On the 8th November, the College Championships were held in UCD between the UL Vikings, Trinity College and hosts UCD. The Vikings and UCD played in the first game of the day, with UCD beating the Vikings 6-0 and moving to the final to take on Trinity College. However due to extremely bad weather, that game was postponed and is now taking place on Sunday, again in UCD:

KO: 1pm
Admission: Free
Parking: there are plenty of parking areas within UCD, including free options.
Pitch: UCD Rugby Astro pitch.
Pitch location: E:3 on this mapUCD’s Facebook page.

Audit meetings are taking place this week for all of the 20 teams who have applied to play competitive league kitted football in 2015. The bulk of the meetings will take place in Dublin on Saturday 22nd November and Dundalk on Sunday 23rd November.

As part of the annual application process, all IAFL teams are required to submit a detailed questionnaire and supporting information to the IAFA Board annually. Over the past month, the submissions have been reviewed. Each team will have a face to face meeting with IAFA Board members to discuss their applications and any issues arising over the past season. The audit meetings themselves are divided into two parts

• Administration/off-field
• Playing/coaching

The aim of the meetings are to ensure that all teams are capable of competing, to provide constructive feedback and to resolve any issues the club may be having. Meetings are held in a confidential environment to promote open and honest dialogue.

The implementation of the audit/application process in recent years has been a great aid to club development and is believed to be a major contributor to the success of this past season whereby all clubs fully completed all their league requirements.

Audit Dates/Times

[Where 2 teams scheduled for the same time, one will attend the admin/off-field meeting while the other is attending the playing/coaching meeting. Teams will then swap over].

All teams have been asked to bring details of their scheduling availability to the meeting to allow the league schedule to be completed in time for the AGM on 13th December.

Saturday 22nd November
Crowne Plaza, Northwood, Dublin

10am – Mullingar Minotaurs
11am – Dublin Rebels, South Kildare Soldiers
Noon – West Dublin Rhinos
1pm – Cork Admirals, Waterford Wolves
3pm – Galway Warriors
4pm – North Kildare Reapers, South Dublin Panthers
5pm – TCD, UCD

Sunday 23rd November
Crowne Plaza, Dundalk

Noon – Meath Bulldogs, Drogheda Lightning
1pm – Belfast Trojans, Derry/Donegal Vipers
3pm –Carrickfergus Knights, Tyrone Titans
4pm – Craigavon Cowboys, Dundalk Mavericks

UL Vikings audit will take place midweek due to the team being away at an International event.

On Saturday the 22nd November, the UL Vikings will be travelling to Granada in Spain to play a friendly against the Granada Lions, who compete in Serie B of the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Americano (LNFA). Organised by the Vikings’ Ian Cahill and Alvaro Carvajal Martinez, who played for the Vikings last season, this game is a chance for both teams to continue to grow both their teams and their newer players.

Commenting on the game, Ian Cahill said “This game is part of the second year of the Vikings three year development plan, which we undertook last season. The Vikings are bringing 24 players, 18 of which joined the club in the last 14 months, so this trip is a great opportunity for those players to continue to develop and build up their experience, heading into next season”. The Vikings and the Lions will also hold joint training and club development meetings and get a chance to enjoy some of Granada’s culture, famous throughout Spain.

The game kicks off at 3:30pm local time and will be streamed live at vaughnlive.tv/granadalions. For more information about the game, head over to the Viking’s Facebook page or email them at ulvikings@gmail.com

In accordance with Section 11 of the IAFA Constitution I hereby give notice that the Annual General Meeting of the Irish American Football Association will take place at 11am on Saturday 13^th December 2014 at CityWest Hotel, Saggart, Co. Dublin.

Elections:

Elections will take place for the following positions:

IAFA President – position currently held by Michael Smith.

IAFA Board Member – positions currently held by Alan Orr and Derek Ward.

Candidates wishing to put themselves forward for these positions should complete the attached Candidate for Election form and submit it to commissioner by Saturday 29^th November 2014.

Proposals for the Agenda:

Any proposals or resolutions for inclusion on the AGM Agenda should be submitted to

commissioner by Saturday 29^th November 2014.

The Agenda, list of candidates for election and supporting documentation will be circulated 1 week prior to the AGM.

Extracts from the IAFA Constitution are below for your information

2015 League Schedule:

I would be grateful if teams could check their ground etc. availability in advance of their upcoming audits and give the relevant information to the IAFA reps at their audit meeting. This will allow draft schedules to be drawn up in advance and launched at the AGM. I understand that the audit crew will be in contact with each team who wishes to play competitive kitted football in 2015 within the next couple of days to confirm times/dates.

