The Cochrane High School Cobras varsity girls soccer team demolished the competition at the South Central Zone invitational soccer tournament over the weekend – and brought home nothing but a kit bag full of confusion and angst for their efforts.
The Cobras were disqualified from the Carstairs tournament, just before playing in the final, for bringing Grade 9 players to the dance.
At least, that’s the way Cobras girls varsity soccer coach Carolyn McLeod understands it after her team cleaned up at the Oct. 12-13 tournament.
“We went to Zones. We won all four of our games handily and, just before we were about to start the final game, the athletic director of (host school) Hugh Sutherland informed me we were about to be disqualified,” explained McLeod in an Oct. 15 telephone interview with the Eagle, “because we had Grade 9s on our roster, which violated some ASAA (Alberta Schools Athletic Association) rule which we had no idea about.”
The rule for varsity eligibility of which McLeod speaks can be found on Page 35 of the ASAA 2011-12 Handbook, Section 3, 4. a) “. . .Students shall be eligible for three consecutive years after registering in grade 10. The first year in grade 10 is considered the first year of eligibility.”
But McLeod is still incredulous over the fact her girls were DQ’d on a rule that, previously, had not been invoked. She was also scratching her head over the fact the tourney hosts waited until the final match to inform her of the disqualification.
The school is a little perplexed, too, and seeking clarification.
“We are currently in the process of appealing the decision to the South Central Zone soccer committee,” CHS principal Susan Poole said in a statement. Poole was at the tournament with the team.
The Cobras varsity girls soccer team won the same tournament last year in Cochrane, wrapping up a season in which the team went undefeated (12-0), including the Zone title – with Grade 9s on the roster. The team rolled through the Rocky View Sports Association this season, going undefeated again before winning the division banner in Airdrie Oct. 6 – with Grade 9s on the roster.
Then they went to Carstairs this past weekend.
“We played our final game, I didn’t tell the girls (about disqualification) until after,” McLeod said. “We beat everybody there and we did not win the banner.
“Needless to say it was devastating for the girls to watch three other teams they beat quite severely get handed medals right in front of them and not bring the (Zone) banner home they so deserved.”
The Cobras beat Airdrie’s George McDougall 5-1, the host team 4-0, Holy Trinity Academy of Okotoks 5-1 and Foothills Composite of Okotoks 10-1.
Prior to the tournament, organizer Robert Scott of Hugh Sutherland was lamenting the fact a team dropped out of the by-invitation Zone tournament, reducing the number of teams to five, including his host Hugh Sutherland side.
He’d have been down to four if he’d have warned CHS Grade 9 players were ineligible to play.
“If he had told us on Thursday, you can’t bring your Grade 9s, I would not have come to the tournament,” McLeod insisted, “because our Grade 9s are part of our team.”
She added the Rocky View Schools Association doesn’t exclude Grade 9 players from varsity play.
“Rocky View, obviously, is based on Grade 9-12 schools. Soccer’s always been a junior-varsity, varsity combined sport.”
Holy Trinity Academy of Okotoks ended up “winning” Zones, with Foothills Composite of Okotoks taking silver and host Hugh Sutherland taking the bronze.
Stay tuned.
