Box Leagues
Our box leagues give everyone in the club a chance to play regular games against players of similar ability.
Current box league dates
The current box league is running from 1st March through to the 12th April (so there’s an extra two weeks for Easter, you lucky people).
Who can join
There are two requirements to join:
| Requirement | Notes |
| Club member | You must be a squash-playing member of Marple Squash Club (or in the process of joining). |
| Squash Levels member | You must be a member of Squash Levels (the website which hosts the box leagues). |
If you’re not already a member of Squash Levels you can join here (it takes a few seconds, and is completely free).
How do I sign up?
Just before the start of each box league we’ll send out an email asking if you want to participate – just reply to this email to join, giving your mobile number if you want this to be made visible alongside your email address. If you’re a junior player (under 18 years old) please let us know this too. We’ll reply to confirm that we’ve received your email (usually within 24 hours, and often much sooner). If you can’t play in this box league (but want to play in future ones) that’s no problem; before each box league we’ll send out a new email asking who wants to participate, so you can drop in and out as you wish. You can also join an existing league, depending on how many games have already been played – just ask.
How do the boxes work?
Initially you will be positioned roughly in order of squash ranking (where this is not known, informed guesswork will kick in!). There will be on average 4 people in each box. You must play at least 2 games in order to keep your place in box leagues, although good excuses may be accepted. At the end of each league usually the top person in each league will go up one box and the bottom person will go down one box (if some people haven’t played all of their games common sense intervention will apply), although these rules are flexible to avoid anomalies. There are no bonuses for playing matches early or for playing all of your matches, but you should aim to play all of your matches in each box (everyone will enjoy the box leagues more this way).
Scoring and points
Each match will be the best of 5 games, with each game being to 11 points (although if both players agree you are welcome to play to 15 instead). When you’ve finished you can enter your score in the box league yourself. Players will score one point for each game won. For example, if Rita beats Bob 11-5, 16-14, 2-11, 12-10, then Rita will score 3 points and Bob 1 point. All that you need to do is to type in your scores – the website will allocate points. Note that results of matches will count towards your squash rankings, although the effect is diluted compared to that for normal inter-club matches. Places in teams now have to be decided from squash rankings rather than from ladder positions, so this is a chance to improve your rankings!
Arranging matches
At the beginning of each box we’ll send out an email to you and the other people in your box announcing that the league is open, so you’ll have everyone’s email addresses readily available! It’s up to you to arrange games, whether by email, WhatsApp or any other method you choose. If you think someone is avoiding playing let us know, and we’ll see if we can help.
Data confidentiality
If you apply to join a box league it’s up to you whether you make your email address and/or mobile phone number visible to other box league players (you need to click on a confirm link on the Squash Levels website to do this). Junior box league members’ email addresses will not be published. If you are applying to join a box league as a junior player, please note however that the email address you give will be provided to other people within your box league.
Let us know of any suggestions for improvements… and enjoy your box league games!