Present:  Emer Disley, Irene Thomas, Teresa Griffiths, Glyn Williams, Tony Disley, John Evans, Steve Burgoyne and David Newman in the Chair.

Matters Arising: 

• John and Glyn to look at the calendar and resolve the issue of Sims events which came too close together.
• Tony Disley was re-appointed captain of the Teams of Eight – Area Heat on 11^th. December this year. Tony to select the team.
• Steve reported that lessons for beginners had started again with 15 students, some of whom were returning to repeat the course.
• After some problems with the loss adjusters, the monitor has now been replaced, but is not currently needed for lessons or club sessions.

Table Money for Sims Events:  This should be put on Web-site: £5:50 -Visitors +£1

Duplimate Boards:  As a result of some recent difficulties, it was agreed to purchase a new set of boards, which could be used in the duplimator.

Presidents Cup and Charity Evening:

• Emer agreed to obtain glasses and arrange the food
• David to arrange the wine
• Teresa to arrange the raffle
• Steve to email all members to publicise the event and ask for raffle prizes
• Event format to be pro-am, partners drawn on the night

Attendance:  Concern was expressed about lower attendances.  While it was felt this was a general problem, caused by a mixture of issues, there was still a question of whether the occasional behaviour of some members may put off some potential newcomers.  While it was impossible to substantiate, as there had been no official complaints, there had been a suggestion that some of the beginners had not found the attitude of one or two of the regular members helpful.  It was felt that it was difficult to deal with this issue without concrete evidence, other than to reiterate to members the need to be patient with less experienced players and to remember the usual niceties in their dealings with partner and opponents.  It was pointed out that it is frustrating for those who have put a lot of time and effort into promoting Bridge through lessons and the afternoon sessions if those they have been teaching and enthusing are put off coming to regular club sessions.

There was also some discussion about how to encourage more of the better players in the area to attend on Wednesday nights. Various suggestions were made, including special events, though it was pointed out that the Dragon Night in Swansea has limited support.  It was agreed that club, and indeed Western Area events, need to be better publicised.

Club Officers:  In view of the impending retirement of David Newman and Irene Thomas, notification will be placed on the website seeking replacements.

AOB:

• Charges for matches played by visiting teams:  It was agreed that if private league/cup matches were played at the club, table money of £10 per table would be charged.
• Premium Bonds: It was agreed that the Premium Bonds should be sold and the money place in a suitable bank account.
• New Years Dinner: This is fixed for Friday 13^th. January, Jane Morgan again catering.  Emer will liaise on the arrangements.  It was pointed out that we started the ticketing process early last year and allocated places on a first come, first served basis.
• Christmas: Steve to check when the Hall is not available over yuletide.
• 25^th. November:  David will be available to run the club session on this evening  - several members will be away playing in Porthcawl.

The meeting closed at 6:50

Bridgend Bridge Club Committee Minutes 6/7/2016

Present: David Newman, Irene Thomas, Emer Disley, Glyn Williams, John Evans & Steve Burgoyne. Apologies were received from Tony Disley.

The Minutes of the last meeting were agreed.

Matters Arising:

• There were still issues over the accuracy of the invoices for the hire of the hall, and the Chairman and Treasurer would resolve them.

• There had been an issue with the Sims competitions coming close together. The TD said that, if this was a concern, then we need to make a decision on which one to drop when we do the calendar for 2017.

• Our team had come 7th. in the National Teams of Eight Final

• The question of awarding averages on boards was not on the agenda as it had been raised by Tony Disley and he was unable be present at this meeting.

Lessons: This years beginners course finished in June. Some of the beginners are now playing on a Thursday afternoon, and short lessons are being run prior to the play sessions so that there is an opportunity for the improvers to develop more and wider knowledge. It is not clear whether there would be a demand for a full improvers course, nor whether we have the capacity to run one. Steve Burgoyne will run another beginners course starting in September if there is a demand – some of this year’s beginners may wish to repeat the course.

Charity Evening: The Chairman stated that the fact that we had not run the charity evening as intended had caused some embarrassment. It was agreed that it should now be run in conjunction with The Presidents Cup on Friday 14th. October. We will ensure that it is well publicised in advance and it will become a special event in the club’s calendar. It was agreed that the format of the Presidents Cup would remain the same. The Secretary had consulted the President on the format and he was happy with the idea of High-Low partnerships as he liked the idea of club members mixing up for this occasion.

The John Raymond Transport Cup: Like the Charity Evening, this had slipped by this season. It will now be run on Friday 16th. September. Several members of the committee said they would be prepared to go home if there was an odd number of pairs.

