U16 Cup Farce

[The One]

Hi Apollo,

The competition is a 2009 competition, which normally means that the players competing would be required to be 15 or younger on the 1st January 2009.

The WFAI/FAI "clarified" a rule that doesn't exist to allow players who were aged 16(or over) play in the 2009 competition.


Aside: I heard that Raheny put in a protest against Stella after the semi-final. Anyone hear what happened?

[The Chosen One]

Yeh T.O.Raheny protested against Stella as they discovered that Stella had registered 9 players from their 16's up to Premier DWSL in May for the 2009 season.They played in the Prem league and the Senior Cup before the U16 Cup started...so in my estimation that makes them 17 and registered Premier players the Rules are very specific in this regard no Premier DWSL players can play in any other competition other than the Senior Cup........Raheny lost the protest.FAI ruled that Senior players are ok and that Stella are properly registered to play in 16's Cup...I give up:(:(

[The Chosen One]

This mean that a players who turned 16yrs of age in 2008 can play u16 in 2009?

Is this a Winter league or did the competition begin on or after the 1st Jan 2009?

Just to clarify the league / cup situtation for you. DWSL league started in Sept 2008 with players born in 1992 eligible to play in the u16 section.This league was due to finish in May 09.Players born in 1992 were eligile to play in the National cup which started in May 08 and finished Sept 08.Traditionally the National Cup competition signals the begining of the season therefore players born in 1993 and younger qualify for the 2009 u16 cup and the following seasons league up to May 2010.Not the 2010 Cup.
The WFAI/FAI decided to allow players who turned 16 in 2008 to play in 2009 cup.The Stella keeper for example will be aged 17 years and 7 months next Sunday when she plays in the U16 Cup final.In Feb she will be 18.

[BBB In a sui]

The WFAI/FAI decided to allow players who turned 16 in 2008 to play in 2009 cup.The Stella keeper for example will be aged 17 years and 7 months next Sunday when she plays in the U16 Cup final.In Feb she will be 18.
:D:D:D

Not entering an under 11 team in the 7 a side competiton. As we have had enough expense and hardship with older grades in this competition. Will be having a vote at AGM as what to do next year. Looks unlikely we will enter any teams, as these competitons have no creditability.

[The Chosen One]

I think we have to wait and see what the WFAI/FAI descision makers do regarding next years competitions.They are now compelled to continue with the age policy implemented this year i.e. next year U14 Cup for 1995's and U16 Cup for 1993's. If there are any age changes we should boycott all FAI organised competitions at all ages and canvas every club in the country to ensure we make them understand we will not stand for their incompetence any more.

[olegunnar]

Some how i reckon a national cup that no-one else entered apart from Stella Maris, would still be allowed go ahead!!

And they'd be happy enough with that too.

Stella for club of the yr

[The Chosen One]

Congrats to a wonderful Stella team on their victory in todays final.They managed to beat Killala 3-0 to secure a much needed national title.I'm sure they will celebrate long into the evening and their humility in victory will be unmatched.Congratulations also to the FAI/WFAI on a very successful cup campaign well organised, fair and consistant in its findings throughout.:D:D:D We, the rest of womens football applaud you both.

[BBB In a sui]

The only consolation for Killala is that most/all of their team are underage next year, that is if the w/fai run with this years age groups.

[The One]

FAI U16's Challenge Cup


Stella Maris U18's 3 - 0 Killala U16's

is that the official result?

[The Chosen One]

Hi The One.Yep its official Stella Champs......3-0 same team looking forward to defending the cup again next year same players too of course.:eek:

[4goodsport]

Sorry Chosen one I do believe Stella & Joey's will enter their Adult team next year, getting the rules amended mid stream. They may possibly even try an Adult mens team as they may find another loophole ...

[The Chosen One]

:D:DNow that you mention it I'm not sure that there is a rule that says you have to be female to take part so you could be correct mixed cup format next season another novel idea from the FAI

[The One]

Did ny1 see de Star Footie supplement 2day?....

...I cudn't blieve it...Stella every where.......all positive reports and not one mention of the hassle ovr de Sumr.....and a plea for an U17/U18 age group to facilitate Stella's players!!!!


I'm VERY close to giving up on Womens football in this country.....incredibly frustrated at the moment.....

[The One]

please see attached if you haven't had the pleasure of reading any of The Star articles......


I'm getting more and more frustrated and angry by the minute....:mad::mad::mad:

[The One]

please see attached if you haven't had the pleasure of reading any of The Star articles......


I'm getting more and more frustrated and angry by the minute....:mad::mad::mad:
Due to restrictions on attachments sizes I had to remove attachement. If you would like to read it, please send me a message(incl. your e-mail address and I'll send it on)

[Acornvilla]

longford town won the u14 with a proper underage team (my sisters play) they have some very good players they pass the ball around and dont just kick it away and play long balls like most players their age watch out for them next ywar there entering the u16 with a team of mainly 14-15 year olds

[BBB In a sui]

I sent email to one F in Foley from The Star ........with a link to this page.....Here is his reply

Thx, er, P for your e-mail, it is an interesting read.

