Special meeting of South East soccer bodies held to discuss proposed changes to grassroots soccer calendar

A meeting of grassroots soccer clubs from across the South East have met to discuss the implications of a proposed change by the FAI to a new sporting calendar.

About 200 representatives from clubs from Wexford, Carlow, Laois, Kilkenny and Wicklow met earlier this week, along with four local TDs, with many voicing strong opposition to the proposition of playing soccer based on a calendar year basis, as opposed to the current September to May season basis. The Wexford Football League was represented by Jamie Farrell. Speaking to South East RadioNews earlier today, the Bunclody AFC Chairman said that the right to choose the calendar should be down to the clubs, not the FAI: "Our proposal to the FAI is very simple. We are asking the FAI to refrain from making it mandatory that calendar year soccer is a must and that all clubs must abide by it. What we are asking the FAI to do is to allow leagues and the affiliated clubs of those leagues to choose whether they want to play a calendar soccer year, or whether they want to play the standard UEFA or FIFA season."