Proposed Rule Addition & Rationale

OWSL Rules & Regulations under Rule 7 – Player Eligibility

7.6 Players being registered or remaining registered in any League 1 Canada league/division after May 31 of the playing season, are not eligible to play with any OWSL team for the remainder of that season or in league cup games.

Background on Requested Rule Addition

In 2022, several OWSL teams loaded up on League 1 Ontario (L1O) players prior to the July 31 transfer deadline.  Each player was eligible to play in OWSL league games and Ontario Cup thereafter. L1O season ends on or about the 3rd week of July.  Ontario Soccer elected to change player eligibility following the 2022 Ontario Cup to exclude all L1O, L1O Reserve and PLSQ players that had registered to any such Pro/Am team during the current calendar year.  For 2023, the Ontario Cup Competition Rules included this ineligibility clause under rule 6.2 h).  

The intent of the rule is excellent, however, the carte blanche application needs to be examined with two team case studies illustrating the consideration to apply a deadline for Pro/Am player transfer date (May 31):

• Team A (OWSL Provincial) accepted transfers for Player 1 (May 17) & Player 2 (May 28).  Player 1 from Simcoe County Rovers L1O having played 1 minute in 1 game prior to transfer and Player 2 from Woodbridge Strikers L1O having played 280 minutes in 5 games prior to transfer.  Each played out the season with Team A but both were deemed ineligible for Ontario Cup due to rule 6.2 h).  Each was eligible for the Jubilee Cup (Nationals) and so too would each have been eligible for the Women's 30+ Masters had Team A entered the competition.  
• Team B (OWSL Provincial) accepted transfers between July 22 (L1O season end) and July 31 (transfer deadline), for five players: Player 1 from Electric City L10 (16 games 1,279 minutes), Player 2 from Electric City L1O (15 games 794 minutes), Player 3 from BVB IA Waterloo L10 (18 games 1,531 minutes), Player 4 from Electric City L1O (16 games 1,054 minutes) and Player 5 from Guelph Union L1O (18 games 1,490 minutes).  Team B ultimately withdrew from the semi-finals of the Ontario Cup Women's Division...electing to instead focus on the 30+ Master’s where L1O players are deemed eligible.  

There is a difference between providing an opportunity with an OWSL team to any L1O player that has had a poor experience, and this should be known by at least May 31...vs... loading up on L1O players after each has played a full L1O season but meets the transfer window of July 31st.  

Ultimately, the OWSL is seeking uniformity in the player eligibility rule to include OWSL League or Cup play, OS Ontario Cup, CS Nationals (Jubilee) and OS 30+ Masters.  It would be desirable that any League 1 Canada team include any such clause in their player contracts.

The OWSL 2023 Annual General Meeting will be held on Saturday February 3rd 2024

10am- 12pm VIA a ZOOM MEETING

Zoom information will be sent closer to the meeting date.

Registration begins at 9.30am.

Each club must be individually represented to avoid non attendance fine.

Ontario Soccer is looking for new referees. Why don't you give it a try? Without referees we cant have a game.

There are lots of good reasons to become a referee

• Its a great way to earn some extra cash
• Its a great way to experience the game from a different perspective
• Its a great way to stay fit
• Its a great way to learn the Laws of the Game

You can now register to take a referee course with Ontario Soccer

There are two courses on offer from Ontario Soccer

Small Sided (for 5 v 5 and 7 v 7 games)

Entry level (for 9 v 9 and 11 v 11 games)

To register for a course please go to www.refcentre.com/ontario

You can now download the 2024 application form.

On July 1, 2019, new rules came into effect through Rowan’s Law, to improve concussion safety in amateur competitive sport.

Everyone can help recognize a possible concussion if they know what to look for.

A person with a concussion might have any of the signs or symptoms listed below. They might show up right away or hours, or even days later. Just one sign or symptom is enough to suspect a concussion. Most people with a concussion do not lose consciousness.

Get to know the "Red Flags" of a concussion

“Red flags” may mean the person has a more serious injury. Treat red flags as an emergency and call 911.

Red flags include:

• Neck pain or tenderness
• Double vision
• Weakness or tingling in arms or legs
• Severe or increasing headache
• Seizure or convulsion
• Loss of consciousness (knocked out)
• Vomiting more than once
• Increasingly restless, agitated or aggressive
• Getting more and more confused

To find out more about concussion awareness and Rowans Law please visit this website

We will be using a new website for the 2022 season. The system is the latest league management platform from E2E Soccer so it retains a lot of the features that you have used in previous years.

The biggest change is that the web site is now responsive so it will display much better on a smart phone or tablet.

The new platform uses Word Press technology so we are able to take advantage of some of that technology to improve your online experience.

You will also have the opportunity to customize your home page.

At the top right of the home page you will see a cog icon. Click on this to configure your home page.

There are currently two features to use

• Team selector
• Schedule ticker

We hope to add other home page configuration tools in the near future