COVID-19 – Important – Action is required by ALL Member Clubs

Essex and Suffolk Border Football League COVID-19

The Management Committee expect ALL League Member Clubs to follow ALL Government advice in relation to the return to grassroots football from July onwards.

The FA has produced some informative and useful guidance and resources for clubs to use. These can be found at http://www.thefa.com/news/2020/jul/17/grassroots-guidance-for-competitive-football-restart-in-england-170720 and this document has links to other documents, sample risk assessments and so on.

It is IMPORTANT that ALL Member Clubs take the risk from COVID very seriously and put measures in place which mitigate the risk to players, officials and the public. It is the responsibility of the Club to ensure all players and Officers of the Club are familiar with and adhere to any rules put in place by the Club.

Particularly useful is the summary produced by the FA which is here: refer email dated 30/07/2020 from League Secretary

This is a good basis to draw up your COVID risk assessment plan.

An example of a risk assessment is here: refer email dated 30/07/2020 from League Secretary

This is by no means exhaustive and will need to be adjusted to take account of your Clubs individual arrangements and circumstances. Many of you have landlords or use council pitches, we hope you have already been in touch to liaise with them regarding their requirements for COVID as well as your Clubs requirements from them. The HSE (Health & Safety Executive) have useful advice and examples of risk assessments on their websites and posters can also be found.

Here are a couple of them which may be helpful: refer email dated 30/07/2020 from League Secretary

The League Management Committee has decided that they require ALL Member Clubs to advise the League the name of their COVID-19 Officer/s.

Therefore, can you let me know the names(s) of your Officers by 15 August and we also require to have sight of the Clubs Risk Assessment / Action Plan by the same date.

This information should be sent to the League Secretary on esblsec@icloud.com

Please remember it the Member Clubs responsibility to draw up and maintain the Risk Assessment which is likely to be a “live document” – we do not need to see a new copy each time it is updated and will not necessarily be advising Clubs of any shortfalls in the plans as we will not be aware of the individual circumstances of your Club.

It is evident that there will be some of our normal rules which are unable to be met during the COID-19 pandemic.

A list of these is attached and will be maintained on the website at https://esblfootball.com/

The list is likely to expand over time as more issues come to our attention so please make sure that you keep an eye on it, and if you are aware of any issues not covered please contact the League Secretary.

Essex and Suffolk Border Football League COVID-19

IMPORTANT Changes and Relaxation of the Rules.

Registration Form/Sheets must be sent electronically – either a photograph or scanned document.
Signed-On-Match Day forms (SOMD) do not need to be countersigned by the opposition. Limits on signing on the day remain the same ie 2 per team. So if a player is not signed on by the Thursday as per rule 18A you may sign a further 2 players per team either by using the normal Registration Sheet or a Signed-On-Match-Day form (if it’s a SOMD form it does not need to be countersigned by the opposition). This MUST be received electronically in the Secretary’s or Registration Secretary’s email inbox no less than one hour before kick-off. Do not send the original forms in.
Transfers can be completed (as per the guidance) ie that the Club the player is signed for just needs to confirm electronically to the club wishing to sign the player that they give consent for the transfer to take place. The Transfer Form should be used and completed (without the club the player is signed for signing the form) and sent electronically to the Secretary.
When confirming the game with the opposition and Match Officials (as required at least 5 days in advance of the game) the Home team MUST alert the opposition and Match Officials of any requirements in relation to COVID, eg whether changing rooms and showers are available, specific arrangements for arrivals and departures, arrangements for drinks and so on; failure to do this will result in a fine under Rule 6h.
You are still required to complete a Team Sheet which will be provided by the league. There will only be 2 copies of the form this year, one for the League and one for Club retention. The Team Sheet should be photographed and sent via electronic means (email, text, What’s App etc) to both the opposition and the referee; there is no requirement this year to hand a copy of the sheet to either of these people. This should be done as per the rule ie at least 15 minutes prior to the kick-off. The top copy should still be posted to the Registration Secretary (envelopes are also to be issued by the league) to Mick Willmore, The Oaks, 9a, Young Close, Clacton on Sea, Essex CO16 8UQ. These should be posted “first class” straight away. The expectation is that the Team Sheet should be received within 4 days of the match. However, in order for the sheets to be COVID Safe the envelopes will not be opened until Thursday. Fines will be issued to any Team whose sheet is not received by the Friday following a Saturday game. The second copy of the Team Sheet is for the Home / Away team own records.
The FA recommendation is that Referees / Match Officials should be paid electronically. However, payment still needs to be made immediately as per the rule (unless the referee is happy for a BACS payment which may take a few days to clear). It is important that the Home Club liaise with the Match Officials about the method of payment. Where a Premier Division or cup game require the sharing of the cost of Match Officials it remains that it is the Home team’s responsibility to pay ALL Match Officials and then make arrangements with the Away team for reimbursement of their share etc.
The requirement to provide drinks for Match Officials and the opposition is suspended for this season. Clubs may want to make some provision, but this will not be enforced by the League. The Away team and Match Officials should be notified by the Home Club as to these arrangements. The FA recommended guidance is that players provide their own drinks, clearly labelled, just as they do for medication.
The ground grading requirements may be / can be ignored where a risk assessment concludes that the risk of meeting the requirement is greater than the risk of playing without the necessary requirement. For instance, this may apply to the roping off of pitches in Premier Division games. It should be proven that the risk assessment is evidenced and in place.
The RESPECT handshake will not take place.
Supporters and other spectators should remain socially distanced whilst attending events. Spectator groups must be restricted to discrete six-person gathering limits and spread out, in line with wider Government guidance, ensuring space for officials, coaches and substitutes.
Clubs and facility providers must support NHS test and trace efforts by collecting name and contact information on participants at both training and matches.