Preston Table Tennis Association Mission Statement and Rules

Mission Statement

The Association shall be called the Preston Table Tennis Association (PTTA) and our membership will be confined to clubs within the postcode areas of PR (except PR8 & 9), subject to rules 3(p) and 3(q)

The PTTA's aim is to promote public interest in the game of Table Tennis and good fellowship amongst it's members.

The PTTA shall be affiliated to the Table Tennis England.

Rules

(a)  An Executive Committee shall manage the PTTA’s affairs.  The Executive Committee shall be elected at the PTTA's Annual General Meeting (AGM).

(b)  The Executive Committee shall consist of a Chairman, Vice-Chairman, General Secretary, Treasurer and no more than ten other elected members.

(c)  Each year the Executive Committee may appoint a President and Vice Presidents.

(d)  At the discretion of the Executive Committee a suitable recognition (honorarium) of services rendered shall be made each year to various members of the Executive Committee.

(e)  Five members of the Executive Committee will form a quorum, of whom two shall be officers.

(f)  The Executive Committee shall have the power to form sub-committees and to co-opt members.

(g)  During the playing season, the Executive Committee will meet at least once every calendar month. 

(h)  Any elected member who, during a playing season is absent from three meetings without reasonable cause, may be relieved of their elected position.

(i)  All clubs must send at least one representative to all summoned meetings.  Any club that fails to do this will be fined, as shown on the Associations Fees and Fines Appendix as agreed at the previous AGM and distributed thereafter, unless the General Secretary receives a satisfactory explanation within three days of the meeting being held.

(j)  Persistent offenders against PTTA league rules will be dealt with under Rule 5(i) with a club representative required to attend an Executive Committee Meeting.

(k)  The Executive Committee shall have the power to deal with any matter not provided for by these rules.

(l)  The Executive Committee has the power to call a Special General Meeting.  The Executive Committee must call a special General Meeting, if requested to do so by 30 or more PTTA members.

(m)  The AGM will be held by 31 May. 

(n)  At the AGM, each member of the Executive Committee will be allowed one vote.

(o)  Each club represented at the AGM will be allowed one vote for each of their teams that completed that years playing season.

(p)  Nominations from clubs for members of the Executive Committee must be in the hands of the General Secretary at least 28 days before the AGM.

(q)  Proposals from clubs for new rules and changes to existing rules must be in the hands of the General Secretary at least 28 days before the AGM or Special General Meeting.  No proposals received outside of this period will be accepted. These then to be supplied to clubs 14 days before AGM for them to discuss.

(r)  Rules may only be added, altered, or rescinded at an AGM or at a Special General Meeting and require the proposal to be supported by at least two thirds of those who are present at the meeting and entitled to vote.

(s)  The Financial Year will end on 31 March. At least two weeks before the AGM, one copy of an audited statement of accounts for the period up to and including 31 March will be supplied to each club.

(t)  The Treasurer will arrange for the PTTA's Balance Sheet to be drawn up prior to audit.

(u)  All surplus income or profits are retained by the club.  No surpluses or assets will be distributed to members or third parties. Any deficiency in funds of the PTTA shall at the discretion of the Executive Committee, be equally divided between the teams.

(v)  Two auditors shall be elected at the AGM.

2.   Dissolution of the PTTA

(a)  If the Committee by a simple majority decide at any time on the grounds of expenses or otherwise it is necessary or advisable to dissolve the Association & Club, the committee will call an Extraordinary meeting of all members of the PTTA giving not less than 28 days notice to the members.

(b)  If a proposal to dissolve the Association & Club is confirmed by a two-thirds majority of those members who are present, the committee shall dispose of any assets held by or on behalf of the Association & Club.

(c)  Any assets remaining after the satisfaction of any proper debts and liabilities shall be given or transferred to such other institutions having object similar to the objects of Preston Table Tennis Association as the committee may determine.

(d)  A final statement of accounts for the Association will be prepared.

3.   Registrations

(a)  Each club secretary must submit to the Match Registration and Competitions Committee (MRC) Secretary a completed club and team application form by 30th June prior to the start of the new playing season.

(b)  The Registration, Contact and Fixture List Meeting shall be held before the start of the season.

(c)  At the Handbook meeting, each club secretary must give the MRC:

·       A registration form for each player, together with the appropriate fee if the player is new to the league.

·       A ranking list of players in order of playing strength and the name of the team they will play for.

(d)  Before taking part in a league match, all players must be registered, ranked and prior sanction obtained from the MRC Secretary.

(e)  Each club shall divide its playing strength into teams of a minimum of three players.

(f)  At the discretion of the MRC a player may be starred (this means the player has been restricted to play for a particular team).

(g)  No player shall play below his or her ranked position.

