UR-ROYALTY

March 9, 2023 - one year ago

Urban Rec Royalty Program, 2023.

It is with great pleasure that we introduce to you the Urban Rec Royalty Program.

Be the beneficiary of a $100 or $200 ‘Royal Pardon’. The Royalty Program is our shiny new loyalty program designed to show our appreciation and give back to those that support our Urban Rec family the most. In a time of impending Republicanisation we have decided to start crowning our Royal Family here at Urban Rec.

Your Loyalty makes U-Royalty… each season your team will earn a gem for their crown, a full crown needs 3 gems. Once your crown is full, you will be bestowed your chamberlain with your Royal Seal of approval and we will reduce your 4th season registration fee by $100 or $200. To those that earn this Royal Pardon, we love you and we truly are, in fact, your loyal subjects.

UR HQ

Annual Priority Periods (Sydney & Melbourne)

• Season 1 into Season 2: 27th March – 3rd April 2023
• Season 2 into Season 3: 10th July – 16th July 2023
• Season 3 into Season 4: 25th September – 2nd October 2023
• Season 4 into Season 1: 8th January – 15th January 2024

T’s&C’s

• Teams that register in three (3) consecutive seasons in 2023 to receive a $100 reduced team fee on their 4th season.
• Teams that register and pay in full during priority/promo week for three (3) consecutive seasons in 2023 onwards are to receive a $200 reduced team fee on their 4th season.
• Teams that register in three (3) seasons non-consecutively, with only one (1) season break, are eligible to receive a $100 royal pardon.
• Teams will be notified within priority registration leading to the 4th season and will be provided a private link for registering with the discount.
• The $100 or $200 will not be refunded to a card if the team has paid in full before realizing - a credit may be offered in this instance against the captain's account.
• The team does not have to have played in the same league/sport throughout the year.
• The team must be made up of over 50% of the same members, or have the same team captain.
• Teams using the deposit function but not paying the balance during priority registration will be eligible for $100 royal pardon.
• This promotion is in effect from January 2023 onwards.

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SORRY MY DOG ATE MY BIBS...

February 21, 2023 - one year ago

This way, you keep your bibs and the world is a better place!

Urban Rec have teamed up with a sportswear manufacturer to design and make Urban Rec reversible Netty Bibs. No team will ever colour clash again!

Over the last 12 years exactly 2,334,345 sets of Netball bibs have not been returned at the end of the season. A further 5,345,232 sets of Netball bibs have been replaced due to missing GK & C positions. 400,000 have been eaten by the dog and 356,987 sets entered the washing machine to never be seen again… …So we’ve decided that instead of shoveling a monumental amount of aussie dollars into the ever growing netball bib furnace, we are going to make all new sets available to purchase online HERE.

Joining forces with Access Social Sport these bibs will be available to purchase HERE - 100% of the funds raised will be received in its entirety by the beneficiaries of Access Social Sports charitable donations. Every Set is a Donation to an amazing cause.

More on Access Social Sport and the causes it helps.

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Gender Identity Inclusion, Rule Updates, Pride Round 2023

February 17, 2023 - one year ago

Urban Rec is proud to announce that we have recently updated our gender identity options across member profiles, the registration process, and rules within our club. 

While Urban Rec has always been LGBTQI+ friendly, the functionality of being able to offer places on team rosters for those that don’t identify as man or woman, has not been possible…Till now. 

We believe that all Australian’s should have access to social sports. We welcome all people, of any gender identity to join Urban Rec and benefit from the physical and mental health benefits that come with playing social sport. Urban Rec aims to provide a supportive and inclusive space for everyone, now and always. 

HERE ARE THE SMALL, BUT IMPORTANT CHANGES

1. Players can select a gender identity other than man or woman when creating their member profile.
2. Individual teams will have space available on team rosters for people who are non-binary, transitioning etc. 
3. Our sports rules have been updated to remove references to gender advantages or disadvantages in the context of scoring, defending, or positioning.
4. Urban Rec has become a member of Pride in Sport, a national not-for-profit sporting inclusion program specifically designed to assist sporting organisations at all levels. 

WHY ARE WE NOT MAKING ALL LEAGUES OPEN? I.E. NO GENDER REQUIREMENTS

Urban Rec has long been at the forefront of efforts to drive gender equity in the social sports environment. While many of our counterparts in the adult recreation space claim to be facilitating mixed-gender environments, there are very few other adult recreation providers that are facilitating exclusively mixed-gender leagues with the minimum inclusion requirements that we have long held to be fundamental to our programs.

