Copies of Minutes of the Clacton Rugby Union Football Club, taken from the original minute books.
Clacton Rugby Union Football Club - General Meetings
(Formed 1930. Disbanded 1939 owing to World War II. Re-formed Sept 1951)
Meeting held at the Osborne Hotel on Thursday 13th September 1951
The meeting was opened by Mr Dow who welcomed those present and invited Mr Adey to take the chair. Mr Adey agreed to do this with the reservation that he might step down the when the club was firmly established. Mr Dow was then appointed to act as Secretary and the question of appointing a Captain and committee was deferred. With the appointment of these officers the meeting unanimously agreed that the Clacton Rugby Union Football Club was re-formed.
It was proposed by Mr Jones and seconded by Mr Thomas that Mr T Pearce should be invited to become the President. This was carried unanimously. The question of inviting vice-presidents was left to the discretion of the Secretary.
The question of subscriptions was then considered. Mr Adey expressed the opinion that these should be kept as low as possible to encourage youngsters. After some discussion the following rates were agreed:
Over 21 £1-1/-
Under 21 10/6d
Non playing members 15/-
Match fees Over 21 3/-
Under 21 2/-
The Secretary reported that he had approached the council with a view to obtaining the use of a pitch at the Recreation Ground at Vista Road, but that the council were unable to help, owing to their heavy soccer commitments. Mr Thomas expressed disappointment and proposed that the council should be pressed next year. Mr Cox thought the council could and should provide a pitch. Mr Mountstephens was of the opinion that there was every advantage to be gained by seeking a ground independently.
On the proposal of Mr Cox, seconded by Mr Jones, it was agreed that a ground be sought for this season and the council be approached for next season.
Mr Jones asked when the first fixture should be played and suggested Boxing Day. Mr Thomas agreed and stressed need for finding XV players before arranging fixtures.
Mr Ady and Mr Jones agreed to approach the Recreation Ground Groundsman with a view to obtaining a pitch for Boxing Day, and also to approach Messrs P & B Smith to see if they could make a field available.
On the proposal of Mr Mountstephens it was agreed to hold the next meeting on September 27th.
This was agreed to and the meeting then closed.
[On the back pages of the minute book is a report of a game against Ipswich YMCA on 29/9/51 at Bourne Park.
The team is listed as:
Price D; Vaughan D; Thomas G; Faull D; Thomas C; Hurlby N; Dow J; Chambers – (Guest); Huggett I F; Huggett R; Hooks M; Stuart B M; Vinyard J C; Two borrowed YM players.
Lost 53 – 0
This was the YMCA 1st XV who, naturally enough, this being Clacton’s 1st game, were superior in all depts. Clacton played with more spirit than the score suggests and were far from disenchanted at the result. Chambers unfortunately suffered a chipped elbow.]
Meeting held at the Osborne Hotel on Thursday 27th Sept 1951
In the absence of Mr Adey, Mr Mervyn Jones took the chair and welcomed to the meeting Mr T N Pearce, who had consented to become President of the club. Mr Jones invited Mr Pearce to take the chair.
Mr Pearce then took the chair and expressed his pleasure at being invited to become President of the club, and promised to support it in any way he could.
Mr Jones reported that he had visited the Recreation Ground and found that the council had now only one pair of goal-posts. He suggested the Secretary should approach the council for replacement, and should also supply a pitch for next season.
The Secretary announced that a match had been arranged for 29th Sept against Ipswich YMCA. Mr Jones proposed that the same team should be invited to play at Clacton on Boxing Day. If they could not play, Colchester should be approached.
It was decided that the arrangement of a fixture list should be left to the Secretary.
The President suggested that a committee should now be formed of not more than five members including the Secretary and Chairman, and three others. The was agreed to.
Mr Salmon proposed that Mr Mervyn Jones should be one of the committee members.
Mr Huggett was proposed by Mr Jones and seconded by Mr Stuart.
Mr Cox was proposed by Mr Faull and seconded by Mr Salmon.
It was agreed that these three members and the Chairman and Secretary should form the committee.
The Secretary reported that he had not succeeded in obtaining a copy of the original rules of the Club. It was agreed that consideration of these should be deferred until the next meeting.
Mr Pearce asked the amount of the Vice-Presidents subscription. Mr Jones proposed that this should be a guinea and this was agreed to.
Mr Gordon Thomas proposed that a dance should be held at the Royal Hotel to raise funds. It was agreed that consideration of this matter should be left to the committee.
Mr Pearce suggested that as a measure of economy the club colours should be changed to white. This was agreed.
On the proposition of the President, the next meeting was fixed for Nov 1st.
The meeting, in the absence of any other business, then closed.
Meeting held at the Osborne Hotel on Nov 1st 1951
With Mr Mervyn Jones in the chair.
The minutes of the last meeting were read and confirmed.
The Secretary informed the meeting that the council had stated that they could not provide a pitch, and he was negotiating for the use of field in Jaywick Avenue. The Chairman regretted to learn of the lack of co-operation on the part of the council, and suggested that the club should stake a claim now for next season. This was agreed to and further negotiation with regard to the pitch was to be left to the committee.
The meeting then proceeded to consider the draft rules of the club, put forward by the committee. There was considerable discussion on these, in which most of the members of the club took part, and eventually the set of rules subjoined were adopted.
The meeting closed with the showing of the Rugby Union instructional film, which was much appreciated.
Annual General Meeting 1952
The eleventh Annual General Meeting of the Clacton Rugby Union Football Club was held at the Osborne Hotel on Monday May 19th 1952, with Mr J Mervyn Jones in the chair and seventeen other members present.
After welcoming the members, the Chairman called upon the Secretary to read the minutes of the preliminary meeting held on Nov 1st 1951. These were read and duly confirmed on the proposition of Mr Lord, seconded by Mr Thomas.
Arising from the minutes, the Chairman stated that he had received an assurance that a pitch on the Recreation Ground proper would be available to the club next season.
Mr Dow then gave his report as Secretary. He said that as he was to be followed by the Captain and the Treasurer there was little for him to say except to thank all members of the club for their support, and in particular the Chairman, Mervyn Jones, for his good offices in so many ways. The Secretary reminded the members of the very real progress the club had made, and he had no doubt that it would be maintained.
The adoption of the report was proposed by Mr Fauld, seconded by Mr Thomas, and carried unanimously.
The next report was given by Mr Huggett as Treasurer.
He stated that receipts had amounted to £99-19-8; £39-6-6 from Vice Presidents subscriptions, £25-12-4 from match fees, £5-9-2 from collections, £1-1-8 from pre-war club, £12-10/- from the Xmas Draw, the balance being members subscriptions.
Expenditure amounted to £98-9-3. Travelling had cost £32-1/-, stationery £3-17-3, gear and equipment £21-17-6, teas, baths, etc £40-14/-. There was a balance of £1-10-5 in hand although a few debits were outstanding. There had been a loss of £3-8-6 on the dance.
The adoption of the report was proposed by Mr Fauld and seconded by Mr Benson and carried unanimously.
This was followed by Bill Damirals report as Captain. He said that the club had played 21 matches, won 4, drawn 3, lost 14, points for 38, against 382 (170 of these had been scored in 3 matches). But the standard of play had improved and had been commented on by teams meeting us for the second time later in the season. He was particularly impressed with the improvement amongst the younger players as they gained more experience. He would like to thank all who had played, especially those who had turned out at short notice, and also Peter Lord who had spared neither time nor energy to produce the teams week by week. The Captain said we had played reasonable rugger and with the good friends we had made, he had high hopes for the future.
The Chairman then addressed the meeting, expressing his thanks to all member of the committee, to the president and vice-presidents for their generous support, to Mr Benson for his ever ready assistance, and to Mr and Mrs Hope for their kindness and generous hospitality. He was indeed grateful to the many good friends who had helped the club through its first post-war season.
The meeting then proceeded to elect the following officers for 1952/3.
The President and Vice-Presidents were re-elected unanimously. The following were elected unanimously:
Chairman J Mervyn Jones
Secretary J Dow
Treasurer P Lord
Captain W Damiral
Vice Captain I Huggett
Team Sec R Saltmarsh
With Messrs Benson and Loynes to complete the committee.
The Chairman said that it had become obvious that subscriptions would have to be increased.
After considerable discussion, in which most members took part, the following rates were agreed upon.
Subscriptions Over 21 £1-10/-
Under 21 15/-
Match Fees Over 21 5/-
Under 21 3/-
The question of club colours was considered and again after considerable discussion it was agreed to adopt maroon jerseys and navy blue shorts, as this would not clash with any neighbouring club.
The meeting closed at 9.40pm
Annual General Meeting 1953
The meeting was held at the Queens Head, Gt Clacton, on Monday 4th May 1953, with Mr J Mervyn Jones in the chair, and 14 other members present.
The minutes of the last meeting were read and confirmed.
There were no matter arising from the minutes.
The secretary, J Dow, then gave his report. He said that first of all he would inform members that apologies for absence had been received Mr W E Boutlin and Mr D H R Moody. Turning to the last season, the Secretary said that while the first season had been largely a matter of improvisation, the second had been one of consolidation. The results had improved, as would be illustrated in the Captains remarks, and the numbers of members had also increased. The new shower accommodation generously provided by Messrs Cobbold, in which Mr Burrows had played a large part, had proved a valuable asset. The club had been very happy in their new headquarters, and thanks were due to Mr and Mrs Etheridge. The return to the original rugby pitch at Vista Road had been another asset to the club, which had been praised by several visiting teams. Altogether the club was in a much better position and might face the future with more confidence than had been possible a year earlier.
Giving his report as captain, W A Damiral said the results had improved greatly. The club had played 15 matches, won 5, drawn 1, lost 9, points for 152, against 124. This reflected an improvement in the standard of play. If he had to make a criticism it was the players would not always do as they were told when asked to heel(?) and they sometimes forgot the fundamental rule to tackle low. Returning to the results, the captain pointed out that some decline in the latter half of the season was due to the loss of some players after Christmas holidays had finished.
The treasurer, P J Lord, gave an interim report, as the final accounts would not be ready until after the close of the clubs financial year. The was a balance in hand of only £3, but before the dance we had owed £8 apart from £9 still outstanding on the posts. Vice-Presidents subscriptions had amounted to £34.
Transport had again been a large item and great expense had been incurred in the provision of shirts and balls, but all this would be seen later when the audited accounts were available in September.
On being put to the vote all three reports were adopted unanimously.
Thanking the officers for their reports, the Chairman said he would also like to record his gratitude to their hosts, Mr and Mrs Etheridge, and also to Councillor Quick for his efforts to secure the restoration of the rugby pitch to the club. He would also like to thank the Vice-Presidents, particularly Mr Burrows and Mr Powis for their support.
The meeting then proceeded to elect its officers for 1953/54.
The Chairman proposed that the Presidents and Vice-Presidents be re-elected en bloc. This was carried unanimously.
Mr Dow proposed, and Mr Powis seconded, that Mr Jones should continue as chairman. This was carried unanimously.
For the new position of Vice-Chairman, Mr Burrows was proposed by Messrs Lord and Damiral, and Mr Powis by Messrs Burrows and Churchman. On it being put to the vote, Mr Burrows was elected by 8 votes to 3.
The Chairman proposed that the Secretary, Mr J Dow, should continue in office, and this was carried unanimously, and it was similarly agreed that Mr P Lord should continue as Treasurer.
