Rules, Roles & Policies

Introduction

The Sunshine Football Netball Club (formerly Sunshine YCW) is part of the Sunshine YCW Sports Club. Having been formed in 1959, it has a long and proud history.

The Sunshine Football Netball Club operates from its premises at the Ramon Vila Pavilion, Kinder Smith Reserve in Lily Street, Braybrook. The club fields football teams for Seniors, Reserves, Thirds, Under 18’s, Under 16’s, Under 14’s, Under 12’s, Under 10’s. The club also conducts the Auskick program each year. All our coaches are fully accredited with at least Level One qualification.

We also fields six Netball teams in the WFNL, and have recently won the Division 4 Premiership in 2023.

The policy document that is being provided is the product of considerable hard work and research by the Junior Committee and comes with the support of the Sunshine Football Club. Please be assured that any input you wish to have into the workings of our club is not only welcomed but encouraged. This input can be in a range of forms, whether it regards our policies or philosophies, suggestions and about the services and amenities provided by the club and within the club rooms, attending social functions or even seeking information as to involvement with sponsorship or a supporter’s group such as the 200 club. Hopefully, you will find the Sunshine Football Club a welcoming one with room for everyone to be involved.

Mission Statement

“To develop high quality citizens by promoting the physical, mental, moral and social well being of young people in the community by their active participation in sport.”  To achieve this mission, the following eight guiding principles underpin and reflect the core values of the club.

  1. Showing pride in our jumper, facilities, tradition and reputation.

  2. Ensuring we treat people fairly and equally, showing respect for all.

  3. Encouraging the involvement of volunteers and acknowledging their involvement.

  4. Providing a safe, healthy and friendly environment for all who come to the club.

  5. Ensuring the clubs reputation in the community remains highly regarded.

  6. Work within our financial limitations.

  7. Achieving success on the field in each age group.

  8. Operate within the guidelines of the Western Region Football League.

Junior Football Philosophy

Junior football is a place to learn and develop skills.
Junior football is a place to make friends and have fun.
Junior football is a place to develop a love of the game.
Junior football is a place to develop self confidence and social skills. 

Equity of Opportunity

The spirit of equity is that all players have the same opportunity to develop and enjoy their football. We acknowledge that as our players move through the age groups the implementation of equity may vary. The following points will apply:

Every effort should be made to ensure that all players have the opportunity to play as much football as possible in relation to:

  • The number of games played in a season.

  • The on field playing me each week.

  • Opportunity to be involved in the game while on the field.

  • Endeavour to give players the tools that they will require to advance to become good sports people.

  • In order to help in the formalisation of the role in 2014, all coaches will be asked to keep detailed records to support this. This information will be discussed at coaches meetings throughout the season.

With these important points in mind, our junior football philosophy and its policy was formulated a few years ago. The club continues to work on its adherence to this philosophy and stands firmly behind it.

Junior Selection Policy

All players should be given as much ground me as possible and where possible, an equal amount of ground me as every other player. Ideally players should receive at least three quarters of ground me each game.

When a full bench is available, it is not possible to do this evenly. Players who don’t receive a full three quarters should be compensated the following week.

Where more players are available than can be selected, emergencies should be named and encouraged to come to game as water boys, boundary umpires etc. Last week’s emergencies will be next week’s starters. Teams or squads should be named at Friday night training. Coaches should give players/parents the opportunity to advise in advance of any unavailability through the season.

Player movements will be monitored by coaching staff so they can show players or parents the amount of ground time they have had, in the event of any grievance.

When discipline needs to be enforced by the coach for misbehaviour the coach can override this policy if it is considered necessary.

Players should be played in as many different positions on the ground as is reasonable and possible throughout the season.

Skill development and sportsmanship should be emphasised as being more important than winning.

It is generally recognised that finals football is different from the home and away games. The finals policy will be based on the following principles:

  • An opportunity for as many players as is possible to experience finals football.

  • An understanding that player selection and playing me for individual players gives the team the best possible opportunity to win.

  • In the event of having a roster greater that 25 players, unfortunately, players may be required to miss out at finals time. It is very important that when picking the teams this is taken into account and children and parents notified at the beginning of the season.

