Boots Badminton Club AGM: May 4 th 2016

The meeting was attended by 22 Club Members. No apologies for absence were received prior to the commencement of the meeting.

1. Minutes A proposal to approve the minutes of last year’s AGM was put forward by the Secretary (Ian C) and seconded by Moira H. The minutes were unanimously accepted by the remaining members.

2. Official Reports The various Elected Officers/Team Captains proceeded to read their annual reports as follows:

Secretary’s Report Ian C “ I would like to thank you all for supporting the club in the past year and hopefully can count on you joining for the next season.

Regarding the number of members, this fell slightly when compared to the prior year. Hopefully we can attract and retain new members over the close season. Especially, if the likes of Phoenixwood have folded and others may do. As ever we have a shortage of ladies and ideally could do with recruiting more.

As in previous years we entered 7 teams into the league (1 Ladies, 3 Mixed & 3 Men’s ), of these 2 teams were promoted, 3 retained their places in their respective divisions and unfortunately 2 teams were relegated. Each of the captains will tell their story of the season later so I won’t spoil the surprise.

I would like to thank the Team Captains and Match Secretary, I know at times it is not easy and often appears to be a thankless task but it is appreciated.

I would also like to thank Kay and Steve for being the shuttle monitors as well as for their war chart and invaluable help/knowledge at the fixtures meeting, especially as both Rak and I were newbees. I had heard horror stories about past fixture meetings but to be honest it wasn’t as bad as I had anticipated.

Thanks go to the peg board guardians, especially Simon, who appears to have found a new vocation in life. – however, would appreciate more volunteers to take their turn. Emma organised a post Christmas meal which was enjoyed by all who attended – Many Thanks. I believe that Phil has mentioned venturing for a Polish meal in Sherwood, to be arranged in due course – will mention it to him

As this was my first year as club Secretary, I would like to thank Moira and Gary for their invaluable help, to keep me on the straight and narrow and hopefully can count on their support in the future. On this note, I am willing to continue as Club Secretary if the members wish me to do so.”

Treasurer’s Report Gary Stubley (18.04.2016) “The number of members for the winter season 2015/16 was 34, down from 40 the previous year but still above the typical number of recent seasons when membership was in the 21 to 29 range. Turning to the year’s finances, at last year’s meeting it was agreed to a modest increase of £5 on winter and summer fees to help pay for extra court time. Bilborough court hours have been raised and kept at 10 hours (3 courts at 7pm, 4 at 8pm, 3 at 9pm) for almost the whole year with a reduction in August when attendance dipped. A reduction in income from summer attendance combined with a reduction of 6 winter season members from the previous year has contributed to a significant loss in the 2015/6 year of about £550 on a fair comparison basis. The starting financial balance for 2015/6 was £1640; income minus expenditure was a loss of £414, giving a closing financial balance of £1225. Total income was lower at £6087 (down from previous year £6487) but total expenses were higher at £6502 (up from previous year £6392). (The expenses are shown as negative on the spread sheet). The single most important variable is the ‘number of members’ and this decreased in 2015/2016 to 34 in the winter season (40 in previous year) but increased in summer to 24 (18 in previous year). Visitors’ fees (which include pay as you go summer fees) decreased significantly to £345 (from £910 in previous year) as more people chose to pay summer fees rather than £5 per session. Shuttle usage remained high at 113 dozen (115 dozen in previous year). The summer club produced a loss of £181, when adjusted for shuttle stock level. Summer attendances were lower than in the previous year, varying from about 12 to 25. The summer club played every week with Chilwell being used when Bilborough was unavailable. The winter club recorded a loss of £467 after adjustment for shuttle stock level. Wednesday Club night ran on every week apart from the Xmas and New Year break. Attendances were healthy (between 12 to 27 players) but rarely approached the full 34 membership number. The total loss of £648 (adjusting for changes in shuttle stocks) takes no account of the gift of free Babolat shuttles from the league, which we are using since the start of summer. This is obviously a bonus which should pull back several hundred pounds into the finances on a one- off basis. The year under review ran from March 31st to April 6th which exaggerates the loss by about £100. So the loss could be considered to be about £550 on a fair comparison basis. The proposal for 2016/17 fees is for a modest increase in winter fees of £5 to £110. All other fees will remain unchanged. However, we can only maintain the level of court hire if membership numbers increase. If we cannot increase membership numbers then court time will have to be cut back. Strategically I do not like giving up courts because you may not be able to get them back, if other users come in with block bookings. However, we cannot break the bank to do it. The alternative of significant fee increases may just deter potential members and is not recommended. Therefore I have reduced the courts at 8:00 pm to 3 for summer, giving 3 courts from 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm. This may also be continued for winter unless membership numbers increase. “ The increase (of £5, to £110) in the Winter subscription fee and the subsequent acceptance of the accounts were Proposed by Fran and Seconded by Moira H and Neil F respectively. Both proposals were accepted by the remaining Club members.