For the position of Captain, Mr V Churchman was proposed by Messrs Powis and Huggett, and Mr D Harold by Messrs Burrows and Churchman. On it being put to the vote V Churchman was elected by 5 votes to 4.
For Vice-Captain, Mr D Harrold was the only nomination and was declared elected, as was Mr W Damiral as Team Secretary.
To make up the committee, other than the officers, the Chairman called for further nominations and Messrs Powis, Eaton, Saltmarsh and Cox were duly elected.
On the proposal of the Secretary, it was agreed that the Selection Committee should consist of the Chairman and Vice-Chairman, Captain and Vice-Captain, and the Team Secretary.
Under any other business D Harold raised the question of match fees. It was agreed to defer consideration until the autumn meeting.
D Faull suggested that local players should always be given a fair number of games. The Chairman replied that this had always been the policy of the selection committee, but it should be remembered that they were also anxious to field the best available side.
A vote of thanks to the Chairman was proposed by Mr Powis and seconded by Mr Burrows, and carried unanimously. The meeting then closed.
Autumn General Meeting, held on Monday September 14th 1953 at the Queens Head, Gt Clacton.
The Treasurer presented the accounts for 1952/53 which having been circulated were adopted without further discussion.
The question of match fees was discussed at some length and the following rates agreed.
Over 21 3/-
Under 21 2/-
Schoolboys 1/-
There being no other business the meeting then closed.
AGM May 10th 1954
The meeting was held at the Queens Head Hotel with clubs President, Mr T N Pearce in the chair and 22 members being present.
The minutes of the last meeting were read and confirmed.
There were no matters arising from the minutes.
Correspondence The secretary notified the meeting of having received invitations from the RU and ECRU to send a representative to each of their forthcoming meetings.
After the president had outlined the importance of the representative elect having a full understanding of the clubs attitude towards certain points, Mr Mervyn Jones was elected to attend the RU AGM and Mr Burrows the ECRU meeting.
Reports The chairman Mr J Mervyn Jones gave the club report and said that last season have been Clacton’s most successful to date. He thanked all officers and those who had served the club in the past season, with particular note to the work done by Mr J Dow as secretary. Furthermore he stressed how pleased we were to have Mr T N Pearce with us in person as President on this occasion and looked forward to having him as referee once again on future occasions.
The secretary addressed all the chairmans remarks in his report which followed next, and pointed out that a great deal of the work and success of last season had been due to the interest of Mr Jones as chairman and Mr Burrows as vice-chairman.
Treasurer Mr T Lord reported next and stated that audited accounts would be due in September at the financial meeting and although the club was a few pounds on the wrong side at the moment, promises from several, so far unpaid v-presidents would put the club back on the right side. However he did think further consideration should be given to the junior match fee which at 1/- was rather low.
Captain Mr V Churchman reported that of games played we had won 12, lost 10 and drawn 1, scoring 235 points for with 244 points against. Since Xmas however we had scored 171 points for with 64 points against. From a social point of view he concluded that season had been very successful.
The election of officers then took place and the following were returned to office unopposed:
President Mr T N Pearce – prop by Mr Jones, seconded by the meeting
Chairman Mr J Mervyn Jones – prop by Mr T N Pearce (chair)
V Chairman Mr W A Burrows - prop by Mr Lord 2nd Mr Jones
Secretary Mr J Dow and Mr H Martin as assistant – prop Mr Jones, seconded by Mr Burrows
Team Sec Mr W A Damiral – prop Mr Jones, seconded Mr Burrows
Treasurer Mr Ford – prop Mr Dow, seconded by Mr Jones
Captain Mr Damiral – prop Mr Churchman, seconded Mr Jones
V Captain Mr R Eaton – prop Mr Churchman, seconded Mr Saltmarsh
2nd XV Captain Mr E Odling – prop Mr Powis (jr), seconded Mr Jones
Members of the committee duly elected were Messrs Stock, Powis, Huggett and Cox.
There being no other business, the president concluded with his own remarks. Pleased with the improvement in the standard of play and wished the club every success for the future, and declared the meeting closed.
Autumn General Meeting 1954
Held at the Queens Head, Gt Clacton, on Monday Sept 6th 1954, with Mr J Mervyn Jones in the chair and 16 other members present.
The minutes of the last autumn meeting were read and confirmed.
In the absence of the retiring treasurer, who regretted that he was unable to be present, the secretary read the *financial report and presented the accounts for 1953/54 which were adopted on the proposal of Mr Damiral, seconded by Mr Odling. The committees appointment of Mr H Martin to succeed Mr Lord as Treasurer was also confirmed. (* a copy of this is filed for reference)
The chairman received the rules as amended by the committee. After several minor points of detail had been clarified, the adoption of the rules was proposed by Mr Powis, seconded by Mr Damiral and carried unanimously.
The committees recommendation that subscription rates should remain the same as for 1953/54 was carried unanimously on the proposal from Mr D Powis, seconded by Mr Burrows.
A vote of thanks to Mr Lord for his services to the club was proposed by Mr D Powis and carried unanimously.
A general discussion on equipment and financial problems followed. The secretary was authorised to order another dozen jerseys and Mr D Faull undertook to investigate certain money raising schemes.
There being no other business the meeting then closed.
Annual General Meeting 1955
The 14th Annual General Meeting of the Clacton RUFC was held at the Queens Head Hotel, Gt Clacton on Monday May 2nd 1955 at 8.15pm, with Mr W A Burrows in the chair and 12 other members present.
The minutes of the last A G Meeting were read and confirmed.
Apologies for absence were received from Messrs T N Pearce, H Powis and C G Williams.
Captains Report
Bill Damiral was sorry to have to record a rather disappointing season. The early promise of the season had not been maintained and although we had no fewer than 60 different players turn out at various times during the season, it hardly ever been possible to field our full strength, and the A XV had never been able to turn out a full team, and he doubted whether it would be possible to continue with a second XV on this basis.
The records were:
1st XV Played 22
Won 4 Points
Drew 4 For 115
Lost 14 Against 303
A XV Played 8
Won 3 Points
Drew 1 For 94
Lost 4 Against 110
The captain concluded by saying that there was a basis for a good team amongst the existing members and he hoped for much better things next season.
The secretary said that he had little to say that would not be covered by the remarks of the other officers of the club. He wished to thank those who had helped the club with transport to away matches, particularly Messrs Burrows, Stock and Powis. This had saved the club a considerable sum of money.
The trip to Twickenham to see the England-France match had been greatly enjoyed by those members who had made the trip. Various draws and dances had yielded varying amounts of profit, not as much as had been hoped, but still a useful sum. Mr Dow concluded by saying he would not be able to continue as secretary, and he wished to thank all those who had supported him so well during the last four seasons.
The treasurer reported that at the moment the club faced a deficit for the season, but there were still a number of subscriptions and match fees to be collected.
The ‘A’ XV had proved to be an expensive experiment involving a doubling of playing expenses when fielded without a corresponding increase in revenue. However he hoped that when the time came to close the books for 1954/55 the position would be improved somewhat.
The chairman then called for nominations for officers of the club for 1955/56.
The secretary first read a letter of resignation as president from Mr T N Pearce, who had left the district. This was accepted with regret, and the secretary was instructed to write to Mr Pearce thanking him for his assistance to the club and inviting him to continue as a vice-president.
The following officers were then elected.
President Mr C J Reynolds (in abscentia) Prop J. Dow, Sec P Lord
Chairman Mr W A Burrows Prop P Lord, Sec D Harold
Vice-Chairman Messrs J Mervyn Jones and J Dow Prop I Mountstephen, Sec L Cox
Secretary H Bennett Prop J Dow, Sec W Damiral
Treasurer H Martin Prop W Burrows, Sec P Lord
Team Secretary W Damiral Prop J Dow, Sec P Lord
The election of Captain and Vice-Captain was deferred until the autumn general meeting by a resolution carried by 8 votes to 1 with several abstentions.
Committee. Messrs Cox and Powis indicated that owing to pressure of business they did not wish to stand for re-election. The following were elected to serve in addition to the officers of the club:
Messrs Lord, Mountstephen, Savage, Stock, Churchman and Harold.
This concluded the business set out in the agenda and after some discussion of the prospects for next season the meeting closed.
Autumn General Meeting 1955
Held at the Queens Head, Gt Clacton on Monday September 12th 1955 with Mr W A Burrows in the chair and 12 other members present.
The minutes of the last autumn meeting were read and confirmed.
The treasurer presented the *financial statement for the year ending 31st July 1955. He pointed out that the large deficit was in the main due to the unsuccessful experiment of running two XV’s. This should not recur as the club was reverting to one XV. After some discussion in which it was stated that no heavy expenditure would be recurring for the 1955/56 season, the statement was adopted nem con. (* a copy is filed for reference)
Discussion on the question of a club president to succeed Mr T N Pearce resulted in a unanimous approval of the proposition of Mr H Powis, seconded by Mr J Dow that (1) Mr Julian Ridsdale, MP or (2) Mr Somerset de Chair be approached to accept the presidency; the matter to be left in the hands of the committee. The meeting requested that Mr H Powis make preliminary investigations.
On the proposal of Mr J Dow, seconded by W A Damiral, Mr Martin Boyle was unanimously elected captain for the 1955/56 season.
On the proposal of Mr M Savage, seconded by Mr Mountstephen, Mr Bill Damiral was unanimously elected vice-captain.
The treasurer then reported that the playing of many casual players had resulted in many people enjoying the facilities of the club without having paid a subscription. He therefore suggested an instalment system as an optional method of payment of subs – i.e. a match fee and a proportion of the subscription. He hoped that regular members would continue to pay the full lump sum subscription. Prop by Mr J Dow and seconded by M Savage it was unanimously approved that subscription be:
Lump Sum Match fee and proportion of sub
Members 21+ 30/- 3/- and 1/6
Junior members 15/- 2/- and 9d.
(under 21)
Students --- 1/6d.
HM Forces
After some discussion on the club dance to be held on 29th October, and on team prospects for the 1955/56 season the meeting was declared closed at 9.40pm.
Annual General Meeting 1956
The 15th AGM of the Clacton RFC was held at the Queens Head, Gt Clacton on Monday 7th May 1956 at 8.15pm with in Mr Burrows in the chair and 11 other members present.
The minutes of the 1955 AGM were read and confirmed.
Apologies for absence were received from Messrs Julian Ridsdale, J Dow, W E Butlin and D Powis.
Captains Report Martin Boyle was happy to report a considerable improvement in the club’s record in the 1955/56 season. Of 28 arranged fixtures 7 were cancelled owing to bad weather. The record of the 21 games played showed an evenly balanced season:
P 21, W 8, L 10, D 3 Pts 186-192
There had been only 27 members on the books compared with 60 the previous season. The better season was mainly due to having a solid regular nucleus of 11 or 12 players in the XV. The captain here referred to the yeoman service done to the club by the team secretary, Bill Damiral, in getting 15 players on the field each week.
Several useful new players had joined the club in the season 55/56 and special mention was made of two much improved young players, Chambers and Robinson. O Lodge had been invaluable in his rounding up of Transit Camp players.
In a brief survey of the games in the season, the captain thought the Woodford game stood out as a match which was only drawn but might easily have been a big win. He deplored the muddy conditions of the game at Brentwood. He thought the Boxing Day fixture a good institution for the club spirit.
It was regretted that K May has had to resign owing to professional commitments. Finally the captain offered his sincere thanks to Mr Burrows for his interest, patience and valuable advice. This was warmly seconded by all present.
