Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of THE BIRMINGHAM & DISTRICT PREMIER CRICKET LEAGUE held at Moseley Cricket Club on Wednesday 22 nd January, 2014 at 8.00 p.m. Present: All present signed the attendance register a copy is held by The General Manager. 1. Apologies Nil. The only member club that was not present was Smethwick C.C. and they will be fined 50.00 for non-attendance as per the Rules of the League printed in the Annual handbook. 2. Minutes of A.G.M. Held on 20 th February 2013: The minutes of the 2013 A.G.M. have been available to download from the League website since 8 th January, 2014. Chairman proposed that they were taken as read. S.A. Neal (Old Hill C.C. and BDPCL Management Board Representative) proposed that they were accepted as a true record and his proposal was seconded by R.J. Fleet (President-Elect). All present were in favour. 3. Matters Arising: Nil. 4. Chairman s Report: A copy of the report has been available to download from the League website since 8 th January, 2014. Chairman reiterated his congratulations to the winners of all Competitions and welcomed the clubs who had won their County Feeder League as members of BDPCL:- Astwood Bank C.C., Hawkins C & R C.C., Newport C.C. and Sutton Coldfield C.C. He made particular mention of Shrewsbury C.C. who had won the Premier Division title and progressed to the last eight of the National Club K.O. Competition and the last eight of the ECB National Club T20 Competition. He offered his congratulations to clubs who had secured promotion and commiserations to those clubs who had been relegated, particularly, to Aston Manor C.C., Cannock C.C., Evesham C.C. and Worcester Nomads C.C. who had been relegated to their County Feeder League. He thanked the outgoing President, L.R. Ingram for hosting a very successful President s Day at Bromsgrove C.C. in conjunction with the Finals day for the BDPCL (Twenty20) Challenge Cup Competition. The matches arranged to celebrate the 125 th Anniversary of the League were well supported by players and thanks were offered to Kidderminster Victoria C.C., Moseley C.C. and Walsall C.C. for their hospitality and use of their ground. The introduction of the split playing format had created great interest, particularly, among the players, and he confirmed that a full review will take place at the end of the 2014 season to consider the future playing format. He finished his report by thanking his fellow Board Members for their support, during the year, as well as The President and General Manager for their hard work on behalf of the League. S.A. Neal (Old Hill C.C. and BDPCL Management Board Representative) proposed that the report should be adopted and this was seconded by N. Giles (Penkridge C.C.). All present were in favour.
5. Hon Treasurer s Report: A copy of the Accounts for the year ending 30 th September, 2013 has been available to download from the League website since 8 th January, 2014. Hon Treasurer said it had been an interesting year. Income fell from 50,038.00 to 48,532.00 but expenditure had remained constant, just 120.00 less than the previous year. There had been a decline in sponsorship income but this was counterbalanced by an increase in income from the sale of cricket balls from stock, entry fees for the ECB National Club T20 competition and an increase in fines. Insurance costs were down thanks to Warwickshire C.C.C. who covered the insurance cost of the League s oldest trophies which are on permanent display in the museum at Edgbaston. The costs from matches staged to celebrate the 125 th Anniversary of the League amounted to 1,250.00 and the Management Board had agreed that these costs would be met from reserves. Total Net Assets came to approximately 40,000.00 compared to 42,000.00 in 2012 which reflected the small deficit of 1,506.00 recorded during the year. Investments in a Scottish Widows Account had realised a small income and he considered that the League s finances were in a pretty