I hope you all had an enjoyable Christmas and New Year and that you are looking forward to the cricket season which is now less than 3 months away! As our new President, Simon Jackson, alluded to in his recent message, the committee has not been idle through the winter months. As well as the lively and well-attended AGM, the committee have been working on a range of initiatives to improve both the on-pitch and off-pitch enjoyment for players, members and friends of our great club. Sunday cricket across the county is in something of a decline, with many teams facing the challenges we saw in 2017. However, we firmly believe that, with a few changes and the commitment and energy of you, our members, we can buck this trend.

The fixture list for 2018, will be less ambitious in terms of the number of games than in previous seasons and there will be a more flexible approach to match formats and start times. We hope that this will enable more players to be available for a higher percentage of games. As Simon mentioned, 2018 will be somewhat experimental, but we are retaining a number of traditional fixtures and events which remain popular. A full fixture list will be circulated as soon as the fixtures are finalised. I am able to advise however, that our first fixture of the season will be The Nick Clough Cup event on April 29th. This multi-team, short format event has proved an excellent “season-opener” over the last few years and is always an enjoyable day with food, fun and competitive cricket – I hope to see as many of you there as possible. Please put a note in your diary – more details soon.

Turning to the appointments made at the AGM, I would like to congratulate Simon on his appointment as President – a role he thoroughly deserves for his many years of hard work and support of Mount, both on and off the pitch. He has a tough act to follow and I would like to personally thank William Wilcox for his efforts in the role. Will was an excellent President, working very hard behind the scenes and not just behind the BBQ!

Toby Duffin was appointed as Fixture Secretary, taking over the role from me. I will work with Toby in this transitional season but I know that Toby will bring his trademark energy, creativity and commitment to the role and will make it his own.

I am particularly excited by the creation of the Players’ Representative roles – the committee relies upon feedback and ideas from the wider membership and I think these positions are an important step in the right direction. I welcome Justin Montellier and Paul Offord to these new roles and know that they will do a great job – please use them to put over any thoughts and ideas you have… anonymously if necessary!

I am proud and delighted to have been appointed as Club Captain. I have been with Mount since 2011, a relative newcomer in some eyes, but Mount CC quickly became very close to my heart and I hope I am able to do the role justice. I too have big boots to fill and must say a very special thanks to my predecessor, Ilan Frankel. Ilan skippered the team through one of its most successful periods on and off the field and a huge amount of credit for that must go to him. Personally, he produced record breaking performances with the bat, and led the team to its greatest number of wins in a season, its most successful tour as well as overseeing an increase in membership during his time as Captain. It was a pleasure to be his vice-captain for 3 seasons and he will be another tough act to follow. I only ask that he score as many runs for me as he did during his own stint as skip!

Finally, the President and I would like to invite you for drinks on Thursday 8th Feb. We will advise the venue soon but have agreed to stump(!) up for a few beverages for those in attendance. However, any attempts to curry favour with the new administration and secure preferred batting, bowling or fielding positions for 2018 will be thoroughly encouraged!! I hope to see you then.

Here’s to a great 2018!

A happy 2018 to all of you (I wonder how long I can keep wishing people a happy New Year!!)

Please find attached the minutes from the AGM held in December. My thanks as ever to Stewart for minuting the meeting and preparing the record.

For those of you who were not present at the meeting, there were some notable changes agreed and topics discussed. Will and Ilan stood down as captain and president respectively. I would like to thank Ilan and Will on behalf of the club and committee for their fantastic contributions to the club over the last few years. Both have worked extremely hard to preserve and improve the club, and have done an amazing job. Week in, week out Ilan has worked very hard to get a side out (particularly last year), and at the same time has overseen an influx of new cricketers both young and old. Will has been a very hands on president and guided the club through some tricky moments with diplomacy and reassurance. And he runs a mean bbq! We should all be very thankful for their work and involvement, and no doubt we will turn to them for advice in the future.

At the AGM, Bill and myself were elected captain and President to follow Ilan and Will. I think I can speak for Bill when I say we are both flattered and proud to take on the roles, and will of course endeavour to push the club forward with some new ideas and energy. One other change agreed at the AGM was the creation of a new post to the committee, that of players' rep. The idea behind this is to get a player's perspective at committee and for there to be a way for players to be represented better. We welcome Monty and Paul Offord to this position and look forward to their involvement.

As many of you will recall last season was a struggle. Mount is not the only club finding Sunday cricket fixtures difficult to fulfil and so we will have to be smarter in the ways we attract players and opposition. This will probably be our greatest immediate challenge and we have already begun to consider how best to do this. At the AGM thought was given to changing both the format, times and frequency of games. Bill had worked on this with opposition teams already, and you will see some inventive changes to games when the fixtures are published. This season will be somewhat experimental and we'll welcome your views on how well the changes work. We have also cut down on the number of games as well, partly as a result of player feedback. However, for those who wish to play more frequently we are looking at the possibility of a tie up with another club with a view to allowing Mount players to play on Saturdays. We will keep you posted. we are also hoping to arrange some winter nets (dates and times TBA), and also there are thoughts of some gentle fitness sessions at the school to hone your athletic forms before season's start.

Finally, Bill and I invite you to join us for drinks on Thursday 8th February, venue TBA.

The club is only as good as its members. We are open to any suggestions, involvement and advice from you all. We are at an exciting point in the club's history with the developments we are anticipating and we continue to need your support and involvement.

We will keep you informed as we have more news.