The Secretary referred to the printed report of committee* which indicated a successful playing, financial and social season. He thanked all those who had helped the club in any way: in transport, provision and preparation of pitches, referees services, refreshments, and in particular Monty Mountstephen for his organisation of 2 Town Hall dances. (* copy on files)
A successful Christmas Draw was reported.
A redesigned club tie had been sold out and widely approved.
The annual pilgrimage to Twickenham had been enjoyed by the participants.
The introduction of the end of season ‘sausage and mash’ had proved successful and popular.
The secretary announced a full fixture list for the 1956/57 season and looked forward to it being a success.
In his interim report the Treasurer anticipated an initial deficit of £35 becoming a credit balance of about £20. He gave some comparison of figures with the previous season and showed we were not yet on a really sound financial footing though much progress had been made towards this objective. He promised fuller details in the autumn.
The chairman called for nominations for officers of the club for the 1956/57 season.
The following were elected.
Chairman: Mr W A Burrows Prop. Mountstephen Sec. Chambers
Vice Chairman: J D N Dow Prop. Damiral Sec. Martin
Captain: M Boyle Prop. Burrows Sec. Bennett
Hon Secretary: H V Bennett Prop. Damiral Sec. Harold
Hon Treasurer: H Martin Prop. Burrows Sec. Boyle
Team Secretary: W A Damiral Prop. Boyle Sec. Churchman
Committee
Messrs Mountstephen, F Smith and Price were elected. Appointment of v. captain deferred till autumn.
A proposal to introduce a club jersey of striped design was discussed and rejected on grounds of cost and a general desire to keep the existing plain maroon jersey with white collar. It was decided to keep a full set of jerseys as club property, while at the same time regular players were to be encouraged to purchase their own jerseys and undertake to keep them laundered.
In discussion of other business the secretary was asked to convey the club’s appreciation to Don Mann for his provision of the excellent pitches at Vista Road.
On Mr Mountstephens proposal the team secretary was instructed to put in a bill to the club for telephone calls as had involved himself in personal expense over this.
After some general discussion on methods of raising money the meeting closed.
Autumn General Meeting 1956
Held at the Queens Head, Gt Clacton on Monday 10th Sept 1956 at 8.30pm. In the unavoidable absence of the chairman, Mr Peter Lord presided. 16 other members were present.
The minutes of the 1955 autumn meeting were read and confirmed.
The treasurer presented the financial statement for the year ending 31 July 1956. He was very pleased to report that the £35 deficit for the previous season had been cleared and the club now had a credit balance of £14. He paid tribute to the work of ‘Monty’ Mountstephen whose organisation of dances was largely responsible for the financial success. The treasurer warned members that to remain clear of debt the club would need to raise £20 - £30 annually on its social activities.
The financial statement was accepted nem con.
Prop. By P Lord Seconded V Churchman. Bill Damiral was unanimously elected vice-captain for the 1956/57 season.
After enquiries and information on new players and some discussion on prospects for the new season the meeting was closed at 9.20pm
Annual General Meeting 1957
The 16th AGM of the Clacton RFC was held at the Queens Head, Gt Clacton on Friday 3rd May 1957 at 7.15pm. Mr W A Burrows presided and 15 other members were present.
Minutes of the 1956 meeting were read and confirmed.
Apologies for absence were received from Messrs Ridsdale, Martin and Transit Camp personnel.
Secretary and Captain’s Report
In presenting this report the secretary recalled the departure from the district of the captain, M Boyle. A vote of thanks for his services to the club was acclaimed.
The secretary explained he had been asked by the committee to carry out duties as club captain for the remainder of the season.
The season had started as one of great promise but owing to the departure and enforced retirement of several members it had proved to be only fair. The record was:
P 26, W 7, D 3, L 16 Pts 149-319
Outstanding feature was the ‘double’ over Woodford who we had previously never beaten. More important than the record however, had been the excellent club spirit.
Petrol rationing had of course hit the club in common with others. Yet despite the use of coaches for away matches the treasurer had some quite cheerful news.
4 Town Hall dances had been held with a considerable success. Thanks were proposed to Clacton Council and their staff for their ready co-operation at these functions.
Thanks were also made to
Don Mann and his ground staff,
All who had refereed,
Mrs Ethridge for teas etc.,
Member wives who had repaired jerseys from time to time.
A very successful Christmas Draw was reported, no doubt attributable to the usual 1st prize – a firkin of beer and tankard.
In reporting a very full fixture list for the 1957/58 season the secretary stressed the need for new playing members for the XV to play their fixtures!
The Team Secretary reported that only 31 players had been used throughout the season – i.e. had played 2 or more games. While a good thing it did mean he had been pushed at times to find 15 at one time. A solid nucleus of 8-10 players had formed a backbone to the team but he reiterated the need for few more regular, week-by-week diehards. The sec. then discussed the development of some of the younger member and of the ‘prime-time’ of the older ones! Finally the Team Sec. asked to be released from his onerous task for a while, yet at the same time was pleased to say it had been easier recently owing to fewer last minute call offs.
Mr J Dow then presented the Treasurers Interim Report in his unavoidable absence.
The main point was the extraordinary success of the dances. Total takings had been about £309 which had yielded a provisional profit of £130. He hoped in the autumn to be able to report a credit balance to the club account of about £50.
In a discussion as to possible large expenditure the secretary was asked to enquire into the cost of renovating the club posts which were in a dangerous condition.
The following officers were then elected for the 1957/58 season.
President: Julian Ridsdale Prop. Damiral Sec. Burrows
Chairman: W A Damiral Prop. Burrows Sec. Savage
Vice-Chairman: W A Burrows Prop. Dow Sec. Lord
Hon Secretary: H V Bennett Prop. Savage Sec. Lord
Hon Treasurer: H Martin Prop. Dow Sec. Bennett
Hon Team Sec: W A Damiral Prop. Bennett Sec. Savage
Captain: C Channon Prop. Powis Sec. Jones
Vice-Captain: M Savage Prop. Dow Sec. Churchman
Committee: Messrs Dow, Price and Smith were elected.
The only remaining business was a proposal that the club should make some presentation to J Butler who was to be married in the summer. The was carried unanimously and the secretary and treasurer asked to undertake this task.
The meeting then closed at 8.40pm to the chorus of ‘where are those sausages?’
Autumn General Meeting 1957
Held at the Queens Head, Gt Clacton on Monday 9th September 1957 at 8.30pm. W A Damiral was in the chair and 17 other members were present.
The minutes of the 1956 autumn meeting were read and confirmed.
The treasurer presented the financial statement for the year ending 31 July 1957.
He was pleased to report that the balance of the previous year had been increased to £67. It seemed apparent that the club needed to raise at least £70 per annum from dances, draws etc in order to function in its present manner.
There was some discussion on the dwindling number of vice-presidents subscriptions but this was accredited to the general financial situation of these gentlemen in the current times.
There was further discussion on the dances held at the Town Hall and it was decided admission charges should remain at 3/6d.
P Lord proposed and M Savage seconded that the treasurers report be adopted and this was carried unanimously.
When other business was raised a club social dance for members and friends was mentioned. The idea was temporarily shelved and a sub-committee consisting of Messrs Churchman, Savage and Pyrke was appointed to investigate the possibilities.
A proposition by J Dow to keep subscriptions at their existing figures was carried unanimously.
The captain, C Channon, was asked to investigate a proposal to hold a gym night at Clacton C H School.
The meeting was declared closed at 9.45pm.
Annual General Meeting 1958
The 17th AGM of the Clacton RFC held at Queens Head, Gt Clacton on 2nd May 1958 at 7.15pm with W A Damiral in chair and 14 other members present.
Apologies for absence were received from Messrs Julian Ridsdale, Martin and Smith.
Minutes of 1957 AGM were read and confirmed. On a point the secretary reported that the Clacton Council had generously agreed to deal with any replacement of posts.
Secretary’s Report
In many respects a repetition of previous seasons. The skipper C Channon had unfortunately left us at Christmas and the clubs’ thanks were accorded to him. M Savage had nobly stepped into the breach for the remainder of the season.
Once again season had started as one of great promise – with victories over Southend and Woodford, but owing to departure of some members and also to injuries the playing record had proved again only fair.
P 26, W 6, L 18, D 2, Pts 128 – 292
Despite this there had been an excellent club spirit among the nucleus of regular players.
A VII was entered in the Suffolk 7’s captained by Max Pyrke which had been very enjoyable – our VII being narrowly beaten in the second round.
Town Hall Dances
Only 2 had been held. 1st a success but 2nd involved small financial loss owing to competition from another organisation running dances at the Westcliff Hotel.
A successful Xmas Draw was again held with a firkin of ale as 1st prize.
Suffolk Refs Association in its reconstituted form had been greatly improved and the club’s thanks were due to all concerned.
Thanks were also accorded to the recreation ground staff for pitches and to Mrs Etheridge for teas and numerous other items.
The Captain reported briefly on the season. He remarked on the considerable improvement of several players and the general atmosphere of enthusiasm supporting the team.
On the record he remarked on the fact that 100 points had been recorded against us by the Ipswich clubs alone. Each of them having had strengthened ‘A’ XV’s for their fixtures with us.
The Team Secretary’s Report
1957/58 had seen fewer players than ever used. Only 22 men had played 2 or more games. In general a good thing he thought but a slightly too small margin for comfort.
Injuries to regular players like Bennett, Powis, Ross, Jarvis had been rather a problem at various times.
He paid tribute to players like Dunn and Churchman who were always willing to stand in or stand down as availabilities dictated.
A special request was made that players should call off early if not available.
Thanks for use of cars given to Pyrke, Powis, Savage.
Mr Dow presented the Treasurers Interim Report in his absence.
The exact financial situation was rather vague at the moment but the most striking point was the fact that we had been unable to make the money as in previous season on dances at the Town Hall.
It was obvious we must either produce more fund raising activities or cut our expenditure – possibly both.
As transport was the most expensive single item it was decided there must be some cutting of long distance away fixtures. Various other measures were discussed and it was then left in the committees care under the secretary’s guidance to do what was possible during the close season.
Election of Officers 1958/59
The following were elected.
President: J Ridsdale MP
(and V Presidents) Prop. Savage Sec. Ransom
Chairman: W A Damiral Esq Prop. Churchman Sec. Pyrke
V Chairmen: W A Burrows Esq J D N Dow Esq Prop. Damiral Sec. Lord
Hon Secretary: H V Bennett Prop. Savage Sec. Riberio
Hon Treasurer: H Martin Prop. Ross Sec. Churchman
Hon Team Sec: W A Damiral and Hon Assistant Team Sec: D Powis
Prop. Lord Sec. Ross
Captain: Max Pyrke (after a vote had been taken)
V Captain: D Price Prop. Riberio Sec. Ross
Committee: Messrs J Jarvis, Savage and Ross
A vote of thanks was expressed to our supporters from St Osyth Training College.
The meeting closed at 8.50pm.
Autumn General Meeting 1958
Held at Queens Head Hotel on Monday 15th September 1958 at 8.15pm. W A Damiral presided and 17 other members were present.
Apologies for absence received from Julian Ridsdale and F Smith.
Minutes of the 1957 were read and confirmed. A question on why no social function such as a supper dance, had been held was asked. The sub-committee reported that owing to financial difficulties it had not been possible to arrange such a function unless it could be self supporting and the cost would be prohibitive.
