CUVC | Club Info | AGM Minutes 2000

Minutes of the 2000 AGM

11:15am, Saturday 17th June 2000 at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge.

Present

Richard White (Chair)
Alessio Ruggieri
Dan Escott
Huw Vater
Mathias Klaeui
Friederike von Tiesenhausen
Jonathan Bartrop
Amina Aitsiselmi
Pascale Garaud
Shevella Lindley
Pierre Baillet

Appologies

Roger Martinez
Kirsteen Gordon
Steffen Krusch
Elena Gamarra
Partick Howorth
Alex Jupp

Minutes of the 1999 AGM were presented and approved

Men's Captain's Report

Richard said that this season had been another good year for the men's team, who had won back-to-back victories in the Varsity Match (the first time for a CUVC team), reached the final eight in the EVA Student Cup, and were only knocked out of BUSA by the eventual champions.

Thanks to Patrick for coaching

The selection of a large first-team squad (18) had ensured a good turnout throughout the year, as well as having financial benefits for the Club and building a solid basis for next year's team.

Richard announced that he would be coaching next season as he is inelegible to play, and that Patrick was keen to play next year (an announcement that drew the word 'pardon' from Friederike).

Financial Report and Fund Raising

The duties of Junior treasurer had been carried out by Richard and Duncan (Robertson).

CUVC funds had been in surplus at the start of the year due to the BUSA travel grant.

Projected balance at the end of this season should be Ł1000

The Sports Syndicate Grant will in future be provided at the start of the academic year, rather than during December, which should enable us to manage our resources more easily. The grant for next season will be Ł1900, the same as for this year.

The first teams' expenses were largely financed by the men's team due to their large squad. Richard suggested that the women's squad should be equally large next year to maintain parity.

Richard suggested that players should not automatically be refunded all their travel expenses until the end of the season when the financial position of the Club is clear. Mathias pointed out that this would be unpopular amongst the players, who already have to pay a large amount of money for training and equipment.

Richard has already booked Kelsey Kerridge and the Perse School Sports Halls for next year. Training will be at Kelsey Kerridge on Saturdays for all Club teams and additional on Monday nights at the Perse school for the first teams. The total cost of this for the year would be Ł4000.

Amina asked whether it was possible to spend less money on court hire, claiming 'volleyball is not all about playing'. It was generally accepted that training was necessary, and that there were no cheaper locations in Cambridge. The lack of central University sports facility was cited as a reason for the higher-than-necessay costs. Richard said that Fenners was not available for training as it is preferentially allocated to 'priority' sports such as boxing.

Richard pointed out that many Colleges refund their Sportsmen and women. It had been noticed, however, that it was currently possible to claim refund for travel expenses from both College and the Club. Alessio suggested that College refunds should be handled through the Club, to help keep track of who was receiving what.

Richard acknowledged the discount offered to CUVC by both Added Value Auto Rentals and Talking T's in return for us putting their logo on our website.

Sportset are no longer stocking the men's kit. Friederike suggested that the Club should purchase men and women's kit for use for the next five or so years, although Pascale and Amina commented that they liked to be able to keep the kit. The possibility of buying cheaper kit in future (such as screenprinted t-shirts) was discussed. It was suggested that it may be more profitable to target larger companies before next season for kit sponsorship since local companies have not shown interest in the past.

BUSA Restructuring

Next season CUVC are being placed in the Midlands Conference for the BUSA Cup competition. This will involve 10 matches (5 home and 5 away) on Wednesdays throughout the first two Terms. Richard has estimated that this will involve an additional cost to the Club of Ł1500 per team (Ł3000 total). Even with 30 first tem players paying Ł70 each, and 30 additional players paying Ł35 each, this would still leave a shortfall of Ł3000 pounds next season. Richard has asked the Sports Syndicate for additional money to cover these expenses, but they were unable to allocate more money to the Club.

Richard has contacted Keith Nicholls at UEA (Norwich) regarding the possibility of organising weekend tournaments as has been done in the past. Keith agreed that this would be a good idea, but suggested that Universities such as Loughborough would probably not agree to this. Richard felt that the new BUSA system favoured Universities with central sports facilities, free use of transport and Wednesday afternoons dedicated to sport, three thing which Cambridge lacks. Richard would attempt to make contact with the other Universities in our Conference to gauge the general opinion.

It transpired that the Athletic Union had known about the BUSA restructuring for four months without telling the Club, which meant that the Club was unable to voice its concerns on the new system during its planning.

It was generally agreed that it would be very difficult to enter the BUSA competition if it stayed in its current format without significantly increased funding. A decision would have to be made by the Committee at a later date.

