League Rules

League Rules 2008

1. The League will be played on a home and away basis whereby each team shall play the other teams in their section only.

2. The League shall comprise of two sections irrespective of the number of participant teams.

3. League sponsor fees, currently £250 per season, are to be paid PRIOR to commencement of season. Present sponsors are The Samlet Club, and The Fairfield Club.

4. Teams to consist of a minimum of 3 players before the match can start.

5. Each match will be played for a maximum of 5 points: 4 singles and 1 team game of four.

6. Format:

1 Team game of *Fours: Best of 3 legs – 701 * toss of a coin to determine who starts.

4 Singles games: Best of 5 legs 501. Home team starts on games 1 and 3.

(Singles names will be drawn for order of play).

7. Throwing distance 7ft 9 ¼”. ALL RAISED OCHES. In the event that a visiting team feel that the oche does not comply, for any reason, then a complaint should be registered with a committee member so that Rule 8 may be enforced.

8. All oches to be endorsed by a committee member. A committee member at their discretion, or as a result of a registered complaint can check any oche when required.

9. REGISTRATION FEES OF £40 ARE TO BE PAID BY THE NIGHT OF THE BLIND DOUBLES. *FAILURE TO PAY, AT THE VERY LATEST, BY THE HALFWAY POINT OF THE SEASON, WILL RESULT IN OFFENDING TEAMS BEING EXPELLED FROM THE LEAGUE.

10. Regardless of the number of teams in the league, the 2 lowest teams, at least, in division 1 at the end of that season will be relegated. The 1^st division will then be made up of the 2 highest teams from division 2 at the end of that season & however many more teams from division 2 that are required to make the divisions as equal in number as possible.

11. Promotion and relegation shall be decided by use of the following criteria:

a) Points.

b) Wins.

c) Leg difference.

In the event that the outcome of a promotion or relegation still remains unresolved, then:

d) Most legs For.

e) Fewest legs Against.

*Should the promotion or relegation issues still remain unresolved then the above criteria shall be applied solely to that seasons league fixtures between the sides involved.

12. START TIMES and associated responsibilities.

a) League matches - To start at 8.30pm prompt. *In the event of a team being late, the captain responsible MUST contact the opposition by 8 p.m. that night. All “marking & telling” responsibilities are to be shared by mutual consent.

b) Cup competitions – ALL cup events will be drawn on the night of that competition. NO registrations, for any cup competitions, will be accepted after 8.15 p.m. Cup competitions will aim to commence at 8.30 p.m. or as close to 8.30 p.m. as is possible. Teams, and the registered individuals therein, who fail to honour their “marking & telling” responsibilities after being knocked out of any cup competition will be automatically omitted from the corresponding cup event the following season.

13. Team Knockout Cup: Singles matches to be run simultaneously on 2 boards. A fifth man will be eligible for entry into the fours should the game be equal following the singles.

14. MATCH RESULT SHEETS. The HOME TEAM captain will be responsible for the TOP copy (white) of the Match Result Sheet whilst the AWAY TEAM captain will be responsible for the BOTTOM copy (pink) of the Match Result Sheet upon completion of the game. Each team captain will then be responsible for submitting their own copy of the Match Result Sheet in order to claim their own teams points and individual averages. The league secretary MUST receive match Result Sheets within 5 days – ONE POINT will be deducted from offending teams!

15. CUP ENTRY FEES. All cup entries, with the exception of the KO Cup & Fours, are charged at £2.00 entry per person. The entry fee for the KO Cup & Fours will be £5.00 per team.

16. There are NO CANCELLED GAMES permitted – only under exceptional circumstances at Committees discretion.

17. Any team not fulfilling a fixture without due reason, can, at the discretion of the committee, be penalised by minus three points, and ALL players registered for that team can be penalised by minus one point.

18. In the event of a team playing a game with only 3 players, the fourth singles player in their opposition will play one of the 3 players to obtain his average and possibly least darts or highest out. He will also be awarded the bonus point regardless of winning or losing that singles match.

19. Only players completing more than 50% of league singles fixtures will be entitled to any prize monies from the Averages (currently paid to the top 15 dynamic averages in the league).

20. A maximum of 3 current Swansea representative players or 2 current County players will be allowed to play for one team at any fixture.

21. Only players eligible to play for The Swansea Super League representative side, irrespective of place of abode, are entitled to play in this league. Players from other representative sides are ineligible.

22. Only players having prior registered and played a singles game in the league will be eligible for knockout tournament prize money (except in fours events, a player can be signed on for your team on that night if necessary).

23. The Committee reserve the right to withhold part or whole payment of any prize monies should discrepancies be found on any League Result Sheet – or if the Sheet is not received.

24. TRANSFERS, disbanding and withdrawals.

a) No transfers are allowed in this league unless under exceptional circumstances (i.e. the team disbands), and then only with the approval of the committee.

b) If a team disbands, each player transferring to another team, (maximum of 2 players to any single team), will be required to pay the league a ‘TRANSFER FEE’ of £10.00.

c) In the event that a team withdraws from the league then any funds already contributed to the league are non-refundable. Should a disbanded team owe money to the league, then the amount outstanding will be evenly divided between, and allocated to, ALL that teams registered players and shall be regarded as a league fine. Players with outstanding league fines will not be permitted to participate in the league.

