1

ELIGIBILTY

1.1

All participating clubs shall have paid their annual Team Fees to West Squash.

1.2

All participating clubs shall be affiliated to Scottish Squash Ltd.

2

DEFINITIONS

2.1

A match is a contest between two club teams.

2.2

A tie is the contest between two players and shall be the best of five games.

3

TEAM CONDITIONS

3.1

Teams in all Gents (Open) & Ladies League Divisions shall comprise five players.

3.2

All shall be fully paid up bona fide members of the club which they represent.

3.3

3.3.1

The following rule applies to only the Open League Division One and the Ladies League Division One: Players who have not represented their club in the West Leagues in a minimum of 3 matches in the first half of the season are ineligible to represent the club in any second half matches. See Appendix 1 for league penalties.

Extenuating circumstances (e.g. sickness, injury, relocation etc) may apply to rule 3.3 and should be communicated to the league secretary before the commencement of the second half. If the League Secretary deems the appeal valid, then that player may be granted permission to represent their club in the second half.

4

PLAYER CONDITIONS

4.1

No player shall represent more than one club in any one season. If a player wishes to change clubs due to exceptional circumstances, they may apply for permission to do so from the West committee. This must be sought in advance of the change of club happening and cannot be sought retrospectively. See Appendix 1 for League penalties.

4.2

Where clubs have more than one team, a player may represent only one team on any match night.

4.2.1

This also applies where a match night has been re-arranged – players nominated for the re-arranged match must not have played for another team on the original match night. Any player found in contravention to this rule will be deemed ‘ineligible’ and rule 6 ‘incomplete teams’ will apply.

4.2.2

Clubs may be asked to name the team who would have played in a postponed fixture to validate a lower team’s line-up in this instance.

4.2.3

The above also applies where a higher team has no fixture. Players must not move down to strengthen the team below.

5

TEAM ORDER

5.1

5.2

Team order shall be that of ability.

Ideally, all ties shall be played in reverse order of ability (5,4,3,2,1) unless mutually agreed by both team captains. Practically however, it is recognised that the playing order may be dictated by player availability.

5.3

5.3.1

Clubs with more than one team must play their teams in descending order of ability from their first team to the last.

Clubs with multiple teams in the leagues must move players up to field complete teams. If this is not followed, then lower teams will be unfairly strengthened. In this event, the League Secretary will apply penalties as per appendix 1, unless exceptional circumstances can be clearly demonstrated and justified.

5.3.2

Clubs with two teams in the same division may, however, elect to play the two teams split in any way they choose provided that within each team, players play in order of ability and the overall order of ability as defined in the preceding paragraph is adhered to.

5.3.2.1

Under this system, no player may play for the other team in this division.

5.3.2.2

If this system is adopted, the League Secretary must be informed prior to the start of the season.

6

INCOMPLETE TEAMS

6.1

6.2

If a team arrives and declares that one (or more) of their team will not be coming PRIOR to the match starting, the team order must be such that the lowest placed tie(s) is/are conceded. For example, if a team turns up with only three players, then ties four and five shall be conceded 3 - 0. Rule 5.4.1 may be deemed to apply in this instance.

If a player cancels or fails to arrive AFTER the match has begun, then the offending player will concede their tie 3-0 as a walkover, AND all ties below this player that have already been played will be deemed to be lost 3 – 0 as walkovers, regardless of the actual result. All ties above the absent player shall be played as normal.

7

SCORING

7.1

Ties will be played according to the current World Squash Federation rules.

7.2

Division 1 men’s matches will be played to PAR11 (point a rally to 11). Where the score reaches 10-10, player must win by 2 clear points.

7.2.1

Divisions 2 – 6, and Ladies Leagues will be played to PAR 15 scoring. Where the score reaches 14-14, player must win by 2 clear points.

7.3

Every game won will score one point for the team.

7.3.1

A bonus of three points will be awarded to the team winning most ties.

7.4

The league will be decided on total points scored. In the event of a tie for relegation or promotion, positions will be decided by: (a) Head to head results between the teams. (b) Fewest points against. (c) Number of matches won. (d) Play-off as specified by the committee.

8

WALKOVERS

8.1

Eighteen points will be awarded for a walkover. Results should be entered online as 3 – 0 walkovers, in accordance with rule 13.1.1. Any dispute over a walkover must be communicated in writing to the League Secretary within seven days of the score being entered. The team conceding the walkover will have eighteen points deducted from their points total.

8.2

8.2.1

Should a team have two walkovers against it, suspension from the league will follow, except in exceptional circumstances.

If a team is suspended, all previously played matches will be void and all scores will be removed from the league reckoning.

