GUIDELINES & INFORMATION SHEET

Version - Interim.2010

The Earlwood Social Golf & Euchre Club, a magnet for under-performing golf and euchre players from Earlwood and surrounds, is running it's fundraiser rugby league tipping competition again in 2010.  An $80 entry fee, which must be paid prior to the start of the competition, ensures participants a season of weekly angst.

THE NRL COMPETITION

The National Rugby League's (NRL) twenty-six week minor premiership commences on March 12.  The four-week Finals Series begins September 10 and concludes with the Grand Final on October 3.

TIPPING COMPETITION FORMAT

With one exception (Round 9), you lodge ten selections on-line each and every round of the minor premiership.

The competition accepts the score at the conclusion of normal time, i.e. 80 minutes, as the result for regular season games.  Any result coming from "golden point" extra time is ignored.

Winning selections receive 2 points with 1 point given for a draw.  If none of your Scratch or FootyTAB selections lose (includes drawn games), you receive a bonus point in that category.  For picking the perfect round, all your selections winning (excludes drawn games), you receive a further bonus of 2 points.  On a regular weekend (10 selections), that's a total of 24 points.

CUT-OFFS TIMES/LODGING SELECTIONS

Most weekends have two cut-off times. These times are updated weekly on our web site (www.esgec.org) and are also included in the e-mail reminders you receive.  If there is no reminder/update provided, the default cut-off times are the round's opening game and Saturday's first game.

To have your selections accepted and eligible for all bonus points, they must be lodged on-line before the first cut-off time.  E-mail or phone can be used as an emergency option.

Tipsters can e-mail late selections up until the second cut-off time but they are penalised one Scratch game.  These nine picks (5 Scratch and 4 FootyTAB) can only be chosen from the remaining games (see competition small print).

Once the second cut-off time has passed, no further selections are accepted.  If you fail to lodge selections there is a set, sliding scale of points (see competition small print).

In season 2010, there are 3 weekends (Rds 11, 14 and 17) with 5 games and 1 (Rd 9) with 4 games.  On those weekends, all selections must be in by the start of the first game and the usual mix of 6 Scratch and 4 FootyTAB winners will be changed to 5/5 and 4/4 respectively.

PRIZEMONEY

Will be determined when final numbers are knowm. As an indication, with 119 starters 2009 prizemoney was:

RESULTS

On Saturday, a summary of everyone's selections - including my picks (I live in hope of being a contender!) and the picks of the five leading tipsters - will be placed on the web site.  An additional page lists all selections lodged by the first cut-off.

Results are posted on the web site soon after the completion of the round.  Tipsters are listed on the results sheet by overall score, then score this round, then FootyTAB score this round and then by position from the previous week.

FATCAT RULES

I trust that the information provided here will overcome any and all obstacles encountered during the season but if something unforeseen comes along I, Fatcat, am the sole arbiter of issues that occur during the course and conduct of this competition.

COMPETITION SMALL PRINT

SELECTIONS

You make selections in either category from your choice of games.  The only restriction is that you cannot "box" a game to ensure a winning selection.

LATE LODGING

Most weekends, tipsters who miss the first cut-off can lodge late selections but they are restricted to:

  1. nine selections (5 Scratch and 4 FootyTAB) chosen from the remaining games;
  2. lodging by e-mail only;
  3. maximum score of 19 points; and
  4. tips must be with me before nominated late cut-off time.
Any late tips that include 10 picks will not be accepted either in part or in full.  The administrator adds a losing team to the 9 picks to make up the required 10 selections.

NOT LODGING

On the first two occasions you receive a maximum of 10 points (7 Scratch and 3 FootyTAB), the 3rd and 4th times a maximum of 8 points (5 and 3) and on the fifth time a maximum of 6 points (3 and 3).  This maximum will be reduced if:

  1. there are less than 5 games (10 selections) available for the round e.g. if there are only 4 games (8 selections) the maximum would be 8 points; and/or
  2. there are drawn games (lose a scratch point for each draw); and/or
  3. the highest score recorded by anyone lodging selections was less than your set score.  Although this is extremely unlikely, you would get the same points as the top 'lodged' score.
If you fail to lodge selections a sixth time, you are eliminated from the competition.

