GLOSSOP & DISTRICT TABLE TENNIS LEAGUE
Minutes of the Annual General Meeting held at
Dinting Cricket Club,
on Thursday 28 June 2007, 7.30pm.
1. Chairman's
opening remarks
In the absence of the Chairman, John Halsall, the Vice Chairman Di Twist initially took the Chair and declared the meeting open at 7.35pm.
2. Apologies
John Halsall, Tim Baker, Simon Hardwick, Ken Handley, Cliff Preston, Adrian Bellis
3. Minutes of the previous AGM held 27th June 2006
Having been proposed by Graham Bellis, and seconded by David Bridge, it was unanimously agreed that the minutes of last year's A.G.M. should be accepted as a correct record.
4. Matters arising
- In relation to correspondence between Vernon Hyde and the E.T.T.A. concerning an error in one of the printed Laws of Table Tennis, Vernon was able to report that he had been informed by the
E.T.T.A. that the error had now been corrected.
- In relation to a previous query concerning
the setting up of a 'Forum' facility on the League's website, Vernon said that the matter was not yet
resolved. We were currently waiting for
information about likely costs once known, the matter could then be discussed
in Committee.
5. Correspondence
- Vernon Hyde mentioned the increasing importance of the website as a point of contact for people wanting to correspond with the League. Consequent e-mail correspondence this year had produced new attendees at the Philip Howard coaching sessions, and potentially even a whole new team for the forthcoming 2007/8 season. As to the gentleman from Heanor, who seemed to think that Glossop might be a good place to resume his table tennis career, Vernon offered gentle
dissuasion, along with contact details for seven local Leagues somewhat closer to home.
- There had been correspondence from the Bolton League enquiring about any software that we might be using for League administration and/or member databases; and from the Cheshire T.T.A. in
relation to their closed Championships. Vernon replied to the Bolton League and, in the case of the
Cheshire T.T.A., distributed the information they had sent.
- Vernon reported that he was involved in on-going correspondence with E.T.T.A. in regard to various
topics such as Player Registration, the Laws of Table Tennis, and the Table Tennis Manager software that they send us in order to record our membership information for them.
6. Reports
President / Chairman - John Halsall had been called, at short notice, to a meeting in London. He sent his apologies, and he had asked Vernon to convey his thanks to the Committee for the support he had received from them, and for the work they had done, during his three-year term as Chairman. He also wished it to be known that he endorsed Mike Flynn's nomination as his successor. Also, that he would be happy to continue as the President of the League.
General Secretary - Vernon Hyde said that, in his role as League Representative, he would, once again, be voting on behalf of the League at the forthcoming A.G.M. of the E.T.T.A. in regard to any proposed Rule changes. He said that this year there was nothing contentious, or of great importance most of the proposals concerned amendments to wording in the Rules of the Company. One of those changes did highlight the fact that the E.T.T.A. has now ceased to publish its own list of approved table tennis balls and, from the 1st July this year, is going to require members to comply with the approved ball list published by the I.T.T.F. Vernon indicated that Team Secretaries would find more information about approved balls in the documentation they were to collect at the
end of the meeting.
- Vernon said that he and Tim Baker had, this season, managed to keep up a reasonably steady
flow of match reports on the League's website, and that it was their intention to continue in the same fashion next season. Vernon singled out for mention the poetic reports from a couple of Team Secretaries, and he offered his customary encouragement to those members reluctant to submit any form of match report on their scorecards, saying that even only a few words would be welcome,
and would be of interest to other members of the League.
- In regard to the E.T.T.A. registration forms for the forthcoming season, Vernon explained that he had tried to simplify the procedure this year, and took some time to explain how. He said that there was an explanatory letter included with the forms that the Secretaries would be collecting at the end of the meeting, and asked that Secretaries get the forms back to him as quickly as possible.
Treasurer - Mike Hilton circulated copies of the accounts, and offered an explanation of the various elements contained therein.
Match Secretary - Like John Halsall, Tim Baker also had a prior commitment to a meeting in London and was unable to attend the meeting. From conversations with Tim, Vernon was able to inform members that Tim thought the season had gone well, with no outstanding problems arising.
Town Team Organiser - Tim had asked Vernon to inform the meeting that the Glossop team, consisting variously of Ken Ward, Steve Lyons, Paul Madden, Simon Hardwick, Dave Hamilton and Tim Baker, had won the Men's Division One in the Lancashire & Cheshire Table Tennis League. It is fully expected that we will enter a team again next season, and that, having received promotion, it will play in the Men's Premier Division.
