The NSF has announced the modalities and guidelines for the 2022 Interclub Challenge. The summary of the guidelines is as follows. A PDF document of the full details can be downloaded by clicking here

Section 1: General Guidelines and Modalities

Eligibility

For Clubs: All Scrabble Clubs that are duly Registered with NSF for the 2022 Scrabble playing Season after fulfilling all necessary registration requirements.

For Players: All Players Licensed (through the Clubs to which they belong) with NSF for the 2022 Scrabble playing Season.

Club/Team Participation

Every registered Scrabble Club shall enter a minimum of 1 Team and a Maximum of 3 Teams (depending on the size of its Licensed members) as representatives of the Club.

Team Composition

1. Each Team shall be composed of 7 No. Players only.
2. Only 5 members of a Team can play in any one match.

Team Registration

The entry registration fee is ₦20,000 per Team.

• A Club which enters the Maximum number of Teams allowed (3) shall make a Registration payment of ₦60,000, only (i.e. ₦20,000 x 3 Teams),
• A Club which enters Two (2) Teams shall make a Registration payment of ₦40,000, only (i.e. ₦20,000 x 2 Teams),
• A Club that only enters a Mandatory Single Team (1) shall make a payment of ₦20,000, only (i.e. ₦20,000 x 1 Team).

Note: All payments for registration by Clubs in lieu of Teams Participation in the NSF National Inter-Club Challenge shall be made directly to the Scrabble Federation’s official Bank Account.

Match Formats

1. Matches shall be played on a home and away bases (see Section 2.2: Table 2 – Modalities/Rules - Specific).
2. Each player in one Team will play the five players of the Opposing Team, respectively, to complete one leg of a Home/Away Match (see Section 2.2: Table 2 – Modalities/Rules - Specific)

Scoring

1. For a win to occur; a Team must win more games than the opposing Team per round (i.e. 5 – 0, 4 – 1, or 3 – 2)
2. In the event of a draw (i.e. 2.5 – 2.5) the Team with the higher Cumulative difference wins the Round.
3. The Agglomerated scores of games played by all players of a Team in each round shall count for:
   1 point in the event of a Win
   0.5 points in the event of a Draw (highly unlikely but possible)
   0 point in the event of a Loss.

Structure

The Structure for the NSF Inter-Club Scrabble Challenge for 2022 shall take the form as highlighted below:

Stage 1 – State Qualifiers (2 No. Slots)

All Teams Registered by various Clubs within a State shall contest to stake a claim to the 2 Slots available to the State.

Stage 2 – Sub-Zonal Groupings Qualifiers (2 No. Slots)

The 2 Teams that emerge from each State shall contest among themselves at a Sub-Zonal Level to stake a claim to the 2 Slots available to the Sub-Zone, depending on which grouping a state falls (See Table 4 – Club/Team Groupings).

Stage 3 – Zonal Qualifiers (2No. Slots):

The 2 Teams that emerge from each Sub-Zonal group shall contest among themselves at the Zonal Level under the respective Zones which they fall to stake a claim to the 2 Slots available to the respective Zones (See Table 4 - Club/Team Groupings).

Stage 4 – GRAND FINALE

The 2 Teams that emerge as qualifiers from their respective Zones (i.e. 6 Zones = 12 Teams) shall converge at a common venue (to be determined and communicated by the NSF Board) to compete for the ultimate prize of National Scrabble Club Champion for the year, 2022.

Fixtures, Draws & Match Schedules

1. All Fixtures and Draws guiding the Inter-Club Scrabble Challenge for all matches from Stage 1 (State Qualifiers), Stage 2 (Sub-Zonal Qualifiers), Stage 3 (Zonal Qualifiers) right through to Stage 4 (the “Grand Finale”) shall be Coordinated by designated Certified Tournament Director/s and the National Technical Director.
2. Fixing of Match Day Schedules shall involve concerned Team captains to ensure harmonization of all dates.
   1. Once dates have been established and agreed upon, the dates shall be communicated to the National Technical Director (through the Designate Certified Tournament Director) for Documentation
   2. The Established/Agreed dates shall be sacrosanct and binding!
   3. Failure by a Team to honor such dates as established shall result in forfeiture of the match (except a very cogent and acceptable reason is given).
   4. However, match dates can be changed as long as the following conditions are satisfied:
      1. The proposed new date/s must fall within the time frame for which a particular Stage must be completed, as set out in the General Tournament Schedule (see Table XYZ). (Note: This Caveat applies only to Phases 1 & 2 of the Qualifiers).
      2. The change in date/s must be with the mutual consent/agreement of concerned Team captains
      3. The Change in date/s is communicated to the National Technical Director (through the Designate Certified Tournament Director) for Documentation.

Results and Ratings

Match Results

Results of all matches would be posted on the NSF official website https://nigeriascrabble.com and other NSF recognized WhatsApp Scrabble platforms.

Designated Tournament Directors are to send the Results/Match Reports to the National Technical Director no later than 72 hours after completion of a Match.

Ratings

ALL Matches shall be rated in accordance with the established NSF Policy on Tournament Ratings.

Designated Tournament Directors are to send the Tournament Files (Tou file) of respective matches (in the correct format) to the Chief Ratings Officer (with the National Technical Director in the copy) for necessary action.

Prizes/Incentives

1. The overall Champion of the Inter-Club Scrabble Challenge for 2022 will win a minimum of N1,000,000 and a returnable giant trophy.
2. Befitting Cash prizes would also be given to the first and second-placed runner-ups
3. Accommodation will be provided for participating clubs at the "Grand Finale"
4. Transport subsidy shall also be provided to all participating clubs that have qualified to participate in the "Grand Finale".

Arbitration

1. The State Secretariat is the first arbiter in cases of issues/disputes concerning Clubs/Teams within a State (Intra-State).
2. The Local Organizing Committee (LOC) will arbitrate on issues/disputes that may arise during the Sub-Zonal/ Zonal Qualifiers (The LOC Comprises of State Chairmen and is chaired by the Zonal Coordinator of the Zone).
3. The "Main Organizing Committee" (MOC) which is as constituted by the NSF Board shall be the Final Arbiter in all disputes.
4. The Submission of the MOC on any issue is FINAL!
5. Clubs that are not satisfied with arbitrations at the State or Zonal Levels may escalate their grievance/s to the MOC. However, it must be noted that Frivolous grievances shall not be entertained by the MOC.
6. All grievances/disputes at all levels of the Tournament (from the first Arbiter through to the MOC) must be submitted and resolved before the end of a particular Stage of the Tournament, as the set-out Tournament Time-Table will not be adjusted to accommodate unresolved disputes.

Game Rules

All Current WESPA and NSF Rules/Guidelines will apply during the Qualifiers/Grand Finale, except otherwise stated.

Dictionary

Collins Scrabble Words (CSW) 2021 - Updated.

Time Allotment

Stages 1 & 2 (State & Sub-Zonal Groupings Qualifiers)

20 minutes will be allotted to each player per Game/Round for Stages 1 & 2.

Stages 3 & 4 (Zonal Qualifiers & Grand Finale)

25 minutes will be allotted to each player per Game/Round for Stages 3 & 4.

Section 2: Specific Guidelines (download document)

Aside from the General Guidelines (as highlighted above) which will apply throughout the Inter-Club Scrabble Challenge for 2022, Specific Technical Guidelines as regards Play Formats, Draws and Fixtures are as detailed in Tables 2 of the 2022 Interclub Challenge document. Download the PDF document here