Hovvever, I might just point out that the article I vvrote had a different agenda, the lack of football for girls vvho finish in their late teens but simply aren't capable of competing at adult level. To lose them to sport at vulnerable age is a social shame.

The big sin as I see it, is that this is an area vvhere the FAI have a moral responsibity as do the Government.

The first named vvould rather spend their money on a disgusting 'elitism' policy (eg lots of money for the 30 best UI3 schoolboys and nothing for anyone in I3B football or for another instance, lots of (avvay) under-age internationals and very little for the ordinary kid vvho just likes playing).

As I say, your UI6 Cup saga is an interesting read and I am avvare of the rift but my vievv is that unless Ladies/VVomens football can co-ordinate and report to the one body, you vvill have compromise rules through competitions. VVhat you have at most is a patchy confederation.

And vvhile I can't point a finger through this medium, most vvould recognise vvhich parts of the overall tend to have a selfish agenda - so I'm not too sure blaming teenage girls and their efforts to play sport as it is defined to them vvhen they turn up for training/games is fair.

VVhat can I appreciate is an honest agenda though.

Get mobilised, get vocal, and most importantly get together. I keep saying this, all soccer officials in this country, FAI, VVFAI, DDSL, AUL vvhatever are elected. Don't get angry, get franchised!

OneF




------Original Message------
From: P@vodafone.ie
To: Derek foley
Sent: Sep 17, 2009 20:33
Subject: Under 16/14 girls Cup Farce

Please go to the following link before writing about a sport you know
nothing about!

http://foot.ie/forums/showthread.php?t=119721 (http://webmail2.vodafone.ie:8080/cp/ps/Mail/ExternalURLProxy?d=vodafone.ie&u=p_p&url=http://foot.ie/forums/showthread.php!!t~~119721&urlHash=2.302247714954216E296)

[itsonlyagame]

I think you will find that Longford Town were in fact not eligibile to participate in the national cup competition, as they are not a team participating in any league as per the rules of the competiton and confirmed by the FAI. so to BBB Sui you should have looked a lot closer to the teams you were due to play against, this team is made up of academy players (from 3 club teams) brought together by an employee of the FAI who in turn has been slapped for his underhand approach. So to all those clubsout there entering a national club competition we now have employess of the FAI allowing the merge of players from a number of clubs to participate against proper formed clubs, what sort of messages is that can the top three in dublin or cork merge and become one for a cup run, well done Longford you proved cheating wins

[The One]

Unless the rules have changed specifically for the 2009 season, the FAI competitions are open to "representaive teams"....

examples:

DWSL(except players registered as Premier players)
Galway League
Cork League
Limerick League
Limerick Desmond League
Mayo League
Wexford League
Kerry League


None of these teams play in any competitive league and consist of players from several clubs across their repective counties or leagues. Clubs may choose to enter teams and not be part of the "representative team"...Lifford, Wilton, Benfica etc.

None of the DWSL Premier teams may contribute to any of the DWSL teams, and their players can only play in the Senior Cup(except for Stella Maris it seems....that's another story isn't it...) but the Mayo/Cork/Limerick League team can include players from clubs around the county who may play for their clubs in the Intermediate or Junior cups and possibly the U16 cup(U14 are not eligible to play at Senior/Junior/Intermediate due to age restrictions, but may be okay at U16)

There is no Summer League I know of in Longford and the players are free to play for Longford Town in the FAI Summer competitions as it is a competition held in a different Season and players can be registered with different clubs in different seasons......ie: Longford Town in the Summer and maybe Ardagh or Keenagh in the Winter.

I don't agree with the whole "Representative Teams" thing..but that's me...and it is legal, at least the last time I checked.

Also I don't agree with FAI coaches/RDO's etc coaching teams in FAI National Cup Competitions...or for that matter teams in the FAI-run Gaynor Cup either. I have heard of the then Irish Senior International manager being slapped on the wrist for coaching Stella Maris during a DWSL league game against Templeogue United a few years back....can anyone from Templeogue confirm this?

To the best of my knowledge...as part of their contract with the FAI RDO's and DO's etc are required to sign an agreement part of which includes having no direct involvement(coaching/scouting/managing) with clubs either amateur or professional here in Ireland, Scotland, Nothern Ireland, Wales or England(not sure about other EU states). I personally know of at least four RDO/DO's who are either coaching in clubs or in one case up to last season in schoolboys, running a club for all intents and purposes.

I cannot confirm that there were/were not changes to the rules prior to Summer season competions starting in 2009 as I don't have a set of rules to hand.


the deeper you dig eh......?

