[cjlovi]

Awesome job to the Refs, Lori and Anthony! The best NEPL Event yet! The competition was the best I've seen in years! Any match and any team could have fallen either way!

They were true hard fought matches. The teams in attendance need a big applause for the professional atmosphere that we created!

Congrats to the Hurricanes on First!

[SLBalla860]

The refs were a joke. I was the one that stepped out of bounds.
They don't know what the difference from bunker rub or a hit.
If we didn't get the stupid penalties we would have placed.

[trogdor444]

xball refs were great, both fields!

[NHballer90]

Originally Posted by SLBalla860

The refs were a joke. I was the one that stepped out of bounds.
They don't know what the difference from bunker rub or a hit.
If we didn't get the stupid penalties we would have placed.

Thats a bad attitude, many of these refs work really hard, NEXL was great, every ref did a great job. especially for noticing that i forgot to re set my gun to 12.5 bps lol and i was shooting 15. but **** happens and im stupid and they did a great job catching that. there was a few calls that should of been made that i saw, like a kid at uncapped hitting like 20 bps, but w/e calls are calls and it depends on the ref's. i thought they did a great job, so what you got 1 bad call. that happens at the National level as well and its part of the sport. if u dont like it then stop playing the game. bad calls are part of every sport not just paintball. i say these ref were very good and deserve good feedback from what i saw.

[Sean6942]

I played Sat and Sun. Both days reffing was very good. I saw a lot of refs give freebies to pretty much every team out there. i.e. Telling them to line up correctly in the start box, making sure old hits were taken care of, etc... Paint shot great. Fields were set up well and cleaned regularly. Weather held out nice. No air issues and consistant 4500 fills. What more could you ask for?? Well, maybe a rain cloud could have moved in for like 10 mins to control the dust in the air. Someone should tell Anthony and Lori to get on that

All in all awesome event and congrats to the Canes for two great days of ballin

[Lori]

Just a couple of quick things I would like to address:

1) The captains of all 8 D4 teams had a meeting prior to the start of the playoffs - and they voted on how they were to be played. The result of that meeting is why it was a 1 and done.

2) Posts such as "I hate the system" are difficult to address - it really helps if you can be specific - when i see that - i want to try to fix whatever it is i can if it is of course something I do have the ability to address. Things like - "the whistles they used weren't loud enough" - perfect - those things make my list.

Now -

Originally Posted by CanobieRampage

We won the game, and although the game was not technically over, while the players were being check one of our guys grabbed his barrel bag behind the deadbox and was pulled for being out of bounds. Our other two live players alive were eliminated resulting in no one being able to hang the flag. Kind of screwed us, there was no discussion by refs or at the meeting about out of bounds.

Help me understand this - you were upset about the barrel bag thing - it has been addressed (it is in the rules) then upset about the 2 live players being eliminated and having no-one alive to hang the flag - and felt like you were screwed. Then you say this in:

Originally Posted by CanobieRampage

A hit was found on one of them.

In response to this:

Originally Posted by NTran

Why were two live players eliminated?

So - my first impression is that you are upset at the refs for this? And may be other people's impression as well. Maybe I am mis-understanding? I point this out so that I can bring the valid parts of this to the refs - such as maybe we can remind teams when they take the field about what is out of bounds - however - i think this also points out that some of the calls you think are questionable / get you screwed - are not the fault of the refs at all. Please correct me on anything I may have interpreted wrong - but your teammate? (I think, right?) posts this:

Originally Posted by SLBalla860

The refs were a joke. I was the one that stepped out of bounds.
They don't know what the difference from bunker rub or a hit.
If we didn't get the stupid penalties we would have placed.

And again, would give one the impression that these things are all a result of ref screw ups - when I'm still a little confused as to just how exactly anything beside them maybe not specifying out of bounds? is a result of them screwing you.

