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Posted February 6th, 2008 - Updated 03/16/08

MIDWEST RUGBY TERRITORIAL UNION SUMMER MEETING MINUTES

Submitted and approved as Minutes on January 12th, 2008

Location:  Ramada Plaza, 3333 Twenty-Eight Street South East, Kentwood,  MI   49512

Date:  July 22nd, 2007

9:45 AM - Welcome

Called to Order at 10:25 AM by President Jeremiah Johnson

I.

Roll Call:

Total votes:

Allegheny - 24 Members - Gary Lobaugh  + No individual Club votes

  22

CARFU - 29 Members - Absent + No individual Club votes

    0

Illinois - 10 Members - Mike Schubach + No individual Club votes

  10

Indiana  -  9 Members - Jim Mead + No individual Club votes

    9

Iowa  -  26 Members - Steve Murra + 1 individual Club vote

  23

Pearl City - Roy Carver

Michigan  -  26 Members - Gina Kostoff + No individual voting Club

  16

Minnesota  -  0 Members - Absent + No individual voting Club

    0

Ohio  -  29 Members - Joe Otten + No individual voting Club

  27

Wisconsin  -  29 Members - Stas Garbasz + No individual voting Club

  24

Total = 131  -  Simple majority = 66  -  2/3’s majority = 88

131

Treasurer – There were no restrictions of Club votes for failing to meet financial duty.

Discipline -  There were no restrictions of Club votes for discipline action.

ATTENDEES: 

- Midwest Officers:  Jeremiah Johnson, President;  Graeme Leask, Vice President of Competition;  Tom Rooney, Vice President of

Collegiate Affairs;  Tom Manion, Secretary;  Tim Harn, Treasurer

- Midwest Officials:  Bob Cronquist, Youth Coordinator;  Joe Otten, Referee Society Chairman;  John Mullett, Discipline Chairman; 

Steve Murra, Women's U23 Coach

- LAU Presidents:  Mike Schubach , Illinois;  Jim Mead, Indiana;  Gina Kostoff, Michigan;  Stas Garbasz, Wisconsin

- Other Representatives:  Gary Lobaugh, Allegheny;  Roy Carver, Pearl City, Iowa

Total attended = 15 Members

II.

Agenda:

A.

Additions to the Agenda - entered under 'VI. New Business:'  

F.

Coaching Certification

G.

Referee Certification

H.

Mid-South Referee Society

I.

USA Rugby Venue Dates Open for Bidding

B.

Motion:

To accept the changes/additions to the Agenda - Accepted unanimously [voice vote]

III.

Annual General Meeting Notes:

A.

Motion:

To accept the Annual General Meeting Notes, from January 13th, 2007, and enter as Minutes

Accepted unanimously [voice vote]

IV.

Officer Reports:

A.

President - Jeremiah Johnson - No written report submitted

1.

Congratulations to Iowa State University Women

2.

Congratulations to the Women's All Star Team on winning the National Championship

3.

Note for USA Congress Report

 a.

Midwest Pool Play structure was under scrutiny

i.

Contention about ‘loading-up’ of National D I & II thru our Pool Play

ii.

Our intent is to raise the level of play for all of our Clubs

iii.

We are the only TU to list the playing structure

- Midwest lists rules and Clubs

- MARFU filed complaint - MARFU does NOT list either promotion or relegation

iv.

Website wording got us into trouble

We will correct so we don’t handle any more complaints

4.

Monthly TU President's Call Report

 a.

Bill Sexton, Western Territory President, is doing a report on how the TUs are managed

- Determining if TU and LAU is ‘OK’

- Believes TU will be out and replaced by 4 professionally staffed geographic regions

- Competition and Championships will be run by the professional staff

- Looking for ways to get around the decision

- Decision to be made in a meeting to be held in the August during the Munster Game in Chicago

 b.

Competition audit results will be made later probably August (maybe)

- Midwest success on the field is working toward our benefit

 c.

J. Johnson hopes the TU Presidents will have a huge say in the process

- He hopes the TU will have a say and will not fall apart

5.

J. Johnson feels that G. Leask's experiment with bid for hosting versus central hosting is working

6.

Question Answer session . . .

 Q:

From S. Murra:  What will we do if the TU goes out of business?

 A:

J. Johnson:  That is a little ahead of the decision . . . communication will be kept open.

B.

Vice President of Competition - Graeme Leask - Written report submitted

1.

Kristen S. Johnson was appointed Women’s Commissioner

2.

Needs approval to develop multi-level play

 a.

Player dropping down must sit one (1) match

3.

Men's All Star schedule available

3.