Sponsorship’s

Junior clubs survive due to the hard work of volunteers, and also due to the generosity of local businesses as well as parents who generously sponsor the club in some way whether by cash donations, or donations of goods for raffle etc, or even donations of required items, e.g. drink bottles, training balls etc. If you are interested in partnering with the club by becoming a sponsor, click on the button below

Or contact us at

president@sunshinekangaroos.com.au

to discuss our available packages

It is club policy that no individual teams receive exclusive sponsorship from an organisation. This includes resources, apparel and financial support. Offers of sponsorship need to be directed to the Junior Administrator of the club so they may look at the sponsorship to be benefited by other junior teams. This does not preclude each team from organising weekly awards for their team and others as well. It is important that the committee is aware of all awards (sponsorship) to ensure sensitivity.

Presentation Day and Voting Procedure

The Presentation Day will be held after the completion of all season matches including finals if any. All awards will be presented at this special afternoon. Dates and details of the afternoon will be advised accordingly. There are 5 Special award trophies per team with participation for Under 16’s, Under 14’s and Under 12’s, with participation only for all players at Under 10’s and Under 8’s level. Coaches cannot dictate what awards will be provided nor will they have authority to purchase any extra awards.

There is no voting at Under 10’s and Under 8’s age group, only weekly encouragement awards to be distributed evenly to all children over the year to recognise their efforts and achievements. It is advised that a record should be kept to ensure an even spread of awards throughout the year. For calculation of Best and Fairest Awards for Under 16’s, Under 14’s and Under 12’s, the Team Manager will hand out vote cards to parents who wish to participate. It is important that Team Managers advise vote givers the importance of the voting procedure and that the votes should go to the best and fairest player on the field that day for Sunshine. (Not the child that has played better than expected). Completed vote cards are to be kept in a sealed envelope by Team Managers and handed to the Junior Administrator as required at the end of each round. It is not mandatory but recommended that Coaches, Team Managers and Runners should vote, but not every week. The five (5) highest vote receivers for the season will receive the awards and these are to be kept confidential until announced at the junior presentation day. The best five players for each team at Under 16’s, Under 14’s and Under 12’s level will receive special awards on Presentation day. Participation awards will be presented to all Under 8’s and Under 10’s players. All Under 16’s, Under 14’s and Under 12’s who have not received a special award will receive a participation award. Thank you plaques will be presented to the Coach and Team Managers,.

Training

With the size of the club, and the large number of teams, a great deal of pressure can be placed on Kinder Smith Reserve as the training venue. It is important that we are aware and respect the training needs of other teams within the club. The times the ground has been set aside for teams and age groups should be respected and the condition of the ground should be taken into account. The committee reserves the right to cancel training to protect the playing surface at Kinder Smith Reserve. Coaches should consider weather conditions and look for alternative venues and training during adverse conditions. Coaches should use the ground wisely and work with other coaches to do longer drills when more room is available.

Like every other club in the district, an important point to consider is that with the current level of water restrictions in place, we are under orders from State and Local government and this may continue to affect the viability of utilising Kinder Smith Reserve, which is all dependent on the outcome of the summer restrictions.

JUNIOR TRAINING TIMES WILL NORMALLY BE

  • Under 16’s ‐ Wednesday and Friday - 5:15 pm – 6:30 pm

  • Under 14’s ‐ Wednesday and Friday - 5.30 pm – 6:45 pm

  • Under 12’s ‐ Wednesday and Friday - 5.00 pm – 6:00 pm

  • Under 10’s – Friday - 5.00 pm – 6:00 pm

  • Under 8’s – Friday - 5.00 pm – 6:00 pm

For further details, please refer to the Junior Team Details page

Under normal circumstances, we would expect teams to train at Kinder Smith Reserve.

Note pre-season training may be a different timetable to normal season so times and days are subject to change.

Any changes to training times / days will be distributed in regards to this via the website, club newsletter, social media promotion and also announcements by coaching staff.

Coaching Accreditation

To coach within the league, it is mandatory that all coaches are accredited as Level One coaches. As a club, we endorse this policy and expect the club will cover all costs incurred in Level One Accreditation.

Coaches are strongly encouraged to pursue higher levels of accreditation. The club will support coaches in this activity and may assist with the expenses of such an endeavour. Contact the Junior Administrator for details. To remain accredited, coaches are expected to be actively coaching, members of AFCA and attend professional development evenings. The club sees the coaches as the “face of the club” and strongly endorses this policy. As such the club may meet the costs involved in these expectations. Annual membership will be covered by the club. Membership entitles coaches to regular Coaching Magazines, access to resources provided by AFCA, and Seminar Nights. Again, contact the Junior Administrator for details. Two Seminar nights are held each year. Presentations are of a high quality and cover various areas of coaching. All coaches will have their entry to these evenings covered.

