TSVL Volleyball Intermediate Division Open Letter

As many know, I play volleyball weekly with a group of friends in the TSVL Volleyball league in Toronto. Our team, Freeballin' (every name is unofficially required to be a double entendre) was not able to register this season. I see this as a flaw in the registration process, it is time stamp based and many teams didn't make the cut. Here is my open letter to the board members, and the chain of communication.

Email to the Board - January 5, 2026

Subject: Feedback from a longtime ( very disappointed ) ID player

TSVL Board,

I would like to voice some concerns. I would prefer to not be posting this open letter to Facebook but I think if many are feeling as deflated as I am, it may be worth starting up a discussion. I have cc’d my captain also.

I am on a team, Freeballin who has consistently played for many years. We have maintained 5+ consistent players and now because of this horrendous booking system our entire team is now out of the league and out of a sport. We aren’t a patchwork team. We have been consistent, had a great attitude and always had a lot of fun. We have never stacked our team or abused the sub process. I don’t think we have ever even defaulted. 

And now it’s over. No regard for commitment to the league, no regard for time spent. It is sad and very disappointing. For a league to allow players who have years of membership on a team to be outed by those who are new is absolutely ridiculous.

What I do see is that you are constantly recruiting to bring new players in, and/or bringing players up from rec which boggles my mind because you can’t house even the players you do have in ID. I understand having the special teams but again they push out those like us with a history.

ID is always at capacity but it seems the board is okay displacing those like us who have committed very many years to TSVL. And honestly, more weight is given to registration seconds than is to commitment and loyalty. Returning player status means pretty much nothing because a team can split and double and because they clicked faster they win.

ID is a good spot for us. We are in the middle of the league and we are not the youngest team so comp isn’t an option we would prefer. We would have attempted comp as a last resort if we could have registered, but ID is AFTER comp in the registration days.

The registration process was already being damaged over two years ago when spring league was added and we were told that no returning status was to be taken into account, but yet the board changed that when it came to fall league. We made it in, but I always felt that just screwed the system over more.

Another point, how many players are playing both Comp and ID? How many of those players who are playing two leagues are taking spots away from those who only want to play ID? Our team has no comp players. Some play rec but as you know, rec is a very different play style that doesn’t appeal to everyone.

Some other questions:

1) Do we lose returning status for fall?

2) Do we get 50% of our membership back?

We are friends. We are a team. And now we have been ousted and I’m really disappointed in this process. I was disappointed with it even when we made it in past seasons because TSVL boasts of inclusivity but yet can’t include those that have committed many years to the league.

I will be awaiting a response as I would like to feel heard. As of right now, as a longtime member of TSVL, I feel hurt, disappointed and quite frankly sad that I’m no longer able to play volleyball in a league I did really enjoy with my good friends. 

Steven

Response by the Intermediate Coordinator - January 7, 2026

Good morning, Steven,

Thank you for your email and I hope you are well.

I hear you and I completely understand the sentiment. We aspire and try to build a community that fosters inclusion, diversity, and equity. We try to find the balance to meet those. I wanted to let you know that we definitely appreciate and value our long-time members and we’d love for them to continue to build the community they’ve built with their peers and teams.

I think we can all agree the board is trying their best to accommodate as many teams as possible while maintaining inclusivity and equity. I will agree that the current system has so much potential for improvement. I can assure you that policies are being reviewed as often as possible to ensure the league keeps up with the membership. With that being said, it’s somewhat easier to find rooms for improvement, but the solutioning part takes a bit of time. It’s a process and especially that it’s a volunteer-run board, it delays solutioning.

I want to let you know though that I, along with the rest of the board, are committed to finding ways to update or change policies based on feedback. I appreciate feedback like this as this is how we improve not just a league but as a community. Right now, the policies are in place. I can’t make the changes overnigh

t, but I will forward it to the board so we can all review and find a solution.Regarding your additional questions, all players that don't get in this Winter 2026 season will have a returning player status for next season. For the membership fee refund, as the membership fee offers additional member benefits like voting in the AGM among others and if you decide to play in Spring and get in, I don't think it warrants a refund but I will have Finance (CJ) speak to that.

I appreciate you sending this email. Please know that your voices are heard. In the meantime, if you have any ideas in process improvement, please don't hesitate to send it over.

Happy New Year!

Response to Board via reply to ID Coordinator - January 7, 2026

Ray,

Thank you for taking the time to respond. 

I know change can be slow but I have seen that the current system has continued to dismantle teams like freeballin, slowly pushing out long time members over years. Your response vaguely addresses that but doesn’t by any means provide a solution or appease my worry that this league doesn’t value seniority, for lack of a better word. This has been an issue for years and nothing has been addressed about the stressful timestamp registration system. 

Have things like restricting dual division players been looked at? How many players are in comp and also in ID? Players who only play ID Should have priority. I would appreciated some numbers here. I don’t want to be misinformed if this is not something I should be concerned about.

Teams like ours should have priority over teams that are newly formed. This of course is my opinion but is fair to those who have committed years to the league.

 If we are going to receive returning player status I would like some sort of written confirmation.  And Spring is not considered a full season, it’s short, no playoffs, so I want confirmation that we can have returning status for Fall. Spring season is a part of the reason teams were able to get in and compounded this issue flooding the league with new players. I really felt betrayed by the board when they changed their stance on that first spring league returning status. 

Regarding the membership fee, if the fee is for member benefits like voting, but we are unable to actually participate in the league we have this right to vote for, the value proposition is lost for all of us. I look forward to hearing CJ’s perspective on a partial credit or refund. 

Once again, I’m looking forward to a response. To be blunt, I understand the generic board response but I’m wanting to create change, looking out for myself and other players that are no longer able to play. It’s a very shitty position to be in when you have been playing a sport you love with people you love and that is now taken away from us because of a board that I still feel is not looking out for long time players and league commitment. 

I know this board is a volunteer position, and I appreciate that, but I won’t suppress my thoughts and concerns. I will continue to put pressure on the board to actually make change, all we want to do is play and it’s the decisions the board has made in the past that is making it very hard to do so. 

Again, your time is appreciated. I’ll be sharing your response with my fellow team mates and others I have been chatting with about this situation. 

Steven