MENS MIDWEEK

Looking for a midweek runaround? Steve Perry organises mens doubles on Tuesdays & Thursday mornings. Contact Steve if interested!

LOCAL PRESS COVERAGE - SEE HERE!  - If you have local tennis stories or photos that you think deserve to appear in the local press, then DO contact  the Club Secretary if you want any help in submitting your stories & photos!

Adult Social Tennis Tournaments!

On the 19th June & 17th July (both Tuesdays - in place of the normal Club Sessions)  - how about some Pimms & Prizes? 

Alan’s unique handicapping system allows you to turn up at ANY time between 6pm & 8pm . These HUGELY successful events are great fun and for ALL abilities!

PARKING: Please be aware that the club is still asking members not to park in Southampton Street (PARTICULARLY NOT AT WEEKENDS) as this does upset the residents at times. The Car Park at the Business Centre is a short walk away.

QUIZ NIGHT
FRI 21ST SEPT
PORTWELL ANGEL

After the AGM!

This Newsletter is ONLY sent by email .  If needed, could you therefore share the newsletter with the rest of the family for whom we may not have individual email addresses!
P.S.  Printing out this Newsletter: background colours won’t print - to save on ink...

Welcome to the New Spring Season!

It’s been an interesting year for the Club - with many positives to report. A heartfelt thanks goes out to all the many members who work so hard to make the Club what it is: the Officers of the club; the main Committee; the relocation, social, junior & maintenance committees; our clubmark contact, child protection officer, Wimbledon Ticket organiser, Club consumables coordinator, match secretaries and captains – and of course our head gardener Andy Sawyer.

In the Summer of 2011 we became one of only twelve Clubs in Oxfordshire to attain Clubmark status. This is an ongoing journey that involves every aspect of the Club and the services that we provide, and I’d like to thank Mark Mobey for steering us through this process. Clubmark is not just about ATtaining, but also about REtaining. 

My thanks to Lin Ross, our club treasurer, for keeping the books in order, and ensuring that our finances continue to be healthy & stable. It’s worth reminding ourselves that our subscription fees are amongst the lowest that we have come across anywhere in the South of England.  Lin will step down at the AGM in September, and Steve Perry has kindly agreed to take over as treasurer.

Membership continues to be healthy, with numbers now 30% higher than they were two / three years ago; with a healthy mix across all ages and abilities. When members renewed in 2011,  we also took the opportunity to ask Club Members’ views through an online questionnaire.  Responses received represented more than 90% of the membership (in many cases individuals responding on behalf of families) and were almost overwhelmingly positive – with the notable exception of facilities and location! SEE HERE FOR SUMMARY OF SURVEY RESULTS.  As in 2011, in 2012 there will again be a huge number of events and activities for Juniors. Our thanks go to Alan Elbourn and Mark Mobey in particular for making this happen.

If you’ve been following the relocation updates on the website, then you will be aware that the Relocation Committee are now focusing all their efforts on Jasper’s Hill up by  cricket/rugby/sk8 . All going to plan, the  Planning application will be submitted to the Vale within weeks.

DATES COMING UP :

• Sun 25th March CLUB WORKDAY
• Tue 27th March START OF THE NEW SEASON - First Adult Social Tennis Evening
• Fri 27th April Wimbledon Draw & BBQ- Club - 6pm-8pm
• Tues 1st May EARLYBIRD RENEWAL DEADLINE
• Sun 13th May: Mini-red AM (FCC) ; Orange PM (Club)
• Sat 19th May - French Visit from Le Mele
• Sun 10th June: Mini-green PM (Club)
• Tue 19th June  Adult Evening: Pimms & Prizes
• Sat 14th July Mini-orange (Club)
• Sun 15th July mini-red AM (FCC); Green PM (Club)
• Tues 17th July Adult Evening: Pimms & Prizes
• Sat 8th Sept mini-orange PM (Club)
• Sun 9th Sept mini-red AM (FCC); Green PM (Club)
• Fri 21st Sept AGM Old Town Hall 7.30-8.30 followed by QUIZ at PORTWELL
• Sat 19th Jan 2013: 6-10pm DELTA TOURNAMENT

Do remember that all members are very welcome to come to any committee meeting. Meeting dates going forward are posted HERE, where you will also find minutes from previous meetings.

CLUB OFFICERS 2011/2012

Chairman: Sjoerd Vogt
Treasurer: Lin Ross
Secretary: Susanna Hunt

Committee Members:
Don Cain, Alan Elbourn,  Steve Perry,  Anne Sawyer,  Juliane Spiers, Mark Mobey

MATCHES

Winter Match Secretary:
                          Anne Sawyer (01367) 870285

Summer Match Secretary:
                          Steve Perry (01367) 244757

Winter League Captains:

• Mens A    Mark Kiff (01367) 243147
• Mens B    Don Cain (01367) 240474
• Ladies A   Susanna Hunt (01367) 241452
• Ladies B   Judy Scotcher (01367) 810455
• Ladies C   Kate Trivedi (01367) 710624

Summer League Captains:

• LADIES A   Susanna Hunt (01367) 241452
• LADIES B   Judy Scotcher (01367) 810455
• MENS A     Sjoerd Vogt  (01367) 241707
• Mens B      Don Cain (01367) 240474
• MIXED       Juliane Spiers (01367) 241432
• MENS(Mon) Joe Moore (01367) 243583

