Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of Welwyn Garden City Hockey Club,
held on Tuesday 30th June 2015 at Conference Room 1-2, Hertfordshire Sports
Village, De Havilland Campus, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield AL10 9EU at
7.00pm
Chair – Alan Clarke (Chairman)
Minutes – Stuart Wonfor (General Secretary
Attendees – Stuart Wonfor, Karen Evans, Sally Ensum, Chris Perry, Sue Owen, Lizzie Owen,
Alan Smith, Sarah Aves, Charlie Honour, Pearly, Jo Pearcey, Natt Granger, Jane Kinghorn, Tom
Godfrey, Nick Oxbow, Jane Sheffield Pete, Alan Clarke, Prince Nagalingan, Karen Nagalingan
1.
Apologies for absence
Fiona Rowe, Tony Goodburn, Tariq Hassan, Neil Kirby, Tom Kirby, Sheila Miller, Robert
Griffiths, Andrew Shore, Anna Geaves, John Bathurst, James Lutrario, Rebecca Llewellyn,
Kimberley Hoptroff, Michelle Woolley, Karen Burroughes, Bryn Evans, Sue Rowe, Danine
Irwin, Mike Parsons
2.
Approval of the minutes of the previous AGM
The attendees were asked to review the minutes of the Annual General Meeting held on
Wednesday 18th June 2014
The acceptance of the minutes was proposed by Stuart Wonfor and this was seconded by
Chris Perry. The minutes accepted as a true record of events were signed by the club
Chairman.
3.
Matters arising from the minutes
Sally Ensum confirmed that currently there was is no better place to invest our deposit
account funds without considerable time and effort to manage these.
ACTION: Pete Mullens to place minutes from 2013/14 AGM onto the clubs website.
4.
Treasurer’s report – 2014/2015 – Sally Ensum
I am pleased to present the accounts for the year ended 30 April 2015 which have been
examined by Alison Learoyd.
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The Club earned total income of £34,3699.40
The Club spent £34,607.05
The Club has therefore made a surplus for the year of £92.35
A provision for costs in an earlier year will not now be needed totalling £1,300.39, this has been
added to the surplus for the year and taken to reserves.
The Club has again made a small profit this year. We have been able to do this by continuing
to spend wisely but also due to a profit made at the very successful quiz night (with many
thanks as always to Brock), support from the 100 Club for the end of season dinner and to our
coaches who give their time and support for very little financial reward. The increase in
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subscriptions has also helped to cover increasing costs, particularly pitch hire, and enable us
to make a significant commitment to the production of marketing materials for the Club
hopefully resulting in some new members.
With the same number of teams for this season as last, match related income and
expenditure is in line with the previous year. The increase in subscriptions reflects the
increases agreed at the last AGM.
Pitch hire remains our biggest expense. The total costs for 2014/15 accurately reflects the
pitches we have hired taking into account all cancellations for bad weather and known
postponements due to the excellent management by Nat Granger our Facilities Manager. We
have paid approximately £1,500 towards the 2015/16 season and this is shown on the
balance sheet under debtors and not as expenditure of 2014/15.
Hertfordshire Sports Village will again be increasing prices this year for the 2015/16 season,
by approximately 4%, but our hourly rates for the forthcoming season have been maintained
at their current 2014/15 prices. It is also expected that the price of Teas will increase slightly.
Following our policy of small increases in income each year to avoid a significant increase in
say 2 or 3 years, the Committee propose for 2015/16:
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no changes to match fees
no changes to goalkeeper, associate or junior subscriptions
a small increase in subscriptions for senior players up to £152
Subscriptions will be payable by 30 September 2014.
Subscriptions can be paid by 3 post-dated cheques up to 31 October but cheques to be
received by Treasurer by 30 September, or on-line either in full or again by 3 instalments.
Family rates are available on request.
This increase should enable us to make a small profit in 2015/16 in line with the season just
finished and any further surpluses form the Quiz Night or donations from 100 Club or VPs will
help towards expenditure such as shirts.
The Club holds £6,870 in the current account at the end of April, which will enable us to pay
the balance of our pitch hire deposit and various insurance and affiliation charges due before
the season starts and we begin to collect subscriptions. In addition there is £14,628 in the
deposit account which represents reserves built up over previous years.
Thank you to all the club captains for help with money matters over the year.
WGCHC accounts
wgchc treasurer
30.4.15 - FINAL.xlsx report 2014-15 FINAL SIGNED.pdf
Adoption of Accounts, Subscriptions and Match Fees
Tom Godfrey raised that he thought the clubs match fees/subs where high compared to other
clubs in the county and that the money that we have in contingency and savings could be
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used to offset this. Sally countered that this was a small raise and that matches fees would
stay at £10 because this was easy for team captains to deal with. In addition Tom also raised
the option of Sir Freds as a more cost effective option, Sally countered that Sir Freds is more
expensive and that there are no tea facilities.
