ALAN  RYDER

I regret having to advise that Alan Ryder, a former team secretary for Berkhamsted SC, died on 16 September 2009.

Alan played for Berkhamsted and until last season ran one of their Vets sides.  He was instrumental in originally bringing that club into our League.   He contributed a great deal to his club over many years as both a player and official.  He will be sadly missed by all who knew him; I personally spoke to him quite often over a number of years and greatly appreciated his efforts for the game.

Alan's family is supporting MDF The Bipolar Organisation.  Donations can be sent to the organisation or c/o Church View Funeral Service, 161 Broad Street, Chesham, HP5 3EF. www.churchviewfuneral.co.uk.

THE  NEW  SEASON   HAS  STARTED

We are now well into the new season and the first League Tables are shown on this web site plus the Fixture Lists & Results so far received and processed    The Fixture Lists & Results are displayed on separate pages in two formats.  Division and date in which all the fixtures in each division are listed in date order, and Division and team in which the full fixture list and results for each team are set out.  [Oct 13]

OLD  ACTONIANS   VETS  TEAM  WITHDRAWAL

I was advised on 12 October that this team was having to be withdrawn from the MSL through lack of players.  I was of course very sorry to learn of this from one of our longest serving member clubs;  thankfully, they still have a connection with the MSL by continuing to play in the Men's League and the Vintage League.  It is a loss as visitors were always made most welcome and on a personal basis I have had a number of long term friendships with many of their players past and present.  I would hope that perhaps in the future Old Actonians will return to the Vets League

On the practical aspects of this rare occurrence of a withdrawal once the season has started, various problems arise.  The number of teams in Vets Division 3 has now dropped to just 8 teams which is in my view the bare minimum number with which to run a division.  I have e mailed all secretaries advising them of the withdrawal and that they must therefore delete the fixtures.   Fortunately the withdrawal came before any of Old Actonians fixtures had been played, so no results need to be nullified.  However, there are some complex amendments needed to the system at my end and since I was disinclined to just patch it up and leave all fixtures in without any results being recorded I have spent a large part of the last 24 hours making the changes needed.  As a result things will appear seamless on this web site and all references to the withdrawn team and it's fixtures have been removed.  [Oct 13]

CHANGES  TO  FIXTURE  DATES

The period during which fixture dates may be changed to a mutually agreed new date between any two sides ended on 31 August 2009 and changes may only now be made if the side that is asked to change the date agrees to do so.  In all cases I must be advised immediately of rearranged dates.   Unfortunately, already I have had three instances where match changes have arisen without being advised giving me considerable unnecessary work.  I will raise the appropriate fines in future instances when I am not advised immediately a match date is agreed to be changed to either a specific future date or remains pending for agreement between the two sides on a new date.  I will also fine failures to   advise when a deferred date is finally agreed.   I would also point out that there is really no excuse for not finalising a date change within a short space of time.  When advising me of match date changes I need to know in all cases the original date and which side requested the change. [Oct 13]

POINTS  TO  CONSIDER   WHEN  MAKING  CHANGES  TO  FIXTURE  DATES

The original preparation of the fixture lists is always a fairly complex procedure and you might care to bear in mind some of the principles that I tried to adhere to when this was undertaken and apply these to your mutually agreed changes:    

(a) Teams should play each other once in each half of the season.

(b) No more than one match for a team in any week.  

(c) Avoidance of a sequence of more than three matches all at home or away.  

(d) A home match for any team within the first two of its fixture list. 

(e) Not too large a gap between weeks in which there are matches. 

(f) Where there is more than one team from the same club in a division they must play each other within the first four matches.   As far as the other teams are concerned, in order to give as varied a schedule as possible, they will not go to the club(s) with more than one team twice in the same half of the season and at least a four weeks gap is aimed at between playing matches against teams from such club(s).  [Oct 13]

MATCH  CONFIRMATIONS

I can not over stress the importance of team secretaries contacting each other a week or so before a fixture date to confirm that a match is due to be played.  There is a League Rule on this:

Rule 9.1  Each match should be confirmed by telephone no less than three days beforehand.  It is the responsibility of the home team to ensure that the visiting team is coming.

I would make two further common sense points.   First, if a visiting side has not heard from the home side it should then take it upon itself to get in touch with the other side.  Second, contact doesn't mean leaving a message or sending an e mail but actually speaking  to each other or the alternative contacts or receiving an e mail in response.   [Sept 16]

Players who are originally registered must play a minimum 2 of the first 5 matches, failing which there is a penalty of 2 points deducted for each match not played by the player concerned.  If a problem develops, such as injury, whereby it looks as though a player will not be able to comply, you are advised to immediately contact me.  After registration any further person of the correct age, male or female, may play for the team except that if they are as strong as the top 2 in the existing squad (or the top 1 in a vintage squad) they will be required to play in 50% of the remaining matches in the season.   It's also worth mentioning that as regards playing order the overriding rule is that teams must play in order of merit/strength and that there are rules on changing positions from match to match which I will police in the interests of fairness.  [Sept 16]

Each season many cards come in with sections either not or incorrectly completed.  The first batches received have already posed problems as a result of such failings.  In particular, match dates and division numbers are missed out and commonly the away side enters its player's names in the left hand side section which is for the home players.  Quite often one side exactly copies the other side's card so that both appear to be the home or away side.  All of this makes my job of processing results more difficult, time consuming and error prone.   Also, I must ask all team secretaries to help by always completing a HOSPITALITY box on their card when, and only when, they are the AWAY side.  Assistance on this simple matter allows me to be able over a season to assess how well teams are looking after their visitors.  [Oct 13]

The home side is responsible for seeing that all matches are as far as possible competently marked by it's players.  However, it has long been the recommendation of the Committee that the visiting side should be offered the opportunity to mark at least one of the matches.  The home side may, if appropriate, use another competent member of it's club or an outside qualified referee if one is available. 

