Rules of skittles
RULES of the HEREFORD AND DISTRICT INVITATION SKITTLE LEAGUE
Adopted 7th July 1981
1. DESIGNATION.
This constitution of Clubs shall be called ‘Hereford and District Invitation Skittle League’. In these Rules ‘Club’ means any combination of players organised as a separate skittle team.
2. OBJECTS.
The Objects of the League shall be to organise the game of skittles in Hereford City and District by promoting competitions and in all other ways.
3. HEADQUARTERS.
The Headquarters of the League for an ensuing season shall be determined by the Executive Committee at its first meeting and shall be at premises providing facilities for clubs in membership, which can provide proper accommodation for meetings of the Executive Committee, provided that such premises shall be situated within the City of Hereford.
4. MEMBERSHIP.
Membership of the League shall be confined to clubs accepted at the Annual General Meeting of the League who play their home games on an alley approved by the League, the situation of such alley being within a radius of seven miles from High Town, Hereford, as laid down at the Annual General Meeting from time to time.
Before 1st July in each year Clubs already in membership of the League shall give written notification to the Honorary Secretary of their intention to continue their membership in the next succeeding season. Clubs failing to send such notification in due time shall be treated as and deemed to be new applicants.
Notification of intention to continue membership of the League will not be accepted from teams indebted to the League on 30th June in any year.
All notifications of intention to continue membership and all applications for membership shall state the alley and evening on which home games are to be played and shall be accompanied by a list of players to be registered by the Club, such lists to be binding on the Clubs and players named therein.
The League shall accept no financial responsibility for Clubs in membership.
5. ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING.
The Annual General Meeting of the League shall be held in July of each year at a venue and on a date to be fixed by the Executive Committee.
Each Club in membership of the League at the preceding 30th April shall appoint one representative and such representatives together with members of the Executive of the League shall be entitled to speak and vote at the meeting.
Any bona-fide playing member of the clubs in membership of the League on the preceding 1st July and one representative of each new applicant for membership of the League may attend the Annual General Meeting and, with the consent of the President or other presiding, may speak but not vote.
6. SPECIAL GENERAL MEETING.
A Special General Meeting of Clubs currently in membership of the League shall be held within twenty-one days of the receipt by the Hon. Secretary of a written requisition, signed on behalf of not less than 10 per cent of the Clubs in membership of the League, specifying the business proposed to be transacted at the meeting.
The Special General Meeting shall have power to order the Clubs calling the meeting to pay the expenses of the Executive Committee in convening the meeting.
The Executive Committee shall have the power to convene a Special General Meeting at any time and shall state the business proposed to be transacted thereat.
7. REPRESENTATION OF CLUBS AT GENERAL MEETING.
Clubs not represented at a General Meeting of the League shall be liable to a fine under Rule 20.
8. FORMATION AND CONSTITUTION OF THE LEAGUE.
Clubs in membership of the League shall be allocated to divisions composing of not more than 16 teams by the Annual General Meeting on the recommendations of the Executive Committee, in making such recommendations the Executive Committee shall ensure that at least three teams are promoted from each of the lower divisions and that the filling of vacancies and constitution of new divisions is affected by appropriate relegation from the higher divisions.
All new applicants shall be entered in the lowest division.
9. OFFICERS.
The Annual General Meeting shall appoint the following officers from amongst persons nominated at the meeting by any representative having power to vote:
1. President
2. Vice-presidents
3. Hon Secretary
4. Hon Treasurer
5. Assistant Hon. Secretary
6. Auditor(s)
The President shall hold office for a period of three years and shall be eligible for re-election as President. All other officers shall be elected for a period of one year and shall be eligible for reelection. Casual vacancies shall be filled by the Executive Committee and the person appointed shall hold office until the next succeeding Annual General Meeting.
10. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE.
The League shall be managed by an Executive Committee comprising the officers elected under Rule 9; the immediate Past President and fifteen other members elected by the Annual General Meeting (elected members), one third of such elected members retiring annually.
An elected member shall hold office for a period of three years and shall be eligible for re-election at the expiration of such period.
A casual vacancy amongst elected members shall be filled by the Executive Committee, who shall appoint the unsuccessful candidate having the highest number of votes at the last election of such members and shall serve for the unexpired period of his predecessor.