I don't point these things out for any other reason than this. There are certain things that you as a team have the right to expect at events - from those of us who run them as well as those who ref them. But there are also some things that we / they have a right to expect of you who play - and one of those things is that you understand the rules. Stepping out of bounds (as acknowledged by the player) -will get you a penalty. Maybe the boundary wasn't clear - but leaving the dead box early can get you one as well - (again - acknowledged by the player). A hit found on a "live" player at the end of a game will also result in penalties being assessed. That is not the refs assessing stupid penalties - that is the refs doing what they are there to do - enforce the rules. My point - bad reffing is sometimes good reffing you just didn't understand.

Prizes - if you have questions about the system - please feel free to contact me @ TheNEPL@Gmail.com and I will not only help you understand it - but I can help you redeem the points if you would like to do that after this event.

Originally Posted by PlanetBozrah

DOWNS- We only had 2 small complaints.
* One was the Best Western in Waltham was very rude and gave us a hard time about the NEPL rate thats advertised on the website.

I also got a hard time. You can sidestep them in the future if it happens again, you can book directly through their website for the "online rate" which is the same as the NEPL rate (link on our site to their page will take you where you should go). I will be addressing this with them however. Thank you for mentioning it.

Originally Posted by TeamGrnGoat

downs
rankings of players (I applaud the NEPL for getting APPA but I think its still iffy)
5man having to wait for 7man to get parked and checked in then getting less time to walk the field because of it
5man field being different from the rotation from the week before
5man field not being completely mirrored (close but some of the tall cakes were off)
no round robin (i know its more paint but its more fair)
I was really frustrated for Invasion/Fotron as well they played hard all day and were smashing people and we beat them in one and done
I get the it costs extra paint but i would rather shoot more and know who is the better team and as youll read later if you want to make money dont play paintball

1) The player ranking system is simply a matter of accept and adapt. We can either keep fighting it - making it more and more difficult each year to understand and be non-cohesive - or we can have a year to fall in line. I think that after a few events -and players having mid season bumps applied - you will see the benefits of it. My opinion is that it is better for tournament paintball - and if I didn't think so - I wouldn't use it - and that being said - i also don't think that some of the anticipated concerns were as big as maybe we thought they might be? We can discuss further.

2) We staggered check in so that we could start the 7 man teams early (long day for them) as well as make parking faster / easier. Is a down to that less time in the morning for you to walk fields? Yeah I guess it might be - BUT i would have to ask if that is for you personally (you're the man in charge or if that is in fact something that was an issue for teams. (No really - I am wondering) Something to keep in mind: Event 1 is tough for the simple reason of - we have 450 players who need to get ID cards. Granted it was split between 2 days - but to be honest - Sunday was a lot slower than Saturday - and that was because NO ONE had receipts with them for their ID cards. I think you will see how the staggered check in for divisions is a plus at the next event.

3) Fields being different? Would like to know specifics so I can address thoroughly (different bunkers?) Did we address the non-mirrored thing with the staff or the refs?

4) The playoffs - again I addressed earlier. Captains voted on before they started. There are pro's / con's to both sides - as you pointed out - we discussed with the teams who were playing in them so that they could be the ones deciding - not teams it didn't affect. Maybe we can discuss more in the forums and go from there.

I seriously appreciate the input - so please keep discussing - this event was in some ways a departure from the events of the past and a big step forward - so input is truly appreciated.

Thank you all -
Lori

[Shecki]

The only thing I wouldn't mind seeing changed, is the way the playoffs are voted on...if that happens again in the future. I believe it needed to be a unanimous decision to move them to round robin. If this wasn't the case, we would have been playing round robin playoffs. Was a great day either way!

[vitosciali]

Originally Posted by Lori

4) The playoffs - again I addressed earlier. Captains voted on before they started. There are pro's / con's to both sides - as you pointed out - we discussed with the teams who were playing in them so that they could be the ones deciding - not teams it didn't affect. Maybe we can discuss more in the forums and go from there.

From what I understood, changing the format to a round-robin from the one game elimination for a tournament in progress required a unanimous vote. Although the vast majority was for the round-robin it wasn't unanimous. Hopefully, we can change this to always be a round-robin and hold this semi and final playoff format for the season with a 5-man captain vote. via email?