On the subject of referees, I have an additional role as County Organiser of same, and we are often short of qualified refs for tournaments and county matches and indeed other events all over the country.  We badly need some new candidates and please contact me if you have even the slightest interest; it is a really useful role that despite the brickbats can afford considerable satisfaction.   [Sept 16]

COMMUNICATION  WITH   SECRETARIES

I now communicate with secretaries largely by e mail or telephone.  I much appreciate your assistance in accepting e mails, particularly from those secretaries who are not yet regular e mail users.   It saves me a lot of work - paper printing, photocopying, envelope filling and addressing and mailing.    If you are an infrequent user of e mails please check your in box regularly.  A number of secretaries have provided e mail addresses which are their work address which is fine by me but these are unlikely to accessed during absence from the office and therefore in general home addresses are preferable.  It is now essential that you please advise me of any change in your e mail address. 

Whilst e mail is now the main form for written communication, I still need hard copy Match Result Cards and can not accommodate results in any other form.  All your cards are filed by me team by team and provide easy and quick reference when inevitable queries arise.    When secretaries e mail each other on date changes changes, please only copy me when a match has been deferred or a new date has been firmly agreed.

Apart from Match Result Cards, I am quite happy to receive communication by fax (my separate fax telephone number is shown at the bottom of each division on Secretarial Registers).

Telephone is still much used and these numbers and all other contact information including e mail addresses are   contained on the Secretarial Registers which were e mailed to all secretaries in July.  Please advise of changes to the Register during the season so that I can update my records and e mail amended pages for the relevant division to the secretaries concerned. [Sept 16]

WEB  SITES

The MSRA and Men's League site operates at: www.middlesex-squash.com .   However, for quicker and more direct access to our section use (and keep as a "favourite" if you can) my personal home page with the longer address shown below which is case sensitive (which means that in this instance you MUST stick exactly to the layout below in which there are just 2 capital letters) :

www.users.waitrose.com/~jharris/eaSquashPage.htm

THE  RULES  OF  THE   LEAGUE  and  OTHER  STANDING  INFORMATION

Our old Handbook became defunct a few seasons ago and was replaced by information on this and the Main League's web sites.  In essence the old Handbook contained the Rules of the League, records of winners of all sections since inception and help in locating clubs.

To replace this Handbook the arrangements are as follows.  Click on the titles for access:

The League's Rules  These were redrafted, simplified and modernised in 2007 are on this site for team secretaries and players to consult and download.  Changes to the Rules have to be approved at AGMs and when these occur the web sites are updated.

Our Records    The record for the Vets and Vintage section since it's started in 1984. 

Club Locations  There is a page on our web site helping on this which gives Club addresses with postcodes and telephone numbers.   The Main League web site also has assistance and by clicking on the postcode a location map is shown for the relevant club.  Secretarial Registers always contain postal codes for use with navigation systems.   Incidentally, these Registers are made available after the AGM to Team Secretaries when the Minutes and Fixture Lists are also provided;  they are not published on the web site since it is unlikely that all, or indeed many members, would want their addresses, telephone numbers and e mail addresses of themselves and other contacts to be published in the public domain.  [Sept 16]

VETERANS  CLUB  OF   GB

The Veterans Squash Rackets Club of Great Britain, of which many players in this section of the MSL are members, has a fixture list which comprises friendly matches against a diverse range of Clubs.  If your club would like to arrange a match against a Vets GB team please contact me.  Also please let me know if any of you would act as a match  manager to choose and captain a Vets GB team for a particular match.

The Club has it's own Annual Tournament which runs over the season with the semi finals and finals being played on a weekend in April at the end of the season.  This is always a great event and spectators and prospective members are most welcome.  Please phone me for further information or consult the Club's web site which also contains much interesting squash news.  The Vets Club of GB web site address is www.gbvetssquash.co.uk [May 31]

ENGLAND  SQUASH  &   RACKETBALL  ASSOCIATION

The governing body for our sport is now called England Squash & Racketball Association (abbreviated to ES&R).  It has a very comprehensive web site covering all manner of things but of particular interest to our members are their sanctioned Masters Tournaments.  But of course there is much more including National tournaments and events and inter county team matches in which we in Middlesex are always heavily involved.

It is a rule of the MSL that all clubs entering teams must be affiliated to ES&R.  Please ensure that your Club deals with this.  Clubs must pay to ES&R an annual fee per court of £55 (up to a maximum of 4 courts) plus £6.50 per senior player and £4.50 per junior; players means all persons playing squash or racketball in a club and not just team players.  The fee per player entitles those persons to become members of ES&R and thus be eligible to participate in official matches and tournaments and receive copies of the "Squash Player Magazine".  The fee per player may be recovered by clubs from the players concerned.  [Sept 16]

ANY  OTHER  ASSISTANCE

It only remains to wish you all well over the new season and if there are any problems, queries or advice required please contact me by telephone, fax or e mail. 

JACK HARRIS

13 October 2009

LINKS TO:

FOR  THIS  SEASON - 2009/10:

League Tables        Fixtures & Results by Date        Fixtures & Results by Team  

List of Teams and Divisional Structure    (Includes promotion and relegation arrangements)

 Secretary's Report for 2009 AGM

OTHERS:

Useful Reminders for Team Secretaries   (A)         Club Addresses and location assistance

The Rules of the League    (A)                                     MSL Vets & Vintage Record since 1984    (A)

Minutes of the Vets 2009 AGM                                    Photographs of Trophy Presentation at AGM 2009

     (A) This indicates that a page is in ADOBE format