City sports groups set to return to playing fields

Games will look different with new rules in place because of COVID-19 pandemic

Having the green light from the Saskatchewan government to proceed with games doesn’t necessarily mean “go” for all outdoor sports.

The provincial government announced Tuesday that outdoor games can resume Monday as part of Phase 4.2 in its Re-open Saskatchewan plan as long as social distancing and other guidelines are followed. The announcement came a day after outdoor sports teams were given the go-ahead to begin training under Phase 4.1.

“It’s nice that they opened up Phase 4.2 on June 29, but it puts us in the predicament of getting going (within a short time frame),” said Kristina Kenny, executive director of the Regina Minor Softball League (RMSL).

With a return to play in mind, the RMSL’S board of directors has met regularly since athletic facilities were shuttered on March 17 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Tuesday’s announcement meant the RMSL could establish a date for the start of league games.

“We’re aiming for July 6 as our target date,” Kenny said. “If they opened earlier, we would have still used that. If it was later, we would have rolled with that.”

Soccer teams with FC Regina resumed practising on Monday, but it may not be until the middle of July before live games are actually played. The programs for youthaged players will begin with skillbased training camps because of changes to league games expected due to the COVID -19 restrictions.

“As we proceed through the phases, we may incorporate other types of small game-type activities (for youth), but that will definitely be under the guidance of how the phases progress,” said Kevin Holness, technical director of FC Regina. “For adults, there is a discussion of a seven-versus-seven type of league with contact restrictions and we’re still deciding what the parameters are for that. We will follow all of the guidelines while emulating the type of game that is as close to real soccer as possible.”

One of the changes being considered is dividing the pitch in half. That would reduce the number of players on the field and fit into the minimal-contact guidelines established by the provincial government.

To further reduce contact, heading the ball and throw-ins have been banned. Players will kick the ball onto the pitch instead of throwing it after the ball has gone out of bounds.

“The grey area is dealing with goalkeeping because they have to stop shots with their hands and how do you keep the ball sanitized?” Holness said. “We’re looking into all of those checkpoints to make sure that when we do kick off any type of league or competition that we’re following suit with what’s being relayed to us.”

Contact is minimal in softball and thus the rules of the game will remain essentially the same.

“You do run by a base and you are within six feet of each other, but it’s only for an instant,” said Guy Jacobson, executive director of Softball Saskatchewan. “The only time there is real physical distancing is between the catcher and the batter. So we’ve allowed for that. We asked that there be six feet of physical distance between catchers and batters.”

Softball has moved umpires from behind home plate to behind the pitcher. The new positioning removes the chances of umpires being hit by foul balls and wild pitches while practising social distancing.

“Moving the umpire behind the pitcher might not be perfect, but we’re playing ball, so we should be happy and thankful,” Jacobson said.

Safety for soccer and softball players and spectators remains a priority. Both sports will have volunteers in place to deal with sanitizing balls and other equipment. Softball also has a health and safety manager charged with making sure players follow the guidelines.

“Everyone is of the same mindset and that’s to put everything in place and not rush into it,” Holness said. “We all want to promote a safe and healthy environment where people feel comfortable while coming back to the activity. Then we’ll start to educate them on how the sport will function.”

Moving the umpire behind the pitcher might not be perfect, but we’re playing ball so we should be happy and thankful.