The treasurer in presenting his report for 1957/58 pointed out that a credit balance of £67 had been reduced to about £17 (including a deposit on a Town Hall dance). The reduced balance was largely due to loss in income from Town Hall dances, one of which ran at a loss and another was cancelled. After some clarification of points in the statement the report was adopted on the proposition of H V Bennett seconded by D Rix.
In view of the financial position it had been left in the hands of the committee to decide on appropriate action. The following recommendations were made:
Fixtures v. Woodford, Southend, Southend Police, Hollesley Sports and Brentwood should be one per season, alternately home and away, to reduce travelling expenses.
Fixture Cards Members (other than VP’s) to be asked to by their cards at 6d.
Jerseys a) Preferably each member should buy his own jersey.
b) If a club one borrowed for a match to launder it
or c) Pay cost of laundering in addition to match fee.
Subscriptions To remain unchanged:
Senior 30/-
Junior (U 21) 15/-
Match Fees
Senior 3/-
All Juniors 2/-
(inc Services, Schoolboys etc)
Prop J Dow, Sec. P Duncan these measures be adopted. This was carried unanimously.
The Secretary reported a club dance had been arranged at Clacton Town Hall on 18th October – a date which should be free from other events in the town.
There was a discussion on whether the draw should be at Xmas or at the end of the season. On a vote of 10 – 4 it was decided to hold a Christmas Draw, and P Ross was elected to promote the draw.
On a suggestion from the team secretary P Duncan undertook to maintain the balls for the season.
In a brief (?) on the advisability of training the Captain proposed to hold training sessions on Tues and/or Thursday evenings, at least for the first few weeks of the season. There was good verbal support of this suggestion.
A pattern for a club scarf in longitudal stripes was approved by members and several orders were made on the spot. The suppliers were Wopping Mills Ltd., Liverpool.
After some discussion on new players available for the coming season the meeting was closed at 9.30pm
AGM 1959
The 18th AGM of the Clacton RUFC held at the Queens Head Hotel on 8th May 1959 at 7.15 with W A Damiral in chair and 19 other members present.
Apologies for absence from President Julian Ridsdale Esq.
Minute of the 1958 AGM were read and confirmed with no further discussion.
Secretary’s Report
The Secretary reported a most successful season, on the field and socially. 8 members had attended the Suffolk RFU coaching course at Holbrook.
Playing strength had been stronger than for many years especially in latter part of season with several Colchester RGS boys joining club.
Results for season
P 24, W 12, D 0, L 12 Pts 225 – 289
Much of credit for this result due to efforts of the skipper Max Pyrke.
Injuries had been lighter during the season and a XV was produced even during the influenza epidemic.
Playing season ended triumphantly when the club VII reached the semi-final of the Suffolk 7’s being beaten by the eventual winners of the competition.
Fund raising had been fairly successful. One dance was held at Clacton Town Hall and was a financial success.
Christmas Draw was best ever due to the efforts of Peter Ross who had now unfortunately left us.
Thanks of club were expressed
to Suffolk RU for a) referees b) coaching centre c) the 7’s competition.
to Don Mann and his staff and to Clacton UDC for the pitch
to Mr and Mrs Etheridge for their usual good offices
to Cansdale Coaches
to those members who provided cars
to those girls of St Osyth TC for their gallant support
to officers of the club.
Captain’s Report
The skipper opened with a few ribald remarks on the 7’s. He then praised the efforts on the field of several members but added that although we had a successful season we must not be complacent. New players needed for next season. Members should run a personal recruiting campaign to find them. We had developed one of the best club spirits in Essex and become known for social activities as well as rugby.
Team Secretary
His job had been easier this year but there had still been a few last minute ‘sweats’ to raise XV. 24 members had played at least 2 games with a regular nucleus of about 10. He expressed his thanks to D Powis for his assistance, especially in finding players at last minute.
Repeated again that his aim was produce the best XV of players available.
Treasurer in his Interim Report
said the club should be comfortably in the black by time all accounts were settled. Comparative figures with the previous season were much the same. He said it was desirable financially to avoid having to use coaches unless absolutely necessary.
The following OFFICERS were elected for 1959/60.
President – Julian Ridsdale MP
V Presidents – en bloc
Chairman – W A Damiral
V Chairmen – W A Burrows, J Dow
Hon Secretary – H V Bennett
Hon Treasurer – H Martin
Hon Team Sec – W A Damiral
Hon Ass. Sec – D Powis
Captain – Max Pyrke
V Captain – J Ransom
Committee – Messrs Price, Savage, Jones
Other Business
(1) A proposition to run a Colts XV was discussed but no progress was made and the matter was referred to the committee for further discussion.
(2) The chairman then stated he had a very pleasant duty to perform. Mr Peter Ross who had left the district during the season had presented the club with The Captain’s Pot with the request that it should be part of the club HQ and presented to the current captain each season and his name be inscribed.
The unanimous thanks of the club were expressed to Peter Ross for this very fine gesture.
The meeting was declared closed at 8.40.
Autumn General Meeting, 1959
Was held on Fri 18th Sept 1959 at Queens Head Hotel, Gt Clacton at 8.15pm with W A Damiral in chair and 20 other members present.
The minutes of the 1958 meeting were read and confirmed.
The treasurer presented his accounts for the season 1958-59 and pointed out that the balance of £17 was much the same as last year – i.e. at total of £60 – 70 must be raised annually from dances, raffles etc. to keep the club solvent.
There had been a better revenue from playing members subs in the season.
The treasurer then appealed to any ex-rugby players in the district to consider putting back something in return for the enjoyment of their younger days by becoming VP’s of Clacton RFC, thus helping the present generation of players.
Proposed by M Irving, seconded by P Duncan the financial report for the season 1958/59 was adopted unanimously.
M Pyrke suggested a raffle run amongst member and visitors on home game days would be an easily run activity to help the funds along. Keith Huggett volunteered to organise this competition and the offer was accepted with thanks.
It was decided to run the usual Christmas Draw and P Duncan and J Ranson undertook to organise this activity.
The captain, W A Damiral spoke of the loss sustained by the club caused by the departure from Clacton of Mr Jimmy Dow – a founder member and first secretary of the post-war rugby club in Clacton. He reported that committee members had presented Mr Dow with a parting gift and invited members to contribute towards this. This met with an immediate response from members present.
H V Bennett proposed and W A Damiral seconded that J D N Dow be made an honorary life vice-president of the Clacton RUFC in appreciation of his services. This was carried unanimously.
The club’s thanks to Clacton Carnival Committee for a rugby ball.
The skipper reminded members of training sessions to be held and also asked that as many as possible should attend the PE classes at Clacton CHS from Oct onwards.
The meeting was declared closed at 9.40pm.
Annual General Meeting 1960
The 19th AGM of the Clacton RFC held at Queens Head Hotel 13 May 1960 with W A Damiral in the chair and 22 other members present.
Minutes of the 1959 AGM were read and confirmed.
Secretary’s Report
Club could claim very successful season in all depts. Playing record up to previous seasons but the entry in the Suffolk 7’s had not been as successful as last years. A Colts XV organised by Ian Bud had won both its matches. Messrs Pyrke, Ransom and Jones were to be complimented on the success of the social function held at Kingscliff Hotel and it was hoped this effort would be repeated.
The Town Hall dances had failed as a source of income and had been abandoned.
Christmas Draw produced a record profit of £35 due to efforts of P Duncan and J Ransom.
Thanks were expressed to
1 Suffolk RU Refs Society – a much improved standard this year.
2 Don Mann and staff at Vista Road.
3 Mr and Mrs Etheridge for putting up with us for another year.
4 Those members providing cars as transport – a great saving of club funds.
Captain’s Report
Max Pyrke gave playing record as P 24, W 10, D 3, L 11 Pts 216-286 compared with last season W 12, L 12.
He praised services of 4 of the younger CRGS members Bond, Napier, Dusgate and Rice and hoped 2 of them would be regular full club members next season.
Duncan and Cork could be regarded as most improved players, though they still had much to learn. He said club was again indebted to its hard core of regulars especially those like Powis and Taylor who were prepared to step in as required. Thanks to John Ransom the v. capt. Finally appealed to all members to go all out to attain new players.
Team Secretary’s Report
Fairly good season from his point of view. Very little calling off at last minute and a reliable same solid core of 8 or 10 players for most games. 25 had played for club during season. Unfortunately have to say good-bye to Churchman and Dodds this season. Blotted our copybook by having to cancel the Hollesley fixture.
Treasurer in an interim statement estimated we should start new season with £45 in hand – better than last season.
A vote of thanks to officers of the club was accorded.
The following officers were elected for the 1960/61 season.
President Julian Ridsdale Esq
Chairman W A Damiral Esq
V Chairman W A Burrows Esq
Hon Secretary H V Bennett
Hon Treas H Martin
Hon Team Sec W A Damiral
Hon Assist Sec D Powis
Captain Max Pyrke
V Capt J Ransom
Committee (after a ballot) Messrs Rice, Savage, Weekes.
Other business
1 A suggestion to abandon fixtures with Felixstowe was discussed. The committee had dealt with this matter and fixtures were already arranged for 1960/61 on the understanding that certain conditions were observed. On a majority vote it was agreed these fixtures should be observed.
2 The possibility of continuing a Colts XV was discussed and was to be explored.
3 Notice was given of the Suffolk RFU coaching course at Ipswich in August 1960.
The meeting closed at 8.40pm.
Autumn General Meeting 1960
Was held on Friday 16th Sept 1960 at the Queens Head Hotel at 8.0pm with W A Damiral in the chair and 14 other members present.
Apologies for absence were received from Messrs Burrows, Phillips and Hodges.
The Treasurer presented his report for the 1959-60* season. (* copy in files)
The main points to be stressed were an increased balance, £53 compared with only £13 the previous year. £10 more had been obtained from VP’s. The weekly raffle instituted last season had raised £8. The Xmas Draw had been £19 up on the previous years record total. A saving of over £30 had been made on travelling owing to generous use of members cars. The Town Hall dance had resulted in a £2 loss. On the prop of M Savage, sec D Price the Treasurer’s report was adopted unanimously.
Owing to business reasons the elected captain (M Pyrke) had been obliged to resign this office during the summer. On the committee’s proposal John Ransom was unanimously elected captain for the 1960/61 season.
The vice captaincy was filled by Ken Rice on the prop of M Savage sec J Ransom.
D Powis undertook to run the weekly raffle for the 1960/61 season.
W Weekes undertook the responsibility of keeping the balls in good order and availability.
A discussion on a profit making dance venture was abandoned until K Jones was able to investigate and give more detailed facts.
The meeting was closed at 9.00pm
AGM 1961
The 20th AGM of Clacton RUFC held at 7.15 on 5th May 1961 at Queens Head with W A Damiral in the chair and 14 other members.
Apologies for absence were received from Messrs Ridsdale, Rice and Burrows.
Minutes of the 1960 AGM were read and confirmed, there being no matters arising from the minutes.
Secretary’s Report
The primary aim of this club is the playing of rugby football and last season was probably the most successful of the post war club. We had scored more points for than against – 1st time since 1952/53 which had only been a limited season.
Record P 23 W 12 D 3 L 8 Pts 249-190
After a poor start – 1st 6 matches were 1 D, 5 L – the season had improved. In 1961 we were not defeated until 3 Apl. by Borderers. The visit of this touring side had been a new venture which proved very successful.
We had entered the Suffolk 7’s but met Ipswich I in the first round and so were, not surprisingly, beaten by the eventual winners of the competition.
