CHAIRMAN'S NEWSLETTER – SPRING 2019

 

By Wing Commander (Retired) Roger Lindley

 

Membership  Curiously, we have experienced a sharp drop in membership, as compared with this time last year.  Some members were slow in paying their subscriptions, which are of course to be paid by the end of January, but that should not be the case by now.  It could be that some confusion still remains about the payment method:  it is not a recurring direct debit and you need to take action every year.  

 

Players are not eligible to play in any league matches if their subs are outstanding.

 

Please check that you are fully paid-up; as you will read later on, we need your money!.

 

Winter League  Well done all those who participated in the Mixed Doubles Winter League.  The D team, in particular, was very successful, mostly down to Pat Humphery who has led from the front, organising and encouraging this team mainly comprised of juniors.   

 

• The A team did well in the top division, only losing to East Glos A and David Lloyd A -  the two top teams in the Gloucestershire league, finishing 3rdin this division as a result - ahead of Painswick A and Cirencester A.

 

• The B team, having come up from the 4th division last year, were unlucky to have some injury issues and some unexpectedly stiff opposition, so will be doing their best to get back into the 4th division next winter.

 

• The C team had a great season, which saw them only missing out on promotion by 2  points to to Bredon B, with Lydney A being the overall winners.
   
• The D team achieved a fantastic result with this mainly junior team playing in their first season in the senior division: they came second to Lydney B, and will therefore be promoted next season. Thanks to Pat, and to their parents and the players who have undertaken the driving. 

Summer League  The season kicks off next month, and we are putting forward 3 Ladies' and 4 Men's teams this year.  Thanks to those of you who have volunteered to represent the club, and particularly all the team captains; do try to make their life easier by letting them know your availability in good time, and stepping up even when it's a further afield  Away match. 

 

Juniors   Junior players continue to flourish, with several juniors successfully supporting our adult players in the mixed Winter League this year in all teams.

 

There are plenty of opportunities to participate in several junior events in 2019: 

• The Road to Wimbledon tournament (U14 players rated 10.2 to 7.1), mid-April to June - details to follow. The winner goes on to represent the club in the County Finals.
   
• Team Tennis - once again we are able to enter 9 teams ranging from U8s to U18s - details to follow.

Court Resurfacing Synthetic clay or tarmacadam?   We are weighing up the various options, and plan to present them to you shortly.  Discussions with other clubs indicate that members are very satisfied with the transition to clay.  If you have not played on clay before, please take the opportunity to try it out. Cirencester are being very helpful in providing access at certain times via prior arrangement, and Oxtalls also have clay courts.  If you have strong views on these two options, please let me know.    

 

In the meantime, the courts have just received their annual deep clean, which should make them much easier to play on in damp conditions.  

 

The Clubhouse  Andy Bloodworth, our local handyman, managed to resolve the subsidence problem we had last year, but made it clear that the clubhouse is – literally – on its last legs.  It does not have solid foundations, and the weight of the extra cladding that was added a few years ago is not helping.  The roof is also sagging.  So we need to start planning for a replacement, which ideally should be slightly larger in order to have a separate kitchen area.  And hot water!  
 

Finance  A huge electricity bill, (plus a threat to cut us off), came as something of a shock. Npower had been sending the bills, far in excess of the direct debit, addressed to The Occupier at a non-member's house in Stroud for some years.  Possibly the meter hadn't been read in this time.  

 

We have changed to a more efficient company with a better rate, but you will know that electricity doesn't come cheap these days, and represents a significant part of our annual outgoings.  You can help by turning off floodlights the moment a court is not being used, and ensuring that the heater isn't left on in the clubhouse when you leave.  James reports occasions when only one court is in action and all three courts are floodlit, which is unacceptable.  We are considering whether it would be appropriate to make a charge for the use of the floodlights in future.

 

Although we have built up around £60k in the kitty, we now face a situation where the courts, the clubhouse and the floodlights will all need attention within the next few years.  Clearly we shall need to strengthen our financial position substantially to provide for the future;  we will continue to look for ways of keeping our expenditure down, and investigating loans and grants, but in all likelihood we may be proposing above inflation increases in subscriptions.

 

Wimbledon Ballot:  We have 16 pairs of tickets this year, and 86 eligible opted-in British Tennis Members. Note that only eligible BTM members over 8 years old are eligible to take part in the ballot, and that those under 16 must be accompanied with an adult.  As a reminder (as in prior years), to be eligible you need to be a BTM linked to Minchinhampton tennis club, have opted in to the ballot via your lta login before the opt in period closed and have re-joined as a member by the end of February 2019.

 

The ballot will be held on Tuesday 7th May at 7.30pm during Club Night. There will be a sign-up sheet in the club house with the dates for the various tickets listed, so that you can either sign up for dates you can make, or have the option to apply for all dates/courts.

 

As members are only permitted one pair of tickets from the ballot, once they are successful they are then precluded from any subsequent date or court selections – for joint members it is clearly in their interests to sign up as individuals. The draw will then be started on the basis of the ‘highest profile’ match dates first (with the first winners drawn on any date being allocated the better show court (when there is more than 1 court option).

 

Committee Members:  Everyone has been busy preparing for the season ahead for our seven teams, with Sue Watts sorting out all the fixtures and Alison Winkfield and Jason Smart, the Team Captains, determining team selection.  Galina Gardiner arranged a very successful Quorn Family Cup and Social Mixed Ability tournament on Sunday 31stMarch and is busy organising junior league teams and fixtures;  and you will know that Becky Putnam has been very busy keeping us all updated.  Di Cason has done a great job in maintaining the cleanliness of the Clubhouse throughout the winter in the face of all that rain and mud.  Andrew Roberts is again taking on the complex Wimbledon ballot challenge.   And Pat... well Pat is helping out everywhere, as he always does.

 

Coaching: If you need help getting back into tennis after the winter, some coaching is the answer;  you can find full details of all James Aburrow's coaching programmes on his personal website:  www.aburrowtennis.co.uk.   And you can email James at james@aburrowtennis.co.ukto book a session.

 

2019 Diary Dates:  You should have the following dates in your diary:        

            

            
            31 March                   Fun Mixed Tournament (moved from 14 April)

            April                            Sign up for Wimbledon Draw

            1 April                         Glos LTA Summer Leagues commence                                                          

              7 May                        Wimbledon draw takes place during club night

            14 May                       Sign up for Club Championships

            1 July                          Wimbledon fortnight commences

            7 July                          Club 50thAnniversary Celebration

            15 July                       Wimbledon Finals

            31 August               Glos LTA Summer Leagues end                         

            1 September         Sign up for Winter League

            15 September      ClubFinals Day

            9 October               AGM and Awards Presentation

            26 October            Skittles evening

            TBD                            Club Christmas function