The club will conduct a number of Coaches Meetings throughout the year. Coaches are expected to attend these meetings. The purpose of the meetings is to address issues relevant to coaching at Sunshine Football Club and share resources amongst the coaches and maintain a level of consistency amongst the coaches. The coaching coordinator will be responsible for giving feedback to the coaches from time to time.

North West AFCA provide a resource Library of Videos, books and other equipment that is available to all coaches. Any costs incurred in hiring the equipment will be covered by the club.

First Aid and Trainers

It is a requirement that all first aiders are accredited to Level Two and ERC Module completed. Any training required will be covered by the club. If a person benefits from special first aid training it would be hoped that that person would assist in first aid dues for a number of years or while their child was participating at the club.

The club is responsible for maintaining the first aid kits to the required standard. Any extra first aid needs to be passed on to your appointed first aid person with instructions.

The junior club has an Asthma management policy and procedure that may be obtained from the committee on request. It is a requirement for all players to wear a mouth guard during a game and recommended they are worn during competitive training.

Special Needs of Players

As a coach you may become aware that one or more of your players have special needs, apart from obvious physical needs such as injuries and skill deficiencies. The other needs may fall into three (3) other categories. These being educational, emotional and social.

  • Educational Needs: Not all students within a classroom learn the same way or learn at the same rate. Some students have 'Specific Learning Problems' that make it very difficult to learn using traditional teaching and coaching methods. It is important to be aware of any Learning difficulties that a player in your team may have. Modify your presentation of information in an attempt to accommodate these players Learning Needs.

  • Emotional and Social: From time to time players may exhibit uncooperative behaviour that negatively affects training and coaching. Often this can be put down to adolescent behaviour and nothing more needs to be done, however such behaviour could be indicative of a more serious emotional or social problem that the player may be experiencing. It is in the best interest of the coach to spend time communicating with the player in an environment free from tension to ascertain if there are social or emotional issues that are affecting the child's behaviour. As coaches it is not our role to solve such issues but we play a very important role by being a 'significant' adult in this person's life, prepared to talk and communicate with the child, in a supportive environment where a common interest exists, that being football. The club has access to a large support network for your people who are experiencing Emotional and Social difficulties within their lives. Professional advice for our coaches is available in dealing with such situations and many professional services are available through this network for the player.

Grievance Procedure

At times parents may have issues that concern them and/or their child. The committee of the club has addressed a number of areas that they believe are significant in the coaching and management of players. This has resulted in the production of policies and procedures associated with selection rotations mentioned in this document. These policies have been made very public, in an attempt educate parents and make them fully aware of how coaches are expected to act in regards to these areas.

In the event of a grievance being raised by parents in regards to these areas or other areas of the concern, the following steps should be followed:

  • Under normal circumstance, parents are encouraged to approach the coach to resolve the matter.

  • The parent may approach the committee prior to approaching the coach or may not be satisfied that a resolution has been arrived at, even after the initial discussion with the coach.

  • In this situation the Junior Administrator will act on behalf of the committee and communicate directly with the coach to inform them of the concern that has been raised. It is then hoped that a resolution to the issue will occur, based on the clubs relevant policies and procedures.

Player Mentoring and Specialist Coaching

Sunshine Football Club has many qualities that appeal to people. At times these characteristics are not easily identifiable except that when combined together people like the feeling that it produces. If you speak to people often they describe it as a family club, where the individual is cared for as much as the team, where often the 'game' of football plays a secondary role to the development and needs of the person playing the game.

Benefits of a Mentor Program. A Mentor is defined as an experienced and trusted advisor. This is a fairly general definition of a mentor, however the reward that is gained through such a program is huge. Some of these are:

  • The opportunity for the senior members of the club to develop their sense of value to the club community.

  • The Big Brother concept is a very important part of growing up for adolescent children. To have significant male role models in their life is essential to their ongoing development.

  • It develops a sense of value and responsibility within the mentor.

  • The life experiences that some senior players have been exposed to may help some of the younger players in the club.

