Selection and Club Guidelines agreed by the Committee – October 2008
- 1st X1 Selection
First team to be allowed to select their side on merit, irrespective of holidays or injuries.
- General Selection Policy
The Selection Committee comprises the Chairman + the individual managers and / or captains of the Mods’ senior teams.
Players who register to play for the club will be expected to make themselves available for any Mods team for which they are picked. Any apparent breach of this principle will be referred to the Executive Committee, as per guideline 8 [below].
Exceptions:
(i) Players over 40 [years, not waist] may elect to only be considered for the 5th XI.
(ii) Players returning from lengthy absence due to injury, work commitments etc., may seek the Selection Committee’s agreement that they should be selected for a lower team than they might usually represent.
- Withdrawals
Any side requiring a player after 9pm on Thursday can only select from the reserve pool and must play their own substitute first. If no reserve pool player is available then a captain may select a replacement of his choice provided he contacts the captain of the team below by 9pm on Thursday evening.
Exceptions:
None.
- Substitutes
A player will not be selected as a substitute two weeks in succession, without his prior consent. As an example, if a player is a substitute for the 3rd team on Saturday 10th, and his captain does not name him in the starting XI for the 3rd team fixture on Saturday 17th, he must be given the opportunity to start for the 4th team on the 17th. In the same example, if the player is called up to the 2nd team squad for the fixture on the 17th, he cannot be named as 2nd team substitute.
Ideally, substitutes to be named at selection prior to any fixtures, although captains may - in practice - be unable to do so. They must, however, adhere to the principles set out in the above paragraph.
- Availability
A player who was unavailable for non footballing reasons (e.g injury) will forfeit the above rights to selection and be at the disposal of any team and/or the pool of unselected players for subsequent fixtures. Individual cases of unavoidable absence, will be treated on their own merits by the selecton committee and managed accordingly.
- Dropping of Players
No player can be dropped more than one team between fixtures on consecutive weekends.
Exceptions:
(i) Players selected late from reserve pool or 5th XI without their consent, players who are not regular playing members of that side
(ii) Any player who the Selection Committee feel has transgressed club rules to an extent that usual selection policies should be suspended e.g. in the event of ongoing and wilful non-payment of fees due to the club.
- Signing On and Subscriptions
The league deadline for the signing on of players is 31st March in any year but the club deadline shall be agreed on during the season, having regard to injuries and general availability of players.
With effect from the start of season 2009-10, a single monthly sum will be payable by standing order [unless an alternative payment method is agreed with club officials]. This sum will be £17 per month for players in employment, or £9.00 per month for unemployed players, students in further education and school students. The monthly fee replaces the previous levy of match fees for individual appearances, along with the annual subscription [which itself included a payment to the Old Modernians’ Association].
Individuals who register to play at the start of the season will be expected to set up a standing order for 8 consecutive months [September – April or October – May] to cover the duration of the season. Players who join the club part way through the season should set up a standing order to cover the remainder of the season e.g. a player who plays for half a season should pay half as much as a player who plays for the entire season.
A player who “helps out” as a guest when an individual team is short of players on the eve or day of a match will not be expected to pay. However, if he makes a second appearance, and wishes to be considered for future fixtures, he will be expected to join the club formally and to set up a standing order i.e. it is reasonable for a new player to make one or two appearances before deciding whether to commit himself [including financially] to the club.
At the discretion of the Selection Committee, if a player fails to make the financial arrangements outlined above, he will be deemed to be unavailable for selection and will only be selected to play upon payment of any arrears outstanding and at the discretion of the Committee.
- Discipline
The Executive Committee shall, at its discretion, discuss and act upon in any way it deems suitable the following matters:
- The playing of ineligible players.
- Failure of individuals to make prompt payment in respect of pay fines levied upon the section by outside organisations e.g. booking & sending off fines. In normal circumstances, players will be expected to make payment in respect of a booking or sending off within two weeks of being advised of the fine by his captain or another club official.
- Players refusing to play for an individual Mods team for which they have been selected.
- Team Captains
Captains will be responsible for the management and organisation of their team and will delegate duties appropriately.
- Executive Committee
The Executive Committee [EC] comprises the Chairman, the Secretary and the Vice Chair, and it will be accessible to any section member to have any grievance or disciplinary matter discussed and acted upon as appropriate. The Committee shall meet by prior arrangement and with a frequency that reflects the nature, importance and urgency of club business. However, where an individual submits a grievance or complaint, the EC will attempt to meet within one week of receipt of details of the situation.
- Old Modernians FC Website
All players and officials are encouraged to make maximum use of the section website, and to make particular use of the “Availability” facility.