Dear Member,

Preparations for the 2002 playing season

Following an excellent AGM last November the main officers, playing management and coaches have been busy preparing the club and the players for the coming season. With plans now firmly in place it is time for everyone to start thinking about their game and/or the important part they can play in helping to reaffirm our status as one of the senior clubs in Devon cricket.

As we approach the playing season, two Monday night net sessions remain on the 4th & 18th March, 8.00pm to 9.00pm, at the Somerset County Ground; followed closely with Saturday afternoon squad training arranged for the 6th, 13th and 20th April at the East Devon College Sports Hall in Tiverton, to build on last seasons success and take the Devon League by storm from the very first match. Please contact Chris Acton or Pete Hardy for details and take the opportunity to discuss the contribution they expect you to make within their general game plans.

This year�s fixture list has been enhanced with the introduction of the North Devon Sunday League cricket, which offers an extension to the weekend programme and an essential extra afternoon fixture to ensure all players have the opportunity to play to their full potential. Please contact Mike Foan for an update on preparations for this important development and once again, take the opportunity to discuss the contribution you can make to a successful first campaign.

As well as this traditional form of communication, we now have our own BCC website allowing the regular publishing of topical material. For all those who have access to the Internet, simply call up the site using www.bradninchcc.fsnet.co.uk and browse the pages that most interest you, starting with the �New� page, which will provide pointers to the latest updates on BCC activities.

Our club owes a huge debt to ex-Secretary Rowland Dicker for developing the website, which has received many compliments for its professional design and ease of use. As one of the few Devon League sides to be benefiting from such a facility, it demonstrates once again the progressive nature of the club in creating a medium that breaks down geographical boundaries and widens the BCC community.

A quick browse of the website provides an insight in to the professional nature of our cricketing activities, in particular the Colts set up. It is with pride that we can now boast five ECB registered Level 1 coaches, two of whom have extended their qualifications and reached Level 2 status. Although the primary drive for these achievements has been to provide the very best in coaching for our younger players, more and more of our senior cricketers have taken the opportunity to benefit from their experience and tuition this Winter and this bodes very well for the future.

In advance of and in preparation for the playing season, which starts mid-April, the Committee has identified a budget for essential expenditure to bring the ground and playing facilities up to a standard for everyone to enjoy. With this in mind the early payment of Subscriptions would be appreciated and to encourage this, in line with the wishes of the AGM, a 12.5% discount is available on the full playing membership fee of �40, if payment is received on or before the 3rd April 2002 for existing members and if paid before the fourth game for new members.

To help administer memberships and ensure we maintain an up to date record of member�s details, we have designed a new membership form and been fortunate to enrol Rosemary Lowe as our new Membership Secretary.

Would all Playing Members please complete their personal details on the attached form and return it to Rosemary, with a cheque for �35 made payable to Bradninch Cricket Club, using the enclosed stamped addressed envelope, to arrive on or before the 3rd April 2002, to take advantage of the �5 discount.

As this newsletter needs to reach all BCC members, the attached membership form has been designed to cater for the registration of Associate Members, Vice-Presidents and Sponsors, as well as Playing Members. In essence we would like to hear from all members and welcome the opportunity to receive completed forms from everyone who wishes to make their contribution early to help build our pre-season finances.

In addition to early membership income, we will be running regular fund raising activities throughout the coming months and your help in supporting the various events and promotions would be well appreciated, to boost funds to feed planned development initiatives.

If there is anything you would like to discuss in helping to move our club forward, please do not hesitate to contact me by telephone or by email; my details and those of the main officers of the club can be found on the website �Contacts� page.

Regards,

Derrick Foan