Guidance Notes for New Secretary’s of Hull University Ladies
NB: These guidelines are designed specifically for teams affiliated to the East Riding County Football Association and university teams that compete in external mainstream football leagues, not BUCS or intra mural. Specific information in relation to cost, key dates and league requirements will vary from County to County therefore BUCS advise any new club secretary to contact their local County FA in the first instance.
The following notes have been produced to assist each new team Secretary to understand the important aspects of administration with external bodies which need to be attended to by the team Secretary. In reality it is not complicated once you are fully aware of the situation.
You probably see your role as organiser of the team and being the contact person with other clubs. However, your relationship with the League and the County FA is a vital element that must be addressed.
You will be most successful in your year in office (and gain the most from the experience) by establishing the responsibility your team has to the League and to the other clubs and ensuring you meet these commitments.
The administrative functions are important and will cause trouble for your club,if they are not carried out correctly.
East Riding County Football Association (ERCFA):
Every club must be affiliated to a County FA before it can play any football in a given season. In England the season runs from 1st July until 31st May the following year.
ERCFA Affiliation:
The affiliation form will be sent out by the ERCFA to each club in the first week in May each year. It will be sent to whoever signed the previous year’s form at the address given on that form. This is usually someone at the Athletic Union. It always needs to be returned completed by 1st June together with the full affiliation fee and insurance premium.
If the 1st June deadline is not complied with an automatic fine is placed against the club. This may seem harsh, to a new Secretary, but is essential as the ERCFA has more than 1100 clubs, and the administrative preparations required for each season would be very difficult if large numbers of clubs simply ignore the deadline.
A club can affiliate any number of teams. Currently only one team pays the affiliation fee, all additional teams from that club pay only the insurance premium, to cover that team. This means that it is cheaper to affiliate your team with the men’s team, as one club.
Make sure at the AU that the Ladies team have been included on the ERCFA affiliation form in May.
If you have not affiliated then your team will be suspended from all football when you return for the autumn term, which will be a headache you can do without, it has often happened in the past!
There are two aspects of ERCFA affiliation throughout the season which you need to be aware of.
If a player is given a red or yellow card in any of your games the referee report will be sent to the ERCFA not the League. The ERCFA will send out any disciplinary notice, charge, suspension or fine to the name and address on the affiliation form. Failure to attend to such correspondence will bring additional penalties.
Make sure you liaise with the AU regularly particularly if you have had a recent disciplinary problem in a match.
The second aspect is the ERCFA Womens Cup. This is entirely administered by the ERCFA not the League. The draw, team sheets and result cards will be sent out by the ERCFA again to the address on the ERCFA affiliation form. The league will be aware of the ERCFA Womens Cup matches and automatically adjust the fixtures as required.
The ERCFA Womens Cup has precedence over all other fixtures. If a game is called off for ground conditions it will automatically take place the following week. If you have no fixture on a County Cup date a league match will be scheduled to help avoid end of season fixture congestion if possible.
There are different rules for the ERCFA Womens Cup than the League Cup. These can be found in the ERCFA Handbook. This will be given out at the League pre-season meeting together with all the league documentation.
Make sure you have the paperwork before the match day, if its missing you can always get more by calling at the ERCFA office in working hours.The ERCFA office is located opposite the University Sports Centre.
The ERCFA will have someone who has volunteered to act as a referee’s appointment officer for midweek games. This will be of great assistance to you for your Wednesday fixtures in the University’s League. Always give them as much notice as possible of fixtures, changes to fixtures and postponements. If a referee attends a match because they were not informed of a postponement they are entitled to their fee for the game. ERCFA Office open 9.30am.-4.30pm Mon-Fri
Make sure you have the name and contact details of the Midweek Referee’s Appointment Secretary, and let him have any information as soon as possible.
The East Riding County Womens Football League:
Despite the similarity in the title the League is completely separate from the ERCFA. Indeed the League has to affiliate to the ERCFA just like each club must do.
There is an annual affiliation fee, currently £65 which needs to be paid by 1st August each year. The league will send an invoice for this, you may need to ask for this invoice since the University are the only club that requires one, so it I easily forgotten.
The league produces a Handbook which gives Club information, fixtures and the Rules. It is important do not lose it.
The league also produces a guide aimed at giving easy to find information on what to do in any situation. The league secretary will always assist with help and advice, you only need to ask. The same applies to the ERCFA at their office opposite the University Sports Centre.
You will not go far wrong if you.
Confirm fixtures with the opposition.
Send in fully completed result cards by post or email.
Pay referees.
Let everyone who needs to know of fixture changes as soon as possible.
Keep amendments to Handbook information up to date.
Full-Time Website:
The League now fully utilise the FA Full-Time website as the League Administration System. Changes concerning your club will be notified automatically by email and all League up to date information can be downloaded from the site.
General:
Remember that football is a social activity, and the interaction between your club, your opponents and the referee are vital for enjoyment of the experience.
Try to create a situation were clubs, referees and league officials say “I like going to Hull University best of all. What a great set of people, they go out of their way to make you feel welcome.” At the end of the day that’s really what it’s all about.
Provide Leadership To Your Club:
You have volunteered to take on an important administrative role, at an early age. This is to your credit, and can become a positive feature of your early career CV. But to achieve this you must take on board the responsibilities that go with your role.
Your club has a responsibility to both your League’s and the ERCFA. You must do all you can to ensure you meet both fixture and administrative requirements. The purpose of being in membership of any league is to generate a structured fixture programme. You must do all you can to ensure your club fulfils its fixture and administrative responsibilities.
Players are self-centred by nature. They do not think in terms of the responsibility they have to the rest of the clubs. You are the leader, as well as the representative of the players. You need to provide Leadership by knowing your clubs commitments and shaping your players attitudes to ensure your club plays a positive part in the football family.
You are on a very steep learning curve. You have only one year in this role and need to hit the road running. It will not be easy, you will find yourself dealing with things you never imagined, when you took on the role.
If you work at it, you will amass valuable experience from your year in office.
Always remember there is plenty of back-up from both the League and ERCFA. You can seek advice on anything at any time and it will be delivered.
Try to think of yourself as representing the League and the ERCFA at your club, not the other way round. Players do not appreciate the importance of anything, beyond playing the match. You must.