[Keen2win]

Unless the rules have changed specifically for the 2009 season, the FAI competitions are open to "representaive teams"....

examples:

DWSL(except players registered as Premier players)
Galway League
Cork League
Limerick League
Limerick Desmond League
Mayo League
Wexford League
Kerry League


None of these teams play in any competitive league and consist of players from several clubs across their repective counties or leagues. Clubs may choose to enter teams and not be part of the "representative team"...Lifford, Wilton, Benfica etc.

None of the DWSL Premier teams may contribute to any of the DWSL teams, and their players can only play in the Senior Cup(except for Stella Maris it seems....that's another story isn't it...) but the Mayo/Cork/Limerick League team can include players from clubs around the county who may play for their clubs in the Intermediate or Junior cups and possibly the U16 cup(U14 are not eligible to play at Senior/Junior/Intermediate due to age restrictions, but may be okay at U16)

There is no Summer League I know of in Longford and the players are free to play for Longford Town in the FAI Summer competitions as it is a competition held in a different Season and players can be registered with different clubs in different seasons......ie: Longford Town in the Summer and maybe Ardagh or Keenagh in the Winter.

I don't agree with the whole "Representative Teams" thing..but that's me...and it is legal, at least the last time I checked.

Also I don't agree with FAI coaches/RDO's etc coaching teams in FAI National Cup Competitions...or for that matter teams in the FAI-run Gaynor Cup either. I have heard of the then Irish Senior International manager being slapped on the wrist for coaching Stella Maris during a DWSL league game against Templeogue United a few years back....can anyone from Templeogue confirm this?

To the best of my knowledge...as part of their contract with the FAI RDO's and DO's etc are required to sign an agreement part of which includes having no direct involvement(coaching/scouting/managing) with clubs either amateur or professional here in Ireland, Scotland, Nothern Ireland, Wales or England(not sure about other EU states). I personally know of at least four RDO/DO's who are either coaching in clubs or in one case up to last season in schoolboys, running a club for all intents and purposes.

I cannot confirm that there were/were not changes to the rules prior to Summer season competions starting in 2009 as I don't have a set of rules to hand.


the deeper you dig eh......?

My team!:D

[itsonlyagame]

I think you will find that once again your understanding of the rules is not actually factual TO. The Senior cup is open to Representative teams as per a WFAI ruling a number of years ago, however the underage competitions is for club teams only I think you may need to re-evaluate your commentary, and you will also find that in fact the DWSL can play players from DWSL teams once they themselves are not participating in the cup as a club team.

As for Longford they were a representative team and therefore not a club team for a club competition, NOT valid and from what I gather will NEVER be allowed again as it cheats all those clubs around the country who are developing young players week in week out in a club structure.

you will also find that in order to play in the competition for your "new" team you have ot have played two competitive matches for the team, ??? Longford did not play even one as they were not in a competitive league. it goes on and on and on get your blinkers off and see it for what it is CHEATING

[monuman]

I'm new to ladies/girls football but this u-16 cup looks to be a complete mess from start to finish.I asked earlier in the season for views on holding a forum/conference for the improvement in football in this country but I didn't get a great response.Maybe now is the time to arrange some thing as things won't improve if we don't get together and sort out these problems once and for all.

[AWOL]

[QUOTE=itsonlyagame;1236442]I think you will find that once again your understanding of the rules is not actually factual TO.


What rules ?:rolleyes: Difficult one that!

[Acornvilla]

can the top three in dublin or cork merge and become one for a cup run, well done Longford you proved cheating wins you are forgetting the sise of the pool of players longford has is relitivley small also my sisters atleast are signed with longford town they had to leave the local side to join and the team they played in the final was a south galway selection with a squad of almost 30 compared to longfords 18 or so

[BBB In a sui]

I think you will find that Longford Town were in fact not eligibile to participate in the national cup competition, as they are not a team participating in any league as per the rules of the competiton and confirmed by the FAI. so to BBB Sui you should have looked a lot closer to the teams you were due to play against, this team is made up of academy players (from 3 club teams) brought together by an employee of the FAI who in turn has been slapped for his underhand approach. So to all those clubsout there entering a national club competition we now have employess of the FAI allowing the merge of players from a number of clubs to participate against proper formed clubs, what sort of messages is that can the top three in dublin or cork merge and become one for a cup run, well done Longford you proved cheating wins

Look, when we were knocked out, i was personally glad to be out of the competition. It's bouderies were so undefined it was hard to know what you were likely to come up against next!

Any help we sought before the game as to eligitability etc from the FAI or Connacht representatives was poor.



As for Longford playing with an under 14 team Keen2win, their under 14 team named from final from the year before 2008 must have been very young as most of them were back again a year later in 2009.

