December 2023

 

Message from the Chairman Steve Thomas:

As Chair of Hagley Bowls Club may I thank all those members who attended the recent AGM. It was great to see so many of you there.

 

May l wish you all a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Keep well. I look forward to seeing you all on the green again in next season.

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October News Update:

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Successful Year for Hagley Players:

The 2023 season has now come to an end, with some particularly notable performances by our teams and players; not only, as mentioned previously did Hagley win the Stafford League Division Two Knock-out Cup, but the team also earned promotion into Stafford League Division One for next year. 

 

In The Lichfield 50+ League, Alan Morris and Pete Freeman won the Division One Doubles Merits, Rob Gibbon finished runner-up in the Division One Singles Merits, and Dave Robson and John Meddings finished as runners-up in the final of the Division Three Doubles Merits. 

  

On the club scene Phil Standing this year has continued to run some very successful and popular club competitions, the latest one held on Tuesday 3rd October, a round robin competition, was won by Pam Standing and Carl Sanford.

 

And on the wider scene we should congratulate The Staffordshire County Senior Team, who won this year's County Championship beating Derbyshire in the final.

 

Lichfield 50+ Presentation Event:

Notice has been received that The Lichfield 50+ Presentation Event will this year be held on the afternoon of Wednesday 29th November 2023. Final details are yet to be confirmed, however there will be a change to the usual venue with the event moving to Bridgetown Social Club. As mentioned above some of our Hagley Players will be receiving awards and trophies for their successes this year. Team Captains Pete Freeman and Dave Robinson will have details of tickets in due course.

 

Christmas Dinner - Christmas Bowling.

Phil Standing has again agreed to arrange our Hagley Christmas Dinner Social at The Chase Pub, for Thursday 14th December 2023, sit down 1.15pm for 1.30 pm, so if you are interested please text Phil on 07966 258591 to reserve your seat.

 

There will also be Pre-dinner Christmas bowling at Hagley from 11am until 12.30 pm.

 

The Hagley Green:

The Hagley Green has now been closed for the winter, and maintenance work has commenced. Chris Alldritt and the green keeping team have been busy with scarifying, aerating, re-seeding and top dressing with a sand loam mixture.

 

All members will have noticed that the green has been kept in an extremely good condition this year, so a big  thanks should go to all of the team who have worked on the green through the year.

 

We would however like to add  a new member or two, to our green mowing team for next year, To mow the green takes about an hour, so if you feel that you could spare an hour just once a week, please let Chris or any of the committee know of your interest, we will let you have a go with our mower and training will be given, try it out. 

 

A.G.M. Important Change of Date:

So with the Lichfield 50+ League Presentation date announced as 29th November 2023, the date for the Hagley A.G,M has been changed to Wednesday 6th December 2023, 2pm start. The AGM will be held at The Community Hall next to our club, all members are welcome, please come along if you can, there are some important matters to be discussed.

 

Additional League Teams:

There has been feedback to Committee Members that not all members have the opportunity to play as many league games as they would wish. So we will include on the agenda again for the A.G.M the possibility of seeking to form extra league teams for 2024.

 

As previously raised the options might be, The Needwood League (Monday afternoons), The Stafford Ladies League (Monday Evenings) The Stafford Vets League (Wednesday Afternoons), The St. Giles Charity League (Sundays), additionally there is the possibility of entering an additional team into the Cannock League (Thursday Evening) or the The Stafford League (Friday Evening).

 

Please, if you have any views do  speak to any of your committee members, they are there to listen. And also be prepared to air your views at the AGM.

 

Committee Roles becoming vacant:

At this year's A.G.M Pete Freeman will be standing down as Club Secretary and Phil Standing will be standing down as Competitions Secretary.

 

If you feel able to fill one of these positions please feel free to speak to Pete Freeman or Phil Standing to discuss what the role entails, both Pete and Phil are prepared to offer time and support to anyone willing to take over one of these roles.

 

Your Committee has also discussed the possibility, if necessary, to splitting up the responsibilities of the Club Secretary, into separate roles i.e. 

Meeting Secretary; (taking minutes of meetings, providing agendas, receiving and responding to correspondence).

Membership Secretary; (liaising with club treasurer, team captains, The County Bowling Association and various leagues to register Hagley members).

Press Secretary/Web-Master; (To maintain the club website, and produce newsletters for members, promote Hagley Bowls Club).

 

Your views would be welcome.  

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Below Pics. of Competition Winners:

Pic One, Pete Freeman & Alan Morris - Division One Lichfield 50+ Merit Comp.

Pic Two, Pam Standing & Carl Sanford - Hagley Round Robin Comp..

Pic Three, Winners - Pam Standing & Chris Hagon. Runners-up - John Meddings & Sue Maybury.

