EMHUA Meeting Minutes

East Midlands Hockey Umpires Association

Meeting Minutes

Minutes of the 8th Annual General Meeting held at Highfields, Nottingham on 23rd April 2002 The meeting opened at 8:01 pm with the President Richard Kirk in the chair. The President welcomed members and asked them to fill in the circulating Attendance Form Attending were 29 members with 13 apologies. 1. Apologies for absence Apologies were received from David Wood, John Foreman, Jon Leeman, David Kingston, Mike Drinkwater, Clive Harrison, Bill Hirst, Colin Barker and Andy Ward. Apologies were given for Richard Bexon, Andy Luke, Peter Leigh and David Jackson. 2. Minutes of the 7th AGM Meeting The minutes of the 7th AGM were circulated prior to the meeting to all members. These minutes, with no amendments required, were proposed as a true record by John Litchfield, seconded by Alan Foster and approved by all. The President then signed the minutes. 3. Matters arising There were no matters arising. 4. Reports a) Honorary Secretary Report  The Association currently has a total of 124 members with 2 members umpiring at NHL level or higher, 7 umpires on the Midlands Panel and 28 umpires on the EMHUA neutral Panel. This past season has seen 1 new level 1 umpires join the Association, with 2 members joining the neutral panel. I would encourage any Level 1 member umpires who wish to further their umpiring to consider joining our neutral panel; we can never have enough.  The Association has put on three members meetings this season. With presentations on young umpire development, obstruction and meeting the customers as well as sessions on rule changes and umpiring questions and answers. My thanks go to Andy Barnes, John Litchfield, Drew Lawrie, Jeff Longdon and Bryan Mallows and Richard Kirk for their presentations and involvement in these meetings.  I would like to record my thanks to West Bridgford HC who made us very welcome at their clubhouse for the first two meetings of the season. The Association has now returned to Highfields following the completion of their refurbishments.  The new Members handbook was distributed to members in September as promised, I hope it provided members with the information required, although no feedback has been received. Updates will be produced and distributed as and when changes are introduced.  There have been 4 issues of EMU news distributed to members. This is a time consuming task and I would welcome any offer of assistance in its production. Also I implore members to take an active part in their newsletter and to submit articles or points of interest for inclusion. EMHUA Annual General Meeting Minutes (continued)  I have made use of email extensively this year, to circulate issues of EMU News, meeting flyers and items of interest to members. With 63% of our membership on email, this has produced considerable savings in postage and time taken to circulate this information. I appreciate that some members have older computers or restrictions on file sizes they are able to receive, but I believe that the benefits outweigh these issues at the present, and I intend to continue utilising this media for circulation.  The dates of members meetings for next season are provisionally set as follows: 17th September 2002, 19th November 2002 and 4th February 2003. These meetings have been booked to be held here at Highfields. The AGM for 2003 will be held on Tuesday 15th April, this is earlier due to Easter. Full details on the content, venue etc. will be circulated at the start of next season.  The EMHUA entry for the Midlands Handbook is on display. Please check / amend that your details are correct especially telephone numbers, post codes and email addresses.  The MRHUA AGM is on the 8th May @ Old Silhillans Sports Club. ALL of our members of the Midlands Panel should attend. Please make every effort to attend and support EMHUA.  Finally, my personal thanks go to all the officers and colleagues of the Association for their help and assistance this year and to all the others who have helped and supported me in my current tenure.  The secretaries report was proposed by Dave Hourd and seconded by Richard Kirk. b) Honorary Treasurer Report  The Treasurer presented audited accounts for 2000/01 and a draft statement of accounts for 2001/02. No additional comments were made or questions raised.  i) Accounts for 2001/02 - Proposed by Barry Forrester and seconded by Dave Hourd, with all in favour  ii) Membership fee for 2002/03 to remain at £5 - Proposed by Kevin Ronson and seconded by Tony Gerrard, with all in favour.  iii) Mileage rate to remain at 15p per mile - Proposed by Hume and seconded by Andy Roberts, with all in favour.  iv) Match fees to remain at the same level as last year - Proposed by Reg Walker and seconded by Jerry Yates, with all in favour  A copy of the Financial Statement of accounts for 2001/2002 is attached to the minutes. c) Outdoor Appointments Secretary Report  As you are probably all aware this was my first season as umpire secretary and I would like to say that I have come through it generally unscathed. I would like to thank everyone who has helped me in this task, both for their support and advice throughout the season. Thanks also to the previous secretary Dave Hourd for his advice during the transition period. It has been a season of adjustment in the way that appointments and particularly amendments have been carried out: My thanks to my colleagues on the council who have volunteered for the unenviable task to sort out the alterations / amendments, particularly at short notice. I hope this system to continue into next season with the co-operation of you all.

