The league secretary keeps everything moving: fixtures, results, tables, cup draws and a steady stream of questions from captains. This checklist sets out the jobs across a season so nothing falls through the cracks.
Before the season
Six to eight weeks before
- Set a date for the AGM or pre-season meeting and tell every team and venue.
- Ask existing teams whether they're coming back, and find out about any new teams that want to join.
- Check each venue is still hosting, on the same night, with a table in good condition.
- Put forward any rule changes the committee wants to propose, so teams can discuss them before the meeting.
At the AGM
- Present the accounts and last season's final tables.
- Vote on rule changes and elect the committee.
- Confirm fees, the start date, the number of divisions and any promotions and relegations.
- Agree dates for cup rounds and presentation night.
Two to four weeks before
- Collect team registrations: team name, captain and vice-captain, home venue and registered players.
- Collect fees, and chase anyone who hasn't paid before fixtures go out.
- Build the fixture list. Check for teams sharing a venue, and any weeks off (Christmas, bank holidays, big local events).
- Publish the fixtures and send them to every captain and venue.
- Make sure every captain has scoresheets and knows how to send results in.
Every week
- Collect every result, and chase any that are missing or late.
- Check scoresheets for obvious mistakes: wrong totals, unregistered players, players playing too many frames.
- Update the league tables and player averages.
- Deal with postponements: agree a new date and make sure both teams know.
- Answer captains' questions and log any disputes for the committee.
The weekly jobs are where most of a secretary's time goes. If captains enter their own results and the tables update themselves, most of this list disappears. That's the main reason leagues move to a league management app.
Through the season
- Player registrations: process transfers and late signings before your registration deadline.
- Cup draws: make the draw for each round, publish it with a deadline, and follow up on unplayed ties. See how to run a pool knockout cup.
- Individual competitions: collect entries and fees for singles and doubles events.
- Committee meetings: monthly or as needed, with disputes, conceded matches and penalties on the agenda.
- News: keep players interested with results round-ups, dishes (break and clears) and reminders about deadlines.
End of the season
- Make sure every postponed match has been played or dealt with under the rules.
- Confirm final tables, champions, promotions and relegations.
- Work out individual awards: top player (usually highest win percentage with a minimum number of frames), most dishes, and so on.
- Order trophies in good time, as engraving can take several weeks.
- Organise presentation night: venue, food, prize money and a running order.
The off-season
- Archive the season's results and tables, so records and averages are kept for good.
- Collect feedback from captains about what worked and what didn't.
- Update the league rules with any changes the committee plans to propose.
- Take a break. You've earned it.
Keeping records
A league's history is one of the things that keeps players coming back: who won the league ten years ago, the best average ever recorded, how many titles a team has. Keep every season's results somewhere they won't get lost when a laptop dies or a secretary steps down.
Interleague keeps every frame, match and season on your league's own website, with a Hall of Fame across all of them. Romney Marsh & District Pool League has results going back more than 25 years.