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      Pic. One                                            Pic. Two                                                    Pic Three

  

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August News Update:

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Tidy up day:  Thank you to everyone who came along to our Tidy up Day last Monday 21st August; fifteen members turned up and did a really good job, the club is looking smarter than it has for some time. Should any one fancy doing a regular hour or so on a weekly, or fortnightly basis please let us know, there is always a bit of pruning or grass trimming to do. 

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Visions Youth Service Summer Program: Also to report is that a group of twelve youngsters from The Vysions Youth Service Summer Program visited the club on 10th August. This was a most successful morning with the youngsters being very enthusiastic and fully engaging in the bowling. Thanks to Rob, Phil, Pam and Pat for running this event.  

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Club Competitions: Two recent Charity Challenge competitions have raised a total of £277-27 for local charity, firstly the Chase Challenge where the Tuesday Night teams played customers from The Chase Pub and raised just over £204-00 and then the Charity Challenge vs. The Community Church raised £73-27. Excellent results, and thank you to all who attended and contributed.

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Additionally Steve the manager of The Chase donated two meal vouchers for the winner and runner up of our club singles knock out competition, with Paul Bryan and Bob Hawkins being the recipients in the final played on last Monday afternoon.

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Our next competition will be, Wednesday 6th September 2023 6.30 pm start, a round robin doubles played for The Hagley Trophy. 

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Followed by a round robin singles competition to be played for The President's Trophy on Sunday 17th September 2023 1.30 pm start.

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Looking Forward: Our Club AGM has been scheduled for Wednesday 29th November 2023 and prior to the AGM your committee would wish to consult with members in respect of what demand there is for league bowls, and whether we should look to enter teams into other leagues with a view to giving more of our members the opportunity of playing league bowls in 2024.

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Some options might be The Needwood League (Monday afternoons), The Stafford Ladies League (Monday Evenings) The Stafford Vets League (Wednesday Afternoons), The St. Giles Charity League (Sundays), additionally there is the possibility of entering an additional team in the Cannock League (Thursday Evening) or the The Stafford League (Friday Evening).

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Your committee is mindful that some of the above might clash with existing club social bowls, or other club commitments, so we feel that early consultation is the best way forward. Please, if you have any views do  speak to any of your committee members, they are there to listen. And also be prepared to air your views at the AGM.

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Green Opening & Closing 2024 - Also Looking forward to 2024 and in response to questions being asked of committee members regarding green opening and closure, a paper has been prepared and endorsed by the committee which explains the rationale behind deciding on green opening and closure dates. Please find via the link:  Green Closure Date

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30/07/2023  Latest Club News & Diary Dates:

 

The good news is that we are a prospering club, our membership has now reached 75, as many members as we have had for many years. Our social scene is also on the up, with social bowling sessions becoming popular again, and demand for places in our league teams also grows. Your Committee will continue to strive to promote the club for the benefit of members.

 

Our club competitions organised by Phil Standing remain popular, our last competition run on Sunday 23rd June attracted some eighteen members despite the damp weather, with Sue Maybury and Mick Edwards running out as winners.

 

Our next competition is next Sunday 6th August 2023, start time 1.30 pm. This is our annual Charity Challenge with our neighbours from the Community Church. All proceeds from this day are given over to a local charity. Please come along and support this day, everyone gets a game.

 

Other news, Rob Gibbon our club coach and a very active member of the club has recently attended a Safeguarding Course and the Committee has now agreed to appoint Rob as our club Safeguarding Officer.

Should anyone have any queries concerning safeguarding please do not hesitate to contact Rob.

 

As a club, your Committee always tries to promote bowling into the community, and we are pleased this year to be hosting a group of youngsters, part of the Vysions Youth Service Summer Program, who will be coming to the club between 10am - 12 midday on Thursday10th August. These youngsters will be introduced to bowls by Rob Gibbon, Phil & Pam Standing and Pat Danning, maybe they will become future Hagley Bowlers.  

 

Hagley will also be hosting The Lichfield 50+ League End of Season Merit Competitions on Thursday 7th September (Singles) and Thursday 14th September (Doubles). These competitions feature the best divisional average winners for the year and bowling is always to a high standard, please feel free to come along and support your favorites. Start time will be 12.30 pm.

 

Finally, as I am sure you will all agree, our greenkeeping team led by Chris Alldritt has produced a first class surface for us to bowl on this year, thanks to all of the team. We do though need a team of volunteers for a 'Tidy Up Day'. So please come along to our club working party on 10am Monday 21st August 2023, to have a tidy up of the paving areas, green surrounds and weeds that have taken advantage of the recent wetter weather.

 

Also as part of the tidy up program you may have noticed a broom and shovel hanging on the outside of the door to the tool-shed. These items, 'Basil Brush', 'Sean the Shovel' and as you will also see, 'Dusty Bin', are for use by anyone who wishes to do a quick brush-up, particularly of the path area around the club entrance area.

