• New York Squash league teams may be initiated by NY Squash member, or by the pro/squash staff at a member club. To register a League team, contact leagues@msra.net by October 1, 2011.
• Once the team is registered, Captains must create team rosters on the Leagues Online site by October 12, 2011.

• Squash clubs in the New York metropolitan area host NY Squash League teams. Clubs must be current NY Squash member clubs, and pay league team dues.
• Teams must be hosted by a club with courts available for league matches.*
• Clubs may enter multiple teams for play on a specific night with permission of club pro, and as long as multiple courts are available for play.

Player Eligibility & Substitutes

• In order to be added to the roster, a player must have current US Squash membership at time of roster registration.
• To be eligible to play in a league match, a player must have current US Squash/NY Squash membership and be listed on the team roster. If a player's membership expires mid-season, he or she may not play a match until membership is renewed. Captains won't be able to enter scores for a player with expired membership, so it will be scored as an automatic default. Players may join or renew membership at www.ussquash.com.
• Teams may add players throughout the season.
• A player may only compete in one team per division.
• A player may sub in for a higher division up to three times per season. To compete in the higher division, the player must be added as a "Sub" to the higher team roster by the time of the match (see Website Help page for directions). After the player has competed on the higher-level team four or more times, then he can only play on that higher-level team going forward (including playoffs/finals).
  • Example #1: At the beginning of the season, Jane is somewhere between levels. She registers on the W4.0 roster, and on the W5.0 roster as a Sub. She plays three matches for 4.0, a match for 5.0, then a few more 4.0 matches. She finds herself improving and starts playing more 5.0 matches. Once she hits her fourth 5.0 match, that becomes the only team on which she can compete going forward, even in the playoffs/finals.
  • Example #2: John is a 5.5 player. However, the 5.0 team at his club is short a player. John may compete for the 5.0 team (clearly at the top of the ladder) as long as he is registered as a Sub for that team. However, if John has already competed in four or more 5.5 matches, he is not eligible to play any more 5.0 matches.
  • Example #3: At the beginning on the season, Jack is unsure of which division he should compete in. He plays a match on a 4.5 team and finds the competition way too hard, then plays a 4.0 match and again is quickly beaten. He joins the 3.5 team's official roster. However later in the season, the 4.0 team is short players and Jack plays two more 4.0 matches. At this point, Jack has played four matches for higher-level teams and is no longer eligible to play on the 3.5 team. He must play on the 4.0 team (or higher) going forward.
• A woman may compete on a men's team. In addition, a woman may compete in both a men's and a women's division during the season, and in playoffs/finals for both.
• Players must wear protective eyewear for league matches. If a player participates without wearing eye protection and is reported to League Chairs by another player, team Captain or club pro, the un-lensed player may have his/her match defaulted with a win awareded to the other player. A player is not obligated to play a match against an un-lensed player.

Team Structure

• Teams must have a minimum of seven players registered by Oct 8, 2010, to be eligible for the season. Of those seven, only one can be a sub from a lower-level team.
• Each team must have a Captain, who reserves courts, coordinates matches with opposing captains, arranges lineups, and enters scores. NY Squash encourages teams to be captained by a player on that team. One person may not be the Captain for multiple teams unless that person is the club pro.
• Each team may also have a Co-Captain, who will also have access to the league website. NY Squash strongly recommends this for all teams, to help set up matches and enter scores if the captain is absent. The Co-Captain may be the club pro. The Co-Captain can fill this role for multiple teams.

• NY Squash League Chairs set the season schedule in advance. The match schedule will be released to captains in mid-October.
• At the start of the season, captains should reserve matches for all their home matches. Matches should be played between 6:00-9:30 pm. NY Squash recommends that Captains reserve courts primarily between 7:00-8:30 pm.
• Matches must be played on the assigned night. RESCHEDULES ARE NOT ALLOWED.
• Home Captain should contact visiting Captain at least three days before the match to communicate court times, club location and preliminary (or final if available) lineup. Visiting Captain should respond with their preliminary or final lineup. Captains can find opposing captain's contact information on the Teams webpage.
• Lineups should be finalized by the day before the match. If lineups must be changed the day of the match due to player injury or unavoidable schedule changes, captain must communicate to the opposing captain. Common courtesy applies to lineup exchange. Please contact NY Squash League Chairs if there are issues. Captains repeatedly causing consternation may be asked by League Chairs to step down and appoint another captain.
• Home Captain should also explain all relevant club rules and dress code to visiting Captain. If a woman is participating on a men's team for a match played at an all-male club, her Captain will inform the home Captain.

