Birth certificates, Proof of age

[Socca]

You are 100% correct but what would you do if you knew 100% that over age players were playing for a team?

Report it

In addition, they are taking the spot in my child's team of a correct aged child

[Bomber]

You are 100% correct but what would you do if you knew 100% that over age players were playing for a team?

Report it

In addition, they are taking the spot in my child's team of a correct aged child

If such a practice was rife, why would you stay at such club?

[spooky1972]

What does E&D do for cards do they still have photo cards? I don't remember any of this years ago with E&D so why do we hear it so often at multiple clubs every year in the FFSA?

[Mrs Red]

The FFA should develop an app (software application) on an Ipad/Android device which references the MyFootballClub web site (every child should have registered, photo mandatory) and then the refs can check before the game who is on the card.

They could update game stats at the end of the game as well.

This partly solves the problem of players not playing below their true age level.

Does not solve the invalid birth certificates/documents which aren't being checked properly.

At a junior delegates meeting with FFSA last season this was brought up. FFSA see no need to bring back the player ID cards even though it appeared the majority of junior delegates wanted them. FFSA siad they did not get enough complaints to warrant spending the dollars in creating these cards.

As for proof of age, birth certificates or equivalent are meant to be send into FFSA. As copies are used they are meant to be all signed by a JP for authenticity. Once FFSA recieve them they are meant to checked off into My Football Club. However FFSA don't have the staff to manage this it appears.

[Ibelieve]

Has been going on for years.
Fake birth certificates also!!

[fball12]

Having seen 6ft boys playing in Under 13's on the weekend, I very much doubt that any checking of ages is being performed.

They were just bowling over kids and the referee rarely awarded free kicks.

[Sven]

The reality is that some kids are around 6ft at 12 years of age. You cant judge only on height.

[fball12]

Most tall kids in the Under 13's average 5ft.

These 6 ft kids look much older and the way they played suggests they are older.

[magnet]

I notice that a U13 JPL team who played on Wednesday night had FIVE players in their team for this weekends U14 JPL B game. They were all 6ft+ and didn't remotely look 13.

[Sven]

I know of one player who has been asked nearly every week about his age because of his height. Some people are more diplomatic than others.

Its a great way to give a young kid bit of a complex about being tall for his age by having adults badgering him every week about his age.

Sometimes you just need to get on with it and let the kids play football.

[magnet]

I know of one player who has been asked nearly every week about his age because of his height. Some people are more diplomatic than others.

Its a great way to give a young kid bit of a complex about being tall for his age by having adults badgering him every week about his age.

Sometimes you just need to get on with it and let the kids play football.

Sometimes you just need to play kids in their correct age groups rather than a win at all costs mentality by playing overage kids on days when their own team are not playing.

[fball12]

I would like to see FFSA do some random checking of teams (birth certificates - FFSA should have them) to ensure some integrity in the system.

Please pick the Under 13 age group as a trial group to check and report any findings.

[magnet]

We were told by the club that the five U14 players were actually 13. They had no idea that the kids needed to be born in 2002 though.

[Sven]

I know of one player who has been asked nearly every week about his age because of his height. Some people are more diplomatic than others.

Its a great way to give a young kid bit of a complex about being tall for his age by having adults badgering him every week about his age.

Sometimes you just need to get on with it and let the kids play football.

Sometimes you just need to play kids in their correct age groups rather than a win at all costs mentality by playing overage kids on days when their own team are not playing.

Well if you didnt have a win at all costs mentality then you wouldnt care.

[magnet]

Well if you didnt have a win at all costs mentality then you wouldnt care.

I'll be the judge if a player in my team can play up an age group against U14's, not the opposition. Rules are rules for this reason.

[God is an Englishman]

Well if you didnt have a win at all costs mentality then you wouldnt care.

I'll be the judge if a player in my team can play up an age group against U14's, not the opposition. Rules are rules for this reason.

What's wrong with a player playing up an age level anyway?

[magnet]

Well if you didnt have a win at all costs mentality then you wouldnt care.

I'll be the judge if a player in my team can play up an age group against U14's, not the opposition. Rules are rules for this reason.

What's wrong with a player playing up an age level anyway?

That's what I am saying, playing up is ok but the entire team may not be ready for it.

[hurlcrook]

It's all irrelevant anyway. The refs do not check and clubs can't be bothered to report anyway. A club we played last year had two year 8 players from my sons School playing for a U12 JPL team. They would have been at least one year older if not two and that's just the ones we knew. They had a different team when we played them on the Sunday return fixture and noticeable brilliant result in all their mid-week ones. It's a farce, players should have cards to display birthdate to stop this movement between age groups during the Season. I wonder how many players the ref would catch out if he talked to each team before kick-off and said "Who wasn't born in 2002?"

mmm

[God is an Englishman]

One of my Under 12's has his age questioned every week by one parent or another, he qualifies for the Under 11's.

My sons friend brother plays Under 13's and is taller than me. He's close to 6 foot.

[hurlcrook]

Heads could roll. Priors .

[hurlcrook]

Not sure whether some clubs are able (have the skills) to prove whether some proof of age documents from overseas would be valid.

You could do what some do and just get stat decs signed. I forgot, that didn't quite work did it.

Still waiting for that club's punishment.

[hurlcrook]

I would like to see FFSA do some random checking of teams (birth certificates - FFSA should have them) to ensure some integrity in the system.

Please pick the Under 13 age group as a trial group to check and report any findings.

The under 13s would be a great place to start.
One well-connected coach would be a bit concerned though.
But then again the FFSA may not be interested in this , as said coach....

[magnet]

I would like to see FFSA do some random checking of teams (birth certificates - FFSA should have them) to ensure some integrity in the system.

Please pick the Under 13 age group as a trial group to check and report any findings.

The under 13s would be a great place to start.
One well-connected coach would be a bit concerned though.
But then again the FFSA may not be interested in this , as said coach....

I would happily do that as an U13 coach. I can think of a few U13 coaches that would be hesitant.

[themessenger]

I would like to see FFSA do some random checking of teams (birth certificates - FFSA should have them) to ensure some integrity in the system.

Please pick the Under 13 age group as a trial group to check and report any findings.

The under 13s would be a great place to start.
One well-connected coach would be a bit concerned though.
But then again the FFSA may not be interested in this , as said coach....

I would happily do that as an U13 coach. I can think of a few U13 coaches that would be hesitant.

The FFSA is hell bent on implementing the FFA's instructions to standardise the NPL competition across Australia, so would be very interesting to see how other states address this issue. It can't just be happening here in SA.

Parents of NPL junior players in Victoria are reportedly paying up to $2k in playing fees, and if that is true, I bet those parents would be very unhappy to find overaged players in any team their own child was playing against. And, no surprises, but it seems that Football Federation Victoria HAS dealt with this problem by making it mandatory for every junior player to present their ID card, or are not permitted to play. Furthermore, if a team suspects a player is ineligible, due to being suspended or overaged, the opposition club brings to the attention of the match referee who then inspects the player ID card and lodges an Incident report.

The FFSA had junior player ID cards until 2 years ago then decided not to continue providing them, possibly due to cost.

With all clubs senior and junior teams being aligned in 2016 so as to be consistent with other states NPL competitions, then it could also be expected that (as per other states) the FFSA will reintroduce these player ID cards next season, so no teams have unfair competitive advantage over another.