Longford Town team 2009 final

Bethaine Houldsworth; Sarah Shannon, Michelle Masterson, Ellie Collum, Leanne Keegan; Aoife Darcy, Aisling Reynolds, Karen Delaney, Aisling Cosgrove; Elaine Murphy, Michelle Farrell. Unused Subs: Hannah Duggan, Donna Masterson, Aideen Mimnagh, Eimear Heaney, Muireann Mulcahy, Aoife Johns, Rachel Cheevers.

Longford Town team 2008 Final

Bethany Houldsworth (Emer Heaney 36); Sarah Madden, Leanne Keegan, Michelle Masterson, Karen Delaney (Shauna Kenny 61), Sarah Shannon (captain), Aisling Reynolds, Michelle Noonan (Aoife Jones 51), Michelle Farrell, Aoife Darcy, Aisling Cosgrove

Under 15 representative teams in an under 14 Girls Club Cup competition. What next.................Gender testing:D

[Acornvilla]

actally most of the girls in the team this year were still 13?? they arent a very big team they are just good footballers

[BBB In a sui]

actally most of the girls in the team this year were still 13?? they arent a very big team they are just good footballers

Of course they are good footballers, they are cherry picked from a number of clubs. You are not going to have any real weaknesses if you do that! Our players are picked from an area where you have to mix the good with the bad!

Also you are telling me you got to the cup final last year with most of your players 12 year olds in a under 14/15 competition.:eek: :p

[Acornvilla]

actually yes the team was very young and did brilliantly the longford league is very strong i dont care if you dont believe me but my sisters are on the team there 13 year old twins their friends are 13 theres a few 14 year olds bt there all under age

[The One]

PLEASE NOTE:

THE FOLLOWING IS FROM THE 2008 RULES AS I DO NOT HAVE A 2009 COPY TO HAND AND SOME RULES MAY HAVE CHANGED. IF SO I APOLOGISE. FOR THE MOST-PART I BELIEVE THERE ARE NO CHANGES IN THESE SECTIONS.



WFAI Rules and Regulations 2008



Rule 5: Rules relating to the rights and duties of Divisional Leagues, Clubs and Players.

5.1(b)

all Women's and Girl's Clubs in the prescribed area shall be eligible for membership,
subject to the bye-laws of their League, and they shall have the right to enter all
Competitions providing they are properly registered.


5.2

All Divisional Leagues and individual teams on first affiliation shall satisfy the
Executive Committee of the WFAI that they are properly constituted in
accordance with the Rules of the WFAI
(I MUST PRESUME THAT LONGFORD SATISFIES THIS REQUIREMENT)


5.6(c)

The effective date of registration shall be the date on which the form is
endorsed by the League Secretary. In the case of a player with a team not
affiliated to any League, the effective date of registration shall be the
date on which the form is received by the Honourary Secretary of the
WFAI
(I MUST PRESUME THAT LONGFORD SATISFIES THIS REQUIREMENT)


5.7(a)

With the exception of the provisions in Rule 5.7(b), once a player is
registered with a team she cannot join another team unless transferred.
The movement of a player from a Winter League on it's cessation to a
Summer League or vice-versa in accordance with Rule 5.3 and 5.6(d)
shall not be regarded as a transfer.(THIS RENDERS ALL THE REST OF THIS RULE VOID AS IT DOESN'T APPLY BECAUSE THERE IS NO TRANSFER) Once a player transfers to a new Club
and plays for that Club in WFAI Cup competitions, she may not transfer
again until after December 31st of the year of transfer, or in the case of
Players in Winter Leagues until the end of that League's season. For a
player duly transferred to qualify for her new team in WFAI
competitions she must:-

(i) not have played for her previous team in the competition in question;

(ii) have played two Divisional League competitive games for her new
team prior to representing that team in WFAI inter-club competitions;

and

(iii) be registered with that team for at least fourteen(14) days prior
to her participation in the competition.


Rule 6: Competitions

The following competitions will be organised by the Women's Football
Association of Ireland

6.1

Under-Age competitions will be organised by the Under-Age Committee
with the by-laws as agreed between the Council and the Under-Age
Committee.(THE WORDS INTER-CLUB ARE NOT MENTIONED HERE...ONLY IN 6.2 BELOW AND RELATE TO SENIOR AND INTERMEDIATE COMPETITIONS. IN ANY CASE, I THINK YOU WILL FIND THAT LONGFORD ARE REGISTERED CORRECTLY WITH THE WFAI AS A CLUB AND NOT AS A REPRESENTATIVE TEAM.....SEE ABOVE RULE 5)


6.2

The Association shall organise inter-club competitions at Senior and
Intermediate level in accordance with a format to be decided by Council
at it's opening meeting each year.


6.3

The association shall organise inter-league, inter-provincial, Gaynor
Tournament, and such other competitions as shall be determined by
Council at the beginning of each year.





itsonlyagame:


1- from what I can see, the rules allow for a team to be built as Longford have done.

