NEWSLETTER - DECEMBER 2010
WELCOME!...
….To the Crowthorne Cricket Club 2010 End-of-year Newsletter. Alongside the wealth of information available on the website and forums (www.crowthornecc.co.uk), this is an attempt to touch base with all players, ex-players, members, supporters, etc to keep you in touch with what’s happening at the club.. Hopefully everyone has a good read. If you’ve not seen/registered on the website, now is the perfect time. There’s lots of information on there!
Despite there being a nice covering of Snow on the ground in The Peoples Republic Of Crowthorne, it’s almost time to start thinking about Cricket again….These Photos were taken of New Ground this week and there’s plenty more on the website. Along with lots of photos taken over the season
GENERAL MATTERS:
2010 Saw a big year for The Crows. Firstly we secured a sizeable sponsorship deal with Installation Technology (http://www.installationtechnology.com/). This has been vital for the development and enhancement of the Club. As a direct result of this investment we now have the following: A new improved Logo and “Brand” Image, A superb, professional looking Website (which incorporates selection and membership management) , Branded Stumps and Boundary Markers, increased local Press coverage, not to mention a Bowling machine and other practice equipment that would be the envy of clubs several times our size and stature. All of these things have given the Club a new focus and we are delighted to announce to relocation to New Ground at Wellington College for 2011 for all Home Games. For all this we sincerely thank Ian Parris of Installation Technology for his support, without which none of this would have happened.
In addition to this lots of other things have been put in place or improved on behind the scenes to ensure the Club continues to prosper and move forwards. We will of course look to build on this in 2011.
WINTER NETS:
Indoor nets will begin on Sunday January 9th at 10am. We have 3 nets booked for an hour. We will have our bowling machine there, too. Please arrive promptly so we can make sure everyone gets a bat!. Cost will be £3/head. There is a map/directions on the website for those who have forgotten how to get there!
2011 AGM:
The 2011 AGM will be held on Sunday January 30th at 11.15am at Wellington Sports Centre.
A full agenda will be issued 2 weeks before the meeting as well of details of all the roles within the club that need to be fulfilled in the coming year. Please inform Jason (Chairman) and/or
Dan (Secretary) if you have any matters or Ideas that you would like added to the agenda.
The AGM is a vital meeting and we would like as many members to be present as possible. The Committee will present a review of the status and activities of the club in 2010 as well as share plans for 2011 and beyond. In addition to this there will be the election of Captains, Officers and Committee Members. Have a good think about what YOU could bring to the club in some capacity.
HELLOS!
For 2011 we have several new faces lined up to play. So far, Alex Gent, Rich Gent, Brent Swaden, Mark Knight, Ant Avrili, Will Avrili have all shown an interest to play for the Crows in some capacity or another. However, the recruitment drive is an ongoing process and hopefully we’ll have some more faces to announce before. In 2010 we welcomed Rich Hester, Jimmy Carson, Brendon “The Frenzy” MacKenzie, Pete Daines, Julian O’Loughlin and Rich Barron.
GOODBYES!
Mark “Bouquet” Buckett has announced his "retirement" from the Crows after 22 years loyal service to the cause. Mark will be moving to Wales of all places after Christmas. On behalf of the club, we'd like to wish him and Jo well in their new life over the bridge and thank Mark for his outstanding contribution to Crowthorne Cricket Club for over 2 decades. In his heyday, Mark was an unplayable bowler and the mainstay of the Crows attack for many a year. A genuine number 11 bastman, too. Injury and old age generally have hampered his appearances in recent
years. We expect to see you back for social events and of course the 6-a-side next year. Good luck Mark from everyone at the club.
BABY BOOM!
2010 Saw the arrival of several new Young Crows. So in no particular order congratulations to:
- Aran & Chrissie for the Arrival of Harry Long
- Andy and Anne for the Arrival of James Taylor
- Rich and Teresa Gent on the Arrival of Robert Gent
- Rich and Emma Hester on the Arrival of Rosie Hester
- Plus Dean and Annie are expecting the second baby Timms in Early 2011
(I’ve got this awful feeling I’ve forgotten someone else – so congratulations for anyone else who has pro-created this year)
RECRUITMENT CAMPAIGN
As in previous years, we have a strategy in place to attract new members to the club. This is constantly evolving to make sure we “leave no stone Unturned” in our hunt to strengthen the membership. In addition to new members, we will be looking to coerce some old faces back into the fold, so if you are reading this, having given up the game for whatever reason, have a think about digging your smelly whites and pads out of the garage and giving it another go….
