League Rules

MEETINGS AND COMMITTEES

1) The general Committee shall consist of the Officers, and the representatives elected at the A.G.M

2) The General Committee will be responsible for the smooth running of the league and competitions, organising social occasions, fund raising, considering any protests or complaints that may occur, and have power to deal with any matter not provided in these rules. It shall meet at least every 3 months.

3) The captain or one representative from each team shall meet at its headquarters at 6.30-7:00pm on the dates set out in the fixture book (nominally the first Tuesday of each month), for a communications meeting and to pay subscriptions and fees. Any team late with their dues shall be fined £5.00.
Any team failing to send a representative to a Captains meeting shall be fined £5.00.

REGISTRATION
4) The only players registered with the League Secretary after the opening fixture will be the only 12 players who played In that game. All players who play in any subsequent fixtures must be registered with the League Secretary by 6.00pm on the day of the game. The appropriate fees will be paid on the next available Captains meeting.

5) Captains must ensure players have played at least 3 matches prior to being picked to play in the Knockout Cup, otherwise they will be deemed to being ineligible for that match. Players must also ensure they have played at least 5 games before playing in the Pairs & Singles Competition.

6) Any team playing an ineligible player, will have players score deducted from the team score in the match concerned.

ALLEY AND LEAGUE FEES
7) In all League, Front Pin and Knockout competitions each team is responsible for payment of £11.00 (total £22.00) to the Sticker-Up at the time of the match.

8) A fee of £8.00 per team, each for League, Front Pin and Knockout Competition match shall be paid at the next Captains Meeting.

9) A registration fee of £1 per player shall be paid at the next Captains Meeting after the player is registered.

TRANSFERS
10) No players shall be allowed to transfer from one team to another without the consent of the General & Fixture Secretary.
Plus, the Captain of the team a player is being transferred from must be informed 1 week prior to the transfer being agreed.
Players granted a transfer will not be allowed to play in a cup match if they have played in a previous round of the competition before the transfer.
No transfers allowed after the 31st of December in the current season.

MATCHES
11)Matches shall be played by teams of 12 players of which there must be a minimum of 4 males and females.

12) In the event of a team being short of a player then the lowest score can be used again. If however the player short means rule 11 is contravened, then only the lowest score of that gender must be used.
a) Should a team be short of two players, then the two lowest scores from all four sets can be used again including making sure rule 11 is not contravened.

13) Matches are to commence not later than 7.30pm. The start of the game shall not be held up for any reason if 3 players from each team are present at the alley. League games should be started by the first named team. Breaks between sets should not exceed 5 minutes except after the third set when 10
minutes are allowed.

14) Each player is to deliver 18 balls, 3 at each 6 full frames. Players shall stand between the heel strip and the white line to deliver the ball.

15) Should any pin be knocked off the frame but remain standing it should be counted as down, but if a pin is removed from its spot and remains standing
within the frame it shall stay in the position until it is struck down or the hand is concluded.

16) All pins knocked down by a ball which has struck the side of the alley prior to reaching the diamond shall be stuck up again for the remainder of the players hand.

17) If a pin or ball leaves the frame but returns via the side of the alley and strikes further pins, these pins will stay down and count towards the players score. However, any pin or ball which returns from the back wall, Shute or ceiling will result in any pins struck down being reset.

18) 2 points will be awarded for each set (2 for a win and 1 each for a drawn set) and 6 points for the match (6 points for a win and 3 each for a tied match).

REPORTING MATCHES
19) For League and Cup Matches the first named team shall be responsible for chalking the board and the other team shall be responsible for completing the score card. The score card should be checked and signed by both Captains and delivered to the General Secretary within 48 hours of the match. A £1 fine will be imposed on all teams failing to return cards to the Fixture Secretary by Fridays post at the latest.

NO-BALL
20) A ball will be deemed a no-ball if
a) The ball is pitched over the white line.
b) Any part of the players body touches any part of the alley over the white line.

21) The no ball rule should be applied as follows – should any Captain decide that an opposing player consistently throws a no-ball, he or she should speak to the opposing Captain so that the player is informed of the rule. If that player then infringes this rule, pins knocked down from such a ball will not count and shall not be reset.