2- I do agree with you that there should be no involvement by the FAI/WFAI in the organising, coaching or management of any teams competing in any FAI/WFAI competitions.

3- Please read the rules yourself before you accuse someone of being "blinkered"

4- I think that you will find that my understanding of the rules is, in fact factual.

5- From my previous post you will also find that I said that players registered as Premier League players with the DWSL were eligible to play in the Senior Cup competition only...even if their club does not enter the Senior Cup....and subsequently cannot play in any other competition...or...to the best of my knowledge any other team in the Senior Cup unless they transfer to that "new" club and fulfill the requirements in Rule 5.7(a)(i),(ii) and (iii) as quoted above.

6- I agree with your stance on the bending of the rules by team, clubs and players. It is not in the spirit of the rules and as such I brand it as cheating....as you do yourself. The problem is not the teams doing the bending, but the rules themselves and the apparent total lack of interest by the FAI/WFAI in relation to the rules and the absolutely ridiculous decisions being made over the past few years by these organisations when they know what the right decision should be.
And when they are offered the opportunity to make the best decision for the majority of clubs/teams in all of their competitions and send a message to the teams/clubs that are bending the rules that their behavior will not be tolerated and fine them or remove from the competition or receive a lengthy suspension...or all three they don't have the courage or conviction to do so.

As we have seen recently these organisations have no obvious intention of doing any of these. It is very demoralising, and players, managers, coaches and teams are being lost to the game because of this lack of leadership.

[Acornvilla]

Of course they are good footballers, they are cherry picked from a number of clubs. You are not going to have any real weaknesses if you do that! Our players are picked from an area where you have to mix the good with the bad!

Also you are telling me you got to the cup final last year with most of your players 12 year olds in a under 14/15 competition.:eek: :p
b y the way for god sake cut the grass at your pitch it was afwully long for the semi-final

[itsonlyagame]

The issue is very clear, Longford is not affiliated with any league so for Acornvilla to state that the league in longford is stron is laughable its a 7s league, by your own admission Acorn they are from other clubs that have come together and formed for a national cup hmmmm great player development that is and aided by the FAI RDO EXCELLENT grass roots, ir is it grassrot development. what about the girls thrown to the side because they were not good enough for the FAI Employee solo run squad.

Form a league or play in the nearest league until such time as numbers allow for same, get out each week as a REAL club like all the others around the country and develop the girls your not doing them any favours, how many will still be playing in 5 yrs if you just come together for 4-5 matches a year, get real.

TO on the rules front look at rule 5.7a ii as Longford did not come from a Winter to a Summer league because they are not members of the Longford League at under 14 then the whole Winder/Summer falls down, they as Acorn now admits have come from other teams, hence 5.7a ii stands up and Longford administrators and the FAI employee should fall on thier sword (not the kids) I am quite sure they did not know that they were being used as pawns, then again what about the 100s of other kids around the country that entered as legal squads are they not due some justice ?????

TO On your point 5 above you will find in fact that my comments hold true you may play for the DWSL if your club is not entered and no transfer is required, is that right ? I dont think so but again it is as it is.

Bottom line is stand up and get rid of those idiots in the WFAI

[Acornvilla]

how do you know what it is like her? there are numerous teams fielding girls teams from as young as u7 and people here work very hard like everywhere else im sure to help improve the players there is a massive percentage of girls playing soccer in longford (leinster schools final contested by two longford schools and moyne also winning the futsal all ireland withot much of the players on the longford squad so the girls not on the town team are also very good players i understand that you are annoyed by waht has gone on but they have played no over age palyers and ahvnt broken the rules. I actually complained that other big clubs asy shamrock rovers or even a team like sligo rovers had not entered a team? if you want to produce the best players you have to make them play with the best every week so the bigger clubs creating teams (as longford has) will create a much stronger irish team in the future. i ts ok if you dont agree and i'm obviously biased as i have family involved with the team but the girls worked very hard and played 8 out of their 9 games in the last two years away from home aisling trained them twice a week and thwy earnt there success so dont begrudge them it.

i do agree that the people that rn the show are idiots thou

[Stephen Moran]

[QUOTE=Acornvilla;1237451][People are missing the point. Longford girls won the Irish Cup U14/15 because they were the better team. They played it under the rules as they and the WFAI deemed was correct. This has nothing to do with the girls, its the complete botch up by the powers that be. I would like to congradulate Longford on their win as my daughter plays for Colga and it was a great performance by their side in the Final.
Just to keep the record straight, Colga is a local rural club with about 30 players covering U12 up to Under 16. We had the whole 30 with us on the day, as it was a great achievement to have reached the final. We only had 20 eligable to play in the final, including U13's, so we do not have the pick of South Galway, as was earlier stated but have plenty of competition from other clubs within the area. It does demean the Cup if you can pick players from different clubs to represent an area but thats for all the Clubs to Change. Lets get this sorted because the level of skill I have witnessed at under age in these competitions is second to none and a credit to the Coaches and Managers for their efforts in raising the skill levels yearly. Lets get back to the basics, have a club competition for clubs and an area competition for different areas. This will help showcase the better players from each area and will also help the other girls who may not make an area team, to sample national competiveness with their individual clubs. ]