• The number of matches played per night varies by division:
  - M 5.5, W 5.0: three matches per night
  - M 5.0, M 4.5, M 4.0, M 3.5, M 3.0: four matches per night
  - W 3.0/4.0: four matches per night (two matches at 3.0 level, two at 4.0 level)
• The team's best player that night plays the opposing team's best player. The 2nd best plays the other team's 2nd best, etc.
• Lineups will be determined by each team's Captain and exchanged in advance. The lineup must follow the current team player rankings.
• Team player rankings may be determined through challenge matches, round robins, and comparative results against other players via the U.S. Squash rating system. Clear abuse of the rankings order may result in match defaults.
• For W 3.0/4.0 division: at start of season, captains must designate which of their players are 3.0 and which are 4.0 level (see Website Help page for directions). 3.0/4.0 players follow the Sub rule:
  • A 3.0-designated player may compete in a 4.0 spot up to three times per season. Once she has played her fourth 4.0 match, she may only play 4.0 going forward.
  • A 4.0 player may "sub down", until she's played four matches at the 4.0 level, at which point she may only play 4.0 going forward.
• If a scheduled player cannot play, the team should have an alternate team member available to play.
• If no other teammate is available, a non-rostered player may compete in order to give opponent a fun game. However, the match does not count toward team rankings, and the official score will be recorded as a default in favor of the opponent. Only current MSRA/NY Squash members who are registered on the team roster may compete in official league matches.

The official US Squash ratings are not yet accurate enough to allow metric-based assignments to teams. At this point, it is impossible to form consistent skill levels based on ratings, and it is also impossible to monitor and enforce this as players are continually improving (and in some cases, declining due to injury or time off the court).

So we leave it up to players. If you are unsure, the subsitute rule allows you to try different levels. And always feel free to ask the NY Squash League Chairs which skill level would be best. In short, you should compete on the team in which you will have the most fun.

Match Play

• Warm-up should be limited to a maximum of five minutes (two-and-a-half minutes per side). Captains or home team player must ensure adherence to time limits since court time is constrained.
• All matches in all divisions will be three-out-of-five games, with Point-a-Rally (PAR) scoring to 11 points. All other US Squash rules shall apply to all matches.
• Individual match victories count towards a player's national ranking as well as towards the final team result in the match.
• In the event of a tie in four player-team matches, total accumulated games will decide the match winner. In the event of a tie in games, total accumulated game points will decide the winner.
• Captains must enter match scores on the Leagues Online site within 48 hours of match completion. The League Chairs recommend that winning captain enter scores, but captain or co-captain of either team may do it. The system will automatically award a default to both teams, if scores have not been reported within 48 hours.

• NY Squash suggests that matches be refereed and marked by a player from each team, since it can make the match more fun and fair. Each call will be decided by both referees -- if referees agree, then their decision stands; if referees disagree, play a let.
• If matches are self-refereed, players should be aware of the following guidelines:
  - Strokes cannot be taken or demanded by the player calling the let, but may only be granted by the obstructing player.
  - If the let is questionable or in dispute, play a let.
• At any point during a match, players and captains may ask a teammate, opposing team's player, club pro, or a spectator to referee if it will reduce disagreement and make the match more fun. However, once designated it must be clear who the 'official' referee and their calls will stand.

