What is March Madness?!?!

March 15, 2017 - 2 months ago

Got American friends?  Or been to a US college town during March?  Ever heard “March Madness” or “Final Four” and been confused or couldn’t understand why your American co-worker suddenly jumped out of his/her seat and starting yelling profanity while streaming sports while he/she is supposed to be working?

Or maybe your just a sports FANATIC and already know what I’m talking about?!?!

Bear with me, and I’ll enlighten you.  “March Madness” is the street name for the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament – the US National Championship Tournamnet for College Basketball.

So what?!  What’s all the hype about?!

• 68-teams → big schools, little schools, private & public schools
• stunning upsets
• endless feel-good stories
• team bonding & crowd buy-in
• emotions – smiles, tears, laughter, anger, disappointment and joy…

This tournament somehow captures the attention of American sports fans worldwide for almost a month.  There are office bets, family rivalries based on school alma-maters and sudden engagement from those who know nothing about sports purely to have something to compete about through their brackets!

As an Urban Rec Member here in Sydney, why do I care?

Well...besides the FUN that can result from randomly picking teams to win, and a little friendly competition amongst your teammates and other Urban Rec leagues, you have the change to WIN A FREE INDIVIDUAL REGISTRATION FOR ANY AUTUMN URBAN REC LEAGUE!

AND….come NRL and AFL finals, we’ll be opening up a bracket challenge too!  So use this as a good test trial!

Sweet!  I want a change to win a FREE INDY REGO!  How do I sign up?

Joining is simple!  CREATE YOUR BRACKET HERE! Our bracket group is UrbanRec AUS!  Let’s strive to give Australia a little representation!  

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Playing Sports As An Adult

February 28, 2017 - 3 months ago

Source: Partselect.com

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Don't Be A Dickhead

January 9, 2017 - 4 months ago

1. If your team are winning the game by a lot, this is NOT the time to pull out your hero moves.
2. If you don’t shake the oppositions had at the end of the game, you’re a dickhead.
3. Talking back, or questioning our Event Hosts during the game play…is a dickhead move.
4. If you see a beginner player, but use this as a chance to show off your mediocre skills, you’re in dickhead territory.
5. If you hurt someone, even if it was by accident, do as your Mum taught you, say Sorry.  Don’t be a dickhead.

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Spring Feedback Survey

December 6, 2016 - 5 months ago

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Season Ender Tournaments FAQ's

November 3, 2016 - 7 months ago

Our team are playing Dodgeball, can we register to play Soccer too? 

You sure can. Any team can play in any league, so long as they register. 

Why do we need to register, can’t we just turn up? 

No, you need to register, and make sure at least the minimum amount of players can make it to the Tournament. We want to make sure the experience is good for eeveryone, so that means commiting to come! Team’s won’t be added to the Tournament schedule, unless they register. 

What are the prizes? 

If you played in the league, you could be getting your share of The Champions T-shirts, The ‘Chump’ions Prize, and Fun Points voucher. We will also be giving out prizes for the Tournament winners. 

What do I need to bring/wear?

Just bring what you would normally wear on a league night, and your usual team colour. Come ready for fun and socialising, so bring a few drinks as well for the spectating moments.

Can I bring a friend to watch or play?

Yes, specatators are more than welcome, bring them along. If they want to play, they will need to create an account, and become an Urban Rec member for free before they play! This is a great time to bring any friends or work mates who need some convincing before they sign up next season. 

Why is there no Tournament for my sport? 

Not every league will have a Tournament, so if you don’t see one for your league, make sure you register for another location or sport. 

How will we get our normal season prizes if we don’t come to a Tournament? 

If you don’t come, you will need to get your Captain or a nominated person to stop by our office in Marrickville to collect the prizes for the team. 

Only half my team can make the Tournament, but I really want to join in, can I register as an individual? 

Yes, like any normal league, we will be offering individual registration. But if we don’t get enough people in the team, you won’t be able to play. Best option is to get your team to register. You can use subs!

Me and my team are planning to register and play in the upcoming season, can we join the tournament?

Yep, all Urban Rec members are welcome to join. All you need is your ‘fun-first’ attitude. 

What if only 2 or 3 teams register? 

We need a minimum of 5 teams to make a fun Tournament. If we don’t get enough players, we will need to cancel :(

What if it rains on Tournament Day? 

If the fields can be eeffected by rain, we will likely cancel, and reschedule for the net week. We will be in contact to make sure all teams can play that following week. 

