1.    The League shall be called



2.    The League shall be governed by a Committee elected annually at the Annual General Meeting and shall consist of the following:
   
    Chairman, Hon. Secretary, Hon. Match Secretary, Hon. Treasurer, Hon. Lancashire & Cheshire Inter-League Secretary, Hon. Table Tennis Development Officer, Hon. Tournament Secretary, along with eight elected representatives.

    This Committee shall have power to decide all questions relating to the eligibility of players, the interpretation of the League Rules and shall have full jurisdiction over all matters or business concerning the League whether covered in these Rules or not and its decision shall be considered final, subject to appeal.
    Should any member of the said Committee be interested or concerned in any dispute, claim or protest, they shall not remain in the room whilst such case is being decided.
    The Committee shall appoint annually a President and Vice-Presidents
    The Committee shall have power to co-opt other persons qualified to assist in administering the affairs of the League. The quorum necessary for the Management Committee shall be five. If any member of the Committee absents themselves from three consecutive meetings without submitting apologies for absence, he will be deemed to have resigned.

3.    Notices of Motion for new rules, amendments or alterations to existing Rules must be made in writing to the League Secretary not later than the last Saturday in April of each year for consideration at the AGM. Nominations for Officers of the League and for the Committee for the following year must also be made in writing to the League Secretary by the last Saturday in April.

4.    (a)    At the Annual General Meeting the Officers of the League and the elected members of the Committee shall have one vote. Teams that completed the previous season shall have one vote per team. A proxy may be nominated in advance to vote, who are themselves not already a team representative.
    (b)    Any club not represented at the Annual General Meeting shall be fined the sum of £6.00.
Subscriptions

5.    The annual team subscription fee together with appropriate ETTA and LTTA affiliation fees, as levied, shall be paid upon entry in the League.  All team subscriptions shall be paid as a condition of entry in the official handbook and are none returnable. For a team consisting entirely of juniors, the team fee shall be one fifth of the normal team fee.
Registration Fees

6.    The players’ annual registration fees must be paid on the date selected for the collection of handbooks or at least 24 hours before a player becomes eligible to play in the league.  The fees are £6.00 per senior player and £2.00 per junior player.  This is to include a copy of the League Handbook and Memento fund fee. A junior is a person under 18 years of age on 31st December during the current administrative year.
No player may register for more than one club.

7.    (a)    The registration of any player shall be subject to the approval of the Management Committee.  In particular, the Management Committee shall approve the registration of any player after 31st January.
    (b)    A registered player who wishes to transfer to another club shall make application to the Match Secretary who shall place the application before the Management Committee.  If the application is approved, the player will be eligible to play for their new club immediately.

8.    The registration of any player normally residing outside a radius of 20 miles from Bolton Town Hall will be accepted only on the understanding that the player will play in at least 50% of outstanding League matches subsequent to registration. Once this percentage of appearances cannot be attained the player's registration will be cancelled and playing record expunged.

9.    A player must have played in 50% of League matches to qualify for inclusion in the leading averages.

10.     (a)    The Management Committee shall have power to divide the League into Divisions when deemed advisable.
    (b)    At the end of the season teams shall be promoted and relegated at the discretion of the Management Committee.

11.    The various Divisions of the League shall be decided as follows: In each match the total number of points to be played for shall be nine. A team will be awarded points equal to the number of sets won. In the event of a tie on points at the end of the season the record of match wins will decide. A further tie on match wins will be decided by a play off. This Rule will apply to both Championship and Runners-up positions in every Division.