One suggestion for the chrono area on field one. It was very tight with on deck and double deck teams. Maybe on-deck teams can move to the side line pit area after they chrono?

Thanks NEPL for putting together a well run event. Paint was reasonably priced. The refs worked very hard and I never saw delay by them to run out into a paintball storm to do a paint check.

-Tony
NE Invasion

[Stealth47]

Sister teams throwing games for there own team so they can get into finals. Maybe next time we can not put them against each other?

[m_kenney]

Originally Posted by Stealth47

Sister teams throwing games for there own team so they can get into finals. Maybe next time we can not put them against each other?

Which sister teams were put together?? I know that in a round robin, that they have to play each other first, but I'm not sure about in prelims...

[Stealth47]

Im pretty sure it was identity but im not possitive. It was for 7man and they knocked our other squad out of finals because they threw the game for there own team to make it

[CanobieRampage]

Originally Posted by SLBalla860

The refs were a joke. I was the one that stepped out of bounds.
They don't know what the difference from bunker rub or a hit.
If we didn't get the stupid penalties we would have placed.

yo chill brah.

[abcito]

Originally Posted by Sean6942

I played Sat and Sun. Both days reffing was very good. I saw a lot of refs give freebies to pretty much every team out there. i.e. Telling them to line up correctly in the start box, making sure old hits were taken care of, etc...

Sean I was one of the refs on field 2 on Sunday. I'd like to explain the "freebies".

At one point in all of our playing/event experiences we were beginners...easily frazzled...nervous.... You forget a lot of simple things. Such as noted in your comment. I would like to think that as a player I would appreciate these reminders before the game event starts. No one wants to get pulled for an old hit or not having their barrels touching. It ruins the experience. I would like to think that it helps the players for the first event and sets the tone for the rest of the year. It saves on the negative feedback on reffing which no one likes to see. The NEPL hosts a variety of divisions to help players progress at all skill levels and I think that it's also part of the refs duties to help that progression.

[NTran]

When I asked "why were two live players eliminated" I am literally just wondering why. All the kid said was two live player were eliminated. He never gave a reason as to why.

[Stealth47]

Originally Posted by abcito

Sean I was one of the refs on field 2 on Sunday. I'd like to explain the "freebies".

At one point in all of our playing/event experiences we were beginners...easily frazzled...nervous.... You forget a lot of simple things. Such as noted in your comment. I would like to think that as a player I would appreciate these reminders before the game event starts. No one wants to get pulled for an old hit or not having their barrels touching. It ruins the experience. I would like to think that it helps the players for the first event and sets the tone for the rest of the year. It saves on the negative feedback on reffing which no one likes to see. The NEPL hosts a variety of divisions to help players progress at all skill levels and I think that it's also part of the refs duties to help that progression.

Exactly why i thanked all the refs that reffed our games. You guys were awesome, very unbiased, and pretty fair. Very down to earth, didnt have your heads up your a$$es. As far as 1 or 2 bad calls, they're just humans like us.

[TeeTwo]

Originally Posted by Stealth47

Exactly why i thanked all the refs that reffed our games. You guys were awesome, very unbiased, and pretty fair. Very down to earth, didnt have your heads up your a$$es. As far as 1 or 2 bad calls, they're just humans like us.

You (Dark Riders) were a stand up group of guys, I think you were one of the only teams that made the trip from NY for this event. I'm glad you had a good experience.

PS.... I think going forward the "sister" team issue will be corrected to resolve any issues in the future, I think having sister teams play eachother earlier in the day leaves less of a chance of doubt of results... That's just my 2 cents.

[monstabals]

[quote=Stealth47;66219114]Im pretty sure it was identity but im not possitive. It was for 7man and they knocked our other squad out of finals because they threw the game for there own team to make it[/QUOTE

How do you know that,thats not a cool statement.Skip is good ppl and plays his *** off every game.

[Stealth47]

[quote=monstabals;66220091]

Originally Posted by Stealth47

Im pretty sure it was identity but im not possitive. It was for 7man and they knocked our other squad out of finals because they threw the game for there own team to make it[/QUOTE

How do you know that,thats not a cool statement.Skip is good ppl and plays his *** off every game.