• All League matches must be played on the night scheduled. RESCHEDULING IS NOT ALLOWED.
• No-Shows: If a player is not ready to play within 15 minutes of the assigned match start time, the opposing team's player or Captain may enforce a Player Default.
• Expired membership: a Player Default will occur if a player's US Squash/NY Squash membership is expired such that match scores can not be entered within 48 hours.
• Defaults: A team that cannot fill all roster positions on a given night must notify opposing team Captain and players in enough time to release courts; other players on the team play up at higher positions and the incomplete team takes a default at match #4. If a player defaults and opposing team was not informed in enough time so that the full team arrives ready to play, then complete team decides whether incomplete team's players remain at agreed-to positions or move up to higher positions.
• A team with an average of at least one Player Default per match throughout the first half of the season may be ejected from the League.
• A Team Default occurs if more than one individual player match is defaulted that night. A team with three Team Defaults in a season may be ejected from the League.
• Unfinished matches: If a match is started within 15 minutes of the assigned start time but court time runs out , then the unfinished match must be completed within seven days, according to these rules:
  • If two or fewer games were completed when play was suspended, the match should be replayed in its entirety.
  • If three or more games were completed, then match resumes at the beginning of the interruputed game with a score of 0-0, with the score of completed games remaining as they stood (e.g., if the match was halted at 2 games to 1 game, with a score of 5-2 in Game 4, the match resumes at the start of Game 4 with a score of 0-0 and the winner of the third game to serve).
• Injury: If a player is injured while on court:
  • If injury was caused by opponent: do not reschedule. The injured player wins the match if any recovery time is needed. [Scoring: mark score of any completed and interrupted games; mark score of unplayed games as 11-0]
  • If self-inflicted injury (sprained ankle, fatigue, etc): do not reschedule. The injured player is allowed 3 minutes to recover and must then play on (he may also concede that game using the 90 second rest period between games to recover). If he can't continue, injured player concedes the match to opponent [Scoring: player keeps points from completed games; unplayed games would be scored 0-11]
  • If contributed by both players, or if it was a court problem (e.g., something fell from the ceiling and hit a player, etc): you may reschedule. Follow "Unfinished Match" guidelines above.
• Eye Protection: If a player competes in a league match without wearing eye protection and is reported to League Chairs by another player, Captain or club pro, the player violating the rule will have his/her match defaulted. A player is not obligated to play a match against an un-lensed player.

• Divisions with <7 teams: play every other three times, then top four teams advance to Playoffs/Finals (see below).
• Divisions with 7-10 teams: play every other team twice, then top four teams advance to Playoffs/Finals
• Divisions with 11 or 12 teams: play every other team once, then everyone participates in Pool Play, after which top four teams advance to Playoffs/Finals.
  • In Pool Play, two "pools" are created according to rankings calculated following the last regular match:
    • Pool A: teams ranked #1, 4, 5, 8, 9, 12, 14
    • Pool B: teams ranked #2, 3, 6, 7, 10, 11, 13
  • Note: Pooled Play is NOT a playoff; rather is a way to schedule the remainder of the season for large divisions.
• Divisions with 13-16 teams: play every other team once, then all teams compete in a seeded Tournament bracket of 16, with a consolation draw, according to seedings calculated following the last match of the regular season. The final match of the Tournament bracket (two top teams) serves as the championship for the league division.

• For divisions with four teams competing in playoffs, the format is:
  • #1-ranked team vs #4 (at #1's home court, if availale)
  • #2-ranked team vs #3 (at #2's home court, if available)
• The finals will be the winners of playoff matches. Home Court Advantage will be held by the higher-ranked, if available.
• Rankings will be determined by regular season matches (and Pool Play, if applicable). If two teams have tied win scores at the end of the regular season, the tie is settled first by total individual matches won, then total individual games won and then total individual points won. If a tie still ensues, a pre-playoff match will determine which team advances to the playoffs.
• No player may compete in any playoffs or finals match unless he or she has played in at least three matches for that team during the regular season.
  • For teams with an end-of-season Tournament bracket, only those players who have played in at least three matches for that team may compete in any of the rounds of the Tournament.
• If a team dropped out mid-season, final division rankings will be calculated by removing that drop-out team's matches.
• If a match was double-defaulted, it will count as a loss for both teams.
• If a player has served as a sub for a second team during the season, he may only compete in playoffs/finals for one division (except for women who play on men's teams; they may compete for both teams).
  • For teams with an end-of-season Tournament bracket, all rounds of the Tournament are considered "playoffs" and so a player who is also competing in Playoffs/Finals for another division may not compete in any of the rounds of the Tournament.

Costs & Court Payments

• League team dues are $200.
  • Some clubs pay their league team dues; in those cases, invoices will be sent directly to club managers.
  • For teams whose clubs do not pay their league team dues, the invoice will be sent directly to the captain who should collect money from team players. The $200 payment can made with a check made payable to New York Squash, and sent to the NY Squash at: 195 East 23rd Street, Huntington, NY 11746.
  • League team dues are in addition to NY Squash member club fees (NY Squash bills the club seperately for this, on an annual basis).
• For clubs with court fees, the host Captain must arrange for payment of court fees.
• If a team is hosting but it's actually an 'away' game, then host Captain should reserve courts and collect money from opposing team.