Now the clocks have changed and we’ve moved into the dark days of Autumn on Winter, it’s safe to say that this has been the strangest cricketing summer that the Club has ever experienced – on and off the field.
We’d like to start by thanking all of the Club’s members and friends for their sustained support over the last seven or eight months. That support has taken many forms (more details in our update) and every contribution – however small – has been willingly given and has allowed us to continue our development, reach this point in a stable financial position and already embarking on some ambitious plans for the winter and beyond
It has been some time since we provided members with an update on club activity and our planning for the future. We want to do that now. You can find the update below:
Looking Back
Cricket
We are a cricket club and so we should start by recognising what we have achieved this summer, in the most challenging circumstances.
We were able to provide our playing members with eight consecutive weeks of cricket in August and September; this from having been within a week of writing off the whole season. The intra-club matches and friendly fixtures which we were able to arrange provided all of our players with the games they wanted and we were delighted to welcome a number of new and returning members to the field.
The players deserve great credit for the way in which they adapted to the many rules and constraints under which they were asked to play. Their adherence to the new rules made sure that our cricket was both safe and enjoyable.
We were delighted to be able to support Cricket Scotland’s Performance Programmes by hosting two intra-squad matches and the only fixtures played in the Women’s Regional Series before travel constraints brought the competition to a premature close.
Junior cricket was a feature of our work over the summer as we ran an online “Home Stars” programme for eight weeks, when the lockdown was at its most severe. This was followed by 10 weeks of Friday night junior sessions, for which we had to cap attendance at 30 in order to comply with National safety guidance. All of those who came along participated energetically and enthusiastically, having fun while developing their core cricket skills.
These junior sessions were only possible with the support of parent volunteers, who worked alongside our regular coaches. We are very grateful for their contributions and for the continuing backing of all of the parents who bring their children along to Lochside and provide them with support and encouragement.
None of the activity at Lochside would have been possible, without the efforts of volunteers who maintained the ground when our groundsman was on furlough. Thanks to their work, the square and outfield were in reasonable condition when Fred Murray returned to part-time duties later in the season.
Finance
When the pandemic and associated lockdown began, the financial position for the club looked very challenging.
We are delighted to say that our worst fears have not been realised. We have reached the end of our financial year in a stable financial position, albeit that we know there are still challenges ahead.
Thanks to Government support in the form of a Business Grant and the Job Retention Scheme (furlough), combined with prudent control of expenditure, our financial position as we move in to the autumn and winter compares well with previous years.
Another major contributor to our finances has been the direct financial support of members.
The majority of members have contributed their annual membership fees, even though we were unable to offer them much in return with the Club closed until July and playing season reduced to two months.
The 300 Club has also run though-out the summer, generating income for the club, as well as providing a welcome financial windfall for the lucky winners.
Our thanks go to all those members who have contributed. Every single membership fee paid and 300 Club ticket purchased has made a difference.
Shortly before the lockdown we launched “The Big Walk to the Big Dance”. There were two parts to this initiative. Its primary purpose was to raise money to help us make the facilities at Lochside more accessible for all members of the community, but it was also designed to provide us with a collective walking challenge and help keep us fit and active. The challenge was to walk the 10,826 miles between Forfar and Hobart before Scotland were due to open their World T20 Campaign on 19 October. In the end, our team of walkers covered over 14,000 miles. Despite the difficult financial times, and with a huge amount of fundraising activity rightly focusing on Covid and our health and care services, we still raised almost £1500. The GoFundme page is now closed but if anyone still wishes to make a contribution then get in touch.
So, we owe a huge debt of gratitude to our team of walkers and to everyone that made a financial contribution. Your efforts will help us to make Lochside Park a place for everyone to enjoy.
Bar
Like all other hospitality venues, the Club was closed between mid-March and mid-July, when we were permitted to open – initially functioning as a beer garden, before returning to more normal indoor operations.
Opening the beer garden required a major effort, to set up tables, make the setting Covid secure and manage the operation within very strict health and safety procedures. Every day the beer garden was open, we needed a minimum of eight volunteers – arriving an hour before opening to set up and staying on after last orders to clean up. This was only possible with the commitment of many volunteers – another example of members pulling together to meet the challenge. So, a big “well done” to everyone that helped out.
Facilities
Since it was permissible to open up the clubhouse, we have been able to move forward some planned improvements.
Players and other members have worked hard to re-decorate our dressing room areas. The work will be completed over the winter, ready for the 2021 season.