League Team Reports

LADIES REPORT Sally and Emma “ Unfortunately the Ladies lost all 6 matches this year, but things could easily have been very different with 4 of the matches being lost 5 – 4, one was lost 6 – 3 and the other 8 – 1. The team should remain in division 3, as this is the bottom division. We would like to thank everyone for playing, each lady member played at least one game. “

Mens 1 Steve J Having dropped from Division 2 last year the first team have bounced straight back to Division 2. They achieved 6 straight wins. Thanks to the team players, we all put in a great effort to win the necessary rubbers.

Player Appearances Steve E 6 Stuart 6 Steve R 5 Ian C 5 Steve J 6 Umang 6 Virral 1 Chris F 1 League table

Mens Div 3B p w l rf ra pts Boots 1st 6 6 0 42 12 12 Southwell 2nd 6 5 1 40 14 10 St Giles 2nd 6 3 3 34 20 6 Rushcliffe Arena 1st 6 3 3 30 24 6 David Lloyd Aspley 1st 6 2 4 22 32 4 University 4th 6 2 4 15 39 4 Phoenixwood 2nd 6 0 6 6 48 0

Player Averages in the matches

Average Player Rubbers Games Points For Against For Against For Against Ian Cross / Steve Rex 2.2 0.8 4.6 2.6 135.2 113.4 Stuart Pinchin Steve Eade 2.3 0.7 4.8 2.5 144.2 123.7 Umang Desai / Steve Jordan 2.0 1.0 4.7 2.7 140.2 123.0 Chris Friend / Virral Shah 2.0 1.0 5.0 3.0 167.0 159.0 Totals 6.5 2.5 14.2 7.8 424.8 367.7

Mens 2 Roger M After being promoted last season to Division 3 the 2nd Mens have managed to win 2 games both 7-2 losing 4 – one 4-5 where Phil and I lost 22-20 in the 3rd end of the last rubber!. Two 3-6 and one 2-7. We have stayed up on rubber difference due to University having 2 matches at 0-9 by playing unregistered players and losing one 0-9 by not sending in a scorecard! Thanks to all 11 players who played .

Mens 3 Rak Played 5 games in total:

First game against Redhill 1st, we won 7 - 2. Tough team to play, had one very good pair. Second game against Beeston Valley 2nd, we won 5 - 4. Best and hardest game of the season, last game taken by Dan and Rak. Third game against Nott's Trent Uni, we won 9 - 0. Easy game but we still played well. Forth game against David Lloyd Aspley. They cancelled an hour before the game, resulted in 9 - 0 win to us. Fifth and final game against St Giles 3rd. A good team but we were on form, resulted in a 9 - 0 win to us. Overall only two games that tested our team, glad to be going up to Division 3 but will need to up the standard next season.

Mixed 1 Neil F Well, we never expected to be playing in Division 2! Nobody said it would be easy and it wasn’t! The team put in a magnificent performance and I think it’s fair to say that our match skills have improved by playing this level of badminton. Unfortunately we finished 2nd from bottom in the division which most likely means we will be relegated to division 3 for next season. We had a good start, playing East Leake at home. We lost the match 5-4 and it’s always a difficult result to swallow. The next 3 matches against Crusader, Mapperley Park and Forest were very tough and winning was an unlikely outcome. Whist we got battered on the score card, our team was determined and everyone played very well. Our last match against University, who turned up and were sober, gave us a “good feeling” end to the season. We won 5-4, a fantastic result by the team In summary we can compete at this level (Division 2 Mix) and on a different evening we could have beaten East Leake and may have retained our position in the league. I am confident that Boots 1st Mix can return to division 2 as we do have the skill level and determination to do so. A big thank you to the team for all your commitment this year, it’s greatly appreciated and I have very much enjoyed being captain. It’s been fun and some specific thanks come to mind:  Frances Fox, for putting up with me and introducing me to the “piglets” phrase

