Secretary’s Report 2016/17
First of all thanks to all the members of the committee for the various tasks they undertake throughout the year and their help in the organisation of regular events etc. Their work behind the scenes and sharing the jobs around helps to ensure the smooth running of the club. Special thanks once again to John Dobson for his efficient scoring and maintenance of the website.
Three committee meetings have been held over the past year since the last AGM.
Following discussions at the 2016 AGM the Committee called a Special General meeting which approved their motion to reduce the quorum required at General Meetings from 20 to either 10 paid up members or 20% of the current membership, whichever was the greater. With a current membership of 40 (and a further 6 expected to re-join) the quorum required this year is 10.
Anniversary Dinner
Following decisions taken at those meetings it was decided that instead of the Spring Buffet, we would celebrate the 40th anniversary of the founding of the club with an anniversary dinner at Auckland Castle. Appropriately, 40 past and present members attended the event and a wonderful meal was followed by 18 boards of Duplicate. Guest of Honour was the NEBA Chair, Val Gibson and her husband Julian. The inaugral Anniversary Tropy was presented by Val to John Dobson who together with his partner Iain Gordon had won the competition the previous week.
Social Events
Two other events were held, the Presentation Night and the Christmas Party. These were all well attended and enjoyed by those who were there. Once again a host system operated so that all members could attend with or without a partner.
The new caterers at the Golf Club provided us with an exceptional carvery meal which was enjoyed by all who were there.
The Christmas party once again was a purely social event and as in previous years scores were not uploaded to the EBU so that there could be elements of party bridge without affecting members' NGS ratings. Many thanks to all those who attended for making this a convivial evening and for providing an excellent buffet.
Thanks also to Jane Oxenham and Marilyn for the fun and games at the Christmas Party and to all the members who attended for a truly marvellous buffet. Thanks also to Peter and Claudette for sourcing the wine and winners’ prizes.
NEBA AGM
BABC acted as hosts to representatives of clubs who attended the NEBA AGM in May.
Members’ Participation in Local and National Events
Over the past year BABC participated in 5 evenings of the EBU Simultaneous Pairs events.
We enjoyed a great deal of success in these competitions and our top Pairs nationally were:
- EBU Stratified Sims Pairs March 2016: Roger Carpenter and Peter Lisle 13th - 62.98%
- EBED Spring Pairs May 2016: Alison Young and Godfrey Young 12th - 65.66%
- Summer Pairs July 2016: Visitors Clive Owen and Damian Hassan 8th - 66.88%. Highest ranked members: Audrey Bainbridge and Brian Myers 61st - 58.34%
- Autumn Pairs Sept 2016: John Dobson and Iain Gordon 39th - 60.42%
- Winter Pairs Jan 2017:John Blackett and Allan Blackett 5th - 65.23%
In the annual EBU Master Points awards annual lists Malcolm Dawson finished 4th on the Level 4 leader board and Joan Crompton 1st at Level 5 within the NEBA area.
Club members took part in the NEBA, Harrogate, Scarborough and Westmorland Congresses over the course of the year.
Congratulations must go to club members for their achievements in the following competitions:
NEBA - Niman Israel Trophy: In this mixed pivot teams event where each player must partner their three team mates in turn, teams made up of club members finished in 4th and 5th positions.
David and Margaret Thompson, John Dobson and Joan Crompton - 4th
Denise Barham-Hall, Audrey Bainbridge, Louise Badcock and Brian Myers - 5th
Also taking part were Richard Cottrell, Ann Squires and David Emerson, who together with Jill Hancock of Durham finished in 12th position.
NEBA Congress: Denise Barham-Hall and Audrey Bainbridge won the Ladies' Pairs competition and achieved overall 1st place when their scores were combined with those of the Gentlemen's Pairs, Mixed Pairs and Newcomers' Pairs which were held concurrently with the same boards in play.
NEBA - King Cup: Alison Young and Audrey Bainbridge finished 2nd in this Ladies' Pairs event.
NEBA - Gazette Cup: Irene Burns and Jane Pringle were the highest placed Pair from Bishop Auckland finishing 6th with 53.27%
Westmorland Congress: David and Margaret Thompson who play together at Durham joined forces with Jill and Roger Hancock to win the Teams event in september 2016.
NEBA Inter Club: Bishop Auckland finished 1st in Division C of this Team of 8 competition securing promotion.
Club Successes:
Congratulations to the winners of the various Club trophies:
- Anniversary Trophy - John Dobson and Iain Gordon
- Master Points Trophy – John Dobson
- Carpenter Bowl – Audrey Bainbridge and Brian Myers
- Latner Trophy – Malcolm Dawson and Michael Crowe
- Walker Bowl – Audrey Bainbridge and Brian Myers
The highest average scoring partnership in 2015/16 was Iain Gordon and John Dobson with 57.88% and the best individual average was Iain Gordon with that score who pipped his regular partner by 0.01%
Membership
Sadly long serving member John Blackett Senior passed away in April. John had been with the club for 38 years and had served on the committee and as Club Chairman and Team Captain.
We have welcomed several new members to the club over the past year and membership, although relatively small, has remained stable as we have inevitably said goodbye to others for various reasons.
It is expected that members make every effort to make visitors and potential new members very welcome at the club and to be understanding towards inexperienced players and those who may be new to Duplicate Bridge.
Finally my thanks to the golf club for allowing us to play in a very welcoming environment.
M Dawson – AGM MARCH 2017
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