healthy position. The Management Board has recommended that there is a small increase in the annual subscription to the League from 475.00 to 500.00. His target for the next 12 months is to continue to cut costs and record a small surplus at the end of the year. He regretted the lack of a title sponsor for the League which he valued in the region of 10,000.00 per annum. He made his annual plea for support in the form of advertisements for the League Handbook and the League website. W.F. Tansell (Barnards Green C.C., Old Elizabethans C.C. and BDPCL Management Board Representative) proposed and N. Giles (Penkridge C.C.) seconded that the Accounts were adopted and all were in favour. 6. Appointment of Honorary Reporting Accountant: Hon Treasurer thanked J.A. Cox (Walsall C.C.) for his prompt and efficient service. Moreover, he completed this task on a pro bono basis and had done so for many years. He proposed and S.A. Neal (Old Hill C.C. and BDPCL Management Board Representative) seconded the proposal that Mr Cox is re-appointed and all present were in favour. 7. Appointment of President: Chairman paid tribute to L.R. Ingram (Bromsgrove C.C. and BDPCL Management Board Representative) for his valuable contribution during his year of office. Mr Ingram thanked the Chairman for his kind words and said that had been honoured to become the 64 th President of the oldest Cricket League in the World, founded in 1888. He had enjoyed the year very much and had visited many clubs during the season. His visit to Shrewsbury C.C. to present the Premier Division trophy had been memorable and he congratulated the club on winning the title with a record number of points. He thanked the Chairman and General Manager for their efforts which enabled the League to run smoothly and, then, presented the President s medal to his successor R.J. Fleet (Cannock C.C. and BDPCL Management Board Representative) wishing him all the best for the next 12 months. Mr Fleet thanked all those involved for their support and said that he would spend the Summer watching his club fight to regain their place in the League as well as visiting as many BDPCL clubs as he can.
8. Appointment of President-Elect: Two Vice-Presidents had been approached to become President-Elect but both had turned the invitation down on the grounds of ill-health. Chairman reported that a small working party will be meeting, in the very near future, to identify candidates for this position. Their names will be submitted to the Management Board for approval and selection. 9. Election of Vice-Presidents GM reported that the Management Board has not received any nominations. 10. Election of Management Board Representatives: The following Management Board Representatives retire, this year, by rotation, and are, all, eligible for re-election for a further three year term:- John Day (Water Orton C.C.) Rex Ingram (Bromsgrove C.C.) Alan Neal (Old Hill C.C.) Bill Tansell (Old Elizabethans C.C.) The following Management Board Representative is ineligible to continue in office with two years of a three year term remaining due to his Club s relegation to a Feeder League:- Jamie Fleet (Cannock C.C.) The following Management Board Representative resigned with one year of a three year term remaining:- Clive Antrobus (Leamington Spa C.C.) The following nominations have been received:- John Day (Water Orton C.C.) Alan Neal (Old Hill C.C.) Bill Tansell (Old Elizabethans C.C.) As there are three nominations for five places on the Board, a ballot will not be necessary and the three members listed above are elected to serve for a further three year term. The Hon. Treasurer is, also, due to retire, this year, at the end of a three-year term of office, and is eligible for re-election and the following nomination has been received:- Robin Viner (Old Hill C.C.) As there are no other nominations, there is no need for a ballot and the following member is elected for a further three year term of office. Robin Viner Old Hill C.C.)