2 EMHUA Annual General Meeting Minutes (continued)  As an association we have continued to appoint to East Midlands 2, 1 and Premier leagues and Midlands 2 games. We enjoy our relationship with BCHUA and thank them for their support and co- operation throughout the season. Our Grade A umpires are cross appointed with our Birmingham colleagues to give them experience of different teams mixed with different umpire colleagues and different venues.  Many thanks to the BCHUA appointments secretary Peter Byng for his invaluable support.  We have also frequently appointed to County games for Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire at all levels up to U’18’s, together with the relevant Vase, Trophy and Veterans Cup games.  We still suffer with a lack of available umpires on occasions so I send out a timely message that we still need more umpires of all abilities to join our association. Please help if you know anyone considering joining and point them in the right direction.  Through promotion we have lost Andy Roberts and Marc Abrahams (of our A grades) to the Midlands panel this season. Our best wishes to them in their future success.  I also wish speedy recovery to our injured umpires whom I hope will soon return to active duty.  Finally my thanks to all of our umpires who have once again given up their free time this season to endlessly turn out for us and support East Midlands hockey.  Saturday, Sunday and midweek appointments have been generously supported.  We as umpires are paramount to the success of hockey at all levels and our commitment is vital. Please retain your interest and I look forward to seeing you all again next season.  The report was proposed by John Litchfield and seconded by Andy Barnes. d) Indoor Appointments Secretary Report  Congratulations to Richard Kirk who was confirmed as a ‘National Badge’ Indoor umpire, which is the highest achievement below FIH (International) badge.  The Association received no requests to appoint indoor umpires.  Two of our umpires, Richard Kirk and Andrew Barnes, were appointed by EHA to the National Indoor League and the national Schools and Youth finals.  There appears to be little chance of clubs organizing any competition in the East Midlands. To keep our umpires in practice I will again ask if we can assist with ‘womens’ competition.  However there is a shortage of ‘table’ officials for national competitions, any of our members interested in this should contact the EHA.  The report was proposed by John Hayes and seconded by Andy Roberts. e) Honorary Chief Coach Report  Group Coaching  18 September- Following the Cooper Test at West Bridgford School, Andy Barnes gave a talk on Young Umpire Development. This was followed by a discussion, lead by Richard Kirk, on this year's Rule Changes and revised interpretations.  20 November- John Litchfield talked on "Obstruction Revisited". This was followed by a quiz in groups, organised by Jerry Yates, on "What would you do?"

3 EMHUA Annual General Meeting Minutes (continued)  5 February - We invited a Panel representing die Clubs we umpire to give us a presentation on "What Do Our Customers Think". The Panel consisted of Drew Lawrie (Burton Coach), Brian Mallows (Manager of South Nottingham) and Jeff Longdon (player/Coach of Rolls Royce ). This was a very good evening rounded off with a lighthearted game spotting Clubs from cryptic clues thought up by Jerry Yates.  Individual Coaching and Watching  We have 25 (27) neutral umpires on the East Midland list of which 2 have been injured all season. In addition to these there are 9 (9) umpires on the Midland and National list and 4 (0) Young Umpires we have used on Junior County games. Only 35 (54) Watchings have been done this year (many of which have been carried out by Coaches from outside our area or from "the other end"). This considerable reduction has been caused by our grave shortage of numbers. Coaches and Watchers have had to umpire themselves. Our thanks to everyone who has helped with coaching and advising others.  Captains Report Cards.  Exactly 100 (105) cards have been received this year. A full breakdown is attached for the Minutes. Numbers of cards from each Division of the League are:- Midlands Div 2 24 (13) East Mids Premier 49 (39) East Mids Div 1 5 (10) East Mids Div 2 18 (40) Others 4 (3)  Our thanks to those Clubs who have taken the trouble to send them in. The quality of the comments has been much more constructive this year and is a help to our umpires.  The Club who has sent in the most cards is SSC with 13. Runners up were South Nottingham with12. SSC win the bottle of whisky for the Club returning the most cards.  Development of Umpire Coaches.  Peter Leigh has passed his Level 1 Umpire Coach Assessment this season. Ian McPherson has enrolled as a Level I Umpire Coach and has started his assessment. Andrew Barnes has enrolled as a new Level 1 Coach candidate. We have no new Level 2 candidates.  Grading Committee.  The Grading Committee has met twice this year on 4 Dec and 5 March under the Chairmanship of our President Richard. During the season, Marc Abraham and Mike Bull were awarded their EMHUA " A " grade and Stuart McFarlane his "B" grade. Alan Rutherford has moved from "C" grade to "B/C". Several umpires have retired or become inactive with only Marc Abraham and Stewart McFarlane coming onto the neutral list. Kevin Ronson, Marc Abraham and Andy Roberts have been assessed for their Level 2 during the season. Congratulations to Andy and Marc who have been added to the Midland List at grade M3. End of Season reports will be sent shortly to individual umpires. A full list of grades is attached to this report. Unless new umpires can be found during the summer, next season will start with us unable to cover all games in the first eleven leagues. The position is very serious.  Level One and PUA Courses.  Kevin Ronson will report on these.  The report was proposed by Malcolm Hume and seconded by Dave Hourd.

