MONARCHS SPEEDWAY SUPPORTERS CLUB

SKITTLES BRANCH PLAYING RULES (updated September 2022)

1. All players must be members of Murrayfield Indoor Sports Club and must be registered before taking part in any match or competition.  The membership year of MISC runs from 1^st February to 31^st January and members are allowed to renew their subscriptions up until 28^th February.  Any player, who has played in February, who fails to renew within this period shall have their scores changed to 100 per game, and match points will be recalculated.  Team captains are advised to ensure that all their players renew by 28^th February.
2. Players are permitted to transfer between teams once per season.  The appropriate ‘transfer form’ must be completed and handed to the Match Secretary at least seven days before the player may represent their ‘new’ team.  Player transfers cannot take place after March 1^st.
3. Each team shall consist of five players, however, if a team can only manage to raise a team of four players, then the lowest score per end over both boards, will be added on to the score of the four player team.
4. There is no requirement to have a woman or junior on the team, however, if a team turns up with a woman or junior, then 15 bonus points will be added on to each end score.  The bonus is capped at 15 points per end, so there is no additional bonus for playing more than one woman or junior.
5. Double handed throwing only.  Players must stand with their feet on or behind the oché bar.
6. Any pin that falls after being touched by the pin machine must be re-spotted.
7. A League Match shall consist of 2 games of 10 frames each – two balls being thrown in each frame except the last in each game where a third ball may be thrown to complete the scoring of a single or double strike.
8. Where a team is two players short i.e. only has 3 players, a ‘spare’s’ score of 10 pins per frame (100 per game) will be given on top of the additional points noted at rule 3. Where a team turns up with less than three players the match will be declared void and the opposing team will be awarded 6 points and any recorded scores will be discounted.
9. Players can be registered and play on the night as along as the match secretary is informed. Team registrations are £5 per player plus £10 per team for entry in the George Mason Cup.
10. A minimum score of 130 will be awarded to any player not achieving said score in league matches and team competitions only.
11. Handicaps are recalculated twice a season, once in May and once in January (ahead of handicap competitions).
12. Two points will be awarded for a match win plus two points for each game win. These points will be shared in the event of a drawn match or game.
13. All names to be given to kiosk staff prior to the start of the game. All teams must start matches on time, if they are available. Any player, who has not arrived by the time of his/her turn to play, will be given a zero score and the team must carry on. This will continue until the fifth frame, when, if the player still has not appeared, a spare’s score of 100 will be entered for that game. If every player in a team completes their first frame, before the other team begins, 5 zeros should be put against the opposition’s first frame. In the case of Singles and Doubles competitions a strict 5-minute limit will apply in order to avoid holding up the competition commencement.   Any player(s) failing to turn up within this 5-minute time will not have their names entered into the system monitors in order that the competition can commence. Each team will be responsible for their share of the alley charges.
14. In the event of two or more teams at the top of the League having the same points at the end of all fixtures the team having the most match-wins will be the winner. If match-wins are also equal the deciding factor will be the highest team average.
15. Completed score sheets signed by both Captains should be left in the folders, to be collected by the Match Secretary. Score sheets must include all players’ names and team scores for each end.
16. Any team playing an unregistered player in a Match will have that player’s score amended to 100 pins per game.
17. All complaints must be sent to the Secretary in writing. These will be acknowledged by return and discussed at the next meeting.
18. Any proposed amendments to rules should be brought up at the AGM and should be in the hands of the secretary at least one week before the AGM.
19. Rules for other competitions are issued separately.
20. Anyone who plays in a team competition will be cup tied, so if they play for another team, they cannot then play for their own team.  Similarly, if they play for their own team, they cannot play for another team
21. Scores achieved in competitions and playing as a guest will count towards high game and match scores for the individual and team.  However, scores from competitions and playing as a guest will not count towards individual averages.
22. MISC skittle balls are marked either 1&2 or 3&4. This indicates on which alleys the balls should be if more than one player wishes to use the same ball.  Any team or individual using their own ball may have exclusive use of that ball.
23. To qualify for an official average a player must complete at least 50% of all league matches.
24. Any player can guest for any team and there is no cap on the number of guests which can be used in a season.
25. In the event of a team withdrawing from the League during the season the following will apply.  If the team has completed a full round of fixtures, all results against them will stand for the whole round.  For any incomplete round of fixtures, results against the team, in that round, will be deleted.  All individual scores will however stand and be eligible for inclusion in averages and high scores.
26. Essentially it is not permitted to postpone or cancel any scheduled matches as per MISC rules where they reserve the right to be paid for all fixtures once they have been entered in their diary. However, if a team are aware that they cannot manage to raise a minimum of three players for a fixture they may request a postponement from their opponents with as much notice as possible but with a minimum of one week. The opposing team are under no obligation to agree if it does not suit them to do so. If they are in agreement, the Match Secretary must be informed with as much notice as possible in order that he can advise MISC both team captains must mutually arrange when the match will take place within the time limits (see below). The Match Secretary must also be informed of the new date so that he can book the alleys. Any costs incurred by postponing a match, i.e. the original alley charges, will be borne by the team wishing to rearrange.  If no agreement can be reached, the match will either go ahead as scheduled, or the team requesting the rearrangement will lose all six points and be liable for their share of the alley costs if they fail to appear. In the interests of fairness and courtesy, a team who expect to be only one player short (i.e. three players) should not request a postponement but ask someone to guest or play with a ‘spare’ score of 100 pins per game.
27. Time Limits for Rearranged Matches: – A rearranged fixture must be played as near as possible to the original date – either before or after.  There is scope to do this as there are gaps in the fixture list, and the alleys may also be available on special request to the MISC Secretary on Friday nights, all day Saturday and Sunday afternoons. If the rearrangement cannot be made in a reasonable time span then the committee members will adjudicate and the opposition may be awarded the points.
28. If a team fails to appear for a fixture, the attending team should only pay its share of the alley charges.   They should also note on the score sheet that their opponents failed to turn up and they should claim all six points.   Any scores recorded by a team without opposition will be void and not count towards averages, high scores etc.  The team not turning up should pay their alley charges for the missed match the next time they are in the Club.