From the Archives - Part 18 - Not Much to Shout About, 2006 - 2008

Just when you'd given up hope of ever seeing another of these articles, along comes a fresh instalment - just the 15 months since the previous one. (Which itself saw a wait of 27 months for publication!) But its a story that must be seen through to its end - as Magnus (not Carlsen, but Magnusson!) used to say, "I've started so I'll finish."

Part 15 of our epic saga took us up to the 2006 AGM, since which time the two most recent articles have been concerned with filling in some previous gaps after new information came to light. Our story starts again at the 2006 AGM, but only to touch upon financial matters, as I now have a copy of the accounts. These show that we had made a surplus of £43.37 in 2005/6, stemming the hemorrhaging of the previous year. As a consequence we were sitting on a tidy accumulated fund of £309.42 - all of which, interestingly, was in our building society account. There has never been a club account since I have had anything to do with the financial administration, but maybe we will find out just what caused this change of policy amongst the new papers?

September 2006 - There is a big turnout (apologies from Tom Swallow, Rob Olley, Paul Lam and Len Krombeen, with all other members present) for the team formation meeting, where there is some bombshell news - 2 strong players have joined the club since the AGM and we may be over subscribed with "only" 4 teams entered in the League. Chris, supported by Geoff King, proposed that we should try to secure the admission of a fifth team, but when this was put to the vote, it was rejected by 6-2. Instead we would accommodate the new players by forming squads for each team as follows:-

A team - Phil Pelton, Bernard Rogers, Carl Pickering (Captain), Mike Johnson, Phil Wood
B Team - Paul Mills, Len Krombeen (Captain), Rod Webb (part-time), Nigel Morris, John Skinner, Nick Mottram (part-time)
C team - Roy Watson, Rob Olley (part-time), Chris Aldridge (Captain), Geoff King, Bruce Holland
D team - Tony King, Tony Pickering, Mike Whatson, Frank Holmes (Captain), Steve Payne (part-time)

I can imagine that Phil Pelton was one of the newcomers, but its a mystery to me as to who the other new arrival at that time might have been. Any ideas?

April 2007 - The AGM is to be held on April 28, though in his advance notice of the agenda, the Secretary (B. Rogers, Esq) decides no-one needs to know the venue of the meeting. He must have been watching Field of Dreams on video. "If you don't tell them, they will come anyway. Even when you tell them the wrong date." Because the AGM is actually on April 26, but what's a couple of days between friends?! Apologies were received from Geoff King, Tony King, Len Krombeen, Carl Pickering, Dave Shurrock and John Skinner, while paul Lam, Rob Olley and Phil Pelton were "absent without apology!"

The Chairman's report (presented in absentia) recorded that the A team had finished 8th in Division 1 (this sounds perilously close to last!); the B team 4th in Division 2; the C team 7th in Division 3 and the D team 4th in Division 4.Not much to celebrate there, while the 3 cup teams were all eliminated in Round 1. Thankfully there were some individual successes to report. Carl and Phil contested the final of the League Individual Championship (Carl victorious after a replay), while Carl had also won the Coventry League Individual Championship (not that this had anything to do with Kenilworth!) for a splendid double triumph. He then made it 3/3 by winning the club's own Tilley Trophy, while Nigel Morris won the Soesan Trophy and Mike Whatson the Kenilworth Trophy (of which I have never heard - before or since!)

Perhaps embarrassed by his massively misleading AGM notice, the Secretary did not give a report.  (If I had adopted a similar policy, recent AGM's could have been over in about 10 minutes!) Thankfully the Treasurer did not follow this example and tabled accounts which showed a massive surplus of £139.50, and net assets of £451.42. Despite this, it was proposed that subs should be increased to £20 to enable the purchase of digital clocks and this was agreed by 7-4. 

Phil Wood was elected as the new Club Chairman, while Bernard, Roy and Tony Pickering remained in situ as, respectively, Secretary, Treasurer and Competitions' Secretary.

It then all gets very confusing, as our entry of League teams is apparently dependent upon what night of the week we play.  Someone proposed that we revert to Thursdays for the majority of the matches, using the downstairs room. (Where??) But if needed the A team could play upstairs on Wednesdays. (Sounds like the British Legion Club to me.) We would beg/request that our A team stayed in Division 1, with the B team in Div 2, C and D in Div 3 and E in Div 4. Captains would be, Phil W, Mike J, Len K, Roy W and Mike W. In a display of massive hubris it was also decided to play in all 3 KO Cups, with 2 teams in the U-100 tournament.

Frank Holmes proposed that we should give £50 to Kenilworth Cricket Club for their Fire Appeal. On a vote of 6-4 this was agreed. (I reckon I would have voted against!) They subsequently sent us a letter of thanks. Frank also offered to try and keep the Club website (who knew we had one?) up to date. Wonder how that went?

September 2007 - The Team Formation meeting is attended by all members of the club, except Tom Swallow who sent his apologies. We are up to 5 teams as follows:-

A team - Paul Lam (when available), Phil Pelton, Carl Pickering, Bernard Rogers, Phil Wood (Captain)
B Team - Nigel Morris, Dave Shurrock, Mike Johnson (Captain), Rod Webb, Paul Mills (reserve)
C team - Len Krombeen (Captain), Nick Mottram, Roy Watson, Chris Aldridge (reserve - and E team reserve - try doing that under the current rules and you'd be well and truly hauled over the coals!!)
D team - Geoff King, Frank Holmes (part of season only), Bruce Holland, Mike Whatson (Captain)
E team - Tony King (Captain), Cathy Raison, Steve Payne, Michael Oldfinch, Chris Aldridge

Cup Captains were to be Carl, Bernard, Chris and Mike.

May 2008 - Its that time of the year again, and once more the Secretary decides to keep members guessing about the AGM venue. But at least he gives them the right date this year! No less than 16 members are present (Messrs Aldridge, Holland, Johnson, King T, Krombeen, Morris, Mottram, Payne, Pickering C and T, Rogers, Shurrock, Swallow, Watson, Webb, Whatson, Wood. Apologies were sent by Messrs Skinner, Pelton and Holmes. Regrettably Frank Holmes will be unable to play in the coming season due to ill health, which has also defeated his ambitions to maintain the club website.

The Chairman reported on the Club's League performances, but these were considered too sensitive to be recorded for posterity. However, the club won the U-625 cup, while the two U-100 Cup teams each managed a win before losing in Round 2. Shame on the Open KO tem, though, who withdrew without playing.

Once again the Secretary reported nothing. Nada. Zilch. Rien. One wonders what we were paying him for?

Whereas Treasurer Roy is right on top of his administrative brief and tables the Accounts which show a massive loss of £286.10 and total expenditure of a scarcely credible £667.22. Looks like we had a Labour man in charge of the finances!! We would have broken almost exactly even, though, if we hadn't invested in digital clocks and random donations to organisations with massively greater financial resources than ourselves. Assets are down to £149.67 and we still have a building society account. Fees are to remain at £20 pa, with no charge for juniors.

August 2008 - The British Legion Club confirms our booking of the (upstairs) Concert Room for every Wednesday from September to April. This doesn't seem significant in its own right, but as will become clear in Part 19 - because yes, there's still more to come! - the seeds of a club crisis have been sown. Stand by for more revelations ........ sometime in the future!

No real need for any music to accompany this article, but for anyone who, like me, is being massively annoyed by a current Compare the Market ad on TV it can't hurt to set the record straight and hear the original - and wow, what a spectacular performance this is. You could only get a show like this in Vegas! But you'll have to be patient - the song itself doesn't start till several minutes in!