Women's Captain's Report

Friederike thought that this season had been marginally better than last. The women had lost the Varsity Match 3-1 but the standard of both teams was higher than last year. The women lost their BUSA last 32 match to Portsmouth, and had been kicked out of the EVA competition for inadvertantly fielding an ineligible player.

Richard commented that the women should have chosen a bigger squad this season. Friederike replied that the squad had been no smaller than last year, although attendance at training had been poor throughout the second term.

Richard commented that many players had not been encouraged by Harald's selection process (he had picked his squad within one hour) and that several of the players had later commented that they felt that the Club was not interested in people below 'international' standard. Dan agreed that it is important to train people for 3 years, and that it is impossible to decide who is likely to improve sufficiently from 60 minutes' training. It was agreed by all that next year's selection process should be two-tier, with more advanced players attending a session separate to complete beginners. If these sessions were arranged concurrently, it would be easy to shuffle people into the session which best suited their ability. Furthermore, the selection process should take at least two sessions to reach the final squad to ascertain player committment.

Election of Officers for 2000-2001

Huw Vater was elected unanimously to the position of Men's Captain.

There were no women willing to fill the position of Women's Captain next year. Pascale agreed to fill the position for the start of next year until a suitable replacement could be picked from the new squad. This was agreed unanimously.

Richard proposed that a new position of Local League Secretary be created to coordinate players and equipment required for the weekly Local League matches. All present agreed that this was a good idea, and Jonathan Bartrop was elected unanimously to take this position.

There were no nominations for the position of Junior Treasurer. Richard pointed out that this does not require much work other than writing cheques and keeping track of income and expenditure. It was agreed that it would be best if the Junior Treasurer was someone who was here all year, as money is required outside of Full Term. A candidate would be found at a later date if possible. In the interim, Richard would fulfil these duties.

Richard suggested that the Club needed someone to act as a liason betweeen the Club, Sponsors, BUSA, EVA and the Athletic Union, and suggested that the position of Club President be created. He pointed out that this role should not involve organisation of the individual teams themselves, but would require easy acces to phone, fax and email throughout the year. The decision to create this position was passed unanimously, and Richard was elected without opposition.

Publicity

Richard commented on the 'rave' reviews that the website has been winning worldwide and said that several players from overseas had made enquiries as to how they could come and play for CUVC. Friederike praised the match reports and statistics and suggested that this be continued next year. Dan agreed to continue to coordinte material on the website as long as people keep submitting it.

Both of the student newspapers (Varsity and TCS) had seemed reluctant to publish any of the match reports that had been submitted to them by Richard and Friederike. Only the varsity match score was published, which was incorrect for the women's match. Despite this, it was agreed that it was necessary to continue to submit BUSA and other results.

Richard has booked a stand for the Freshers' Fair in October. Last year's posters and flyers attracted a record number of interested people, and should be repeated next year. People were one again encouraged to publicise the Club sessions in their College through posters and email on the grounds that it is in the College team's interest to have players trained properly.

Summer League and Cuppers

Huw had agreed with the Jesus Captain that Cuppers would take place on Jesus Pitches on Wednesday 21st June, starting at 10am. It was suggested that a 2-a-side tournament could be organised after the initial pool-phase of the competition. Huw would not be there on Wednesday to organise things, but members of the Committee agreed to draw up the playing schedule for Cuppers and the 2-a-side tournament.

The fact that non-College members should only be used by those teams who would otherwise be short of players was raised by Richard.

Friederike suggested that it should be made compulsory to include 2 women in College teams for the Summer League and Cuppers, starting next season. This was met with stern resistance by Mathias, Pascale and Huw, who claimed that it was unfair to prevent more than four men playing in the first team. After much discussion, a suggestion by Richard that a 'handicap' points system be employed next season was generally agreed, with the proviso that the word 'handicap' be changed to 'bonus'.

Other Business

Amina commented that the coach-player relationship this year had been quite poor, and that the fact that Harald was unable to attend trainings for the two weeks leading up to the Varsity Match meant he was not best placed to pick the starting six on this occasion. It was generally agreed that this was an unfortunate situation, which should be avoided in future.

Pascale suggested that the women enter the Local League in order to build up a better team spirit next year. It was pointed out that the change in the BUSA schedule would probably improve player committment, as well as make organising additional matches difficult. The decision as to whether or not to enter would be made at a later date by Pascale and Friederike. Funding of these additional matches was not discussed.

Dan pointed out that Cambridge Volleyball Club were entering the Men's National League next season, which involved several of the current CUVC first team players, and asked for clarification of the financial situation between the two clubs. Richard confirmed that CUVC players would have to join both clubs, and would not receive any funding benefits from CUVC.

Jonathan felt that the second-team members had not been well trained throughout the year. It was agreed that the first-team coaches should assist with coacheing the intermediate players, and that first-team members should coach the beginners.

