UCFL

(Update 06/08/2021: Please note that the Aug 6 deadline for entering the FAI Junior Cup has been extended by 3 days to Monday, Aug 9)

Following completion of the group stages of our pre-season tournament last Wednesday night (July 28), all teams not involved in the tournament finals will be turning their full attentions to the kick-off of the season proper. For the UCFL, this will be Saturday, August 21. We again remind teams of the importance of ensuring their player registrations are fully sorted out and up to date in advance of the kick-off. We hope to confirm the Divisions for the coming season in the near future.

(02/08/2021): FAI Junior Cup 2021/22 (Centenary competition) – entry deadline Aug 6

Our website has an area (“Match Reports”) for input of short match reports which we felt would be of general interest to many of our teams and would enhance the usefulness of the website as a source of information. To this end, we allowed our clubs direct access to enter such information themselves, with an understanding that no comments of a critical or derogatory nature would be made.

The committee was informed of some allegations relating to a particular match last Saturday and we are investigating these allegations under our standard disciplinary procedures.

Unfortunately, they were also inadvertently entered into the match reports section of our website. We have removed them now and we are also removing access to this section until further notice pending a review of how it should be used in future.

Teams often arrange friendly games at this time of year and are responsible for all aspects of the game’s organisation, among them finding a referee. However, they should obtain approval for these games beforehand for several reasons, not least because referees will need it in place for insurance purposes.

Set out below is a reminder of the procedures which should be followed in order to obtain approval for a friendly game:

1. The organising club should request permission to hold the friendly from its own League via the League Hon Sec giving details of the proposed match i.e. opposition, pitch and date. If any of these details change then a new permission must be sought.

2. The Hon Sec will then confirm the sanction of the stated fixture by email to the organising club, which should in turn make this authentication available for inspection by the referee. Our referees will be advised of our procedures.

3. The organising club should be a current member of the league and ensure that both clubs have the necessary public liability insurance in place.

With another round of games successfully completed on the first Saturday in July, the UCFL can state that we are very pleased with progress since the pre-season tournament kicked off on June 9. We hope all participating teams continue to enjoy the competition in the spirit of good communication and co operation displayed to date.

As most of you will be aware, we are targetting July 28 as the date for completion of all group stage games, with finals scheduled for August 7. Given this timeframe, it may not be possible to re-schedule games, especially as availability of referees may be an additional factor limiting our flexibility. We would ask that teams bear this in mind when preparing for games throughout the rest of July.

The FAI referees department have added two courses for training new referees. The UCFL encourages anyone interested in taking up refereeing to consider signing up for one of these courses.

FAI Referee Beginner Course – 6th/7th/8th July

FAI Referee Beginner Course – 20th/21st/22nd July

[Update 09/06/2021: Ahead of tonight's kick-off, we would like to draw everyone's attention to Rule 4, permitting roll-on/ roll-off substitutions and Rule 7, which directs that a penalty shootout must take place after each drawn game, with the winner of the shootout being awarded an extra point in the Group competition (so the shootout winner receives two points in total for the game, with the shootout loser receiving one point for the draw in 90 minutes).]

With our pre-season tournament fast approaching, we would remind any participating teams which have not yet done so, to email the UCFL Hon Sec Paraic Treanor (paraic.treanor@ucfl.ie) confirming their wish to enter the tournament. Please do this now!

Tournament Rules & Procedures:

The committee have agreed a set of Rules governing the tournament and these can be viewed by clicking on the following link: 2021-22 Pre-Season Tournament Rules.

In addition, we would like to remind all teams, especially new teams, of the standard procedures ahead of each match:

The home team must contact the opposition and referee to ensure all is in order, give directions, check colours and any other items which may be relevant. Contact details can be found at the following links:

Teams: UCFL - Club Contact Details 2021/2022 (Based on information available to 05/06/2021)

Referees: Referees UCFL

A full fixture list has already been circulated to all clubs; any future alterations to these (e.g. kick-off times and referees for fixtures after June 16) will be advised in fixture updates which we intend to issue weekly during the tournament.