The Executive Committee shall have power to co-opt not more than two members of experience, without power to vote except on matters for which co-opted, for any specific purpose of management.
An elected member failing to attend three consecutive meetings of the Committee except for reasons acceptable to the Committee shall be deemed to have resigned his membership.
11. POWERS AND PROCEEDINGS OF THE EXECUTVE COMMITTEE.
The Executive Committee shall elect a Chairman and Vice Chairman from amongst the elected members of the Committee.
The Chairman of a meeting of the Committee shall have a casting vote.
Meetings of the Committee shall be convened from time to time by the Hon. Secretary on the instructions of the Chairman, or by the President or Chairman if the Hon. Secretary should fail to act. Meetings of the Committee shall be held monthly on the first Monday of the Month.
The quorum of the Executive Committee shall be five.
The Committee shall be under a duty to manage the affairs of the League in a prudent and businesslike manner and in particular it shall deal with:
(a) All infringements of these Rules and the Rules of the game of skittles.
(b) All protests lodged by Clubs.
(c) Complaints of misconduct by Clubs or players. In such a manner as the Committee thinks fit and may declare forfeit any deposit or guarantee. The Committee shall have the power to expel any Club or Player persistently breaking the Rules of the League, subject to a right of appeal by the Club or Player to a properly convened Special General Meeting.
The Committee shall have power to:
(a) Form sub-committees and delegate functions thereto.
(b) Join in skittle competitions organised under the auspices of other bodies.
(c) Associate with other bodies one of whose main functions is the promotion or furtherance of skittles.
(d) Select alleys on which the semi-final and final rounds of the League’s competitions shall be played.
The proceedings of the Executive Committee shall be reported to the Annual General Meeting.
12. COMMUNICATIONS.
All communications shall be addressed to the Hon. Secretary at such place laid down by the Executive Committee from time to time and the Hon. Secretary shall conduct the correspondence of the League.
13. FINANCE AND ACCOUNTS.
(a) Guarantees: Each Club in membership shall deposit with the League such sum as may be fixed by the Annual General Meeting from time to time as security for fulfillment of the Clubs obligations to the League. Such guarantees shall be refunded to the club on cessation of membership if the Executive Committee certifies that all obligations have been discharged.
(b) Annual Subscriptions: Each Club in membership shall pay, at least seven days before the commencement of the season, an annual subscription of such an amount as fixed by the Annual General Meeting from time to time.
(c) Registration Fees: A registration fee of such an amount as fixed by the Annual General Meeting from time to time shall be paid in respect of each player registered by and for a Club. Registration fees in respect of at least 14 players shall be paid by each Club accepted into membership of the League not less than seven days before the commencement of the season.
(d) Transfer Fees: The Annual General Meeting from time to time shall fix a fee to be payable in respect of each player requesting transfer from one Club to another.
(e) Miscellaneous:
i.The Executive Committee may order a match or matches to be played in each season in aid of League funds.
ii. The Executive Committee shall have power to convene a Special General Meeting for authority to raise additional funds when necessary.
iii. The Executive Committee may from time to time fix a sum payable in respect of Clubs and players as entry fees and registration fees for competitions organised by the League except the Front Pin K.O Competition and the League K.O Competition.
iv. All fees, subscriptions and fines, but not guarantees nor the income of the Charity Fund shall be available to meet the expenses of running the League, including the provision of prizes.
(f) Accounts: The Hon. Treasurer of the League shall cause proper accounts to be kept and shall circulate a copy of the accounts at least seven days before the Annual General Meeting. He/she shall report to the Executive from time to time as instructed by the Committee. The accounts relating to the Charity Fund shall be kept separate and distinct from those of the League.
14. LEAGUE TROPHIES AND ASSETS.
All trophies and assets vested in the League, whether by donation, loan or purchase, shall be deemed to be in the ownership of the President, Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the League for the time being and they shall be under a duty to ensure that such trophies and assets are insured against risk of loss or damage to a full value thereof.
Trophies shall be held by Clubs winning such competitions promoted by the League as shall be determined by the Executive Committee from time to time having regard to the wishes of the donors of the trophies, providing that such trophies shall be returned to the Hon. Secretary not less than one month before the termination of the competition for which they are to be awarded. Clubs failing to return trophies in accordance with this Rule shall be liable to a fine under Rule 20.
