RRRC Competitions Committee Notes – 4/8/24

1. Roll Call
   1. McPhail
   2. Dale
   3. Norton
   4. Hanlon
   5. Hunter
   6. Robinson
   7. Kurylas
   8. Ozzie
   9. Hanson
   10. Young
   11. Curl
   12. Hughes
   13. Wegman
   14. Prasad
       1. Regrets
          1. Horn
          2. Hanson
2. End of Season updates- McPhail / Young

1. FTW – had a reschedule that turned into an Unplayed Forfeit against San Antonio.
   1. FTW had a late cancellation on the first match largely due to poor internal and external communication combined with poor weather and lack of backup location. Match was rescheduled to a make-up weekend. Ultimately FTW decided against playing the match, canceled with appropriate notice on the second match and by mutual agreement with McPhail, was deemed not eligible for D2 or D4 advancement and would pay a fine of $300 to San Antonio for costs of hotels related to the original infraction. No opposition was voiced.

1. Eligibility / Book Checks for Playoffs – Posting went to the clubs on 3/19 for 3/31 due date. This was later than hoped but did help us get ahead of the upcoming playoffs. All teams were “requested” to send in their info but as expected most that submitted were Playoff bound teams.
2. Most of the rosters have been rec’d as of this meeting with a few still pending and several with misc items that are missing / outstanding. Overall, in a good position with a few days left to clear up any remaining material items. See “assignments” discussion later for more details.
3. RX – will be updated by Hansel. Have shared basic info with him and will circle back after the meeting to ensure that matchups are logged and ready for this weekend. 
4. Technical Zone – Reminder as we enter into the playoff rounds, that Coaches need to re-familiarize themselves with policy and conduct. This also applies to bench, fans, supporters, and alumni conduct. While most weekends are not monitored, every match going forward through nationals will have League (RRRC/USA) Officials in attendance.

1. Compliance items – Hanson (updated by McPhail)
   1. Club Compliance and Registration Numbers – Texas Rugby Union
   2. https://sites.google.com/texasrugbyunion.com/truclubs/match-compliance
   3. Hansel continues to do a great job monitoring the attached report. Unfortunately, many teams are still not completing their input in a timely manner. Suggest the RRRC take a hard look at the timelines and expectations for next year’s competition as the process seems to be lengthy but teams are still missing critical deadlines. Furthermore, these issues were evident in calculating league tables as we found out RX is very particular, especially when it comes to BP’s.
   4. Lastly, there are some week in week out offenders and suggest we look at more meaningful sanctions for repeat offenders next season.
2. Quarters & Semi’s – McPhail / Young
   1. McPhail has gone through with an initial review of the Eligibility books with the first round of observations. Will ask the DivReps to do the same and get any concerns addressed with McPhail and/or RRRC before this weekend.
   2. Wendy is going to be sending a team packet on Wednesday: MD2 SFs and MD3 QFs Packet
   3. Items to be included / addressed in packet:
      1. Hansel to pull RX report to confirm all eligible players based on April-1st registration date.
      2. Dale & Norton to work first draft of multi-Sided match qualification data points.
      3. All Mens D2 & D3 matches are loaded into WTR and RX (Note: SA vs Dallas is 4pm).
      4. RX roster loading as well as paper Match Roster form for Match Commissioner & Team exchanges.
      5. Front Row designation form for Match Commissioner (#4).
      6. Professional Player designation to be included as applicable.
      7. Book Check process on game day which will need to be at least 1-2 hrs before scheduled KO to allow enough time for Match Commissioner to properly check books and not interfere with team warmups.
         1. Any player without proof of residence is marked as a non resident. (Max 5 allow per roster otherwise ineligible)
         2. Any player without a valid photo ID in electronic book nor hand is ineligible to play. 
         3. McPhail is currently going through all M/W books for D2 & D3 and will notify Match Commissioners of results.  Majority of information to date is in file and those Clubs with missing items or other related issues are being contacted for resolution.
         4. No playing under protest per RRRC policy.  Thus, any documents that are not verifiable by the MC will be counted against non-resident player limits as outlined by USAR.
      8. WTR requirements: Match, address, KO time, referee assignments, etc.
      9. Kit (2x) colors (primary & secondary) submissions will be required for RRRC’s in Houston.  Teams should BOTH have a backup set and/or have resolved Kit issues in the days leading up to the match to avoid last minute issues.
   4. D3 Match Commissioners:
      1. Tribe @ Blacks – Willis
      2. Harlequins @ SA – Hughes
      3. Old Skool @ Shreveport – Dodge
      4. Arrows @ Little Rock – Tomsak
   5. D2 Match Commissioners:
      1. Dallas RFC @ SA – Hughes
      2. Blacks @ HURT – McPhail & Curl
   6. Time Conflict – San Antonio is hosting both a D3 and D2 playoff match. McPhail recommended keeping the standard D3 at 2pm and D2 at 4pm KO times. There has been some push back. However, both of the traveling sides are coming from the DFW area. If book checks need to start between Noon and 1pm, I think it is hard pressed for the D3 traveling team to be moved up to 1pm KO and thus have book checks in the 11am to 12pm window. We need a verbal vote for this scenario.  No opposition; 2 & 4pm accordingly.  Confirmed with the RRRC Chair and Dallas President. 
   7. Women’s D2 table:
      1. Order of Finish:

1. Little Rock
2. Dallas Harlequins
3. sHARCs
4. SA Riveters

1. Women’s D1 table:
   1. sHARCs – will play Utah Vipers at GCSR.  No need to play at RRRC.
   2. Valkyries

1. Upcoming Championships – Young
   1. RRRC – April 20-21st
      1. Info packet: 2024 RRRC Championships Information Packet
      2. Held at Sabercats back two fields. Parking fees will be charged each day to NON-players.
      3. Last minute items will be resolved with calls / emails with Host, Wendy & David.
      4. Tentative schedule subject to review of travel accommodations
         1. Discussions held regarding moving one of the WD2 matches to the Noon slot to accommodate the length of travel that is likely to be incurred by Little Rock Women who are currently 1st in the table with no remaining games. Additionally, there has been discussion regarding the Little Rock Men who won the D3N and host Arrows this weekend. If LRM win, it is recommended that they play at Noon to allow for travel/rest. No opposition voiced during discussion.
      5. DRAFT schedule:

1. Sunday:

1. GCSR 
   1. Info packet: 2024 Gulf Coast Information Packet
   2. Charleston Outlaws have won Georgia’s MD3 championship and will play the True South MD3 champion. True South MD3 Champ to be determined the weekend of April 13th. Winner of these two take MD3 #4 seed at GCSR.
   3. Saturday DRAFT schedule: Seeding based on last year’s GCSR outcome

   4. Saturday
      Field	Game #	Division	Time	Team	Score	Team	Score
      1	1	MD3 SF	10:00 AM	RRRC #1		True South/Georgia #4
      2	2	MD3 SF	10:00 AM	Florida #2		Carolinas #3
      1	3	WD2 SF	12:00 PM	True South #1		RRRC #4
      2	4	WD2 SF	12:00 PM	Florida #2		Carolinas #3
      1	5	MD2 SF	2:00 PM	Florida #1		Carolinas #4
      2	6	MD2 SF	2:00 PM	True South #2		RRRC #3
      1	7	MD1 Final	4:00 PM	RRRC # 1		RRRC # 2
      2	8	WD1 Final	4:00 PM	sHARCs		Utah Vipers

   5. Sunday draft schedule:

   6. Sunday
      Field	Game #	Division	Time	Team	Score	Team	Score
      1	9	MD3 Final	10:00 AM
      1	10	WD2 Final	12:00 PM
      2	11	D4 Invitational	12:00 PM	Optional / RRRC?		True South?
      1	12	MD2 Final	2:00 PM

   7. USA items – Dodge

1. 1. Dodge notified TRU that there will be a total of $10K in grant money in support of the GSCR event.

McPhail and Wendy are looking at budget items that can be included in grant funds and will work with Hosts to address any gaps in expectations.

1. 1. David Dodge forward two items for McPhail to review and share accordingly. 

• GU Transfer Policy

Recommended Policy on Transfering Union –

Transfer Policy Requirements

1. The team seeking transfer must be in a Good Standing status within the current Union.
2. A compelling case must be presented for the transfer, including but not limited to:
   1. Geographic isolation or travel distance hardship.
   2. Lack of competition at the same divisional level. 
   3. Irreparable harm caused by discrimination.
3. The transfer can only proceed if both Unions involved mutually agree to the team’s transfer. If both Unions don’t agree, the Disagreement Resolution Process will be applied. 
4. Clubs are ineligible to transfer for four years following transfer. 
5. GU oversees the tracking of club transfer time period status of four years.

    

6. Disagreement Resolution Process:

In the event of disagreement between the parties, the matter will be referred to the Senior Club Council for resolution.

1. The Chair will propose, with ratification by the ExCo, an ad hoc committee to review the transfer request and provide a resolution.
2. The team’s transfer request must be submitted no later than June 1 or 90 days before the start of the earliest competition start date for either union.
3. All parties involved must provide their acceptance or rejection of the transfer request by July 1 or 60 days before the start of the earliest competition start date for either union.
4. In the event of a disagreement, the ad hoc committee must provide a resolution by August 1 or 30 days before the earliest competition start date for either union.

1. GU Questionnaire on Organizational Structure. Completed and sent in by McPhail. Primary issue to be addressed is the need to update our ByLaws but are predicated on completion of 501c3 paperwork. Will discuss on the next Board call (next week).

7. USA National Championships – Friday, May 17 through Sunday, May19th

1. Held at Round Rock Multipurpose Complex / hosted by Austin Blacks.
2. The Rugby Network will be streaming.
3. More details to follow.

8. Sevens Qualifiers:

• Bloodfest June-15th
• Choctaw June-29th
• Hell or Highwater July-20th

• Nationals – Madison, WI Aug-10-11th

9. TOLA – Still some minor movement pending. Arnal will provide a “master calendar”.
10. Summit / Hall of Fame at Austin, TX to be held August 24-25th. Hilton Hotel / Austin Airport.
11. New Business

1. Last year’s match schedule release was delayed to Promotion & Relegation appeals.  What are potential timelines for data information, auto notification based on policy, and RRRC review of other circumstances?
2. RRRC Promotion & Relegation Policy – Texas Rugby Union 
3. Reps to send emails to D2, D3, and D4 to do a “health check” and confirm next year’s ambitions.
4. Will send out promotions and relegations the Monday after RRRC championships. Appeals due before following RRRC call on May 13th. Intend to have the appeals process wrapped up by the end of May. 

12. Motion to close:  Norton / Hughes / Kurylas (tie) at 9:23pm