ANNUAL REPORT 2012/13 Office Bearers 2012/13 BOARD Patron Peter Montgomery President David Henricks Secretary/Director of Finance Nick Hodgers Director Metropolitan Peter Waterman Director Country Peter Donohue Director/Delegate to WPAL Nathan Thomas Director Michael Wirth OFFICE PERSONNEL Chief Executive Greg Heathcote (retired Nov 2012) Chief Executive Officer Perry Tzamouranis (appointed Oct 2012) Operations Manager Charlene Sommerville Sport Development Manager Tim Hamill STATE COACHES Open Country Men Alan Caldwell Open Country Women Ryan McDermott U20 Men Blues Les Kay U20 Men Waratahs Tim Hamill U20 Women Blues Danielle Bower U20 Women Waratahs Michael Hahn U18 Men City Phillip Bower U18 Men Country Shannan Johansen U18 Women City Michael Hahn U18 Women Country Brett Arnold U16 Boys City Petar Petrovic U16 Boys Country Daniel Marsden U16 Girls City Rebecca Rippon U16 Girls Country Paula Schmack U14 Boys Blues Mark Holden U14 Boys Waratahs Gary Negus U14 Girls Blues Kate Lewis U14 Girls Waratahs Sandra Holden Water Polo NSW - Annual Report 2012/13 2 NSW STATE GOVERNMENT SUPPORT The New South Wales Government continues to support Water Polo NSW via two agencies. Firstly, through NSW Sport and Recreation, they provide funding under the Sport and Development Program, which is based on supporting a State Sporting Organisation’s core business. Sport and Athlete Development Program allows sports to apply for funding assistance to attend events, training and courses. Secondly, through the New South Wales Institute of Sport Elite Athletes developed through Water Polo NSW programs and competitions are supported by numerous services provided by NSWIS. Athletes selected in National Squads are offered NSWIS scholarships in various categories (these scholarships are limited in number), while Athletes in underpinning programs are offered places in the Youth Development Group or the Emerging Athlete Program. Water Polo NSW would like to thank Charles Turner Director of NSWIS for his continued support of our sport, and acknowledge the outstanding assistance given to the Institute Coaches by Megan Barnes and Daniel York as Sport Consultants. AFFILIATED CLUBS AND DISTRICTS 2012/13 METROPOLITAN CLUBS COUNTRY CLUBS & ASSOCIATIONS Balmain Alstonville Juniors Blue Mountains Bathurst Coogee Coffs Harbour Cronulla Sutherland Manning Valley Drummoyne Sothern Highlands Icebergs Tamworth Macquarie University Wagga Wagga Northern District Piranhas Parramatta CENTRAL COAST ASSOCIATION Ryde Gosford Sutherland Juniors The Entrance Sydney Dolphins Woy Woy Sydney Northern Beaches Wyong Sydney Stingers Sydney University Men NEWCASTLE DISTRICT ASSOCIATION Sydney University Women Central Newcastle UNSW Wests Cessnock Wizards Easts Hunter Hurricanes Lake Macquarie Newcastle University Raymond Terrace OVENS & MURRAY ASSOCIATION Albury Northside Stingrays Sharks Water Polo NSW - Annual Report 2012/13 3 President’s Report Another year has come and gone and 2012/13 brought with it some significant changes at Water Polo NSW. Most significant of all was the retirement of our long standing CEO, Greg Heathcote. Greg has served Water Polo in NSW well for many years and it was with regret that we farewelled him in November 2012. On behalf of the Board of Directors, I thank him for his input over the years and wish him well in his retirement. Following a process of recruitment, I would like to take this opportunity to welcome Perry Tzamouranis as our new CEO. Although Perry had no previous Water Polo background, he did have significant sport administration experience in his previous role as General Manager with Cycling Australia as well as refereeing and honorary executive roles with the Canterbury Bankstown Junior Rugby League Referees Association. Perry has transitioned his skills over to Water Polo and has provided the Board with a fresh perspective. With the changing of the guard we also saw the renaming of our organisation (more of a naming modification), a change in the financial year, as well as a new logo. All these cosmetic changes mark the beginning of a new era as the Board look towards more significant and broader developments and opportunities into the future. To this end, it was especially rewarding to have engaged with the various club officials at the June strategic workshop. The respective ideas and feedback offered by delegates at this workshop was encouraging and the Board will work closely with our CEO over the next few months as we formalise our future strategic plan. More encouraging during the course of 2012/13 was the realisation of the participation numbers within our State which was in the vicinity of 5,700 players. A short term challenge for the Association is to better identify the various need of our clubs, working with both the city and regional clubs in particular, to implement and deliver greater benefits and opportunities. On the competitive side of our sport, my congratulations to all our