Clubs are reminded that team applications for membership of the UCFL should be submitted as soon as possible. This is particularly important for teams intending to participate in the pre-season tournament, which is due to kick-off next week.

Registration of each team should be completed via the online team registration form available on this website at the following link:

UCFL online registration

In relation to the tournament itself, the groups and draft fixtures list were circulated to all clubs over the weekend. Fixtures will begin in 8 days time, on Wednesday, June and it is hoped to complete the group stages by July 28, leaving just a few play-off games between the various group/ section winners to take place after that.

The opening two rounds of fixtures are set out below:

With the end of the standard season on May 31 approaching, thoughts are now turning towards next season 2021/22. While the LFA have not yet confirmed their position regarding a possible extension of 2020/21 beyond May31, the UCFL are proceeding on the basis that 2020/21 will be abandoned.

Therefore, we are now asking all teams to begin preparations for next season 2021/22 immediately, beginning with team registration, before making arrangements to ensure their players can be registered once player registration for 2021/22 opens on June 1.

Registration of each team should be completed via the online team registration form available on this website at the following link:

UCFL online registration

Note that clubs with more than one team should, as usual, submit a separate application for each team.

Finally, please note that the registration form is also available in excel and pdf formats, though the online option is our preferred method.

With training for under 18 teams set to resume from April 26 and in anticipation that a similar date for adult teams will be announced in the near future, the Leinster FA are organising a series of webinars to outline and remind clubs of the procedures that will be required for training to proceed.

All UCFL clubs are encouraged to attend one of the webinars – we note that the webinars appropriate to most of our clubs are on Monday (North Dublin) and Wednesday (South Dublin), though we would expect that rigid adherence to a club’s precise geographical location will not be enforced!

After registering to attend, clubs are also being asked to inform the UCFL that they have done so by emailing the Hon Sec Paraic Treanor (paraic.treanor@ucfl.ie or John Fraser (john.fraser@ucfl.ie)

The full message sent by Peter Doyle, Leinster FA Administrator, is as follows:

With the severe Covid-19 restrictions still in place, the UCFL continues to monitor the situation and consider different courses of action at a high level.

At the present time, the prospect of running a full season for 2020/21 is receding. However, the UCFL does not intend to completely abandon 2020/21 and go straight to 2021/22 unless matches are prohibited until, say, well into June. We are obviously still hoping that restrictions will be lifted sooner than this and, after such a long period of inactivity, we do not envisage then leaving a further significant period to pass without games. When deciding on a programme of matches in that scenario, we will be conscious of a number of factors, including having an appropriate period for preparation (training), the everyday pressures on players including family holidays etc and, importantly, the necessity to obtain permission for a season extension beyond May 31.

However, until more definite information emerges regarding a likely date for resumption of matches, we cannot plan an appropriate format in any detail. Nonetheless, ideas such as seeding of the Cup (with byes for higher division teams) and/or running Leagues based on one round of games etc. are among a number of ideas being considered.

When more information on easing of restrictions does emerge, we also intend to contact our clubs individually again before making definite decisions on how to proceed.

You may wish to note that the FAI President, Gerry McEnaney, has issued a message to all those involved in football after 12 months of Covid-19 restrictions. The message can be viewed here.

The recently appointed CEO of the FAI, Jonathan Hill, issued an update last week for onward circulation to all Leagues and affiliates. This message can be viewed at the following link:

FAI CEO update.

With the 2020/21 season suspended since mid-September and flexibility in timing required in order to ensure competitions can be played, the FAI have moved to address some of the issues that will arise from fixed transfer windows and registration dates.

The main change sees the closing date of the usual Dec-Jan transfer window deferred from Jan 31 until March 20. The final date for registration of new players remains March 31, for now at least.

The details are contained in a document which can be viewed by clicking on the following link:

Transfers and Registrations Period Extension Notification.pdf (ucfl.ie).

