Top 10 town associations in the state??

[Unregistered]

Guys..OD and his wife run the league..to the point they don't *control* where clubs put their teams is because they *choose* NOT to do so by having minimal rules (other than the premier player rule to payback the premier clubs and keep the nice "you have yours and I have mine" quid pro quo among the SRI board. There are only minimal rules like 4 teams then must be 1 in anchor -- although that is clearly waiverable as Barrington demonstrated.

It's a *for profit* league..not something run by SRI on behalf of its members, although SRI basically makes it difficult to form another league. Superliga *could* clearly establish higher standards to prevent sandbagging and promote better development. I'm not saying it has to be MASC like in terms of wanting all ".500" records in groupings..but in the tradeoff of quantity ($$) versus quality, SL opts for quantity.

And again..that would be fine **IF** SRI made forming other leagues a viable option..as it is, the guy who runs a **FOR PROFIT* company (okay, his spouse does..what's the difference?) is allowed to be on the board making decisions that directly affect his company..

It's going to take some town clubs with real leaders to start opting out of SL and just running an inter-club spring tournament..so you can't be in RI Cup..make your own up..you can put your best teams in anchor so they can win the anchor RI Cup..you think parents of Rhody teams really care if they are playing each other as part of SL or some other name?

Great post and SO TRUE. OD makes money of soccer in RI and everyone let's him sit on the Board and exert his influence to protect his wallet. I bet "Turn to 12" would have a field day with this one!!!!

[Unregistered]

Great post and SO TRUE. OD makes money of soccer in RI and everyone let's him sit on the Board and exert his influence to protect his wallet. I bet "Turn to 12" would have a field day with this one!!!!

OD runs Superliga just fine. The cost to play in superliga are inexpensive. If he's making a profit, it might be enough to make a living, but it's certainly commensurate with the product he's providing. Superliga fulfills the needs of 95% of the kids playing soccer in RI. OD and Superliga are not the problem.

[Unregistered]

OD runs Superliga just fine. The cost to play in superliga are inexpensive. If he's making a profit, it might be enough to make a living, but it's certainly commensurate with the product he's providing. Superliga fulfills the needs of 95% of the kids playing soccer in RI. OD and Superliga are not the problem.

Look, I'm not knocking OD for putting out the product; I'm knocking the fact that the national association and other sports (see the state lacrosse association for example) have rules that people with for-profit interests that are directly affected by the decisions of the governing board can't be on the board. I would have no problem with league commissioners being treated as members, but to have the guy as VP and Director of coaching -- how can he (and it's not him personally, just anyone) be unbiased when there are decisions before the board such as the community rules, team waivers, etc. whose outcomes affect the number of teams and thus his bottom line?

While quality and quantity are not mutually exclusive, there are potentially trade-offs and again, how can folks who benefit financially have an unbiased position -- and perhaps more importantly, why does the governing board and members create a situation where those conflicts can occur? SRI *claims* to have a conflict of interest policy -- really, when you are not following the guidance from the national association in that area, how can we expect professionalism and better stewardship in other areas?

Yes, SL is just fine for a great majority of players -- and we can argue on the percentage. And I don't begrudge OD for earning a profit for the time and capital invested. But why do smaller states like VT and NH either have multiple leagues or an open division in the state? Why does no other state association (to the extent I'm aware) have such restrictive rostering rules in combination with restrictive team creation/formation? I do have an issue with what is essentially a monopoly granted to him -- when he is one of the few officers on the board that grants the monopoly.

If RI was a model for soccer development or producing top ODP teams, I might give them some slack, but SRI lost 31K for FY 10, spent over $100K on ODP coaching, $42+K on "travel/lodging"; Net Revenue was down 17% but coaching expenses were still up?

Minutes from Sept still not posted; if the AGM is next month, no information posted on SRI ; how much is spent on recreational development/education? can't even hold coaching courses (minimal they are) in our own state..


So, is OD and SL the problem? Only partially..they are just symptomatic of the larger problems..

http://dynamodata.fdncenter.org/990_...201008_990.pdf

[Unregistered]

http://dynamodata.fdncenter.org/990_...201008_990.pdf[/QUOTE]

Soccer-RI administrators are quickly eating away everything in their bank account, and have little to show for it. Sound familiar...time for a change and accountability.