Town Championship Organiser - Mike Hilton circulated a report on the Town Championships, which, as well as commenting on the success of the event also included an explanation of the finances involved. Mike was pleased to be able show that last year's modest deficit had, this year, become a modest profit of some £117. He felt that the adjustments he had been forced to make to the format of the competition due to the number of entrants, i.e. playing three straight games in the group rounds of the singles, had, in the end, not adversely affected anyone's enjoyment of the day. Given a similar number of entrants next year, he would most probably adopt the same tactic.
Presentation Night Organiser - Mike Flynn said that, from the feedback he had received, he felt that this year's event, for which 124 tickets had been sold, had been enjoyed by those who attended. There was agreement from members present. Mike made reference to a couple of teams who had not used their allocated pre-paid tickets, and to four more who did not use the whole three. But he said it was difficult to arrange a refund, and it was agreed the money should be retained in League funds. [In a subsequent discussion it was decided that the question of a refund should be explored further, and Mike Flynn will discuss this with Mike Hilton.] Mike said he felt that the same format should be adopted next year and, once again, there was agreement from members present. He said that trying to find an alternative to the Glossop Golf Club was still something that needed looking at, particularly as the club had a limit of 120 people, and their costs for the supper were likely to increase. He offered his thanks to Vernon for his help with printing; to Ron Bowden for running the quiz; to Beryl Halsall for organising the raffle; to Graham Bellis and Tim Baker for organising the trophies; and to all those who provided raffle prizes.
Development Officer - Mike Flynn said that we have continued to have a good working relationship with St. Philip Howard Sports College, and with Emma Champion who is Community Sports
Development Officer there.
- The Saturday afternoon coaching sessions there continue to be a success, although it is of come concern that we have not yet achieved sufficient numbers to make the project self-financing. Mike said that we would need 20 people at £3 each to cover the room hire charge of £15 per hour, and the £30 fee for the coach. Numbers seem to vary between 6 and 16, with an average of about 10. In order to promote table tennis, and to try to get more people to attend the Centre of Excellence sessions, Barry Fordham has continued his visits to Longdendale High, and will attend Derbyshire
Youth Games an event held for children up to the age of 11. Also it has been agreed that the coaching sessions will no longer be solely aimed at Juniors, and that adults will now be able to come for tuition.
- Mike indicated that our Awards for All grant had now been spent, and that he had provided them with the relevant information. The grant file has now been closed and Mike has asked Vernon to put the confirmation letter on file.
- Part of the final grant money was spent on a table tennis table for St. Philip Howard which we can also use. In return, they are going to provide sports shirts for the Centre of Excellence Mike indicated that there had been some slight difficulty in actually obtaining the shirts, but that a
resolution was imminent.
- Mike said that the Sunday practice facilities which the School was organising started on June 17th. He said he had signed an agreement with the School whereby we will receive a third of any income generated. He has asked Vernon to keep a copy of the agreement on file. Barry Fordham raised the point that nobody turned up for the first session, and he wondered if this was because the advertised hours of 10a.m. 12 noon were too early to suit most people. Barry and Dennis Bradshaw both agreed that, on previous occasions when the School had been open for practice on a Sunday, it had been the hours from 12.00 noon that had proved the most popular. Mike was asked to find out if we might change the Sunday hours to something more appropriate. He said he would talk to
the School.
- In regard to previous speculation as to whether the League might use St. Philip Howard as a venue for League matches, Mike reported that, technically it would be possible to use the facilities for this purpose. The hall could be made available between 5 9pm on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays at a price of £15 per hour. However, the feeling was that, given the required very early finish, and the break in the schedule which December exams would necessitate, it was unlikely that the League
could actually use the School for matches.
- Mike said that he had affiliated the League to the Glossopdale Sport and Recreation Forum, at a cost of £20. The benefits are allocation of funding for coach development (they have allocated funds to pay for Level 2 coaching courses for Ken Ward and Barry Fordham as and when appropriate courses become available); possible hire of a P.A. system; possible hire of equipment
bags; and allocation of future funding.
- Mike indicated that, with co-ordination via the Development Officer, Barry Fordham has agreed to be responsible for press releases regarding the Centre of Excellence.
7. Resignations and elections of Officers
- Vernon informed the meeting that, having served his three year term as Chairman, John Halsall had tendered his resignation as required by the Rules. Also that Simon Hardwick had resigned the
post of Communications Officer, but would remain on the Committee.