 Ian Cross, for demonstrating frustration busting racquet throwing techniques at the end of a closely lost game

 Michele Porter, for stylish hop and skip celebration when winning long rallies

 Emma Moors, for remaining calm and composed during serving, as the opposition did not take prisoners!

 Mark Law, for keeping his eyes on the shuttle and not the opposition!

 Steve Jordan, Stuart Pinchin and Jacqui Dennis for providing the much needed extra mix of skill throughout the season.

Final Scores on the doors Results For Against East Leake 4 5 Crusader 2 7 Mapperley Park 1 8 Forest 2 7 University 5 4

Mixed 2 Kay Won 2, Lost 4 The season started very well with a 9-0 win against David Lloyd Aspley, but then went downhill somewhat due to tough opposition and struggling with player unavailability and illness. It all came down to needing to win the last match against Beeston Valley in order to stay in the division, which fortunately we managed to do. Thanks to everyone who played regularly in the team – Steve J, Steve E, Stuart and Jacqui and those who helped out when needed, including Emma, Moira, Karen, Gary and Mark. I hope you all enjoyed the games and we can do better next year.

Mixed 3 Moira Although we didn't win any matches the games were well fought with some really Close results on games.

We ended up playing quite a few first teams and although we enjoyed the games We lost the matches.

I did try to use most people that were keen to play mixed a go in this team but that did mean that the pairs were not consistant . Thank you to all players who stepped in at short notice.

Unfortunately we will be relegated to division 4 next season. Thank you for all players who played in 3rd mixed

Steve Taylor Kay Moira Wilson Karen Gary Roger Sally Aaron Steve Eade Sue Phil Umang Mondira Chris 3. League Representation For the time being the number of teams to be entered into the League will be kept the same (1 Ladies, 3 Mixed & 3 Men’s ). A review will follow in August once a better understanding of the likely number of Winter members is known.

4. Election of Officers

As a post script to the AGM, I would like to thank this year’s officers as well as those new to a role for the forthcoming season. The following officers were elected en bloc, which was Proposed by Moira H and Seconded by Ian C.

Position Officer

Secretary Ian Cross

Treasurer Gary Stubley

Match secretary Steve Eade

Shuttle Monitor Simon Barnes

Ladies Michelle Porter

Mens 1 Steve Jordan

Mens 2 Roger Moors

Mens 3 Rak Ladva

Mixed 1 Neil Franklin

Mixed 2 Kay Eade

Mixed 3 Chris Friend

5. NBA League AGM

This year’s Nottinghamshire Badminton Association AGM is to be held on Tuesday 7th June 2016 at Chilwell Olympia. The meeting is to commence at 7pm.

6. Membership

It was agreed to keep the maximum number of members circa 40, as per the prior year, with the emphasis of attracting more lady members.

A suggestion was put forward to utilise one of the early winter seasons Saturday sessions to attract new members. As well as advertising on both the Boots Badminton and Nottingham Badminton Association websites. Although the club requires a ‘good’ influx of ladies, it was felt that the advertisement should not be gender specific but worded in such a way as to primarily appeal to females.

7. AOB

A discussion followed in respect of the lack of availability of new shuttles. Three new tubes are provided for each session. It was explained that the session under scrutiny, a ‘brake’ had been put on shuttle usage as a whole tube had been utilised in the first hour. There is a correlation between the numbers of club members/ability and shuttle usage.

Regarding team selection for the forthcoming season, it was suggested that the team captains surmise that they have the same available players as the current season and utilize the Saturday sessions for additional match practice.

It was also felt that it would be beneficial for the Captains to meet up and discuss their prospective team selections in order to best use players/pairings within the various teams. As sometimes it better to move pairs around rather than individuals, moving just one player could be detrimental to numerous pairings.

Ian Cross 06.06.2016