[The One]

The issue is very clear, Longford is not affiliated with any league so for Acornvilla to state that the league in longford is stron is laughable its a 7s league, by your own admission Acorn they are from other clubs that have come together and formed for a national cup hmmmm great player development that is and aided by the FAI RDO EXCELLENT grass roots, ir is it grassrot development. what about the girls thrown to the side because they were not good enough for the FAI Employee solo run squad.

(IF LONGFORD TOWN HAD A PERMENENT GIRLS TEAM, THE WEAKER GIRLS WOULD NOT MAKE THE TEAM EITHER AND WOULD CONTINUE TO PLAY FOR THE SMALLER CLUBS, AND ONLY IN THE WINTER AS THERE DOESN'T SEEM TO BE A SUMMER LEAGUE IN LONGFORD).

Form a league or play in the nearest league until such time as numbers allow for same, get out each week as a REAL club like all the others around the country and develop the girls your not doing them any favours, how many will still be playing in 5 yrs if you just come together for 4-5 matches a year, get real.

TO on the rules front look at rule 5.7a ii as Longford did not come from a Winter to a Summer league because they are not members of the Longford League at under 14 then the whole Winder/Summer falls down, they as Acorn now admits have come from other teams, hence 5.7a ii stands up and Longford administrators and the FAI employee should fall on thier sword (not the kids) I am quite sure they did not know that they were being used as pawns, then again what about the 100s of other kids around the country that entered as legal squads are they not due some justice ?????

(THIS RULE GOVERNS THE MOVEMENT OF PLAYERS AND NOT TEAMS/CLUBS FROM ONE LEAGUE TO ANOTHER. LONGFORD ARE ENTITLED TO AFFILIATE AS AN INDIVIDUAL TEAM FOR FAI COMPETITIONS IN THE SUMMER ONLY, EVEN IF THEY ARE NOT MEMBERS OF ANY LEAGUE . THE PAPERWORK MUST BE FILLED AND PRESENTED PROPERLY AS PER THE RULES AND THERE IS NOTHING YOU OR I OR ANYONE CAN DO ABOUT IT UNLESS THE RULES ARE CHANGED.
LIKE YOU, I DON'T THINK THAT IT IS RIGHT AND IT DOES NOT REFLECT THE TRUE STRENGTH OF CLUB FOOTBALL IN LONGFORD. IF LONGFORD TOWN WERE REALLY INTERESTED IN EXPANDING THE GIRL'S/WOMEN'S GAME, THEY SHOULD RUN A TEAM YEAR-ROUND.....IS THERE FAI FUNDING OR SPORTS COUNCIL GRANT AVAILABLE TO LEAGUE OF IRELAND TEAMS WITH AN ACTIVE GIRL'S/WOMEN'S SECTION?...THERE USED TO BE. DOES LONGFORD HAVE THE SUMMER GIRLS TEAM TO QUALIFY FOR FUNDING OR FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF SOME OF THE PLAYERS IN LONGFORD?)


TO On your point 5 above you will find in fact that my comments hold true you may play for the DWSL if your club is not entered and no transfer is required, is that right ? I dont think so but again it is as it is.

(ONLY IF THE PLAYERS ARE REGISTERED WITH A DIVISION OUTSIDE THE PREMIER CAN THEY PLAY IN THE INTER/JUNIOR CUPS OR ARE TRANSFERRED TO ANOTHER CLUB OUTSIDE THE PREMIER...AND THEN THE OTHER RULES 5.7(a)i/ii/iii APPLY) ANY PLAYER REGISTERED WITH A PREMIER CLUB CAN ONLY PLAY SENIOR CUP AND THEN ONLY FOR THE TEAM SHE IS REGISTERED WITH...NOT A DWSL REPRESENTATIVE TEAM)

Bottom line is stand up and get rid of those idiots in the WFAI

HOW? DO ALL THE CLUBS AND TEAMS REFUSE TO PLAY IN ANY OF THE FAI COMPETITIONS NEXT YEAR........ST JOSEPHS/STELLA AND LONGFORD AND OTHER CLUBS WILL PLAY I'M SURE....WHAT IS THE ANSWER HERE.....??

[Acornvilla]

u have way too long a message there im sorry

[The One]

I know...I know...and most of it is rules bulls&^t.....sry, but I've been thru dis all b4 with WFAI members and I always get the same crap back from them.......they can interpret the rules any way they like.......

