At the end of last year Staffordshire Rugby Union sent out correspondence regarding Match Official Abuse and Disrespect. The Staffordshire CB Disciplinary Committee made the decision to put all clubs on notice that there is a need for a deterrent to combat this type of offending in the game until the end of the season. Please see the link below.

https://staffsrfu.com/c-b-disciplinary-policy/

This notice means that there are now additional consequences for any proven cases of, Disrespecting the authority of a Match Official or, Verbal Abuse of a Match Official. This is in relation to both individuals on and off the pitch. Off the pitch incidents can now result in sanctions brought against both team and club.

Over recent weeks Burntwood’s pitch side discipline has been brought into question several times. We appreciate that in some instances this has been unfounded and unproven, but there are other incidents that have been accurate, either way it all adds to the overall view and reputation of the club.
Potentially with an increased reputation comes preconceived, tenuous judgment and scrutiny from all who visit the club. The consequences of this could be serious and costly.

As a club, we must all do better! To enforce this, we have made the difficult decision to introduce pitch side warnings and potential bans for anyone deemed to be addressing a match official in an inappropriate manner.

Can we please ask that everyone considers their own actions while supporting our teams and upholds the Core Values of our game to prevent the need for any further action.

We thank you all in advance for your support with this matter.

Kind Regards

Robert Forsyth - President
Adam Tuckey – Chairman
Jan Sonderlo – M&J Chairman