LEAGUE
22) NO MATCH MAY BE CANCELLED. All available sets must be applied on the night. The opposing team awarded 2 points for unplayed sets and 6 points on total pins. A maximum of 2 lowest points from all four sets are permitted.

23) No match may be postponed unless the committee authorise otherwise.
a) Should a match have to be postponed which has been agreed by the committee, then the League Secretary will rearrange the match on a suitable
alley within 4 weeks of the original fixture. A £10 fine will be imposed on the teams who fail to complete their fixtures.
b) Any cost incurred to the league as a result of any cancellation will be paid by the team responsible for the postponement.

24) In the event of 2 or more teams having the same number of points, the total number of wins will be used to decide the positional order in the final league tables.

COMPETITIONS
25) All cup matches must be played on dates determined by the League Secretary, and all teams will now be entered into the draw, for both the Front First and Knockout Cup competition.

26) Referees will be appointed by the league for all pairs and singles finals, plus all cup competition finals, unless both Captains agree not to have one.

27) No team shall be allowed to record a lowest score again in any semi-final or final.

28) All perpetual cups and trophies remain the property of the league. The team and its players must ensure all cups and trophies be returned to the league by the February Captains meeting. They must also ensure that they are returned in the same satisfactory condition as they were issued. Failure to do either request will result in the team incurring a fine of £10.

29) Cash awards will be presented to all winners at our presentation evening.
a) In all cup matches the team drawn first will be the home side. There will be a toss of coin ton decide the home and away teams in the cup finals only.

KNOCKOUT CUP
30) Players must have played at least 3 League/Front pin games during the current season, and not played for another team in the Knockout Cup.

31) Results to be decided by total pins only. If at the end of the normal 4 sets the teams are level, an extra set will be played. Any 3 of the 12 players may be
used. If teams are still level, after this fifth set the same 3 players will play 1 more hands until a result is obtained.

FRONT PIN RULES
32) No pins shall count for a player until the front pin has been struck down by a delivered ball, whether or not it’s the first pin to fall. If any pins are struck before the front pin, those pins knocked down from the strike will neither score nor be
reset. Should the front pin fall as well from a strike, the hand is concluded with no score, even though all three balls may not have been used.

33) If the front pin is struck with the second ball and results in the frame being cleared, then only those pins standing when the second ball was delivered shall be reset for the third ball.

34) If the front pin is struck with the first or second ball and the frame is cleared, the spare ball(s) may score from any pin.

35) No pins shall be reset from a no-ball. If the front pin is struck by a no-ball the hand is concluded with no score.

HIGHEST AVERAGE CUPS
36) Awarded to both the highest and runner up in the men’s and ladies individual averages (minimum of 50% of league games to qualify).

MOST SPARES
37) Awarded to both the highest and 2nd highest number of spares hit in league matches only, by individual male and female. (minimum of 50% of league
games to qualify)

ADDITIONAL AWARDS
38) Awarded for the highest and 2nd highest individual male and female league scores.
(a) Awarded to both highest and 2nd highest individual male and female Front First Cup score.
(b) Awarded to both the highest and 2nd highest individual male and female Knockout Cup score.
(c) To qualify for all additional awards, a total of 50% of league games must be played.

PAIRS COMPETITON
39) All players must be registered with the league and must have played for at least 5 games.

40) Entry fee as agreed at the AGM is to be paid at the time of pair registration.

41) Substitutes are allowed to play in the first round in which the pair are scheduled to play. The substitute player then becomes part of the pair and must play in subsequent rounds. No players can be added to the list after the draw has been made.

42) Teams who have players wishing to participate but have no team member to pair with may forward their name and pay their fees in the normal way and they will be paired with a player from another team, if available and in the appropriate competition.

43) Play will commence at 7:30pm. All players must be on the alley by 8:00pm otherwise they will be eliminated. Pairs wishing to play early will play in order of both players arrival. The highest scoring pairs up to the number given to qualify will progress to the next round.