[Acornvilla]

ah yea i know its crap and dosent help the small clubs and all that but sure what can ya do the people who run ireland in general are preti crap at it so why should the wfai be differnt

[LmkSnr]

[QUOTE=The One;1236999]PLEASE NOTE:

THE FOLLOWING IS FROM THE 2008 RULES AS I DO NOT HAVE A 2009 COPY TO HAND AND SOME RULES MAY HAVE CHANGED. IF SO I APOLOGISE. FOR THE MOST-PART I BELIEVE THERE ARE NO CHANGES IN THESE SECTIONS.



WFAI Rules and Regulations 2008



Rule 5: Rules relating to the rights and duties of Divisional Leagues, Clubs and Players.

5.1(b)

all Women's and Girl's Clubs in the prescribed area shall be eligible for membership,
subject to the bye-laws of their League, and they shall have the right to enter all
Competitions providing they are properly registered.


5.2

All Divisional Leagues and individual teams on first affiliation shall satisfy the
Executive Committee of the WFAI that they are properly constituted in
accordance with the Rules of the WFAI
(I MUST PRESUME THAT LONGFORD SATISFIES THIS REQUIREMENT)


5.6(c)

The effective date of registration shall be the date on which the form is
endorsed by the League Secretary. In the case of a player with a team not
affiliated to any League, the effective date of registration shall be the
date on which the form is received by the Honourary Secretary of the
WFAI
(I MUST PRESUME THAT LONGFORD SATISFIES THIS REQUIREMENT)


5.7(a)

With the exception of the provisions in Rule 5.7(b), once a player is
registered with a team she cannot join another team unless transferred.
The movement of a player from a Winter League on it's cessation to a
Summer League or vice-versa in accordance with Rule 5.3 and 5.6(d)
shall not be regarded as a transfer.(THIS RENDERS ALL THE REST OF THIS RULE VOID AS IT DOESN'T APPLY BECAUSE THERE IS NO TRANSFER) Once a player transfers to a new Club
and plays for that Club in WFAI Cup competitions, she may not transfer
again until after December 31st of the year of transfer, or in the case of
Players in Winter Leagues until the end of that League's season. For a
player duly transferred to qualify for her new team in WFAI
competitions she must:-

(i) not have played for her previous team in the competition in question;

(ii) have played two Divisional League competitive games for her new
team prior to representing that team in WFAI inter-club competitions;

and

(iii) be registered with that team for at least fourteen(14) days prior
to her participation in the competition.


Rule 6: Competitions

The following competitions will be organised by the Women's Football
Association of Ireland

6.1

Under-Age competitions will be organised by the Under-Age Committee
with the by-laws as agreed between the Council and the Under-Age
Committee.(THE WORDS INTER-CLUB ARE NOT MENTIONED HERE...ONLY IN 6.2 BELOW AND RELATE TO SENIOR AND INTERMEDIATE COMPETITIONS. IN ANY CASE, I THINK YOU WILL FIND THAT LONGFORD ARE REGISTERED CORRECTLY WITH THE WFAI AS A CLUB AND NOT AS A REPRESENTATIVE TEAM.....SEE ABOVE RULE 5)


But its senior rules that its based on.Problem is its one of the winter teams that all the girls should have joined if they wanted to play national cup. looking at whats been written here its a inter county team that was entered in club competition.dont have a problem with an fai official been involved.Open yer eyes there every where especially the gaynor teams where it now looks like its a contest between rdo's and the football is slipping because most of them do not understand that girls teams play better than most boys teams.

[Acornvilla]

i would have taught help from fai offocialls would help teams and players progression!

[The One]

Problem is its one of the winter teams that all the girls should have joined if they wanted to play national cup.

Excellent point LS. Acornvilla...any reason why this didn't happen? Local rivalries....fear of losing players to another club?

looking at whats been written here its a inter county team that was entered in club competition.dont have a problem with an fai official been involved.
Open yer eyes there every where especially the gaynor teams where it now looks like its a contest between rdo's and the football is slipping because most of them do not understand that girls teams play better than most boys teams.

Definitely agree with that....standard is slipping and you're right it is because there is a contest between rdo's.....most of them are not interested in being involved in the girl's game.....



Anyone going to the game in Turner's Cross tomorrow night?

[Manfred]

Small favour please... Tell me the names of the clubs that are administered perfectly, where there are no issues with players ages, where no postponments are requested, where there are no internal politics, where girls football gets due representation, and we can then put those club people into the voluntary positions that are the WFAI and look forward to perfectly run competitions......
I'm involved with a club that has 14 teams, girls, boys, men & women.. but I have yet to hear the administrators resort to the name calling that you've degraded to in this forum. I must admit, if you all resort to dealing with issues within your respective clubs in the same low grade manner that you have displayed here, god help your players.
I am aware of 3 clubs that have invested time (posativly) in preparing submissions to the wfai to voice their concerns (but have done the proper thing and offered alternatives).