WINTER FOOTBALL
Started in 2010 to fill a void on a Tuesday night during the off-season, the Crows Winter Football has been a big success. We’ve had more and more people wanting to take part and despite a couple tasty encounters early on, it has been mostly good-spirited but competitive. Former Crows Adam Elrick (before Injury), Gary Attree and Paul Barnes have all been regulars as well as a host of Current Crows plus future Crows Alex Gent and Brent Swaden. Anyone wanting to jump on the bandwagon, let Dan know.
ADRIAN CHATTERS MEMORIAL 6-A-SIDE TOURNAMENT .
After the massive disappointment of 2010, we have made the decision to bring this event forward in the calendar in an attempt to prevent it being a washout like this year. This event is so important for the Crows. We are committed to continuing this and improving it every year to make sure that Adie’s memory lives on and that we put on a day that is a fitting tribute to him
We will communicate full details of this nearer the time but suffice to say the date will be Sunday July 10th 2011 and the format will be similar to previous years. We hope to see as many people attend as possible, players, former players, friends, family, neighbours etc. For those new to the club, we can’t stress how important this is to the Crows. Put it in your Diary now!
SATURDAY TEAM:
We will be in Division 2 again this year. We finished 3rd in 2010 and would possibly have finished in the top 2 promotion spots had 2 of the last 3 matches not been rained off. We will be playing at New Ground, Wellington College as opposed to Great Hollands Recreation Ground and hope to build on the progress made this year under Pete’s Captaincy. The Berkshire league Season will run from 7th May for 18 weeks until 3rd September. Fixtures etc will be issued in the New Year.
SUNDAY TEAM:
Saviour is currently beavering away behind the scenes compiling the Sunday fixtures. As and when they become confirmed they are appearing on the Fixtures page on the website. All our home games will be Played at New Ground once more and we will have a chance to play at some nice away grounds too, like Deer Park at Englefield (hopefully Mr Angry will be playing) and Falkland. 2010 saw a great year for the Sunday Team. Several new faces and a great team spirit made for a successful season under Dave’s Captaincy. The migration “up the kilometer” from Derby Field to New Ground was a resounding success and we look forward to another good year of Friendly Sunday Cricket in 2011.
MIDWEEK T20 TEAM:
We hope to organize a few more Midweek fixtures in 2011. This is a shameless attempt to lure some ex-players out of retirement as well as a chance for people to get “out in the middle” for a bit of practice and fun in the shorter form of the game. We only played a couple of T20’s this year due to weather and the likes. Hopefully we can change this in 2011. Remember you HAVE to try and hit a 6 first ball. ;-)
SOCIAL EVENTS
- The 2010 Annual Dinner was held at the Teak House Thai Restaurant in Wokingham. This was a huge success and very well attended. As usual, the Crows managed to drink all their beer and a fun time was had by all. Even Sean “Tom-Tom” Clarke managed to find his way there!
- Pre Season Curry Night 2011. TBC. This will be held near the end of April in Wokingham. Keep your eyes peeled for details of this. It’s usually a good chance for some team bonding and an opportunity for new faces to showcase their drinking ability. Those that read Aran’s heart-felt email from last year will already have this inked in your calendars.
2010 AWARD WINNERS:
Congratulations go to the following people who left the annual dinner Trophy-laden…
Player of the Year - Pete Northall
Fielder of the Year - Rich Hester
League Batsman of the Year - Pete Northall (Adrian Chatters Award Winner)
League Bowler of the Year - Dan Partridge
Saturday Captain's Prize - Ross Chalmers
Sunday Batsman of the Year - Richard Barron
Sunday Bowler of the Year - Dan Partridge
Sunday Captain's Prize - Richard Barron
Duck Prize - Marshall Miller
World Cup Predictathon Winner - Simon Hill
CCC (ex-) Edgbarrow Boys (are at best)
Average Award - Brendon MacKenzie
THANK YOU’S
On behalf of the Committee, Special Thank You’s go to the Following People for their work Behind the scenes:
- As mentioned earlier, Ian Parris at Installation Technology for the Sponsorship
- Steve Blosse at Wellington College for all his help and time given to the Club
- Team Captains Dave Shaw and Pete Northall.
- Alan Brown, our President and League Umpire. Thanks Alan for giving up your Saturdays to umpire each week. Much appreciated by all the Saturday Team
- Sheila Cole – Thanks to Sheila for making the teas each week. We hope you are on the road to recovery after your illness.
- Harry Stent – no specific reason, other than just being H and for all the little jobs he does on behalf of the club
- Fliss Porton – for keeping the Sunday team supplied with Homemade Cakes!
- Margaret Howe – for your support despite you ongoing fight with Myeloma. Your speech at the Dinner was superb! Hopefully you will be able to come down and watch a bit more in 2011.
AND FINALLY…..
Thanks to everyone for their input into the club over the past 12 months, we had a great year on and off the field and we look forward to seeing lots of people at Nets in January. Have a great Christmas and New Year and hope to see you all soon.