Welcome to our October newsletter!

Around & About The Club

We've finally said Goodbye to the sandbags in the car park!  We got there in the end, sorry it took so long.

We’re nearly there with the Entrance Lobby and Players’ Bar.  The decorators finished last week and other contractors will now apply the finishing touches during November. In the lobby, a new doorbell, a new entrance doormat, and a new painting of the club by local artist, Mary Casserley. In the bar, blinds refitted, a breakfast bar along the windows, and matching counter-tops for the pigeon holes (to be refitted) and the kitchen serving hatch.

Now we’ve smartened the space, we will be keeping it tidier.  In particular, the bag rack will be regularly cleared of anything other than racket/kit bags.  It is not a lost property store (to be found in the Centenary Room and the changing rooms) or a shelving unit for water bottles.

We’re steadily resolving all the root causes of water ingress in the ITC when we have torrential rain.  New emergency exit doors at the rear right hand side are on order, which we’re hoping will cure the worst of the remaining problem areas.

Tennis

Summer team tennis has now finished and our teams had some notable successes.  Herts League results aren’t quite finalised but our Aylesbury League teams had an excellent season.

Most impressive of all was the Mens 1st team (captained by Matt Markwort) who won the top division! Our Women’s 1st team (Nic Gallamore) held their own to remain in the top division, finishing in 3rd place. Our Mixed team (Ange Morgans) won division 4, Women’s 2nds (Carol Duguid) won Division 3, and Women’s 3rds (Lynn Wallis) came 2nd in Division 7. So all these teams should be promoted next year.  Our two vets teams (Brigitta Case & Doug Houston) came 1st and 2nd overall.

Sunday 10th November is Finals Day for our second Annual Handicap Tournament.  Then on the following Sunday, 17th November, our National League team host David Lloyd Gidea Park in the first of their Winter League matches. Come on down to the club!

Squash & Racketball

Our Dunlop/Nick Matthew evening was a great success.  We do these types of event for your benefit, so it’s always good to see a full turnout - thank you.

We’re looking at ways to do something similar for our racketballers in 2025, featuring three times national champion Mike Harris.

Social

This month’s Rock ‘n Roll Bingo night went fantastically.

Coming up soon we have a couple of great evenings for you to put in your calendar in the lead-up to Christmas:

Friday 6th December - Elvis Christmas Party.  Elvis is back!  Sign up now with Claire (claire@isalie.co.uk).

Wednesday 11th or Friday 13th December (tbc) - Christmas Quiz Night.  Quiz Night is back!

Spotlight on…

…the new Berkhamsted Sports Grounds sports annual Sporting Excellence Awards.

We have mentioned before in this newsletter that our club is a founding member of the Berkhamsted Sports Grounds Charitable Association (BSGCA), together with Berkhamsted Football Club and Berkhamsted Cricket Club.  Since when, membership has expanded to include Raiders, the Hockey Club, Rugby Club and the Golf Club.

The BSGCA was founded in 1924 to purchase the land in Broadwater original used by BCC, BFC, and what was the Hard Courts Tennis Club - now the strip of land with our ITC, car park and courts 6a/b.  To celebrate its centenary, the BSGCA has launched the Sporting Excellence Awards, which are open to all sports and active leisure clubs in the Berkhamsted area.

The awards will be presented in June 2025 and they include generous financial incentives donated by local businesses, so they are well worth winning!

Now that the 2024 squash, racketball and Summer tennis seasons have come to a close, now is a good time to think of those in our club who have made an impact.

Nomination forms can be found on the BSGCA website at the link below and can be submitted by anyone on behalf of their recommended candidate.  The closing date for nominations is 2nd April 2025, but there is no need to wait until then.

Awards - BSGCA
 

There are six award categories and all winners will receive trophies plus the following excellent prizes:

1. Club of the Year - £1000
2. Rising Star of the Year - £1000 towards coaching and training costs to attain even higher levels
3. Under 18 Sports Person of the Year - £250 voucher from Berkhamsted Sports
4. Adult Sports Person of the Year - £250 voucher
5. Volunteer Coach of the Year - £250 voucher
6. Volunteer of the Year - £250 voucher

The individual sporting awards will be judged by excellence in their contribution to the success of their team/club plus commitment to sporting values; the volunteer award will be focused on contributions ‘above and beyond’ expectations; and the club award on outstanding contributions to the local community.

If there’s someone you think is deserving of this recognition, why not get nominating!

That’s all for now, until next time.

Club Council

(John Shaw, Phil Trimmer, Michael Beavis, Matt Markwort, Tracey Mackey, Mark Shattock)