31 January 1995, 8.00pm
Held at Cheadle Conservative Club
Present: President, Chairman, Vice-chairman, Secretary/Match secretary, Treasurer and delegates from 49 clubs
Apologies: Mermaid
Absences: Silverwings, Wembley
1. The Chairman asked members to stand for a few seconds to remember our colleagues who had passed away during the past twelve months.
2 Roll call – see above.
3 The minutes of the 1994 AGM were read and approved.
4 There was no correspondence to be dealt with.
5 The Secretary (Bob Newlan) then presented reports for Secretary, Match secretary and Veterans’ secretary – see attached sheet. As it was his last meeting as an officer of the league, he thanked everybody for their help and co-operation during his time of office. He hoped he had maintained the high standards set by Bill Walters and Eric Smith – both life members of the League.
The Chairman (Doug McKnight) thanked Bob for his contribution to the League, and after a little eulogy announced that a cheque would be presented to Bob as a gift from all clubs in the League. At this point, Gatley proposed that Bob Newlan be made a life member of the League – seconded by Levenshulme Catholic and carried unanimously.
Bob thanked all members for their kindness and generosity and asked permission to make a substantial donation from the cheque to the new-born baby unit at Liverpool Maternity Hospital where his new granddaughter had been in an incubator since birth (14 weeks prematurely) on Boxing Day 1994. The meeting granted Bob’s request.
6 Treasurer’s Report. Mr Jack Forrest presented the balance sheet for 1994 and pointed out the items of interest. The position at the bank was healthy, and it was not proposed to alter subscriptions for 1995. The Secretary proposed that in view of the balance reserves prize money could be paid down to fourth place, and the Treasurer agreed that this was the best course of action. He would also consider whether any increase in prize money was warranted.
With regard to the Presentation night at the Bungalow – this had been a great success, with a surplus of £225.32p. This was mainly due to a very successful raffle and the generosity of clubs in donating attractive prizes. The Treasurer thanked all clubs which had given. There was a motion form the chair to thank Mrs Great Forrest for her hard work with the raffle and the refreshments. The meeting agreed unanimously.
The accounts were adopted – proposed by Post Office; seconded by Robinsons.
7 Auditors’ Report. Mr Roy Wright, on behalf of the auditors, thanked the Treasurer for his astute handling of the league’s finances. Everything was recorded and in order, and he was pleased to confirm that his co-auditor, Mr Eric Price, was of similar mind.
8 Amendments to rules for 1995
i) Rule 3: In the first line, after the words “consisting of”, replace “President, Vice-presidents, Chairman, Hon. Treasurer, Hon. Secretary, Hon. Match Secretary” with the words “All Officers of the League”.
ii) Rule 17: After first sentence add: “For all Clubs without floodlights.”
iii) Veterans’ Rule 5: At the end of the rule add: “Without the permission of the Management Committee”.
9 Election of Officers
The following Officers were re-elected:
Chairman: Doug McKnight
President: Stuart Warburton
Vice-chairman: Ross Kavanagh
Treasurer: Jack Forrest
The position of Vets’ secretary was to be filled by Les Shinner. The position of Results secretary (evening) was filled by Frank Russell. The positions of Secretary, Match secretary and Results secretary (veterans) were not filled, and no nominations were forthcoming.
In view of this, the officers of the League were to hold a meeting and report quickly so that some proposition could be put to the March meeting. Mr Paul Reynolds of Oilwells volunteered to be acting Secretary until the March meeting so that the League could continue to function within the rules.
10 Election of Management sub-committee
The following were elected (one per division from both leagues):
| C. Houghton (Heald Green) | J. Ruddock (Houldsworth) |
| R. Wright (Levenshulme Catholic) | B. Marsden (Crown) |
| H. Armstrong (Benchill Cons) | J. Lloyd (Gatley) |
| L. Myatt (British Rail) | J. Barratt (Bungalow) |
| R. Edy (Hazel Grove) | J. Hammond (Shaw Heath) |
11 Honorariums – 1994 After discussion, the honorarium per officer was increased from £110 to £120 p.a. Mr Newlan thanked the League on behalf of himself, Mr Rowlinson and Mr Forrest.
12 AOB Although it was pointed out this should not be at an AGM, the meeting did deal with some items.
i) The retiring secretary thanked Mr Alan Bligh of the Crown for arranging the fixtures.
ii) The retiring secretary gave details of changes of venue for Benchill Conservative, Northern Etchells and British Rail. These would be shown in the 1995 handbook.
iii) The Callison Cup final venue was to be Cheadle Conservative Club – our “Headquarters” Green. The Merit final venue was still to be decided.
There being no other business, the meeting closed at 9.20pm.
Looking at the year as a whole, the 1994 season started with a big help from Alan Bligh (of the Crown) who organised the fixtures for both leagues. I am glad to say he has done it again this year and you will have received your preliminary copies tonight. They will of course be in the League Handbooks, available at the March meeting. With regard to the handbooks, may I thank Deanprint and Mike Browne in particular for their co-operation and indeed very competitive price!
During the year I attended meetings on behalf of the League at Stockport Leisure Services and corresponded with G.M.C.G.B.A. on various matters.
To enable the details for the league handbooks to be completed, I will require two clubs to host the Callison and Merit finals, and also of course the revised list of officers, hopefully known after tonight’s meeting.
The 1995 competition diary and green rota have been issued tonight. Will any club with problems please contact the new secretary or the match secretary before 15 March so that any change can be notified at the march meeting. I intend to make the Dineley Shield draw and green allocation up to the semi-final stages and this will be available at the March meeting. This will reduce the work for my successor. The Club information sheets are almost all in. The clubs missing are: Albert, Bramhall Park, Cheadle Heath Social, Hazel Grove, Ladybridge Park, Mermaid, Poynton WMC and Cheadle Sports. If I do not receive a sheet by the weekend we will print last year’s details.
Thank you for your co-operation in 1994. Please ensure the same for my successor. Results (for the evening league) will be sent to Frank Russell who will be the new Results secretary (evenings). His name and address will be printed on the match result sheets to be issued at the March meeting.
Don’t forget lists of registrations to the secretary by 31 May (not veterans).
League tables will be issued at least on a monthly basis in 1995 (as last year).
The year 1994 started badly with the illness of Mr Arthur Rowlinson, who was incapacitated for the whole season. However, with some help from me and others, Mrs Rowlinson kept things moving and the League’s thanks are due to her. Arthur will not be back this year and Les Shinner – a League stalwart – has taken on the job of Veterans’ secretary. A Veterans’ results secretary is still required at this moment.
To assist Les, the Jennison Shield (knock out) will be drawn with green allocation up to the semi-final stage and be available at the March meeting. As there is a new division this year it is proposed to make the handicap for the 5th division 32, but bearing in mind most of the teams are new to the league they will be off scratch for the first season. I note that the Jennison Shield had not been engraved for 1994, and perhaps Houldsworth can do this at their convenience and send the treasurer the bill.
Finally during my years as an officer of the league I have been pleased with the co-operation, help and attitude from clubs and players alike. I appreciate the work done by you secretaries and delegates and my thanks to you in particular are recorded. I have been helped considerably by the Treasurer –Jack Forrest. We have been able to bounce ideas off each other for the benefit of the league. My thanks are also due to our President and Chairman who have assisted whenever possible as well as for the work they do on behalf of the League.
If I can get my health problem improved I will still be available in a consultancy capacity if required. I am resigning not because I want to, but because I have to!