Western Australian Croquet Association

President’s Report – Doug Hall

2007 AGM

The 2006/07 was a significant year for croquet in WA due to the success of two activities:

• The hosting of the National Championships
• Emergence of Golf Croquet as a ‘legitimate’ competitive form of the game.

2007 National Championships

The feedback from all, including players, the ACA and WA government, was that we not only delivered a quality event, but we also set a new standard for other states to strive for. This excellent outcome was the direct result of many hours of hard planning and work by many people including:

• The organizing committee
• Members of hosting clubs
• Tournament managers, referees, & other match officials
• Catering workers

The nationals also facilitated the implementation of several important initiatives including:

• The temperature policy
• On request referees for Division 1 & 2 tournaments

WACA received a grant from DSR to support the Nationals. We are most appreciative of this support.

Golf Croquet

Though a very large proportion of players in the association are golf croquet players, the association has not adequately addressed their competitive needs. Consequently, the Management Committee appointed Brian Hadley as Golf Croquet Coordinator with the task of ‘legitimizing’ this form of croquet.

As a personal participant in five golf croquet competitions during the year I can attest to the fantastic work that Brian has done and the impact it has had on golf croquet and the players. The more frequent competitions are helping the raise the standard of play. This is being supported by work of our committees – for example the golf rules clinics run by the Referees Committee. In the coming year all existing committees will take on golf croquet related activities under the coordination of a Director of Golf Croquet.

Of course the crowning success of this activity was the WA Golf Croquet team’s performance at the inaugural Interstate Cup where we were runner’s up.

Management Committee

The Management Committee continues to work to modernize the association to ensure the sport in WA has a vibrant future. An important component of this work is implementing the WACA Strategic Plan which aims improve the professionalism of the organization. Implementation and delivering specific performance outcomes is the basis upon which WACA receives $11000 per year in grants from the Department of Sport & Recreation. Without this money WACA would be a very different organization than is currently is. Our collective goal over the remaining life of this current grant is to ensure we deliver on our Strategic Plan and thereby position ourselves for successfully winning another 3-year grant.

Change in any organization is always a challenge – WACA is no different. However, if we do not continually improve our processes and ensure they are able to efficiently, effectively and economically deliver outcomes desired by our member clubs, players and stakeholders, we will increasingly become irrelevant and our sport will wither and disappear.

Over the last two AGMs the Management Committee has successfully moved changes to the Constitution in line with the Strategic Plan. Last year we converted a number of standing committees to appointed sub-committees. This year our intention is to complete that process of conversion. This is the reason for Motions 1a – 1c.

I would like to thank all members of the Management Committee:

• Vice- President and Office Manager – Kay Chynoweth
• Secretary – Brian Hadley
• Ordinary Members – Colin Chynoweth, Ian Tarling, & Connie Shaw

I would also like to welcome recently appointed members:

• Treasurer – Brad McGuire
• Ordinary Member – Eleanor Roberts

The appointment of Ellen Nicholls as our Administration Officer has decreased the workload of management committee as was intended. This appointment was made possible by last year’s increase in affiliation fees. We are looking to expand Ellen’s activities to help support the activities of several committees.

Standing and Sub-Committees

The successful running of the association would be impossible without the dedication and work of our committees. Thank you to the chairs and members of the following committees:

• Match
• Referees
• Coaching
• Handicap
• Selectors

Additional Appointed Positions:

Thank you to our other appointed positions for the work you do to support the association:

• Golf Coordinator – Brian Hadley
• Historian – Hartley Slater
• Equipment Officer – Colin Chynoweth
• Supply of Law Books & Gauges – Helen Collins
• Manager Silhouette Clothing – Joyce Stephens
• Webmaster – Bill Turner
• Registrar Headquarters – Kay Chynoweth

Member Clubs

At last year’s AGM I made a commitment to visit every club. Please accept my apology, as I have not quite delivered on that promise. I have visited the following clubs to listen and to discuss club issues and views on WACA and croquet in WA:

• Albany Gomm Park
• Bayswater
• Bunbury Central
• Cambridge
• Como
• East Fremantle
• Forrest Park
• Geraldton
• Mandurah
• Moorabinda
• Nedlands
• Vic Park
• York

While not being able to visit August, Bassendean, Busselton, Gosnells, Halls Head, Narrogin and Sorrento, I have had discussions with an executive members from many of these clubs while participating or visiting competitions.

I would like to thank all clubs for their hospitality and frankness during discussions. These visits have been very important as part of my overview of the state of croquet, the clubs and WACA in WA.

I look forward to visiting you all again in the coming year.

The Future

While we have achieved much in the past year and continue to build on the work done by earlier Management Committees and Clubs we still have a great deal of work to do.

One of the great challenges we collectively face is the survival of our clubs. While we have a small number of large vibrant clubs, we have many small clubs with aging membership. The challenge to all clubs is to actively pursue renewal strategies and activities to ensure your club has a long future and all your personal efforts has a lasting legacy.

Management Committee and WACA are dedicated to helping all clubs achieve this goal. However it is not always easy to help clubs. For us to help you, we need you to let us in and share your challenges. There is a great deal of experience and knowledge within the Management Committee and its committees that can help you face the challenges of a rapidly changing world.

I look forward to another successful year as we all work together to make croquet a successful sport.

Yours sincerely

Doug Hall

President WACA