On the social side there had been a slight falling off in activity, particularly among the younger players. Girl friends and wives should be made to appreciate that Sat. night was not their night. However a successful social evening was held in March arranged by John Ransom. Our thanks were due to Hugh Arnot for acting as very able MC on this occasion.
The Xmas Draw was not so successful as usual – possibly due to the saturation of the market with draw tickets.
The clubs thanks were accorded to
1 The Suffolk Refs Society
2 Don Mann and the Vista Road staff.
3 Mr and Mrs Etheridge
4 Members who used their cars for away games with a great saving in transport costs.
The Captain reported that the very good season was largely due to the improved standards brought in by new members – Hughes, Varnava, O’Donna, Napier, Rawlings.
He also thanked Ken Rice as an able v.capt for often taking over the captaincy when he was unable to be present.
He thanked the people who had been willing to drop out or come in at the last minute.
The Team Secretary reported that it had been a pleasant change to have more than 15 players available for most games of the season. The policy of the selection committee had been to share out the games evenly amongst the members. Towards the end of the season numbers had fallen off – particularly for the 7’s. He suggested in future that we should not enter the 7’s unless 11 or 12 people said they would be available at the time of entries. He thanked D Powis for his help as Asst Sec.
In his interim report the Treasurer hoped to start next season with about £30. Travelling expenses had been £20 up on previous year despite use of members cars. The £40 – 50 income needed from raffles, draws etc was not accrued and left accounts rather precariously placed. It was felt by the committee that subs may have to be raised.
Election of Officers for the 1961/62 Season
President J Ridsdale Esq MP
Chairman W A Damiral Esq
V Chairman W A Burrows Esq
Secretary H V Bennett
Treasurer H Martin
Team Sec W A Damiral
Assistant Sec D Powis
Captain John Ransom
V Captain Roy Varnava
Committee Messrs Hodges, Price and Rice.
AOB
1 It was reported that club hoped to be affiliated to Suffolk RU instead of Essex RU next season.
2 A proposal that club invest in a 1 gallon jug was carried – unless one first acquired elsewhere.
3 A proposal by R Varnava to try and run a Junior Colts (14-16) next season was approved.
The meeting closed at 8.35pm.
Autumn General Meeting 1961
The Autumn General Meeting of Clacton RUFC was held on Fri 15 Sept 1961 at 8.0pm at Queens Head with W A Damiral in the chair and 18 other members present.
Apologies for absence were received from Messrs Ridsdale, Rice and Ford.
The minutes of the 1960 meeting were read and confirmed.
The Hon Treasurer (Mr H Martin) presented his financial report for 1960-61 season. He drew special attention to the following facts:
1 The balance for the year was down to £38-11-11 (compared with £53 last year).
2 About £50 had been raised on raffles and draws of various types.
3 The costs of travelling were considerably up.
The treasurer pointed out that the funds were rather dependant on uncertain fundraising activities and that he would feel happier if could find a more certain source of income.
After some discussion the Financial Account was adopted on the prop of D Powis and seconded by J Ransom.
The Treasurer then put forward the committee’s recommendations regarding subscriptions for the 1961-62 season. It was agreed that these should be
Players over 18 on Sept 1st £2-0-0
U 18 £1-0-0
Match fees to remain at 3/- and 2/- junior.
Notice of the first Suffolk RU dinner was given and the hope expressed that as many as possible would support the venture.
Colts There was a report on progress by R Varnarva in his attempts to run a Colts (14-16) group in the coming season. He had quite a number of interested boys and asked that Clacton Council be approached with a view to special concessions regarding provision of pitches and space for training on Sat or Sun mornings.
Members undertook to fulfil the following duties for the 1961-62 season.
Raffles at home matches - D Powis
Christmas Draw - P Duncan
Care of Balls - B Taylor
The meeting closed at 9.15pm.
21st AGM 1962
The 21st AGM of Clacton RUFC held on Monday 7th May 1962 at the Queens Head, Gt Clacton with W A Damiral in the chair and 18 other members present.
Apologies for absence were received from Messrs Ridsdale and Burrows.
The minutes of the 1961 AGM were read and approved.
Secretary’s Report
The Hon Sec said we could again look back on a very satisfactory season. The playing record was slightly down: P 24, W 11, D 1, L 12, Pts 206-216. The social atmosphere had been very encouraging – an indication that girl friends and wives were being educated.
In the Suffolk 7’s we defeated Harwich in the first round and lost to Bury St Edmunds I in the 2nd.
This had been the first full season of affiliation to Suffolk RU and had passed most satisfactorily. D Robinson had been a regular member of the Suffolk XV and Max Pyrke had been invited, but was unable to play.
The Boxing Day fixture against Harwich was very successful and was to be made a permanent fixture in the future.
The experimental running of a Junior Colts had proved successful, largely owing to the efforts of R Varnarva and J Bartlett. Although the colts had much to learn they showed promise for the future. In matches they P 4 and won 1.
Thanks of the club were recorded to P Duncan for the Xmas Draw, to the Queens Head, ground staff, and members who had used cars for transport.
The marriages of Napier, Reynolds, Duncan and Pyrke were notified.
Captain’s Report
J Ransom said he had no comments to make on the season except that it had been a happy one. He announced his retirement from the captaincy owing to his forthcoming marriage and business commitments. He thanked R Varnava for stepping into his shoes so often during the season.
Team Sec’s Report
The team sec reported a reasonable season from his end though there had been difficulty in raising XV in a few games. Only 30 people played for the senior XV all season – some of these only casuals.
There was again difficulty in raising a 7 for the Suffolk 7’s. 9 originals were reduced to 6. A more serious approach was needed.
The Treasurer anticipated a balance of £25-30 when all accounts had been finalised. The Christmas Draw had raised £22 and the Weekly Swindle £9.
Election of Officers for 1962/63 Season
President J Ridsdale Esq MP
Chairman W A Damiral Esq
V Chairman W A Burrows Esq
Captain R Varnava
V Capt A Chambers
Hon Secretary H V Bennett
Hon Treasurer H Martin
Hon Team Sec B A Taylor
Assistant Sec J Hall
Rep on Suffolk RU W A Damiral
Colts Manager J Bartlett
Committee Messrs Powis, Price and Williams
AOB
Thanks were expressed to Miss D Cook for assistance with transport on so many occasions.
R Varnarva thanked M J Mullens Esq on behalf of the club for the gift of The Carlton Cup – a fine silver cup to be used as the trophy in the Annual Boxing Day game with Harwich.
P Duncan and D Powis proposed an investigation into possible fund raising activities such as a rock’n’roll session at the Town Hall. A sub-committee was appointed for this purpose.
The meeting closed at 9.45pm.
Autumn General Meeting 1962
The 1962 Autumn GM of the Clacton RUFC was held on Friday 7 Sept 1962 (8.15pm) at the Queens Head Gt Clacton with W A Damiral in the chair and 19 other members present.
Apologies for absence were received from Messrs Ridsdale, Quick, Hall, Whittle and Westman.
The minutes of the 1961 meeting were read and confirmed.
The Hon Treasurer (Mr H Martin) presented his report for the 1961-62 season which showed a balance C/F of £33-8-6 – a decrease of £5 in the balance at the start of the season. In view of the running of a Colts XV this season the treasurer was quite satisfied with the situation.
Various points regarding individual items of the balance sheet were explained by the treasurer.
On the proposition of Mr D F Price, seconded by Mr B Taylor the Treasurers Report was accepted, together with a special vote of thanks to Mr Martin for his untiring and uncomplaining efforts to keep the club accounts in order.
It was agreed that subscriptions for the 1962/63 remain at
Seniors £2 ) with reduction at the discretion of the committee
Colts 10/- )
Match Fees 3/- and 2/- juniors
The chairman (W A Damiral) informed the meeting that although the sub to Suffolk RFU was in fact still 10/6 the county RU were in serious financial difficulty and was asking for voluntary donations from member clubs. It was agreed that the Treasurer forward 50/- to the Suffolk RFU and that a further donation be made later in the season if possible.
In a discussion of arrangements for the 1962/63 season, Bill Waters agreed to undertake care of rugby footballs.
It was reported that several players subs for the 1961/62 season were still unpaid. The meeting referred the matter to the committee to enforce the rules – ‘Membership Rule 9 – Members whose subs continue unpaid on 31st May in any year shall cease to be members of the club’.
A social sub-committee for the 1962/63 season was elected and was Messrs Duncan, Varnarva and Ransom.
The meeting was closed at 9.30pm.
22nd AGM 1963
The 22nd AGM of the Clacton RUFC was held on Mon 6 May 1963 at the Queens Head. W A Damiral in the chair and 26 other members present.
P Duncan apologised for his absence.
Minutes of the 1962 AGM were read and confirmed. The sub-committee on the running of a rock’n’roll dance had reported that the outlay was too great for us to proceed.
Hon Sec’s Report
1962/3 would be remembered as ‘That Was The Winter That Was’. The effect had been 2 short seasons Sept – Mid Dec and March/April. Playing record was
P 21 W 11 D 3 L 7 Pts 181-145
6 of the 8 games in the second half of the season had been won.
The 1st game for the Carlton Cup against Harwich was won by Clacton 9-0.
Both 7’s entered for the Suffolk 7’s on 28 April were eliminated in the 1st round.
2 members represented the club in the Suffolk County XV. Several other players showed up well in the County trials.
The Colts XV continued under the guidance of Mr J Bartlett and the able captaincy of Gordon Wallace, who also played for the County Colts XV.
Colts record was P 10 W 4 L 6.
Mr Roy Varnava had resigned from the captaincy of the club in February and the secretary thanked him for the work he had put in, especially as he was responsible for the formation of the Colts XV. Alan Chambers took over the captaincy.
Thanks were expressed to all those people who had helped in the smooth running of the club in many ways.
Captain’s Report
This had been an enjoyable season – the main thing as far as he was concerned.
A 2nd XV was being started next year and we must go all out to make it work and also to integrate the Colts and Senior players. He proposed that next season there should be Sunday morning club sessions of training as it was imperative the 1st XV should improve if the 2nd’s were also to thrive.
Team Secretary’s Report
He was sorry to report the retirement as players of Messrs Price, Bennett and Weekes. However he anticipated that Roy Varnarva would be returning to play for us next season – a hope endorsed by all the club.
Mr Taylor complemented the members on their ‘early in the week’ call offs when not available. This made his job very much easier.
5 of last seasons Colts were now Seniors and he hoped to see them pushing for 1st XV places in 1963/64.
Hon Treasurer’s Interim Report
A balance of about £80 at this stage but bills of £30-40 were still to be met. He was hopeful that the Colts and 2nd XV’s would not need to be curtailed on any financial grounds despite the greater proportionate expense. He expressed the club’s thanks to P Duncan for organising the Xmas Draw at a profit of £32.
Colts Manager
Season was not too hard. Practices were not as well attended as he would have liked but not helped by his own absence when in hospital. The U19 Colts 7’s side had done will in reaching the final of the Plate competition.
Election of Officers for 1963/64
Elected:
President: J Ridsdale Esq MP
Chairman: W A Damiral Esq
V Chairman: W A Burrows Esq
1st XV Capt: A Chambers
V Capt: K Westman
Secretary: H V Bennett
Treasurer: H Martin
Team Sec: B Taylor
Asst Sec: J Hall
Colts Manager: J Bartlett
Rep on Suffolk RU: W A Damiral
Committee: Messrs J Ransom, J Napier, G Williams
Election of 2nd XV and Colts XV captains was deferred until Sept.