- Nominations had been received for Chairman (Mike Flynn), and for a place on the Executive Committee (Barry Fordham). The post of Communications Officer had been disestablished
consequently there were no nominations.
- In regard to Mike Flynn's nomination for Chairman, Vernon asked for a Proposer and Seconder. David Bridge and Warwick Francis obliged. On a show of hands, Mike was unanimously elected as
Chairman.
- In regard to Barry Fordham's nomination for Committee, Vernon asked for a Proposer and Seconder. Mike Flynn and Graham Bellis obliged. On a show of hands, Mike was unanimously elected to the Committee.
At this point, Di Twist handed over control of
the meeting to our new Chairman, Mike Flynn.
Before returning to the agenda, Mike said that he would like to pay
tribute to John Halsall not just in his capacity as Chairman for the last
three years, but for all of his considerable contribution to the Glossop League
over the past many years. Mike expressed
the wish that John would long continue as the President of our League.
8. Re-election
of the Executive Committee
Other than John Halsall's, there had been no resignations from the Committee this year. The meeting was asked to approve the re-election en bloc of the current Executive Committee, all of whom had agreed to stand for re-election. The motion was proposed by Fred Lilley, seconded by David Bridge, and carried unanimously. Bill Mackie confirmed that he was prepared to continue in the role of Welfare Officer (designate) for a further year.
9. Appointment of an Auditor
Eric Pentland, our Auditor for this and many previous years, and who was attending the meeting,
was asked if he would continue to be Auditor for another year. Eric kindly said he would, and was
duly
thanked, and appointed.
10. Proposed
rule additions/amendments
The background to, and the nature of, the proposed Rule changes had been circulated to all Team
Secretaries three weeks prior to the meeting. Vernon went through each one again, and called for
a vote on them individually. The results were as follows:-
i) An addition to Rule 1d
Proposal
That
the following statement be appended to Rule 1d :-
Players
will not be allowed to drop more than one division.
Proposed by : Warwick Francis Seconded by : Dennis Bradshaw
Carried unanimously.
ii) A change to Rule 1g
Proposal
That the current portion
of Rule 1g, reading as follows :-
No player is allowed to
play in the last four scheduled League matches if he/she has not played in at
least 30% of that team's previous scheduled League matches, unless specifically
permitted to do so by the Match Secretary or the Executive Committee.
Be amended to
No player will be eligible to play in any fixture
(scheduled or rearranged) on or after February 15th if he/she has not played in
at least 3 league matches prior to that date, unless specifically permitted to
do so by the Match Secretary or the Executive Committee.
Carried
unanimously
iii) A change to Rule 4
Proposal
That the following at Rule
4a be removed
In the event of a tie,
a play-off match on a neutral table will decide the Champions.
and
That the following
In the event of two or more teams finishing the
season on the same number of points, final League places will be determined by
analysing the results of the League fixtures played between those teams during
the season, as follows:
Teams will be placed in the order of the number of matches won. If this
fails to separate the teams, they will be placed on the basis of the number of
games won, then if still tied, on the basis of the number of points won. Should a tie still result, a play-off
fixture, or fixtures, at a neutral venue will decide the final League
positions."
should
become Rule 4b, and current Rules 4b, 4c, 4d should become Rules 4c, 4d, 4e
and
That in
order to logically accommodate the above, the rule heading
should
be amended to
Proposed by : Bill Mackie Seconded by : Alan Smith
Carried unanimously.
11. League
Fees for 2007/8
Mike Hilton informed the meeting that, although there would be no increase in the £18 for the three obligatory Presentation Night tickets, or the £10 Town Championship levy, League fees would increase this year for the first time since 2001 the basic fees going up from £55 to £65 pounds. That, he said was the bad news. The good news was that any team returning a completed League entry form to Tim Baker by the 11th July would be entitled to a discount of £10 off the basic fees thereby leaving them at the same rate as they had been previously. Mike explained that this incentive was being offered in order to try and give the Match Secretary and the General Secretary more time to formulate the League, and to prepare, and arrange the printing of the Handbook tasks which were made much more difficult when entry forms arrived late.
12. Formation
of the League 2005/6
- Speaking in Tim's stead, Vernon offered some brief observations on the likely make-up of the League in the 2007/8 season. As far as team losses were concerned the two New Charter teams in Div. 3 would cease to exist, but Vernon was able to tell the meeting that the Secretary of one of them, Cliff Preston, was hoping to put a team back into that division which would play out of Hyde Y.M.C.A. As mentioned earlier in the meeting, it is hoped that another new team, from the New
Mills/Hayfield area, will be available to play next season, and they would enter the League in Div. 3.
