Getting up to speed
As you will all know from the July AGM there are a number of new faces on the Club Committee, namely: Alf, Rob, Trish and Kerry. With the guidance of the remaining established committee members we have been finding our feet.
Our honeymoon period passed by quicker than a first serve ace, and the list of things tackled in just two months has quickly grown.
Netball Development Opportunity
The feasibility study is well underway. This is being conducted by Visitor Solutions who are leading the study. Knowledgeable representation from within our club is keeping a watchful eye.
I am grateful to all club members who have responded to the recent survey questionnaire issued by Visitor Solutions – as I write 95 of you have put time aside to respond. That is a really impressive number – and it is a figure almost matched by the netball club. We will keep you informed of findings as and when they emerge.
Membership Fee uplift
You will know that membership fees for Senior, Junior and Casual members were modestly raised. This was the first uplift for 3 years. Our fees remain very competitive compared to other clubs in the region – particularly so as unlike many other clubs we do not levy an interclub fee.
Working Bee and General Maintenance
An impressive 14 club members volunteered their time on 25th August to take part in the annual Working Bee. The task on the day was made easier by the timing of the court grooming that had taken place some days earlier. This meant any weed growth etc. on the courts had already been sprayed. So our efforts could largely centre on the clubhouse interior to get it spick and span. Even so, we still managed some fencing repairs and rust prevention work.
Club Facilities
The refurbishment sub-committee has been beavering away to deliver the refresh of the clubhouse interior. Members will have seen, and perhaps experienced: the newly installed heat pump; grant applications have been submitted for a new TV and oven; further painting quotes are being sought and the noticeboards have been re-vamped.
In coming weeks a display board will be mounted in the clubhouse to communicate what will be happening as arrangements firm up.
Love Tennis
Our club fully participated in this nationwide recruitment weekend on 7 & 8 September to attract more people to pick up a racquet, hit a tennis ball, and perhaps consider joining a tennis club.
Our band of volunteers worked their socks off to host about 200 visitors over the two days. Many of them were families rather than individuals – it will be interesting to see if this interest translates into membership sign ups!
Our new club ball machine made its debut appearance at this event. We are working on how to make this available when the clubhouse is open along with some visible and accessible operating instructions.
Interclub Season Starts
The great news is that we have 28 interclub teams for the coming season.
14 x Senior Teams
9 x Junior Teams
5 x Midweek Ladies Teams
For the first time we are offering one free team coaching session from our club coaches. Captain Rob will be mailing all interclub team captains to contact either Ken or Nico to take up this offer.
Social
If bar takings are any measure, we can judge it has been a social winter as income from sales of drinks are nicely up. We will be looking to widen the drink selection a tad to attract a yet wider audience!
For sure, the winter business house experiment on a Friday evening has brought in some welcome bar revenue, as has the Saturday afternoon winter play.
In similar vein, Rob Gill’s Wine & Cheese Tasting Evening on Saturday 30th November is another first. Hopefully enough members find this an attractive proposition to make for a successful evening.
Summer nearly here.
So, for some, the small matter of the Rugby World Cup in Japan may prove a distraction, and put on the back burner any thought of playing tennis.
Hopefully, that prospect will be countered by the arrival of summer sunshine and warmer temperatures to get people out into the open air.
Remember, club members can always encourage their friends to the club, sign them in to the visitors’ book, and enjoy a convivial time at our happy club.
Alf Sayer
Club President