AOB
Ways of advertising for new players were discussed. The matter was left in the committee’s hands.
Need for some maintenance and improvement to the showers was discussed. It was agreed to approach Messrs Cobbolds the brewers via Mr W A Burrows.
A feeling that insufficient effort was made in 7’s was aired. Agreed that more practice was needed.
Autumn General Meeting 1963
Was held at the Queens Head at 5.15pm on Sat 14th Sept ’63 with W A Damiral in the chair and 29 other members present.
Apologies were received from Messrs Butlin, Ridsdale, Halls and Ransom.
Minutes of the 1962 meeting were read and confirmed.
The Treasurer’s Report
A balance of £33-8-6 at the start of the season was increased to £47-16-8 up to 1963/64. He made the following points in regard to the balance sheet presented to the meeting: Increase due to
(1) curtailment of playing season
(2) prompt payment of members subs
(3) v. good Christmas draw thanks to P Duncan.
But
Expenses would increase in 1963/64 owing to 3 XV’s. The co-operation of all members was required to fund raising activities to keep the club solvent.
Colts had required subsidising to the extent of about £8.
The report was adopted and a vote of thanks to the treasurer was passed.
Election
2nd XV Capt 1963/64 – A Ford
Colts XV Capt 1963/64 – G Wallace
It was agreed that Captains should organise a weekly draw at home games.
John Napier was appointed ball keeper for the season.
The 1st XV Capt and Colts manager stated that a club practice would be held on Sunday mornings. All were welcome and urged to attend.
The meeting closed at 6.30pm.
23rd AGM 1964
The 23rd AGM of Clacton RUFC was held on 4th May 1964 at Queens Head, Gt Clacton at 8.15pm. W A Damiral was in the chair and 23 other members were present.
Apologies received from Messrs Ridsdale and Burrows.
The minutes of the 1963 AGM were read and confirmed.
In matters arising from minutes it was reported that improvements to the showers had been carried out and thanks were communicated to Messrs Cobbolds, the brewers, for financing the job.
Captain’s Report
Alan Chambers reported the best season in the history of the club. Not only was 1st XV record very good but he felt greatest achievement was the successful formation of the 2nd XV. He thanked A Ford for his able captaincy of this XV.
The Colts were now established and were essential to the continued success of the club. Thanks to J Bartlett and G Wallace for his captaincy and enthusiasm.
Team Secretary’s Report
B Taylor said this had been a wonderful year with a much bigger playing membership. He thanked Pathfields School for the help given in providing Colts players.
Army senior players K Woods and E Handley were very welcome newcomers to the 1st XV. Bestow was retiring. He expressed thanks and good wishes to M Friend who was leaving the area.
He pointed out there were more 2nd XV fixtures next season and appealed for still more players to meet all our obligations.
He expressed his thanks to J Hall, the captains and selection committee for making his task easier.
Hon Secretary’s Report
H V Bennett said the club was in a very happy position, almost everything having gone well. There had been a full season – no losses due to bad weather. Playing record of 1st XV was best ever:
P 27, W 18, L 9 Points 393 – 143
The Carlton Cup was retained for a second year.
2nd XV exceeded all hopes and record was
P 12; W 5, D 1, L 6, Points 110 – 158
In the Suffolk 7’s we lost to Ipswich in the first round but then went on to win the Plate Competition. Teams were also entered for the YMCA U17 Sevens and the Ipswich U19 Sevens.
Several players had county trials. K Woods played for the Suffolk XV v. Fighter Command in March.
The club was well represented in the Suffolk Sunday (?) Competition – one game being played at Clacton – but the success of this venture was doubtful.
Ladies were congratulated on their very fine efforts in fund raising by a Jumble Sale.
Christmas Draw was again extremely successful owing to the effort of P Duncan.
The only disappointment was the enforced cancellation of the social evening owing to lack of support. The menfolk made up for this at the Sausage Supper but the secretary regretted that we seemed unable to run a social function for the ladies and hoped this would be remedied.
The club was well represented on the Clacton Sports Council (W A Damiral on the committee).
Thanks were expressed to Queens, ground staff and car owners who had helped so much to make running of the club so smooth.
Owing to increase in size of club and the extra work involved the Secretary asked that a new office of Fixture Secretary be created.
Treasurer in his Interim Report said this was his 10th year of office during which he had seen many ups and downs of the clubs finances. However this seasons success story also continued in the finances. An initial balance of £48 looked like being around £85 when all accounts had been finalised.
There was a big saving by the 1st XV using more private cars for transport.
A unanimous vote of thanks was expressed to Harry Martin for his 10 years service.
Election of Officers for 1964/65
President: Julian Ridsdale Esq
Chairman: W A Damiral
V Chairman: W A Burrows
Hon Secretary: H V Bennett
Hon Treasurer: H Martin
Hon Team Sec: B Taylor
Hon Fixture Sec: P Duncan
Hon Asst Sec: J Hall
Colts Manager: J Bartlett
1st XV Captain: A Chambers
V Captain: J Napier
2nd XV Capt: A Ford
V Capt: D Powis
Colts XV Capt: G Wallace
Rep on Suffolk Committee – deferred
Committee: Messrs G Williams, J Ransom, K Westman
In AOB it was asked if the Red Cross Society could be allowed to take a motorised vehicle on the Vista Road ground at home games. There was a request for assistance at the Red Cross fete in July.
A vote of thanks to the Red Cross for their services was given and a donation of £2-2-0 to them was approved.
The meeting closed at 10.05pm
Autumn General Meeting 1964
Held on Monday 7th Sept 1964 at the Queens Head Hotel at 8.15pm with W A Damiral in the chair and 22 other members.
Apologies for absence from Messrs H Martin, Robinson, Burrows, Kingsford-Byron, Woods.
On prop of D Powis the best wishes of the club were extended to Mr H Martin for his speedy recovery from his illness.
Minutes of last Autumn meeting were read and confirmed.
Treasurer’s Report was presented and accepted with following explanatory notes:
(1) Season started with balance of £69-18-10 – an increase of £47 over last year.
(2) Fund raising – final total of £79. Treasurer’s special thanks to
P Duncan – Christmas Draw
Ladies Committee – very profitable jumble sale.
No information yet received on the Summer Draw being run by J Martin.
Accounts
Members subs down by £10
Good saving on 1st XV transport due to use of members cars
Colts - Expenses £36)
- Income £23) Subsidy £13
2nd XV - Expenses £30
- Income £12 + members subs (not separated from 1st XV)
Summary
Considering the expansion of the club’s fixture list it was even more satisfying to report an increase in the balance.
Elections
In view of departure of A Ford from the district and the temporary absence of H Martin through illness the following elections were made.
2nd XV Capt: D Powis
V Capt: W Weekes
Assistant Treasurer: J Holloway
A vote of thanks was accorded to Tony Ford for services rendered to the club.
AOB
A discussion on if and how a v.capt of the Colts should be elected ensued. It was agreed the Colts manager should elect a v.capt to be confirmed by the committee.
The tragic and untimely death in a road accident of Max Pyrke – a former captain of the club – was reported to the meeting. The club had been represented at the funeral by the Chairman, V Chairman and Secretary. An expression of sympathy was forwarded to the widow and family.
There was no other business.
The meeting closed at 9.30pm
AGM 1965
The 24th AGM of the Clacton RUFC was held on Monday 3rd May 1965 at Queens Head Hotel, Gt Clacton at 7.30pm with W A Damiral in the chair and 17 other members present.
Apologies for absence were received from Messrs Ridsdale, Rice, B Jarvis, Hale, Dusgate.
Minutes of the 1964 AGM were read and confirmed. There were no matters arising from the minutes.
Captain’s Report
There had been an even better playing record than last year. Better attention to teamwork and discipline were needed next year if we were to cope with the improved fixture list. There had been several good new players and some excellent filling in when required by members of the 2nd XV. The captain expressed thanks to D Powis for his work with the 2nd XV and to J Bartlett for his efforts with the Colts.
Westman and Weekes were retiring from active participation.
Secretary’s Report
Sec was pleased to report what had probably been most successful season yet for this club. Standard of rugby had steadily improved which lead to keen competition for 1st XV places. The Carlton Cup was retained. 2nd XV had a very satisfactory season and there seemed no reason why it should not go forward steadily in the future.
Colts fixtures were rather curtailed for various reasons – however there had been a good spirit in the Colts and the Sec hoped this most important part of the club would continue to grow. He took the opportunity of expressing clubs thanks to J Bartlett for his work as Colt’s manager over the last 2 years.
Playing records were:
1st XV P 27, W 21, L 6; Pts 457 – 140
2nd XV P 20, W 11, L 9; Pts 247 – 237
Colts XV P 7, W 4, L 3.
One criticism was standard of dress on the field. Jerseys were shabby and an appeal was made to all members to get a decent club jersey. Allsports the suppliers.
At county level a fair number of players had turned out in the various trial games. K Woods was a regular county 1st XV player and Holloway and Dusgate played for the newly formed Suffolk 2nd XV.
In 7’s competitions our record had not been outstanding. Senior 7 won their 1st round but were defeated by Norwich (the final runners up) in the second round. In U17 Sevens at YMCA our 7 was defeated in 1st round.
Social Events
Highlight had been the excellent club dinner dance at Ebor Lodge on 3rd April. It was a great success and all credit was due to Messrs Chambers and Napier for their determination to make it a success and the 1st class arrangements. The guests were President of the Suffolk RU and Mrs Glyn Evans.
Season ended with a sausage supper on 24 April with Southwold as guests. There seemed to be a better social atmosphere in this club than in many – nevertheless the committee would like to see still more stopping after games to entertain visitors.
Fund Raising
Thanks to the ladies – especially Mesdames Chambers and Taylor – a very profitable rummage sale was organised.
P Duncan produced a good result to the Xmas Draw with his usual efficiency.
Last Summer’s Draw proved a flop – but involved no actual loss of cash.
The usual thanks were expressed to all who had helped in any way. Especial thanks were given to B Taylor who had undertaken the team secs job for almost 2 years and also to J Holloway for taking over from him at short notice.
Team Secretary’s Report
There were currently 51 playing members – not really enough for 3 regular XV’s! There had had to be too much dependence on the schools which was not a good thing for tough 2nd XV fixtures. Thanks were expressed to reserves who had turned out at short notice.
A special vote of thanks, proposed by D Powis and carried unanimously, was made to Bill Weekes in recognition of the tremendous help he had given to the game of rugby in all his years as a player.
Fixture Secretary’s Report
gave news of improved fixtures. In 1965/66 fixtures with Bury Wolves were renewed. Colchester had finally given us the Ravens. Southend were sending their ‘A’ with promise of ‘Priors’ if we deserved them. On E Monday we were to entertain London New Zealanders.
In 1966/67. Basildon a new fixture. Woodford given us 2nd XV.
67/68 Chelmsford 2nd XV
In an Interim Report the Treasurer said he expected a final balance for the season of around £60. Outstanding subs were too many for comfort.
Election of Officer for 1965/66
Elected:
President: Julian Ridsdale Esq MP
Chairman: W A Damiral Esq
V Chairman: W A Burrows Esq
Hon Sec: H V Bennett
Hon Treas: H Martin
Hon Team Sec: J Holloway
Hon Fixture Sec: P S I Duncan
1st XV Captain: A J Chambers
1st XV V Capt: K Woods
2nd XV Capt: J Ransom
2nd XV V Capt: deferred
Colts Manager: D Powis
Rep on Suffolk RU Committee: H V Bennett
Committee Officers + Messrs Williams, Merrett, Westman.