(h)  No player shall play for more than one team on the same night, without prior permission from the official Duty Officer or MRC Secretary (authorisation should be documented onto the relevant match scorecard).

During a season, a player may play no more than three matches for a specific higher team than they have been ranked to play for. i.e. a player for a C team may play 3 times for both the A team AND the B team if he then plays up once more for either team he will then be a team member of the higher team for which he has played 4 times.

(i)  A club signing a new player after the start of the season must submit to the MRC Secretary a registration form and fee for the new player and a new ranking list including that new player in their correctly ranked position. This will be ratified by the MRC.

(j)  No player shall be registered for more than one club belonging to the PTTA at any one time.

(k)  If any PTTA member wants to transfer their registration from one PTTA club to another during the playing season, they must submit a transfer request in writing to the MRC Secretary. No transfers or registrations are allowed after 31 December, without good reason.  The MRC will decide the meaning of good reason.

(l)  All suggested alterations to a clubs ranking list must be submitted to the MRC Secretary for approval by the MRC. The previous ranking list will remain in force until the club is notified by the MRC in writing that the alteration is acceptable.

(m)  No player shall be allowed to leave one club and join another, without them first clearing all their outstanding debts owed to the first club.

(n)  Rule 5(i) will apply when any team plays an unregistered or ineligible player.

(o)  Subject to rules 3(p) and 3(q), registered PTTA players must live or have full time employment within the postcode areas of PR excluding PR8 & PR9.

(p) Each club is allowed to register two players per team who do not qualify under rule 3(o). For their games to count at the end of the season, each out of town player must have played at least 50% of their team's PTTA league fixtures from the date of their registration.

(q)  If an out of town player qualifies under 3(p) for three consecutive seasons, they will no longer be classed as an out of town player as long as they continue to play at least five matches a season in the PTTA league.

4.   Fees

(a)  The entrance fee for each team will be as shown on the Associations Fees and Fines Appendix as agreed at the previous AGM and distributed thereafter. Payable to the PTTA Treasurer at the Handbook meeting.

(b)  The National and County fees, laid down at the beginning of each season, shall be payable to the PTTA Treasurer at the Handbook meeting.

(c)  Clubs in arrears after 31 October may be expelled from the PTTA.

(d)  The individual registration fees shall be as shown on the Associations Fees and Fines Appendix as agreed at the previous AGM and distributed thereafter. These fees are payable by the 31 October, or the date of registration for the relevant playing season.

(e)  Fees for all Knock Out Competitions will be as shown on the Associations Fees and Fines Appendix as agreed at the previous AGM and distributed thereafter.

(f)  In the case where two teams, whose stated home venue is the St Augustine’s TT Centre, are drawn against each other in cup competitions, then the match fees will be equally shared between the two teams.

5.   League Divisions

(a)  Each year the playing season will begin no later than the first week in September.

(b)  A League Fixtures and Contact List shall be given to club secretaries at least 10 days before the start of the season's fixtures.

(c)  A club must submit any request for an alteration to the Contact and Fixture List to the MRC Secretary for approval. If their requested alteration causes a fixture change, the club must ensure their affected opponents are informed between 7 and 14 days prior to any scheduled match. The club should continue to do this until the MRC's approval is announced in the PTTA bulletin.

(d)  The League will consist of one Premier Division and as many other divisions as the MRC consider appropriate.

(e)  At the end of the playing season:

·       except for the premier division, the top two teams in each division will be offered promotion; and

·       except for the bottom division, the bottom two teams in each division will be relegated.

Promotion and relegation is subject to the number of teams entering or leaving the league prior to the start of a new season.

(f)  A team will earn one point for each game won in a match; each such point to count in the league table. The team with the highest number of points at the end of the season will be declared champions of their division.

Note: A match refers to the night’s competition between two teams; a game being between two people (unless the game is doubles) and an end being the first person(s) to 11pts or on both reaching 10pts, the first player(s) to lead by two points.

(g)  When teams finish the season on equal points and they are tying for the Championship, Runner-Up or Relegation positions, their final positions will be decided firstly on matches won, then on matches drawn and if teams are still tied, on the results in that season of matches between the tied teams. If all results are equal and the teams cannot be divided then a play-off (without doubles) will take place at the Centre on a designated date.

(h)  Individual awards will be given to the winners and runners-up of each division. Four  trophies will be awarded to the winners and runners-up in these competitions

(i)  Any player, team or club can be fined, expelled and /or have match points deducted (up to 20 per offence) by the MRC or Executive Committee for:

·       a breach of rules; and/or,

·       unsportsmanlike or ungentlemanly conduct.

·       consistent or persistent (more than once of any occurrence deemed unsportsmanlike) offending.