[Stephen Moran]

[QUOTE=Manfred;1237851].[I have to agree with Manfred, blaming people who are try their best most of them voluntary, is not the answer. These laws are drafted up, so as a guide to refer to. The incumbent committee can only enforce what they deem is their interpretation. It is up to Every club in their area to make proposals to their provencial council on the changes that they see which in turn should be forwarded to the national council. It is easy to bitch and bicker, its way harder to get things changed. I know there are likely to be obstacles, but if the mind is focused and the goal is the devolopement of Womens soccer for the betterment of the individual, then right will win out. ]

[The Chosen One]

I am going to resist the urge to enter into an argument with you, Manfred, over the obvious lack of understanding you have for the situation this year, it is well documented here and has by now been done to death.Those members of the WFAI who are responsible for the decisions made hide behind their office and will not be made accountable for their actions this is part of the reason why people get so frustrated.I am however interested in your comment regarding clubs submitting recomendations to the WFAI for consideration next year.I recently spoke to a Raheny member and they have submitted a lenghty document outlining their issues this year and detailing changes they would like to see implimented for next season.One of which is that to realign the age mistake this year the WFAI should hold competitions as and at U14 (1996)U15(1995) u16'(1994) U17's (1993) That is, players must be born on or after the 1st Jan in each year to qualify.This will give those players who missed out on playing in the proper age groups a chance to win a fair competition.Your comments please including do you really think WFAI mandarins will even give it the light of day.

[Manfred]

Oh dear, as 'The Chosen One' it is now apparent that you are incapable of even 1 piece of txt without resorting to name calling! Very sad! As you didnt even know that there was an U11 blitz competition been run last week end, where it was, or who was in it, you have proven beyond any resonable doubt that you do not have a handle on the Women's game in Ireland. And it is now obvious (with your lack of knowledge of the Women's game) that you work off second and third hand information only. Interesting that you have resisted the temtation to have a proper informed debate, but then again, as you have no interest in the grass roots of football, that is understandable. Mabe Raheny was one of the clubs I was refering to with regard to constructive submissions? I would be interested in your proposed timetable for what would be 8 national cups, 3 different age groups of International training camps, and the usual domestic competitions in each league area. Mabe there are 18 months in the year on your planet!!

[The Chosen One]

Manfred, my friend, having attended the U11 blitz on Saturday at the AUL, and may I say how nice the WFAI looked in their new white tops trimmed in navy, watched the Ireland Women’s U17’s trial game against Shelbourne, stayed to see how the Emerging Talent Programme for girls was coming along, it started at 4pm on Saturday by the way and finished at 6pm, I felt I had great value for the 2 Euro I paid to Abdullah on the barrier. Oh, I also attended the Women’s International last weekend in Switzerland; we lost 2-0 just in case you were not aware. You are so far off the mark it is laughable. Perhaps you have me confused with some “ONE” else. I coach at grassroots level approx 8 hours a week in girl’s football; I have an extremely good grasp on women’s football in this and other countries. My information is first hand and the only reason I did not wish to debate with you was in an effort to move things on from where it is stuck on this forum at this time, not out of fear for you or anyone else for that matter. I find your remarks insulting at least. I hope from your comments regarding the Raheny proposal it does not mean that you and the other officials within the WFAI have made a decision regarding next year competitions without consultation with the teams involved around the country. This is typical of the approach which causes so much upset. You ask for submissions and already you are ridiculing the ones you receive without discussion.

[Acornvilla]

ahhhh my head hurts from all this!im not even sure what were arguing over anymore i think everyone should agree to disagree thats why i stoped posting because im not a big argument fan! ding ding round 27!

[The Chosen One]

What I am hoping to achieve is that the girls Born in 1995 AND 1993 get the opportunity to play in a national cup competition at their age its that simple.

[Acornvilla]

ok i understand that but your better off ignoring the people who dont know what there talking about becase they wont want to listen to your point of view no matter what you sy thyl dissagree

[Manfred]

Damn! Yep, got you mixed up with a different"ONE", my bad! Well, personaly, I hope all and any submissions would be constructive, I know they will be from this side of town. I'd like to think we'll all get a say in some way or other. On a slightly different note, what did you think of the Shelbourne v U17 game? (Oh, I havent asked for or recieved any submissions!)

[The Chosen One]

The game was a welcome addition, as it was not scheduled, to see players perform against physically stronger lads.The result mattered not a jott.I was surprised to see such a large squad 1 week before departure to Slovenia. I would have hoped at this stage the management would have selected a settled squad of 18 to train by now.Difficult to judge how the team will do as the normal first choice GK plus central midfield and center half were all missing through injury I believe.The managers played 2 different teams in each half so impossible to get a true picture.I hope things go well for them next week in the Euro Qualifiers.