St Albans Cricket Club Notice is hereby given that the 100th Annual General Meeting of the St Albans Cricket Club Inc. will be held at Robbie's on Riccarton, Clarence Street (in the private Committee Room) on Monday, 2 August 2004 at 7:30pm Business: 1. To receive the Minutes of the 2003 Annual General Meeting; 2. To consider and adopt the 2003/04 Annual Report and Accounts; 3. Election of Officers and Management Committee for the 2004/05 season; 4. Notice of Motion That the club levy the following levels of subscriptions (GST inclusive) for the 2004/05 season, namely: a) Adult Men and Women: $200 to be paid by 30 November 2004; b) Full-time University, Polytechnic, Training College Students, Men and Women Under 18: $150 to be paid by 30 November 2004; 3 c) Secondary School Pupils: $100 to be paid by 30 November 2004; d) Primary/Intermediate School Pupils: $40 for first member of family, and $10 for any subsequent members of the same family, to be paid by 30 November 2004; e) Social: $50 to be paid upon joining the club. Please note: there have be no increases in these subscription levels from last season. 5. General Business: Members are reminded to resign (in writing) before the date of the AGM, to ensure that no subscription payment is due for the 2004/05 season, in the event of any member deciding not to play or transferring to another club, or moving out of the city. A light supper will be provided by the club at the conclusion of the AGM. Lorraine Stewart Honorary Secretary PO Box 1919 CHRISTCHURCH Pavilion: Hagley Oval, South Hagley Park, Riccarton Ave, Christchurch, New Zealand. Phone: (03) 366 4905. Secretary: PO Box 1919, Christchurch 1, New Zealand. E-mail: [email protected] Web: http://www.stalbanscricket.co.nz 4 2003/04 Officers Patron: Mr J Z Harris Life Members: Messrs C F Collins, R R McLauchlan, I D Dempsey, R D J Mather, A G Jamieson, S J D Cox, L N Serra, G J Curgenven, Mrs H M Steere, Mrs A J Mitchell and Mrs E W Horne Honorary Auditor: Grant Thornton, Chartered Accountants President: Chairman: Mr A G Jamieson Mr A G Jamieson Men’s Club Captain: Women’s Club Captain: Mr A J Falloon Ms K M Houliston Honorary Secretary: Honorary Treasurer: Mrs L D Stewart Mr L N Serra Bar Manager: Mr S J D Cox Management Committee: Messrs A C Bailey, G J Curgenven, M R Griffin, D L R Jackson, S T Knox, G R Lucas, M J McGoldrick, S A Mason, D E Pettet, Misses S K Burke and M R Reid Honorary Associate Members: Messrs M B Poore, R W Peers, A N Bailey, S C Guillen, G G Fazakarley, K I Ferries, E N Penlington, J Z Harris, L R Earney, S L Jelley, J A Harrison, P B Guerin, L J Blatchford, S N McGregor, Mrs D A McGregor, Mrs K L Gilray, Mrs M A Francis and Mrs C E M Crawford 5 President’s Report On behalf of your Executive and Committee, I have much pleasure in presenting the Annual Report and Accounts for the 2003/04 season, the 99 th in the club’s history. After a severe winter in 2003, one which Nelly the elephant would have done her utmost to forget, the club’s Annual General Meeting was held in early August. It was a pleasant and encouraging pre-cursor to what the committee hoped would be a stellar season. A large turnout of members saw the largest committee elected for over two decades - we were once again on the move. Following one of the club’s hipper mantras - “standstills get overtaken” - St Albans once again embarked on a quest few dared to imagine. The aim was to win more grades, to be more financially successful and to have more social camaraderie than the previous season. Pre-season training was again held in the new Canterbury Cricket Association facility. Although numbers were at first disappointing, many new members injected fresh impetus and by opening day the numbers were most encouraging. There seemed to be more “ifs” about our prospects than in Rudyard Kipling’s famous poem, but as the new recruits showcased their talents the selectors became much more buoyant and optimistic. Just as well, as the selectors were somewhat reflective and nervous about the playing numbers. Fifteen regulars had intimated their unavailability for our top three XIs. “It was a case of grabbing what’s good and taking it forward”, said an upbeat Murray Griffin, the newly appointed senior selector - a challenge indeed. On the administrative front negotiations had been finalised for the three main coaching positions. Steven Knox had agreed to return for a fifth year; Mike Dickie was ready to again guide the first reserve grade women; and finally the club