I write to inform all teams of the decision made by the Executive Committee on 15^th December 2006 regarding the above item.

The Executive Committee decided that the match was postponed for the following reasons: -

1.      The delegate from Easington Village Club at the meeting the on 10^th November wrote the fixture down incorrectly and subsequently thought that the fixture was to take place at the Village Club rather than the Catholic Club, despite the fixture list being read out twice at the meeting.

2.      Easington Village Club’s team did not act quickly enough when informed of the error, firstly by Peterlee Catholic Club’s representative and subsequently by the League Secretary. Judgment was influenced by the following: -

a.   It was the Catholic Club who phoned the Village, not the other way around,

b.   The Village Club dismissed the Catholic Club’s assertion when they did call (even when informed that the League Secretary had been consulted),

c.   They chose to contact Hesleden Conservatives Club, in order to further check rather than to get to the venue as soon as was possible after being informed by the League Secretary and the Catholic Club.

If the Village Club’s team had acted in a speedier fashion, the Executive Committee felt that the match could still have been taken place, despite the error. As a result, the earliest they could get to the venue was 9.30pm and the Executive Committee felt that the Catholic Club were justified in refusing to commence the game at that time.

Further Points taken into consideration: -

It was accepted that Easington Village Club had the required number of players available at 8.30pm on the night of the fixture and therefore had no motive to postpone the game for that reason.

It was further noted by the committee that the Village Club delegate had been aware during the week between the meeting and the fixture that he was playing at Peterlee Catholic Club on the Friday night, indicating that the error could have easily been avoided.

For the above reasons, the Executive Committee members held the Village Club culpable for the postponement of the match and discussed at some length what punishment was appropriate: -

Ÿ         League Rules state that a seven-point deduction should automatically take place on the team that postponed a match but members agreed that this was rule was brought in for League Competition rather than the KO Cup competition and that the reference to league rules applying for cup matches referred to match format. This rule was however used as a reference point.

Ÿ         It was accepted that rules needed to be clearer in this area and that this should be rectified at the next Annual General Meeting.

Ÿ         The committee felt that it was inappropriate to disqualify the Village Club as it was recognised that the root of the problem was a genuine (if wholly avoidable) mistake on the part of the Village Club’s delegate.

It was agreed that: -

1.      The match was to be replayed at the convenience of Peterlee Catholic Club and that they were to provide the Village Club with two dates when the match could be played, at least one of which must be a Friday. The Village Club should choose which of the two dates was preferable to them. The match to be completed on the next meeting night, at the latest.

2.      That the Village Club should start the match with a deficit of 5 points. This means, for example, that should the leg score be 9-5 in favour of the Village, the Catholic Club would go through with a score of 4-5. Should the leg score be 10-4 in favour of the Village Club, the Village Club would go through with a score of 5-4.

3.      If the match is not completed on the night agreed, the team deemed to be responsible for the second postponement will be disqualified from the competition.

4.      That the rules governing the Knock Out Cup be discussed at the AGM in order to rectify perceived deficiencies in this area.

5.      The Executive Committee would like teams to note that this judgment does not give them the right to postpone matches if the opposition team fails to arrive for a fixture exactly on time. The committee would take a firm stance against any team who would seek to gain an advantage in such a manner.