WWBA Meeting: • The Secretary reported on the WWBA meeting of 5/7/2016. Unfortunately, several committee members were unhappy with a couple of rulings from recent events, and, despite the Chairman stating that it was not a matter for the committee, the ill feeling persisted and threatened to derail the meeting. It was eventually agreed that the WWBA should issue further guidelines about the conduct of tournaments, directors’ rulings and appeals, in the hope that this would clarify the correct procedures to be followed when players are unhappy with rulings and allow WWBA events to be conducted in an efficient and, hopefully, pleasant and measured atmosphere.

• The Area Tournament organiser has resigned because he felt he could not work with one of the other officials. Tony Howarth agreed to do the job for one year and Steve Burgoyne agreed to take on the role after that. • Forthcoming events were publicised-EWBA/WWBA Congress in Newport. Porthcawl Congress. Celtic Congress. It was thought that Bob Alderdice would again be running the Western Area Leagues. The dearth of entries for Novice events was noted, and it was suggested that calling the events "For Club Players” might make them more appealing in an effort to attract more experienced players who might like to dip their toes in the water of Area Competitions or Congresses.

• The Carmarthen Representative expressed concern about the WBU insistence on all members of affiliated clubs being members of the WBU, which might put severe pressure on small clubs like theirs if several members refused to join. There was sympathy for this position, but it was difficult to envisage an easy solution.

• Mention was made of a WBU fund to help clubs smaller clubs who might be in financial difficulties.

• Dates were proposed for next season’s events and will be posted on the WWBA site.

• The new Secretary, Anthony Stevens has agreed to take on the role of Webmaster and undertook to ensure the minutes were posted promptly on the website.

Monitor: The secretary reported that he was in ongoing discussions with the loss adjusters as to the level of excess we would be required to pay if we claim for the damaged monitor. It was suggested that we look at whether a larger monitor would be sensible when we do replace. There was also a suggestion that we purchase a more stable trolley. Storage might be an issue with a larger screen and/or trolley. It was decided to sort the insurance issue first before making any further decisions.

AOB: The Chairman reported that he, John Moore and Debbie Richards had gone to play Bridge with Mildred in her Rest Home, but that, sadly, it had not been possible to play because Mildred couldn’t see. The meeting ended at 6:55

Bridgend Bridge Club  Committee Meeting  24.02.2016

The Chairman began the meeting by welcoming Tony Disley to the Committee.

Present:  John Evans, Irene Thomas, Emer Disley, Glyn Williams, Tony Disley, Steve Burgoyne and David Newman (Chairman). Apologies: Teresa Griffiths.

Minutes: of the meeting of 9^th. December were agreed.  Matters Arising:

• It was agreed that the format of the Presidents Cup should be discussed at the next meeting.
• The confusion over hall hire invoices had been resolved.
• Three people had had to leave the beginners group, but it was still flourishing with 15 members on the books.

Sims:   

• EBED Sims:  This was not on the calendar, but we did play it last year under a different name. As the response of members in the questionnaire regarding Sims events had been inconclusive, it was decided to play the event this year and monitor the response to it.

• Children in Need Sims:  It was agreed to continue to run this event on two evenings, despite the cost to the club.  This was the only Sims run on a Friday.

Teams of Eight:

After some discussion about selection criteria and process, it was agreed that the team should be selected by the Chairman, Secretary and Captain (Tony Disley). Any club member would be eligible, selection to be based on ability and form, not on attendance at club sessions.  It was agreed that the club would enter a second team if there was enough interest from members.

Committee Structure:

Emer Disley has agreed to take over Marjorie’s role in organising the social events. Next year’s dinner has already been fixed for 13^th. January, and Emer will liaise with Marjorie about the details and contact with Jane Morgan.

Irene Thomas is intending to step down as treasurer at the next AGM, when she will have done 21 years in the post.  She is willing to stay on the committee, which will mean we do not lose her experience and she will be able to support her successor. Some consideration should be given as to whether aspects of this job could be shared in the future – for example, by appointing a membership secretary.  As David Newman announced his intention to resign from the Chairmanship and the committee at the next AGM, some concern was expressed that we would be losing two officers at the same time, and that we should look at succession planning.  It was agreed that there was no need to seek to alter the size of the committee.

AOB:

• The Chairman showed the meeting a certificate which he had produced which will be presented to Marjorie Morris to mark her appointment as a life member of the club.  He also read out a letter of thanks which Marjorie had written on learning of her election to Life membership.
• John Evans raised the issue of where statistics should be shown on the website.  After some discussion the Chair suggested that, in view of the time, Glyn and John should get together to look at options.
• Tony stated that he would like the issue of awarding averages on boards to be raised at the next meeting.

The meeting closed at 6:50

Bridgend Bridge Club AGM 2016 23/01/16 Nolton Church Hall 7:00

Apologies: John Beard, Tony Disley, Rob Forman, Teresa Griffiths, John Hillman, Linda Jenkins, Marjorie Morris, Norma Newman, Glenda Roberts & Liam Sheridan

The minutes of the 2015 meeting were approved, with no matters arising.

Treasurer’s Report: There had been a very small loss on the year, but we had incurred unusual expenditure in updating some of the IT equipment, which we had obtained at a competitive rate thanks to the efforts of Dave Lea. There were no questions and it was proposed by Alan Grant, seconded by Dave Lea, that the report be accepted. Agreed unanimously.

Chairman’s Report: The Chairman thanked the committee for its hard work during the year, singling out the expertise and hard work of the club’s Tournament Director, Glyn Williams, and also the Secretary. He pointed out that Marjorie Morris was retiring after many years service on the committee and as an officer, and it was agreed that she be appointed an Honorary Life Member of the club in recognition of this service. He mentioned the success of the lessons this year and thanked the team of helpers who run the lessons and the Thursday Afternoon Duplicate sessions. He emphasised that lessons over the past few years had brought new members into the club and that we need to continue to encourage new members, while, at the same time, catering for the many experts we have among our membership. In this context he listed the successes enjoyed by club members over the year, highlighting the International selection of Simon Richards and Julian Pottage for The Camrose and sisters Irene Thomas and Jenny Vaughan for The Lady Milne. Winners of Western Area events were John beard and Tony Haworth (Vince Bevan) , Linda Pinnock and Vida Halford (Ladies Pairs), Julian Pottage and Tony Ratcliffe (Porthcawl Teams) Tony Disley and Roger Penton (John Isaac), and the last four combined to win the Laidlaw Murray Teams.

Charity Events: £1,170 had been donated to charity last year. No specific charity had yet been nominated for this year, but it was agreed, on the Chairman’s suggestion, that we once again support The Samaritans.

Presentation of prizes as follows: Handicap Pairs: Emer Disley and Debbie Lea. Max Powell Rosebowl: Ann Fox and Steve Burgoyne.  John Raymond Transport Cup: Glenda Roberts, Liam Sheridan, Dave Reed, Jim Jim Hume.   Summer Competition: Liam Sheridan.  Club Teams: Rob Charlesworth, Tony Haworth, Julian Pottage, Simon Richards.  Presidents Cup: Eileen Mahoney and John Evans.  Mixed Pairs: Jenny Vaughan and Tony Disley

Elections: The Committee and Officers were re-elected en-bloc, with one vacancy.                                                   The meeting closed at 7:20

Bridgend Bridge Club  Committee Minutes Wednesday 9^th. December 2015

Apologies:  Marjorie Morris, Emer Disley. John Evans

Present: Glyn Williams, Irene Thomas, Teresa Griffiths, Steve Burgoyne and David Newman (Chair)

The minutes of the previous meeting were agreed as an accurate record.

Matters Arising:

• David and Steve to finalise the team for the Teams of Eight
• It was felt that both the Presidents Cup and Mildred’s Party had gone well, though it was understood that there was a feeling in some quarters that we should look again at the format of the Presidents Cup, which the committee determined to do in 2016.  The Children in Need Sims events (Three this year as an annex of the club played in Somerset) raised £420.

Future Events:

• Party: David has bought the wine, which Steve will store and dispense at the party as David will be away.  Teresa will purchase some soft drinks and Irene some Rose wine.  Irene will organise a raffle – members to be asked to bring prizes.  Teresa will also collect the glasses from Sainsbury.
• AGM:  David to ensure the trophies are available and inscribed.  Irene reported that it might be difficult to complete the audit as there was some confusion over the hall billing.  David agreed to see Angela to resolve the matter.

Lessons: 

There are 17 students enrolled in the class.  The first course of lessons will end on 17th. December, and a new set begins on 7^th. January.  Steve is using the WBU Acol Course to provide a structure, and has had help and advice from Keith Butler, the WBU teaching co-ordinator, as well as from Dave Barwood. and is very grateful for regular help on Thursdays from Dave Lee, who also set up the new equipment, John and Christine Evans, and Teresa Griffiths, as well as to Ann Fox, Marjorie Morris and David Newman who have  helped when the regulars were not available.  There was some discussion about the future of classes.  Steve felt that his present group would need a great deal more tuition and does not want to abandon them to start a new beginners class next autumn. It was suggested that a possible solution might be for the class to have supervised play, with their own movement, on a Thursday afternoon, once their course of lessons is complete.  If a new beginners group starts next September, in addition to two Thursday pm groups, it might be necessary to try to involve more club members in supporting these ventures.

Financial Update:

The increased numbers on Thursdays and Wednesdays have produced a more healthy income this year, though Friday numbers are down.  There has been expenditure on new equipment to help with the teaching. The laptop, of course, is available to replace the old PC when necessary/appropriate. The uncertainty over the hall billing makes it difficult to assess the overall financial situation at this stage.  Full report at the AGM.

Term of office of Club Office Holders:

David proposed that there should be a limit on the number of years members should hold official positions in the club.  He believes it is healthy if there is a regular influx of new blood, and he has agreed to serve only two years as Chairman.  He felt the only exception should be the Tournament Director, as this was such a specialised position.  There were mixed feelings about this idea, as there was concern that some of the posts, such as Treasurer, would be difficult to fill.  It was agreed that the issue should be an item on the agenda of the AGM. 

AOB:

David raised the issue of the name of the club.  He felt that we should consider calling it “Bridgend Friendly Bridge Club”.  There was again a mixed reaction, and committee members agreed to think about it and discuss the idea at a future meeting.

The meeting closed at 6:45

Bridgend BC  Minutes of Committee Meeting 23/9/2015

Present:  David Newman (Chair) Glyn Williams, Marjorie Morris, Emer Disley, Irene Thomas , John Evans and Steve Burgoyne.  Apologies were received from Teresa Griffiths.

The minutes of the last meeting were agreed.

Matters Arising: 

• Presidents Cup – had been purchased and presented by Bill Turner and the competition arranged – on the agenda.
• IT equipment – to be discussed under lessons as an agenda item
• Storage boxes – extra purchases had not been necessary because Glyn had tidied up the cupboard.
• Tony Disley’s seminars.  Sec. agreed to discuss with Tony.

Agenda items:

• Lessons – Steve reported that he might have a class of up to 12. It was agreed that these numbers warranted expenditure on IT equipment to enable effective presentations.  A laptop would need to be capable of running club events when the current PC can no longer do so.  Steve agreed to look into the purchase of the equipment and would seek advice for experts such as Andy Robertshaw and Dave Lea.  Steve also agreed to put the lessons schedule on the website.
• Teams Competitions – Steve reported that we had three Bridgend teams in the West League and one in the East league.  He hoped we would enter at least one team in the Teams of Eight again this year – Area Qualifying being on 31^st. January.  Agreed he and the Chair should liaise on selecting the team.
• Forthcoming Events:

Presidents Cup – 23^rd. October.  Will be a pro-am, with partner allocation on the night.  Members will be welcome to play with their regular partner if they prefer, but will not be eligible to win the cup if they do so.  David has organised the wine and Marjorie the cheese for this event.

Mildred’s 100^th. – November 13^th.  Will also be a cheese and wine.  We will also need to have a cake and a bouquet of flowers. Irene agreed to source the cake and Marjorie the flowers.  Irene will produce one of her special cards for the occasion.  Mildred says she wants to play with John Moore rather than the President of the Welsh Bridge Union, so it was suggested that the latter might play with our President on the night.  David to discuss with Gareth at the weekend.  Steve to raise with Bill.

Children in Need – There was some discussion about whether we should continue to run this event on two days, but it was decided to continue for the present, especially as it was on the calendar.  All proceeds to go to the charities this year.  It was suggested that attendees should be asked to pay £5 for the event.

New Year’s Party  - The caterer has been booked, and we must stick to the maximum of 50 diners.  This means a max of 48 in practice on 12 tables, unless two people do not wish to eat, so they could make up the 13^th. table with the 49^th. and 50^th. diners, but this seems a difficult one to organise.  There was considerable discussion about the allocation of tickets and concern about long standing members missing out, but it was eventually agreed that the only fair system was first come first served, and that diners will not be put on the list until they have paid for their ticket, the price remaining this same this year at £10.  Bill will be asked to print the tickets early so we can give people plenty of notice and start selling them.

• Financial Report – Irene reported increased table money because of increased numbers, and also good savings on refreshments, but we had had no premium bond winnings this year.  In view of the fact that we had a very small profit last year, she was still cautious about our financial position.
• Report from WWBA Meeting – Steve had presented a written report, which was accepted.
• AOB :

a)The success of the summer competition was called into question, and also whether only one bottle of wine should be presented.  It was felt that it was early days for the competition and we should persevere for now.

b)John will produce next year’s calendar along the lines of the present one.

c)Marjorie reminded the committee that she intends to stand down at the AGM, so we will need to look for another committee member.

The meeting closed at 6:45

Bridgend BC Committee Meeting – 24/6/2015  Minutes

All committee members were present, plus the club President, Bill Turner.

The minutes of the last meeting were agreed – there were no matters arising.

Agenda Items:

1.  Presentation of a cup by the President, Bill Turner

The committee was highly appreciative of Bill’s generosity in offering to buy a new trophy for the club, and felt that a decision on what sort of trophy would be appropriate should be left to Bill, though he was clearly keen to sound out opinion.  The Chairman asked each member of the committee to express a view on what the cup should be named and for what it should be contested.  There were a variety of views around the table, but, on the issue of an appropriate competition, a consensus emerged that the new Summer Competition would not be the best one to have a prestigious cup awarded to it because of the nature of the event and its timing in the year.  On the matter of what the trophy should be called, Bill’s original proposal was “Presidents Cup”, with the names of the two presidents on the plinth, which was supported by the Chairman, though there was a feeling expressed that, as Bill was presenting the trophy, it should be named after him.

Bill then explained that the inspiration for his idea came from an event held in Porthcawl, a social night with refreshments where players competed for a cup.  It was agreed that this was a good idea and also that it would be good if the event was a “pro-am” with a draw for partners before the start of play  Further details about how the event would be organised and when, were left to be decided at a future meeting.

The Chairman thanked the President for his generosity once again, and it was left to Bill to determine the exact nature of the trophy after further research, settle on the inscription, and, together with the Secretary, place an order.

2. IT Equipment 

The possibility of purchasing a laptop and projector for teaching purposes was discussed.  The laptop would also replace the desk-top computer as a means of managing club Bridge events (scoring, duplimation etc.).  Glyn stated that work he had done on the current PC had made it quicker and more efficient, so there was no urgency to replace it.  Steve suggested that a decision be made in principle at this point, but that no purchase be made until it was clear there were enough students to run a class this autumn – he was hoping to start classes on September 24^th.  It was agreed in principle to make a purchase, which the Chairman would research, seeking the advice of Andy Robertshaw, but that no expenditure would be incurred until the situation regarding classes was clear.

3. AOB

• John raised the issue of entering the lead on Bridgemates.  While he found this innovation helpful, several members had mentioned that they found it irksome.  Teresa stated that she had requested this change as it was helpful to those who wished to analyse hands in order to improve their play.  It was stated that this had been introduced for a trial period, which the Chairman suggested should last until the end of the year, when it would be reviewed. It was felt that there needed to be renewed encouragement to people to use the Bridgemates more efficiently (entering the contract/allowing others to see the results) but that another card on the table was not the best way forward.

• The Treasurer was asked about the financial situation.  She replied that numbers were slightly down.  There was a need to try to encourage people  who no longer attend to come back.  She urged committee members to look at the minutes of the WBU AGM.

• Talk of lessons raised the issue of Tony Disley’s seminars, which those who attended had found very helpful.  The Secretary stated that he now had some ideas for possible seminars, which he would put to Tony, and which might be the basis of a new series in the autumn should Tony be available.

• Glyn suggested the purchase of some new storage boxes to tidy up the club cupboard, which was agreed.

The meeting closed at 6.:50 pm.

Present:  John Evans, Marjorie Morris, Teresa Griffiths, Irene Thomas, Glyn Williams, Emer Disley, Steve Burgoyne and David Newman in the Chair.

Matters arising from the minutes would be covered by the agenda (Thursday afternoons; publication of minutes).

Expert Players:  The secretary presented some ideas which had been put forward by Tony Disley, who was unable to attend the meeting.  He explained that Tony believed that the club’s efforts to improve behaviour and to foster new players had been helpful, but that the interests of the better players was not being so well catered for.  He also felt that, while the idea of being welcoming had generally been taken on board, this did not always apply when expert players came to the club.

There was sympathy for the points Tony was making, and it was pointed out that a lot of the people who did not observe procedures, such as correct use of the stop card, were in fact long-standing members rather than newcomers.  Glyn, as director, was already trying to instil good practice, but this was not always well received.  It was agreed that we should re-iterate expectations more regularly, and ensure that all members had copies of the ideas which were produced in the booklet for members a few years ago, but which, along with the Chair’s welcoming letter, had fallen into disuse.  The Chair agreed to produce some more of these booklets and ensure all new members have them. It was agreed that, while the essentially friendly nature of club nights must be maintained, so should the competitive element, and it should therefore be re-iterated that calling the director to resolve issues such as hesitations was good practice and not a hostile act.

There was some discussion about how to attract/win back some of the good players who no longer come to the club, and another of Tony’s ideas, having more teams events, was discussed.  It was agreed that we should consult members about whether they would feel happy to have regular teams sessions, and also look into having a special event designed to attract expert players, rather along the lines of the Dragon Event in Swansea.

It was also agreed that members should be encouraged to use time more efficiently when operating the Bridgemates, taking coffee breaks and discussing hands, which should only be done if there is time at the end of the round.  Standards of Bridge will not be improved if players have to rush to complete rounds because of unnecessary delays at other points.

Another suggestion was that we should look at putting a card on the table explaining the best ways of operating the Bridgemate machines.

Publication of Minutes:  It was felt that financial details should not be published with the minutes.  The Secretary agreed to remove the Treasurer’s report from the website. If members who were not at the AGM wish to know the financial situation they can always ask the Treasurer.  In addition, it was agreed that, in future, draft minutes should be sent to all committee members to be agreed before publication.  Any comments should be returned immediately to avoid delays in publication.  The Secretary expressed mild concern that committee minutes written by committee might end up being a cumbersome process.

Lessons and the Development of New Players:  Thursday afternoon sessions continued to be well supported and Steve intends to start beginners’ classes in September.  However, he expressed a concern that, now that Thursdays was just play, developing players were not being given any fresh input to enable them to enhance their knowledge and skills.  He was not sure how many of the Thursday group would want additional sessions – he did not believe many of them wished to sacrifice playing time on a Thursday.  Teresa agreed to sound out opinion among the Thursday group.  Steve stated that Dave Barwood ran very good sessions for developing players and that he (Steve) had advertised those to members of the Thursday group.  Dave was quite happy to accept people from Bridgend in his classes and, if we do not have the capacity to run such classes, it seems sensible to take up this offer, if the demand is there.

One idea suggested by John Evan was to hold “pro-am” tournaments on some Thursdays, when the developing players can play with an experienced club member and receive advice accordingly.  Marjorie said she was now more available on a Thursday and would be happy to help.

Post meeting note:  Marjorie Morris and Bill Turner have arranged to work with Teresa and Linda on a regular basis, which might be a platform for the development of improving players.

The meeting closed at 6:45pm

Bridgend BC  Committee Minutes Wednesday 11^th. February 2015 6:00pm.

Present:  David Newman, Irene Thomas, Glyn Williams, Emer Disley, Marjorie Morris, Teresa Griffiths, John Evans and Steve Burgoyne – so no apologies.

The Chairman started the meeting by welcoming our new committee member, Teresa Griffiths, who has taken on the role of Press Secretary

The minutes of the previous meeting were agreed as a true record.

Matters arising:

• The secretary has not yet agreed suitable subjects for further seminars from Tony Disley- suggestions appreciated.
• The recent AGM and the Annual dinner had been considered successful.  The issue of long standing members being turned away was raised, but, after some discussion it was agreed that, short of engaging a caterer who was prepared to accept higher numbers, we would have to stick to the system of first come first served, and make it clear to members in plenty of time that this was the system in operation.
• There had been a recent appeal and it was thought that the process had worked well.

Thursday afternoon duplicate:

Some concerns expressed by regular Thursday afternoon players were brought before the committee by Teresa.  The underlying issue was that the new format, involving masterpoints, endangered the essentially friendly and relaxed nature of the session.  In particular it was felt wrong that the sessions should be used by experienced players to practice for major events, and it was conceded that this had been a mistake.  Bearing in mind that some of those taking part were relatively inexperienced, they should not be exposed to complicated systems and conventions.  On this point, it was agreed that members should be asked whether they would like an agreed “simple systems” format to apply on a Thursday.  It was a worry that the better players, previously less inclined to penalise mistakes by the relative beginners, were now quicker to double for penalties.  It was also considered that those running the sessions need to be more aware of the dynamics of potential pairings.

Those running the Thursday sessions felt that they were aware of these issues and were trying to address them.  Getting the balance right is always difficult, but it will be particularly important when the lessons end and the “beginners” join the Thursday afternoon sessions on a regular basis (see below).  It was agreed that the principle of assistance being available during the bidding, but not the play, should be continued.  There was some concern that the “tutoring” element of the sessions had been lost, and some thought needed to be given as to how this can best be handled.  The bottom line is that the new format is an experiment, which will be reviewed when it has been going for a few months.

Lessons:   These are about to come to an end and John explained that most of the group would now like to come on Thursday afternoons.  Three of the ten were regular attenders anyway, so it was likely that there would be an extra one to two tables.  Ideally John would like to pair each new player with a mentor for the first session, on March 5^th., but he would be asking them if that was what they wanted.  It was suggested that a separate movement or teams could be organised for the less experienced players if they found the going too tough.  It was hoped, however, that the experienced players would be empathetic about issues such as slow play, remembering the position they were in some 18 months or so ago.  Clearly thought needs to go into how this is managed and expectations of all concerned need to be clarified.

Computer:  David had taken advice from Andy Robertshaw about possible replacements.  Glyn did not feel there was a need to replace yet, though he said the updates sometimes caused a problem – he would have a word with Andy to see whether these could be speeded up.

Calendar:  John explained how this worked and it was agreed to keep the pattern of the year and plan a year ahead – avoiding Rugby match nights when there is a club competition.

AOB:  It was reported that Tony Disley and Roger Penton had won the Trials for the Welsh Seniors Team.

The meeting closed at 6:45.

1. Aplogies

2.Minutes and Matters arising

3.Thursday Afternoon Duplicate (TG)

4.Introduction of class members to pm session on 5^th. March (HJE)

5.The Computer (DN)

6.Hours of hire (DN)

7.Calendar – future events (if time and if needed)

8.AOB (If time)

Bridgend Bridge Club AGM  Minutes  19.00  23/1/15

Apologies:  Teresa Griffiths, Ray Smith, Tony Disley

Minutes of 2014 AGM:  Proposed by Dave Lea and seconded by David Newman, these were accepted as a true record of the 2014, nem. con.

The only matter arising was the recognition of the average annual by members as recorded on Scorebridge.  Once again the Chairman had not been able to highlight achievements before they were obliterated at the start of the New Year.  He would try to do better next year.

Treasurer’s Report ( For Balance Sheet, clickek on menu to the left ): 

Table money had increased as a result of the Thursday afternoon sessions, resulting in a small surplus for the year. The club had raised a large amount for charity, enabling us to donate £800 to our charity for 2014, The Samaritans, as well as £207 to Children in Need.  She highlighted the contribution of John Henson’s drinks service to the charity figure.  The club has healthy reserves, the majority being in Premium Bonds.  The Treasurer’s report and accounts were approved nem.con.– proposed by John Evans and seconded by Alan Grant.  There were no questions on the report

The Chairman thanked the Treasurer for all the work she does throughout the year, and also to Davis Lea for auditing the accounts.

Chairman’s Report:

What has been a generally good year for the club was brought to a sad end by the passing of Mel Humphries.  Mel was one of the longest standing members of the club, a very good player, but above all a gentleman against whom and with whom it was a pleasure to play.  He is sadly missed here, but I hope his memory will inspire those of us still struggling with this most difficult of games to play in the right spirit so we all enjoy our evenings around the green baize, treating triumph and disaster as equal bedfellows, even though most of us are far too familiar with the latter. 

While I have frequently stressed that the club is here primarily to facilitate friendly competitive club Bridge; club members have experienced considerable success in the world that exists outside Nolton Hall.  We have had three international representatives, Liam Sheridan and John Beard playing in the Welsh Seniors Team, captained by Laura Woodruff, in the European Championships, and, more recently, Tony Ratcliff as part of the Welsh team that enjoys a narrow lead over Ireland in this year’s Camrose, after the first weekend in Northern Ireland in early January. Tony Haworth and Rob Charlesworth have won two Western Area events, The Vince Bevan and the National Pairs qualifiers, in which they were also top of the national rankings, while Tony Disley and Roger Penton won the Welsh Seniors Congress Pairs.  It is a source of some satisfaction that our club supplied 7 of the 24 pairs who contested the recent National Pairs qualifier, five of whom have qualified for the 14 table National final in March. I’m also pleased that, after a gap of several years, we are entering a team in the National Teams of Eight this year, Western Qualifying being on 1^st February, so good luck to them.

Perhaps the greatest successes of the year were in the development of our Thursday afternoon “Gentle Duplicate Sessions” as well as a new beginners class, run by John Evans on a Thursday morning.  We have decided to run the Thursday sessions, between two and five thirty with masterpoints, as an experiment for a few months.  We believe there is a demand for afternoon Bridge, and the response so far has been encouraging, but we are aware that we must not abandon the supportive and developmental features of this session, and also that, when this year’s beginners’ class comes to an end, we need to give serious consideration to recruiting more beginners for 2015-16. Tony Disley ran some seminars on more advanced topics on several Fridays before the duplicate sessions, which were well received, and we hope to run some more in due course. It was good to see the mix of experience, improvers and beginners at the successful New Years Party a couple of weeks ago, an event that is now so popular the Chairman couldn’t even get a game, though it was worth coming just for the meal.  These developments would not have been possible without the hard work of a dedicated band of members, led by John Evans and supported by Glyn Williams, David Newman and John Henson.  Ensuring the Thursday sessions are staffed is quite a commitment so we would very much welcome offers of help and volunteers to join our rota, which currently has three members running Thursday sessions in turn.  It is good to see that a significant number of current players have come through the ranks of our classes in recent years, and we believe we need to sustain this development programme, while mindful of the workload of those involved, who are, of course, unpaid volunteers.

