As many of you will be aware, two of our long-standing and greatly respected Committee Members – Peter Greenwood and John Gale – have decided not to seek re-election for the coming season. This is entirely understandable, given the amount of time and effort both gentlemen have put into the Club over many years, and for this we must be hugely grateful.

We had intended to hold a Special General Meeting to elect new officers but, with nobody seemingly willing to put themselves forward to take on the roles, we are left with a depleted Committee and, more regrettably, no Secretary and no Membership Secretary. Whilst I have no doubt that the Club, with the goodwill and perseverance of the remainder of the Committee, could stutter along for the forthcoming season, there is no question that we will function much less efficiently and that, ultimately, the Club and the facilities and opportunities which it offers will enter a downward spiral, from which I fear there will be little hope of full recovery.

Bluntly, unless we can find replacements for PG and JG, it seems entirely possible that our Club, where cricket has been played since 1847, will simply cease to exist.

I appreciate that this may sound alarmist in the extreme, but these roles – and the various tasks which have been undertaken for so long by these two individuals – simply must be filled and responsibility taken for these tasks.

Although both roles are what each individual makes of them, neither is overly onerous or time consuming. The General Committee meets for 2/3 hours one evening, roughly once a month, and the administration required need only take a further few hours a month. However, so that you all understand what is required, I have asked Peter and John to tell you in their own words:

PG: the main elements of the Secretary’s role are general admin for Committee (minutes, agenda, reports and letters, although the latter is minimal these days); contact for League and County Boards for distribution of communications; contact for Insurance/Bar etc.

JG: the role of the Membership Secretary is simply to collect and maintain a database of Cricket Club members, to collect the appropriate membership fee from each as per the Club Constitution, to report numbers to the General Committee and Governing Bodies as required, to ensure that membership cards are accurately recorded and maintained in the Club’s “back office” and distributed to new members.

Clearly, both are being extremely modest regarding the amount of additional work they have put in and, in this respect, if anyone would like more detail about what either role entails, please feel free to ask.

As I have said, on many occasions, could you please all take a little time to consider what you can do for your Club.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Steve Collier
Club Chairman
stevec@sunley.co.uk
07786 941648