Selection Committee
It was proposed and carried that Rule 20 read:
‘The teams to represent the club shall be selected by a sub-committee comprising the Chairman of the club, and 2 other members, of whom at least one should preferably be a non-player. In addition the Captains of the 1st XV and 2nd XV and the Colts Manager shall join the committee for selection of their representative XV’s. The Selection Committee shall elect its own chairman from among its own members. The committee shall meet on Monday evenings during the season’.
AOB
A discussion on possible organisation of a second playing pitch resulted in a prop by Powis, sec by Napier that a sub-committee be formed:
‘To investigate and report upon a possible acquisition by the club of playing, changing and social amenities’.
Elected to the sub-committee - D Powis, W Damiral, A Chambers
The meeting was closed at 10.10pm.
Autumn Gen Meeting 1965
Held at Queens Head Hotel on Monday 6 Sept 1965 at 8.00pm. W A Damaril in chair
and 14 other members.
Minutes of 1964 meeting were read and confirmed.
The Hon Treasurer in presenting his report stated there was a balance of £50 from the season – a decrease of £20 over the season. He stressed the need for continued effort in fund raising activities.
The accounts were accepted on the prop of D Price, seconded by D Powis.
Players Subs 1965/66
The following scheme was adopted.
Seniors Sub 10/-) + 50% if later than 6 weeks from start
Juniors Sub 5/- ) of season
Match Fees 5/- and 2/6
- this to be reviewed next year.
W Weekes was elected to the vacancy on the general committee.
C Merrett was elected Press Officer.
AOB
There was a report on the difficulty of raising a 2nd XV pitch for the occasions when 2 XV’s are at home.
There was a discussion on the possibility of a club house (off Valley Road). Both these matters were referred to the sub-committee (W Damiral, D Powis, A Chambers).
In response to a question from the floor the selection committee confirmed that it would be present at all club trials.
Meeting closed 9.00pm
Annual General Meeting 1966
The 25th AGM of the Clacton RUFC held at the Queens Head, Monday 9th May 1966 at 8.00pm.
W A Damiral was in the chair with 15 members present.
1. Apologies for absence – Messrs Ridsdale, Burrows, Cooper, J and H Holloway, Jarvis, Price.
2. Minutes of 1965 AGM were read and confirmed.
3. Matters arising:
2nd XV pitch. D Powis reported interesting possible developments but matter was delicate, but in hand.
Jerseys – the poor turnout of some players was criticised.
4. Captain’s Report
had been a good season considering the injuries suffered. 1st XV had much help from able youngsters. 1st XV had 5 Suffolk County players (seniors and colts) yet we lost to 3rd XV’s. Suggested TEAMwork was lacking.
In 1966/67 we would be without Holloway, Duncan and Constant – people hard to replace.
A Chambers announced his retirement from the captaincy and wished his successor every success.
5. Team Secretary’s Report
D Powis thanked J Holloway, from whom he took over towards the end of the season – he had realised the hard work he had put in.
Main grouse – a few people who called off late, but on the whole it hadn’t been too bad.
About 70 players had been used during the season owing to the very large number of injuries. This had resulted in a 1st XV nothing like as settled as previous years.
6. Fixture Secretary’s Report
Only new items to report were: we would get Ipswich Magpies in 66/67, also on 3 dates fixtures for 3 XV’s had been made.
67/68 Half the fixtures would be on a permanent dates basis.
7. Secretary’s Report
Not quite such a good season in terms of results but still very satisfactory.
1st XV P 27, W 14, D 1, L 12, Pts 304 – 230
2nd XV P 19, W 10, D 2, L 7, Pts 217 – 124
Colts P 5, W 1, D 1, L 3 Pts 48 – 65
County Rugby
Chairman W A Damiral elected to ECRU committee.
K Woods and J Holloway regular Suffolk 1st XV members. Woods got his colours; Dusgate and Holloway played for 2nd XV; Harrison and Gage for County Colts XV – both getting their colours.
Senior 7’s – owing to a car mishap the team was depleted and lost in the 1st round.
Colts 7’s – a 1st class effort – our team went through to the semi-final, beaten in extra time by RHS Holbrook, the eventual winners.
Social Activities
Highlight was an excellent dinner and dance at the Kingscliffe Hotel. The usual end of season sausage supper was well supported by younger members of the club.
Fund Raising
Thanks were accorded to Mrs Chambers for organising jumble sale and P Duncan for the Xmas Draw.
General thanks were given to all helpers, particularly those who were retiring from office for various reasons:
J Holloway (Team Sec)
D Powis (Temporary Team Sec)
A Chambers (Skipper for 4 years)
J Ransom (2nd XV skipper)
P Duncan (Fixture Secretary)
8. Treasurer’s Statement
He expected the £50 balance at start of season would be maintained. VP’s subs were down.
Comparing the incomes on the experiment of a reduced sub, but larger match fee figures quoted were
64/5 £97 65/6 £88
Transport costs for 65/6 were, however well down.
[No item 9 shown]
10. Election of Officers 1966/67
President - J Ridsdale MP ( and VP’s)
Chairman - W A Damiral
V Chairman - G Williams
Hon Sec - H V Bennett
Hon Treas - H Martin
Hon Team Sec - J Hall
Hon Fixt Sec - P T Gibbs
1st XV Captain - K Woods
V Capt - D Dusgate
2nd XV Capt - B Taylor
Committee - Messrs Merrett, Chambers and Powis
Rep on Suffolk RFU - H V Bennett
Press Officer - C Merrett
11. Colts Rugby
D Powis reported only 1 occasion on which a purely Colts team could be fielded owing to Colts being in 1st XV and clashes with schools’ fixtures.
It was proposed:
1 Colts fixtures to be abandoned – instead run a 3rd XV as and when possible
2 Junior section to look after their own interests and set up.
3 Should try to arrange a coaching set up (inc schools, county etc)
A sub-committee comprising Messrs Williams, Powis, Taylor and Bennett was set up to investigate possibility of these proposals.
12. AOB
To avoid temporary 1st XV players turning out without a club jersey it was proposed to have 6 such jerseys available for hire. K Woods undertook to administer the scheme.
The meeting closed at 10.30pm
Autumn General Meeting 1966
Held at Queens Head Hotel on 24 Sept 1966 at 7.30pm with W A Damiral in the chair and 20 other members present.
Minutes of 1965 meeting were read and confirmed.
Matters arising. The question of a 2nd pitch for 1966/67 was raised. It was stated that Pathfields School was being approached for the small number of times this would be needed in 66/67
Hon Treasurer then presented his Receipts and Payments account for 1965/66. There had been an increase in the balance of £8 – season would start with £57-13-3 in hand.
Subs and Match Fees – the new system had brought in less revenue but as the transport costs had been lower it was worth trying the system for a further year.
Mr Martin congratulated those members who had organised fund raising efforts to the tune of £95.
Annual Dinner had made a small profit owing to a well run tombola.
VP’s subscriptions were down again.
Treasurer concluded by saying he felt the balance was enough for normal running of the club but not enough for any major development in the club’s activities.
The accounts were adopted and a vote of thanks was moved by B Taylor to the treasurer for his efforts during the year.
Subs/Match Fees 1966/67
A prop by B Taylor sec by J Ransom to retain last season’s method was carried unanimously.
AOB
1 A proposition to make a club presentation to Alan and Daphne Chambers was approved. W Weekes undertook to make the club collection amongst members and the committee was empowered to purchase a suitable gift.
2 Xmas Draw 1966. N Baines volunteered to promote this important venture.
3 Preliminary ideas for the forthcoming Rotary Leisure Exhibition at Clacton Town Hall were discussed.
4 Junior Section. Prop C Merrett sec B Taylor ‘The club supports the formation of a Junior Section’ – carried unanimously.
C Watts and T Webb were elected as Junior Members of the general committee.
The Junior section reported the arrangement of a dance on 23 Dec at the Portabello. They requested a ‘float’ of a few pounds to give them a working capital and also asked the club to underwrite the above dance. This was approved.
The meeting was closed at 8.30pm.
Annual General Meeting 1967
The 26th AGM of the Clacton RUFC held at the Queens Head on Monday 15th May 1967 at 8.00pm with W A Damiral in the chair and 29 other members present.
1 Apologies received from Messrs Ridsdale, Howard, Jacobs, Maber
2 Minutes of 1966 AGM were read and approved. There were no matters arising.
3 Secretary’s Report
Record for the season:
1st XV P 27, W 17, D 2, L 8 Points 335 – 167
2nd XV P 22, W 9, D 1, L 12 Points 181 – 218
3rd XV P 11, W 6, D 0, L 5 Points 94 – 121
County Rugby – K Woods and J Holloway had played regularly for Suffolk 1st XV, Gage and Dobson for the 2nd XV.
Suffolk 7’s – 1st round we beat Norwich Crusaders. Lost 2nd round to a strong Norwich VII.
Experiment of 3rd XV had mixed success – strong enough at full strength but suffered from players with poor loyalty to the club.
Social Activities – A successful dinner dance at Portobello Hotel Walton had been held. Junior section organised a profitable beat dance at Portobello in Feb. Usual end of season sausage supper was held.
Fund Raising
N Baines had been a (????) to the promotion of the Xmas Draw. Grand National Draw organised by Newark RFC had not raised what it should have done.
Thanks were expressed to all fellow officers who had done such a good job, team and fixture secs, treasurer, press officer. Thanks also expressed to Mr and Mrs Tate (our new hosts) and to the Rec ground staff. Especial thanks to our retiring chairman, W A Damiral.
Team Secretary’s Report
82 players had turned out in the 3 XV’s – 56 regulars. 40 played for 1st XV but was more stable in second half season.
Late call offs had been bad practice – was disciplinary action possible?
Loss of Dusgate would be a hard position to replace next season.
Fixture Secretary’s Report
The fixtures for 67/68 were almost complete. 4 new ones were Billericay, Thetford, Saffron Walden and U Services, Colchester.
Treasurer’s Interim Statement showed a not very happy situation. £58 balance at start of season would probably be only £15 at end. Caused by fund raising being down and by all XV’s not paying their way, particularly the 3rd XV.
Treasurer felt a more business-like funding needed – independent of fund raising activity. He suggested an increase in subscriptions and fund raising to go to a Deposit Account only.
Officers for 1967/68 – Elected
President Julian Ridsdale Esq
Chairman G Williams
V Chairman W A Damiral
Secretary H V Bennett
Treasurer H Martin
Team Sec J Hall
Fixture Sec P Gibbs
Captain of the Club Mervyn Pallister
2nd XV Captain N Guyer
3rd XV Captain Bill Weekes
Committee Messrs Merrett, Sanford and Webb
also
Press Officer C Merrett
Rep on Suffolk RU H V Bennett
Prop H Powis Esq Sec D Price that ‘W A Damiral be elected to an Hon Life Vice Presidency of the club in recognition of his long years of service in many capacities’. This was carried unanimously and WAD expressed his grateful thanks.
Prop B A Taylor Sec J Hall that
1 There should be a new officer of the club – membership secretary
2 That he be a member of the committee
3 That playing members subs be £2-2-0 for seniors and 10/- for those in full time education.
4 That all players be required to be fully paid up members by last Sat in Nov annually.
The above was carried and B A Taylor elected the new membership secretary.
