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www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, October 25, 2013 | 24 Jon Kuiperij Sports Editor sports@oakvillebeaver.com Sports "Connected to your Community" `Fighting back' Confidential information leak aids Oakville Soccer Club in appeal to CSA about exclusion from OPDL by Jon Kuiperij Beaver Sports Editor A confidential document received in error by the Oakville Soccer Club has led the club to appeal to the Canadian Soccer Association regarding its exclusion from the Ontario Player Development League, arguing the selection process for the new high-performance league was flawed. The document, mistakenly emailed by the Ontario Soccer Association to an unidentified member of the OSC staff, appears to be a breakdown of how each OPDL applicant was scored by the OPDL's Assessment and Selection Committee. OSA president Ron Smale, however, said the document detailed how just one of the five members of the committee had scored each club, and was not the committee's final ruling. The OSC first publicly referenced receipt of the document during an Oct. 9 meeting with parents of players affected by Oakville's exclusion from the OPDL, Canadian soccer's first standards-based youth high-performance league that combines top-level competition with strict training standards. The league will begin next season with an under-13 division and will add an age group each year until each age group is covered to U18 in both boys' and girls' divisions. OPDL membership is capped at 18 for the first two years, after which all clubs must re-apply for admission. During the parent meeting, OSC board members revealed that the club's unwillingness to submit financial information -- a requirement in the OPDL's Request for Proposal (RFP) process -- likely caused its bid to be unsuccessful. At that time, the OSC executive defended its refusal to submit financials as both adherence to club policy and concerns about confidentiality, and stated it had instead offered two OPDL judges an opportunity to review OSC's audited financial information in person during a site visit to the club. Document lists applicants' scores At that point in the meeting, the OSC mentioned the receipt of the confidential document, stating it had proof that other clubs had been accepted into the OPDL despite not completely adhering to the RFP requirements. Tuesday, The Oakville Beaver got a small glimpse of that information. Before sharing the document with the Beaver, the OSC blacked out portions that referred to clubs or individuals by name, even though there were no non-disclosure restrictions listed on the e-mail. "We can't go out and tell people we didn't do something because we have something we now can't show you," OSC executive director David Harris said, explaining the decision to share the information with the Beaver. "If we tell you we have this document but we can't show it, our credibility goes right out the window." In the document, OPDL applicants were given a percentage grade that seemed to be based on their degree of adherence It appears the Oakville Soccer Club was booted from contention for membership in the Ontario Player Development League because it did not submit financial information required in the application process. The OSC believes it has proof that other clubs that did not follow the process were accepted into the league. | Oakville Beaver file photo to the new league's criteria for technical plans, administration and financial stability. Most scores ranged from the high 70s to the low 60s, and one applicant that scored 63 per cent was granted entry into the OPDL. Oakville's listed score was 0, leading Harris and other OSC staff to believe the club was automatically disqualified for declining to submit its financial information. Standards were clear, OSA president says Smale, who wasn't part of the selection committee, said he could not confirm or deny whether that was the case. "(Judges) gave a rating or provided some type of grading within the respective elements of the application process. The fact that somebody might have received no score or a higher percentage score... it was a full application review in the decision-making process of the independent selection committee," said Smale, who believes the OSC's account that judges declined the opportunity to review the club's audited financial statements during the site visit. "We made (disqualification) very clear with all the applicants... The standards set out were required, or you would be disqualified." However, Harris feels that some clubs were granted more leniency than others when it came to meeting the standards of the application process. He pointed to different parts of the document Tuesday to back up his contention. "`The role of technical director coaching a team should be a situation they move away from'," Harris read from the review of one club's application. "In the RFP , it was said no (technical director) shall coach a team in the OPDL." "`Needs to check the reality of their objectives... Pathway very focused on boys and not so much for girls'," he read from another club's review. "Well, the deal was a boys' and a girls' program, with the potential for boys' and girls' reserve programs." Comments about other clubs included "reliant on individual coming in", "made major statements on what they're delivering, club statement that (technical plan) is proprietary", "special dispensation given based on their background", "identified areas where facility bookings don't match with programming commitments", "realistic in what was missing and needed to be done", and "need clarification on proposed budget, would like to see it." According to Harris, all of the clubs referred to in these comments were among the 18 successful applicants to the OPDL. "(The OPDL committee) overlooked a bunch of things to let people in," Harris said. "Is it about the kids, or is it about the money? If it's about the money, are you insane? Look at (our fields), look at our infrastructure. We keep the lights on pretty good here. We've got youth, adult, rep (leagues), soon we'll have special needs and seniors. Please. "The Town of Oakville raves about us, but the Town of Oakville will not allow us to share lease documents. They're part of our financials. It's not because we don't want anybody in the public to see them. It's part of our financial policy." None of the five members of the OPDL Assessment and Selection Committee can comment on the process, Smale said. The committee was disbanded by the OSA board following a Sept. 22 meeting that finalized the OPDL's list of successful applicants. But in a lengthy statement posted on the OSA website Oct. 18, Smale said he felt the selection process was "fair, balanced and thorough". He reiterated that position when contacted by the Beaver Wednesday. OSA will support decision of CSA Smale added that the OSC's appeal to the CSA will not damage the club's relationship with the provincial association. "If we have done something or made a decision or made an error in some capacity, I'm glad there's a body that's above us that monitors what we're doing," said Smale, who attended the OSC's volunteer recognition and awards night last week. "When we see the decision of the CSA, we will act on that decision... and do the right things for the game of soccer and the province of Ontario." It remains unclear what the OSC stands to gain if it wins the appeal to the CSA. Since membership in the OPDL was capped at 18 clubs for next season, it seems unlikely OSC would be granted a spot in the league until 2016. But Harris said an appeal to the CSA was a step the OSC simply had to take. "We're not looking to make enemies. I certainly am not," he said. "It's about being wronged. What would you say if you knew all this and we weren't fighting back?" -- The Ontario Soccer Association is scheduled to meet with Oakville Soccer Club officials Wednesday at 9 a.m. to debrief the club on why it was not accepted into the OPDL. All other unsuccessful applicants to the OPDL are expected to receive similar debriefings.