We would stress that the new dates are under ongoing review and are quite likely to change depending on the course of the Covid-19 pandemic. A covering letter from FAI Chairman, Roy Barrett, was also issued with this information and can be viewed at this link:

Letter to Affiliates 30.01.21.pdf (ucfl.ie)

With the 2020/21 season suspended since mid-September and flexibility in timing required in order to ensure competitions can be played, the FAI have moved to address some of the issues that will arise from fixed transfer windows and registration dates.

The main change sees the closing date of the usual Dec-Jan transfer window deferred from Jan 31 until March 20. The final date for registration of new players remains March 31, for now at least.

The details are contained in a document which can be viewed by clicking on the following link:

Transfers and Registrations Period Extension Notification.pdf (ucfl.ie).

We would stress that the new dates are under ongoing review and are quite likely to change depending on the course of the Covid-19 pandemic. A covering letter from FAI Chairman, Roy Barrett, was also issued with this information and can be viewed at this link:

Letter to Affiliates 30.01.21.pdf (ucfl.ie)

All UCFL teams will undoubtedly be aware that collective team training must cease with immediate effect following the Government’s decision to re-impose most of the Level 5 restrictions which had been in place prior to the beginning of December. The FAI has today issued an update to ensure that all affiliates are aware of the latest situation. The most important point is that all (collective) football activity must cease until Jan 31 at least. The FAI update can be viewed at the following link:

https://www.fai.ie/domestic/news/fai-update-on-latest-covid-19-guidelines

Obviously, with the disappointing trends in the Covid-19 case numbers which have emerged over the course of December, a date for the resumption of competitive matches can only be guessed at for now. Nonetheless, clubs are encouraged to keep their teams and players focussed on an eventual resumption to the extent that this is possible, while complying with the FAI guidelines in full.

The UCFL Executive Committee will meet again next week to discuss any issues that may need to be addressed, though it is not expected to be a lengthy meeting!

All UCFL teams will undoubtedly be aware that collective team training must cease with immediate effect following the Government’s decision to re-impose most of the Level 5 restrictions which had been in place prior to the beginning of December. The FAI has today issued an update to ensure that all affiliates are aware of the latest situation. The most important point is that all (collective) football activity must cease until Jan 31 at least. The FAI update can be viewed at the following link:

https://www.fai.ie/domestic/news/fai-update-on-latest-covid-19-guidelines

Obviously, with the disappointing trends in the Covid-19 case numbers which have emerged over the course of December, a date for the resumption of competitive matches can only be guessed at for now. Nonetheless, clubs are encouraged to keep their teams and players focussed on an eventual resumption to the extent that this is possible, while complying with the FAI guidelines in full.

The UCFL Executive Committee will meet again next week to discuss any issues that may need to be addressed, though it is not expected to be a lengthy meeting!

There has been no further hard information emerging since Dec 2 on any likely date for the resumption of matches. Indeed, like everyone else, the UCFL notes that many people appear resigned to the likelihood that restrictions may well be tightened again for a period in January, before any easing to a level where football could fully resume.

Despite this, we can state that, similar to the completion of the 2019/20 season, we will endeavour to complete the 2020/21 season in a timely manner and will seek to accommodate any reasonable requests where this is possible.

In connection with these objectives, the UCFL Executive Committee recently completed a Leinster FA questionnaire which addressed the resumption of football in early 2021.

We would like to encourage all of our clubs to continue with their preparations for this resumption whenever that becomes possible and to contact us with any problems or queries they may have ahead of that resumption. It is our intention to contact all club secretaries by phone over the coming week to help ensure that we are aware of any difficulties that may be emerging or any other issues or ideas that clubs might like to raise at this stage.

In the meantime, we would like to wish all of our clubs, their players, managers and supporters, compliments of the season, along with a resumption of competitive matches early in 2021!

There has been no further hard information emerging since Dec 2 on any likely date for the resumption of matches. Indeed, like everyone else, the UCFL notes that many people appear resigned to the likelihood that restrictions may well be tightened again for a period in January, before any easing to a level where football could fully resume.

