ANTHONY AXFORD BOLTON CRICKET LEAGUE
MINUTES OF THE GENERAL COMMITTEE MEETING
HELD AT BRADSHAW C.C.
25th JANUARY 2010
Apologies: Mr J Hutchinson, Mrs K Knott, Little Lever C.C. Little Lever and Westhoughton were not represented.
Election of Vice Chairman: There were two nominations, Mrs Knott and Mr Sandiford. Mrs Knott was elected.
Minutes of the December Meeting: These had been circulated and were approved as a correct record. There were no matters arising.
Correspondence: The Secretary had emailed to clubs a form regarding the checking of overseas players. The Committee agreed that the registration form be amended so that senior players new to the League had to give their previous addresses for up to five years.
Bolton Sports Awards (See Secretary for form).
LCB OSCA’s. It was agreed that the League would pay for the tickets for anyone representing us at similar events.
Mann Broadbent cricket insurance www.mannbroadbent.co.uk
Finance: (see attachment).
Umpires: Clubs were reminded the match expenses for 2010 are; full match £35, £15 if called off before 2pm, £25 if called off up to the tea interval, £15 per night and £45 for an umpire standing alone.
Axford Indoor KO: Although a reminder was sent out, players and spectators are still leaving litter behind.
Semi Finals; 11am FSC v Eagley, 12.15pm Little Lever v Walkden. 1.30pm Final.
Juniors: Consideration is being given to Under 18 matches being played on one night or a mixture of one and two night matches, but at this stage any change will have to be with the agreement of all fourteen clubs.
There is a Child Protection course at Bradshaw C.C. on 1st February and a First Aid course on 8th February. Both are from 7pm to 10pm and cost £10 for Bolton League clubs.
Draft fixtures will be sent to clubs this week.
Transfer: D White (Farnworth to Horwich).
Discipline: There are two issues from the same match still to be resolved.
Hamer Cup First Round Draw (Birtwistle Cup Draw reversed);
Bradshaw v Tonge
Walkden v Farnworth
Egerton v Little Lever
Kearsley v Astley Bridge
Horwich v Heaton
Greenmount v Westhoughton.
We have now reached the end of the rota for byes.
Handbook: The Secretary will be reminding clubs which have not yet sent their averages to him.
Unless clubs notify the Secretary of changes to officials and junior team managers it will be assumed they are the same as 2009, however reminders will be sent out as the deadline for publishing the Handbook approaches.
Other Cricket Reports: John Roberts was congratulated on receiving a Lifetime Achievement award from the ECB Coaches Association. The Secretary had contacted the ECBCA requesting a press release and photograph.
Election of Sub Committees: (note the appointment is by the clubs, the probable appointee is in italics);
Disciplinary Panel; J Hutchinson (Chairman), Egerton (S Bannister), Tonge (D Barlow), Walkden (P Garnett), Westhoughton (S Parker), Kearsley (S Thomson).
Registrations and Competitions; Mrs K Knott (Chair), Bradshaw (S Ainsworth), Greenmount (A Bowker), Farnworth S.C. (T Hays), Horwich (S Merry), Eagley (G Salt).
Ground; G Waterworth (Chairman), Farnworth (J Greasley), Astley Bridge (J Halton), Little Lever (B Hardman), Heaton (R Sandiford).
Registration Secretary – R Fallows.
Inter League Selection Committee – D Tattersall, P Tebay and Captain.
Inter League and CLCL Representatives – P Stafford and R Taylor.
Curator of Trophies – M Buckley.
Press Officer – R Taylor.
League Sponsorship – W. Milne, F Hinks, R Sandiford and D Tattersall.
L.C.B. Scout – R Dearden.
Cricket Balls – R Sandiford.
Legal Advisors – Mrs P Loomba and G Williams
Any Other Business: As things stand there is no clash with World Cup matches.
In response to questions from Mr Thomson, the Chairman said there were a number of aspects of Bolton League cricket he would like to review, including; the voting structure, the disciplinary process, Hamer Cup rules and the staging of the final, utilisation of grounds and square management, playing some first and second team matches on different days, age bands in junior cricket, the caps competition, the points system, contact with schools, grants, and the promotion of the Bolton League.
In passing the Secretary mentioned he had a proposal affecting the structure of Bolton League cricket, but as discussions were already animated he would send them to clubs for consideration at the February meeting.
Date of Next Meeting: 22nd February.
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CHAIRMAN’S SPEECH
25th January 2010
Gentlemen. I am pleased to accept your nomination as chairman of The Bolton Cricket League.
I have to say that some six weeks ago nothing was further away in my mind than the fact that I may be elected to this post. It was not a position I coveted, nor one, which was party to my future aspirations.
However, here I am, and for me, indeed for us, the work now begins. I do look forward to working with you all.
The first task of any newcomer to this position is to pay respect to his predecessor. On behalf of The League I thank Derek Kay for all his work. Similarly at this stage it would be most unfair to fail to recognise the contributions made by former chairman Mike Hall, Tony Hayes and David Morris. I also thank them for their valuable service. Local cricket, local sport and local communities depend on the endeavours, given freely by such individuals. It is up to us to continue their work.
Let me set out the parameters of my position. It is not my duty to make decisions for the clubs. You and your own committee members should make all decisions. You are all empowered to bring whatever you want to this table. This committee is always a forum for debate. My only caveat is governed by the firm belief that we should be acting for the benefit of our clubs, The League and cricket generally. I also believe we are all community assets and the key to our well being is to involve and act in the best interests of our communities.
From a personal point of view I am in favour of evolution. I am also keen that any decision must be made in a democratic manner, and that those decisions should bring benefit to all clubs. I will attempt to see ‘fair play’ in discussions and hopefully add some value to the thought process. Above all I intend to oversee a democratic state. We have a voting structure in place and the Chair will uphold this. The nature of leagues such as ours is that there is always likely to be a full spectrum of opinions. Once decisions have been made we must all accept them and progress forward.
It is our duty to ensure that we pass everything on to future generations in at least as good a state as it was given to us. Finally, we have the same duty of care to our individual clubs. If we build from that sure and safe foundation I have no doubt that we will succeed in aspirations, which are to all our benefit.
I have already given thought to the immediate tasks. We have had a period of apparent divisiveness and I am keen to ensure reconciliation and unity. That is for all those present to deliver.
My first task will be to meet with the chairman of each club. Essentially I will be looking to find out the things that they want. I would ask them to follow a tack of ‘funnel vision’ That is to say that I want each of them to give consideration to the greater good. By looking at things in this manner we should be able to achieve all our individual aspirations and secure the greater values I mentioned earlier.
I do not intend to bring corporate boredom to the table. We are, after all, here to enjoy ourselves! Hopefully, through this body, we can agree a consensus of items that need to be changed or reviewed. To that end I send all of you away with a blank piece of paper to consider what changes you would like to see. I will agree a timetable for that to come back in due course. After that gentleman, the matters remain in the hands of the clubs and our related bodies.
Finally, I expect that I can easily be bracketed as ‘the new kid on the block’ I have, after all attended fewer league meetings than all those present. To that end I will be reliant on Ray for advice as to protocol and standing orders. I do hope that I do not need to be reigned in too often!
Thank you gentlemen.
Warwick.