Any appeal against a decision made by the MRC or Executive Committee under this rule should be submitted in writing to the General Secretary within 14 days of the notification of their decision.

(j)  In the event of a team withdrawing or being expelled from the PTTA, all the matches played by that team, no matter what the result, will be treated as void and deleted from the league tables.

(k)  Any player under the age of 18 on the 31 December will be eligible to play during the whole of that season as a junior.

6.   Knock- out Competitions

(a)  Premier Division teams will compete for the L.E.P. Trophy.

(b)  Division 1 teams will compete for the Peggy Scarsbrook Trophy.

(c)  Division 2 teams will compete for the Springfield Trophy.

(d)  Each additional division will have a cup allocated to it.

(e)  Teams will be made up of three players.  The match will consist of nine games of singles. The winner will be the first team to win five games.  There will be no doubles game.  Only three trophies will be awarded to the winners and runners-up in these competitions

(f)  Players will not be allowed to play for more than one team in the same division. Players will be allowed to play for a higher team in a different divisional cup competition.

(g)  Home advantage will be decided by a draw made by the MRC.

(h)  Ranking positions submitted by a team at the start of each competition will apply throughout the competition.

A player subsequently promoted in his/her league ranking position may stay with his/her original competition team. If however a player is promoted in that competition, they may not then return to play for their original team while it is still left in the same competition.

(i)  Where a fixed week is laid down for a match, the home team’s usual match night will be used except in the following cases:

·       If two teams of the same club are drawn at home on the same night, or

·       If a team is drawn to play in two competitions on the same night.

In both cases the home club should confirm one match and re-arrange the other with their opponents.

(j)  No league matches shall be postponed in order to accommodate cup games.

(k)  The umpire of each game is responsible for completing the result on the appropriate row of the match scorecard. When the match has been completed, both captains must sign the scorecard.

(l)  It is the responsibility of the winning team to forward the card to the Competition Secretary. The Competition Secretary must be able to find the scorecard at the Centre on the week of the completion of the match, unless the club is based away from St Augustine’s Centre. If this is the case the match card details should be e-mailed direct to the Competition Secretary. Failure to do this may result in a fine as shown on the Associations Fees and Fines Appendix as agreed at the previous AGM and distributed thereafter.

7.   Team Handicaps

(a)  Teams will consist of 3 players, each player playing the three of the other team.

(b)  A match will be comprised of 18 games consisting of nine singles (sets) of two games each. Individual games will finish at 21; if 20 all is reached, the person winning the next point wins the game.

(c)  At the end of the nine sets, the total points gained by each team across the whole 18 games shall be added up and the appropriate team handicap added on to determine the result of the match. The team with the highest total number of points - including their handicap - will be the winner.  In the unlikely event of a drawn match, the Away team will progress in the competition.

(d)  The team handicap will be determined by the MRC based on the individual team member’s handicaps which will be established and published before the competition commences.  

8.   Match Play

(a)  All matches will be played under the Laws of Table Tennis as adopted by Table Tennis England.

(b)  In all divisions, for any one match a team shall consist of three singles players, each of whom will play the singles players from the opposing team (a total of nine games). In addition, one game of doubles will be played.

(c)  A team’s doubles pair does not need to be chosen from their three singles players; however one of the two doubles players must be one of the three players ranked on the scorecard.

(d)  In all matches, each team's players should be entered on the scorecard in their ranking list order.

(e)  All clubs shall try to ensure that all the equipment they use conforms to the standards laid down by the current ETTA rules. In particular that the:

·    lighting is not less than 750 Lux = 500 Watts concentrated over the table;

·    end lights should be one foot behind the table and not less than nine feet from the floor;

·    centre light is not less than eight feet above the floor;

·    clubs shall try to provide a playing space of not less than 10m x 5m (This is a Table Tennis England directive under Health and Safety Rules).

(f)  All matches will start no later than 7:30pm.  The home team shall be entered first on the scorecard. No addition, alteration or amendment will be allowed to the scorecard after 7:45pm. Two players from the home team and at least one player from the away team must be present at the match clubroom by 7:30pm.

Any player arriving after 7:45pm will forfeit their games unless:

·     they have been attending work or academic studies, when a concession to 9:15pm allows the player to reach the match from work or college or,

·     they have good reason for not being able to play when called upon.

If a player is known to be arriving late due to work or academic studies, the opposing captain must be informed of this 24 hours before a match starts. Only one player per team will be allowed this concession. 

Any comments by a team about a player arriving late may be recorded on the match scorecard.

Any player who arrives in time for their match but who is then absent without just cause when called upon to play their game, shall forfeit that game.

(g)  The home team shall arrange for the table to be made available to the visiting team so they can have 15 minutes practice immediately prior to the start of their match.

(h)  No practice can be claimed by either team after the start of their match.

