Nottinghamshire Squash

NOTTINGHAMSHIRE SQUASH LEAGUE

LEAGUE RULES (revised September 2011)

1. The League is open to clubs in Nottinghamshire and the surrounding locality. ALL member clubs MUST be affiliated to the ENGLAND SQUASH and all players must be Player Members of ENGLAND SQUASH

2. The League shall be made up of not more than TEN teams in each division. The number of divisions shall be determined at the Annual General Meeting.

3. There shall be an entry fee per team, fixed at the Annual General Meeting, and payable by 30th September.

An additional refundable deposit of £50 per Club shall be payable at the same time. This deposit shall be forfeit by any Club or individual team in the event of any contravention during each season of the following requirements:-

(i) attendance of Club representative at the Annual General Meeting
(ii) full completion of season's fixtures
(iii) receipt of League entry fees by the due date
(iv) receipt of Club seeding lists by the due date(s)

4. Clubs may amend their fixture lists up to the 31st October at the discretion of the League sub-committee and opposing Clubs. There shall be no re-arrangement of fixtures after 31st October.
5. A Club must submit its seeding list to the League Sub-Committee PRIOR to the first match played by ANY of that Club’s teams in the League AND NO LATER THAN the first Monday in October.

6. MENS and LADIES PREMIER DIVISION. Only two teams from each Club shall be allowed to compete in the Premier Division, provided that the conditions of Rules 20 and 22 below are complied with.

If the champions of Division One are not eligible for promotion to the Premier Division then a challenge shall be allowed by the highest placed eligible team in Division One, providing that team is not due to be relegated, against the lowest placed Club in the Premier Division. The match to be played at the convenience of the Premier Division Club. To play in this challenge match ALL players must have played in at least 50% of the matches played by their Club team in the Notts. League during that season.

7. Except where otherwise provided for in these rules, the rules of England Squash and Racketball shall apply.
ELIGIBILITY AND SEEDING OF PLAYERS

8. Players must be bona fide members of the Club they are representing at the time of the match.

9.  No player shall represent more than one club during the season, however a Lady Player may represent a men’s team at one club and a Ladies team at another.

10. A player shall not play a total of more than 22 league matches in the current season irrespective of the division.

11. A team including an ineligible player(s) shall forfeit the match and TWENTY points shall be awarded to the opposing team.

12. No player for a club first team relegated from any division may play for a different club in a higher division the following season without the consent of the League Sub-Committee.

13. Teams shall consist of FIVE players.

14. Teams unable to field a full side must forfeit the lowest rubber(s). It is ESSENTIAL that Premier Division teams field a full quota of FIVE players. Premier Division teams who fail to field five players for a match shall have five points deducted.

15. The seeding list should reflect those members of each Club willing to play in the League

16. All players MUST be seeded in STRICT ORDER OF MERIT according to ability.
The League sub-committee reserve the right to amend a club’s seeding list at any time if they see fit.

17. A Club with ONE team must seed a minimum of TEN players; a Club with TWO teams must seed a minimum of FIFTEEN players; a Club with THREE teams must seed a minimum of TWENTY players; and so on according to the total number of teams entered in the League.

18. Players seeded 1 to 5 should constitute a Club's FIRST TEAM. Players seeded 6 to 10 should constitute a Club's SECOND TEAM. Players seeded 11 to 15 should constitute a Club's THIRD TEAM; and so on throughout the seeding list and all teams entered in the League.

19. A player shall not play LOWER than the place in which (s)he is seeded, but MAY PLAY HIGHER if player(s) above are not available (subject to the special conditions for Clubs with two teams in the Premier Division, see Rule 20 below).

20. If a Club has two teams in the Premier Division, all players must be seeded in STRICT ORDER OF MERIT according to ability. The FIRST team must NOT call upon players in the SECOND team in the event of non-availability of FIRST team players, but must utilise players constituting the Club’s THIRD team and below. The SECOND team may call upon players in the THIRD team and below in the event of non-availability of SECOND team players.

21. Once a player has played FIVE times for a team then (s)he MAY NOT play for a LOWER team that season, remembering rule 10 also applies.

22. A Club may re-seed at 1st January. Notice of re-seeding MUST be received by the League Sub-Committee PRIOR to this date by return of a revised seeding list or the seeding list marked "No change" if appropriate.

If a Club has two teams in the Premier Division, re-seeding at 1st January of the FIRST and SECOND team players may only take place within their respective teams. FIRST team players MUST NOT be re-seeded into the SECOND team and vice-versa. Players from the THIRD team and below may be re-seeded into either the FIRST or the SECOND team.

23. Any player in a TEAM POSITION on a Club's seeding list who has not played a minimum of THREE matches prior to the 1st January re-seeding date shall be REMOVED from that seeding list for the REMAINDER of the season, other than in Premier competitions and Ladies leagues where a player is required to play only once.

24. For NON-PREMIER DIVISION teams, no new player(s) may be introduced onto a Club's seeding list after 31st January.

PREMIER DIVISION teams may not introduce any new player(s) after 31st October.

