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(Changes from 2010 are marked in
italics and printed in blue) 1.
The
Competition shall be called the Watford and District Tennis League. 2.
Objects
The objects of the Watford and District Tennis League shall be to conduct an
annual competition between affiliated clubs and to organise Doubles
Tournaments. The League shall be open to all clubs in Watford and District
having three or more courts. Admission and
re-admission to the league competition shall be at the discretion of the Committee. 3.
Affiliation
An
annual affiliation fee shall be charged for each team entered in the
competition. 4. Constitution a) The League competition shall be conducted in three sections, comprising ladies’, men’s and mixed teams. b) Where the numbers of teams in each or any section justify, such sections shall be divided into Divisions designated 1,2, 3, etc in order of merit. c) The top team in each division shall hold for one year the championship trophy appropriate to that division. d) The top two teams in each division shall normally be promoted. e) The two bottom teams in each division shall normally be relegated. f)
New teams joining the league shall
normally be placed in the lowest division of the appropriate section.
5. Administration The management of the League
shall be invested in a Committee consisting of a Chairman, Vice Chairman,
Secretary, Fixtures Secretary, Results Secretary, Treasurer and up to four
Committee Members who shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting. The
meeting, if it so desires, may appoint a President and Vice-Presidents. Elected
officers and committee members elected shall hold office until the next Annual
General Meeting. The Committee shall
have authority to act in any matter not governed by these rules including the
expulsion without notice of any member club for conduct deemed by the committee
to be prejudicial to the competition or reputation of the league. 6.
Annual
General Meeting The
Annual General Meeting shall be held in January, February or March and shall
consist of delegates from each club, two from each club being
allowed to vote.
The meeting shall elect Officers and Committee Members, receive the
Treasurer’s financial report and approve any rule changes that have been
proposed by the Committee. The Committee may convene a Special General Meeting
should it become necessary or if the same is desired by a third of the
affiliated clubs. Every decision of every AGM or Special General Meeting shall
be binding on all clubs and registered members as the voice of the whole League. 7. Fixtures a) The League Fixtures Secretary shall arrange the fixtures. All matches must be played on the allotted date. The only acceptable reason for postponement is the unfit condition of the courts. Ladies and Men’s matches will be scheduled for Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays and Mixed matches for Thursdays and Fridays. b) If a match is postponed, it must be played as soon as possible. The Home team must enter the new date for the fixture by accessing the LTA software via WDTL website (www.wdtl.co.uk) . c)
All matches should be played by
31 August unless the Committee extends
this date. Any outstanding matches after the decided date may be deemed
void and no points awarded to either team.
8. Nominations and Eligibility
a)
A nominated player is one whose name has been submitted in writing to the
League Results Secretary before the start of the season. All bona-fide
playing members of each affiliated club
of at least 14 days standing prior to a match are eligible to be
nominated to play in League matches.
b) No member may be nominated or play for more than one club in any ONE SECTION OF THE LEAGUE (i.e. the Men’s Section, Ladies Section or Mixed Section). In very exceptional circumstances a transfer may be allowed but only after written agreements of both clubs involved have been sent to the League Results Secretary who must agree to such a transfer. c) Players who are members of more than one club who wish to play for different clubs in DIFFERENT SECTIONS OF THE LEAGUE (ie the Men’s and Mixed Sections or Ladies and Mixed Sections of the League) can do so but are asked to notify the Results Secretary (by e-mail or in writing) before playing for the second club . d) Prior to any matches being played, each club must nominate, by completing the appropriate form, a MINIMUM OF SIX PLAYERS for every team except the bottom one entered in that section of the competition. The teams must be designated A, B, C, etc in order of merit with the players for the first team being the club’s best players. Nominations for the second, third and subsequent teams should be in order of descending playing ability. The League Committee reserves the right to query a club’s nominations. e) When a club enters more than one team in any of the three sections of the League, a player may PLAY UP ON A TOTAL OF THREE OCCASIONS without penalty, providing Rule 8h) has not been broken. On playing up for a FOURTH time, the player shall be considered to be re-nominated for the team IMMEDIATELY above the one for which they were originally nominated. The re-nomination is permanent and the player must remain in that team for the duration of the season and may not play for ANY OTHER TEAM in that section. f) After the beginning of the match programme, further nominations may be made in writing or email(results@wdtl.co.uk) to the League Results Secretary but AUTOMATIC NOMINATION will be accorded when results are entered, via the WDTL website, onto the LTA software listing players in a team whose names were not previously notified to the League Results Secretary. Such players will be nominated for the team for which they played in that match. If a player should be nominated for a lower team then the League Results Secretary must be informed by email (results@wdtl.co.uk), within 7 days of the date of the match, as to which lower team is desired. The match will then count as one of the three matches where they are allowed to play up. g)
In each season, no player may play in more than 15 matches in any one of
the three sections (ie Men’s, Ladies’ or Mixed) h) A player may not normally play for a team lower than the one for which they are nominated. The only exception to this rule is in the unusual circumstance when a nominated player has NEVER PLAYED for any team in a section. They may then be re-nominated for a higher or lower team. This RE-NOMINATION IS PERMANENT and the player must remain in that team for the duration of the season and MAY NOT PLAY FOR ANY OTHER TEAM in that section. The League Results Secretary must be informed before such a transfer takes place. At the same time an appropriate replacement nomination must be made. i) If a player has played for a team in a section, they may only be RE-NOMINATED to the team immediately above the one they were originally nominated to play for. This RE-NOMINATION IS PERMANENT and the player must remain in that team for the duration of the season and MAY NOT PLAY FOR ANY OTHER TEAM in that section. The League Results Secretary must be informed before such a transfer takes place. At the same time an appropriate replacement nomination must be made. j)
In the event of an ineligible player
being included in any team, any sets won by the pair that includes that player
will be forfeited to the opposition. 9.
