The league organiser (Ewan Ferguson) is responsible for arranging leagues, managing membership and providing guidance and, where needed, decisions on how these rules should be interpreted.

Mini league duration

Mini leagues will normally be run over an eight week period and all matches must be completed during this time. Scores for matches cannot be submitted after the league period ends.

Joining or leaving the league

Joining

To join the mini leagues, players should email the league organiser and ask to be included in the next round of leagues. Players cannot be added after a round of leagues has started but will be added at the start of the next league period. New players will normally start in the lowest division but can be placed higher at the league organiser’s discretion. Alternatively, they can make a flying challenge to join the league.

Flying challenges

The flying challenge is for new entrants to the leagues to gain a higher starting position. Should a new entrant wish to make use of the flying challenge, they can challenge any player in the league. The challenger is responsible for contacting and organising the match, which should take the same format as regular league matches. League players who are challenged must make every effort to play the challenger and the three strikes rule that applies to league matches will also apply to flying challenges. If the challenge is successful – or if a league player has refused a challenge - the result should be sent to the league organiser and the challenger will be placed one place above the challenged – when the next league is drawn up. Flying challenge results should be sent well in advance of the end of the league period. If the challengeris unsuccessful, one further challenge may be made. Otherwise, they will be entered into the lowest league.

Leaving

To leave the league, players should email the league organiser and ask to be removed. If the request is received after a league period has started, the player will be removed when the next round of leagues starts. Until the player is removed, other league players may still contact them to arrange matches. If the leaving player is unable or unwilling to complete these matches, then the walkover rule can be applied (details below).

Removal from the league

If a player does not complete any of their matches in a league period, they will be automatically removed from the league at the end of the league period. If they would like to re-join the league, they should email the league organiser. Requests to re-join can only be made after the next round of leagues have started and the player will need to wait until the following round of leagues to re-join. An exception to this rule can be made if a player contacts the league organiser more than a week before the end of the league period to say that they cannot play any games. If the player would like to remain in the leagues, they will be relegated to the bottom division for the next round of leagues. If the player fails to play any matches in the next round of matches then they will be automatically removed regardless of contact with the league organiser.

Arranging matches

Every player is responsible for arranging matches, either by email, text or phone. Please make sure your contact details are correct and up-to-date on the member directory. Where a player is having difficulty arranging a match, a ‘three strikes’ rule will come into play. If a player has tried to contact an opponent three times without success then the player is to confirm this to the league organiser. The league organiser will speak to the opponent to assist in arranging the game or if this fails, will award a walk over to the player trying to organise the game. In cases of rules interpretation, or dispute, the league organiser’s decision is final.

Recording scores

The squash mini-leagues are managed through the old court booking system and can be found under the ‘Leagues’ header, once logged onto the system. Scores should be submitted online directly into the league table (instructions below). It is the responsibility of both players to ensure that all results are recorded accurately online as promotion and relegation is applied according to the results submitted. Any queries regarding submitted results should be referred to the league organiser. Once a league period is completed, the system will not allow scores to be entered. Scores for matches completed during the league period but submitted after the period has finished cannot be taken into account and will be considered as un-played matches.

Mini-League Scoring System

If a match cannot be completed in a single session, the players can either:
A. Accept points for the games which they have won , or
B. Arrange a further session to complete the match.

If players choose option (A) the following points are awarded:

Walk over results

Walkovers are recorded as a 3-0 victory. All walkoversshould be agreed with the league organiser first.

Game Scoring – Point a Rally (PAR) Scoring

• matches are best of five games
• games in all divisions are up to 15
• if the score is 14 all, then winner must win by two clear points
• please note that court sessions run according to the court session 30 minutes

Promotion, relegation and tied placing

The player who wins a division will be promoted to the division above. The player who comes last will be relegated to the division below. Normally, the second placed player may be promoted and the second last placed player will also be relegated. However, this is dependent on total number of players in the mini leagues and number of players who have left or have joined higher in the leagues. On order to make sure all the divisions are evenly balanced, the league organiser may need to restrict promotion or relegation to one player each way. In the event that two players are tied in points at the end of a league round, the following criteria will be used to decide their final placing:
- head to head result between tied players (in just completed league round only)
- if no head to head result: number of games won across matches played (in just completed league round only)
- if equal games won: most matches played (in just completed league round only)
- if equal matches played: name pulled out hat by league organiser (type of hat picked at random)

Recording your scores

As long as you have a valid UserID and PIN you can record your scores here.

Once you've logged in, click on the 'Leagues' button, then select the appropriate league and division. 

Click on the grid square on the row with your name which corresponds to the player you have played. Enter the number of games you won on your row and the number of games your opponent won on their row. The system will then add points automatically