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Pete Freeman

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03/05/2023 Congratulations:

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Congratulations to the Hagley Team, winners of the 2023 Stafford League Division 2 Team knock-out competition. 

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The final of the competition was played last Friday 28th April 2023 at Stafford Bowls Club, with the Hagley team running out winners against a strong Littleton team.

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Hagley Team 2023 - Competition Winners - Left to Right, Pete Freeman, Chris Hagon, Ann Jones, Tom Jones, Mick Green, Mick Edwards, Paul Bryan, Roger Davies, Kim Welch, Dave Shelley, Rob Gibbon.

  

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29/03/2023 Club Open Day 

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Club Members are reminded that our Committee has again decided to run a 'Club Open Day’. This day is aimed at inviting potential new members into the club, so if you know of anyone who might be interested in joining the club, or in trying the game, invite them along between 1pm and 4 pm this coming Saturday 1st April 2023.

 

Our existing members are also encouraged to come along on this day to meet and greet guests and visitors.

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07/03/2023

 

Thanks to all who have been coming along to our working parties. 

 

The majority of the work is now done, the boarding has been fixed and the ditch has been prepared with a layer of membrane as a weed suppressant.

 

All that needs to be done now is to drop in a shallow layer of sand so as to cushion our woods that roll into the ditch.

 

So the good news is that Phil Standing has arranged for a load of sand to be delivered, at no cost to the club, to be supplied by Walter Tippers, and then we will need one last working party to help with moving the sand. So please come down if you are free, from 10 am next Monday 13th March.

 

Also a Reminder: Hagley Pre-season meeting Wednesday 15/03/2023 Start 1.30 pm  

 

Our 2023 Pre-season meeting will commence at 1.30 pm on Wednesday 15th March and will be held in our club-house. Paul Bryan will be accepting this year's membership fees, still £40-00 and 100 club fees. You will also be able to find details of our various league teams and join the teams you wish to play for, and Phil Standing will have details of all planned competitions and events for this year. 

 

Feel free to join the team of your choice, just let the team captains know your preference.

 

We also intend to supply tea, coffee and biscuits at this meeting, and also run a raffle; raffle prizes would therefore be most welcome.

 

For those of you who wish to pay your subs by electronic payment, our bank account details are shown below:

 

Pay:                                  Hagley Bowls Club

Account Number:          30170668 (Lloyds)

Sort Code:                      77-31-10 

 

Green Opens, Wednesday 22/03/2023 1.30 pm Start: 

 

The green will open this year on Wednesday 22nd March 2023 with a Round Robin Doubles competition, come along and get your season off to a flying start! 

 

Club Open Day, Saturday 01/04/2023 1 pm Start: 

 

This is our opportunity to invite in and meet new members. Please come along, you can meet and greet any prospective new members, and if you feel confident show them how the game is played.

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27/02/2023

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Thank you to everyone who turned out for the Working Party last Monday, it was a really good turn out and we got loads done, replacing the boarding surrounding the green edge is almost finished.

 

We are organizing a further working Party for this coming Wednesday 1st March to complete the job, so if you are free please bring your tools, come along and lend a hand.

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27/01/2023 

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The 2023 Bowling season is just around the corner and lots of preparation work has been ongoing to get ready for the start at both our club and around the various leagues. So just to bring to your attention several important dates:

 

Monday 20/02/2023 10 am  Firstly we are organising a working party for Monday 20th February 2023 starting 10am. The inner edging boarding of the green which has been in place for many years has in places started to rot and crumble, and is in need of replacement. We will be purchasing some new decking type wooden boarding and will need some help to do this replacement job. Please come along and we can get this done, bringing spades, lawn-edgers and mallets may be useful.

 

Chris Alldritt and the green keeping team have been working hard through the winter to prepare the green for an early opening so please do support them and the club by turning out for this working party. Chris also reports concerning the green, that there has been a particular problem with worm casts on the green this winter, and, would you believe it, crows digging holes in the green!

 

Chris and the team are looking to add to the team of volunteers, so if you feel that you can help please contact Chris, even half an hour a week swishing off the worm casts would be a help.

 

Wednesday 15/03/2023 1.30 pm start. Hagley Pre-season meeting Our 2023 Pre-season meeting will commence at 1.30 pm on Wednesday 15th March and will be held in our club-house. Paul Bryan will be accepting this year's membership fees, still £40-00 and 100 club fees, you will be able to find details of our various league teams and join the teams you wish to play for, and Phil Standing will have details of all planned competitions and events for this year. 

 

We also intend to supply tea, coffee and biscuits and also run a raffle; raffle prizes would therefore be most welcome.

 

For those of you who wish to pay your subs by electronic payment, our bank account details are shown below:

 

Pay:                                  Hagley Bowls Club

Account Number:         30170668 (Lloyds)

Sort Code:                       77-31-10 

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