Jane Kinghorn tabled the question that perhaps it would be possible that the club could use
some of the clubs savings to subsidise the presentation dinner. Sally commented that this
year’s presentation dinner had been subsidised by the club and that the committee would
review similar plans for the 2015/16 presentation dinner
There being no further question or issues raised with the accounts these are adopted as a
true reflection of the financial state of the club during the 2014/15 season.
5.
Reports 2014/2015
i. Committee Secretary’s report 2014/2015 – Stuart Wonfor
My second ‘season’ as general secretary comes to a close and it’s been interesting.
This was a turbulent year for the WGCHC General committee one that saw new members join
and old faces leaves us. We said goodbye to Ian Smets as Youth section head and Heather
Veal as Facilities manager. In addition James Lutrario stepped down from his role as Men’s
Club Captain mid-season. I would like to thank them all for their very hard work over previous
seasons. Without dedicated individuals like them this club wouldn’t run.
Leavers meant new faces to the committee. We welcomed Nat Granger as the new facilities
manager for the 2014/15 season and she has done a great job from the get go as is reflected
that you all had pitches on to play on throughout the season. Ian was replaced as Youth
Section lead by Charlie Honour who’s great energy and enthusiasm has seen the youth
section flourish this year with the introduction of parent coaches to deal with increased
number of attendees at our Sunday training sessions.
The committee met regularly during regular season with additionally ad hoc meeting called
during the off season period. At total of eight meetings were called during the 2014/15
season with additional virtual communication ongoing throughout this period
The success of the coaching within the Ladies section was built on this season and has lead to
the Ladies 1st team being promoted seeing a long awaited return to the East leagues. A new
coach was secured for training this year in the form of the greatly experienced Neal Deans
leading many of the Wednesday night training sessions and personally of the session I
attended these were well structured lead to improvements in player’s skills.
On the social side huge thanks got to Lizzie Owen who was the driving force behind our Oscar
themed presentation night and for stepping up once again to organise the quiz with Brock.
Both these events were held at new venues increasing the organisational burden, however
both venues and events were well received by all members attending and we look to improve
upon this successful formula during 2014/15.
As always, we are looking for volunteers to help run our club, in particular Fixtures Secretary,
Marketing Manager and Facilities Manager for the new season.
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During the off season the club is continuing to play in the summer leagues and will be working
in partnership with England hockey to run ‘Back to Hockey’ sessions. These sessions are
aimed at helping Ladies return or start playing hockey.
If you are interested in joining these or would like more information please speak to a
member of the committee.
ii. Men’s Club Captain’s Season Summary 2014/2015 – James Lutrario
A challenging year for the men’s sections, there were reasonable number of players, but not
necessary skill or youth to make any significant impact on the leagues. The only exception was
the 1st XI who finished a respectable 4th in Division 3 SW. The Men’s Club Captain and 2nd XI
captain resigned before Christmas leaving some organisational challenges.
With the Men’s 2nd and 3rd in the same division it caused some tension with players moving
between the teams. This may have led to resignation mentions above. The 3 rd XI were
relegated, and the 2nd XI are waiting for the leagues to be defined. The 4th team stay in the
same division.
Using “Teamer” to select players worked well for another season, and would recommend this
is used in the future.
Attendance at training was generally reasonable for the first hour, with good attendance from
the 4th XI squad, the 2nd hour was exceptionally poorly attended, which was disappointing
based on the quality of the trainer. The club should again recognise Neil Deans contribution to
the club as men’s coach.
The men’s section is continuing to age, and the club needs to find a way to attract more
players.
The Club needs to identify a Club Captain for the 2015/2016 who can unite the team and
agree on aim for each team.
Captains
Men’s 1st XI
Men’s 2nd XI
Men’s 3rd XI
Men’s 4th XI
Bryn Evans
Jeremy Rosenberg / Daniel Hatt
Saqib Khan
Cass Khan
Team Performance
Div
WGC 1
3SW
WGC 2
5SW
WGC 3
5SW
WGC 4
9SW
Pos
4
9
12
8
P
22
22
22
20
W
12
8
4
6
Men’s Awards
Captain: Bryn Evans
Player: James Lutrario
Team: 1st XI (Bryn Evans)
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D
3
3
1
5
L
7
11
17
9
GF
57
50
34
32
GA
54
68
109
41
GD
3
-18
-75
-9
Pts
39
27
13
20
Young player: Tom Kirby
Goalkeeper: Callum Elliott
Goal Scorer: Ollie Reynolds (22)
Most Improved Senior Player: Nick Pratt
Alan Smith commented that it was very poor that none of the men’s captains attended the
AGM.
iii. Ladies Club Captain’s Season Summary 2014/2015 – Lizzie Owen
The 2014/15 season has been an enjoyable and overall successful one for the ladies section of
the club.
