RRRC Competitions Committee Notes – 3/10/25

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The Red River Competitions Committee releases their monthly committee call minutes and notes. View all of the archived RRRC minutes or read on for the most recent:

    1. Roll Call
      1. McPhail
      2. Norton
      3. Walker
      4. Kurylas
      5. Hanlon
      6. Dale
      7. Davies
      8. Keuppens
      9. Hanson
      10. Hunter
      11. Hughes
      12. Wegman
      13. Regrets 
        1. Robinson
        2. Curl
    2. Compliance
      1. Club Compliance and Registration Numbers – Texas Rugby Union
        1. Still tracking ahead of last year’s totals.
          1. YTD = 2234 versus Prior YTD = 1678
        2. CAD – Match Changes
          1. Teams are still having cancellations for various reasons. Reminder that all teams need to thoroughly read the instructions on the website and thoroughly complete the CAD form that Hansel needs.
          2. CAD Link: https://texasrugbyunion.com/administration/addchangedrop-match-form/
          3. HURT D3 vs BARC D3 – Date is still pending, need one more week to resolve.
            1. Jeff – confirmed?
        3. Cancellations vs Reschedule – Reminder
          1. Clubs are responsible for following TRU protocols regarding adequate notice and proper communication of a cancellation. If the clubs are BOTH willing to move / reschedule a match, the TRU & TRRA will not likely have any objections to a mutually agreeable change. However, late notice, lack of referee resources, lack of open dates on the calendar, and other items may result in a forfeit or sanction. So please communicate early and often with your partners and representatives.
          2. Encourage everyone to use the Club Admin site! Does include Club contacts and other valuable information.
        4. An additional column will be added for fines on the Compliance Worksheet.
          1. Forfeits, Late Notices, Fail to update rosters by stated deadlines, etc. will be imposed effective immediately.
        5. Waivers
          1. USACR Eligibility created a new report to track transfers and waiver requirements 2024-25 Transfer Report
          2. All Reps can view this for their members and help sort out Team waivers through the process.
        6. No Rosters since last meeting
          1. Woodlands D2
          2. Alamo City
          3. Alamo City
          4. Tulsa
          5. Shreveport
        7. Forfeits – Compliance Worksheet Link with forfeits (red highlight)
          1. McAllen forfeited to Old Skool
          2. Shreveport forfeited to Austin Blacks
          3. Grand Prairie vs San Antonio 
          4. Galveston forfeited to Huns 
          5. Little Rock forfeited away match to Austin Blacks
          6. Alamo City forfeited to McAllen (*** two years in a row?)
          7. Space City vs HARC
    3. RX items
      1. Name Withheld – recommend that Hansel monitor the list for remaining matches of the season.
        1. Fines only be assessed for those players that show up on a match roster (1-23)
        2. Teams that have a Name Withheld Individual won’t be liable unless they roster the player.
        3. Policy on NW to be fully implemented beginning 6/1/25 (sevens) and continue to be monitored thereafter as normal admin procedures going forward.
        4. * See Board minutes for update
      2. GCSR – Host Union / Organizer to set up the brackets. Teams to input their line up by published deadlines.  Player movement to be tracked on-site by RX Coordinator.
      3. Nationals – The above process is likely to be the same or similar.
    4. 15s
      1. Red River Competition topics
        1. Regarding multi side movement 
          1. 2024-25 Player Eligibility Notes
        2. 2026 Scheduling Meeting on Sunday, April 13th. 10am until 2pm (or shorter)
        3. Sonesta Select – 10325 North Central Expressway, Dallas TX 7523
          1. Review of proposed divisional alignment
          2. Discuss proposed hosting options for 2026 (RRRC / GCSR / Nationals)
        4. 2026 RRRC Structure– Draft discussion
      2. USA Fifteens Committee meets later this week (Wed) and will be discussing a proposal to move the WD1 competition to the Fall starting this next cycle. This will help align the schedule to accommodate WER, All Stars and 7s competitions (Spring into Summer).
        1. Questions arise from what local comps will look like (timing / D2 / D3 / Etc).  Travel costs? Player movement? Minimum matches and conference sizes? Other?
        2. Would have to be approved by Senior Club Council
    5. 7s
      1. Terms of Reference – Fil Keuppens & Nick Argy
        1. Arnal has been dealing with personal matters over recent months and has elected to formally resign the Sevens position.  Best wishes to Arnal and many thanks for his service and valued contributions.
