Dear Parents and Players,
Welcome to rugby for Season 2024. For those that played over the weekend, we hope the pre-season training at Academy and club helped with your fitness and skills as you ripped into your first competitive game for the year.
The start of club rugby also means that the representative season is just around the corner. *This message is an update from a weeks ago with further important dates for reps over the next month.*
The first thing you should know is that to be eligible to play representative rugby at the NSW State Championships (U12s and above) you need to play at least four games of club rugby prior to the State Championships on the June long weekend (8-10 June 2024). If a player cannot play four games prior to this time, they may secure an exemption if they have a medical certificate explaining their absence from club games.
If your child is keen *to play reps for Northern Suburbs Junior Rugby Union (Norths Juniors) this year, you will need to register their EOI by no later than 5pm on Thursday 18 April 2024 (for U12/13/14 Boys, register EOI by 5pm Saturday 6 April 2024)* by filling out the form at the following link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1axlghmUw647DYLMP_FX6WapavC0XvMaBUNxUOSiTubc/viewform?ts=65f962c9&edit_requested=true. Please make sure you have registered your child by this time. (18 April is in the school holidays so if you are going away, maybe try and fill the form out before the end of this school term as we can’t accept late EOIs. Apologies for spelling it out however the selectors need time from the closing of the registration of players to then work out teams for trials and if a player isn’t registered, it is very hard to put them into a team for the trials.)
NB: Players must play in their actual age group when it comes to representative rugby. Eg: If you are born in 2010 you must play in the U14s for reps, even if you play U15s for club rugby.
U12s, U13s and U14s Boys – trials commence Sunday, 7 April 2024; register EOI by 5pm Saturday 6 April 2024
This year, *players in the U12s, U13s and U14s Boys will start their trials earlier than the other age groups*. These three age groups will *start their trials on Sunday 7 April @ Taplin Park, Drummoyne. The session will run from 4pm through to 5:30/6pm.* (With many players from around the village clubs new to rep footy and Norths Juniors, we will use this session to introduce all the players to all the selectors and let them all become familiar with each other. Again, with so many new players to clubs and reps, this training session will also help players understand what positions are going to be tightly fought after and where there may be gaps in teams. This may help the younger players new to reps think about different positions they may be keen to play when they come back after the holidays. The session will also help selectors identify talent that may be able to play in a position they might not have yet thought of trialling for. The session on the 7 April will be more about doing skills and drills plus taking on some game play scenarios rather than the traditional trials we will be undertaking in late April and early May. Players in the U12, U13 and U14 boys age groups are to fill out the Trial Nomination EOI form by 5pm on Saturday 6 April 2024 so we can note their attendance at Taplin Park the next day. (https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1axlghmUw647DYLMP_FX6WapavC0XvMaBUNxUOSiTubc/viewform?ts=65f962c9&edit_requested=true.) If they want to change their position preferences following the 7 April, they can contact Ben Richards directly – vp@nsjru.com.au.
U10s, U11s, U12s, U13s, U14 Girls, U14 Boys, U15s, U16 Girls, U16 boys, U18s – trials commence Sunday, 28 April 2024; register EOI by 5pm Thursday 18 April 2024
On Sunday 28 April 2024 we will have our first official trial for U10s, U11s, U12s, U13s, U14 Girls, U14 Boys, U15s, U16 Girls, U16 boys, U18s. The trials will take place in the afternoon and the venue and times will be confirmed in a couple of weeks when the draw for the next few Sundays comes out so that we can make sure there are no conflicts with club games and all players can attend.
If you have any questions re the above, please don’t hesitate in contacting Ben Richards (vp@nsjru.com.au) or me (president@nsjru.com.au) directly.
We look forward to another successful representative season in 2024 and thank you and the players for all your support of the Norths Juniors’ program.
Cheers,
Nathan
President
Northern Suburbs Junior Rugby Union
*An important note from NSWJRU and SJRU regarding the rules of rep and club rugby… please keep this in mind as your children decide to commit to the rep program:*
REP RUGBY TRIALS vs CLUB Commitments (a note from the SJRU Group chat)
We are already getting bombarded by various parents and coaches (despite asking for all communications to go via club/district) with regards to potential clashes between District Rep trials/training and club fixtures.
We already have rules on this stuff…. But at this time of the year the most important rule that could affect a players entire Rep season is the following –
• No player is to miss a CLUB commitment for Rep Trials or Training.
• If a player chooses or is forced to miss a club commitment in lieu of a Rep trial or training then they will IMMEDIATELY become ineligible to participate in the State Champs.
• CLUB takes precedence – end of story.
• Do NOT schedule Rep stuff on a time/date that clashes with CLUB stuff.
Also remember these rules..
• SJRU Gala Rounds count for ONE game each weekend.
• Players are required to PLAY in a minimum of FOUR (4) games over FOUR separate SJRU rounds to be eligible for participation in Representative Rugby. Games played in Colts and Senior Women’s Rugby count for Opens eligibility.
• The ‘Grandfather rule’ ONLY applies for players in the Opens Age Group (that played in the 2023 U16 or Open State Champs) – this simply means they are exempt from the ‘games played’ criteria in 2024.
• A Bye, or Washed Out round counts as a game played. A forfeit against your team also counts as a game played BUT not for the team forfeiting.
• An injured player may get ‘credit’ for a game played only with a DOCTORS Certificate supplied.
• Players MUST trial and make themselves available for selection for their HOME District first. If you are not selected for your HOME District, then you may enter the player pool to join another District.
• If you are in a Joint Venture team then your registration determines where your Home District is.
• If a player does NOT trial for their HOME District, then they shall not participate in any Rep programs for that year.
• Consequences of the withdrawal of any teams from SJRU Competitions mid-season shall mean that any players selected for higher Rep teams shall be immediately withdrawn from eligibility.
• Ie – do not create a club team simply to play at State Champs and then withdraw the club team from the competition as you will cost your players potential Zone and Sydney selections
• Players selected in higher Zone or Sydney teams must continue to play a minimum of 50% of the games after the State Championships to maintain their eligibility status for those teams they have been selected in.