(i)  The team captains will take turns in deciding the order of play.  The home captain will have first choice.  Unless both team captains agree, no player shall play in successive games.

(j)  With the agreement of both team captains, teams will alternate responsibility for umpiring games.  If no agreement is reached, the home team will be responsible for umpiring the games.

(k)  The home team will be responsible for the completion of the match scorecard which must be signed by both captains and either:

·   forwarded to the Competition Secretary by post and/or e-mail; or

·   left in the PTTA office at the St. Augustine’s Centre on the week of the fixture (or ASAP if the details on the scorecard have been forwarded electronically) See rule 6 (l)

(l)  The postponement of a team’s fixtures shall only be allowed where:

·       players involved are on Preston Town Team duty; or

·       playing facilities are not available on the fixture date; or,

·       at the discretion of the MRC Secretary.

Where possible the MRC Secretary and the opposing team should be informed of any proposed postponement at least 4 days before the fixture date.

Any unauthorised cancellation or postponement of any fixture will be liable for a fine equivalent to the match night fee at the St Augustine’s Centre. The team who requested the cancellation or postponement is liable for the fine. The fine will be valid even if the home club play away for the St Augustine’s Centre. In which case if the home team can provide evidence of extra venue costs incurred the MRC may refund costs up to and not above the fine imposed on the opposing team.

Details of any disputes must be sent immediately by letter or email to the MRC Secretary for a ruling. Failure to comply with this may result in a fine as shown on the Associations Fees and Fines Appendix as agreed at the previous AGM and distributed thereafter.

Rearranged matches are to be played within three weeks from the date of the original fixture, with the proviso that all matches must clearly be completed before the end of the final week of the league season.

(m)  Any team failing to fulfil a fixture without prior notification to the MRC Secretary/Match Secretary shall be dealt with under Rule 5(i).

(n)  If for any match a team fails to consist of at least three players, that team will be deducted 3 points. In addition, they may be fined as shown on the Associations Fees and Fines Appendix as agreed at the previous AGM and distributed thereafter for each player short.

(o)  Any complaints not resolved by discussion between the captains should be recorded on the official match scorecard. 

In addition, within three days of the match being played, each club should send an explanatory letter about the complaint to the:

·       MRC Secretary; and

·       a copy to the opposing club secretary.

If the club being complained about fails to do this, it may be found to be in the wrong, regardless of the nature of the complaint.

9.   Cups and Trophies

All persons and clubs receiving cups and trophies from the PTTA do so, on the following conditions:

(a)  Cups and Trophies cannot be won outright.

(b)  The recipient shall sign a receipt when presented with the cup or trophy and will be held responsible for its safekeeping and condition.

(c)  Any club or player who holds a cup or trophy should ensure that it is immediately returned to the General Secretary when it is known that:

·       the club is about to become defunct.

·       the player leaves/will be leaving Preston for a period exceeding three months.

(d)  Cups and trophies must be returned to the General Secretary cleaned and in good condition before the 28th February in the year following the date of presentation. All trophies and cups must be signed for prior to removal from the presentation evening. The Executive Committee has at its discretion the power to withhold any cup or trophy from a club or person.

10. Closed Championships

(a)  Only PTTA members are eligible to play in the Preston Closed Championships.

(b)  Competitions are open to both men and women.  The competitions are generally but not restricted to :

·       Singles

·       Doubles (can be a mixture of either sex)

·       Junior Singles

·       Cadet Singles

·       Veterans

·       Divisional Singles

·       Handicap Singles

(c)  Qualification for the following events is:

·        Veteran's competition.  Competitors must be 40 (60 where applicable) years of age or over on the 31 December in the season in which the event is played.

·        Junior Singles.  Competitors must be under 18 years of age on the 31 December in the season in which the event is played.

·        Cadet Singles.  Competitors must be under 15 years of age on the 31 December in the season in which the event is played.

(d)  No player can play in more than one divisional championship.

(e)  All competitors must wear a dark shirt or pullover and non-marking rubber soled shoes.

(f)  On their arrival at the venue, all competitors must report personally to the steward in charge.

(g)  Any player not present when required to play will be scratched from the event. Any player failing to arrive will still be liable for the money for tournaments they have entered.

(h)  Subject to extenuating circumstances, alterations to pairings will be allowed up to the start of the Doubles Events.

(i)  Any dispute between the player(s) and the umpire must be referred to the steward in charge, who will act as referee.  The referee's decision will be final.

11. Representation

a)  Any member representing Preston Table Tennis Association will be entitled to claim out of pocket expenses only.

Note:  It is in your interest to contribute to the smooth running of the League by observing these rules. If you have any difficulty in interpreting any of these rules, please consult any Executive Committee Member.

Version  19

Print date August 2014