Despite this, we can state that, similar to the completion of the 2019/20 season, we will endeavour to complete the 2020/21 season in a timely manner and will seek to accommodate any reasonable requests where this is possible.

In connection with these objectives, the UCFL Executive Committee recently completed a Leinster FA questionnaire which addressed the resumption of football in early 2021.

We would like to encourage all of our clubs to continue with their preparations for this resumption whenever that becomes possible and to contact us with any problems or queries they may have ahead of that resumption. It is our intention to contact all club secretaries by phone over the coming week to help ensure that we are aware of any difficulties that may be emerging or any other issues or ideas that clubs might like to raise at this stage.

In the meantime, we would like to wish all of our clubs, their players, managers and supporters, along with their sponsors and of course all of the League’s own sponsors, compliments of the season. We urge you all to stay safe, as we look forward to a resumption of competitive matches early in 2021!

In a press release circulated to us via the Leinster FA, the FAI have confirmed that (adult) teams may resume training under the strict conditions which applied in October prior to the introduction of Level 5 restrictions on Oct 21.

As of now, we have no information on when games may be permitted to resume, but the UCFL committee will be meeting tomorrow (Dec 3) night when they will consider what steps, if any, might need to be taken at this stage.

The full FAI press release is as follows:

(Note that recent front page articles can be viewed under the News section of the website)

The following message was emailed to all club secretaries and main contacts this week (Nov 17):

With the continuing suspension of all adult football activity, the UCFL are of course monitoring the situation and note that the Government itself has not yet decided what restrictions to retain from the beginning of December.

At this point, we do not particularly expect that football matches will be allowed to resume immediately, but even if this is the case, we anticipate that most, if not all, teams will need at least a couple of weeks to train and prepare before re-starting competitive matches. To this end, it is the UCFL committee’s intention to contact each of our clubs to ascertain their state of preparedness ahead of the resumption. We intend to do this once we get a firmer indication of a likely date from when games will be permitted.

A number of issues have been raised in recent weeks, including the possibility that the public parks might stay open for football over the period of the usual Christmas/ New Year closedown, though with so much uncertainty prevailing, this currently seems unlikely to affect much more than a weekend or two in the middle of January. In addition, we fully expect that the season will have to be extended beyond the end of May. At the moment, we believe the Leinster FA are addressing these questions with the relevant authorities (to the extent that they can) and we anticipate communication from them in the coming days.

Finally, as of now, it is the League’s wish to see all of our usual competitions take place. The divisions, as announced in October, largely feature 10 team divisions, which is usually regarded as fewer than the optimum, but in the current circumstances it seems more likely to prove a distinct advantage.

(Note that recent front page articles can be viewed under the News section of the website)

The following message was emailed to all club secretaries and main contacts this week (Nov 17):

With the continuing suspension of all adult football activity, the UCFL are of course monitoring the situation and note that the Government itself has not yet decided what restrictions to retain from the beginning of December.

At this point, we do not particularly expect that football matches will be allowed to resume immediately, but even if this is the case, we anticipate that most, if not all, teams will need at least a couple of weeks to train and prepare before re-starting competitive matches. To this end, it is the UCFL committee’s intention to contact each of our clubs to ascertain their state of preparedness ahead of the resumption. We intend to do this once we get a firmer indication of a likely date from when games will be permitted.

The FAI have issued a reminder to all affiliated bodies of the protocols which must be followed under the continuing restrictions introduced with effect from 21/10/2020. The email, which was sent to us via the Leinster FA is set out below:

We are writing to you as the country settles into Level 5 restrictions to remind you of the protocols which we must adhere to under the current Government guidelines.