Final League Table Positions
Team
Ladies 1 XI
Ladies 2 XI
Ladies 3 XI
Ladies 4 XI
League
East League Division
2
5 Counties Division 2
5 Counties Division 4
5 Counties Division 5
Position
5th out of 11 teams
3rd out of 12 teams
9th out of 10 teams
11th out of 12 teams
The ladies 1st team again benefitted from the management and coaching of Graham Webster
which included dedicated fitness sessions in addition to the normal Wednesday night
coaching. Off the back of their promotion back in to the East League, the ladies delivered
some outstanding performances against tough oppositions. After the Christmas break and
with some weather and league delays, results were slightly mixed but they had a strong finish
above the middle of the table which shows promising form for next season.
The ladies 2nd team had a run of fantastic results this season and were even pushing for
promotion at one stage. They were unfortunately pipped to the post in the last few games
but this is a good base for potential promotion next season. The commitment to training and
fitness needs to improve to ensure that if promotion is achieved, the team will be able to
cope in the higher 5 Counties League.
The ladies 3rd team had to deal with a different team formation almost every week but coped
incredibly well. Attendance at training was really impressive from the team and they just need
to build on their successes from last season to be able to improve their position next season.
Availability was a bit of a problem so we aim to improve this next season.
The ladies 4th team have had a great season in both attendance at training and also
welcoming new members to the club. Due to availability issues higher up the teams, some of
the 4th team fixtures had to be cancelled which was a massive shame but this didn’t dampen
the enthusiasm of the players and team in general. The improvement of the players in this
team can already be seen so I look forward to seeing how they develop next season and
beyond.
Without the commitment of our coaches I wouldn’t be able to talk about the successes I’ve
just mentioned. So a big thank you goes to Graham Webster, Tom Godfrey and Sue Owen for
their tireless efforts to improve our fitness and skills in the ladies section. A special mention
needs to be given to Sue Owen for her dedication to the ladies section and patience with
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organising 4 teams every week. Any captain will tell you that getting 11 people to a game
every Saturday isn’t easy yet Sue does it for 4 teams worth with no drama. All of this is in
addition to her work with the 5 Counties League so we’re very lucky to have her and hope she
knows how much we appreciate everything she does for the ladies and the club.
We’re very lucky to have a crop of talented youngsters coming through the ranks of our
teams. Molly Lodge and Roisin Leahy made regular appearances in the 1st team as well as
being solid members of the 2nd team. The 3rd and 4th team have a solid youth presence who
all continue to develop in confidence and skill. Our Youth Development Officer Charlie Honour
is doing a fantastic job at developing our future talent and with the help of some of our own
Wasps alumni, Eda O’Donnell and Claire Osgood, I know they’re in safe hands until they’re
ready to move to adult hockey.
To keep everyone in tip top shape over the summer, we’ve again entered in to the
Broxbourne league for weeknight games. The opposition this year is significantly tougher than
previous years but the team remains resilient and determined to improve each week. A big
thanks goes to Dossy Moore for organising the teams each week and to Sue Owen for taking
the reins for positions and half time team talks.
The aim for next season as always is to build on the successes of the last season but
specifically we want to gain promotion for our 2nd team to bridge the gap between them and
the 1st team. I hope the team will all be committed to this and attendance at training will
improve. The ladies 1st team aim to finish in the top 3 and to have more consistent results.
The ladies 3rd and 4th teams aim to finish mid table but to have more consistency with
availability and regular players.
Stuart Wonfor asked if there were plans for ladies 2’s fitness training given their recent
promotion. Lizzie Owen commented that they are invited to attend the fitness training on a
Monday night currently attended by 1st team players. In addition Lizzie Owen remarked that
the indoor facilities at Sir Freds are great for training at cost of £30 for the hall.
iv. Youth Development Officer’s Report 2014/2015 – Charlie Honour
Key Successes and Points to Note
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Increase in regular attendees, most notably in the u12’s/u10’s categories, meaning on
average 30 children per week at sessions.
Increased participation in and attendance to games and tournaments, fielding teams for Girls
and Boys at u10, u12 and u14.
