Men's Club Division 2-4 Schedules Set

The schedule for the 2017-2018 competitive season has been distributed to all listed/qualified club representatives. If you did not receive a copy of your schedule, please contact Men's Club Representative, Erik Geib.

Read more [below] for this year's scheduling notes and an Excel version of the schedule.

The following are this year's scheduling notes, per Erik Geib:

"General Notes:
-I met with the D2 & D3 divisional reps (Aaron & Charlie) to discuss scheduling layout options and we agreed to the format you see. With Provo being suspended, the Quins moving a side down, and Glendale moving its sides up, we're in a situation where there's 11 teams over D2 & D3 - even with two promotions from D4. 
-It was voted by the group (myself and the divisional reps) that we would adhere to the divisional format agreed to by the RMR member clubs at the AGM (which included promoting the Highlanders to D2)
-It was voted by group (the divisional reps and myself) to make D3 a triple round-robin competition to get it to 12 games/team, which is thought to be preferred over an 8 match/team option - particularly since the travel is better than in D2 (which has 10 games); these splits are also based on the feedback everyone gave in the scheduling survey

-It was voted by the group (myself and the divisional reps) to try and give D4 10 games, but to give it 8 if that was the best way to keep teams together and not over-strain resources. When I started putting the schedule together, an 8-game schedule became inevitable.
-As with last year, the union is setting kickoff match times this season. Kickoff times may only be changed by getting both teams and the union to agree the change by sending emails to me (egeib@usarugby.org). Saying "they [your opponent] agreed to it" without evidence will not suffice for opponent permission.
-If your opponent is being uncooperative about moving a kickoff time and you are having field availability issues, you may petition Rocky Mountain Rugby and I will make an executive decision if field availability issues are evidenced. This option is *only* available at least 21 days before a match is scheduled to be played.

As such (scheduling rationale):
-I prioritized keeping multi-side teams together over most other things, and we'll all have to work together to make the timings wok out. 
-There are two matches (AFFECTING BOULDER AND THE MARAUDERS PRIMARILY) that the union is requesting NORTHERN COLORADO help host so that COLORADO SPRINGS can keep their sides together. Essentially, we're asking two D4 games be played in Fort Collins when the Grizzlies' D3 side plays the Flamingos.
-Overall, I tried to keep D4 games after D2/D3 games. There are a handful of D4 games that must be played before D2/D3 games, however (and unfortunately). There's no provision against playing your D4 match first, but I know that many teams like/need to use their D2/D3 players in their D4 match after their first side has already played.

Additionally:
-D4 is split into two pools: a pool that is basically 'D2-B' (POOL 1) and a pool that is the two D3 second sides mixed with the Marauders and Rush (POOL 2). To accommodate the imbalance, the D4 playoffs will be two semi-final matches, crossing over the top two teams from each pool. There are two spots in the schedule (D4 Semis (A) and D4 Semis (B)) for when the D4 playoffs might start. This is because we don't want anyone playing in the D2 or D3 playoffs to have a D4 playoff match on the same day. As such, the D4 semi-final dates will be announced as the D2 and D3 teams qualify for playoffs. Depending on D2/D3 playoff formatting, it may not be possible to prevent clubs from splitting their teams up, but RMR will make every effort to prevent that from happening.
-D4 isn't perfectly balanced for home/away in order to make the cross-pool games work. Nobody is worse than a 5/3 or 3/5 split, however, including the teams who game up a home game to make the Springs-in-Ft.Collins games work.  

-Unlike last year, we only have to *really* fix one match for 'timing travel' on the day of, which is September 9th and involves the Barbos and C. Springs. My current proposal involves making Littleton play its home game that day at Infinity (if available), with the Barbos D4 match squeezed between that match and the Barbos-Glendale game in the stadium at 1. If anyone out of Littleton, the Springs, the Barbos, or Glendale has issue with this, please let me know immediately so we can arrange an alternative.
-On Sunday, April 8, Park City is set to play the 'Quins. That same weekend, we need the Harlequins' B side to play Queen City's B side. Similarly, we need Queen City to play Laramie. As such, I moved all 3 matches to Sunday, and we can make it work by one team or the other (Quins or Queen City) agreeing to play their B side match first. Currently, I have Queen City playing its second side first as a placeholder. 
-We only had to put 1 match before Labor Day to make the schedule work, and that's because two out of five teams requested High Desert off. It works out, however, since Laramie also needed to play fewer Spring matches than the other D3 teams (weather).
-We only have 3 matches the weekend of High Desert, and 1 of them is in Utah. Everyone who requested High Desert off has it off, and the union encourages anyone else who's interested to attempt attending (the tournament is in Albuquerque).

