Newcastle Borough Mid-week Bowling League

  1. The league shall be called the “Newcastle Borough Mid-Week Bowling League” and shall be affiliated to the North Staffordshire Parks and Recreation Bowling Association.
  2. The league shall be open to all clubs within the Borough of Newcastle and other clubs if accepted by a Majority vote at the Annual General Meeting. Clubs applying to join the league will have their past record assessed by the Executive Committee and placed in a division commensurate with their ability.
  3. The officers of the league shall be the following: president, Chairman, Vice Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, and the Match Secretary, who shall be elected annually and form the Executive Committee.
  4. There shall be a Management committee consisting of one representative from each member club, who shall be nominated by each member club.
  5. The Annual General Meeting shall be held on the 1st Thursday in February of each year, unless called early due to important business that needs to be dealt with that concerns all members.
  6. Written application for league membership will be accepted up to and including the Annual General Meeting.
  7. The normal business of the league shall be transacted by the officers, who shall have full power to deal with any matter that comes before them. “Out of the ordinary” matters shall be discussed at the secretaries meeting.
  8. Each member club of the league shall be entitled to one vote at all meetings, except the chairman, who shall have the casting vote if required. An officer of the league may be the clubs nominee, but excluding the league chairman.
  9. The accounts of the league shall be audited by two duly elected members of the league, and a copy of such statement of accounts shall be sent to each member club, together with notice calling the Annual General Meeting at least 28 days prior to the date of such Annual General Meeting.
  10. All teams shall pay an annual membership fee, the amount to be agreed at the Annual General Meeting. In addition the joining fee to the league shall be £10 per club.
  11. Any club wishing to withdraw from the league must fulfil all its financial obligations to the league and give notice in writing to the secretary at least 28 days prior to the date of the Annual General Meeting. Any club with outstanding bills will be prevented entering the league in the following season, unless the outstanding bills are paid.
  12. The Treasurer will send out all monies due to clubs shortly after the last day of registering players (31stJuly).
  13. Public Liability Insurance is compulsory and all clubs must send a copy of their public liability insurance certificate to the Match secretary annually before the commencement of the bowling season.
  14. Lists of registered players together with BCGBA registration numbers shall be prepared annually by the secretary of each member club, such lists to be forwarded in duplicate to the Match secretary 14 days prior to the first match of the league. One copy to be returned to the respective member club secretary suitably endorsed by the Match secretary (this can be seen on the Bowls website). Clubs with two teams must star 4 players who will only be eligible to play in the 1stteam and not the 2nd team or 3rdteams, unless approval is given by the management committee. Players without BCGBA registration shall not be allowed to play in the league.
  15. During the season a club is entitled to register additional players up to the day before a match. NO PLAYER CAN BE REGISTERED ON THE NIGHT, if offence takes place then the chalks will be deducted and the opposing team are awarded that game 21-0.
  16. A Registration fee for each registered player shall be agreed upon by the management committee annually. The final date for registering new players is 31stJuly. Club bills will be sent out accordingly.
  17. No player shall be allowed to play for more than 1 club in the league during any 1 season, but transfer of players may be made with the consent of the executive committee. A player may not normally take part in a re-arranged league match if he/she has already played in a Newcastle League match on or prior to the date of the original fixture.
  18. All League matches shall be played under the rules of the British Crown Green Bowling Association.
  19. All League matches shall be played between clubs consisting 8 registered players in each team.
  20. The method of the draw in all matches shall be that the cards be numbered 1 to 8, which shall denote the order of play.
  21. League matches to be played on Wednesday evenings unless mutually agreed by both clubs because of other commitments. All games to commence at 6:30 pm, except April and September fixtures which will commence at 6:15 pm. Any player not present when called to the green must be substituted by a reserve or the game forfeited. The first 4 players must be present when the draw is made.
  22. Another night of bowling will be allowed for any team that cannot categorically play on a Wednesday evening, e.g. 3 teams at a club and only 1 green. No Change for any team that want to play on a different night other than inclement weather or shortage of players if they don’t fall under that banner.
  23. The method of count in all matches shall be Chalks For. In the event of a tie when determining league positions, Chalks against will count.
  24. Any club playing an unregistered or ineligible player under rule 17 shall be fined an amount agreed by the Management Committee and the opponent awarded full aggregate score.
  25. Any incident, protest or complaint regarding the conduct of any player must be sent in writing to the secretary either by recorded delivery or delivered to the secretary by hand within one week of the incident.
  26. When the match is in progress the 2 Captains shall act as measurers and the 2 Vice- Captains shall act while the Captains are playing.
  27. Players must not practice their opponents green for 7 days prior to the date of the league match, except when playing in any recognised fixture in the local Leagues and Competitions, excluding Club Merit competitions. This rule does not apply to 2 teams from the same club playing in the same division of the league.
  28. In the event of any match not completed due to inclement weather, all completed games shall stand and uncompleted games shall be completed on the same green on a date mutually agreed upon.
  29. All re-arranged or uncompleted matches must be played within 28 days of the original fixture, or for captains to agree a future date for the match, within 28 days of the original fixture, if the match cannot be rescheduled within 28 days of the original date. No agreement on a date will result in the matter going to the management committee for them to decide on the result.
  30. The Home Club shall be responsible for compilation of the score sheets showing all names and results. This must be signed by the two captains and the scores to be inputted onto the website by home captain and a copy of the results to be sent to the match secretary by Email/WhatsApp.
  31. No alteration or additions of rules will be deemed effective unless accepted at the Annual General Meeting, and no alterations or additions shall become effective unless approved by a simple majority at such meeting. Any club wishing to make any alterations or additions must do so in writing to the Secretary, either by post, email or phone call, no later than 31stDecember prior to the Annual General Meeting.
  32. League Average Winners shall be decided by totalling Chalks For divided by Games Played, subject to a minimum of 75% of matches being played. Where necessary round up will apply. For the purpose of calculating League Average Winners, a score of 21-10 for a home match and 21-15 for an away win shall be applied in the event of a walkover or the application of Rules 17 and 24
  33. Any matter not provided for in these rules shall be dealt with by the Management Committee, whose decision shall be final.

Amended AGM January 2024