Richard was praised for his hard work throughout the year. It is hoped that the workload will be better shared throughout the Committee and Club members next year.



Minutes of the 2000 AGM 11:15am, Saturday 17th June 2000 at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge. Present Richard White (Chair) Alessio Ruggieri Dan Escott Huw Vater Mathias Klaeui Friederike von Tiesenhausen Jonathan Bartrop Amina Aitsiselmi Pascale Garaud Shevella Lindley Pierre Baillet Appologies Roger Martinez Kirsteen Gordon Steffen Krusch Elena Gamarra Partick Howorth Alex Jupp Minutes of the 1999 AGM were presented and approved Men's Captain's Report Richard said that this season had been another good year for the men's team, who had won back-to-back victories in the Varsity Match (the first time for a CUVC team), reached the final eight in the EVA Student Cup, and were only knocked out of BUSA by the eventual champions. Thanks to Patrick for coaching The selection of a large first-team squad (18) had ensured a good turnout throughout the year, as well as having financial benefits for the Club and building a solid basis for next year's team. Richard announced that he would be coaching next season as he is inelegible to play, and that Patrick was keen to play next year (an announcement that drew the word 'pardon' from Friederike). Financial Report and Fund Raising The duties of Junior treasurer had been carried out by Richard and Duncan (Robertson). CUVC funds had been in surplus at the start of the year due to the BUSA travel grant. Projected balance at the end of this season should be Ł1000 The Sports Syndicate Grant will in future be provided at the start of the academic year, rather than during December, which should enable us to manage our resources more easily. The grant for next season will be Ł1900, the same as for this year. The first teams' expenses were largely financed by the men's team due to their large squad. Richard suggested that the women's squad should be equally large next year to maintain parity. Richard suggested that players should not automatically be refunded all their travel expenses until the end of the season when the financial position of the Club is clear. Mathias pointed out that this would be unpopular amongst the players, who already have to pay a large amount of money for training and equipment. Richard has already booked Kelsey Kerridge and the Perse School Sports Halls for next year. Training will be at Kelsey Kerridge on Saturdays for all Club teams and additional on Monday nights at the Perse school for the first teams. The total cost of this for the year would be Ł4000. Amina asked whether it was possible to spend less money on court hire, claiming 'volleyball is not all about playing'. It was generally accepted that training was necessary, and that there were no cheaper locations in Cambridge. The lack of central University sports facility was cited as a reason for the higher-than-necessay costs. Richard said that Fenners was not available for training as it is preferentially allocated to 'priority' sports such as boxing. Richard pointed out that many Colleges refund their Sportsmen and women. It had been noticed, however, that it was currently possible to claim refund for travel expenses from both College and the Club. Alessio suggested that College refunds should be handled through the Club, to help keep track of who was receiving what. Richard acknowledged the discount offered to CUVC by both Added Value Auto Rentals and Talking T's in return for us putting their logo on our website. Sportset are no longer stocking the men's kit. Friederike suggested that the Club should purchase men and women's kit for use for the next five or so years, although Pascale and Amina commented that they liked to be able to keep the kit. The possibility of buying cheaper kit in future (such as screenprinted t-shirts) was discussed. It was suggested that it may be more profitable to target larger companies before next season for kit sponsorship since local companies have not shown interest in the past. BUSA Restructuring Next season CUVC are being placed in the Midlands Conference for the BUSA Cup competition. This will involve 10 matches (5 home and 5 away) on Wednesdays throughout the first two Terms. Richard has estimated that this will involve an additional cost to the Club of Ł1500 per team (Ł3000 total). Even with 30 first tem players paying Ł70 each, and 30 additional players paying Ł35 each, this would still leave a shortfall of Ł3000 pounds next season. Richard has asked the Sports Syndicate for additional money to cover these expenses, but they were unable to allocate more money to the Club. Richard has contacted Keith Nicholls at UEA (Norwich) regarding the possibility of organising weekend tournaments as has been done in the past. Keith agreed that this would be a good idea, but suggested that Universities such as Loughborough would probably not agree to this. Richard felt that the new BUSA system favoured Universities with central sports facilities, free use of transport and Wednesday afternoons dedicated to sport, three thing which Cambridge lacks. Richard would attempt to make contact with the other Universities in our Conference to gauge the general opinion. It transpired that the Athletic Union had known about the BUSA restructuring for four months without telling the Club, which meant that the Club was unable to voice its concerns on the new system during its planning. It was generally agreed that it would be very difficult to enter the BUSA competition if it stayed in its current format without significantly increased funding. A decision would have to be made by the Committee at a later date. Women's Captain's Report Friederike thought that this season had been marginally better than last. The women had lost the Varsity Match 3-1 but the standard of both teams was higher than last year. The women lost their BUSA last 32 match to Portsmouth, and had been kicked out of the EVA competition for inadvertantly fielding an ineligible player. Richard commented that the women should have chosen a bigger squad this season. Friederike replied that the squad had been no smaller than last year, although