LATE STARTERS

Are accepted up until the start of Round 2, and will be given a maximum score of 10 points for Round 1 as per the "Not Lodging" conditions.  The Round 1 miss does not count towards their "not lodged" total.

FOOTYTAB

The NSW TAB allocates a start to the lesser-fancied team in each NRL game.  If you pick the Warriors with 3½ points start playing Newcastle, the Warriors can lose the game but they must be no worse than 3 points behind Newcastle at full-time to win as a FootyTAB selection.  If you pick Newcastle, they must win the game and finish at least 4 points ahead of the Warriors to win as a FootyTAB selection.

FOOTYTAB KNOCKOUT

Starts with your Round 2 picks and you need a minimum 2 winners from your 4 FootyTAB selections to stay alive.  After 5 weeks the minimum number of winners required will increase to 3.  If you fail to lodge selections you are eliminated.  If there is no outright winner a countback will determine one, and only one, from those who went to the final week.

FINAL SERIES COMPETITION

Our lucky door prize for 20 tipsters.  Based on your position in Round 1, you are teamed with other tipsters and also linked to an NRL club.  To participate in this end of season competition, you must have lodged selections in 5 of the last 6 weeks (Rounds 21-26).  The two means of entry, in order, are:

  1. Tipsters in positions 1, 52, 53 and so on will be in team A, positions 2, 51 and 54 etc. in team B, through to team Z.  At the end of the regular season, the points from the four highest placed tipsters in each team are tallied and the three teams with the highest totals gain their four members a start in our Finals Series (if teams are tied, countback using only the three highest), and
  2. The eight others (and you can only gain one entry) will come from the highest placed tipsters linked to the most successful FootyTAB club/s.  For your NRL club, people in positions 1, 17 and 33 and so on will be linked to Brisbane, positions 2, 18 and 34 to the Bulldogs and through the rest of the clubs in alphabetical order.

Participants will be asked to list the order in which they believe the 8 teams will finish the Finals Series e.g. the Grand Finalists obviously finish first and second, the two teams eliminated in Week 3, 3rd and 4th, the two teams eliminated in Week 2, 5th and 6th, and the two teams eliminated in Week 1, 7th and 8th.

The team with the smaller losing margin each weekend will be given the higher finish.  If the two losing margins are the same, the team with the better ranking at the beginning of the FS will be given the higher finish.

Each position carries a points value – 1st=36 pts, 2nd=28 pts, 3rd=21 pts, 4th=15 pts, 5th=10 pts, 6th=6 pts, 7th=3 pts and 8th=1 pt.  If you nominate St.George to finish 4th, you cap their points at 15.  If they finish 1st, 2nd or 3rd, you still only get 15 pts.  If they finish worse than 4th, say 6th, you receive the points for 6th place.  If you nominate every team correctly, you would score 120 pts.

COUNTBACKS

Will be used to decide ties in some of the minor competitions.  For the alphabetical teams, if teams are tied, tally top 3 only.  For the FootyTAB Knockout, take those with highest score from final week back to previous round – others eliminated.  Check for a high score amongst this group – others eliminated.  Continue until there is one winner.  If not possible, allow them to carry over into next competition.

NRL APPEALS/DECISIONS

The "full-time" score is the final score.  Post match decisions by the NRL do not change the final score of any game for the purposes of this competition.  If a game is:

  1. deferred but played before the next round, your original selection stands;
  2. not played at all, the game will be regarded as a draw for Scratch and FootyTAB selections;
  3. called off before full-time but the NRL considers the game complete (e.g. the game is not replayed and competition points are awarded) this competition will accept the incomplete game score as the full-time score.