1. Teams shall comprise four players.

2. The Annual General Meeting usually takes place at the end of the season (April/May). Clubs participating in the Ladies’ League should provide at least one nominated representative to attend.

3. The day to day operation of the League shall be managed by an Executive Committee comprising one nominated representative from each club who shall be elected annually by the members of the General Committee at the AGM. Each nominated representative will be able to vote on Executive Committee business. Ladies volunteering to serve on the Executive Committee whose Club is already represented shall be co-opted but will not be entitled to vote.

4. The League shall be open to any club in Leicestershire and Rutland and the surrounding area subject to the approval of the Executive Committee.

5. The League entry fee will be fixed by the General Committee at the AGM and will be due prior to the start of the season. No fixtures will be issued to any club failing to pay this fee by the due date.

6. At the discretion of the Executive Committee, each of the clubs may enter one or more teams. Clubs shall not be limited to the number of teams they may enter. All team entries and fees must be received by the date specified on the entry form.

7. The number of teams in each division will be decided by the Executive Committee when all entries have been received. 

8. The number of matches a player can play during each half of the season will be capped at the number of matches for her own team plus a designated number of ‘bank’ matches as determined by the Executive Committee which will be notified to Team Captains and bank players prior to the start of the season.

9. At the end of the season/interim season, no team may avoid promotion or relegation.

10. Team Captains must advise the League Secretary of any change of contact details.

11. Match fees of £4.00 will be paid for one junior player per team per match (up to the age of 18 and in full time education). Payment to be made by the Treasurer following email from Team Captains with match date(s) which will be verified against the web match results.

12. No video recording or photography before, during or after matches shall take place without the permission of both players involved in the match and/or the parent of a junior player if a junior player is involved.


Registering and Eligibility of Players

13. No player may be nominated for more than one club in the Leicestershire League during a season.

14. A team player must be committed to the club they play for, for the whole season. Please see rules pertaining to Bank Players below.

15. A club ranking order AND (for clubs entering more than one team) a Team order for each team must be submitted to the League Secretary by the due date prior to the first match of the season (for clubs with only one team, ranking order and Team order will be the same). It is the decision of clubs (which enter more than one team) as to whether their players are nominated in ranking order or whether the ranking order is split between teams.

Example:

Club Ranking (order of ability/standard)    Team Order (Ranking Order in brackets):

1. Amy                                                           Team 1               Team 2

2. Frances                                                      1. Amy (1)            1. Frances (2) 
3. Jill                                                               2. Suzanne (4)     2. Jill (3) 
4. Suzanne                                                     3. Alison (6)         3. Jane (5) 
5. Jane  
6. Alison
7. Tina
8. Julie                                                          Reserves: 
9. Debbie                                                      Debbie (9)  

10. Kathy                                                      Kathy (10)


 
Note: The ranking order should include reserves and is the order in terms of ability, which is not necessarily the Team order. The Team order is the order from 1 – 4 and 5 – 8 in which players will play in each team.

16. Clubs with only one team will submit a ranking order which is the same as the Team order.

17. If the club has one team, then players ranked 5 and below; or if the club has two teams, then players ranked 9 or below, will be reserve players.


Playing Order

18. The Executive Committee will review all club raking orders and team orders and shall have the power to amend or exclude a player(s) should they consider any player(s) to be nominated out of position. 

19. The Team order and ranking order shall not alter until the half way point of the season. New players joining a club may be included in the Team order under paragraph below. 

20. Should a new player arrive at the club during the season, she may be included in the Team order and ranking order on request to the League Chair prior to the first match in which it is intended she plays. If permission is given, the new player must complete at least two matches, unless this is the last match of the half of the season in which case, she must also play at least two matches in the following half. New players cannot play the last match in the season. All players below her in the ranking order and Team order will then be moved down accordingly.

21. If a playing order is altered at the half way point in the season, a new order should be submitted to the League Chair prior to the first match of the second half of the season. If no new order is received then it will be deemed that the order will remain the same.

22. Any player in a team position who does not play at least two matches for the club before the halfway point of the season, will be removed from the Team order and shall not be allowed to play in the second half of the season. Appeals in respect of this rule should be made to the League Chair stating in detail the reason for the appeal (ie, relocation, injury, etc).

23. Any team player who is pregnant either at the start of the season, or discovers she is pregnant during the course of the season must seriously consider whether she should continue to play. It is the opponent’s right to decline to play the tie in which case, the team for which the pregnant player plays should play a reserve or bank player instead. Team Captains should consult the opposing Team Captain to resolve any issue at least 48 hours prior to the match.


Scoring and Refereeing

24. The team shall score one point for each individual game won.

25. The player winning the tie shall be awarded one bonus point.

26. One bonus point shall be awarded for each player who plays in the match, with the exception of bank players who will not receive this point (see 50 below).

