Rochester Squash Racquets Association (RSRA) City League Rules (Revised Nov 12 2006)

1 TEAM

a. Levels of play are as follows:
Division I = USSRA rating 3.6 - 4.4
Division II = USSRA rating 3.0 - 3.8
Division III = USSRA rating 2.2 - 3.2

The upper bound in each rating range is the enforced limit; the lower bound is a guideline to captains for selecting team members. There is no rating limit on the player playing in the top position for a Division I team in any regular season or playoff match.

b. Teams at a given level of play (Division I, II, III, etc.) will consist of either three or five players, to be decided by the League Committee prior to the start of the season.

c. No regular player can represent more than one club in any season.

d. Players may move to a higher or lower league during the season as a result of changes in the club ladder.

f. Team captains are to arrange their team lineups each week according to the most recent club ladder standings. A captain may alter a lineup only with the approval of the involved players and only for reasons which do not violate the principles of fair play. Moving a weak player up and the stronger players down in order to unfairly strengthen the lower team position is an example of flagrant violation. The penalty for all such infractions will be the forfeiture of all matches involved.

g. Where there are more than one team per division at each club, in the interest of fair play and balanced competition, it is expected that captains will balance the players evenly between the teams. The penalty for all such infractions will be the forfeiture of all matches involved.

2 ORGANIZATION

a. League divisions shall be divided into subdivisions based on the following formula:
Four to twelve teams - one subdivision.
Thirteen or more teams - two subdivisions.

b. Placement of teams within a division will be made by the League Committee with final approval given by the RSRA Board. Guidelines are based on the desire for balanced competition.

c. All clubs and teams must confirm their commitment to league play by a date specified by the
League Committee.

d. The League Committee shall complete the league schedules for the full season within two weeks of the date specified in 2.c. Each team shall play between 10 - 20 matches (depending on the season length and format) with approximately 50% played on their home court. However, the LeagueCommittee reserves the right to alter the number of home games due to scheduling conflicts. The Committee may include any of the following scheduling options to meet these conditions:
1. Play each team an equivalent number of times in the league.
2. Play each team once in the league plus random draw for additional matches to complete schedule.
3. Play each team within a division either once or twice plus a random draw to complete the schedule. Matches within division shall be on a home and away basis.
4. Position weeks.

e. Individual prizes shall be presented to each regular player of a division winning team. In five player leagues, there shall be a maximum of six individual prizes provided, and four prizes in three player leagues. Additional prizes may be purchased by a team for any individual who would have been qualified to represent the team in the playoffs.

f. Playoff format shall be defined by the League Committee prior to start of the season.

4. Round robin with the top three teams in each division playing at the first place winner’s club on the regularly scheduled league night.

Position one for each team plays two games against each of the other two teams’ position ones for a total of four games and similarly for positions two and three for a grand total of 12 games.

The winner is determined by a simple tally of wins for the 12 games.
Two-way ties for first place are broken by a single game between the position one players of the tied teams.
Three-way ties for first place are broken by a single game between the position one players of the home team and the team determined by a single game between the position two players of the second place and third place teams.

* Match shall be played on this team’s court.
** Match site to be on court of team with most wins or at an alternate location at the discretion of the League Chairperson.

g. Playing times and courts shall be scheduled by the League Committee each Monday following weekend play.

h. Prizes for the league championship shall be presented to the playoff winners. A maximum of four or six individual prizes shall be provided, based on team size.

i. In case of a tie in the number of wins, the following criteria shall be applied, in order, to break the ties. All ties, either for a position or a home court advantage shall be broken in this manner:

1. # matches won in head to head play.
2. # games won in head to head play.
3. # matches won against common opponents.
4. # games won against common opponents.
5. Flip of the coin by the League Chairperson.

3 RULES / COMPETITION

a. The League Committee will have the jurisdiction to move a player from one league to another if, upon review of the previous year’s competition, it is determined that the player is registered for an inappropriate category. The RSRA Board of Directors, including club representatives, is responsible for submitting names and records to the committee chairperson for consideration.

4 PLAYER ELIGIBILITY

a. All regular and substitute players must satisfy one of the following residence requirements:

1. He/she must be a permanent resident of Monroe County or one of the adjacent counties.

2. He/she must be a full-time student at one of the universities or colleges in Monroe County or the five-county surrounding area.

3. Any player who has not paid his/her US Squash dues before playing his/her third match will forfeit that match and all subsequent matches until his/her dues are paid. This rule will be strictly upheld through subsequent weeks of competition until the appropriate fees are received by either their team captain or the RSRA Treasurer.