In particular, we would like to remind you of the following:

• Players of a school-going age – under 19 as per FAI guidelines – can continue to train but only with the club they are registered with
• All training must be outdoor, non-contact and in pods of 15 and in compliance with the FAI’s Safer Return to Training Protocol
• Players are not allowed to train with any representative side outside their club team
• FAI affiliated clubs are urged not to allow non-FAI affiliated academies use their facilities at this time
• For underage training - players/coaches/parents/guardians are permitted to travel more than 5 kilometres to attend an organised session
• For underage training - players/coaches/parents/guardians are permitted to travel outside their resident county to attend an organised training session
• In accordance with Government Level 5 guidelines, training is not permitted for non-elite adult teams
• All domestic adult and underage football matches remain in cessation
• Complaints in respect of any breaches of protocols will be referred to the Disciplinary Control Unit of the FAI

We are all in this together, so we thank you for your continued co-operation.

All Leagues and Clubs are also reminded that we have a dedicated email address for COVID-19 related queries – covidchecklist@fai.ie

All football activity for non-elite adult teams was effectively suspended with effect from midnight last Wednesday (Oct 21). This means that all UCFL teams, which all fall into this category, must cease organised training for the duration of the current Level 5 Government restrictions, which are scheduled to last until Dec 1.

The FAI confirmed this situation following clarification from the Government. Full details were posted on the FAI website on 21/10/2020 and can be viewed by clicking on the following link:

https://www.fai.ie/domestic/news/fai-update-on-level-5-guidelines-for-football

Further FAI/LFA updates will be posted as we receive them.

With several additional 2nd teams materialising towards the end of September, together with the suspension of games continuing indefinitely, the possibility of fixture congestion occurring in some of the lower divisions towards the end of the season has become an increasing concern. With that in mind, it has been decided to split the initial Divisions 3, 3A and 3B into four rather than three divisions.

However, all the opening games in season 2020/21 which took place on Sept 5 and Sept 12 involved teams which will remain in the same division after the split and the results of those games will therefore count as part of the revised structure. The new split is set out below:

The UCFL are in ongoing contact with the FAI via the Leinster FA in connection with the Covid-19 restrictions and like everyone else, we are hoping that our games can resume again in the near future.

In the meantime, we are continuing with our efforts to complete preparations for the 2020/21 season which of course had already begun for some of our teams before the current shutdown. A number of issues remain outstanding, mainly in some of the lower divisions, while the delay in beginning the season until mid-October at the earliest for the majority of our teams being an additional issue for consideration.

We are close to finalising the Secretaries Handbook for 2020/21 and we anticipate that this will shortly be circulated again for final checks before going to print.

One of the many casualties of the Covid-19 pandemic was of course the annual UCFL Awards Night. We had been looking into the possibility of presenting the trophies and medals to the various competition winners at a low-key ceremony before the end of September, but this too became impossible with the re-introduction of tighter restrictions in recent weeks.

Instead, teams can now collect their trophies and medals (winners and runners-up) directly from MMI. Contact details have already been circulated via email to the teams involved - any winners or runners-up which have not received this email can contact John Fraser (john.fraser@ucfl.ie).

Similarly, if a convenient time cannot be agreed with MMI, teams should contact John Fraser to see if an alternative arrangement can be found.

As expected, the Government this afternoon confirmed that measures to control the spread of the Covid-19 virus would see Level 3 restrictions applying to the Dublin area from midnight tonight (September 18).

In response, the FAI announced that, with exceptions for certain elite levels (SSE Airtricity League etc.), all football should cease from midnight tonight.

The UCFL were formally notified of this decision by the Leinster FA this evening and we therefore confirm that all UCFL games scheduled for tomorrow (and the coming weeks) are postponed.

The UCFL will seek to keep our clubs informed for the period of cessation and, along with everyone else, we will be hoping that games can resume again in a matter of weeks.

(Note - as an alternative to submitting the entries directly, properly completed forms can instead be forwarded to the UCFL Treasurer, who will charge that club's UCFL account with the entry fee and forward all entries received with a single League cheque to cover all such entries. However, to avail of this facility, an entry must be with the Treasurer by Wednesday, September 23.)

