Take a seat in the league
Six Saturday evenings of cooperative challenges, teams of four drawn fairly, and a final night that is played only for the honour of it.
From sign-up to final night
Sign up
Put your name down on the sign-up page or at the door on any club night. Say how much experience you have, and which kind of game you would most like to play; this is only used to build fair teams.
The team draw
On opening night Deborah draws teams of four, balancing newcomers with old hands so that every team has someone who knows the controls and someone who knows the rules. Teams choose their own names, which are always cheerfully terrible.
Season fixtures
Over six Saturday evenings each team takes on a set of cooperative challenges, some on the screen and some at the tables. The challenges are the same for everyone, so teams compete against the game and against their own best attempt.
Refereeing
Deborah referees every league night with a short written rule sheet. Questions are settled on the spot, calmly, and any decision can be discussed with her afterwards over tea. Fair play counts for as much as the result.
Final night
The top teams meet in a relaxed final, with the rest of the club watching from the couches. There is applause for everyone, and the winners receive honour rather than anything you could carry home or spend.
I hadn't held a controller since my twenties. Cassandra put one in my hands on a Tuesday, and by the end of the league I was the one explaining the rules to somebody else.
Wendy, back at the table after a long break
What happens, and when
| Stage | When | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Sign-up fortnight | Before each season | Names go down, experience is noted and the teams begin to take shape. |
| Team draw | Opening Saturday | Teams of four are drawn and choose their names before the first challenge. |
| Weeks one to three | Saturday evenings | Each team attempts a set of cooperative challenges at the screens and tables. |
| The midseason rest | One quiet Saturday | The league pauses so that open play and the open table can take over. |
| Weeks four to six | Saturday evenings | The remaining challenges are played and the ladder is read out each night. |
| Final night | Last Saturday of the season | The leading teams play off before the whole room, then the club packs up together. |
Play for the honour of it
Nothing about the league involves money, and nobody pays to enter or leaves with anything to spend. The reward for winning is honour. The names of the winning team are painted on the league board that hangs beside the tea corner, where they stay until the next season displaces them.
The winners also hold the title of season champions until the next final, and they have the privilege that matters most to regulars: choosing the game for one Friday night. Over the seasons this has produced a surprising range of evenings, including one built entirely around a single enormous jigsaw.
Everyone who takes part is thanked at the final, and the referee reads out one moment from each team that made the room laugh or gasp. Those moments are what people remember long after the ladder has been forgotten.
Name on the board
Painted by hand beside the tea corner.
Season title
Held until the next final is played.
Pick the night
Winners choose the game for one Friday.