ENGLAND SQUASH MASTERS COMMITTEE

MINUTES OF A MEETING HELD AT 11.30 AM ON FRIDAY 10 JUNE 2011 AT NOTTINGHAM SQUASH CLUB

PRESENT

Martin Pearse (Chairman), Stuart Hardy, Mike Clemson, Adrian Wright, Chris Nutley, Robert Smith and Dave Hardern

APOLOGIES

Peter Alexander, Sam Mueller and Matt Baker

COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP

At the General meeting held earlier, the Committee had been re-elected, except that Fran Wallis had replaced Di Parums. The Chairman would email Di to thank her for her contribution

MINUTES

The Minutes of the meeting held on Friday 11 Feb 2011 were approved as correct

REGIONAL TOURNAMENTS 2011-12

The Chairman reported that dates and venues had been confirmed. It was suggested that members of the host clubs should be encouraged to enter, including offering a reduced entry fee

Robert Smith proposed that host clubs should be encouraged to seek local sponsors. It was agreed that he should include this in the Notes on Expectations of Host Clubs, which had been revised by Mike Clemson, and that the revised version should then be circulated to Committee members for comment before being made available to host clubs

Adrian Wright reported that Brian Brock, who had very effectively managed the West of England Regional at Swindony, was prepared to attend every Regional tournament for travelling and accommodation expenses only. It was agreed that, while this was welcome, there needed to be clarity about his role in relation to the host club, and that, if the latter wished to invite him to be Event Manager, he would do so on behalf of the host club, even though the Masters Committee would pay his expenses. It was more questionable whether his attendance to assist the host club’s Manager (eg at Coventry and Broxbourne) could be justified on financial grounds. The Chairman would discuss Brian’s availability with the host clubs

ESR SUPPORT FOR MASTERS SQUASH

Chris Nutley apologised for the delays in getting Inter-County Masters results onto the ESR  web site in the second half of the season, but would seek to have them posted promptly in the coming season

Appreciation was expressed of Chris’s and ESRs commitment to hold a British Open Masters Event annually, regardless of whether the British Open takes place, and of the excellent organisation of the current event. Its timing in future years required reviewing, but might depend on the arrangements for the British Open

HOME INTERNATIONALS 2011

Dave Hardern reported that all the events had been successful, with wins for England in all categories except the Mens Over 70 and the Womens Over 55. Financial support had been given to players travelling to Ireland, and to one or two players who attended two venues, and the budget had been successfully completed. It seemed that issues relating to the costs of playing in Ireland had been resolved for next season

It was agreed that Dave should review the Regulations for the Home Internationals, especially those relating to bonus points for wins, to ensure the teams which win most matches finish top of their group

WEB SITE

Adrian Wright reported on the progress he was making, with the assistance of Brian Brock, in revamping the web site, which was already much improved. As reported at the General meeting, Facebook and Twitter were being considered

OTHER BUSINESS

All other items were deferred because of lack of time. Provisionally, the next meeting would take place on Saturday 24 September 2011 at Pontefract