In addition to the regular UCFL competitions, there are 3 “external” competitions available to UCFL teams – the FAI Junior Cup, the LFA Junior Cup and the LFA Junior Shield.

All UCFL teams are eligible to enter the FAI Junior Cup, which is the national knockout competition open to all junior teams in the country and the UCFL encourages as many of its teams as possible to enter, particularly those in the top two divisions. The LFA Junior Cup is open to all junior teams in Leinster playing above Division 3 level. The LFA Junior Shield is open to all teams playing at or below Division 3 level.

The UCFL’s MMI and O’Neills.com Challenge Cup Finals were both successfully held on Saturday (22/08/2020).

In the opening match, for the MMI Cup, Ashwood, new to the UCFL this season, proved too strong for Castle Celtic 2nds, with an early goal from Stephen Bayliss giving them a lead they never relinquished. They eventually extended their lead 15 minutes from time through Nathan Killeen and, though Mark Healy pulled one back for Castle 5 minute later, Paul Tumulty wrapped it up for Ashwood in the final minutes.

Later in the day, Castle’s 1st team took to the pitch for the O’Neills.com Challenge Cup Final, facing Tallaght Utd., recently crowned winners of Division 1. After an evenly contested opening half hour, Tallaght went in front when Liam Woods scored direct from a corner, his kick eluding Dylan Cottuli with more than a little help from the swirling wind.

The O’Neills.com Challenge Cup Final, between Castle Celtic and Tallaght Utd. will be held tomorrow (Saturday, Aug 22) afternoon, kicking-off at 3.00pm on Home Farm’s pitch in Whitehall.

Normally, we would be asking all clubs in the UCFL to encourage their members to attend and we would also be reminding them of their allocations of prepaid tickets. However, nobody will be surprised to learn that in view of the unprecendented circumstances prevailing, we were having to control the numbers attending even before the further tightening of guidelines in the last few days which have forced us to abandon plans to admit any spectators at all.

With competitive football set to resume this weekend, the UCFL would like to remind all our teams of the FAI guidelines and protocols relating to this resumption of activities. When following these protocols we would ask teams to keep in mind their objectives, the major one being to ensure that the transmission of the SARS-CoV2 virus is kept to the minimum possible and that all reasonable precautions are taken and unnecessary risks are avoided.

The FAI have issued guidance at regular intervals in recent weeks and months. Ahead of this weekend’s return to action, we would draw your attention to their most recent comments, issued yesterday (July 16) and the associated release of their latest protocols concerning referees and club Compliance Officers. The comments can be viewed by clicking on the following link:

FAI launch referee and compliance officer protocols

The matchday protocol for referees can be accessed at the following link:

Grassroots Referees Match day Protocol

The link to the Compliance Officer role and responsibilities document is as follows:

Compliance Officer Role and Responsibilities

The UCFL have received confirmation from the Leinster FA that their request for permission to resume and complete season 2019/20 has been approved.

Separately, in further good news, a press release last evening from the FAI, following on from earlier Government announcements, has authorised a resumption of full-contact training from June 29 and training games from July 11, with competitive games permitted to resume from July 18.

The UCFL can confirm that work has begun on preparing schedules of fixtures for the revised period within which we understand the season must now be completed, i.e. from July 18 to Sept 14. All teams are asked to proceed on the assumption that the first competitive games will take place on the weekend of 18/07/2020.

The full FAI press release can be viewed by clicking the following link:

FAI moves from Cessation to Kick-off

In a Press Release last Monday evening (June 8), the FAI launched a Safer Return to Training Protocol and associated documentation for all amateur and underage football ahead of a return to training which can begin from today, June 15 onwards.

On Thursday, (June 11), the Leinster FA circulated an email addressing various queries which had arisen in response to the original FAI documentation.

Last Monday's press release from the FAI can be viewed at the following link:

Press Release FAI safer return to training protocol

Note that the associated documentation can be accessed by a link near the end of the press release above.

The subsequent email from the Leinster FA's Provincial Administrator/ General Secretary, Peter Doyle, is as follows: