Well we’re coming to the end of an awful year for everybody. Who would have thought we would have to take precautions in our daily lives like we currently have to? Bring on 2021 ASAP with hope for a successful global vaccination plan and getting our lives back to somewhere close to normal.
Nevertheless, HLTC performed amazingly in the last season. We halved our fees due to lockdown, but still managed to generate revenue greater than 50%. We’ve welcomed many new members and hope that you remain part of HLTC for many seasons to come. We’d dearly like to show off the super social side of our club to you as soon as it is safe to do so.
HLTC also had success in the Wirral Winter League 19/20: trophies were won by Hoylake Men’s Division 1 and Division 3 teams, as well as the Ladies’ B team in Division 4. Recently Viv Pennell presented these trophies to team captain Dave Callanan, myself and Moya Locke, as well as an award to Chris White, as the player who scored the most points in the Men’s/Open Division 1.
During lockdown, to keep us safe, we managed to organise court bookings and I can’t thank Liz Towersey enough for the wonderful job she did. Working alongside Alan, they used the Clubspark app provided by the LTA to transfer our booking system to an online one, which has been very successful indeed.
A few vacant posts were advertised recently and I’m pleased to say we have had some enthusiastic volunteers. The only post still up for grabs is the 100 Club administrator: so if you have a little time to spare and have friendly persuasive skills, please think about helping out. The more members involved in running the Club, the better – and this role doesn’t involve attending committee meetings!
Last week, we said goodbye to our assistant coach, Chris White. Chris has been a revelation at HLTC and we wish him well. We just now need to find another like Chris to fill his empty trainers.
Our AGM, usually held in January, has been postponed. With current restrictions, it could only be done virtually, so the committee proposed, and our Trustees agreed, to get us all together sometime in March 2021 instead, if restrictions then allow.
The committee are considering plans for the new year. More floodlights, resurfacing courts 6, 7 & 8 or a new clubhouse are possibilities… but we are not made of money, so any ideas and practical help on this subject would be most welcome.
Finally, I hope you all stay safe over the festive season and have as good a Christmas as possible. Here’s to a very Happy New Year.
Best regards to you all,
Guy Ellice-Clark
Chair HLTC