Each year the Flying Bats Committee nominate divisions the club wishes to enter teams in. Occasionally the Association may not facilitate the club’s nomination and will move a team up or down a division to ensure an appropriate number of teams in each division. This means that each year the club starts with a clean slate - the teams from last year no longer exist and new teams are created through the use of Grading.
The club mustregister at least 9 players into each team a few weeks BEFORE the season starts, which means that timeframes are very tight for the nomination of teams and grading of players. To ensure we get the nomination right and grade the appropriate players into teams, the Flying Bats Committee has put in place a Grading Policy.
Our aim is to ensure that each team is competitive in its division, and is made up of similarly skilled players. We also want to make sure that each team can field a full team of at least 11 players each week.
A grading committee will be formed before the start of each season. Any club member may volunteer to be part of this. The Bats committee will choose the final grading committee from the volunteers, based on experience and time with the club. We will try to ensure there is a good representation from all the teams from the previous year. Non playing members are also encouraged to assist if they are available.
Players are asked to recognise that the Grading Committee is made up of volunteer club players and face a tough challenge in grading the entire club in a short timeframe, therefore respect is requested as outlined in the code of conduct. Players being graded will be treated with respect (as per the code of policy).
The grading committee will be observing and participating in all training sessions and 2 trial games during pre-season. The trial games are the primary means of grading players.
The grading committee will allocate people to teams based on soccer ability, including ball skills/control, fitness and ‘soccer sense’ (ability to read the game etc). For returning players, documented feedback from last year’s team managers into also taken into account.
The grading committee is made up of at least 5 people, so each person is graded by the other members of the committee. We take this seriously to ensure that everyone (including the grading committee) is graded in the same way. No one grades themselves.
All players who meet the following criteria by the registration cutoff date are guaranteed to be placed into a team.
If a player cannot attend training or trial games due to work or other commitments, they should come and speak to the grading committee as early as possible to discuss their situation. Training is on Wednesdays and trial games are on Sundays so each player should at least be able to make one of them. If a player cannot attend either, the Grading Committee will try to accommodate the request but bear in mind that it will be difficult for them to grade people that they have never seen play.
The trial games are the final opportunity for the Grading Committee to grade players. Therefore, if a player is already graded by the second trial game, they may get less play time than someone who has not yet been graded. Players are asked to respect the selection and changes made by the Grading Committee during the trial games.
The above applies to both new and returning players, no exceptions.
Anyone who doesn’t meet the above conditions can still register but will only be placed into a team as space allows. People who have met the conditions will be given first priority. If a player has not met the above conditions they may miss out.
All players (including returning players) will be placed into a team based on their soccer ability. This will mean that some returning players will play in a different team to previous years. The grading committee will make an initial cut of the teams after the registration cut-off date, which will be published to the club.
Some minor modifications will be made up to about the third game of the season. At this point teams will be pretty final. It is important to understand that it is impossible to get the grading process perfect first time, since there are continual changes (eg players deciding not to play, the Association changing the team division). It is important for players to understand that they might be requested to move teams during this time.
After the initial team list is published, players can discuss their team allocation with the grading committee. The grading committee will do what they can, but people will only be moved where it will not adversely impact the teams involved. Requests to play with friends/partners will be considered provided it is not unfair to other players. If a dispute cannot be resolved between a player and the grading committee then the Bats committee will have the final say. Attendance at training and trial games will be taken into consideration when reaching a decision.
Below is a quick summary of the key dates - exact dates for each season will be confirmed in early Feburary
| Initial Training Session | Mid February |
| Association Team Nominations Due | Late February |
| Trial Game 1 | Early March |
| Trial Game 2 | Early March |
| Registration Cut-off Date | Mid March |
| Association Team Sheets Due | Mid March |
| First Game | Early April |