The Mentor Program

  • Senior coach and players approached about the idea, with a request for support. Those able to participate will be allocated to a team. Not all senior players will be involved due to various reasons.

  • During the year, the team mentors can participate in training from time to time, attend functions, help out at 'Club Nights'. Young players can clearly identify with senior players and will show a greater interest in that player. In effect the players could become like a mini‐cheer squad for that player. This may increase the following for senior team. The barriers between the senior and junior sections of the club will be reduced, and when senior players train with junior teams e.g. Under 14’s or Under 16’s, the quality of the training is enhanced.

Parental Involvement and Match Day Officials

There are two positions that need to be sanctioned by the committee.

These are: a) Coach, and b) Team Manager. The remainder of required match day tasks will be allocated to parents.

The club relies on continual parent support to ensure that all official dues are carried out. These positions are either match day officials or official club appointments.

A document has been produced and is available outlining the dues of the team manager and is a very helpful tool available to team managers.

The organising of the match day officials is the responsibility of the Team Manager.

These positions are:

  1. Goal Umpire

  2. Umpires Escort

  3. Boundary Umpire

  4. Runners; (Permanent basis)

  5. Trainer - First Aid; (Permanent basis)

  6. Time Keeper

  7. Match Day Manager

  8. Water Person

  9. Canteen help (if a home game)

  10. Ground Set Up / Pack Up (if a home game)

Team Managers have several options to ensure parental involvement is maximised.

A Roster can be drawn up to include all parents OR requests for volunteers to identify positions they would fill on a more permanent basis.

For a full list of duties for the above mentioned roles, please click on the button below


AFL Vilification and Discrimination Policy

The Sunshine Football Club is committed to fostering and maintaining a sporting environment which promotes understanding, accepts the unique differences of all persons affiliated with or interested in Australian Football, and recognises the need to prohibit certain discriminatory or vilifying conduct. To this end, the club is committed to ensuring all players, officials and members adhere to the AFL Vilification Policy.

For details of the AFL Vilification Policy, click on the button below


Child Safety and Well-Being Policy

Sunshine Football Clubs demonstrates a strong commitment of the management, staff and volunteers in relation to child safety and to provide an outline of the policies and practices the Club has developed a Child Safety Policy.

For details of the our Child Safety Declaration, Child Safety and Well-Being Policy, Child Safety Reporting Process and Child Safety Incident Report please click on the buttons below


Child Safety Code of Conduct

The Sunshine Football Club is committed to the safety and well being of children and young people. Our club recognises the importance of, and a responsibility for, ensuring the Sunshine Football Club is a safe, supportive and enriching environment which respects and fosters the dignity and self-esteem of children and young people, and enables them to thrive in their learning and development. We have developed a Code of Conduct that aims to protect children and reduce any opportunities for child abuse or harm to occur. It also assists in understanding how to avoid or better manage risky behaviours and situations. It is intended to complement child protection legislation, WRFL policy. Club policies and procedures and professional standards, codes or ethics as these apply to staff, volunteers and other personnel.All staff, contractors, volunteers and any other member of the Sunshine Football Club

For details of the our Child Safety Code Of Conduct, please click on the button below


AFL Concussion Guidelines

The AFL has released updated guidelines on the Management of Sport-Related Concussion in Australian Football at all levels of the game outside AFL and AFLW.
 
Access the detailed guidelines, which includes a dedicated section on the management of concussion in children and adolescents.

The guidelines, designed to help those involved in the game including medical staff, volunteers, coaches, players, parents and administrators, outline the steps in the initial management of a suspected concussion and the stages for return to play following concussion.
 
In the guidelines, the earliest that a player may return to play (once they have completed a graded loading program and have obtained medical clearance) is on the 21st day following the concussion (where the day of concussion is designated day “0”).  
 
This means that a player who is concussed in a match on a Saturday will miss at least the next two Saturday matches and will only be able to return to play on the third Saturday (i.e., the 21st day after the concussion was sustained) if they have recovered according to the protocols and have been medically cleared to return to play. In many cases, recovery will be slower than the minimum 21 days.
 
How concussion presents and the rate and pattern of recovery, vary from person to person and injury to injury. Players will also have different individual circumstances and the return to play program must be individualised based on progress and medical clearance, rather than the number of days since the incident.

The guidelines (along with other supporting resources) are available via the Play.AFL website, here.