The Tamaqua Area School Board on Tuesday shot down a policy that would allow its sports teams to hold practice and games on Sunday.

PIAA rules allow Sunday practice and games, but Tamaqua Area’s policy only allows for contests or games on Sunday with approval from the superintendent.

The majority of the district’s coaches favored Sunday practices in cases of schedule changes due to inclement weather or poor field conditions, rare Monday games and playoff considerations.

Changes to Policy 123, which deals with Interscholastic Athletics, were approved on first reading last month, but a second reading failed to make it out of committee Tuesday night.

Director Mark Rother, who favored the policy change to allow the district to remain competitive regionally, asked board members to consider passage.

“If you vote yes, both sides of the argument get what they want. Those that don’t want to participate do not have to participate, with no repercussions and those who want to can,” he said during the committee meeting.

“If you vote no, you just took away the opportunity for those that want to,” Rother said.

After the committee failed to advance policy, Rother called for a vote on the policy during the regular meeting under old business.

The board reviewed the highlights of the revised policy, which mirrors the board’s policy regarding games on Sunday which must have approval from the superintendent.

Other points on Sunday practices, in addition to superintendent approval, were they’d be after 2 p.m., nonmandatory and no repercussions to students not participating.

Board members also asked if they could try the revised policy for a year, or add a sunset date to the policy if approved, with the old policy coming back if not codified the following year.

Board President Larry Wittig, who has been against allowing Sunday practices, said he had no appetite for changing a policy and then debating it again in a year.

The board ultimately voted down the policy.