Worcester & District Chess League
Rules Governing League Championship Competitions
Retyped by Ray Collett from paper distributed by Maurice Bissell at the 2008 AGM

1. The Official Laws of Chess (Authorised British Edition of the Official Code as compiled in 1931 by FIDE, together with any subsequent amendments), shall govern play in all competitions, save where the law shall be modified by these rules.

2. The Club Championships shall be divided into divisions, as many divisionsas is required, by the
number of team entries. The divisions will be known as division 1, division 2, division 3, etc. Teams
in each division will compete for a the Championship of that division and a trophy as allocated by the League. Movement between divisions will be by relegation and promotion or by application as sanctioned by the League AGM. Teams in each division will consist of four players.

3. The closing date for entries for the Club Championship competitions shall be decided at the AGM.

4. All players in the League competitions shall be registered members of the Clubs for which they play.

5. The names, telephone numbers, and addresses of each player will be registered with the League secretary before playing in any match. If a player is not registered the game on his board will be
scored to the opponent.

6. No player shall play for more than one club in any league competition in the same season.

7. Clubs entering teams in more than one division shall nominate 2 players from each team who will
not be eligible to play in a lower division.
7.1 When a Club enters more than one team in any division, these teams will be treated as separate
‘Clubs'. Any player from a different division playing for one team will be ineligible to play for the
other teams in in that division.

8. Any player registered for a team in a lower division who plays more than two games for a team in a higher division will be considered a member of the higher team and will be ineligible to play in the
lower division.

9. The AGM will review the number of teams in each division a minimum number of 5 matches must
be played by each team in the division where less than 5 matches would be played then double round matches will be played.

10. All League Competitions will be completed by 30 April. Matches not played by 30 April will be
referred to the Executive Committee for a decision as to the course to be adopted.

11. Clubs failing to fulfil a fixture will lose the match by default unless notice of the postponement is
received and agreed by the opposing Club 48 hours before the date of the match.
11.1 The point of contact will be the opposing team captain. If the captain is not available then, the opposing Club secretary. Contact must be made with a person who can agree the postponement.
11.2 When a new date for the fixture has been agreed, no further postponement is permitted.

12. Before a match starts the captains will exchange team list of players in the intended order of play. No amendments will be made to this order save as provided in rule 14.
12.1 When a double round is in operation, the away team will take white on boards 1 and 3.
12.2 When a single round is in operation, the captains will toss for colours.

13. All games will be played with clocks.
13.1 A playing session will be at least 2 hrs 30 minutes long.
13.2 The time limit will be 30 moves in 1 hour and then the clocks put back 15 minutes and the
game played to a finish.
13.3 The captains may agree to play 35 moves in 1 hour 15 minutes and then put the clock back 15
minutes and play to a finish.
13.4 The most recent published BCF quick play finish rules will apply except where amended by the
League.

14. Should any player be absent or unready at the beginning of a match, his clock shall be started when
he has the move. If a player has not played move 1 when 30 minutes have expired he will default the game. A sustitute may be employed at any time in this 30 minutes who will commence playu with the clock as it stands.

15. Results of matches must be notified to the League Secretary within three days of the match being
played.

16. In all matches a won game will count as one point and a draw half a point a loss nothing. The team with the most game points being the winner.

17. Two points will be awarded for a team win, one for a draw, nothing for a loss.
17.1 The team scoring the greatest number of points will win the division Championship.
17.2 In the event of a tie, the team with the greatest number of won games shall be declared the winner.
17.3 If a tie still exists the Championship will be shared.

18. The following rules shall apply to Individual competitions.
18.1 Two Individual Competitions shall be run
18.1.1 The Bennett Cup open to all players registered with the League.
18.1.2 The Ball Cup open players graded below 130 registered with the League.
18.2 These will be run on a knock-out basis, under W&D competition rules.

19. All trophies are the property of the League. They are held by the respective winners for twelve months and will then must be returned at the League AGM.

20. Any dispute or matter arising from, or not provided for, in these rules, shall be referred to the Executive Committee whose decision will be final.

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