4 EMHUA Annual General Meeting Minutes (continued) f) Honorary Assistant Secretary Report  In terms of numbers 2001/2002 was a good year. Three courses were run and 55 people passed the theory examination - but only 10 to date, have turned it into a full qualification. This means that both the EHA and EMHUA made good profits. However in terms of Umpires produced (which should be the driving force behind the scheme) I feel that the whole scheme leaves something to be desired. This is not the fault of the EMHUA.  Firstly, it remains expensive. We have cut costs that we control, to the bone but are faced with a fee of£12.50 (raised by the EHA from £10) for a rule book, an examination paper (which we mark), a registration form and a few sheets of paper. On passing the practical test a badge is also awarded. Our expenses (which I suspect are not always claimed) have to be added to this but at £50 per event plus £2.50 per candidate for all the work that we do seem to be good value! I suspect that some clubs are put off by this.  Secondly, the umpires that we do take through the whole procedure then stay within their clubs. They are entitled to do so and who can blame them but it is to be regretted that they do not swell the ranks of those available to the panel on Saturdays.  Thirdly, many people take the theory paper but never get enough experience of umpiring to take the practical test and after a year have to start again!  Fourthly, many candidates make it clear from the start that they do not intend to take the practical test. They are paid for by various bodies and feel no obligation to turn the course into a practical qualification as it cost them nothing. I suspect that it becomes something to mention on a "CV".  We are open to suggestions as to how we can remedy the "problems".  I would like to record my thanks to Reg Walker, John Litchfield and Alan Foster, for help and advice given during the course of the season.  The report was proposed by John Litchfield and seconded by Martin Gotheridge. 5. EMHUA’s “Top Club” Was awarded to Newark Hockey Club. This is the result is the collation of the umpires Club Report returns. 30 Clubs had more than 8 qualifying reports, these included reports received from BCHUA umpires on East Midlands clubs. 6. President’s Trophy Was awarded to Jerry Yates for his contribution as Secretary to the East Midlands Hockey Umpires Association. 7. Special Awards Your Council has decided to introduce a Special Award scheme to be awarded to members of this Association who have given great service either in umpiring or administration. This award(s) will be made annually to deserving members as decided by Council. For this year special awards are to be made to: Tony Gerrard Ian McPherson Ken Stanyon 8. Panel Badge Awards Association Badges are awarded to: Marc Abrahams Stuart McFarlane

5 EMHUA Annual General Meeting Minutes (continued) 9. Election of Officers President: Dave Hourd was installed Immediate Past President Richard Kirk was installed Life Vice Presidents Martin Gotheridge was elected Vice Presidents: All current, plus Richard Kirk was elected Honorary Secretary: Jerry Yates was re-elected unopposed. Honorary Treasurer: John Hayes was re-elected unopposed Honorary Appointments Secretary (outdoors): Mick Bull was re-elected unopposed Honorary Appoints Secretary (Indoors): Andy Barnes was re-elected unopposed Honorary Coach: John Litchfield was re-elected unopposed (NB Johns’ role is in an acting capacity, with the Association making every effort to reduce the workload, as he was MRHUA President elect) Honorary Assistant Secretary: Kevin Ronson was elected unopposed 10. Election of Representatives To MRHUA Executive for 2003/04: Jerry Yates was re-elected unopposed To DCHA: Tony Gerrard was elected unopposed To LCHA: Vacant To NCHA: Andy Roberts was re-elected unopposed 11. Election to Council All Officers were appointed as per the constitution. Plus Ken Stanyon was elected as an ordinary member. One Representative from DHA, LRHA and NHA will be invited to executive meetings. A vacancy exists for an elected member to the Council, the AGM agreed to allow Council to appoint to this position. 12. Grading Committee President, Chief Coach, Honorary Appointments Secretary Outdoors were appointed as per the constitution. Plus Richard Kirk, Kevin Ronson and Reg Walker were elected. 13. Scrutinisers Clive Dennis and Mike Drinkwater were re-appointed.

The meeting closed at 09:05 pm

The President thanked everyone for their attendance.

Next Meeting: The next Annual General Meeting is scheduled for Tuesday 15th April 2003 @ Highfields @ 08.00 pm.

President Hon Secretary

6 EAST MIDLANDS HOCKEY UMPIRES' ASSOCIATION

Statement of accounts 2001 - 02

INCOME EXPENDITURE Fees 4317.00 Travel (1) 3277.28 Members 615.00 Insurance 110.04 Travel n/claim 67.05 Rule books 248.00 Level 1 780.00 Level 1 393.70 Merchandise 155.63 Admin. (2) 492.01 Interest 24.98 Coaching 154.45 ------5959.66 4675.48 ------

EXCESS INCOME/EXPENDITURE £1284.18

NOTES 1. S & Y £184.55 2. includes capital exp. £100 Meetings £ 18.

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RECOMMENDATIONS

League and Competitions matches £18 per pair of umpires League-imposed friendlies £18 per pair of umpires Other friendlies £10 per pair of umpires S. & Y. (County) £50 per season Touraments (e,g, County.. £10 per team (to include semis and finals) Travel 15p per mile

April 2002 J. S. HAYES