Thanks to financial support from the Robertson Trust and Angus Council, we have been able to put down new flooring in the tearoom kitchen and replace our cookers. These improvements are already making a difference to the Community Café, which operates out of the tearoom (see below) and they will also be of value to the club when we are able to host sponsors and functions again
Looking Forward
Cricket
Over the past few years, we have slowly been developing our winter cricket programme to include:
- Indoor softball games
- Regular net and coaching sessions
- Junior cricket sessions and inter-club games
- Girls’ and women’s cricket
- Walking cricket
- Disability cricket, including table cricket and sessions for people with additional needs
- Schools’ programmes – in partnership with Active Schools and our local schools
We hope to get all these activities up and running at some point over the winter.
Guidance from Scottish Government and Cricket Scotland permits these activities to take place subject to the Level (tier) your area is in (the shift to Level 3 in Angus will rule out any indoor senior activity for the time-being), but all are also dependent on access to indoor facilities. Angus Alive has recently begun the process of opening their facilities for club usage but at this stage we still don’t know what availability there is likely to be.
We will provide further updates when we have firm information to share.
Beyond the winter, we are already involved in planning discussions with SPCU and Cricket Scotland for the 2021 season.
Finance
Although we have come through the summer well, we realise that there are significant challenges ahead. As long as physical distancing has to be maintained, we are unable to host and run functions at the club. This has significant implications for our business. By way of illustration, last winter there were 28 functions of varying sizes in the club between October and March. This year, there is every likelihood that there will be none. Without the income generated by these functions, we will need to manage our costs very carefully.
More positively, we have had some recent financial successes that will help us move in to 2021:
- One of our main sponsors has re-committed for 2021-22 and we have secured a new sponsor for our junior cricket. We will announce details over the next few weeks
- We have been successful with two grant applications. One will help us to meet core costs and the other is intended to contribute to the work which will be required to improve access.
Over the winter, we will continue to explore all avenues for generating funds to support both our core operations and plans for development.
Facilities
We have embarked on one significant project to improve the facilities at Lochside Park and are about to start another.
If you have been past Lochside recently, you will have seen quite a change at the clubhouse side of the ground as old fences and trees have been removed, with construction now underway on a new wall to replace them.
Funding is also in place to replace the windows on the tearoom veranda and we are currently gathering quotations for the work. All being well, the replacement windows will be in by the spring.
Both of these developments will make a significant difference to the appearance of the ground.
In addition to these major projects, we are also hoping to undertake more internal decoration to freshen up some spaces and bring others back in to use.
Bar
At the time of writing, the bar is closed as a consequence of Scottish Government restrictions. We will confirm details around re-opening when we are in a position to do so.
As things stand, any re-opening is unlikely to happen until Angus is dropped to Level 1 (allowing indoor alcohol sales), however, while restrictions on household visiting remain in place, if there is demand for a place where you can meet up with family, friends and neighbours then let us know and we can look at the possibility of limited opening to provide that service to members.
Community Café and other Activities
The Community Café at the club is now up and running again every Friday morning between 10am and 1pm (last orders 12.30pm).
The Café overs good value, nutritious, food and is open to anyone who wants to come along. At the moment, we’re particularly keen to welcome along those who may be feeling a little lonely and isolated as a result of Covid restrictions.
There are always staff from Angus Council’s Communities Team at the Café and they are able to offer a range of learning opportunities. They can provide assistance to people in relation to the use of the digital devices – phones, laptops and tablets – which are playing an increasingly important part in everyone’s lives. So, if you are challenged by technology, come along and take advantage of the free support on offer.
The Communities Team is also hoping to run some further activities around the club – some on a Friday morning, to coincide with the café opening. Over the next few weeks, they hope to start running some “Wee Walks” and a family learning programme.
We’ll post more details as activities come onstream.
Annual General Meeting
The Club’s AGM is scheduled for Sunday 6th December at 2pm, when we will provide a more formal report on the year and an update on ongoing work.
We’re also keen to expand our numbers on the committee and would be delighted to hear from anyone who thinks that they have a contribution to make.
Of course, joining the committee is only one way to get involved and help out. If there is something specific that you would like to do or if you have skills that you think would benefit the club – don’t be shy. Contact us using the usual channels.
With current guidance around social gatherings in mind, the AGM will be taking place online (via Zoom). Further details will be circulated in due course.
And Finally
We hope that this rather lengthy update gives you some idea of the work that the Committee is undertaking, with support from members and partners.
2020 has been a difficult year and the Committee is under no illusions about the scale of challenge that still lies ahead, but we have been greatly heartened by the way in which the club has pulled together over the summer. Long may that collective spirit continue.
We’d like to end in the way that we began, by thanking all members and friends of the club for their continuing support.
Stay safe and stay well.