been registered for the Club to play in the League for the 2019/20 season and be registered for the Club to play in the League in the 2020/21 season
2) Players must NOT have played for any other team in an Essex Veterans League Cup 2019/20 Competition.
Teams are reminded they must submit the proposed squad to the Registration Secretary 72 hours before the kick off so we can check eligibility.
Hospitality
As you are aware Hospitality is a very important part of the League ethos and is expected to be provided to opponents after games. We appreciate for some Clubs attracting players into the Club Bar after the game is an important part of Club finances, we also appreciate other Clubs are totally dependent on the Pubs they use for what is provided.
Whilst the current COVID situation continues the League are going to leave Clubs to decide what they want/can offer as hospitality. We do ask that when confirming games you advise your opponents whether or not you can offer hospitality and what that will take the form of please. The opponents should also confirm whether they will be accepting the offer if made and a rough idea of the number of players likely to stay after the game. This is to aid planning. Please remember that current Government advice, means that food cannot be shared so it has to be served as individual portions, you cannot have the usual communal bowl of chips etc.
Follow the Government/FA Advice
The League will be following the Government/FA advice and we encourage all Clubs to do the same. The Government/FA have deemed it safe to play park football providing we all follow the guidelines. We would ask all Clubs to do the same, it is particularly important anyone attending the game if they have a new persistent cough, a high temperature or a new loss of taste or smell, at all they do NOT go to the game, they must self-isolate for ten days. Please encourage players to miss one or two games rather than have the whole League shut down for months.
We are very lucky that Simon Marshall, our Discipline Secretary, his job involves provided advice and assessing that premises/businesses are COVID secure. Simon has very kindly offered to provide advice/support to any member Club with their risk assessments.
First Aid Kits
As part of our policy of returning money to Clubs, the League have purchased basic First Aid Kits for every team in the League for the 2020/21 season. These were going to be distributed at the AGM. We are currently working on plans for us to get these to you.
Failure to Fulfil Fixtures Policy 2020/21
We will be operating the same policy as last season as this appeared to strike the balance between playing fixtures and not allowing the flexibility to be abused to ensure “star strikers” were available for games. Confirmation of details will be sent out just prior to the start of the season.