Good amount of nominations and attendees for JDC/JAC this season, including Fledgings and
a range of older teams. This also included nominations for regional (JRPC) teams.
Improved attendance and help from the senior teams, especially from parents and goaliesbenefitting the running of multiple drills and coaching to all children.
Core group of volunteers who hold committee posts or coach on Sundays, including Bryn
Evans, Stuart Wonfor, Prinz Nagalingham, Jo Pearcy, Mike Brady, and more recently, Nick
Pratt, Skills, Caz Khan.
Reliable Duke of Edinburgh volunteers to assist with coaching sessions, attend / umpire
matches and inspire the children to join senior teams; Claire Osgood, Eda O’Donnell and Dan
White.
New match shirts were successfully used and appreciated, making our teams look more
professional.
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Some members from the junior section attended matches at Letchworth’s Old and Bold
league, hopefully leading to their eventual involvement with the senior teams.
Areas of Disappointment
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Lack of children for u14 teams, meaning few children to promote into the senior teams this
year (due possibly to a lack of an u15/6’s team; is the jump from Junior to Senior seen as too
large?)
Lack of interest and attendance from senior teams (aside from parents, goalies) to attend
Sunday training sessions.
Lack of support and opportunities to promote the junior section, encourage new members
and attend/initiate outreach sessions this year.
Goals for the Future
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To provide courses for, or encourage volunteers to attend courses to become qualified to
Level 1/2 or to provide effective coaching at all levels.
To have a more stable u14’s team, and look to linking to the senior squads more, to
encourage over 13’s to attend senior training or games- improve our ability to retain juniors
over 13.
To complete the positions in the Youth Section committee, filling roles such as Parent Liaison,
Match Administrator.
To re-organise the structure of Sunday sessions, involving more (qualified) coaches, to coach
in teams (u10, u12, u14) to benefit match play and development.
For a wider range of senior team members to attend Sunday training, to inspire and
encourage the youngsters to continue / share their playing experience and tips.
Alan highlighted that there is a big gap between the under 14’s to integrate in to senior
games. The committee to an action to discuss integration of youth into senior squads
v.
Social Events and Marketing Officers Report – Lizzie Owen
The club invested in some new marketing materials this year and were printed and designed
by Anthony Geaves. The materials include posters, flyers, outdoor banners and indoor pull up
banners. These all hope to improve awareness of our club at events and around the local
area.
Our quiz night raised more money than ever this year so a big thank you goes to Brock Horan,
Alan Smith, Ken Boon and Keith for their efforts in organising and running this essential club
event every year.
The end of season Presentation Dinner had over 90 people in attendance this year and was a
fantastic evening held at the De Havilland campus for the 2nd year running. The event has
been rejuvenated in recent years so we hope that attendance will continue to improve year
on year.
In place of the end of season Presidents Day, the committee decided to instead put funds and
efforts in to a start of the season Fun Day / Open Day for both juniors and seniors. This will be
advertised around the local area and encourages both experienced and novices to the game
of hockey to attend and enjoy a social (and hopefully sunny!) day.
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Stuart Wonfor raised that there were some food availability issues at the presentation dinner,
it was discussed that some portion control may be required. Lizzie Owen took an action to
ensure this was discussed with the DeHavilland club during next year’s preparation.
Chris Perry commented that next year is the 30th anniversary of the Quiz night and that we
should do something a little bit special, this was agreed by the members present.
Nick Oxbow commented that this year’s quiz was held during half term and that attendance
may be better if it was held outside of a school holiday.
vi. Facilities Officer’s Report – Natt Granger
The facilities at De Hav have been generally good this year, a few problems with the changing
rooms and showers but that seemed to be sorted towards the end of the season.
We had the offer of a new pitch at Sir Fred's in Welwyn. However it came with a few
problems.
1. The pitch wasn't as good as De Havilland
2. The pitch was over £20 more expensive
3. There was nowhere on site to have teas
4. We could only use it after 11.30 on Saturdays due to a football club using it.
It was discussed at the general committee and decided that we may use it if we need an extra
pitch slot and De Havilland cannot provide one.
Next year we have rebooked De Havilland and I will continue to monitor the changing rooms
and showers.
Teas have been changed to a mix up of food which seems to go down very well, a little bit of
everything.
Tom Godfrey raised a question asking are we trying to alternative new facilities as Sir Fred’s is
not a real option and DeHavilland facilities are our biggest cost expenditure. It was discussed
that at the current time there is no alternative however the club is open to all members to
offer suggestions for alternative facilities.
Alan Clarke commented that we should push back when DeHavilland do not deliver. Natt
Granger responded that if facilities are not up to standard we should let her know
immediately or call the duty manager to complain.
