Weekly Update - 6

Winter Season Update – Week 6

Summer 2025 Presentation: this will be on saturday 22nd November at Kirkham Street, all teams and players who will be collecting trophies must attend.

Rule Clarifications: we have had some calls over the last week about clarifying certain rules, we have always anticipated these particular questions so added links to videos from Professional Referees advising on the correct calls, these can be found in the Rules Clarifications section on the website.

Coaching: any player deemed to have been coaching during a match will be given a first and final warning, any further coaching and a Standard Foul will be called and the player will be asked to leave the match and venue.

Refereeing - Foul Breaks

After a foul on the break, it is the referee’s duty to advise the incoming player of cue ball placement:

·  If the white is potted, the call is: Ball in hand from baulk (i.e. behind the line).

·  If the white leaves the table, the call is: Ball in hand (anywhere on the table).

The referee may call this at any time prior to the cue ball being struck. This is not considered coaching - it is the correct procedure.

Refereeing - picking up the white ball

After a foul the referee will call Foul, ball in hand; the player is then free to:

·  pick the white ball up

·  play from where it lies

·  ask the referee to hand them the white ball if they feel moving it could impact balls nearby

the referee does not need to immediately collect the white ball.

All players are required to have a good knowledge of the rules and not knowing certain rules is not an excuse for mistakes; such as handling balls after the black is potted from the break or not knowing where the white should be placed after a foul from the break or not knowing when to nominate colour choice.

We have qualified referees within the committee who can assist at any time with any rule anyone is unsure of.

Contacting the Committee – New Guidelines

All members of the Committee have jobs and are not always able to respond to phone calls during the day or after a certain time so we would like to implement the following guidelines:

·  General advice: Text/WhatsApp your Divisional Secretary or the General Secretary

·  Player registration or status: Text/WhatsApp the General Secretary (call only if urgent for same-day play)

·  Match night issues: Call your Divisional Secretary (there may be a slight delay if they are playing)

·  App issues: Text/WhatsApp the General Secretary (call only if urgent for same-day play)

Player Access to the App: we now have a third of registered players using the app, while it's not essential, if you are playing in competitions it will make seeing the fixtures and submitting results easier.

Updated Transfer Policy

Players can now transfer at any time during the season until the registration cut-off.

Fees & Conditions:

·  No fee if signed but not played

·  £10 fee if less than 25% of singles matches played

·  £20 fee if 25–50% of singles matches played

·  Max 2 player transfers in or out per team

·  All transfers must be approved by the FSPL Committee.

Sponsorship Opportunities

We're actively seeking sponsors for the League and the Website.

We currently have two sponsors online. Interested? Contact Simon to discuss sponsorship packages.