athletes. Thank you for promoting strong and competitive competitions. Further congratulations to all the athletes that made representative teams and to all the teams winning their various competitions. It would be remiss of me not to also thank the numerous volunteers who give their time freely to our sport. Not only do our grassroots athletes rely on your continued support, so do our elite players as well. On a final note, it is my intention not to renominate for President or any other Board position in 2013/14. I have thoroughly enjoyed my tenure and experiences as President of Water Polo NSW and I would like to thank my fellow Board members and office staff, both past and present, for all their assistance. I wish everyone involved in Water Polo NSW the very best and I will continue to keep a keen interest in the Association’s future endeavours. David Henricks President Water Polo NSW - Annual Report 2012/13 4 Chief Executive Officer’s Report It is with great pleasure that I present my inaugural CEO’s report. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Board for their confidence in appointing me to the position and with it, the opportunity to be involved with Water Polo NSW. The Board’s assistance and guidance over my first few months has been tremendous. Their collective wisdom to enhance and further develop the sport of Water Polo in NSW has been an enormous support to me as we have introduced some new initiatives. Additional initiatives are still being worked on and I look forward to engaging with the broader Water Polo community so as to implement these, further promoting the sport, as well as seeking new opportunities. I would also like to thank my predecessor, Greg Heathcote, who after some 14 years as CEO, retired during the course of the year. Greg provided me with the benefit of his accumulated wisdom during the handover period, greatly assisting me to settle into my new role. To Greg and his family, I wish you well for the next stage of your life. Furthermore, I was fortunate to have had the support of the office staff, Charlene Sommerville and Tim Hamill. Both these individuals have been a wealth of information and support to me. They have both worked tirelessly in their respective roles, ensuring the continued smooth day-to-day running of the various office activities. As mentioned above, 2012/13 saw the introduction of some changes and new initiatives for Water Polo NSW. Some of the significant changes include: Name change from New South Wales Water Polo Inc. to Water polo NSW Inc., New logo, developed by Water Polo Australia, Change in the financial year to commence on 1 July, realigning it with both Water Polo Australia’s and the traditional Australian financial year, New L1 and M1 Grand Final format, incorporating the commissioning of the Pat Jones and David Woods most valuable player medals. Grand Final Gala weekend for all other grades, Inaugural U16’s and U18’s City v Country Tournament. In addition to these changes I would also like to extend my appreciation and thanks to all Club President’s for their support and input during the strategic planning workshop held in June 2013. It was attended by almost all of our affiliated clubs, which was an enormous and much appreciated effort. Since that workshop, we have been developing some further initiatives, such as a Referees Development Framework and working on developing a strategic plan that will be released as soon as possible, during the course of the 2013/14 year. The financial position for the 10 months ended 30 June is a good result with a net surplus of $78,807. Although a direct comparison with the previous financial year is unable to be made due to the shorter year following the financial year change, the result is nevertheless a good one. The surplus also incorporates a higher than usual depreciation calculation to reflect an update to the fixed assets register. Finally, I would also like to take this opportunity to thank all our affiliated Club officials for your input over the year. Thank you all for sharing your thoughts with me during the year and for you tireless work to the benefit of the sport. Looking forward to working with you all in 2013/14. Perry Tzamouranis Chief Executive Officer Water Polo NSW - Annual Report 2012/13 5 Sport Development Manager’s Report The 2012/2013 water polo season was a successful season for NSW teams in both National State Based Championships and National Club Championships. A NSW City versus NSW Country Origin Series was added to the calendar. This series provided boys and girls at the U16 and U18 age groups another opportunity to be involved in representative water polo. The U13 Development Weekend and the U14 Talent Athlete Program camp again provided a great opportunity for over 130 junior players from across NSW to attend a training weekend that exposed them to some of the latest drills and skills being taught at both the NSW Institute and National Water Polo programs.