- Given the above, it seems likely that we will have much the same number of teams next season, and Vernon suggested that we would most probably structure the season around a 12 week cycle once again. He said the Committee had debated employing a 10 week cycle if we found ourselves
with just 30 teams, but it was felt that the resulting loss of flexibility ruled that course of action out.
- As far as promotions and relegations were concerned Tim had indicated that for the most part the 'two up, two down rule' would be applied, the exception would be in Div. 3 where two teams tied for 2nd place. In this instance promotion would be offered not only to the Division Champions, but also to the two teams who finished on equal points. Given the expected number and likely distribution of
teams for next season there should be sufficient flexibility for this not to cause any difficulties.
- Peter Greenhalgh, speaking for the Old Glossop Cricket Club team, said that having successfully run a Junior team for the past several seasons, he now had a situation where only one of the existing team would qualify as a Junior and, moreover, he would be losing at least one of the current team members. He had made enquiries as to whether any of the youngsters from the Saturday coaching sessions might be interested, and capable enough to join the team. Dennis Bradshaw had said that there was really only one, and that he was already committed to playing for another team. Peter said that, whilst he would like to maintain a Junior team in the League, he would be prepared to open up the team to adult players, and he asked the Committee, and the meeting in general, to refer to him anyone, adult or Junior, who they thought might be interested.
13. Cup Competition 2005/6
- Speaking again on Tim's behalf, Vernon indicated that the Committee was by and large in favour of retaining the current format for the Volcrepe Cup competition. They were aware, he said, that some players were not over-fond of doubles, and some disliked handicap competitions in general. However, it was the Committee's feeling that a majority of members were happy with the format of the competition and, unless there was strong objection expressed at the A.G.M., next year's competition would be run in the same way as this year's. There were no strong objections expressed
at the meeting.
- Two points were raised. The first concerned the problems that late arrivals can cause for a Volcrepe match more so than for a normal League match. Vernon acknowledged the point and asked all Team Secretaries present to ensure that a full team was present at the start of a cup match. The second point concerned the distribution of the Cup matches throughout the season, and the fact that, if a team was knocked out in the first round, it could find itself with a lot of match-free weeks in the second half of the season. The Committee was asked if it might be possible to bring the start of the Competition forward in order to spread the rounds out a little more. Vernon offered the observation that, in order to arrive at sensible individual handicaps, players needed to have played a reasonable number of matches before the first round of the Cup, and he thought that bringing the Competition forward might prove problematic.
14. Graham
Hardwick Memorial Trophy
Vernon informed the meeting that Tim Baker had wanted to purchase a trophy as a memorial to Graham, with whom he had played for many years, and as a celebration of Graham's long association with the League. This was a personal initiative on Tim's behalf, but he had asked Vernon to say that anyone wishing to contribute towards the purchase of this trophy would be more than welcome to do so, and they should contact Tim to let him know. Alternatively, Vernon said that contributions could be left at the end of the meeting, and he would forward the money to Tim. John Halsall had indicated that he wished to start the ball rolling with a contribution of £25.
14. A.
O. B.
i) Vernon informed the meeting of the I.T.T.F.'s recent statement on the use glues containing volatile compounds, i.e. speed glue. He also indicated the E.T.T.A.'s position on the subject.
[Statements from both organisations can be found on their respective websites. Or, should anyone want copies but not have web access, I can provide them if asked Vernon]
ii) Vernon passed on a request from the E.T.T.A. for volunteers to serve on the Board of Appeal. Not much enthusiasm surfaced! Anyone wanting more details contact Vernon
iii) Eric Pentland reminded the meeting that last year they had helped contribute toward the money he had raised for the Dwarf Athletic Association. Raising money had entailed raising Eric to the summit of the Peel Tower on Holcombe Hill outside Bury, from whence he had descended via abseil apparently without mishap. He had brought to this year's A.G.M. photographic evidence of his exploits and invited anyone interested to inspect them at the end of the meeting.
iv) Warwick Francis addressed the meeting indicating that he would just like to say how much he and his team had enjoyed their first season with the Glossop and District T.T.L., and he thanked everyone concerned for making them feel so welcome.
Which was an excellent way to end the night, and there being no further business, Mike Flynn brought the meeting to a close in a time second only to last year's world record.