The cost of repair to trophies in a damaged condition when returned to the League at the end of the season shall be chargeable to the team returning them. (04/07/2018)
The Executive Committee shall take steps to re-possess trophies in the event of a team seceding from the League or if, in the opinion of the Committee proper care is not being taken of such trophies.
The League at its expense shall inscribe all trophies with the names of winners.
The winners and runners-up in each competition promoted by the League may be awarded prizes, either in cash or in kind of a value to be determined by the Executive Committee from time to time.
Should Cup or Cups be returned in a dirty condition, the bill for cleaning will be paid by the offending Club.
Teams/Personnel who fail to attend the Presentation Evening to collect their trophy shall be fined £15.00.
15. FIXTURES.
The date upon which all matches for League and cup games shall be played are to be arranged by or under the supervision of the Executive Committee. All such matches must be played on or before the date so fixed except on cases of emergency ONLY. Except in cases of emergency a Club not able to play on the date fixed shall give not less that eight days written notice of such inability to the opposing team and to the Hon. Secretary.
In cases of emergency a Club unable to play must contact the opposing team, the Hon Secretary and the proprietor of the alley by telephone, with a reason, at the earliest opportunity, with a follow up letter to the opposing team and the Hon Secretary.
If any team calls off a match not deemed an emergency, then the match will be forfeited and two points awarded to their opponents and the team fined £10 as per Rule 20. The team has the right to appeal in writing to the Executive Committee.
If a game is to be re-arranged a new date is to be organised by the team unable to play, before half way for games in the first half of the season and two weeks before the end of the season for later games, or on a date previously agreed by the Executive Committee. The opposing team must make every effort to assist with this. If this is not possible the game will be forfeited and 2 points awarded to the opposition. The team has the right to appeal in writing to the Executive Committee.
The Executive Committee will investigate any cancelled game to ensure fair play and will penalise an offending team or teams as Committee sees fit.
Definition of an Emergency - Heavy snowfall within 48 hours of the match being played, power cut, flood, fire, sudden death of an organising member of a team, sudden unexpected closure of a venue or venue being unavailable.
Singles and pairs matches MUST be played on the date designated by the Executive Committee.
The minimum number of players to start a league game shall be 8 and (the maximum being 12).
A team having 8 or more players but less than 12 by the commencement of a match shall be allowed to insert a default score in both the number 11 and 12 positions only on the scoreboard. A team playing with 11 players will insert the figure 5 in each leg in the number 12 position and a team playing with 10 players will insert the figure 5 in each leg in the number 12 position and 4 in each leg in the number 11 position. (06/07/22).
16. TIMES OF START OF MATCHES.
All matches organised by the League shall start at 8.00 pm. All players shall be present on the alley and their names entered on the scoreboard by 8.15 pm the same evening. Captains are to ensure that all players bowl expeditiously in proper order. Permission to bowl in and out may only be given by the opposing Captain who shall be satisfied as to the reason for the request.
17. RESULT SHEETS.
The result of each match organised by the League and the names of the players taking part, shall be signed by both captains after comparison with the scoreboard, and sent to the Assistant Hon. Secretary by the home team so as to reach him by noon on the Monday next following the match. Clubs not complying with the Rule shall be fined under Rule 20 subject to a right of appeal to the Executive Committee.
18. PROTESTS.
All protests shall be made in writing to the Hon. Secretary and be accompanied by a deposit of such amount as is fixed by the Annual General Meeting from time to time. Protests shall be dealt with by the Executive Committee who may order the deposit to be forfeit to the funds of the League in the event of the protest being deemed frivolous.
The Executive Committee shall not receive or consider a protest relating to any matter within the purview of a linesman if they are satisfied that no linesman was appointed in accordance with the rules of the game of skittles.
19.APPROACHING.
Any Club guilty of inducing or attempting to induce a bone-fide player (as defined in Rule 8 of the rules of the game of skittles) to leave another Club in membership of the League except during the months of May and June shall be deemed guilty of misconduct and shall be liable to a fine under Rule 20.
20. PENALTIES.
The Annual General Meeting may from time to time fix such penalties as is thought desirable to secure the best compliance with these rules and such penalties shall be imposed and enforced by the Executive Committee in their discretion except where otherwise laid down.