Match
Procedure a)
A team shall comprise six players arranged in pairs. In a match each pair
shall play against each pair of the opposing team, making nine sets in all. b) If, in any set the score reaches 6-all, a tie-break shall be played to decide the result. c) No match shall be arranged to start later than 6.30pm. If a team does not have six players available to play at 6.50pm, the appropriate set or sets shall be forfeited to the opposition. d) If a match is abandoned because of bad light or bad weather it must be replayed unless one team has gained five or more sets. e) In all other circumstances (except as in d) above), where a match is not completed and a result is not obtained (ie neither team has gained five )or more sets), a full written report must be submitted by the captains of both teams to the League Results Secretary, who shall refer the matter to the Committee for a decision. f) In any unfinished match where a result is obtained, any unfinished or unplayed sets shall not be counted in the score. g) A team fielding only two pairs shall forfeit three sets to the opposition. If one team fields only one pair the match shall go by default to the opposition. h)
If both teams field only two pairs the match is void and must be
replayed. i)
The League Results Secretary shall have the power to award a walkover
against the defaulting team in the following circumstances: i) If a team fails to arrive to play a match ii) If a team arrives to play a match and the required number of courts are not available at 6.30pm iii) If a team refuses to re-arrange a cancelled or abandoned match (see Rules 7a) and 9d)) The team receiving the walkover will be awarded 2 points immediately. At the end of the playing season, an AVERAGE of the number of SETS GAINED from the total number of MATCHES PLAYED, rounded to the nearest whole number, will be given to the team receiving the walkover. The team giving the walkover will not receive any points. j) A team that fails to contest three matches in a season will be deemed to have withdrawn from the competition and will be required to reapply in writing to rejoin the League. If their application is accepted by the Committee, they will normally be demoted by two divisions k) The team gaining the greater number of sets shall be given two points. In all divisions, positions in the tables shall be based on points won. In all cases of points equality, positions will be based on sets won and if these are equal, on the percentage of games won to games played, excluding walkovers. l) In all matches balls must comply with ITF regulations.
m) If possible matches not completed under natural light should be completed under floodlights. n)
Clothing worn for matches must comply with individual clubs clothing
rules. Any clubs that insist on predominately white tennis clothing must
ensure that all opposing teams are aware of this restriction prior to a match
being played.
10.
Notification
of Match Results a) Prior to each match, the captain should download and print a blank Results Card from the WDTL Website (www.wdtl.co.uk) Home Page and should complete the card, checking the scores with the opposition and signing off the card. The completed Match Cards must be kept by each captain until the Final Tables are produced on the website. This is in case information on the card is required by the Committee if there is a disputed result. b) It
is the responsibility of the winning team to enter the players’ names, BTM
numbers and the scores on the WDTL Website (www.wdtl.co.uk) within
48 hours of the completion of the match. It is then the responsibility of
the losing captain to check on the website that the results and record that the
scores have been entered correctly within
1 week of the match being played. 11. Publication of League Tables Up
to date results and details of all teams and players are available for everyone
to see using the link on the WDTL Website’s Home Page. 12. All
League Championship and Doubles Tournament Trophies will be distributed to the
winning teams/pairs at the AGM or another appropriate function. It is the
responsibility of the clubs holding the trophies to ensure that they are kept
safe and are returned in a clean state when required. Any club losing a trophy
will be responsible for paying for its replacement. 13.
Tournaments In
any Tournaments organised by the League, Clubs will be responsible for
nominating pairs who must be members of that club. Entries will be accepted
automatically for pairs where each player has played three or more times for
that club in Watford & District Tennis League matches during the current
season. Other entries will be at the discretion of the Committee. Note:
In the Mixed Doubles event, players from different clubs may play together. |