Recently, all the soccer coaches in ROPSSAA were contacted by the folks at the board office and told that the sport was "on probation" next season. What does this mean and why was this action taken? Below is what I have managed to find out so far.
Apparently, last season was an especially difficult one in regards to altercations between players; problems with fans; and especially verbal abuse from coaches and players towards referees. I have been lead to believe that this action was taken after complaints from the group representing referees in the area and threats not to do high school matches any more.
As far as what the probation involves, that has not been made entirely clear. Teams will be monitored more closely at the board office and there will be a greater emphasis on referees reporting problems to those that run ROPSSAA. However, there have been no specific threats made in regards to what exactly are the standards for reportable behaviour and the potential consequences. No one is even sure what thresh-hold must be met in order for the league as a whole to fail this probationary period.
As can be expected, the coaches in ROPSSAA have not taken this news very well. Many believe that the problem is limited to a few frequent offenders but that those in charge simply can't be bothered to deal with them on a case-by-case basis. One former ROPSSAA soccer convener has even written a rather angry and accusatory response, blaming recent conveners for not dealing with disciplinary problems on a timely basis. This convener has even offered to run the show next year in order to ensure that things improve.
What ROPSSAA hopes to accomplish with this probation isn't entirely clear. Many coaches did not see any noticeable decline in behaviour this past season so they fear that they will only discover the standards too late. Others believe that it's simply a show to quiet the referees. They also wonder why referees have not taken this same action in rep soccer where violations are more numerous. They believe it's a big bluff since referees would never give up high school games where they are paid the same as rep soccer but have shorter games; less paper work to complete; and specific people in authority (i.e. principals) o whom they can complain if a coach or team is especially difficult.
Look for this issue to flare up for a few weeks; for the Toronto Star to exploit it for one of their many creating-controversy-in-high-school-sports-where-none-exists articles; and then for the probation to magically disappear after next season.
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