The league shall be known as THE ROTHER SUMMER BOWLS LEAGUE consisting of ten clubs: BATTLE BC, GULLIVERS BC, HAWKHURST BC, HOLLINGTON OLD CHURCH BC, NINFIELD BC, NORTHIAM BC, STAPLECROSS BC, WESTFIELD BC, WINCHELSEA BC and PETT BC.
Other clubs may be admitted to the league subject to the application being accepted by a majority of the other Clubs.
The League shall elect a President, Chairman, Secretary and Treasurer, although the positions of Secretary and Treasurer may be combined.
The League will hold an Annual General Meeting each year on the 4th Thursday of October and as many Committee Meetings as may be considered necessary to run the League efficiently. A maximum of two members from each club may attend the meetings. Voting on any matters raised will be restricted to one vote per club. The Chairman may only vote in the event of a tie.
Each club will pay a League fee of £20 per year to the League Treasurer before the start of each season. The League Treasurer will arrange for £12 of each Club’s fee to be remitted to the Club arranging the Final Fling (to cover expenses) and for the League to retain £8 of each Club’s fee. Any changes to the yearly fee will be agreed at the AGM.
Clubs will compete for the ROTHER LEAGUE TROPHY on the basis of one home game and one away game against all the other clubs in the League. The winning club will hold the League Winner’s Trophy for one year, the runners-up will hold the Runners-up Trophy for one year.
League matches will be played as four triples. If it is not possible for a club to field 12 players, it is the responsibility of that club to make every effort to contact the opposing club a week in advance and inform them. If a Club can only field three triples, they would forfeit 2pts to the opposition. Two triples will not constitute a game.
League matches will be contested over eighteen ends. A minimum of eleven ends must be completed by all four rinks to constitute a result. If a match has to be abandoned due to adverse weather conditions, between 12 ends and 17 ends, the scores at each completed end will be the final score. Both Captains must agree to a match being abandoned due to weather conditions. If a joint decision cannot be made, the home Captain will have the right to stop the game if he/she believes the green will be damaged or deemed dangerous.
Before the match formally starts, each player will have two woods on two “trial” ends.
If a player is unable to continue in a match because of illness, or accident, a reserve player from their own Club can be called on to complete the match. If there is no reserve player, the Captains will agree to terminate that rink. If 11 ends or more have been played on that rink the score will count from the last completed end. If 11 ends have not been played the points will be shared on that rink with a 0-0 score.
Teams will consist of twelve players (four triples) of which a minimum of 3 must be ladies. If a team does not include a minimum of 3 ladies that team will forfeit 2pts to the opposition.
Team names will be entered on scorecards by the Club Captains. The cards will be placed face down, then picked up at random to decide the allocation of the rinks and the Captains will toss a coin to see which team has the Jack.
If a match cannot take place because of bad weather or adverse green conditions, the Captain of the home team will contact the opposing Captain by 12 noon at the latest. Every effort should be made to rearrange the match. If the match cannot be rearranged, the ten points are shared.
In deciding the winning Club, the following points system will be used:
Two points for each winning rink, plus two points for an overall score win. A maximum of ten points for a win.
Points shall be shared for cancelled matches; tied matches and tied rinks
All ten points will be conceded if a Club is unable to field a team and the match cannot be rearranged by mutual consent.
In the event of two or more Clubs finishing the season with the same number of points, the difference in shots for and against throughout the season will decide the winning Club. Should this also be equal, the trophy will be held for six months by both Clubs.
Following each match, the home Club will complete the match result sheet, which will then be signed by both Captains and retained by the home Club. The home Captain will advise the League’s appointed results coordinator of the match result as soon as possible by phone, text, email or post.
Under no circumstances will a player compete for more than one Rother League Club in any one season and a player must have been a member of that Club for at least one month.
Any dispute between Rother League Clubs will be referred to the League Secretary for discussion and a decision by the Committee as soon as is practicable.
The Final Fling will be played on a Saturday or Sunday at the end of September to fit in with the Club hosting the event. Each Club shall provide a mixed (men & ladies) rink of four. The dress code will be club colours for players and officers. The hosting club will decide the rules for the event.
Any Rother Summer Bowls League’s rules can only be altered by the Committee by a majority vote at the League’s AGM. Proposed changes to rules must be submitted to the League Secretary at least 21 days before the AGM and circulated to all Clubs at least 14 days before the AGM.
