The year 2008 has been surprisingly successful financially, with the club showing something like a GBP 100 surplus on the year. I was pessimistic that the VAT imposition on the pitch fee would be damaging to the club's finances, but they have held up well. Very little money has been spent on anything except new balls; nets fees have covered costs well enough. Membership/subs numbers have increased since last year, and fewer matches were cancelled. Some minor attention to details (no FAS tea, clawing back a pitch free owed by the Cavendish) has made some difference. Faruk Kara (and Jim Schwabe again!) are this year's lucky winners of the coveted "Have your Remnants sub held over to next year" prize as neither ened up playing even a single match.
So far this year (i.e., not in the 2008 accounts), nets attendance has been disappointing (substantial losses), although the bargain rate for three nets at (the VAT-free) Fenners gives us a chance to recover this from here on by a series of good turnouts. I have also spent GBP 100 on repairing and renovating five of the bats, including replacing a broken handle on one of the excellent Choice Willows.
The two-tier system of charging differently for subs-paying members and non-subs-paying others has been confusing and is difficult. Because no single person turns up to collect money for every match, money collectors have to coordinate before every match as to who has paid a sub and who hasn't. If people just play one or two matches it just isn't clear whether they should pay at GBP 5 or GBP 3 without hassling them on their first game for the club. (It did, however, encourage people to pay more promptly than before; some extra money has certainly been raised for the club.) The spreadsheet model report this year shows the same 100% response (ahem, in theory) as last year (where modest shortfalls I made good out of my pocket), but the records this year are significantly different from the theoretical maximums, and show something like a GBP 100 shortfall in the combined subs not recorded as paid and the higher match fee that should have been paid but wasn't. Also, a few players (who shall be nameless) also sometimes turn up without cash, say they will pay next week, say they paid last week but possibly didn't, walk off after without paying, etc. Our collective records of small sums, shared between me, Danny, Andy, Geoff and others, can never, quite frankly, be good enough to deal with all these details -- it is super boring to have to discuss these tiny amounts of money, so I suggest so some seepage may be unavoidable and we should just get on with it. Putting it positively, all players can feel good about themselves every week by coming along with cash and making sure they pay.
Discussion: keep or drop the two-tier sub/non-sub system?
Subs this year will be dependent on any increases on pitch fees by the college. Raising the match fee payable by visiting teams to GBP 25 would raise about GBP 100 per year and could reasonably be justified as a response to the imposition of VAT.
3. Kit: continues to grow old gracefully. Some of the pads are looking shabby, but I don't think that makes any difference. We have an issue that the team "tin" just isn't big enough for more than three sets of pads (and everything else). Bats are in pretty good shape/state of repair, ditto helmets. People seem to be looking after the stuff pretty well - no losses. Andy has requested new wicketkeeping gloves.
Discussion: Any thoughts on this/any requests?
4. Merchandise(!): we could have club jumpers/hats/shirts/trousers . . . My thoughts are that if it builds the club, and is popular/enjoyable and raises some money, it would be worth it.
Anybody want to discuss?
David Williams, March 2009