Further to the announcement of the Government (Irish Republic), Dublin County has been moved to Level 3 under the framework for Restrictive Measures.

What does this mean for Softball in Dublin?

With effect from September 19, 2020, to such time as the Government changes the Level applied to Dublin County, no softball matches/friendlies/pick-up games may be played in the County of Dublin. Please note, should any Club arrange/play a match/friendy/pick-up game during this period the participating teams will not be insured.

Can our Club still practice in Dublin?

Level 3 permits for non contact training only in pods of up to 15 for this period. For softball, the Medical Committee has defined a Club as a Pod.

With effect from September 19, 2020 to such time as the Government changes the Level applied to Dublin County, Dublin based Clubs may host outdoor practice to a maximum of 15 attendees who must be Club members only (non-club members may not be invited to practice sessions). All practices must be conducted in accordance with the Softball Ireland Return to Play Protocol.

What about Clubs outside of Dublin County?

For all other Clubs (Irish Republic) outside the County of Dublin, matches and training may be held in accordance with the current Government advice and Softball Ireland Return to Play Protocol.

For Clubs based in Northern Ireland, Softball is permitted if the conditions set out by the Northern Ireland Executive are met. 

We would ask all our memebers to continue to follow the Softball Ireland Return to Play Protocol and respect the restrictions put in place by the respective Governments.

All the latest information for Softball Ireland’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and return to play are available here.

The Softball Ireland Medical Committee has confirmed that Softball Leinster teams may return to training with effect from August 23, 2020 in groups of no more than 15 in accordance with the recently released government guidelines.

The Softball Leinster League will return on August 24, 2020 and teams are encouraged to review the Softball Ireland Return To Play Protocol which is available here. All training and games must be held in compliance with the Softball Ireland protocol.

Spectators

In accordance with the Government Guidelines, spectators are not permitted to attend games or training sessions before September 13, 2020 (this restriction includes player family members or non-rostered players).

Softball Ireland will issue updated guidelines and processes should a player receive a positive test within the next 24 hours.

Please see the below statement issued on behalf of the Hippetys Softball Club

Just a quick note to let everyone know that the player who contracted COVID-19 is doing well and showing no symptoms. The player’s family is also doing well. We would like to thank all the teams and players for taking this news with grace and respect.

The Club would like to assure Softball Ireland members that the contact with COVID-19 does not seem to have come from playing softball or softball related activities. The player, who showed no symptoms, was exposed to suspected contact through work. Everyone at their workplace was tested after COVID-19 emerged there. The player was involved in that testing and tested positive for COVID-19. 

On confirmation of a positive result, the club immediately alerted Softball Ireland (S.I.) who took action and responded with a plan within a few hours at which point all players were informed. We would like to thank S.I. for their help with a very difficult situation.

In regard to rumours and speculation, we were contacted about pictures of players, in a pub, on Facebook. This was done in relation to players not social distancing at a social gathering of softball players. We feel this is unfair to both softball clubs involved as well as the player. While we will never know definitively how the COVID-19 was contracted but as mentioned before it seems highly unlikely that softball or softball related social activities contributed to the positive COVID-19 test.

In relation to the player’s request for anonymity, we realize that some players and teams will know who the player who contracted COVID-19 is. Please keep this information to yourself and if you are asked any questions about COVID-19 or the player, please direct all questions to your COVID-19 officer or Softball Ireland.

Finally, we would also like to thank all the teams and players who sent well wishes and messages of support.