(a) Any team playing unregistered players shall be fined £10.00 for each unregistered player, scores of such players to be deducted from total score (a bone-fide member of a Club is one who has been registered with the Hon. Secretary or Assistant Secretary of the League prior to start of the game or with the prior agreement of the opposing captain before playing). (04/07/2018)
(b) Transfers shall not be granted after a competition has been half completed, and shall take effect 24 hours after being granted. Note: Pursuant to Rule 20 the Annual General Meeting of the League has fixed the penalties as follows:
Rule No. 7 - Fine not exceeding £5.00
Rule No. 14 - Fine not exceeding £15.00
Rule No. 15 - Fine £10.00
Rule No. 17 - Fine not exceeding £5.00 (doubled if not paid within 14 days)
Rule No. 19 - Fine not exceeding £2.00
21. OPERATION OF RULES.
These rules were adopted at a Special General Meeting of Hereford and District Skittle League held on 15th July 1966, and supersedes all existing rules as from that date.
No alteration shall be made in or to these rules except by a clear majority of 10 representatives present and voting at a General Meeting convened after giving not less than 14 days notice of the amendment proposed and the effect thereof.
Note: The Annual General Meeting has fixed the sums payable pursuant to Rule 11 as under :
Annual subscription £40.00 per team
Transfer fee £0.50
Registration fee £4.00 per player
Deposit to accompany protest £5.00
Rules of the Game of Skittles as played by Hereford & District Invitation Skittle League
1. General:
These rules have been formulated at an Annual General Meeting of Hereford and District Invitation Skittle League held at the Richmond Place Club, Hereford, on 4th July, 1981 and may only be amended, after giving due notice of the amendment proposed, by a General Meeting of that League.
2. Application:
Rules 3 to 14 inclusive apply to all games played under the auspices of the League.
3. Alleys:
Alley length: Shall not be less than 33 feet (10.058m) and not more than 39 feet (11.887m) between the line and the front pin.
Alley width: 4 feet (1.219m) from cushion to cushion.
Cushions shall be cut off level with the line and, if possible, level with the front pin. Cushions not cut off level with the front pin shall be coloured white from that point to the end, and where the cushion is so cut off a white line one inch in width shall be laid from the cut to the pit.
The line at the bowler’s end shall be two inches wide.
The frame shall conform to the standard possessed by the League. Cups on the frame shall be coloured white and kept coloured during the progress of all competitions, the disc being the same size as the base of the pins.
Alleys should possess adequate lighting without dazzle; adequate heating; a suitable scoreboard placed near the frame where possible; a chute; and must be made and kept clean during games. Illumination of pins should be from a source so placed as to avoid shadow at the front of No.1 pin.
A copy of these rules should be exhibited on the alley.
4. Pins:
Pins used in games promoted by the League shall be those obtainable through the League, all of which shall be of a uniform size.
Four pins, and no more, shall be numbered with one numeral only on the neck respectively 1, 2, 3 and 4 in white characters three inches in height, and such numbers shall be visible at all times from the bowler’s end.
No.1 pin shall be placed in front, No.2 pin on the right of the front pin, No.3 on the left of the front pin and No.4 at the rear of the frame looking from the bowler’s end.
The Executive Committee of the League shall have power to condemn unsatisfactory pins.
5. Balls:
The balls shall be of rubber, or be rubber covered, of a maximum diameter of five inches and a minimum diameter of four inches.
Each ball in set shall be of equal size, and shall be obtained through the League.
The Executive Committee of the League shall have the power to condemn unsatisfactory balls.
All matches shall be played with the balls of the home club, and matches played with balls not conforming to this rule shall be declared void.
6. Bowling:
A ball shall be delivered by the bowler from behind the white line, without restriction as to the position of the bowler, and shall strike the alley before crossing the white line. When the ball crosses the line it shall be considered in play. A ball striking the alley on the line shall be a good ball and in play. A ball not so delivered (an ‘over’ ball) and a ball hitting the cushion after crossing the white line (a ‘cush’ ball) shall be a ‘foul’ ball. All pins knocked down by a foul ball shall stay down and not be counted in the score. Should a foul ball knock down all the remaining pins, no other balls of that leg shall be bowled by that player, and pins which have been knocked down by a ball in play in that leg shall not be replaced for the purposes of a spare.