attendance at training had been poor throughout the second term. Richard commented that many players had not been encouraged by Harald's selection process (he had picked his squad within one hour) and that several of the players had later commented that they felt that the Club was not interested in people below 'international' standard. Dan agreed that it is important to train people for 3 years, and that it is impossible to decide who is likely to improve sufficiently from 60 minutes' training. It was agreed by all that next year's selection process should be two-tier, with more advanced players attending a session separate to complete beginners. If these sessions were arranged concurrently, it would be easy to shuffle people into the session which best suited their ability. Furthermore, the selection process should take at least two sessions to reach the final squad to ascertain player committment. Election of Officers for 2000-2001 Huw Vater was elected unanimously to the position of Men's Captain. There were no women willing to fill the position of Women's Captain next year. Pascale agreed to fill the position for the start of next year until a suitable replacement could be picked from the new squad. This was agreed unanimously. Richard proposed that a new position of Local League Secretary be created to coordinate players and equipment required for the weekly Local League matches. All present agreed that this was a good idea, and Jonathan Bartrop was elected unanimously to take this position. There were no nominations for the position of Junior Treasurer. Richard pointed out that this does not require much work other than writing cheques and keeping track of income and expenditure. It was agreed that it would be best if the Junior Treasurer was someone who was here all year, as money is required outside of Full Term. A candidate would be found at a later date if possible. In the interim, Richard would fulfil these duties. Richard suggested that the Club needed someone to act as a liason betweeen the Club, Sponsors, BUSA, EVA and the Athletic Union, and suggested that the position of Club President be created. He pointed out that this role should not involve organisation of the individual teams themselves, but would require easy acces to phone, fax and email throughout the year. The decision to create this position was passed unanimously, and Richard was elected without opposition. Publicity Richard commented on the 'rave' reviews that the website has been winning worldwide and said that several players from overseas had made enquiries as to how they could come and play for CUVC. Friederike praised the match reports and statistics and suggested that this be continued next year. Dan agreed to continue to coordinte material on the website as long as people keep submitting it. Both of the student newspapers (Varsity and TCS) had seemed reluctant to publish any of the match reports that had been submitted to them by Richard and Friederike. Only the varsity match score was published, which was incorrect for the women's match. Despite this, it was agreed that it was necessary to continue to submit BUSA and other results. Richard has booked a stand for the Freshers' Fair in October. Last year's posters and flyers attracted a record number of interested people, and should be repeated next year. People were one again encouraged to publicise the Club sessions in their College through posters and email on the grounds that it is in the College team's interest to have players trained properly. Summer League and Cuppers Huw had agreed with the Jesus Captain that Cuppers would take place on Jesus Pitches on Wednesday 21st June, starting at 10am. It was suggested that a 2-a-side tournament could be organised after the initial pool-phase of the competition. Huw would not be there on Wednesday to organise things, but members of the Committee agreed to draw up the playing schedule for Cuppers and the 2-a-side tournament. The fact that non-College members should only be used by those teams who would otherwise be short of players was raised by Richard. Friederike suggested that it should be made compulsory to include 2 women in College teams for the Summer League and Cuppers, starting next season. This was met with stern resistance by Mathias, Pascale and Huw, who claimed that it was unfair to prevent more than four men playing in the first team. After much discussion, a suggestion by Richard that a 'handicap' points system be employed next season was generally agreed, with the proviso that the word 'handicap' be changed to 'bonus'. Other Business Amina commented that the coach-player relationship this year had been quite poor, and that the fact that Harald was unable to attend trainings for the two weeks leading up to the Varsity Match meant he was not best placed to pick the starting six on this occasion. It was generally agreed that this was an unfortunate situation, which should be avoided in future. Pascale suggested that the women enter the Local League in order to build up a better team spirit next year. It was pointed out that the change in the BUSA schedule would probably improve player committment, as well as make organising additional matches difficult. The decision as to whether or not to enter would be made at a later date by Pascale and Friederike. Funding of these additional matches was not discussed. Dan pointed out that Cambridge Volleyball Club were entering the Men's National League next season, which involved several of the current CUVC first team players, and asked for clarification of the financial situation between the two clubs. Richard confirmed that CUVC players would have to join both clubs, and would not receive any funding benefits from CUVC. Jonathan felt that the second-team members had not been well trained throughout the year. It was agreed that the first-team coaches should assist with coacheing the intermediate players, and that first-team members should coach the beginners. Richard was praised for his hard work throughout the year. It is hoped that the workload will be better shared throughout the Committee and Club members next year.
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