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HUNTS & PETERBOROUGH

League rules

A plain-English summary of the Hunts & Peterborough league’s Rules and Regs. Where they differ, the league’s own rules count: read the official rules.

Leagues and clubs (rules 1 to 5)

  • 1 Each season, if there is enough support, there are men’s, ladies’ and mixed doubles leagues.
  • 1a 6s leagues: 6 players a team (men’s, ladies’ and mixed doubles).
  • 1b 4s leagues: 4 players a team (men’s and ladies’ doubles).
  • 2 Divisions run in order: Division 1, Division 2 and so on.
  • 3 The League Committee decides how many teams are in each division.
  • 4 Two teams from the same club in the same division play each other, home and away, before 1 December.
  • 5 Everyone in a team must be a member of that club.

Matches and points (rules 6 to 8)

  • 6a i 6s: each pair of one team plays each pair of the other team; each of these is a rubber.
  • 6a ii 6s: each rubber is the best of three games to 21, under the normal laws of badminton.
  • 6a iii 6s: a team winning 5 or more rubbers gets 2 league points (but see 6a iv).
  • 6a iv 6s: a team that wins but fielded fewer than 6 eligible players gets 1 point.
  • 6a v 6s order of play: home pairs 2-3-1, 3-1-2, 1-2-3; away pairs 1-2-3 each time.
  • 6b i 4s: the four players in a team are ranked 1 to 4.
  • 6b ii 4s: each pairing plays the matching pairing of the other team (a rubber).
  • 6b iii 4s: each rubber is the best of three games to 21, under the normal laws of badminton.
  • 6b iv 4s: a team winning 4 or more rubbers gets 2 points; at 3-3 each team gets 1 point.
  • 6b v 4s: a team that wins but fielded fewer than 4 eligible players gets 1 point.
  • 7 Every team plays every other team in its division once at home and once away, at venues, dates and times the clubs agree. If they cannot agree, they ask the League Committee, which decides.
  • 8 A player plays for one club only in each league.

Named players (rule 9)

  • 9a A club with more than one team in a league numbers them in order of strength, with the strongest team in the highest division.
  • 9b Clubs name 6 players (3 men and 3 ladies) for each team except their lowest; 4 players in the 4s leagues.
  • 9c Named players must play at least half their team’s matches. If one cannot, tell the League Secretary and name a replacement.
  • 9d A player who is not named but plays 3 times for a team is named to it for the rest of the season.
  • 9e If a club has two teams in the same division, 9d does not apply: instead a player is named to the higher team after playing twice for it.
  • 9f Clubs tell the Fixtures Secretary in writing who is named, before their first match and by 1 October, and make sure those players know.
  • 9g Named players cannot play for a lower team.
  • 9h If a player cannot finish a match, they are not replaced, and the rubbers they would have played go to the other team.

Tables (rule 10)

  • 10a The team with the most league points wins the division; the rest are placed by points.
  • 10b Level on points, the team that won more rubbers goes higher.
  • 10c Still level, the team that won more games goes higher.
  • 10d If a team withdraws from its league, all its matches are taken out.
  • 10e A team that concedes more than half its matches counts as having withdrawn.
  • 10f At the end of the season the top team in each division is promoted and the bottom team relegated.

On the night (rule 11)

  • 11a If either team is more than 15 minutes late, rubbers may be claimed: one rubber for each available court.
  • 11b Even then, play all the rubbers if there is time. The team claiming rubbers writes to the League Secretary within 48 hours of the match; if the secretary agrees, the score is changed.
  • 11c A match not finished for another reason is sent in as it stood at the end, with what happened.

Scorecards (rule 12)

  • 12a The home team sends the completed scorecard to the Fixtures Secretary within 10 days of the match. In the Hub, both teams send their own card and the Hub checks they match.
  • 12b A team that does not do this loses one league point. A completed card has: (i) both team names, (ii) every player’s first name and surname, (iii) the league and division, (iv) the date, (v) every game score, (vi) the result, rubbers and games for each team, and (vii) a signature from each team.

Dates and the rest (rules 13 to 17)

  • 13a A team wanting to postpone a match contacts the other team at least 8 days before it.
  • 13b A postponement asked for less than 8 days before, for a reason other than bad weather or the hall becoming unavailable, may mean the match is awarded to the other team (9-0 in 6s, 6-0 in 4s).
  • 14 A team may refuse to play in a hall it thinks is too dangerous. It must tell the League Secretary in writing within 48 hours, and the secretary decides whether the match is replayed, at another venue if needed.
  • 15 The home team chooses the shuttles and brings enough for the match.
  • 16 All matches should be finished by 30 April. A team wanting to play later asks the League Secretary for approval.
  • 17 Complaints go to the League Secretary by email within 48 hours, with a copy to the secretary of the club complained about.

The Hub follows these rules for points, tables, named players, scorecard reminders and moving matches. See how to use the Hub.