12.    (a)    Apart from players forming parts of relegated teams, no player is allowed to play in a lower division than in the previous season without the prior approval of the Management Committee.
    (b)    Clubs with more than one team shall enter each team separately on the player registration form, stating the players for each team. No player from that team will be able to play for a lower ranked team than the one they are registered for, except as a guest. Further signings will be to a specific team in the club.
    (c)    Alterations to ranking lists must be in the hands of the Match Secretary by the 25th of each month, but the previous list will remain in force until the Match Secretary notifies the club that the new list has been accepted.
    (d)    Any player may assist a higher ranked team than their own any number of times when they are not playing in their own team that fixture week.
A player shall be allowed to assist a higher ranked team than his own in the same week that he plays his own match, even if the team is in the same division.  Any single player may only do this a maximum of six times during the season.
    (e) All players will be charged an entry fee for the Individual Championships on registration night. Only those registered players who return the form by the required date will be entered in the draw. Prizes will be assessed by the Committee after expenses have been deducted.
    (f)    Players of proven ability who have been allowed to play in a lower Division to help out various clubs shall at the Committee's discretion be "starred” meaning that they should play only in the Division of their standard for any individual championship.

13.    All protests must be made in writing and be in the hands of the League Secretary within seven days after the match, and must be accompanied by a fee of £5.00 which will be returned if the protest is upheld.

14.    In order to ensure that the League is conducted in a sportsmanlike manner, any irregularity on the part of any club should at once be reported to the League Secretary. This does not necessarily mean a protest and would be treated confidentially.

15.    If a team resigns from the League after enrolment, no money shall be refunded and all matches played by the team shall be expunged from the League table.

16.    Any correspondence sent out to a club or player from the Management Committee which requests a reply must be answered within 14 days or the offending club or player may be fined a sum not exceeding £3.00 and depending on the gravity of the offence may be further dealt with by the Management Committee. Non-payment of fines within one month of being imposed will result in a further fine of £1.00 per week or part of a week that the money remains unpaid.


17.    A team shall consist of 3 players. Nine singles (sets) will be played, each to be the best of five games. The home team shall enter their players on the match card followed by the away team and the sets to be played as follows:
1x2, 3x1, 2x3, 3x2, 1x3, 2x1, 3x3, 2x2, 1x1. Home team first, in each case, to be played as far as possible in the above order. The visitors' umpires must officiate in the first and alternate games.

18.    Both Captains shall see and initial the card before the Home Captain posts it. Should the match card fail to reach the Match Secretary by THREE postal days after the match, a fine of £3.00 will be imposed in the first instance; the Committee will deal with any subsequent offence.

19.    Full teams must be played in all matches, which must start not later than 7.30pm.  By 8.15 pm teams must be represented by at least two players. Beyond this time the 3rd player of either side may absent themselves for as long as the match can continue without stopping. At this point a reserve player may be included or if there is no reserve player the sets will be forfeited unless the absentee is in possession of a late pass obtainable from either the Match Secretary or Secretary in advance.  (Remember a guest player may be used.)

20.    If one player from each team is present at 7.30pm then they should play their game even though it might not be according to the card.

21.    Clubs not playing a full team shall be fined £3.00 for every player short of a full team. Subject to non-compliance with Rule 22 any full team failing to attend a fixture will be fined £12.00. Should any infringement of this Rule by insertion of fictitious entries on the Score Card come to the notice of the Committee, a fine of £12.00 will be imposed.

22.    All matches must be played on the date stated in the Official Handbook. Teams consisting entirely of juniors may opt for home fixtures only.
If a regular player is not available on that night then a reserve or ‘guest' player may play. A 'guest' player may be any player, but their points would not count.
A match can only be rearranged:
    (a)    If the home team's venue is not available;
    (b)    If a player of a team is required for a Bolton Inter-league match
or
    (c)    For any special circumstances approved by the Hon. Match Secretary.
Any team, which cancels a match without informing the Match Secretary, will be fined £12. The secretary of the club wanting a rearrangement must inform the match secretary of the new date that they have agreed with the opposing captain, to be played within 21 days of the original fixture. If this does not happen, the matter shall be reported to the Committee who will examine the circumstances and then make a decision, which may include awarding points and/or the levying of a fine up to £12.00. The above also applies to any team not fulfilling a fixture.