welcomed Stu McCullum, the former Otago first-class cricketer, coach and selector to the position of coach for our first grade women’s team. Sponsorship and other funding avenues were in place, key positions had been filled, three overseas amateurs had arrived, a flat had been found and furnished for them, and at last the blossom was out and Hagley Oval looked a picture - all the news was uniformly good. Opening day duly arrived. The first grade men beat the visiting Upper Valley side from Wellington in a pre-season friendly. The weather was 6 superb and an air of expectancy prevailed. The club entered nine men’s sides, four women’s sides and four under- 14 girls’ teams. One of these was a combined side with Cathedral Grammar, which we thank Jo Eason, a former “old girl” and teacher at the school, for instigating. About mid-November it became obvious that the club was going to find it difficult to field two President’s grade sides as the commitment and regular availability of players was on the wane. While few could talk up their charges as passionately as Dave Mollett, even he could not generate sufficient numbers for the Blue team. Consequently it was decided to withdraw this team. This was not taken lightly, as this side had been together for a long period of time, and many of the team have been long-serving and loyal contributors to the game and our club. We merged the available players where we could with the Gold team. To those that have played and/or helped organise this team over the last few seasons, thank you. Now that the season has come and gone, we can now sit back and reflect on the successes, near-misses and progress that we made. Six grade victories, plus the winning of the Petersen Shield, make for very pleasurable reporting. Congratulations to the first grade men’s and women’s teams for each winning a grade. The men, under Steven Knox’s leadership, won the Pub Charities one-day competition, and with it another trip to Auckland next April, to play in the National Club Championships – a competition for the top club side from each of the six major associations. The women, with Sarah Burke at the helm, had a comprehensive two-day competition win. Ironically, both teams also recorded second-placings in the other form of the game which they compete in. Also recording grade wins were the sixth grade men, under the fledgling leadership of Matt Sutherland. Better known as a prolific lower -grade batsman, Matt has very quickly developed his captaincy skills and persona. However, it was the lower grade women’s sides that significantly helped the winning of the Petersen Shield. It is a sought-after piece of silverware and an acknowledgement of the club’s overall standard and supremacy – indeed, the top club in the city. Congratulations go to our second grade women’s side, under the 7 dynamic direction and champion “dollar wine” supremo Mel Reid. Our third grade secondary girls’ side, led by Zoie Tahuhu, and our fourth grade girls’ team, coached by Peter Rattray, both nailed competition honours. Great effort girls - it helps cement the notion that we have New Zealand’s leading women’s cricket section. The six grade wins which the club achieved last season brings the total won over our 99 years to 145 (88 by men’s teams, 57 by women’s). Looking at just the last 10 years, our club has won 48 titles (23 men’s and 25 women’s grades). The next best club over this period is the Lancaster Park Woolston club with 32 (18 men’s, 14 women’s), followed by East Shirley on 27 (23 men’s, 4 women’s). These totals do not include successes in the Petersen Shield, Hadlee Trophy or Super 8s. Once again the club was indebted to Robbie’s on Riccarton for their support and assistance throughout the year. We thank Trevor Brown and his teams for becoming firm friends of the club. Other supporters and sponsors include Harcourts Vision Real Estate (Debbie Johnstone), Chevron Cars (Chris Bird), the New Zealand Community Trust, Century Foundation, Pub Charity, Lion Foundation and the Robbie’s Trust. We were also fortunate to receive a donation from the Community Trust. We thank all these organisations for their continued support, for without their external funding our club would be all the poorer. Our thanks also go to the Christchurch City Council and the CCA. At times it might not appear so, but we are grateful for your contribution and ongoing counsel. High points of the season for many of our members are the various social occasions that the club embarks upon.