*Please note, an 'over' ball can only be deemed a 'foul' ball by a Linesman appointed by the League. The Committee will not accept complaints regarding 'over' balls.
A ball hitting the cushion where painted white between the front pin and the pit, or crossing the white line in the same position or passing No.4 pin shall be considered a ‘dead‘ ball and pins knocked down by such a ball returning to the alley shall be replaced as near as may be in the position they occupied before being knocked down.
7. Scoring:
After being hit by a ball in play, or by other pins hit by a ball in play, a pin shall be deemed to be knocked down if it is in a horizontal position within the inside limits of the cushions, and shall be considered ‘live’ so as to be capable of knocking other pins down until such time as all pins and the ball have become stationary or dead.
A pin completely over the white line between the front pin and the pit, or hitting the cushion painted white in the same position, shall be considered ‘dead’ and knocked down, and any pins subsequently knocked down by such a pin returning to the alley after becoming dead shall be replaced as near as may be in the position they occupied before being knocked down.
Only pins knocked down legitimately shall count towards the score.
8. Eligibility of Players:
Any bona-fide member of a club shall be allowed to play for a team and take part in other competitions promoted by the League provided he has not been registered for any other Club in the same season.
A bone-fide member of a Club is one who has been registered with the Hon. Secretary or Assistant Secretary of the League prior to start of the game or the with the prior agreement of the opposing captain before playing.
In the event of a player being registered for two or more clubs, priority of registration by the Hon. Secretary shall determine the Club for which the player is eligible to play.
All players shall sign the official registration form of the League.
With the consent of his Club Secretary, and the Secretary of the team for which he wishes to play, the registration of a player may be transferred by the Hon. Secretary on receipt of a valid form of transfer. In the event of the Club for which the player is registered objecting to the proposed transfer, the application shall be referred to the Executive Committee who shall require the attendance of the player to present his case.
Transfers shall not be granted after a competition has been half completed, and shall take effect 24 hours after being granted.
The scores of ineligible players taking part in a match shall be deleted from the score sheet and shall not count towards the result of a match.
In the event of less than twelve players being present at the start of a game a person who may be present be allowed to sign on and play with the agreement of both captains. Both captains to sign the scorecard and the player concerned to sign to say that he is not signed on with any other team, the correct signing on fee to accompany the scorecard.
9. Linesman:
One linesman (and a deputy if thought fit) may be selected by the mutual agreement of both Captains, or be appointed by the Executive Committee, and if a linesman officiates his decision on all matters pertaining to the game shall be final.
No Club may protest on any matter within the linesman’s purview unless a linesman officiated.
10. Play-offs and Replayed Games:
If a play-off or a replay results in a tie after the normal duration of the game, the teams concerned will play leg and leg, after tossing for choice of bowling, until a decision is reached.
11. Friendly Games:
Friendly games are not played by any team on an alley on which they are drawn to play in the next following round of a knock-out competition after the draw for that round has been published by the Hon. Secretary.
12. Stickers’ Fees:
In League Championship games, the home team will bear the cost of stickers’ fees. In all other games the cost will be shared equally between teams and/or players as the case may be.
13. Duties of ‘Home’ Team:
It shall be the duty of the home team to ensure that the alley complies with Rule 3 in all respects, that the result of the match is transmitted to the Assistant Hon Secretary, and that stickers’ fees are paid. In this rule, ‘Home Team’, so far as it relates to knock-out competitions played on neutral alleys, shall mean the team shown on the left-hand side when the draw is made, but such team shall not be responsible for the alley on which the match is to be played.
14. Penalties:
The Annual General Meeting of the League shall from time to time fix such penalties as it deems desirable for the better enforcement of these rule so far as they are applicable to games organised by the League.
LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIPS
15. Teams shall consist of twelve players.
16. Games shall comprise four legs bowled in the following order:
(a) Legs one and three shall be bowled by players in the order 1-12. Legs two and four shall be bowled by players in the order 12-1.
(b) The home team shall open the bowling with leg one, followed by legs one and two by the opponents, followed by legs two and three by the home team, followed by legs three and four by the opponents, followed by leg four by the home team.
