A year on from my first message to you as Chairman, it is once again with great pride that I have the opportunity to wish you a Happy & Prosperous New Year. Whether you be a Club member, family/friend of a member or just a visitor to our website, my good wishes go out to you wherever you are in the world. It staggers me when I analyse the wealth of information available about who visits our website that in 2015 we have had visitors from no less than 103 countries around the world.

At this time of year, many people take time to pause on reflect on the past year, whether that be good or bad. My view is that whilst we have achieved a great deal in 2015, our focus should firmly be on 2016 and beyond and how we can collectively take our club forward. I will be sitting down with the Governing Committee on 11th January for the first meeting of the year and as well as the 'usual' business, we will be looking at our objectives for 2016 and also some longer term objectives. These objectives aren't simply about how any of the teams do on the pitch, they are about how we as a club progress forward to ensure that the infrastructure is sound to promote growth on the field. As I've said numerous times before, without these objectives in place we could easily lose focus. What I can say is that a year into my tenure as Chairman, that desire to take our club forward is growing stronger and stronger and the encouragement I have received along the way is really appreciated.

Sometimes I find myself looking for inspiration and the desire to share ideas and learning with other clubs, and whilst some are receptive others aren't which is why a recent 'invite' for myself and Rob Chapman to join the 'Cricket Club Development Network' was very welcome. This is an online group of people in similar positions throughout the UK who can collaborate and share ideas, best practises, challenges and frustrations. What is apparent is that some of the challenges we face are similar throughout the country, so the ability to hear how others are tackling these is very useful.

For the first time in a long time we concluded the AGM in December with a full set of officers in place which is excellent news, and a key position we have filled (which has been vacant for a number of years) is that of House Chairman. I'm very much looking forward to having Ken Barrett on board as he has served the club with distinction over the years and his role of Trustee as well will ensure the fabric of the club is in safe hands. Another notable appointment was that of Tom Marsland as 1st XI captain, and having been speaking with Tom over the past few weeks and hearing of his plans for the season ahead I am filled with excitement and optimism as to what lies ahead. I know he's been working hard on securing an overseas player for the season (which will be announced very soon) and has also been reviewing other options to strengthen the squad and he has the full support of myself and Cricket Chairman Graeme Keenan.

Once again, Simon Simcox, Arthur Irwin and Dave & Carol Skillen put on an excellent Christmas Draw the day after the AGM and on behalf of the club, i would like to say a big "thank you" for all of your efforts.. All those who attended had a great night, and despite there being no 'official' quiz results announced I am sleeping comfortably knowing that the "dream team" of myself, Graeme Keenan, Sarah Wilson, Gary Dixon and Keith Jones are the 2015 Quiz Champions and in doing so took down the TV stars (Messrs. Chapman & Winder)!!

The last couple of weeks have been really busy at the club. We've seen the projector installed in the tearoom which will enable us to show live sporting events on a 120" screen, plus the formation of two new sub-committees thanks to the two Toms(they're like a modern day twist on the Two Ronnie's!). Firstly, Tom Marsland chaired the first meeting of the Charity Sub-Committee where they set out both the fundraising target and plans for a range of events to reach that target. The idea behind the target was that it was achievable, but not without effort. With that in mind, £1,901 was set as the target. Now that may sound like a bit of a random number, but for those of you who know your club history will know that 1901 was the year the club was formed. Switching Tom's, Tom Maguire and his Social Sub-Committee have set about a calendar of events for 2016 which will offer something for everybody. More details will be announced on the website soon as some of the finer details are just being worked on.

Another person who has been very busy is our Commercial Manager; Gary Dixon. Gary has been in active discussions with a number of organisations, and whilst some conversations are ongoing Gary has concluded a deal with Everite Windows. They have signed a two year deal to advertise on the side of the nets and also the wall in front of the clubhouse. Everite are represented by Mark Scudder who's children play in our Junior teams and we very grateful for their support.

So, as we move forward into 2016 with the anticipation that there are only 16 more Saturdays until the first league games of the season, I'll leave you with a quote from Benjamin Franklin which will be at the forefront of my mind - "Without continual growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning."

Enjoy the rest of your break, and I look forward to catching up with you in 2016.

Cheers

Jez Lamb
Chairman