27. The Home team shall score the match; the away team shall referee the match, unless agreement is made otherwise prior to the start of the match.

28. Both home and away teams are responsible for ensuring match results are input to website within seven days of the date of the match. If it is necessary to extend the time taken to enter results this must be agreed between Team Captains. If Team Captains are consistently late in entering match results, they may be liable to incur penalty points (decision by Committee). In the event of dispute the League Chair will be consulted.


Start Times and Playing Order

29. All players intending to participate in a match should be ready to commence play at the designated start time, unless by prior arrangement between the two Team Captains and a good reason is given.

30. The normal order of play should be 4, 3, 2, 1, unless by prior agreement with the Team Captains and a good reason is given. It is not acceptable for the higher strings to play early and then stay for the rest of the evening.

31. If agreement has been reached by the Team Captains for the late arrival of a player, if that player is not ready to commence play when the court is free, then that player will be allowed 10 minutes in which to arrive, after which the tie will be deemed a win for the opposition, unless agreement is reached between Team Captains for the match to go ahead. 


Failure to Attend

32. In the event of a team failing to attend a match or failing to give 48 hours notice of their intention to concede a match, they shall be deducted 15 penalty points and their opponents awarded 20. The team failing to attend shall also be liable for any costs incurred.

33. Should fewer than three players from the away team stay for the food without giving at least 48 hours notice, the away team shall be liable for costs incurred.

34. All Home Team Captains must confirm their fixture to the Away Team Captain at least seven days prior to the fixture date. However, if no contact has been made, the Away Team Captain should make contact.

35. Any team changing their fixture night after the fixtures have been produced must agree new fixture dates with the opposing Team Captains.

36. Any team changing their fixture night after the fixtures have been produced must inform the League Chair in order that the website can be updated with new fixture dates.

37. For a match result to be valid, a team must consist of at least three players. It is the responsibility of the team who are intending to play with fewer than four players to (a) inform the opposition Team Captain prior to the match; and (b) access the Bank Players list.

38. When a club enters two or more teams in the League, the matches between these teams must be the first matches of each half of the season.


Injury

39. In the event of a player being injured during the course of a match and being unable to continue play, the injured player must concede the tie.

40. The World Squash Singles Rules 2014 apply regarding injury (attached).

41. All matches should be played on the dates agreed by the Executive Committee. The only exceptions are: • Matches which have been altered by the Team Captains before the start of the season. Both Team Captains must notify the League Secretary at the point of agreement between teams. Failure to do so will incur a penalty of 10 points per fixture, per club. • A strike which affects the playing of the game, eg water, electricity. • Extreme weather conditions. • Exceptional circumstances, as deemed relevant and acceptable by the Executive Committee, eg flooding or fire at the host club or conflict with a major event


Complaints

42. If any Team has a complaint about the opposing team or any player within that team, the Team Captain must put their concerns in writing, in detail, within seven days following the match, to the League Chair. The League Chair will consult with the Committee. If necessary, an investigation will be undertaken and the Committee will make a decision regarding any penalty that should be incurred, whether this be penalty points or fine. The decision of the Committee will be final. Committee members involved in the complaint will not be involved in the investigation process or the Committee decision. 


Bank Players

43. The ‘Bank’ system enables players to play for teams other than their own team(s), therefore, teams struggling for players can put out a full team.

44. Clubs will be asked for the names and contact details for any players wishing to be included in the bank. Players wishing to be included in the bank must give permission for their details to be shared with Team Captains.

45. The list of bank players will be circulated to Ladies Team Captains for the purposes of contacting and recruiting players for matches when their team is short of players.

46. Bank players can be approached by any club to make up a team of four players.

47. Bank players may play for several clubs, other than their home club, during the season.

48. The bank player will be treated as a member of the host club for the night and will pay the match fee appropriate to the host club (see 10 with regard to junior players).

49. Teams using bank players MUST play in team order with the bank player in the appropriate position. Team Captains should discuss and use their judgement and discretion with regard to playing order of the Bank players. Queries should be raised with a member of the Executive Committee.

50. Should the scenario arise where a club with two teams requires a bank player for each team, team playing orders MUST remain the same and the bank players should play in an appropriate team order, according to standard and what would be ranking. Team Captains must agree on the playing order. In this instance, it is acceptable for two bank players to play in the same team should the standard dictate that they are not of a standard to play in the first team (if playing a second team) or second team (if playing a third team).

51. Clubs using bank players must not use players from the opposing team.

52. A No 1 bank player (ie, plays No 1 for another team) can play for another team only if that team’s No 1 cannot play.

53. Team points for bank players will be capped (ie, no turning-up point will be awarded for a bank player – see 24 above). See also Rule 8 regarding the number of matches that an individual can play.


Junior Bank Players

54. A parent must give permission for a junior player (U18) to

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