25. DYNAMIC POINTS and the accrual thereof.

a) A dynamic point will be awarded to every player who wins a set of five legs in a league singles match. Dynamic points affect an individuals average only and have no affect on the position of that player’s team in the league.

b) All players should have the same opportunities to accrue dynamic points. Therefore, on those occasions when league sections vary in size, a cut off point for dynamic points will be enforced. This will guarantee that playing in a larger section will advantage no player whatsoever.

c) The cut off date for the dynamic point will be determined by the final league game in the smallest section and the total number of league games in that section will be regarded as the maximum amount of dynamic points available to players in all sections. That is to say, if the smallest section plays 20 league games then only the first 20 league games played in any larger sections are subject to dynamic points. AVERAGES IN ALL LEAGUE GAMES REMAIN RELEVENT

All B.D.O. rules will apply.

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Minutes of the Annual General Meeting, at The Fairfield Club,

i. Vice Chairman’s Welcome

ii. Treasurer’s Report: Clive stated that the opening balance was £1,211.36p. This season (2007/08) the amount of £2,095 had been paid out in prize monies, whilst £1,482.91 amount was carried over for the next season.

iii. Secretary’s Report: It was stated that the season had passed without any major fault. However, it was mentioned that numerous Result Sheets were late in arriving – some teams being responsible for sending in 2 or 3 at a time! It was suggested that there was no alternative but to enforce the Rules and penalise any repeat of these incidents for future seasons – with the addendum of penalising teams with the deduction of one point from their accrued League points for Result Sheets received later than the stipulated 5 days. It was also noted that the ‘marker’ of the result sheets should demonstrate greater attention to detail, as the Secretary would not incur responsibility for any faults thereafter. It was also noted that when both captains signed the Sheet it would be designated a true and accurate record and would not be changed by the Secretary following receipt!

iv. Re-election of Officers & Committee: The Vice Chair, Mike Millward, stated that Viv Thomas (Chairman) and Phil O’Hara (Secretary) had both relinquished their positions on the League Committee. A vote of thanks for their hard work – particularly Phil O’Hara, as a founder of the League – was duly passed. It was proposed and duly carried that Mike Millward become Chairman; John Phillips as Secretary, and Ian Curtis as Vice Chairman. There was a vote of confidence in the present committee members, with the option of the Chair co-opting an additional member.

*NB Since the AGM, Clive Braithwaite has resigned due to personal reasons, and Phil O’Hara will now adopt the role until further notice. Any Fees due can now be dropped off at the Armine Club for your convenience.

v. Divisional Review: It was proposed and duly carried that the League comprise of 2 (two) sections as stated in the Rules.

vi. Sponsorship Review: It was proposed, seconded, and carried that the Fairfield Club and Samlet Club remain the league’s sponsors with the monies remaining at £250 each.

vii. Review of League Rules. The following amendments/additions to the Rules were formally proposed and carried: 1. Team Knockout will comprise of simultaneous games played on four boards; with the addendum that any number of team changes can be made if the game goes to a deciding team leg. 2. That Registration fees of £45 (to include entry into the Open Team KO) are to be paid prior to the commencement of the League. All fees must be returned together with registration details within 10 days of the AGM. Any team not complying will not be included in the forthcoming season. 3. That Knockout Tournaments will be held at ONE VENUE, with the exception of Divisional. There will be no registrations accepted on the night after 8:10; and tournaments will start at 8:15 promptly. Only individuals present will qualify for entry, and in the event of team competitions, a minimum of 3 players will be accepted. The competition organiser will have full responsibility and final decisions on all matters relating to the tournament.

4. Players with outstanding league fines will not be permitted to participate in the League. Furthermore, all teams will be provided with the names of ‘banned’ players, and should they play during that season then points will be deducted from both team and players. 5. Dynamic points will remain as stated in the Rules, with the amendment that should teams drop-out during the season, that all players within that section be ‘amended’ their dynamic point at the end of the season. 6. That a league committee member is present at the Swansea A & Swansea B AGM’s, with full authority accorded. 7. In the League format, the AWAY team will start the fours on the first and third legs. 8. League Easels: It will be the responsibility of any club borrowing the easels to collect and return from the point of storage. (At present the Fairfield Club) Any damage or improper use will be adjudged their responsibility, with financial penalties imposed. The League will maintain the upkeep of said equipment. 9. A Captains Meeting, together with a full committee meeting, will be held approximately every six weeks. Team positions/players averages will be available at these meetings, together with any observations/complaints/disciplinary actions etc. All teams will be provided dates and venues. It must be noted that attendance by a team representative is not obligatory, but would be deemed advantageous for communication and awareness on League issues. 10. Complaints procedure. Following a complaint from a League team representative to a committee member, due complaint must be received in writing addressed to the Chairman, within one week from the date of the complaint. All parties concerned will attend the next available captains meeting, when it will be discussed in private with the Committee. In the event that a decision is required earlier for extenuating circumstances, an extra-ordinary meeting will be held within a shorter time period.

viii. The League Rules have been amended accordingly.

ix. It was decided that Committee members attend every registered team prior to commencement of the League to check the validity and suitability of their oches.

The meeting terminated at 10:30pm