-Bye weekends and make-up weekends are clearly identified on the schedule. If you have a Fall weather cancellation, you need to use your fall make-up date. If you have a Spring weather cancellation prior to Easter, you must make up the match Easter weekend. Only matches that fall between Easter and playoffs should be made up on April 28, and April 28 may not be a realistic option (see playoff notes, below). If matches need to be played after Easter and April 28 isn't available, RMR will help foster mid-week options. If mid-week options can't be accommodated, the RMRexecutive board will have discretion to decide how to handle the non-played matches.
Important Dates:
-Denver Barbarians 50th Anniversary: Weekend of September 9
-50th Annual Aspen Ruggerfest: Weekend of September 16
-Rocky Mountain Rugby 50th Anniversary: Saturday, November 11 (Denver Area)

2018 Playoffs:
-Charlie and Aaron can provide an update on Frontier Conference comings and goings, but it's notable that it's Rocky Mountain Rugby's turn to host the playoffs this coming Spring. If any teams would like to submit a host application, please contact Charlie, Aaron (or his replacement), Rich, or myself. If the union is the only hosting option (e.g. no team wants to host), RMR will likely put the event at Glendale or ask Boulder if Pleasantview is available. 
-The D2/D3 Frontier Conference playoffs (equivalent to national round of 32 and national round of 16) will be either April 28, May 5, or both. RMRhas petitioned the conference to move to single-match weekends (when possible) for player welfare and travel-savings concerns (for all parties), and so as to align with how playoffs are handled in most other competitive regions nationally. If D2 moves to single-match weekends, there is a chance there will be a D2 championship (Frontier semi-final / national round of 32 equivalent) between the top two D2 teams. RMR will communicate that as soon as it finds out if it's possible or planned to happen. For D3, there's a chance a Utah league that is coming online will have a D3 pathway. If that's the case, RMR has petitioned to have its champion play the Utah champion on April 28 (likely in Grand Junction) while the Heart of America and Missouri groups play each other. The winners would then play May 5 somewhere in the Front Range. 
Notably, if single-match weekends aren't possible, RMR's preference is to have the playoffs on May 5-6.
-Regardless of playoff dates/format, RMR has 2 playoff spots in D2 (2 leagues) and only 1 playoff spot in D3 (3-4 leagues)
-National playoffs next year are May 19-20 (quarter-finals/semi-finals) and will be held somewhere in Texas. The national championship finals are Sunday, June 4, and should be held in Glendale again.
-For local D4 playoffs, the pool winners (higher seeds) will host the semi-finals, and RMR will host the final on May 12. As noted above, the semi-finals will be either April 28 or May 5, and RMR will make best efforts to keep teams from splitting their sides during those weekends.

Other union news:
-The union is currently accepting final nominations for the Men's D2 representative spot to the Frontier Conference. Aaron Bennett (our current rep.) is moving to Illinois in August, and RMR thanks him for his invaluable service the past few years. 
The current nominees to replace Aaron are: Anthony Fisher (Harlequins), Clinton Camp (Highlanders) and myself (Erik Geib; unattached - formerly Glendale). No party has been seconded and the vote is to be held between D2 clubs only. It's likely we will move to approval voting to fill the spot since only 6 teams are voting. If the D2 teams would like to nominate any other candidates, please do so by July 31. 
-The USA Rugby Congress is meeting this weekend in Washington, DC. As a reminder, your Congress representative is John Barkmeier of Boulder RFC, who was re-elected to a two-year term this May at the AGM (term expires in 2019).
-RMR would like to congratulate the Denver Barbarians on qualifying for the 2017 Club 7s National Championship in Minnesota August 12-13. This is the Barbos 23rd appearance at the event (a national record), and the event will be streamed live (and free) on The Rugby Channel if anyone would like to watch and support them. The regional women's team representative will also be decided this Saturday (July 29) if anyone would like to attend the qualifier. It is from 2-6 on the turf field at Infinity Park.
-Rocky Mountain Rugby will be forming a representative side for D2-D4 players, which will play at least one all-star match this year. If you have nominations for coaches or administrators for this program, please email suggestions to Rich or myself."

2017-2018_rmr_mens_schedule_v003.xlsx
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