Accountability

[Rebecca]

<blockquote><font size=1>In reply to:</font><hr>

....because *** pushed for attendance and at the end of the season if your not doing your part will ask you to leave....

<hr></blockquote>


The above quote (taken from a recent post) coupled by a few apologetic and constructive threads today triggered me to ask the following:

How does a league as a whole, or even an administrator, hold a member accountable and possibly discipline them?

Does the answer always lie in fines, removal of the team as a whole, etc?

If you belong to a team association or player's association and your opinion is valued but you do diddly squat to be constructive or helpful, at what point does anyone hold you accountable and who holds you accountable - the fellow members or the administration?

Rebecca

[SpiderRat]

I've been asking that same question of myself and others since my departure from the Storm. How and who decides consequences. Rules should be in place to determine each situation. And each set of rules should apply to all involved. These rules should be in place prior to handing out fines, suspensions, or being asked to leave the organization. If a plan is not "edged in stone", how and who decides what is fair for all? I can't tell my son after he spills his milk that he can't go to his next hockey game. The rule needs to be in place first. If you do this, then this will happen. Not the other way around. Once the rules are clear, and heard by all, then that rule becomes law. I believe that if a team, administrator or league as a whole, has set up a guide line of rules, a player, coach or team as a whole has not a leg to stand on as far as grievances go. So as far as your question, "Does the answer always lie in fines, removal of the team as a whole, etc?", if that is what the rules states, then that is law. Granted the law is explained prior to the act.

[NLane]

I would like to think that the player, then his team, would be the first level of fines/punishment, unless it was a Bertuzzi(sp) thing. I know some discussion of player reps has happened in MLRH AAA as all are part of an association for insurance purposes anyway. But, as we are dealing with unpaid players, how does one fine them? At the college level money comes from the school to the club (if they are lucky). The fact that it could be cut off with just a letter to the right person would fix alot of problems right from the start, but with PIHA or MLRH AAA it's the money going to the league that's threatened if teams get the boot. That makes it a really different problem. When it's an earth shattering thing it has an easy answer to keep the quality of the league. When it's a single player sometimes all levels have to get involved. MLRH AAA taped all games and did review tapes for granting suspensions but also used team applied suspensions without question from team owners. Players have been kicked for a season. I think MLRH AAA is on the right path as last season there was less goonery and more of both players dropping and squaring off. The league should step in when a MAJOR thing happens, or someting occurs of a non-game playing incident. Say, like, a player saying that he will show for your BIG game, then doesn't, without a call or anything beforehand. I think the league could possibly sanction the player to keep him from being picked by another team. It hurts the teams and the league as a whole when these things occur. I do think that the player has the first accountability and as adults they should understand that.