Chicago Lion's won MW 7s yesterday (7-21-2007)

3.

7s All Star Team preparing for ITT

3.

Graeme will attend the USA Rugby Competition meeting in Austin, TX, on August 4th and 5th

 a.

Will review the promotion/relegation structure

4.

Discussion about Club multi-level play . . .

 a.

John Mullett is on the National Eligibility Committee

- Play permitted through multi-level (go up/down), but a player switching must sit 2 matches

C.

Vice President of Collegiate and Youth - Tom Rooney - Written report submitted

1.

Nothing new since January except Women's Division I & II - MARFU's challenge about our selection

 a.

Had conversation with Dave Pelton as to determine size of school and worthiness of Club at different levels

2.

Are we a Division II TU compared to other TUs

3.

Doesn’t expect changes this year

4.

Advises that there is a push for Div III & IV playoffs (mostly MARFU and NERFU)

- Not in favor of a Div III and IV National Championship - Too local and too costly

5.

Ron Bower got old coaches involved

- Has athletic players but they’re raw - They will need to learn to work under pressure

- Ron will see how we can raise the Territory competition level

D.

Secretary - Tom Manion – Written report submitted

1.

Minutes from AGM presented

2.

Calendar for ‘07/’08 presented - See 'E.  Calendar - remainder of '07 and through June 1st. '08'

E.

Treasurer - Tim Harn - Written report submitted

1.

Dues collection are improving

- Clubs are current but some colleges are late with dues

2.

No change since January

 a.

Account balance looks good

 b.

Not much coming in or going out

3.

Had good help from the LAUs

F.

Disciplinarian - John Mullett - No written report submitted

1.

No issues

 a.

Yellow and Red cards not challenged

G.

USA Congress Report:  Jeremiah Johnson - John Mullett - Tom Schmitt (Not present)

1.

John Mullett

 a.

Very little happened

 b.

Eligibility begins in January and players must be registered and on Club roster by January 1st

- Not certain how they plan to prove someone played for club prior to playoffs

- Expect changes in eligibility

 c.

Fought to get information and what to do in the positions

- May not know if we are powerless

- T. Schmitt is on the Audit Committee

 d.

Colleges may have players from other schools without a Rugby Club, nearest campus, with as many as 7 players, and if more, they will have to form their own Club at their school if they want to play

2.

 Jeremiah Johnson

 a.

Eligibility changes coming

- Looking for multi playing sides and unlimited Canadian players

- Hard and fast dates for foreign players joining Clubs to be on the roster

- Things are not set in stone but they are coming

3.

Question Answer session . . .

 Q:

From T. Rooney:  Are there changes in Collegiate eligibility – March grad and April/May Playoffs?  And will the US extend play from 6 year to play 5 years?

 A:

JJ:  Those were on of the table as proposed eligibility changes, but not adopted

V.

Committee and Other Reports:

A.

Management Committee – No report submitted

B.

Disciplinary Committee - John Mullett - No report submitted

C.

Referee Society - Joe Otten – No written report submitted

1.

Tammy Cowan issued Referee Society Treasury Report, with a balance of about $13,982.00 - She issued charges

2.

Several Midwest Referees retired

3.

Request invoice to school on Midwest letterhead - will request that Shawn McKinney put it on the website

4.

Requested people, and Clubs, identify retiring and/or injured players to introduce to the Refereeing System

- Looking for LAU Referee list - Looking for up and coming Referees

D.

Men's Select Side – Paul Bergman – Not present - Written report submitted

1.

Schedule presented, which listed training and fitness dates

E.

Women's Select Side – Martha Dane - Not present - Written report submitted [Graeme Leask  presented]

1.

Listed expectations and listed dates

2.

Has an extended travel schedule - sees money as a problem

3.

Asked for the reinstatement of the Women's LAU

- Because of limited time, it may be too late to combine with the Men’s LAU

4.

Wants a full competitive schedule without budget concerns

- G. Leask advised that there are inventive ways to come up with money

- J. Johnson will ask Martha to speak to Paul Bergman, Tim Harn, and Steve Murra about the budget

- J. Johnson requested Steve Mura to contact Martha

F.

Under 23 Select Side - Steve Murra – No written report submitted

1.

The LAU Tournament went well with some good matches

2.

Invited 108 Players to camp in Rockford, IL, from 8 LAUs - 72 attended and 22 were selected

3.

Played Southern California in scrimmage, and beat the West in the ITT

4.

Planning possible All Star trips to Southern California in January, or Florida in February, or Austin, TX, in April

5.

S. Murra thanked everyone for their support of the Midwest U23 program

G.