For all teams, on introduction of any new player(s), existing players MUST REMAIN in their ORIGINAL SEQUENCE and PRIOR PERMISSION must be obtained from the League Sub-Committee.



25. Every Club must have its seeding list on display.

PLAYING OF MATCHES

26. Each team shall play two matches, one at home and one away, against each other team in the division and shall score FIVE points for each MATCH won and ONE point for each individual GAME won (each individual tie shall be the best of five games).

27. Unless MUTUALLY AGREED BEFOREHAND, all matches will be played in the order 5,4,3,2,1. The numbers 4 and 5 of BOTH TEAMS must be available to commence within TEN minutes of the advertised starting time of the match and the numbers 3,2 and 1 MUST be available to play IMMEDIATELY following the first match to finish.

28. The HOME team is responsible for making all arrangements for the match, including provision of courts and balls, confirmation of matches and provision of markers and referees.

Premier Division Clubs MUST provide TWO courts for matches.

29. The nominated week for the playing of a particular match may be re-arranged PRIOR TO 31^st October if BOTH Clubs are in agreement. After this date re-arrangement of matches will only be allowed in EXCEPTIONAL CIRCUMSTANCES and by the MUTUAL CONSENT of BOTH Clubs, irrespective of the length of notice given. If any match is conceded or cancelled at short notice the offending away team may be liable to reimburse the home team for any reasonable expenditure incurred with regard to court fees and/or meals.

30. The day of the match within the nominated week for the match, and the designated home club, shall be arranged between the Clubs concerned. Home Clubs shall be responsible for fixing the starting time of matches with their opponents.

31. PREMIER DIVISION matches shall be arranged by the League Sub-Committee and there shall be no cancellation or re-arrangement allowed. Premier Division matches will commence at 7.30pm prompt.

32. The Home Team Captain must report the match result BY EMAIL to the League Sub-Committee’s designated representative WITHIN 72 HOURS of the match being played. Email to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

33. ALL LEAGUE MATCHES must be completed and MATCH RESULT RECEIVED by the League Sub-Committee by 30th April. Failure to comply with this rule will result in unreported or un-played matches being deemed void.

34. The overall League positions shall be determined by the total number of points scored. Where teams have an equal number of points and the position affects either the winning of the division, or promotion or relegation between divisions, then the positions shall be determined by the number of games won.

35. Where a walkover is conceded TWENTY points shall be awarded to the team claiming the walkover. Any team not fulfilling a fixture shall have FIVE points deducted. Any team conceding more than one walkover in a season shall have its results expunged.

36. All matches shall be marked and refereed wherever possible.

37. In the event of any doubt or dispute as to the interpretation of these rules, the matter shall be referred, in writing, to the League Sub-Committee.

38. If the League Sub-Committee shall be of the opinion that there has been a breach by any Club of either the letter or the spirit of any of the above rules, they may take such action (including the award of the match to the Club not in default, the deduction of points or the replay of the match) as they think fit.

39. If the League Sub-Committee shall be of the opinion that there has been a breach by any person involved in a Nottinghamshire Squash Rackets Event, of either the letter or the spirit of the adopted Code of Conduct of the League, they may take such action as is outlined in the Grievance Procedure and Guidelines on Punishments adopted by the League.

40. There will be no 'double header' games allowed except for when matches coincide with a County Cup Match, Both teams must agree it is a double header otherwise separate matches are to be played.

41 .Scoring rules: PAR 11 for Men’s Premier and English, Hand in Hand out for all other leagues.

42. In all disputes the decision of the Competition Sub-Committee shall be final and binding.

 

RULES FOR THE COUNTY CUP COMPETITION

1. The County Cup Competition is open to all clubs playing in the Nottingham Leagues. There will be both a Men’s and Ladies Competition. Scoring for all matches will be English, Hand in Hand out scoring, unless both teams agree to PAR 11 being used.

2. All team members must be eligible to play for their club in the Nottinghamshire Squash League.

3. Teams must play in accordance with the seeding list submitted to the Nottinghamshire Squash League.

4. All team members must have played in a minimum of five matches played by their respective club team in the Nottinghamshire Squash League to be eligible to play in the semi-final and final stages of the Competition.(The requirement for Ladies competitions is to have played once) Once a player has played in a higher competition twice ,they are cup tied to that competition.

5. There will be no entry fee payable. Eligible clubs will be entered automatically into the Men’s and Ladies Competitions. Trophies will be presented to all finalists.

6. Results to be emailed to the league secretary within 48hours of completion of the match. This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

7. Closing dates for rounds and nominated home teams shall be notified to all clubs competing. If clubs cannot agree on a date to play the match then the closing date of the round shall be deemed to be the date of the match.

8. Any team playing an ineligible player shall be disqualified from the Competition, as will any club not represented by a full complement of five players.

9. Except where covered above, the rules of the Nottinghamshire Squash League and the SRA shall apply. In all disputes the decision of the Competition Sub-Committee shall be final and binding.