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Howdy everyone,
We're about to post the first few rounds of fixtures on the website, so I thought it would be a good time to explain how the fixtures are allocated and what the process is (mostly for the newbies). The season will kick off with Mes playing BOCs this Saturday. Most teams will play for the first time on the 12th or 13th of September.
1. Fixtures will be announced on the Website
All fixtures will be announced on the website this year. Because the fixtures are entirely dependent on what pitches we can source, it is likely that at any one time, only 2 or 3 rounds of 'finalized' upcoming fixtures will be available. We will allocate pitches to the remaining fixtures on the list (ie for the complete season) when we receive pitches.
2. Amendments to Fixtures
It will be important for captains to continue checking the website as fixtures may be amended. In most cases we will advise the teams when we do so, but please check the website regularly as a failsafe.
Once fixtures are allocated, they will only be changed in two circumstances:
A) because we have sourced a better pitch after the original pitch was allocated, in which case we will advise the teams in question (by "better pitches" we mean artificial pitches - because the weather doesn't tend to affect these games; pitches which are more centrally located; and pitches which are available at a better time - ie later in the afternoon on a Saturday); OR
B) because a team has advised us that it wants to use one of its 2 "free postponements" or has otherwise advised that it must forfeit the fixture.
Just to be clear, to use one of their "free postponements", a team must advise us of that fact by NO LATER THAN 5PM ON THE WEDNESDAY BEFORE THE GAME. If a team so advises the League, the League will rearrange the fixture for later in the season with no financial or points penalty.
However, if a team cannot fulfill a fixture and has already used its 2 "free postponements", the following rules will apply:
(a) if the team advises the League that it cannot fulfill the fixture BEFORE 5PM on the WEDNESDAY BEFORE THE GAME, the team will forfeit the game (and a 3-0 loss will be recorded as the official result), but no financial penalty will be imposed on the team.
(b) if a team leaves it LATER THAN 5PM ON THE WEDNESDAY BEFORE THE GAME to advise that it cannot fulfill the fixture, the team will forfeit the game (and a 3-0 loss will be recorded as the official result) AND a financial penalty of HK$500 will be imposed on the team on each occasion this occurs.
For the avoidance of doubt, even if a team has not used its "free postponements", the team will forfeit the game and face the financial penalty if it leaves it until later than 5pm on the Wednesday before the game to notify the League of its inability to fulfill the fixture.
3. Fixture Allocation
With the exception of Monopoly and USRC who will hopefully continue to provide their own pitches at their allotted times over the season, the remainder of the teams will play on a variety of pitches. We will aim to make sure that each team plays approximately the same number of games at each venue, so that no teams get 'preferred pitches'.
Sorry for the longwinded email - we just thought it would be good to make everything clear before the season kicks off.
Let the season begin!
Cheers
ASH
We're about to post the first few rounds of fixtures on the website, so I thought it would be a good time to explain how the fixtures are allocated and what the process is (mostly for the newbies). The season will kick off with Mes playing BOCs this Saturday. Most teams will play for the first time on the 12th or 13th of September.
1. Fixtures will be announced on the Website
All fixtures will be announced on the website this year. Because the fixtures are entirely dependent on what pitches we can source, it is likely that at any one time, only 2 or 3 rounds of 'finalized' upcoming fixtures will be available. We will allocate pitches to the remaining fixtures on the list (ie for the complete season) when we receive pitches.
2. Amendments to Fixtures
It will be important for captains to continue checking the website as fixtures may be amended. In most cases we will advise the teams when we do so, but please check the website regularly as a failsafe.
Once fixtures are allocated, they will only be changed in two circumstances:
A) because we have sourced a better pitch after the original pitch was allocated, in which case we will advise the teams in question (by "better pitches" we mean artificial pitches - because the weather doesn't tend to affect these games; pitches which are more centrally located; and pitches which are available at a better time - ie later in the afternoon on a Saturday); OR
B) because a team has advised us that it wants to use one of its 2 "free postponements" or has otherwise advised that it must forfeit the fixture.
Just to be clear, to use one of their "free postponements", a team must advise us of that fact by NO LATER THAN 5PM ON THE WEDNESDAY BEFORE THE GAME. If a team so advises the League, the League will rearrange the fixture for later in the season with no financial or points penalty.
However, if a team cannot fulfill a fixture and has already used its 2 "free postponements", the following rules will apply:
(a) if the team advises the League that it cannot fulfill the fixture BEFORE 5PM on the WEDNESDAY BEFORE THE GAME, the team will forfeit the game (and a 3-0 loss will be recorded as the official result), but no financial penalty will be imposed on the team.
(b) if a team leaves it LATER THAN 5PM ON THE WEDNESDAY BEFORE THE GAME to advise that it cannot fulfill the fixture, the team will forfeit the game (and a 3-0 loss will be recorded as the official result) AND a financial penalty of HK$500 will be imposed on the team on each occasion this occurs.
For the avoidance of doubt, even if a team has not used its "free postponements", the team will forfeit the game and face the financial penalty if it leaves it until later than 5pm on the Wednesday before the game to notify the League of its inability to fulfill the fixture.
3. Fixture Allocation
With the exception of Monopoly and USRC who will hopefully continue to provide their own pitches at their allotted times over the season, the remainder of the teams will play on a variety of pitches. We will aim to make sure that each team plays approximately the same number of games at each venue, so that no teams get 'preferred pitches'.
Sorry for the longwinded email - we just thought it would be good to make everything clear before the season kicks off.
Let the season begin!
Cheers
ASH