All sports need to have a minimum gender identity requirement. Without gender identity requirements within a mixed sports environment we would unfortunately take away the equity of women, men and non-binary individuals having access to play in a mixed-gender, social, fun and fair environment. Simply stated, we would become a male dominated sports club. 

MORE ON RULE UPDATES

• Our sports rules have been updated to remove references to gender advantages or disadvantages in the context of scoring, defending, or positions. 
• Where appropriate physical advantages and disadvantages have been taken into consideration.
• These include Touch Football, Basketball, Softball, Flag Gridiron and Netball.
• These rules are now live within your member dashboard and on our website.

ACKNOWLEDGE THESE CHANGES WITH URBAN REC’S FIRST PRIDE ROUND

• Pride Round is happening nationally within all Urban Rec cities, Feb 20 till 24, 2023.
• To acknoledge all of our LGBTQI+ community as well as the additional announcements and updates.
• We welcome players to wear some rainbow to show their support.
• In Sydney, Our Party Cart will be attending a league each night with support from our sponsor, Young Henrys.
• Donate what you can for a sausage and a beer towards Access Social Sports, and PrideCup.
• What is Access Social Sports? Check out our instagram post here.

WHAT DO URBAN REC MEMBERS NEED TO DO?

Get to know your updated rules, continue to play with kindness and fairness. If you have a question about someone's gender identity before, during or after a game, talk to your Event Host. Urban Rec has zero tolerance for homophopia, biphobia and transphobia. 

These updates are new for our club and an ever-progressive process for us all. We will not get this right the first time, and we do not pretend to have it all figured out, but we promise we are trying our best. Through our membership with Pride in Sport and the input from our LGBTQI+ community, we will continue to update and evolve as necessary. Our commitment is enduring. 

If you have any questions or suggestions about the policy or updates, please contact [email protected] 

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Netball experience life changing for Emma Bastable

February 14, 2023 - one year ago

Emma Bastable (far right) pictured with her teammates. 

By Renae Smyth

Transgender netballer Emma Bastable first started playing in the Urban Rec Netball league in Sydney’s inner suburb of Redfern in 2018. 

A mixed social competition that Emma signed up for as an individual on a whim. A daunting step to take, given she didn’t know her teammates or the rules of the game.

Although, having played cricket, rugby and soccer growing up, Emma knew the rules and friendships would come later. So, for now, she focused on the fun and the opportunity to switch off from her days, working as a solicitor.

Taking more than eight years away from playing any sport, Emma admits there was always a concern in the back of her mind. An uneasy feeling that she may not be accepted by her team or the club.

“I was worried about the transgender stuff at first, I think that was one of the reasons why I hadn’t played sport for so long,” she said.

To her surprise, her gender was never a problem.

“It was totally not a big deal. Everyone accepted me and validated me in my gender. It was just never an issue,” she said.

Emma felt the support of fellow teammates and instantly felt welcome. Pulling on the GK bib for ‘The Flinstones’ felt right.

“I got really lucky in a way. I met a group of people that I really liked,” she said.

“The team was super supportive. I told them that I had never played netball before, so they were giving me tips and helping me along the way.”

Emma now plays multiple nights a week in five different teams and can’t imagine life without the game.  

“Netball has become such a huge part of my life and a big part of my identity.

“Having positive experiences over and over again has just made it easy to slowly start to play in more leagues and progress my abilities.

“I don’t know what I would be doing with a lot of my time if I hadn’t had such a good experience [with netball].”

The community netballer has thrown her support behind Netball Australia’s recent announcement of policy guidelines for inclusion of transgender and gender diverse athletes in the elite competitions.

“Diverse representation at higher levels is just so important for making everyone feel welcome in the leagues and in the teams.

“Kids look up to high-profile players and if they decide to pursue netball more seriously as a career, it is comforting to know that it’s an option for them. An option for everyone.”

To Emma, knowing the netball community has provided pathways and opportunities for others like her within the sport brings a level of acceptance, but hopes to see more engagement at the grassroots level.

“It’s really important for transgender people to be accepted and given the opportunity and to know that someone out there has there back.

“It takes a lot to take that first step of signing up for a community sport and if you have a bad experience, it could be enough to disincentivise you to stop playing sport all together.

“Encouraging  transgender people to participate in community sport goes a long way to changing attitudes and normalising acceptance of us and showing that we’re just out there doing our own thing and living a normal life.”

