I hope it’s not too late to wish a Happy New Year to all members of the Club. A lot seems to have happened since the end of the season and there’s a lot to happen yet before we are all playing again. As the days are starting to lengthen, the promise of sunny summer afternoons on the green begins to beckon – even if the reality turns out to be woolly jumpers and dodging the showers!
AGM
The club held its annual general meeting on 31st October and many thanks to everyone who attended. Holding the meeting in Battle and in the afternoon seemed to have been successful in boosting the attendance and is something we’ll repeat – although this year we’ll be looking to avoid a date in the school half-term holidays when family responsibilities keep some members away.
The meeting was largely taken up with regular business but importantly it unanimously supported the Committee’s recommendation to end the Club’s affiliation to Sussex County Bowls and Bowls England, a decision which has now been put into effect.
Presentation Night Dinner
The annual presentation dinner was held in November at the Railway, next door to our green. It was the first occasion on which we had used this venue for our Presentation Night as the restaurant we had used for the previous two years had closed and the Committee was keen to hold the event in Battle. Attendees were there in good number and enjoyed an early Christmas dinner. Our President, Bruce, presented competition winners and runners-up with certificates of achievement and commemorative glasses.
Trophy winners are reminded that they are responsible for having their names engraved on trophies, cups and shields.
Social Events – Dates for Your Diary
Two social events are planned for the next two months so that members can get together and, of course, to raise funds for the Club. Both will be held in the Guide Hut on Battle Recreation Ground. Alison’s popular “Games Evening” will return on Tuesday 25th February with a “Quiz Night” on Wednesday 26th March. Please make a note of both dates in your diary and look out for further details nearer the time.
Renovations
A complete refurbishment of the Ladies Changing Room has been completed during the winter. As well as extending the life of the building, this should make using it a much more pleasant experience for our players and visitors alike. Along with this, there have been minor repairs to rotten woodwork in the toilet doors and windows and to gutters on both the changing rooms and clubhouse.
We expect, too, to see the long-awaited new equipment shed erected alongside the green before the start of the season.
Club Shirts
Our new club shirts were delivered soon after the end of the season and most have now been collected.
The conversation about names on shirts has been continuing. This has never been mandatory, and is not now, but for members who want their name on their shirt, the Committee has agreed that there should be an embroidery option. An embroidered name can be added to a shirt by Superstitch86, who embroidered our old shirts, and should be on the right breast (opposite the logo), in capital letters, in the dark burgundy colour of our logo/shirt panels. The cost to you will be £6 plus VAT (ie £7.20).
Anyone who has already purchased a badge will be able to wear it if that’s their preference but there is no need to invest in a badge if you haven’t already done so. Some of us do not wish to have names on our shirts at all.
Superstitch86 are based at 7 Castleham Road, Castleham Industrial Estate, just off Battle Road in St Leonards and are open Monday to Friday 8.30-5 and on Saturday morning. Their telephone number is 01424 852225 and their email address is schooluniform@superstitch86.co.uk.
If you need any assistance dealing with Superstitch, Chris Thomas, who managed the supply of our old shirts for us, is happy to provide it. He can be contacted on 07974 072175.
New Year, New You
The Club was represented at Battle’s “New Year, New You” event in the Memorial Hall at the start of January. This event for all the clubs and societies in Battle showcases opportunities for people to get involved. Although attendance was probably affected by the time of the event (opening at 10am on a Sunday morning) and the bitterly cold weather, our stallholders spoke with a steady flow of visitors, taking contact details for some and giving others details of our Taster Days. Hopefully the event will again, as it did last year, attract new members when we reopen for the season.
Green Opening
The green will open this year on Saturday 19th April and with the first match that afternoon being the traditional Captain’s v President’s teams.
Taster Days
A week after the opening, on Saturday 26th April, the Club will hold its first Taster Day for prospective new and returning bowlers between 10am and noon. Volunteers to help with the running of the day and with introducing the game to visitors will be welcome. A second Taster Day will be held on Saturday 10th May. Look out for further details.
Etiquette
Following discussion at the AGM, the Committee has concluded that we could do more to help new bowlers learn how to apply the rules of the game and to introduce them to the playing etiquette. As a result, the plan is to devote 10 to 15 minutes at the start of each Thursday spoon drive in the early weeks of the season to demonstrating aspects of the game’s rules and expected behaviours.
We hope this will be a valuable introduction for new players but also that older hands will participate and find it a helpful refresher.
Indoor Interclub League
Battle Bowls has once again entered the Interclub League, run during the winter at Gullivers’ indoor rinks. Matches take the format of a single triple over 15 ends (or 2 hours, whichever comes first). Last year, the Club went through the competition without managing to win a match but experience is obviously starting to tell this year with the Club’s first success (21-13 against Fairlight) having just been recorded. If you are an indoor bowler interested in joining the squad, please let Stuart Macnab know.
Mike Barber
We were all saddened to learn of Mike Barber’s unexpected death in November. The many messages posted by members showed just how popular a figure Mike was and how much he will be missed at the Club. That his funeral service in January was filled to capacity and beyond, including with many Club members, was testament to the high regard in which he was held. Our sympathy goes to his family and friends.
I look forward to seeing you all again soon,
Kevin