        2. David has formally asked Fil to take the Sevens position for the remainder of the term..
          1. Young (after call): Contacts on the website have been updated.
        3. Terms of Reference: RRRC Sevens 2025 TOR
        4. Upcoming dates / events:
          1. 6/7/25: Lonestar Classic, Dallas TX. (Seeding Tournament)
          2. 6/14/25: Bloodfest, Round Rock TX (Qualifier #1)
          3. 6/28/25: Choctaw 7s, Durant OK (Qualifier #2)
          4. 7/12/25: TBD, TBD (Qualifier #3)
          5. August ’25: Horseshoe 7s, Shreveport Louisiana (TOLA Championship)
          6. 8/16/25: TBD, USA Club Rugby 7s Championship 
        5. The USA Sevens Committee has recently approved a format that changes the competition into 8 regions; similar to the old Territory days.  
    6. Championships 
      1. RRRC Finals – Dallas, Lake Highlands Park, 4/12
        1. David, Wendy and Host had a call on Sunday PM and went over the To Do list and covered items. Most are progressing as planned and on schedule.
        2. Tentative Schedule:
          1. MD4 10AM
          2. WD3 11AM
          3. MD3 12PM
          4. WD2 1PM
          5. MD2 2PM
          6. WD1 3PM
            1. Warm up field schedule to be published
            2. Teams to have confirmed jerseys at least one week before or bring two sets
            3. Team book checks (23+) will be done online and in person verification 90 minutes before KO.
            4. Championship Website | Event Packet
        3. Live Stream – Nutmeg will provide streaming per Wendy.
        4. How are the tables calculated for the WD1 where not all teams have the same match count?
          1. Per RRRC page:
            1. At the end of the league season, the top two D1 teams will compete in a Championship final on April 12th, at the RRRC Championships. The top two D2 teams will follow the same format.
            2. The team crowned as the Red River Conference Women’s D1 Champion will move forward to the USA Rugby National Playoffs (Semi-finals) on Friday, May 16, 2025. 
            3. The team crowned as the Red River Conference Women’s D2 Champion will advance to the Gulf Coast Super Regional on May 3-4th.
          2. RRRC Tie Breakers
        5. WD3 – have requested to forgo their semi-final match. Only the top two will advance to RRRC finals.
          1. Young (after call): Updated website to reflect this.
        6. Hotels:
          1. Sonesta Select North Central Expressway
            1. Recommend booking this hotel if you’re planning on attending the Sunday Scheduling Meeting.
          2. Hilton Garden Inn North Central Expressway
          3. Hampton Inn North Central Expressway
        7. RRRC reps that will be at the Championship and available to assist?
          1. McPhail – Yes
          2. Dale – ?
          3. Norton – Yes
          4. Hunter- Yes, but playing
          5. Robinson – ?
          6. Keuppens – Announcer
          7. Kurylas – ?
          8. Wegman – Yes
          9. Hughes – Yes
          10. Board – April Armstrong – Yes
      2. Gulf Coast Super Regional
        1. Saturday & Sunday; May 3-4th
        2. Gulf Coast – Pelican Park, 63350 Pelican Blvd, Mandeville LA 70448. https://pelicanpark.recdesk.com/Community/Page?pageId=19076
        3. List of Hotels is pending as-is final schedule.
  • USA Club Nationals – It is official
      1. Friday thru Sunday, May 16-18th
      2. Kuntz Soccer & Sports Complex, 1502 W 16th Street, Indianapolis IN 46202 
  2. Referees – Ross
    1. Referee Abuse – This past weekend.
      1. Grand Prairie vs HARC D2
        1. The match was abandoned late in the 2nd half. The GP captain did his best to maintain civility but the balance of the squad was problematic.
      2. Space City vs Woodlands
        1. The Match Official cited constant verbal abuse and questioning of calls. Players targeting the referee regardless of positioning. Player failing to provide YC information. Etc.
      3. Dallas vs HURT
        1. Players unwilling to enter the sin bin upon issuance of YC.
        2. Players being combative with #4 on the sideline.
        3. Players being 3rd man into the fray. Namely player(s) entering from 50 plus yards away and then being combative.
    2. GoPro – Not Permissible attire / equipment for players
      1. Ref to warn in pre match then Red card during match if still wearing
  3. Discipline – Zach
    1. None
  4. Divisional Reports – 
    1. None
  5. New Business
    1. Upcoming staffing changes
  6. Meeting Adjournment 9:38 PM
    1. Motion: Norton / Gordon