23.    It shall be the responsibility of a club changing its secretary, headquarters or match night, or the secretary changing their address, to notify the League Secretary and Match Secretary in writing and to advise the secretary of each club in the Division or Divisions to which they are attached. Where a club changes its match night, all opponents for home matches must be sent a reminder at least seven days and not more than ten days before each fixture.

24.    The top two teams in each Division shall receive a set of mementoes. Clubs having one or more teams competing shall not allow players to compete for mementoes in more than one team,

25.    The League allows only for three mementoes to champions and runners-up of each Division. All extra mementoes above three per team, shall be applied for, and, permission being granted, the cost shall be defrayed by the club concerned.

26.    No club shall receive any trophies until all outstanding monies are paid.

27.    The Committee shall have power to withhold the trophies from any club at its discretion.

28.    When a game is being played the home Captain must ensure that there is no outside interference.

29.    Members of all teams competing in all sections must wear officially approved clothing. A playing shirt, shorts or skirt shall be mainly of a uniform colour other than white, but the collar and sleeves of a playing shirt may be of contrasting colour or colours other than white.

30.    Matches shall be played in accordance with the current Laws of Table Tennis as adopted by the ETTA.

31.    All premises should have adequate lighting over (a) the table and (b) the adjacent playing area as defined in Rule 32.
For those rooms with a light background, an orange ball should be used if one can be made available.

32.    There should be a clear playing area of not less than 21 feet by 13 feet.


‘Warburton Cup’
    (This competition is for all teams in the League).
‘Brian Gittins Cup’
    (This competition is for the Premier Division and Division 1.)
‘George Yates Trophy’
    (This competition is for teams in Divisions 2 & 3.)
‘Ron Hindle Memorial Trophy’
    (This competition is for teams in Divisions 4 & 5.)

1.    Entry to cup competitions is by request at the time of team registration.

2.    The entire control and management of the Competitions shall be vested in the Table Tennis Committee.

3.    A team shall consist of three players. Nine Singles (sets) will be played each to be the best of five games. The home team shall enter their players on the match card followed by the away team and the sets played as follows - 1x2 3x1 2x3 3x2 1x3 2x1 3x3 2x2 1x1.

4.    A team shall be deemed to constitute those players registered for that team. In the event of a qualified player not being available, a player from a lower ranked team may be included.
    If no lower ranked players are available the team must comprise only those players who are qualified according to this Rule. In order to play a semi-final and final a player must have played in 50% of league matches from the date of their registration and up to the semi-final and final. Any sets not played as a result of not playing a full team must be forfeited.
    No fines will be levied for playing incomplete teams under the foregoing circumstances. However, if a team fails to honour a fixture without informing the opposition and Match Secretary, they will be fined £12.
    Should any team include a player who is not eligible according to this Rule then it shall forfeit three sets for each ineligible player and a fine of £3.00 will be imposed for each ineligible player participating in such a match.

5.    The Committee will work out the handicap as follows:
Teams with 1 or 2 team separation are played off scratch;
3 to 10 separation +2; 11 to 18 +3; 19 to 26 +4; 27 to 34 +5;
35 to 42 +6;  43 to 50 +7;  51 and above +8.
If a team is a fixture down for any reason, five points will be added to their league points for each match down and their position adjusted within their division before the handicap is worked out.

6.    All cup-ties are to be played on the home night of the home team. If this is shared with another team then whichever team has to change must offer another date to their opponents. All cup finals should be played at a neutral venue.
Cups and Trophies

7.    Cups and Trophies cannot be won outright and at all times will remain in the custody of the League. Should a club following presentation of a cup/trophy wish to take temporary custody then the recipient shall sign a receipt undertaking full responsibility as per regulations laid down by the League. Cups and trophies must be returned to the Match Secretary (if necessary via the Hilton Centre) in good condition at least two weeks prior to the presentation evening, otherwise a £3 fine will be imposed.

8.    The interpretation of these Rules and any matters not provided for in the Rules shall be dealt with by the Committee as it deems fit.
Inter-league

1. All Inter-league teams must be entered through the Committee.
2. All senior Inter-league teams should pay their own expenses and fines.