Collegiate All Stars - Ron Bowers (not present) - No written report submitted

F.

Youth - Bob Cronquist - Written report submitted

1.

Good year for the Youth Rugby

 a.

All the playoff Clubs placed very well

i.

The Divine Savior Girls' Rugby Club, WI, won the National Championship for the fifth time

ii.

The Penn High Boys' Rugby Club, IN, won the Midwest Championship and took 3rd in the National Championship

iii.

The Boys' and Girls' All Star Teams played well at the U17 and U19 levels

 b.

Age grade All Star Teams will probable change this year to U20, U18, and U14

 c.

There are about 215 Youth Teams in the Midwest

 d.

Middle school level such as YMCA programs have been very successful

i.

Middle school Rugby in Indiana is playing tackle Rugby

2.

The Midwest Youth website is up, http://www.midwestyouthrugby.com/

 a.

Spring Playoff dates listed

3.

Question Answer session . . .

 Q:

S. Murra:  Can we change the challenge/playoff dates that conflict with the Collegiate/U23 All Star dates

 A:

B. Cronquist:  Very agreeable to work with Steve on conflicting dates, but was stuck with 2008 dates

 Q:

M. Schubach:  What is the process in joining the local LAU/State Youth Governing Body

 A:

B. Cronquist:  Advised that the Illinois Youth Rugby Association is the Governing Body and is based in Chicago are - He suggested they just join it

- Mike advised they were offered a ‘down’ state group membership. but the Clubs weren’t interested

3.

Discussion . . .

- S. Murra, advised Bob that there is a website stating that there is no HS Rugby in the Midwest - He thinks it has

something to do with http://www.collegerugbyamerica.com/, and my misrepresent the system

- Bob said he was aware that it does exist

- J. Johnson, 'We need to handle this carefully.   We don’t want the Midwest misrepresented in the USA Rugby

Community

- M. Schubach believes the school, EIU, wants him, Frank Graziano, out

- Steve requested the LAU to advise if they, the EIU Women's program, host an All Star camp

H.

Promotional Director - Shawn A. McKinney (not present) - Written report submitted

1.

Frustrated about the time it takes to get things done as the Midwest Promotion Director

2.

Has several ideas on fundraising and will pass those through the EC

I.

Leagues - Adrian Gannon and Bill Weckstein (both not present) - Written report submitted

1.

Name & Address for match reports needs to be changed on website

2.

Advised the structure of playoffs post-summer

3.

Request action for Miami no-show at the opening round of the CR3 playoff

4.

The Buffalo Rugby Club promoted from Men's Division II to Division I

- The Scioto Valley Rugby Club relegated from Men's Division I to Division II

5.

Dr. Joe Cunningham, Milwaukee Westside Harlequins, was appointed as the Men's Division II Western Conference Coordinator

J.

Men's Club Committee - Adrian Gannon (not present) - No report submitted

VI.

Unfinished Business - Old Business:

A.

Midwest By-law alignment with USA Rugby - Jeremiah Johnson

1.

Things aren’t finished yet - believes they’re Ok without changes

- Will make recommendations at the winter general meeting to move forward

B.

Collegiate Pool Play Competition - Tom Rooney

1.

No further discussion

- Issue created by MARFU is resolved

2.

Division III & IV are only for MARFU and New England

C.

Club Competition – Divisional Play - Graeme Leask and Jeremiah Johnson

1.

Policy in the Midwest of no multi-division play

- We need to say we will agree to multi-level play - But it must be trackable

 a.

We need teams to develop ‘B’ sides and it could happen with multi-level play

2.

Discussion . . .

- J. . Mullett:  Because USA RUGBY permits multi-divisional play and USA RUGBY permits the Territory and/or Local Area

Union to administrate and oversee multi-division play for the member Clubs.

3.

Motion:  G. Kostoff/J. Mullett

- Permit Multi-Division play, to be competitive and to advance, following the USA RUGBY Guideline/By-laws under the

guidance of the Midwest RU Vice President of Competition who will have the discretionary powers to reassign the first,

second or third side (etc.) of a said Club for competitive or structural reasons.   Players will be permitted to play between

the Club sides (up/down) until the player has played 25% of matches at the highest level, Division I (2 ½ of 10 games) at

which time, that player can no longer return to play in any of the Club's lower division league competition sides

 a.

Discussion . . .

- M. Schubach:  Needs oversight by MWRFU VP of Competition

- S. Garbasz:  With relegation, what if club end up in same division

- R. Carver:  Oversight, make everyone move up one division

- J. Mullett:  Provide multi-division play and competition can respect move - Division play multi-level dues and multi

voice - TU has the ability to restrict movement

 b.

