SUNDERLAND AFC SUPPORTERS ASSOCIATION
LONDON& SOUTHERN ENGLAND BRANCH
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
9 DECEMBER 2013
SEKFORDE ARMS
AGENDA
1 Apologies for absence
2 Minutes of previous meeting
3 Matters arising
4 Committee members reports
iii. Pool
5 Approval of accounts
6 Election of Officers
7 Any other business
Present:
See separate sheet
Apologies for absence:
Eileen Sproates, Charlotte Mager, Gavin Rennison, John Linin, Caroline Clay, Wendy Searle, Denis Fairbrass, Gavin Bissett
Minutes of previous meeting:
The minutes of the previous meeting on 29 September 2011 were approved.
Proposed by: Sue Hunter, Seconded by: Helen Robertson
Matters Arising:
There were no matters arising which were not covered elsewhere.
Committee Members Reports:
iii) Pool: The Branch pool team had had a decent season although sadly a defeat to Newcastle resulted in them giving up their title to that team.
Approval of accounts:
As the Branch accounts had not been finalised, it was not possible for them to be approved and it was agreed that they would be posted on the website once approved.
Election of Committee Members:
The following Committee members re-elected
Dick Traynor Proposed by: Sue Hunter, Seconded by: Richie Cockton
Aidan Daly Proposed by: Matt Woolston, Seconded by: Tracey Hawkins
There was one vacancy and a motion was carried to elect Andy McIntosh who had indicated his willingness to stand.
Proposed by: Helen Robertson, Seconded by: Richie Cockton
John Howey who had indicated he was standing down as Chairman was thanked for the work he had done over the years as Branch Chairman.
Rule change
A change to Rule 7 to bring the Branch more in line with the present day had been distributed and was approved by the members
Proposed by: Richie Cockton, Seconded by: Matt Woolston
Any Other Business:
The Branch had sponsored the Sunderland ladies football team which meant we were mentioned on their website with a link to our website. Ian Todd would e-mail members with details of their fixtures. The presence of London Branch members at their games had been mentioned on Twitter by the team.
Keith Adamson had, following a clear out, brought along a bag of old Sunderland memorabilia which any member could have. A 1973 FA Cup Final programme was set aside as a potential raffle prize and Matt Woolston took the remainder. Keith was thanked for his generosity.
John Howey closed the meeting at 9.35pm
Chair’s report
December 9th 2013
May I firstly take the opportunity to thank the other committee members for their hard work throughout the year. As we all know positions on the committee are all carried out “in spare time” and often when we go through difficult times for the branch, our capacity is stretched. I’d like to thank the rest of the committee for their diligence, tenacity and hard work this year in producing newsletters, emails, reports, websites and spending hours speaking to companies in the name of the branch.
Speaking of which, the committee have had a great deal of their time taken up with the travel situation, and we were sincerely hoping to have an acceptable solution with which to update the members at the AGM (hence in the main, the delay). I must assure members we have tried to exhaust as many avenues as we can, and that we of course have the best interests of the branch and its members at heart. We will continue to strive for the best possible deal that we can.
In your emails to me, members have expressed an interest for more social events, and we would like to widen out branch activities to include watching tv matches together and meeting up more regularly for London away games. I’m positive that in increased social calendar will offset this season’s somewhat off-key performances, and will look forward to getting to know more members at social get-togethers in the coming months.
It is though, important that other branch members recognise that if the branch is to flourish it needs input from as many members as possible, participating in a many of the branch activities as possible. It also needs new members. I would urge any of you who have been thinking of getting involved to do so; be it by writing an article for the newsletter or the website, taking part in the sporting activities or attending branch functions. Equally as importantly, if you think there is anything else that you would like your branch to be doing, or have ideas for how to attract new members, then please do let us know.
Thank you for your continued support.
Helen
Branch Accounts – detailed accounts can be viewed by clicking HERE
SUNDERLAND A.F.C. SUPPORTERS ASSOCIATION | ||||||||
(LONDON & SOUTHERN ENGLAND BRANCH) | ||||||||
BALANCE SHEET AT 31ST MAY 2013 | ||||||||
2013 | 2010 | |||||||
FIXED ASSETS | ||||||||
Computer Equipment | 248 | 816 | ||||||
CURRENT ASSETS | ||||||||
Stocks | 0 | 1534 | ||||||
Debtors | 2207 | 4981 | ||||||
Bank Balances | 17814 | 6752 | ||||||
20021 | 13267 | |||||||
CURRENT LIABILITIES | ||||||||
Creditors & Accrued Expenses | -6879 | -2276 | ||||||
13390 | 11807 | |||||||
RESERVES | ||||||||
Brought Forward | 11807 | 10035 | ||||||
Surplus (Deficit) for year | ||||||||
2010 | 1772 | |||||||
2011 | 1274 | |||||||
2012 | -108 | |||||||
2013 | 417 | |||||||
13390 | 11807 | |||||||
MEMBERS OF COMMITTEE | ||||||||
Signed : A DALY | Signed : H WRIGHT | |||||||
(Treasurer) | (Chairperson) |
Membership Report to 2013 AGM
My report this year is difficult to make interesting rather than just factual. The Committee’s decision to agree a year’s free membership meant that, other than by their sad passing, we lost no members only added to our total through newcomers, resulting in a net membership on 30th June of 497.