Other Responsibilities Maintenance Alan Elbourn Paul Silver Wimbledon tickets Alan Elbourn Social Activities Susanna Hunt Juliane Spiers Website & membership Sjoerd Vogt Head Gardener Andy Sawyer Clubmark Contact Mark Mobey Consumables restocking Anne Sawyer Child Protection Rachel Kenyon Juniors Alan Elbourn Susanna Hunt Mark Mobey

WORKDAY: Sunday March 25th - from 9am

Please DO come along to help! <WARNING: CLOCKS GO FORWARD!> You don’t have to be there at exactly 9am. There’s lots of jobs, including Gardening (pruning and weeding), cleaning club house, washing crockery, defrosting fridge, making tea/coffee for the workers....  Please bring equipment/tools/cleaning aids etc. that may be useful.
THERE WILL BE NO CLUB SESSION ON THAT DAY

RENEWING YOUR SUBSCRIPTION FOR 2012-2013

 See HERE for more details.  The new season officially starts on Tuesday 27th March, and you will shortly be emailed the  renewal form for all the individuals living at your address. There are MASSIVE discounts if you renew before 1st May, and there’s even BIGGER discounts if you take out FAMILY membership!

UPDATE ON WINTER LEAGUE:

You can check progress at www.thamesvalleywtl.net (Thames Valley 2011/2012) .

The Mens B are struggling; but the Ladies B are at the moment in 2nd position, and the Ladies C in 4th!

JUNIOR TOURNAMENTS COMING UP!

On Sun 13th May, Sun 15th July and Sun 9th Sept, Faringdon TC is organising Mini Red tournaments that will take place up on the Community College courts by the Leisure Centre. There will also be competitions for Mini Green and Mini-Orange that will take place at the Club. Green: Sun 10th June, Sun 15th July, Sun 9th Sept. Orange: Sun 13th May, Sat 14th July, Sat 8th Sept.  Here’s a good explanation of the Mini Tennis Ratings system.

More information to follow via email and posters at the courts. Contact Mark Mobey (242636) for more details..

FRIDAY
27TH APRIL 

6PM-8PM

 WIMBLEDON DRAW & BBQ!

We DO hope that all existing and prospective members (all ages welcome!) will come along to the Club for burgers, bangers & friendly banter. There will also be more information available about the proposed relocation.

WIMBLEDON TICKETS 2012: We expect to receive our allocation shortly. As happened last year, the selection form will be emailed so that members can tick their preferences for dates.  Members DO need to have a BTM (British Tennis Membership) number to qualify and WILL need to attend the Draw (27th April - Club house) , or send a representative in order to be eligible for tickets.  WATCH THIS SPACE FOR FURTHER DETAILS!

ADULT SOCIAL TENNIS
Every Sunday throughout the year 10.30-12.30 . Simply turn up - balls provided. Evening tennis (Tuesdays & Thursdays) starts again March 27th 2012. See HERE for more details.

Adult Summer LEAGUE Tennis (playing other Clubs)

We have 5 teams in the OLTA Wilson  League 2012 ( CLICK HERE FOR FIXTURE DATES ) . Matches are on Saturday or Sunday afternoons, starting at 1.30pm. Each team usually has about 7 matches spread from Easter to Michaelmas, and the format is 2 couples per team. This means that you are usually home by 6pm at the latest.  And we also have a Men’s Monday Evening Team that plays in the Wiltshire League. If you are interested in playing for a team please contact the appropriate Summer League Captain:

• LADIES A      Susanna Hunt (01367) 241452
• LADIES B      Judy Scotcher (01367) 810455
• MENS A        Sjoerd Vogt  (01367) 241707
• MENS B        Don Cain (01367) 240474
• MIXED          Juliane Spiers (01367) 241432
• MENS(Mon)   Joe Moore (01367) 243583

COACHING

We’re very fortunate to have five licensed coaches who are members of the Club. Through Susanna Hunt and Alan Elbourn, the ladies, gents, and juniors are well catered for (see HERE for more details).  All adults are welcome to come & try out a coaching session for FREE!

Alan Elbourn will be running a Junior Development Programme on Mondays during May, 4-5pm for 14-19 yr olds from FCC.

Susanna Hunt will be running girls tennis sessions on Thursdays, from 4-5.45pm, from 17 May – 19 July, with a break for half term (9 weeks total).

NEW KIT WITH NEW LOGO!

Simply go to the SIMPLY SITE where you’ll find the Faringdon Tennis Club Online Shop.

You can choose from caps, beanie hats, fleeces, sweatshirts, polo shirts & tee-shirts; and you can choose sizes & colours.

Items are name-tagged, delivery is free, and you can expect to receive your order within just seven working days!

Examples of Costs:

Cap:                                       £5.62
Children’s polo shirt:                £7.50
Children’s hooded sweatshirt:  £16.95

TENNIS BALLS: Are provided during official Club sessions. Tubes of high quality branded balls can be purchased at the Club house from Andy Sawyer, Alan Elbourn, or Lin Ross.

Remember: To get into the Members’ Area of the website (you’re in the Members’ Area at the moment!) go to the homepage ( www.faringdontennis.org.uk )  - or any other page for that matter - and click on the cloud just to the right of the Folly Tower (top left of page) .