Chairman’s Report 2007

Invariably my predecessor and I have reported at a year’s end that the Club has made a slight loss or has merely broken even. How encouraging therefore to break the mould by being able to announce that this year has seen a profit of over £6000.

This has been due to good housekeeping and the hard work and dedication of the Committee and other members. Compared to many clubs, I can assure you that we are most fortunate that such a large pool of members is prepared to work so hard for the club.

I should like to thank all committee members for their enthusiastic efforts this year- in particular Mike and Paul Wilson-Gunn for their control and supervision of the finances and David Bryant is to be thanked for the application of his IT skills to the accounting system. I will endorse their view that members are still not settling their accounts quickly enough - at any one time an unacceptably large sum is owed to the club by members. Please expect, therefore, more stringent credit allowance in this financial year!

Jane Sloan has once again kept a tight control on membership organisation and John and Jo Miller have kept the Committee well informed with agendas and meeting minutes. George K. masterminded several excellent social events- an enjoyable wine and food evening, a highly successful summer barbecue which was blessed with wonderful weather and the inaugural Awards evening in October. The latter was a good way to bring together the year’s Victor Ludorum to lull us to sleep with accounts of their deeds of derring-do. All three quality events raised much needed funds for the club’s coffers. The 50 Club is a useful way for the Club to raise funds- this has been taken on by Barbara Nicol and I hope members will ensure they sign up for just £20 and the possibility of winning the first prize of £200 which was, amazingly, won last year by Barbara herself!

As ever the erudite doctor of letters has entertained, informed and denigrated in equal measure (for further detail of the latter refer to his assessment of the Chairman’s standard of tennis after his humiliation in the Owen- George Final!) Each edition takes a lot of work to produce- so congratulations to Richard Seymour Mead for publication of a circular that has few rivals in the real tennis world.

I am pleased to report that Nick Jury has made remarkable progress after his terrible accident a year and a half ago. He is gently returning to his former duties and has taken tentative steps on court.

Members have benefited greatly from Jo Iddles’s coaching and her work with the Juniors is a major and most welcome development. She is now providing coaching sessions on Saturdays for up to 20 youngsters. Her “ladies’ evenings” are proving popular and I hope they will be well attended.

I should like to thank Tom Granville for keeping the court running so smoothly and in Nick’s absence. Courts have been well booked and the club generally has been busier. Club matches are popular and the tournaments well supported. Tom was thanked by the Ladies Real Tennis Association for his contribution to the organisation of the Ladies Open which was a great success and won again by Charlotte Cornwallis whose game is too strong for her opponents at present but there are some very talented young girls waiting in the wings. The Ladies Doubles Final between Charlotte and Penny Lumley against our own Sally Jones and Jo Iddles was a fine match and the local gals were inspired by the Kop behind them!

The court and club have been booked for business events which have been well received so if you or any friends might be interested in hiring the club please let me know.

Despite a good year all round, the Committee will not be complacent. Our large listed building can at any time cause us a major headache but I’m re assured that the expertise of David Sutton and Alex Reynolds is on hand to monitor the building’s fabric and act on any problems that occur.

And let there be light…and there was light…After months of non existent progress with red tape and bureaucracy, the Club has at last been provided with a proper electricity supply which has lifted the post 5 pm stygian gloom and has silenced the quill of the Court Circular’s editorial team. An ugly metallic box in the hedge is a small price to pay. We must hope that the current lighting system will not prove to be in need of replacement.

I am mindful that the Committee must cater for the members’ playing requirements and to that end during the summer we shall be sending out a questionnaire to elicit from members details of, for example, when they wish to play, what tournaments they wish to play in, how they want to be contacted and how often. Please help us by ensuring that the form is completed and returned.

Every year our club’s facilities improve and it is a popular destination for real tennis players because of the comfort and welcome afforded to visitors. May this long continue!

Andrew Hamilton

Chairman