EFA
Administrator's Report 1997-1998
At the request of the EFA Committee I began work in November 1997 as Fives Administrator with a responsibility to maximise the number of girls and boys continuing to play Eton Fives after leaving school. This entails working closely with club secretaries, school staff, coaches and others in promoting 'this, one of the best of ball games, which men (and woman) go on playing for the rest of their lives'. (JM Peterson - Some reflections on the game of Eton Fives).
Part of the early work was to:
· establish a data base of club membership
· organise a recruitment campaign
· increase members' subscriptions where necessary
· update the membership list of addresses and telephone numbers
· compile a list of Fives players at University
With the help and encouragement provided by club secretaries, most of this work has been completed. Club membership has been established on the data base, one hundred new members recruited and some fifty existing members converted to full membership. In the process, we are fortunate to have received generous donations in support of the current initiatives from G J Chidgey, R B Wild, J Street and J H Ward.
Masters-in-Charge of Fives are in the process of providing me with lists of school leavers and University placements. This information will be made available to club secretaries and assist in monitoring and future recruitment. The Old Cranleighans, Old Aldenhamians and University of London have been encouraged to join/rejoin the EFA and have arranged to play matches next season. The EFA has entered a side into the third division of the league for those players without a club league side and for those wishing to play more Fives.
On the school scene, City of London are to re-introduce the game, utilising the facilities at Westminster School: visits have been made with Howard Wiseman to Wrekin College and March Comprehensive School: and Howard has been to Dover College. There are high expectations that Fives will be re-introduced at each of these venues.
Many of you will have noticed that major tournament results are now published in the Times and Daily Telegraph, usually on the Wednesday or Thursday following the Tournament.
Other developments include commissioning a wooden buttress to be built for use in squash and Rugby Fives Courts: maintaining a regular contact with Michael Beaman, General Secretary of the Rugby Fives Association: and compiling a list of club secretary responsibilities.
Much still needs to be done. Work in hand ranges from enhancing and obtaining sponsorship for the Kinnaird Cup, the marketing of the coaching manual through to writing and compiling a new Fives profile. In the meantime the recruitment drive continues.
In closing I would like to take this opportunity to apologise to those of you that I have pestered umpteen times to join the EFA or request amendment to bankers orders. I know I have been a pain! Finally, a special thank you to all club secretaries, masters-in-charge, Howard Wiseman, Michael Duncan (Membership Secretary), Martin Powell (Treasurer) and many others without whom progress would have been impossible.
M.R.F.Administrator's Report 1997-1998 by Mike Fenn
Created 11 September 2003
efa@etonfives.co.uk