GENERAL SECRETARY’S REPORT TO THE 2025 AGM
Ladies and gentlemen, I look back on the 2024 season with satisfaction that the League once again delivered for its bowlers and clubs to enjoy competitive games in an organised and structured format.
We accommodated 8 new teams, including Meole Brace joining the League for the first time in the Dennis Lewis Thursday Division, and re-launched the Saturday Division, which had been in cold storage since the pandemic. In terms of first time entrants, we also welcomed Wem USC to the Harris Cup.
Our long standing sponsorship deal with Molson Coors was given a more solid foundation and, although match fees went up to 60p as we successfully stabilised the League’s finances, we still managed to pay out almost £8,000 in prize money!
Top earners were Shifnal, who I salute as first time champions and winners of the inaugural Harris Shield. Newport too had a great season packed with team and individual honours.
And there were other Mid Shropshire clubs who shone in 2024 – Hadley USC winning the Shropshire Cup for the first time; Edgmond as winners of the Best Green in Shropshire title; Bowring for building on the League’s proud record of hosting cracking County Senior Merit finals; Bridgnorth for their superb Summer School; and Allscott Heath for successfully moving over the road to a two green venue, growing their membership and launching a new winter league.
On the personality front it was a real privilege to nominate Brenda Slingo to serve as Country President for 2024 – PICTURED ABOVE PROUDLY WEARING THE CHAIN OF OFFICE.
She is the first woman to have represented Mid Shropshire in this way and she certainly gave it her all. Just like her efforts for us on the junior scene, Brenda went the extra mile and did a cracking job so deserves our fulsome praise. Mid Shropshire winning the junior inter-league yet again was a fitting reward for her.
The League honoured 3 more Life Members, but the huge sadness of last year was that we lost 3 of them as Barry Griffiths, John Hughes and Ron Adams all left us. The sad news came so close it was really hard to take.
Another personal disappointment was the ending of my commitment to the county association after more than 3 decades.
The late cancellation of the senior inter-league was the last straw for me. I’d persuaded the League to spend £186 on brand new shirts and spent plenty of time cajoling bowlers to be available to the extent that we were on the very of entering 3 teams! Already harbouring other concerns, I came to the conclusion – just as chairman Sean Round did the year before – that it was time to go…
So now I can concentrate solely on League matters and my first big project, hopefully started before the 2025 season opens, will be to try and get our historical documents – that are currently dominating our attic space – archived.
There’s missing honours on the website to research and a proposed Youth Development Strategy to work on, while continue to keep in touch with bowlers and clubs via the website, Facebook group, emails and Newsletters.
That should keep me busy so that I don’t have time to brood on what I felt was a disappointing annual presentation dinner on Saturday. The caterers really let us down with the main course and it cast a long shadow over the evening.
We clearly need to take a long hard look at this function, but the positive is that we have had some great feedback since the weekend which will be considered very carefully. Having had some great nights in the past, sadly, I just think it is time for change now . . .
Change is what we all need to embrace and I am really encouraged by the things coming out of the rejuvenated BCGBA, even though it will costs all bowers an extra £1 per club for the Annual Development Player Fee!
On the local front, there’s lots of positive news with more teams, including Stockton, poised to join the League and, who knows, the Dennis Lewis Thursday Division might get that popular we have to split it into 2.
There’s also more new competitions in the pipeline so there’s plenty to look forward to as we continue to strive to make the League the best it can.
Thank you.