The Cochrane Lions became the second Cochrane sports team in two weeks to be disqualified from post-season play after being punted from the Calgary Peewee Football Association (CPFA) division final by the league.
The team, apparently, ran afoul of a player-substitution rule in its Oct. 30 CPFA semifinal against the Calgary Mavericks at Calgary’s Shouldice Park. The Lions defeated the Mavs 31-8 in that game, only to be informed on Halloween by league president Kathy Cheek they had been disqualified from the Nov. 1 final, and were given no time to appeal.
“It was a miscommunication regarding Rule 29 of the CPFA rules which resulted in the CPFA executive ruling that the Cochrane Lions had contravened that rule and, therefore, we had to forfeit our win against the Mavericks,” said pee wee Lions head coach Al Thorsen in a telephone interview with The Eagle.
The Lions DQ comes two weeks after the Cochrane High School Cobras varsity girls soccer team was disqualified from an Alberta Schools Athletic Association Zone tournament in Carstairs for playing junior-varsity players (Grade 9) in a varsity tourney (Grades 10-12).
CPFA Rule 29 states, in part, “No two-way ball players with the exception of down lineman or specialty teams. Any coach or team member playing a player on both defence and offence in the same game shall be subject to suspension at the executive’s sole discretion unless said coach or team member has first secured the agreement and consent of the opposing coach prior to the game.”
Thorsen’s understanding of the rule is players are allowed to go from offence to defence at the end of each quarter, and admitted some of his players went from offence to defence at the end of the first quarter of the Oct. 30 playoff game against the Mavericks.
“These are tiny, little guys. These aren’t big monsters who are ripping things up.”
When told of the Mavs’ concern about this early in the game’s second quarter, the Lions immediately froze their players in their positions for the remainder of the game which, at the time, Calgary was leading 8-0.
“We always substitute at the quarter. We’ve never done anything different. That’s how we get all the players in and keep track of them,” Thorsen insisted. “And it’s never been an issue. It’s never come up.”
Thorsen said the Lions will be seeking clarity on Rule 29 and the league’s interpretation of it. But, for now, the team can reflect on another winning season (6-2) and that everyone got to play.