11. Vote on Proposed Changes to Rules: The following addition to the Rules of The Birmingham & District Premier Cricket League has been proposed by the Management Board:- All clubs must publish an annual statement of accounts. The Management Board may, at any time, request a member club to submit a copy of its most recent end of year accounts and balance sheet for inspection by the Hon Treasurer and General Manager. 38 Clubs cast their vote and the proposal to add the above paragraph to the Rules of the League was approved by 32 votes to six. 12. Presentation of Trophy to the Player of the Year: The Player of the Year, in 2013, was Chris Boroughs (Brockhampton C.C.) who scored 701 runs for his club in the Premier Division at an average of 35.05 including one century and four half-centuries. He, also, took 52 wickets at an average of 14.85 including three five wicket hauls. The Banks s Trophy was presented by the President. 13. Presentation of Trophy to the Young Player of the Year: The Albert Birkenhead Trophy was presented by the President to Steve Leach (Shrewsbury C.C.). The 19 year-old scored 831 runs at an average of 43.74 and played a major role as his club secured the Premier Division Title. 14. Presentation of Trophy to the Umpire of the Year: The President presented the Banks s Trophy for the Umpire of the Year to Kenneth Horden, a long serving member of the Panel who continued to be a Premier Division Umpire as well as being the Appointments Secretary for both of the League s Twenty20 competitions. 15. Presentation of Fair Play Awards: Fair Play awards were presented, by the President, to the following Clubs:- Premier Division - Brockhampton C.C. 18.23 Division One - Kenilworth Wardens C.C. 18.32 Division Two - Stratford-upon-Avon C.C. 18.24 Division Three - Kings Heath C.C. 18.32 16. Presentation of Pitch and Outfield Awards: Pitch and Outfield awards were presented, by the President, to the following Clubs:- Premier Division - W.B. Dartmouth C.C. 36.64 Division One - Moseley C.C. 34.73 Division Two - Coventry & N.W. C.C. 34.45 Division Three - Worcester Nomads C.C. 36.64
17. Any Other Business: 17.1 Divisional Meeting 25 th September 2013 A meeting with clubs in all divisions was held at the Tally Ho! Club on 25 th September 2013. Major items discussed were the adoption of the split playing format for the 2013 and 2014 season, the reluctance of clubs to use an electronic scoring system such as TCS and a perception that the standard of Umpiring in Divisions One, Two and Three was unsatisfactory. There was, also, a discussion and a presentation on the penalties available to the League if it finds players or clubs guilty of posting derogatory or defamatory comments about other clubs, umpires or the League on Social Networking sites. There was, also, a debate regarding a proposal to ban Overseas Players from the League, a discussion on the use of coloured clothing in the 50 over format and regionalisation of clubs at 1 st XI level in Divisions Two and Three. All these issues were discussed during the meeting and it was agreed to produce a survey asking clubs for their views on the following:- a. Start times for all games b. Regionalisation of 1 st XI cricket in Divisions Two and Three c. Retention of Overseas Players d. Use of coloured clothing in 50 over matches e. Reduction of overs from 50 to 45 in 2 nd XI matches 1 to 5 and 17 to 22 Following this meeting, the Cricket Sub-Committee agreed the following for the 2014 season:- a. Relegation from Division One (2 nd XI) will be unchanged, i.e. four down and two promoted from each of Division Two North (2 nd XI) and Division Two South (2 nd XI). b. It will remain a mandatory requirement for all clubs in the Premier Division (2 nd XI) and Division One (2 nd XI) to provide a non-playing Umpire. c. A proposal from Penkridge C.C., to award a bonus point to clubs for providing a non-playing Umpire in all 2 nd XI Divisions was rejected. d. It will not become mandatory for clubs in Premier Division (2 nd XI) to provide a non-playing scorer. 17.2 Split Playing Format During and after the 2013 season, GM had received feedback from Clubs, Players and Umpires regarding the introduction of the Split Playing Format in 2013. Many of the comments advocated slight changes to the wording of the Playing Conditions for the 50 over format, while others pointed out loopholes or anomalies that had arisen during the season. It was agreed that there should be uniformity in the Playing Conditions across all formats of the game, including the Graham Williamson Trophy and the Twenty20 Cup Competitions, wherever possible, and GM was requested to review the Playing Conditions for all Competitions and re-write them where necessary. Decisions were made as follows:- a. The bowling Power-Play will be removed, bringing the Playing Conditions in line with International 50 over cricket. b. The points for a win in the 50 over format will remain at 20 c. There was no enthusiasm for a proposal from clubs to award the toss to the visiting side.
Meeting Closed: 9.00 p.m. d. Duckworth/Lewis scoring method to be introduced for the 2015 season. All clubs to be given notice that they will be required to use an electronic scoring system from the start of that season onwards. e. Playing Schedule for the 2014 season to be unaltered for 2013, i.e. 50 over matches will be matches 1 to 5 and 17 to 22 and 55 over matches will be matches 6 to 16.