RULE OF THE WEEK

SUBJECT: Rule of the Week – Captains Armbands

Dear Members,

On behalf of the Committee and Officials we thank you for your attention over the past few weeks during the brief pre-match talk from the Referees.

It has been important to emphasise some of the rules and also to cut down on many of the unsavoury incidents which had been occurring in matches.

The results have been extremely positive and show the strategy is very successful with players and officials gaining a better understanding of the Over 35s rules and a huge reduction in the volume of abuse and dissent.

Overall it is providing a more pleasant and enjoyable experience for Players and Officials.

Next on the Agenda is the introduction of armbands for Team Captains/Leaders which will be handed out by the Referees during this weeks matches.

The objectives of this policy are:

• Team Captains/Leaders can be easily identified by Referees
• Team Captains/Leaders to take more responsibility for the behaviour of their own players (calming situations, control of players attitudes)
• Adopt a strategy similar to Rugby where the Team Captain/Leader takes any concerns about decisions etc direct to the Referee rather than a frustrated player (or players) yelling and shouting and getting a Yellow or Red card for dissent

This will take the ‘heat’ out of a situation and give the Referee an opportunity to explain decisions to the Team Captain/Leader for him to pass on to his team members.

As not all Players have the opportunity to read ‘Rule of the Week’ the Referees will provide a short explanation to all players before games this week.

Let’s keep enjoying the game!