The committee was asked to note point 4 and ensure that no player be selected to play whilst his sub is unpaid after last Sat in Nov or beyond one month of election to membership.
AOB
The new captain of the club undertook to arrange training for the next season.
An attempt would be made to run the 3rd XV
The meeting closed at 10.15pm
Autumn General Meeting 1967
Was held at Queens Head, Mon 11 Sept at 7.30pm with G Williams in the chair and 27 others present.
Apologies received from Messrs Ridsdale, H Powis, Price, Mellor, Gibbs, Leaming, Webb.
Minutes of 1966 AGM were read and approved. There were no matters arising.
Hon Treasurer’s Report for 1966/67
An initial balance of £58 was down to £17. Fund raising was £33 down. There had been an increase in various items of expenditure. Due to expansion further income must be raised – hence the increased subscriptions.
The treasurer presented his balance sheet and explained various items in more detail.
The report was adopted on prop by Merrett, sec Powis.
A vote of thanks was proposed by Merrett, seconded Damiral.
AOB
1. In reply to a question it was stated that young players from Pathfields or other schools were welcome in the club.
2. N Bains and W Weekes were elected to run the Christmas Draw.
3. A social sub-committee was set up to look into Dinner/Dance, Social, Stag Night and Club lunch possibilities.
4. It was left to the committee to appoint a v. captain for the club for the ensuing season.
The meting closed at 9.40pm.
AGM 1968
The 27th AGM of CRUFC was held at Queens Head Mon 6th May 1968 at 8.00pm with G Williams in the chair and 26 other members present.
Apologies for absence were received from Messrs Ridsdale, Price, Powis, Maber, Fittall, Howard
Minutes of the 1967 AGM were read and confirmed. There were no matters arising.
Secretary’s Report
It had been a fair season on the field and a very good season as regards club spirit in the 1st and 2nd XV’s. Bill Weekes great efforts with the 3rd XV had not received the support he deserved – there had been too many fair weather footballers.
J Holloway had continued to play for Suffolk 1st XV. Pallister and Gage played for the Suffolk 2nd XV.
Sevens – Colts at YMCA found the opposition too good for them.
Senior 7 performed well in the Suffolk 7’s being beaten in the final of the Plate competition.
Domestic 7’s had been a success in it’s first year, Nuttall’s 7 being the worthy winners. The sausage supper was so badly supported that it was proposed to drop this in the future.
Social Activities Len Sanford and Bert Maber had done a very good job as a social sub-committee and the club thanked them for a very enjoyable Dinner and Dance at the Ferry Boat Inn.
Fund Raising A very hearty vote of thanks was expressed to Brian Taylor for organising the very profitable Stag Night and also for doing the membership secretary job so well that people actually paid their subs promptly.
N Bains had quietly and efficiently run a good Xmas Draw.
Captain’s Report
Mervyn Pallister said that loss of key players had rather spoiled the 1st XV record – their replacements had been rather young and inexperienced.
Results:
1st XV P 24, W 12, D 2, L 10 Points 209 – 230
2nd XV P 21, W 6, D 2, L 13 Points 159 – 240
3rd XV P 13, W 2, D 2, L 9 Points 81 – 267
Points
Roy Jacob top scorer 71 points
Outstanding Players
1st XV Nuttall and Gage
3rd XV Len Sanford was top scorer
Early season training had proved beneficial to the small number who turned out – more people should try it.
Notable victories were Colchester Ravens and Sudbury twice.
Team Secretary’s Report
76 players turned out during season – 30 for 1st XV, 42 for 2nd XV, 46 for 3rd XV.
Too much variation in composition of 1st XV was not conducive to good results.
Fixture Secretary’s Report
Next season would start last Sat in September. 1st and 2nd XV’s were almost complete. 19 had been arranged for 3rd XV but there were doubts as to the possibility of fulfilling them. KO times would normally be 3.00pm all season with the new BST.
Membership Secretary reported 69 registered players on his books. 11 had dropped out when pressed for their subs and the club was better off without them. Thus 58 paid up members for the season and £90 was paid to Treasurer in subscriptions.
In his Interim Statement the Treasurer reported subs from players and VP’s was up considerably (£33 to £100).
Match fees were about the same.
Xmas Draw was about the same.
Stag Night was the big success (£96)
Capital Investment: London Road Posts
£50 in Building Society
Election of Officers 1968/69
President - J Ridsdale
Chairman - G Williams
V Chairman - W A Damiral
Secretary - H V Bennett
Treasurer - H Martin
Team Sec - J Hall
Fixture Sec - P T Gibbs
Membership Sec - B Taylor
Captain of Club - M Pallister
2nd XV Capt - N Guyer
3rd XV Capt - W Weekes
General Committee - Messrs Bains, Sanford, Ransom
Press Officer - D Marshall
Rep on Suffolk RU - H V Bennett
AOB
(1) Proposals by the retiring committee
‘That monies raised by special fund raising activities be invested in a HQ fund’ and
‘That a working committee be set up to investigate the possibilities of improvement to the HQ facilities in the future’ – were carried.
Messrs Taylor, Powis and Damiral were elected to the above committee.
(2) J Hall asked that thanks be made to Messrs Orchard, Rowley-Guyon and Powis for refereeing 2nd and 3rd XV games.
(3) On a proposition of N Guyer it was agreed ‘that a coaching day be arranged as early as practicable for next season’.
The meeting was closed at 10.40pm.
Autumn General Meeting 1968
Held at Queens Head Hotel on 14th Sept 1968 at 8.30pm.
G Williams was in the chair and 17 other members attended.
Apologies for absence were received from Messrs Pearce and Weekes.
Minutes of the 1967 meeting were read and confirmed.
The Hon Treasurer presented his Annual Accounts for 1967/68.
An initial balance of £17 was up to £190 – the best ever in the history of the club. This great improvement was due to the efforts of Brian Taylor – both as membership secretary and as organiser of the Stag Night. There had also been a substantial increase in Xmas Draw receipts thanks to the efforts of Norman Bains. The club’s total assets were now £220.
The Treasurer’s report was adopted on the prop of J Hall sec W A Damiral.
A vote of thanks to Harry Martin was prop by W A Damiral, sec by G Williams and carried unanimously.
AOB
(1) V Capt of 1st XV
A nomination was made but this was amended to its being deferred to be decided by the committee when the composition of the team was settled.
(2) There was an inconclusive general discussion on the 3rd XV and non-playing members of the selection committee.
(3) The sub-committee on the HQ fund reported a suitable building could be obtained for £500. This would require a further £500 to equip it. However there was no suggestion as to a possible siting of such a building in relation to services (sewers, electricity etc) and it was felt this would be a major handicap as long as we played on council pitches.
The meeting was closed at 10.00pm
AGM 1969
The 28th AGM of the Clacton RUFC held at the Queens Head on 12th May 1969 at 8.00pm. G Williams was chairman and 32 other members were present.
Apologies for absence from Messrs Julian Ridsdale, H Powis, R Thomas, G Aitken.
Minutes of 1968 were read and confirmed.
Mervyn Pallister had been moved by his firm in the close season and Bill Tovey was elected captain by the General Committee.
Club Captains Report for 1968/69
44 players had played for the 1st XV – a nucleus of 7 regulars. This was obviously bad for the team. 5 had been dropped on playing ability, 1 for non-payment of subs, 3 left.
Points scorers: Gage 56, Connell 21, C Martin 21.
In addition to the above good individuals had been Dobson, Westow, the ever versatile Wallace and Clive Honey. Trevor Honey was the new young player with great potential.
Season had been mixed with 5 heavy defeats – Stowmarket for the first time ever! 5 games were cancelled which should have been won.
Debit side:
Great loss of Mervyn Pallister.
16 other players lost for various reasons (including St Osyth College).
Lack of fitness and dislike of training.
Too many call-offs for poor reasons.
Poor response in social life after the game.
Credit: Good spirit amongst youngsters. Pathfields School promises to be a good source of future talent.
Improved spirit towards end of season.
Social functions had been very good – an excellent Dinner-Dance and a good Stag Night.
Team Secretary reported 55 players in all, 44 for the 1st XV.
He thanked Mr Alan White for his co-operation at Pathfields School.
He was sad to report the departure of Derek Robinson to another post towards the end of the season – he was a true clubman.
Fixture Secretary reported a full fixture list for next season with new or resumed fixtures against Brentwood, Thetford, Woodbridge.
Membership Secretary had 58 applications in the season of whom 43 paid up! Of the non-payers there a number of servicemen who soon disappeared or got injured. £68 had been paid in player subs.
Club Secretary’s Report
Coaching Conference at start of season had been a failure through lack of support. However training for 7’s at end was indicative of new attitude.
Social functions had been a great success – especially Dinner Dance at Frinton Lodge.
Thanks to fund raisers:
B Taylor and J Hall for very good Stag Night.
F Hall – Xmas Draw.
County Honours
Gage and Dobson played for Suffolk 2nd XV.
Treasurer: Interim Statement
A £44 balance was now around £190 with about £103 outstanding accounts – hence final balance around £87 + Stag Night profits of about £70. Around £150.
Election for 1969/70 Season
President - J Ridsdale MP
Chairman - G Williams
V Chairman - B Taylor
Club Secretary - H V Bennett
Treasurer - H Martin
Team Secretary - J Hall
Fixture Sec - C Honey
Membership Sec. - C Martin
Captain of club - S Gage
2nd XV Captain - H B Morris
General Committee - W Tovey, W Damiral, J Dobson
Press Officer - C Merrett
Rep on Suffolk RU - H V Bennett
AOB
(1) After discussion it was agreed ‘that this meeting directs the management committee to form a social sub-committee bringing in three members able and keen to help in the running of social affairs’.
(2) D Powis raised the possibility of re-forming the Colts section. No decision was reached but it was to be investigated.
(3) Views on publicity were given an airing with no firm decision.
(4) P Edmundson raised question of pre-season training and coaching. It was finally agreed that it should be left in the Club Captain’s hands to investigate all aspects of coaching and training but it was emphasised that support of members is essential.
The meeting closed at 11pm.
Autumn General Meeting
Held on 15th Sept 1969 at the Queens Head Hotel at 8.00pm.
G Williams chairman and 19 other members present.
Apologies received from Messrs Powis, Eastwood, Cooper, Cartwright, Cousins, T Honey.
The Hon Treasurer presented his balance sheet for 1968/69. He regretted it was not a true balance but there was still an account outstanding from Charrington Breweries. However the likely final total was £140 + £150 in the deposit a/c with Magnet Building Society.
The accounts were adopted on a prop of W Damiral, sec W Tovey.
A vote of thanks was made to H Martin for his work on the accounts.
AOB
(1) C Merrett had resigned from the club and J Ransom was elected as Press Officer for 1969/70.
(2) Shirts – B Taylor pointed out the advisability of having a second set of shirts – in odd colours if necessary. It was decided to approach players for any odd shirts they may have available.
(3) It was proposed by R Varnarva, seconded by W Tovey that the club should submit a letter of censure on the RFU regarding a press report of their not allowing a convict to participate in a Prison XV as he was a professional rugby league player. The club secretary refused to associate himself with this and Mr Varnarva undertook to follow up the matter himself.
(4) B Taylor proposed that the Stag Night should be dropped owing to a falling off of support. How else could money be raised? The matter was referred to the committee.
The meeting closed at 9.30pm.
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