9

MATCHES

9.1

Open League matches will be played on Wednesdays and will commence at 6:45 pm, unless agreed prior to the season starting with the League Secretary (see rule 9.3)

9.2

Ladies League matches will be played on Mondays and will commence at 6:45 pm, unless agreed prior to the season starting with the League Secretary (See rule 9.3)

9.3

9.3.1

9.3.2

9.3.3

Unless agreed by both team captains, the match must be played at the correct venue and on the scheduled day.

Should a captain wish to postpone a match, explanation should be given to and permission must be sought from the opposing team captain prior to the match.

There is no obligation to accommodate clubs having difficulty in raising a team for a match.

If both teams agree, the team seeking postponement should notify the League Secretary prior to the match.

9.4

9.4.1

9.4.2

Each team should make every effort to have at least three players present at the designated match start time of 6:45 pm. However, it is expected that teams should use common sense in situations where opposing teams are late, as there can be valid reasons why teams may be held up.

In the instance of a team being late it is expected that the team captain of the team which is held up should make every effort to get in touch to notify the waiting team of their situation.

In cases where there are no acceptable reasons for a team being late, the League Secretary may award the match against them. See Appendix 1 for League penalties.

9.5

Unless otherwise agreed by both team captains, ties must be continuous with a maximum fifteen minutes between ties.

9.5.1

If a player is more than fifteen minutes late, then Rule 6 will be deemed to apply.

9.6

Matches will be played on a home and away basis.

9.7

As a matter of courtesy, the home team captain should contact the away team captain prior to the match to confirm arrangements.

9.7.1

Team captains must ensure their current contact details are listed on the main website. If this is not the case, the committee must be informed without delay.

9.8

All re-arranged matches must be completed no later than one week after the last scheduled match of each half season, unless permission to do otherwise has been sought from and granted by the League Secretary.

10

THE BALL

10.1

The ball shall be a Dunlop Pro squash ball, (double yellow dot), unless both team captains agree court temperature merits a different speed of ball.

10.1.1

The same speed of ball need not be used for each tie.

10.1.2

Consideration should be given by both captains as to the players' ability when choosing which ball to use in the tie.

11

REFEREEING & MARKING

11.1

All ties shall be refereed/ marked competently.

11.2

The home team shall be responsible for refereeing/ marking at least three ties and the away team shall be required to referee/ mark a maximum of two matches.

12

DISPUTES

12.1

It is essential that team captains ensure a fair and reasonable approach to the opposition.

12.2

Notwithstanding, any dispute must be referred in writing to the League Dispute Arbiter, (or in their absence, the League Secretary) who will give a ruling.

12.2.1

A copy of the dispute letter must also be sent to the opposing team by the plaintive team.

12.3

The League Secretary must receive any correspondence on the dispute within seven days of the incident taking place. Queries regarding these rules should be made to the League Secretary.

13

MATCH RESULTS

13.1

The winning team is solely responsible for submission of scores. Once posted, this will appear immediately in the league software.

13.1.1

The match result must be posted using the League software within TWO days of the match being completed, in accordance with rule 13.1. This includes postponed/ rearranged matches. In the event of late entry of scores, the League Secretary will make decision on any penalty to be applied. See Appendix 1 for League Penalties.

13.2

Any disputes regarding scores should be sent, in writing, to the League Secretary within SEVEN days of the result being posted on the League software. It is recommended that Team Captains retain copies of marking sheets. The League Secretary will make a decision based on information provided by the Team Captains.

14

HOSPITALITY

14.1

The home team should provide simple refreshments.

15

PROMOTION AND RELEGATION

15.1

15.2

A maximum of three teams from one club is allowed in each division, excepting the bottom division, in which there is no limit.

Guaranteed promotion places are as below (bearing in mind rule 15.1);

·       Open League Division 2; 2 places

·       Open Leagues Divisions 3 – 7; 3 places

·       Ladies Division 2; 2 places

15.3

Thereafter the leagues will be restructured at the discretion of the League Secretary depending on the number of teams competing in the following season. (The principle is to have as many divisions as possible with 12 teams whilst retaining 6 divisions for as long as possible, with the remaining divisions having either 11, 10 or in the case of the lowest/starter division, a lesser number of teams.

15.3.1

Where there is a 6 team division, the teams will play each other four times throughout the season.

15.4

In the case of league restructuring, as many as six teams could be relegated in the lower divisions, so even if a team is in mid-table there is everything to play for right to the end of the season.

15.4.1

In the event of there being no teams lost from the leagues and no new teams entering, promotion and relegation will be on a three up and three down basis.

APPENDIX 1 – LEAGUE PENALTIES

These are the guidelines that the League will use when rules are infringed. Penalties may vary dependent on circumstances.