SECTION 3 – MATCH RULES FOR ALL COMPETITIONS
1. All matches shall commence at 7.15pm. In the event of a team not being represented within half-an-hour after the specified time, the maximum number of points will be awarded to the opposing team. Should any player not be present within 15 minutes of his/her turn to play, he/she shall forfeit one frame of Snooker or 50 points at Billiards. Should any player not be present within 30 minutes of his/her turn to play, he/she shall forfeit the match.
2. In individual matches should any player not be present by the specified time they will be penalised one frame of snooker or 50 points at billiards for every 15 minutes they are late. Should any player not be present within 30 minutes of the specified time they will forfeit the match.
Note: There is no onus on any player to claim matches. Violation of the above rule will result in the disqualification of the offending player.
3. In the event of a player or snooker team not being fully represented at any match, the player or snooker team will be fined £10.00 for each player short, to be paid by the captain. Where a player or players fail to turn up for an individual or pairs knockout match without notifying the Competition Secretary in advance, the player(s) may be banned from all of the following season’s individual and pairs knockout matches.
4. The League fixtures and any subsequent play offs are the responsibility of the League Fixtures Secretary. Arrangements for all Knockout Competitions (i.e. dates, notifications, etc) are the responsibility of the Competition Secretary - both Secretaries being appointed at the A.G.M. Arrangements for the finals and venues will be the responsibility of the Executive Committee.
5. All team league matches must be played on the published date. Captains may submit a request to the League Fixtures Secretary for a team league match to be played before the published date, which will be subject to the opposing captain’s agreement and venue availability. Postponement of matches may only be initiated by the League Fixtures Secretary to accommodate special circumstances (e.g. club AGM’s).
a. Postponement of knockout matches will not be allowed without the permission of the Competition Secretary, under the following guidelines:
i. Players / teams requesting a postponement of a knockout match must put in a request to the Competition Secretary at least 5 days before the fixture date, and can only be less in circumstances where the fixture has been set with less than 7 days’ notice.
ii. If a match is not completed on the published date, both players / pairs / teams will be eliminated from the competition. Only if a player / pair / team can provide conclusive evidence to the Competition Secretary that their opponent(s) initiated the postponement will they be reinstated to the competition.
iii. In the event that a walkover has been awarded but the beneficiary player refuses to accept it, this must be brought to the attention of the Competition Secretary at the earliest opportunity. The Competition Secretary will decide on the most appropriate course of action after consideration of the situation and the reasons behind the player’s withdrawal and their opponent’s refusal to accept.
iv. No player or team can request more than one postponement of a knockout match in a season.
v. Only in very exceptional circumstances can point i) be broken - and if subsequently found to be frivolous, players / teams will be eliminated.
vi. The decision of the Competition Secretary is final.
b. If it is not possible to complete a match on the scheduled night because of external influences (e.g. power cut), then the League Fixtures Secretary or Competition Secretary should be notified at the earliest opportunity. The League Fixtures Secretary or Competition Secretary will arrange a new date to either resume or replay the fixture depending on the following:
i. Teams and individuals are expected to wait for as long as is reasonably practical for the match to start, but where this is not possible, a new date to replay the fixture will be agreed.
ii. Where a match has commenced and frames have been completed, those scores will be retained towards the final score on the agreed resumption date. Any frames that are not completed will be void and will start from the break off upon resumption.
iii. Resumed team matches will be played as per the originally drawn pairings – any change to the order of play can be agreed by the captains.
6. The Home League team, Knockout team or individual shall be responsible for forwarding the result card of all matches to the relevant Secretary, within 48 hours. Failing which that League team will be liable to a total loss of points scored or the home Knockout team or individual liable to disqualification.
The result card should be signed by the captains involved or by the referee responsible for the individual match concerned, entering any break or important note of achievement during such games.
7. Home players in all snooker matches to be marked as spot on the scoreboard.
8. Please respect the rules of dress of the clubs that you visit.
9. All games shall be played under the rules of the World Professional Billiards & Snooker Association. Snooker and billiards balls of an approved composition shall be supplied by the affiliated club on whose table(s) the match is played. All GB&SA snooker matches must be played with the same tournament standard snooker balls, namely Aramith Tournament Champion Snooker Balls (2 1/16”, 142grams).
10. The use of mobile phones during matches is actively discouraged, as is any device that causes interference. Once a frame has commenced, this should be completed in full without any interruption. Smoking breaks between frames, if absolutely necessary, should be of no longer than three minutes duration. At all times, the rules of the clubs where matches are being held must be adhered to.