In other words, just say directly that you are conservatives and don't like new things, and there's no need to come up with other excuses.
I'm tired of repeating myself. The add-on should be publicly available. That is, everyone should be able to play it, not just those who have been given a link to it online. In other words, as Undergrounder put it, we need "more user-friendly entry conditions." If you want more people to play Equi, don't force them to play it. That's the paradoxical logic. Tournaments will attract newcomers, and there's a chance they'll switch to Equi over time. If you don't let them in, they'll never play it.