Emma will be a voice within the transgender and gender diverse community that will work with Netball Australia and netball member organisations as they develop policy guidelines for inclusion of transgender and gender diverse netballers at a community level.

Taking that brave step onto the court is an experience that Emma believes has changed her life and the person she has become, very much for the better.

“I’ve made so many friends through netball, friends that I never would have met before if I wasn’t playing netball,” she said.

“It allows me to be a better person and live a better life than I otherwise would be.”

For the original post from Netball Australia: https://netball.com.au/news/netball-experience-life-changing-emma-bastable 

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What is a 'bye week'?

January 31, 2023 - one year ago

A bye week is simply a week off, a round in your season where your team does not play.

This usually happens due to an odd number of teams registered for the league. Often with a venue we have booking limitations which prevents us playing additional time slots to get all teams a game each night.

A bye week does not come off the total amount of games you play, you will still get the amount of games you registered for!

You shouldn't ever have more than 1 bye week per season, possibly 2 at most, but you can always sub in for another team or even league, as playing in any of our leagues as a sub for free is a member perk we offer!

Byes also allow us to expand the league within our current venue booking which means we are making sport more accessible to our members.

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Festive Theme Week

November 22, 2022 - one year ago

12th Dec is Festive round, so don’t be a scrooge about it and go grab your tinsel! 🎄

As work winds down for the year the festive spirit winds up. With the twinkling lights of the Christmas work parties in your eyes we ask you to don your most festive gear and spread some seasonal cheer!

December weather in Straya isn’t the best time for a Christmas sweater, but who cares! If it makes you look like a Christmas Pud then we are on the right track!

We wanna see fairy lights, tinsel, red noses, antlers, Santa hats, candy canes, elves, anything and everything that will showcase your team as the team with the most festive spirit.

We will have our HQ Grinches out and about at the leagues, we will reward the individuals and teams that offend our Grinches the most with their Christmas cheer!

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Urban rec launches in Melbourne

July 1, 2022 - one year ago

Dust off your runners Melbourne - there’s a new fun-first social sport league kicking off this winter and they care more about making new friends than how good you are with balls

This week in Melbourne registrations opened for the biggest mixed social sport league in town, Urban Rec, where fun and making new friends is taken very seriously. The inclusive, mixed league is launching four playing locations across Melbourne - CBD (Docklands, Southbank), Inner East (Fitzroy, Richmond, Collingwood), and Inner North (Carlton, Parkville, North Melbourne) this winter to help tackle loneliness and isolation post pandemic.

Julie Sweet, a clinical psychotherapist in Sydney, says many of us are out of practice in conducting friendships post-COVID and that we are now experiencing the anxiety of reconnecting. Sweet emphasizes the importance of friendships for overall mental health. 

Head Urban Rec Kidult and Managing Director and Madeleine Wilkie says “ Being a grown up can sometimes be lonely, even outside of a pandemic. I found myself living overseas trying to figure out how to make new friends as an adult. I missed meeting new people in a non-awkward way. That feeling when you meet someone new, and realise the world is full of legends. I joined a social sport league and made friends for life. This is what Urban Rec is all about. We bring it together, break down the barriers, and all of a sudden you have a network of new friends you could have for life.”

Social sport leagues for Melbourne currently include Aussie Rules, Basketball, Dodgeball, Flag Gridiron, Hockey, Multisport (a variation of sports throughout the season on the same team), Netball, Soccer (Football for the Brits), Softball, Touch Football, and Volleyball. Leagues are 8-10 weeks long, with registration fees for each league around $100 for individuals. League specific fees and start dates for Melbourne can be found here https://melbourne.urbanrec.com.au/leagues. 

Wilkie continues “The key element is FUN. We make sure the games are enjoyable, and your opposition friendly. Making sure the culture and experience is fun for all abilities is at our core, in fact - our whole league is based off fun points. We also take making new friends seriously and organise end of season parties, trips, weekends away, outings, pub crawls, trivia nights, you name it. We are committed to getting adults into recreational, non competitive, inclusive sports.”

Ruth, Dodgeballer from the Sydney Inner West league says “I play with Urban Rec because they welcome all skill levels (including my complete lack of) and they mean it when they say no dickheads! Our opponents are fun, fair and friendly. It’s been three years and I can’t imagine my Wednesday nights without a dodgeball game and a trip to the pub with the team afterwards.”

All are welcome regardless of ability or experience. It doesn’t matter if you have never played before. To get register as a team or individual head to  https://melbourne.urbanrec.com.au/ to bring some active, social fun to your weeknights. 

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