Answer. The junior leagues is an entry level competition designed for beginners and intermediate juniors that are new to competitions and are ready to make the next step in their development.  Club coaches can help with deciding the right league, but below are some guidelines.

The MINI LEAGUE is for younger juniors (under 9) that prefer to use a larger (normally orange) bouncy ball.  The rules are very relaxed with alternating serves, second serves when needed and no strokes!  Juniors should be able to hold a short rally and understand the basic rules of the game, however the main aim is to have fun, experience some competitive squash and make new friends.

The RED SPOT LEAGUE is for older juniors (~8-11 years) that have progressed on to a regular sized red spot ball.  This ball is bouncier than the traditional yellow spot ball allowing for longer, more fun rallies.  Standard squash rules apply so juniors should have a good understanding of the rules.  

The YELLOW SPOT LEAGUE  is for older juniors (~10-14 years) that have normally played 1 or 2 seasons in the junior leagues or have some competitive match play experience.  They should be able to play rallies with a single yellow spot ball (which is 10% bouncier than the professional double yellow spot ball).  Juniors should have some match play experience at their club with other juniors, have a sound understanding of the rules, as well as be able to mark matches.  They should be looking to progress on to playing the Hampshire County Closed (September) and England Squash sanctioned Copper and Bronze events in the near future.

Answer. No.  You can attend as many or as few fixtures as you want.  However, it is recommended that at least 4 fixtures are played as final positions are calculated based on the best 4 results out of 6.  This means missing 2 fixtures will not effect your chances of winning a prize at the end of the season.

Answer. Fixtures rotate between Winchester Racquets and Fitness, Trojans Squash Club and Lee-on-the-Solent Tennis Squash and Fitness Club.  See poster on this page and keep an eye on email updates before each fixture.

Answer.  There are 6 fixtures per season, played at regular intervals. Each fixture takes place on a Sunday afternoon, starting between 12pm and 2.30pm, lasting for a maximum of 3 hours.  Later start times will finish by 5pm latest.  Exact times are communicated on each seasons poster and by email before each fixture.

Answer. You will receive an email from hsjuniorleagues@gmail.com before each fixture with a link to a short Google form to sign up for each fixture.  Please fill in this form each time to confirm if your junior can or cannot attend.  It takes 10 seconds and helps organisers plan the boxes for each fixture.

Answer. Juniors are divided into 'boxes' of between 4 and 6 juniors and they will normally play each junior in their box in a short match.  Boxes are decided based on each juniors ' seeding' , which allows juniors of a similar ability to be placed in the same box.  In the majority of cases this means matches are competitive without either junior winning too easily. 

Answer. Part of a junior squash players development is to learn how to mark matches.  Therefore the 2 juniors that have just played normally mark the next match.  This is what juniors will experience at England Squash sanctioned tournaments in the future.  Parents can help with the admin side (eg. keeping track of the score), but the decisions should be left solely to the juniors.  If the juniors are unsure or can't agree, always encourage them to play the point again (refereed to as 'playing a let').  This is generally the fairest outcome. In exceptional circumstances an impartial parent or the organiser can offer advice.  At all times it should be remembered the leagues are primarily about having fun and learning the game, so parents should not worry about the outcome of individual points.  It always averages out over the course of a season!

Answer.  The seeding allows organisers to sort juniors into boxes based on their relative ability. At the start of the season seedings are a 'best guess' and become more accurate as the season progresses.  A junior can improve their seeding by finishing higher in their box at each fixture.  Juniors that win their box have their seeding increased by an additional two places to allow faster progression.  When a juniors seeding improves they will be put in a more difficult box at the next fixture.  When a junior seeding decreases they will be in a slightly easier box at the next fixture.

Answer. The junior that finishes 1st in the top box (with the highest seeded juniors) will receive 20 points with 2nd place receiving 19.5 points, 3rd place 19 points and so on, through each of the boxes.  Points are added up after each fixture to give a running total and a position in the league.  

REMEMBER, only the top four results are counted at the end of the season, with the lowest 2 scores discounted.  This allows for some movement up the leagues at the start of the season or for 2 events to be missed without penalty.

Answer. The winner, runner-up and most improved player will all receive a trophy and a prize from our sponsors KARAKAL.  The winner and runner up will be awarded to the juniors with the highest total points received from their best 4 fixtures.  In the case of 2 juniors having the same points total, the junior with the highest seeding will take the higher position.  The most improved player will be awarded to the junior that improves their seeding the most across the course of the season, so juniors that start with a lower seeding still have a chance to win a prize at the end of the season by showing how much they have improved.

Answer. Please email hsjuniorleagues@gmail.com with any questions, complaints, feedback or ideas.