While, as we have heard from the treasurer, we seem to have weathered the financial crisis which loomed over us a few years ago, numbers on Wednesday evenings have again been in decline, and the viability of this session will be called into question if attendance does not improve in 2015, so if you are in a position to encourage some of the regulars to return, please make use of your persuasive powers.

The large gaps between income and expenditure of a few years back caused us to take some drastic action, which some described as panic measures, I know, but I suppose it is generally true that people tend to be even more cautious with other people’s money than their own – I can vouch for the fact that school bursars certainly do.  As well as increasing table money and charges for some of the social events, we ceased to subsidise charity evenings, by deducting hall rental from our donations, and ended the practice of club officers having a free ticket to the annual dinner.  We probably should have reviewed these measures, particularly in relation to charity donations, about which some members expressed concern, in the light of the fact that we have arrested the fall in our reserves.  At our most recent committee meeting we decided that we should return to the practice of giving all money collected on the evening to the charities, and that we would backdate this to the Children-in-Need event, subject to there being no objections at the AGM.  There is a slot on the agenda to discuss this further should you wish to do so.

It only remains for me to thank all the officers of the club, the committee and other members, who do so much behind the scenes to ensure we can all benefit from membership of this club, which, I believe, offers remarkably good value for money.  It is difficult to persuade people to undertake office, and, I suppose, you could argue that this doesn’t matter as long as the jobs get done somehow and those in place keep on going until they drop.  However, it seems to me that lack of succession planning could leave the club severely exposed in the future, and one way to tackle this is for people to give us plenty of notice of when they wish to end their term of office.  This is what Marjorie did a few years ago and we were fortunate that John Whateley was primed to take over, and he was doing an excellent job until his personal circumstances forced him to relinquish the post, which I have been temporarily combining with the Chairmanship.  Because we have not found anybody who wishes to take on the secretarial role, I am prepared to do so, subject to the decision of the AGM, and David Newman has kindly agreed to stand to replace me as Chairman, again subject to your approval when it comes to the election of officers.  In the light of what I have said about succession planning, we will take on these roles in the expectation that we will do them for two years, subject to next year’s AGM, which gives the club plenty of time to groom replacements.   While continuity is important, so is fresh blood and new ideas. There were no questions on the report.

Charity Events

This year’s charity is to support a Bridgend teenager to have a potentially life changing operation in the United States (Details on Club noticeboard)  Club Charity evening this year is on Friday 8^th. May.  The meeting supported the committee’s decision to include hall hire fees in future in the charity donations (see Chair’s Report above)

Prizes were presented as follows:

Handicap Pairs; John Henson and Terry Dolan

Max Powell Rose Bowl: Irene Thomas and John Whateley

Club Pairs: Julian Pottage and Tony Ratcliff

Club Mixed Pairs:  Debbie and Dave Lea

Club Teams: John Henson, Geoff Tinkler, David Bowen and David Crompton

John Raymond Transport Cup: Eleanor Jones, Barrie Jenkins, Linda Pinnock, Denis Mottram

The Summer Competition was won by David Lea, but there is no trophy for this as yet.

Elections:

It was proposed by David Newman and seconded by Alan Grant that Irene Thomas and Glyn Williams be re-elected as Treasurer and Tournament Director respectively

It was proposed by John Evans and seconded by David Newman that Steve Burgoyne by elected as Secretary.

It was proposed by Alan Grant and seconded by Colin Lewis that David Newman be elected Chairman.

It was proposed by Steve Burgoyne and seconded by Alan Grant that John Evans, Marjorie Morris and Emer Disley be re-elected to the committee and that Teresa Griffiths be elected to the committee.  All the above agreed nem con.

The meeting closed at 19:15

In addition to the increase in table money, the committee has also decided to cease the practice of granting free membership to those reaching 80 years old.  This concession will not be withdrawn from those already enjoying it, but will not be applied to those reaching 80 from January 2013 onwards.

SIMS events.  We agreed to maintain the SIMs events at the current level, and to favour Welsh/Celtic events over EBU ones where possible.  When there are the same hands on Tuesday/Wednesday, we will alternate with Pencoed as to which club runs the SIMs in question.  There will only normally be one SIMs event on a Friday (Children in Need) and will will give reminders of Wednesday SIMs so that those who do not wish to participate can avoid them.