5 SUBSTITUTES

b. Clubs may carry extra players who substitute for regular team members throughout the season. Substitutes may play for one club only. A substitute must play at a position commensurate with ability. Ability shall be judged by the team captain according to the player’s position on the club’s challenge ladder, city challenge ladder, performance in club matches or leagues, frequency of recent play, injuries, etc. The team lineup shall be adjusted such that the substitute’s position shall not be above that of a teammate of greater ability nor below that of a teammate of lesser ability.

c. A player from a higher league may not substitute in a lower league. Only the lowest positions of a team may be substituted for by players from a lower league. Regular team members must move up to fill any vacancies at the higher positions. An individual may play as a regular of his/her team as well as substitute for the higher team during the same week. The same player may not substitute for three consecutive weeks; a different player from a lower league must be used.

d. Non-members of the US Squash/RSRA may play as a substitute in any season two times. Any individual whoplays in a given season more than twice must be a paid member of the RSRA. Infractions of this rule will result in forfeiture of the matches involved.

e. A substitute playing for a team in a league playoff match (if not from a lower league) must have played with the team for at least 20% of its matches during the regular season and played at least half of his or her substitute matches for that team. “Play” in this case means either actually played on the court or won by default or forfeit.

f. If a substitute player is needed for a playoff match, and that substitute has not played in at least 20% of the league matches (as stated in 5e above), a waiver must be requested by the team captain. Waivers are granted by the RSRA Vice-President after consideration of the following: US Squash/RSRA dues paid, the substitute’s rating, and the circumstances.

6 SCHEDULING / RESCHEDULING

a. Matches are expected to be played at the scheduled times. Generally, Division I will play Tuesday evening, Division II will play Wednesday evening, and Division III will play Thursday evening. The specific nights may be modified at the discretion of the League Committee.

b. Flexible start times: Captains, by mutual agreement, will be able to communicate exact start times for individual players who do not want to wait around for the entire team’s matches to take place.

c. Rescheduling allowed: For personal emergencies and irresolvable conflicts, players will be allowed to negotiate alternate locations and match times within the same week as long as there is mutual team and player agreement. No player should feel obligated to agree to a reschedule request. If there is no agreement otherwise, captains are required to field a full team of players at the scheduled match time. This option should be used sparingly to preserve team camaraderie and to prevent empty courts at clubs where reservations need to be made in advance.

7 SCORING

a. A team will be awarded one point for each individual match (best three of five games) won.

b. Match results, including each player’s first and last names and games won, must be reported to the League Chairperson by the Sunday night following the scheduled date of play. Late or incomplete scores will not be counted in determining the league standings.

8 HOME COURT ADVANTAGE

The home team will assign courts for match play except under the following circumstances:
a. If the league match is the second visit of the season for the opposition, i.e., the opposition had no opportunity for home court advantage because of scheduling, the opposing team may assign courts at the scheduled match location for this second match.
b. All courts originally scheduled for matches must be used, i.e., a court may not be held open as a result of court assignments.
c. Court assignments at the scheduled match location for playoffs will be determined by a spin of the racquet between team captains.

9 DEFAULTS

a. An individual match will be defaulted if a player is not ready to play within 30 minutes of the scheduled time.
b. If a player defaults a match, either that position will be defaulted or the lower positions may move up and the lowest position will be defaulted.
c. Any match played by an ineligible player (see Rule 4) will be defaulted. The League Committee and team captains are responsible for enforcing this rule.

10 NO SHOWS

a. If any player simply fails to show without notifying his/her opponent or the opponent’s captain in advance, the match will not only be defaulted, but the absent player’s team will be PENALIZED ONE POINT from its MATCHES WON COLUMN. Notification will not be deemed to have occurred until the notifying player has received acknowledgement from the notified player or captain.
b. If a player no-shows a second time within the season, he/she is automatically barred from league play and league playoffs for the remainder of the league season. Appeals must be made in writing to RSRA Vice-President.

11 STANDINGS

a. League standings will be based on the the percentage of its matches won column divided by the total matches scheduled.

12 MATCH RULES AND INTERPRETATIONS

a. All US Squash rules apply to league matches. In all matches played without a referee, any point honestly disputed shall be ruled a let.
b. If a dispute cannot be resolved, it should be taken to the League Committee for settlement.c. RSRA members may appeal in written form to the RSRA Vice-President any decision made by theLeague Committee. The Vice-President will make the final ruling.
d. All players must wear protective eye wear consisting of non-metallic industrial safety or athletic frames with polycarbonate lenses (3 mm minimum thickness) covering the eye orbit. Full face masks of polycarbonate are also acceptable. A match will be forfeited if the protective eye wear is not worn during the match. To claim a forfeiture, a player must request his/her opponent to secure and wear the eye wear before the start of the match. An opponent has five minutes to secure the eye wear and begin the match to avoid forfeiture. RSRA officials (league coordinator, referee or Board member) may also request any player to wear eye protection prior to the start of the match or between any games during the match. Failure to comply within the five minute time allotment will result in forfeiture of the match. If both players fail to secure and wear eye protection, the matchwill not count in the standings.