Renewals this season are significantly down, perhaps because of the uncertainty about future travel arrangements and whilst that has been ongoing, I’ve so far not felt it diplomatic to chase the defaulters.
May I use this opportunity, however, to remind members of their ability to contact any Committee Member direct. The address list for Branch emails is generated from the membership database and is consequently maintained by me. I am merely its Postmaster. It follows that simply replying to a Branch email, irrespective of its signatory, does not go direct to the writer. I cannot, and should not, be expected promptly to forward mailbox comments to the appropriate Committee Member. Can I please therefore appeal to members to use the addresses [email protected],[email protected], [email protected] etc. more diligently.
Ian Todd
Enrolment Officer
Travel Officer Report
AGM
9th December 2013
We have had another good year using Grand Central, who have continued to provide the branch with a really good service. We have had a price increase to £40 for adults and £20 for concessions upon receipt of the relevant travel cards. For the first time this season we were issued with Carnet tickets which made running the trip very easy for us as a branch and you as the traveller.
Match ticket allocations last year were pretty much met, with the amount of people booking with me reducing year upon year. I am sure that this is due to the fact that most match end up going to General sale.
The continued use of BACS payments has been well received by members since it became mandatory, bar the few of exceptional cases and for match ticket allocations where using cheques continues. There have been a few occasions when travellers have paid their BACS payment but have not emailed me to confirm that they are travelling, but using the carnets have allowed us to accommodate any problems that have arising. It is important to remember that I am not notified of any payments that information goes to the Treasurer.
I would also like to thank all our members who travel with us over the year, some who travel regularly and those who only travel once or twice a year it is always a pleasure to have your company and I thank you for your good behaviour and making my job as fun as it always is.
Many thanks
Tracey Hawkins
Web Officer’s Report AGM
The website continues to provide travel information, sport updates and forthcoming fixtures, as well as other news we think may be of interest to members. Contributions from members are actively encouraged, and we set up a page “About You” as a result of requests from members – but it is very rarely used.
Stats-wise we have had 27,792 to Weardownsouth.com over the last 12 months, a significant increase on the 12,550 the previous year. Use peaked in June with 3,230 hits, with 181 in one day. A new high. Is the cricket team really that popular? Apparently so!!!
Fact, figures and oddities
o SAFC supporters association – of course
o Wear Down South telephone number/travel
o Cricket trip
o Whatever happened to Charlie Hurley the footballer
o Which part of London is in Sunderland
o Jim Minton African Cup of Nations
o Jim Minton London Youth
o Ian Todd SAFC
o What to wear to a wedding down south
To date Jim is the most cyber-stalked Branch Member and Ian the only Committee Member to be subject of a search this last 12 months!
That’s all from me, hope it was of some interest. New ideas and contributions always welcome,
Sue Hunter, Website
Sports Report 2013
Football:
The team are no longer part of the APFSCIL league and, this season, are to my knowledge no longer playing friendlies. Sadly there was seemingly no one willing to take over the captaincy from Mark Hay after last season.
Darts:
2013 was a mixed year for our fortunes on the dartboard, brilliantly reaching the cup final, (then not playing well in the final itself), finishing 2nd bottom in the 1st division then beating Bolton 10-1 in the playoff to retain our 1st division status.
Pool :
We finished 3rd in the league and then our cup run ended rather abruptly. We were also the only team to beat the mags this year so spoilt their chances of a 100% record. We’ve had a thinner squad this season (metaphorically speaking only, of course) and really need to find a few new players for next year. Let me ( [email protected] ) or Jim ([email protected] ) know any suggestions / email addresses.
Cricket :
The fact we still exist is the big plus to take from this season. We have struggled for numbers at times but have welcomed a few new and returning faces. The season was once again rounded off with the tour to Nowton CC. We enjoyed great success in the bar and little success on the pitch. Onwards and upwards…
Quiz:
We finished 5th out of 7. There are now 8 teams in the league and as always we are looking for new players. It is a team game so you don’t need to worry about being put on the spot. Contact Duncan [email protected] to find out more.
Cheers
Matt