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Announcing our new location for Flag Gridiron, Dropkick Touch Footy & Outdoor Soccer

September 19, 2016 - 8 months ago

For those teams, and individuals who don’t already know, we have decided to (last minute) relocate our upcoming Inner West Spring leagues to the state of the art astro pitch in Fraser Park, Marrickville. This means, games will no longer be held at Camperdown Oval. 

Why did we do this?

• Fraser Park is brand new astro-turf pitch which means drainage, and no rain-outs! (Remember winter.. yeh?)
• During the summer months the pitch will be lucious, green, and in tact, yes you can wear regular footy boots.
• The fields are accesible via Sydenham station which has tons of transport from the city. The fields about a 2 min walk from the station. 
• There is ample, free parking onsite. 

Leagues kicking off next week

• Flag Gridiron – still spaces for individuals (Thursday nights)
• Dropkick Touch Footy – still spaces for individuals (Thursday nights)
• Yes – if your team wants a double header you can play in both leagues!

NEW Outdoor Soccer League

For the first time ever, we will be able to accept additional Thu night teams. Our Thursday night Caged Soccer comp sells out super quick, so now we have an outdoor comp for some of the teams who didn’t get into the Caged Soccer comp.  Woohoo. You can register for outdoor Soccer, (not caged)… here. Starts Oct 13. 

If you have any questions about this comp.. . get in contact ASAP, as we are starting next week, and we’re pretty close to sold out. 

Go you good things. 

P.s. Federal Park Wed night Glebe league will remain the same. 

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Flag Gridiron Tourney - August 23rd

August 8, 2016 - 9 months ago

To end the Winter Season, and also announce two new locations for the Spring, we have decided to host a Flag Tournament to celebrate. 

Happening on Tuesday night at ES Marks Field, this is a great chance to play in a state of the art stadium against new teams, and old teams across Sydney. 

We have space for 8 teams, with half already sold out. Make sure you grab your mates, and register for this FREE event for all Urban Rec members. 

• Where: ES Marks Field, Kensington
• When: Tuesday 23 Aug, 2016
• Who: All Urban Rec Members

Here is the link to register your team

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Social Events & Ramblings

June 7, 2016 - one year ago

I continue to be endeared, and horrified by Sydney. I have lived here practically my whole life, but as a small country town gal, and a traveller… I seem to always have a bone to pick with Sydney. 

We are utterly SPOILED for choice. It’s a well known fact that Sydney has event fatigue. This is probably the best and worst thing about living here. There is so much to do. But in a city full of strangers, there is often no one to do it with. 

I started Urban Rec because I wanted to bring that Canadian charm down under. I wanted to see Sydney get really good at making friends. I am deeply passionate about this. Everytime I see a facebook photo with Urban Rec members hanging out, a proud tear falls down my cheek. “it’s working”. 

This is not to say I am Sydney’s socialite. I’m the opposite. I often overshare info in the first 5 seconds of meeting people, and I’m a moody bi*ch.  But I found playing social sports was my golden ticket. I got 10 whole weeks for people to grow to love me. 

This year marks the 5th year of Urban Rec running in Sydney. I have done alot on that time, and she’s a happy beast that purrs along, gives me plenty of joy, and hopefully you all feel that too. Do you feel the joy of the purring beast?! But as things are going well, I have decided to refocus on why I started this thing. Why I even bothered in the first place. 

I am going to be rolling out a few social events. Not too many, I know you all have even fatigue. None of them will be to make money or grow the business. They are just because I want to make sure Urban Rec is still doing what it promised. Getting you all together, putting you out of your comfort zone, and talking to your new best friends that you haven’t met yet. 

I created a Facebook Group because I don’t want to spam your asses. But come on over and join in. The plan is that you can all create your own event’s too. We once had a team down at Touch Footy put on a full BBQ for all the teams. I dig that shit. 

So even though you are SPOILED for choice. Come hang out with us, lets make this fun. Let’s meet a stranger, and make their night. Let’s be Sydney-siders who bother to look up from their phones and across the table. 

...and please, if you are having fun with your newly found friends. SHOW ME PHOTOS. tag #urbanrecaus it will make me the happiest fun facilitator in the entire world. 

Mads x

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Season Ender Tournaments

March 15, 2016 - one year ago

This season we are excited to be offering a change to how we host our Season Enders. To give everyone the opportunity to play other Urban Rec teams, and sports, we are offering three Tournaments, for all Urban Rec members to play in for FREE!

