By Ballan Campeau
For the past 10 years at least, Orchard Valley Youth Soccer
League has been ruled by a self-appointed board of directors that
arbitrarily applies rules that are not documented, much less
promoted.
By Ballan Campeau
For the past 10 years at least, Orchard Valley Youth Soccer League has been ruled by a self-appointed board of directors that arbitrarily applies rules that are not documented, much less promoted. Their rulings have forced coaches, parents and players from Morgan Hill, San Martin and Gilroy to register elsewhere when they would prefer to stay home. In short, those who live here can’t play here.
I am leading a team of parents and coaches with a vision. We intend to “Establish a fair and democratic youth soccer league in Morgan Hill, San Martin and Gilroy that actively solicits input from registered parents and coaches.” We are circulating a petition asking OVYSL to create a governance structure like the 10 leagues in our district that we have been able to review:
1) Provide membership for each team in the league
2) Provide for an annual nomination and election of the board by its member teams (and, since there has been no such process for 10 years, have an election by September)
3) Have well-defined rules, supporting CYSA, that are created by the membership, provide direction to the board, are enforced by the board and are posted for all to see, review and understand
4) Provide for annual updates to the constitution, by-laws and rules by the member teams
This is not a personal vendetta, as OVYSL’s president states in the July 13 articles printed in The Dispatch. This is a grassroots effort to recreate OVYSL like the other leagues in CYSA. (At this time, more than 100 signatories and Web respondents have stated their support of our vision.) It’s also an appeal to CYSA North to state their policy around how their associated leagues should operate.
OVYSL would like you to think that I compared only leagues that fit our ideal. In fact, I went to District 2’s Web site, clicked on the “League President’s” link and found the list of leagues in D2. Every league except one had a link to their Web site. Of the 15 leagues with links, eight posted their governance: constitutions, by-laws and/or rules. I sent emails to the other seven league presidents requesting their constitutions. Two responded with documents. I obtained a copy of Orchard Valley’s bylaws from a past board member. Of the 11 sets of documents that I was able to obtain, 10 provide for general membership. One, Orchard Valley’s, clearly states that “this corporation will make no provisions for members …”
In every one of the 10 league document sets, there is provision for an Annual General Meeting. At this meeting, board members are elected by team representatives. In some leagues, every position is elected every year. In some leagues, the terms are for two years and half are elected each year.
In Orchard Valley, the board nominates and elects the board. In Orchard Valley, a board membership can be terminated with or without cause at any time. In Orchard Valley, the board membership changes continually. One member has already been fired and “re-elected” this year.
In every set of non-Orchard Valley league governance, changes to the league documents are recommended and voted upon by team representatives once a year. At Orchard Valley, the by-laws have not been updated since 1996 and there are no constitution or documented rules to update.
In other leagues, there are documented procedures for coach selection with specific requirements for candidates. These procedures generally include reference checks (for instance, parents of previous teams) and interviews. At least they include review of a prospective coach’s coaching and playing resume.
When I was a board member, I was shown a list of names and told to vote for them. Period. This is OK in a league with no rules. It certainly gives the board a lot of breadth in hiring and disciplining coaches. Is that what you want?
One and one half years ago, I was eliminated from OVYSL because I had “broken the rule” regarding players playing in an age group older than their own (U15 to U16). I had had a player playing up every year that I coached in OVYSL. Why was this year different?
When I asked to see a list of the rules, none was provided. In South San Jose YSL’s rules (for instance), once a player reaches U14, they can play on a team as much as two years older. SSJ’s teams believe that high schoolers have a bit more leeway in team selection. However, if a league has no written rules, this is much easier to enforce. All the board has to say is, “you’re out.”
Is that what you want?
This year a coach who had volunteered in OVYSL for 10 years, three with his current team, was told that he was not qualified. He has a coaching license awarded to him by the United State Soccer Federation. He has players who respect him (and have fun). The players’ parents are 100 percent behind him.
The Orchard Valley board says he doesn’t qualify. Orchard Valley selected a coach from Cupertino to replace him. Orchard Valley has no coach selection criteria. Under their current rules, this is a fair decision. Is that what you want?
This year, the coach of Live Oak’s CCS winning team was accused by the Orchard Valley board of breaking a rule. By the time it was sorted out, in the coach’s favor by the state board, the coach’s Morgan Hill team had to be registered elsewhere in order to meet registration deadlines. In spite of the fact that the coach has been ostracized by OVYSL and is not even playing in OVYSL, the OV board has reopened his case and is trying to sanction him. The hearing was set for last Sunday, then moved. Orchard Valley said they had been misquoted.
This effort to establish a democratic league is not a vendetta against a man. This is the implementation of a vision for a renewed league. Please, help us establish the rules. Please download the petition from our Web site at home.netcom.com/~ovreform/ and sign it. Then explain it to your friends and ask them to sign it. Send a comment through the Web site about what you have and I will get it from you. Thanks.
Guest Columnist Ballan Campeau is a former Santa Clara University player and longtime soccer coach. He lives in Morgan Hill with his wife and two children. Anyone interested in writing a guest column may contact Editor Mark Derry at 842-6400.