Well when you see there own team shooting blindly into the air and letting there other team, who needs a very high score to make finals, take them all out with no problem, theres little to doubt otherwise that the game was thrown. And like i said, im not positive that it was identity. But it was a franchise team playing eachother.

:EDIT:

9:00 Hurricanes vs New England Synergy
9:10 Identity Fyre vs Section 8
9:20 Mass Hysteria vs HOSTILE
9:30 Boston Armada vs LI Dark Riders
9:40 Identity-Creed vs Dark Riders
9:50 Capital Punishment vs Hurricanes
10:00 New England Synergy vs Section 8
10:10 Mass Hysteria vs Identity Fyre
10:20 HOSTILE vs Boston Armada
10:30 LI Dark Riders vs Dark Riders
10:40 Identity-Creed vs Capital Punishment
10:50 Mass Hysteria vs New England Synergy
11:00 Identity Fyre vs Hurricanes
11:10 Section 8 vs HOSTILE
11:20 Capital Punishment vs LI Dark Riders
11:30 Boston Armada vs Identity-Creed
11:40 Dark Riders vs Mass Hysteria
11:50 Hurricanes vs HOSTILE
12:00 Section 8 vs LI Dark Riders
12:10 New England Synergy vs Capital Punishment
12:20 Identity Fyre vs Boston Armada
12:30 Dark Riders vs Hurricanes
12:40 Section 8 vs Identity-Creed
12:50 LI Dark Riders vs New England Synergy
1:00 HOSTILE vs Capital Punishment
1:10 Boston Armada vs Mass Hysteria
1:20 Dark Riders vs Section 8
1:30 Hurricanes vs Identity-Creed
1:40 LI Dark Riders vs Identity Fyre
1:50 Capital Punishment vs Mass Hysteria
2:00 New England Synergy vs Boston Armada
2:10 HOSTILE vs Dark Riders
2:20 Identity-Creed vs Identity Fyre


And this is not just a team venting about not making finals. It was not my squad that got kicked off. And i know, and have seen, multiple people go up to anthony and say something about this after it happened.

[TeeTwo]

[quote=monstabals;66220091]

Originally Posted by Stealth47

Im pretty sure it was identity but im not possitive. It was for 7man and they knocked our other squad out of finals because they threw the game for there own team to make it[/QUOTE

How do you know that,thats not a cool statement.Skip is good ppl and plays his *** off every game.

I dont think it was an attack on any one player....

We got the same scruff when we (ARMADA) fielded 2 5man teams in 07 and 2 7man teams in 08.... I think scheduling sister team games earlier in the day leaves zero doubt that the results are legit.

I'm not saying any shenanigans went down, everyone is out there to win and play their hardest.... I think going forward this will make everyone happy.

No accusations will be made or taken either way.

.....I think we're forgetting: This is a FRANCHISE League, just ask Lori for a vote amongst the owners (we) the team owners can decide changes such as this.

ISSUE CLOSED. Let's keep ups/downs coming in.

[EWMpaintball]

Originally Posted by abcito

Sean I was one of the refs on field 2 on Sunday. I'd like to explain the "freebies".

At one point in all of our playing/event experiences we were beginners...easily frazzled...nervous.... You forget a lot of simple things. Such as noted in your comment. I would like to think that as a player I would appreciate these reminders before the game event starts. No one wants to get pulled for an old hit or not having their barrels touching. It ruins the experience. I would like to think that it helps the players for the first event and sets the tone for the rest of the year. It saves on the negative feedback on reffing which no one likes to see. The NEPL hosts a variety of divisions to help players progress at all skill levels and I think that it's also part of the refs duties to help that progression.

He meant that in a positive light... freebies are good thing for refs to do if it does not affect the integrity of the game.... I look at it as great customer service.

[Stealth47]

Originally Posted by EWMpaintball

He meant that in a positive light... freebies are good thing for refs to do if it does not affect the integrity of the game.... I look at it as great customer service.

Agreed, as long as theyre not altering anything as the game is going on. Which didnt happen.