AN EASY GUIDE FOR CLUBS ON
DISCIPLINE PROCEDURES
Every club should have a Discipline Committee. [
RFU Disciplinary Procedures para 14 on page 202 of the current RFU Handbook.] This should be so constituted that it can meet when needed and without any delay caused by the absence of members. The absence of a member is not an excuse to delay proceedings.The club secretary, or some other responsible person within the club, must report every dismissal at any level to the secretary of the Constituent Body Discipline Committee with 72 hours of that dismissal.
Following a dismissal, there is nothing to stop a club convening disciplinary hearing immediately. However, the club’s Discipline Committee must re-convene once the referee’s report is received. [
see below] Remember, this committee should be pro-active and should deal not just with dismissals but with any other incidence of foul play during a game whether seen by the referee or not. Without wishing to prevent club’s taking immediate action following a dismissal, it should be remembered that a club need not suspend a player until the case is heard by the CB Disciplinary Panel.The secretary of the Constituent Body’s Discipline Committee will post to the secretary of the club a copy of the referee’s report on the dismissal as soon as it is received unless notified in writing that other arrangements have been made by the club to process disciplinary matters. It is the responsibility of the club secretary to make adequate arrangements for the collection of mail should he be away for an extended period. His absence is not an excuse to delay discipline matters.
Upon receipt of the referee’s report a club’s discipline committee should meet to consider the report. This should be done within a time frame that allows constraints set by the CB Discipline Committee to be met. The following points should be noted –
The player dismissed, or any other person so reported, must be present.
All the papers sent to the club relevant to the dismissal should be read carefully and any instructions set out in them should be followed.
Before the hearing closes, all the required sections on the return form should be completed and signed by the player and, if not the club secretary, a responsible person from the club.
The return form should be posted back to the Constituent Body Discipline Secretary the following day together with the minutes of the meeting if it is considered that these will be helpful to the CB Discipline Committee when it comes to adjudicating the case.
If the player decides that he wishes to accept the referee’s report and has not been summoned to attend a CB hearing, a cheque for the stated CB Management Fee must be included with the return form. Otherwise, this fee may be paid at the CB hearing.
If the player decides that he wishes to contest the referee’s report and has not been summoned to a hearing by the CB Discipline Committee, upon receipt of the return form the CB Discipline Committee secretary will notify the club of the place, date and time of the CB hearing.
It is the responsibility of the club secretary to be aware of these disciplinary procedures or to be certain that a responsible person within the club is aware of them.
Reports please to:
discipline.admin @ essexrugby.com
e-mailed reports preferred