Morley Cricket Club

....David outlined some of the problems the Club have faced and the potential impact of the worst summer anyone can remember.

David said today “The 2011/12 winter was the most difficult the Club has ever faced and it only survived by very close monitoring of expenses, control of the cash flow and the goodwill and support of certain key individuals. Traditionally, the Club builds up some funds in the cricket season that helps to support it during the winter months. The current wet summer is preventing the Club from building-up those funds and the Club’s survival during the winter of 2012/13 is now at stake.”

The Committee are already looking at ways to increase revenues without impacting too heavily on existing Club members. The main thrust of this will be the introduction of membership cards on 1st August 2012. This will enable paid-up members to purchase drinks at existing prices with those who haven’t paid their subs plus guests, people attending private functions and cricket visitors all paying a higher price for purchases over the bar.

The cricket section is already working closer with the Club committee to ensure all possible commercial opportunities can be pursued. Last Saturday’s Crick-Wit was a huge success and this will be followed by several band nights including King Nothing on 3rd August and the biggest of them all - Wicket Fest 2 on Sunday 26th August 2012 .

There are several things the Club needs:

First and foremost - it needs people to step forward to fulfil certain key roles. David Dowse commented that “People don’t necessarily have to be full committee members; we would be delighted if people want to join, but, we have four key roles that will help the Club work more effectively and free-up time of existing members to drive the Club forward”. The Committee are keen to market the use of the Willows for private and commercial functions more effectively. Therefore, someone is needed to coordinate a diary for the Willows, deal with people making enquiries and contact groups and businesses in Morley to get the facility used more widely.

In addition, the Club needs someone to act as a Fixtures and Registrations Secretary for the cricket section, someone to work on Club memberships and someone to work with Lee Jagger in the excellent role he is doing in arranging events at the Club.

David emphasised the need for additional support by stating, “As President, I am able to call upon great support from a small number of people who work tirelessly for the Club. However, most of those have busy and high-pressured jobs and additional help is needed. It’s best summed up by saying the people that do will do anything for the Club but they can’t do more”.

If you can’t get involved in these essential roles, we need your ideas on events that can take the Club forward. Do you like/hate quizzes, what would get junior players and parents to events, what events are attractive to senior cricketers, what music style events would you like to see, do you prefer dinners, buffets, no-food, do you want an event at Christmas, New Year, etc., etc. We’ve thought about all these things, we now need to hear from you to make sure your Club is putting on the kind of nights that you want to be at! David is at the Club every Thursday evening if anyone would like to have a quiet chat about the future of the Club or to express an interest in any voluntary role within the Club.

The President confirmed that there is no “crying wolf” in this announcement. “One option would be, of course, to close the Club for longer periods in the winter months and take out facilities such as gaming machines and Sky TV and these actions have been considered. But the Committee have the ambition to try and promote its way through this recession and make sure that there is a vibrant Club for all for many years to come. We can only do that if the Club members want it and are prepared to support it”.