Tournament Dates & Locations

• Dodgeball Marrickville 13 April
• Touch Glebe 20 April
• Caged Soccer Marrickville 24 April

FAQ’s

Our team are playing Dodgeball, can we register to play Soccer too? You sure can. Any team can play in any league, so long as they register. 

Why do we need to register, can’t we just turn up? No, you need to register, and make sure at least the minimum amount of players can make it to the Tournament. We want to make sure the experience is good for eeveryone, so that means commiting to come! Team’s won’t be added to the schedule, unless they register. 

What are the prizes? We will be handing out some vouchers for food, and drink,  trophies, as well as some Urban Rec merch. It’s not about the prizes (well, thats not the reason) it’s about meeting some new teams, testing your skills, havig a good time, ya know!

Why is there no Tournament for Flag/Multisport/Netball? This season we chose our most popular sports to host Tournaments for. We will definitley be holding Tournaments for other sports soon!

How will we get our normal season prizes if we don’t come to a Tournament? Prizes will be handed out on the last night of competition at each league. They will also be handed out at the season Ender Party. 

Only half my team can make the Tournament, but I really want to join in, can I register as an individual? Yes, like any normal league, we will be offering individual registration. But if we don’t get enough people in the team, youwon’t be able to play. Best option is to get your team to register. You can use subs!

Me and my team are planning to register and play in the upcoming season, can we join the tournament? Yep, all Urbaan Rec members are welcome to join. All you need is your ‘fun-first’ attitude. 

What if only 2 or 3 teams register? We need a minimum of 4 teams to make a fun Tournament. If we don’t get enough players, we will need to cancel :(

What if it rains on Tournament Day? If the fields can be eeffected by rain, we will likely cancel, and reschedule for the net week. We will be in contact to make sure all teams can play that following week. 

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Why Urban Rec Staff Are The Best

March 1, 2016 - one year ago

You have signed up to play a social sport. You think. Did that... work? Wait. How do I pay? You need to fill out tons of forms, and transfer the money by 3 weeks prior, and then you have no idea what time your game is, and you have no idea where to go. 

You get there, and no one is there to greet you, Are you in the right place? Who is in charge here? 

Finally you are in the swing of things, but you rock up on week 3, and no one is there but you and your team. What happened? You registered for a badly organised league. Shame on you. 

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At Urban Rec, we do things differently.

You pay your rego fee's, and we do the rest. Part of what makes that easy for us, is the staff we have dedicated to you, your team, and the league. 

In every league you get one league manager, and one event host. You will know them by name, or you will see their faces on our website here, and here. So, what do they do?

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League Managers

REGISTRATION: They help you throughout the registration process, ensure you have all the things you need to start in the league, and all your team mates have done their paperwork, you don't have to do the chasing, we will!

THERE TO HELP YOU SETTLE IN: They are always there for Season Opener night to help you settle in, especially if you are meeting your team for the first time!

RAIN OUT'S  OR SCHEDULE CHANGES: They ensure you are aware of any game changes or rain out's as early as possible by calling each Captain, and sending out texts to the entire league, so you don't waste your time getting to the venue for a cancelled game.

GAME CHANGES: They cater to any game change requests. We hate forfeits, and people missing out, so we make every effort we can to facilitate a game change, so you can play, and your opposition can too.

DISCOUNTS ON FOOD & DRINK: They organise specials for you at our Clubhouses for post-game hangs. We negotiate deals on food & drink, and organise fun events for the league to get involved in.

MAINTAIN A STANDINGS TABLE: They update your standings table, and results weekly, so you always know where your position is on the ladder.

MAINTAIN EQUIPMENT: They ensure all of your equipment is up to date, in good working order… say no to saggy balls, and sad bibs.

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Event Hosts

KNOWLEGE OF RULES: They ensure  all teams know the rules well, they also teach the rules to all players on the season opener night

SET UP EQUIPMENT: They set up, and pack up the equipment for you each night. Feel free to help, but generally… we got this.

STAY ON TIME: They keep games on time! (crazy right!)

KEEP AN EYE ON THE GAME: They keep score (in most leagues), and offer calls where possible when teams cannot make their own calls during the game

COACHING: They coach any teams or individuals who would like some extra tips or hints!

MUSIC: They are in charge of the playlist! (yes you can make requests)

SEASON ENDER PARTIES: They organise and host the season ender parties and Tournaments. The last week is always the most fun!

SOCIALISING: They quite often would love to join you for a beverage post game, so invite them along, and make them feel like part of your team.

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