Cillian Smith

Commissioner

11.       ANNUAL AND SPECIAL GENERAL MEETINGS

(a)        The Commissioner shall give at least twenty eight (28) days notice in writing of  the AGM specifying the date, time and place of the Meeting. Notice shall be placed on the Associations website.

(b)        The notice shall be sent to the Officers, members of the Management Board, the designated official of each club, affiliated educational institution and affiliated organisation. It also shall be sent to the Chairs of Working Groups and any Directors appointed by the Board.

(c)        The President shall chair Annual and Special General Meetings.  In his/her absence, another Board member chosen by the Board shall chair the Meetings.

(d)        50 per cent plus one (+1) of the total eligible votes shall constitute a quorum.

(e)        Voting on all issues except elections shall be by show of hands, unless twenty five (25) percent of the votes present request a secret ballot. Elections shall be by secret ballot and, where more than two candidates, shall use a proportional representation to be defined in the By-Laws.

(f)         Every resolution at Annual and Special General Meetings shall be decided by a simple majority of votes of those present, entitled to vote and voting except for resolutions concerning amendments to the Constitution, when Sections 27 shall apply.

(g)        In the case of equality of votes, the resolution is deemed to be defeated.

(h)        All changes in the Constitution of the Association and all resolutions passed at an AGM or Special General Meeting shall come into force immediately unless the Meeting shall decide otherwise.

(i)         There shall be no postal or proxy votes.

12.       PROPOSALS AND ELECTION NOMINATIONS FOR ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGS

(a)        Any proposal or resolution for consideration, and voting thereon, at any AGM shall be submitted in full, in writing, to the Commissioner. It should arrive with him/her not later 2 weeks prior to the date of the AGM at which the proposal is to be considered and voted upon. Proposals or resolutions for consideration shall be circulated to those entitled to vote at least 1 week prior to the AGM.

(b)        Candidates wishing to run for election shall complete the “Candidate for Election Form” appended to the By-Laws and submit it to the Commissioner. It should arrive with him/her not later 2 weeks prior to the date of the AGM at which the election will take place. These forms shall be circulated to those entitled to vote at least 1 week prior to the AGM.

(c)        All candidates for election shall be members in good standing with a least 3 consecutive years affiliation to the IAFA.

13.       VOTING ENTITLEMENT AT ANNUAL AND SPECIAL GENERAL MEETINGS

(a) The voting entitlement at Annual and Special General Meetings shall be:

1. I. Clubs/educational institutions with adult teams playing in the top division of the Associations adult kitted football league in the previous calendar year – 2 votes each.

1. II. Clubs/educational institutions with adult teams, who played in any other division of the Associations adult kitted football league in the previous calendar year – 1 vote each.

1. III. A representative of the coaches active in the current or most recently completed season (as defined in the by-laws) – 3 votes.

1. IV. A representative of the officials active in the current or most recently completed season (as defined in the by-laws) – 3 votes.

1. V. A representative of all players registered to play adult flag football in the current or most recently completed season (as defined in the by-laws) – 3 votes.

(b)        If any nominated delegate(s) cannot attend, they may be substituted, provided the name(s) of the substitute(s) are sent in writing to the Commissioners office not later than 4.00 p.m. on the evening prior to the day of the scheduled meeting

(c)        Elections will be conducted by the Scrutineers and shall be by secret ballot using the following procedure:

1. i. Those entitled to vote will be issued with a quantity of ballot papers equal to their voting entitlement.

1. ii. Voters should mark the ballot paper to indicate which candidate(s) they wish to put through to the run-off round of the election. The number of candidates they can mark should be equal to the number of position(s) needed to be filled in the particular vote.

1. iii. The number of candidates put through to the run-off round shall be equal to the number of position(s) needed to be filled plus one. Those with the highest number of votes shall go through to the run-off round. In the event of a tie for the final position(s) in the run-off round, all tied candidates shall go through.

1. iv. For the run-off round, all voters shall be issued with new ballot papers and should indicate which candidate(s) they wish to be elected. The number of candidates they can mark should be equal to the number of position(s) needed to be filled in the particular vote. Those candidate(s) with the highest number of votes shall be deemed elected. In the event of a tie for the final elected position(s), there shall be a second run-off vote between the tied candidates for the position(s).