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
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