Call the question

ACCEPTED unanimously [voice vote]

4.

Motion:  G. Kostoff/J. Otten

- All multi-level competing Clubs will pay full dues for each team in each division play - No discount - [Club in Division I and

Division III pay separately for Club's side in Division I and pay full dues for Club's side in Division III also]

 a.

Discussion . . .

- M. Schubach:  Could we set up a special Club fee

- G. Kostoff:  Each are the same because they use the system the same

- J. Johnson:  Sees it as 2 issues – dues and structure

- B Cronquist:  Give them discount in dues

- G. Leask:  Special Club fee and discussed RRS fees and Divisional levels

 b.

Call the question

FAILED:  Yea,16 (MI) – Nay, 116 (all others) [voice vote]

5.

Motion:  G. Kostoff/J. Mullett

- Clubs involved in multi-division play will pay full dues for the team playing in the higher division, but for the additional

team(s) entered into the lower multi-division(s) play they will pay one half (1/2) the dues of that division's normal

charges for that lower level team(s) - At the additional sides applicable rate of dues in which ever that team is competing

 a.

Discussion . . .

- M. Schubach:  Where should the money be directed - referee training?

- J. Mullett:  What is the budget issue affecting - 3 to 5 Clubs - Buffalo, Chicago Lion, Chicago Griffins - Let the LAU

make their own decision on budget charges

- J. Johnson:  And Buffalo will send one side off to the NY LAU, so the extra four to five hundred dollars may be

negligible

 b.

Call the question

ACCEPTED - 130 – 1 (all except Pearl City) [voice vote]

D.

 Shield and Logo update - J. Johnson

1.

Lost computer and all the information was on the computer

- Review in January

VII.

New Business:

A.

Budget Review - Tim Harn

1.

No issue and No questions

B.

LAU Membership - Jeremiah Johnson

1.

Watching LAU boundaries and advised there is no solicitation by LAUs

 a.

Some LAUs may have approached Clubs from other LAUs

C.

New Clubs

1.

Wisconsin:  Wisconsin - Norbert Women - Collegiate Division II - friendly schedule in Fall - no coach

2.

Allegheny:  Indiana University of Pennsylvania Men - wants to return

3.

Indiana:  Anderson College Men - has send $275.00 dues

4.

CARFU:  Notre Dame University - withdrawn – not committed

5.

Motion:  G. Kostoff/M. Schubach

- To accept all three Clubs

ACCEPTED unanimously [voice vote]

D.

2008 Annual General Meeting

1.

Saturday the 12th of January, 2008

 a.

Request Adrian Gannon contact McDonald University for availability

E.

Calendar - remainder of '07 and through June 1st. '08

F.

Coaching Certification - John Mullett

1.

The Midwest has a policy that recognizes ALL Rugby Coaching Certificates

 a.

USA Rugby announced that all previous coaching certificates are expiring in favor of the ‘new’ USA Rugby Coaching Certification Program, because we require some Clubs/Teams to have a certified coach

 b.

View to have old certificate expire for new USA Rugby program is a waste

2.

Discussion . . .

- T. Rooney:  Rick Humm, USA Rugby, advised that it is coming soon

- J. Mullett:  In the future, we may want to mandate the new program

3.

Recommendation (Policy - not a motion) - J. Mullett

APPROVED unanimously [voice vote]

G.

Referee Certification - Stas Garbasz

1.

Stas is looking to get a Referee Certification program in Wisconsin

2.

J. Otten:  US is talking about doing the same as the Coaching Program – develop Trainers

3.

J. Johnson:  LAU Referee Society should contact US

- Program will be in Chicago, Boulder, California, and Minneapolis in March of ‘08

H.

Mid-South Referee Society - Joe Otten

1.

Mid-South Referee Society sent a request to join the Midwest Rugby Referee Society

- Jerry McLemore is Chairman

 a.

It is a parallel organization of the LAUs

2.

J. Johnson:  Two TUs in good light with people

I.

USA Rugby Open Bids - Jeremiah Johnson

1.

The USA has opened up the bidding for all venues

- Requested they, the bidder, let the Midwest know to see how it can help support the bid

- Realize there is a short time to prepare bids

- Think about using government departments for support help

VIII.

Open Forum

- None

IX.

Adjournment

A.

Motion:  G. Kostoff

- To Adjourn

ACCEPTED unanimously [voice vote]

Adjourned 12:46 PM

Respectfully Submitted,

Thomas A. Manion Sr., Secretary

Midwest Rugby Union