17. The results of matches will be determined by pins knocked down legitimately.
18. Two points shall be awarded for a win and one point for a draw. The Clubs scoring the highest number of points in each competition shall be deemed the Champions and runners-up of their respective Divisions. In the event of teams being equal in points, those teams shall play to finish on a neutral alley to be selected by the Executive Committee.
19. The Executive Committee may order additional play-offs to decide final positions within a division if, in the opinion of the Committee, their recommendations for promotion and relegation may be affected thereby.
FRONT PIN KNOCK-OUT COMPETITION
20. Teams shall consist of 10 players. (03/07/2019).
21. Games shall comprise four legs. The first named team shall be deemed to be the home team responsible for the alley, sticker and scorecard. Teams will toss for choice of bowling with legs being bowled as Rule 16 (a).
22. The front pin must be knocked down first by a legitimate ball to score. If the front pin falls after being hit by other pins, or by a ball which has previously hit any other pin, the front pin, but no other, shall be replaced.
23. If the front pin is knocked down by a foul ball, no further balls may be delivered by that player in that leg.
24. The result of a match will be determined by pins knocked down in accordance with Rules 7 and 22. 25. In the event of a tie, further legs to be bowled until a result is achieved after first tossing for choice of bowling.
KNOCK OUT CUP COMPETITION
26. The rules relating to the League Championship shall apply, except as varied by Rules 27 and 28.
27. The first named team shall be deemed to be the home team responsible for the alley, sticker and scorecard. Teams will toss for choice of bowling.
28. Four legs will be bowled alternatively with 10 players playing against each other as singles, pairs, triple and foursomes. The winners of each combination shall receive one point. Should there be a draw - the team scoring the greatest total number of pins shall be declared the winner. If still a draw then the captains shall nominate a player each to bowl off until a result is achieved.
SINGLES AND PAIRS COMPETITIONS
29. The competition shall be run on a knock-out basis, player against player and pair against pair.
30. The order of play and alleys upon which games are drawn to be played shall be determined by lot.
31. Games shall comprise four legs, the left-hand side first bowling one leg from No.1 to the last player, followed by one leg from the right-hand side in the same order. Thereafter each side shall play one leg in turn, the players bowling in the same order.
32. In the event of a tie after four legs, the players shall play off, first tossing for choice of bowling, and each player shall bowl three balls until a decision is reached.
33. The person in charge of a game, who shall be deemed to be a linesman for the purpose of Rule 9, shall call the roll at 8.15pm and shall delete from the competition all players not then on the alley. Both partners in a pair must be present.
34. Players taking part in the Pair Competition must, at the time of entry, be registered for the same Club. Three players can be registered so any two can form the pair for all rounds. No reserves will be allowed.
SUMMER CUP COMPETITION
35. Teams consist of six players of either gender.
36. Games comprise six legs, the player bowling from No.1 to No.6 in each leg.
37. The home team shall bowl two legs, followed by two legs from the opposing team, and so on.
38. Sections will consist of not more than eight teams, no two of whom shall play on the same alley, and shall be formed by lot.
39. The Chairman and Secretary of the League shall determine all questions arising in connection with the Competition.
40. The rules relating to League Championship games shall apply, subject to Rules 35 to 40 inclusive.
CHARITY CUP COMPETITION
41. Teams consist of eight players of either gender.
42. Games comprise five legs, and are played on Saturday night.
43. The competition shall be run as a knock-out competition.
44. In addition to the duties imposed by Rule 13, the home team shall be responsible for running a draw in aid of the Charity Fund, and shall be assisted by the opposing team.
45. In the event of a tie the teams shall play off by playing extra legs untill a result is achieved after first tossing for choice of bowling.
MAN FOR MAN TROPHY
46. The rules relating to League Championship shall apply except as varied by rules 47, 48 and 49.
47. Teams shall toss for choice of bowling.
48. Four legs will be bowled alternatively.
49. Scoring will be on singles competition basis i.e. Number 1 plays Number 1: Number 2 plays Number 2: and so on. Should there be a draw - the team scoring the greatest total number of pins shall be declared the winner. If still a draw then the captains shall nominate a player each to bowl off until a result is achieved.
H & DISL. July 2023