6. Election of:
i
Vice Presidents
All current Vice Presidents duly re-elected.
Proposed by Alan Clarke and voted in by the floor.
ii
Management Committee posts:
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Vacant posts will be considered by the new Management Committee at their first meeting in
July
Post
President
Nominee
Chris Perry
Proposer
Alan Clarke
Seconded
Alan Smith
Chairperson
Alan Clarke
Stuart Wonfor
Lizzie Owen
Ladies Captain
Lizzie Owen
Lisa Sheffield
Sue Owen
Men’s Captain
General Secretary
VACANT
Stuart Wonfor
Lizzie Owen
Sally Ensum
Treasurer
Sally Ensum
Lizzie Owen
Jane Kinghorn
Youth Dev Officer
Charlie Honour
Stuart Wonfor
Tom Godfrey
Marketing Manager
Lizzie Owen (temp
role)
NA
NA
Facilities Manager
Nat Granger
Jane Kinghorn
Lizzie Owen
Club Welfare Officer
Karen Evans
Sally Ensum
Stuart Wonfor
Communications
Officer
VACANT
Nominee
VACANT
Patrick Thomas
Proposer
Seconder
Chris Perry
Alan Clarke
L: Lizzie Owen
M: Alan Clarke
VACANT
Alan Clarke
Karen Evans
Stuart Wonfor
Stuart Wonfor
Nick Pratt
Lizzie Owen
Lizzie Owen
Lizzie Owen
Lizzie Owen
Lizzie Owen
Chris Perry
Pearly
Nick Oxbow
Sue Owen
Nat Granger
Sally Ensum
Sarah Aves
Karen Evans
7. Election of other officers of the Club
Post
Coaching Manager
Umpires Liaison
Officer
East League Liaison
Officer
East League Umpires
Liaison Officer
Fixture Sec
Assistant Fixture Sec
Mens 1st XI Capt
Mens 2nd XI Capt
Mens 3rd XI Capt
Mens 4th XI Capt
Ladies 1st XI Capt
Ladies 2nd XI Capt
Ladies 3rd XI Capt
Ladies 4th XI Capt
Social Secretary
Sue Owen /Alan
Clakre
Alan Clarke
VACANT - TBC
Dan Hatt
Nick Elliot
Cass Khan
Jane Kinghorn
Sue Owen
Hannah more
Mary O’Donnell
Joe Pearcey
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8. Any other business
The committee recognised Ken Boon for being acknowledged in the 2015 Queens Birthday
Honours. Ken Boon, has been a member of WGC HC for over 25 years was awarded the
British Empire Medal, note only 295 people nationwide received award, so this is a great
achievement for Ken
Tom Godfrey commented that we need more umpires. On several occasions Patrick Thomas
missed games to umpire games; this is not an acceptable situation. Lizzie Owen commented
that some of the ladies section has signed up to the Umpire course that was recently
distributed; this should help to address the issue. Charlie Honour commented that there are a
lot of coaching courses available to club members. Sally Ensum commented that perhaps we
could use some of the club funds to subsidise both coaching and umpire courses.
Tom Godfrey raised, that it was really good to see targets in the Ladies section report, it
would be great to see targets for the Men’s section, it would be good to set some expectation
and communicate these to the men. Chris Perry expanded on this, to say that we should get
some goals from our interactions of Captains with the men’s coach for the 2015/16 season.
Alan Smith raised that Patrick was thinking of organising a seminar to explain the new rules.
Changes for the 2015/16 season to prepare our players. Chris Perry & Alan Clarke took and
action to follow up with Patrick on this.
Alan Smith raised that John Henry Newman School in Stevenage now has new changing
facilities; this will be good news for all teams that have to play away fixtures there next
season.
Alan Smith raised, that we need to review the Clubs First membership. Charlie Honour took
an action to bring this information to the next General Committee member
It was raised by Karen Nagalingan that it would be nice that on the back of the mixed ‘Old and
Bold’ games that we could do more mixed events as a club. Karen and Jo Pearcey (Social
Secretary) took an action work on this idea together. Jo Pearcey to report back to the
committee later in the year.
Peter Mullens raised the issue of men’s shirts. Alan Clarke too an action to investigate size
requirements for the men’s section and to progress this order with Tylers.
It was raised that something needs to be done about the men’s section’s commitment to the
club. Stuart Wonfor took and action to create a communication to key men’s club members
to address the issues, of;
 Poor AGM attendance
 Lack of men section members in club roles
 Poor training attendance
 Vacant captains positions
With no further business the meeting closed at 8:24pm.
signed ………………………………………………………………..
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date ………………………………………………………………...
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