At a very well attended AGM & Presentation Evening of the New Milton Table Tennis Club, Shaun Newcomb announced that he would be standing down from the Chair due his other heavy commitments. The members were relieved to hear however that Shaun would continue in his role as Club Development Officer. Club Treasurer Malcolm Floyd paid tribute to Shaun’s three year tenure in the chair during which the club achieved Premier Clubmark status, became a prestigious “Ability” Club and received numerous grants for club equipment. In recognition of his immense contribution to the club, Shaun was elected as the club’s very first Vice-President and will serve alongside Club President and fellow former chairman Bob Fagan. Vice-Chairman Steve Hemmings was proposed for the chair which was unanimously agreed.

Club Secretary Bev Scott-Johns reported that the club had had a slightly disappointing season in the Bournemouth and District League with no teams winning promotion and three of the eleven teams being relegated. On a more positive note, there were some successes in the Bournemouth and District Individuals Tournaments in which Shaun Newcomb (“ITMA” for older readers) won the Vets 50+ title, Matthew Daish picked up the Junior Under 15 title and Kai Major won the Junior Under 13 event. Gerard Redman came runner-up in the Bournemouth Closed and Dave Cuddon was runner-up in the Div 2 event. The Premier’s A team (Steve Hemmings, Matthew Daish, Phil Handy & Umit Kaya) came runners-up in the Times and Directory Handicap Cup competition. Club President Bob Fagan was honoured by the Bournemouth & District Association by being awarded the Elsie Carrington Trophy for Sportsmanship. Bev didn’t mention this, but he (Bev) was delighted to attain his County Umpire badge after winning his spurs at the Bournemouth and District Tournaments.  There was the usual lively debate at the AGM, and a lot of the discussion centred around the possible use of the Grange School in Somerford.  The committee had previously decided not to pursue this option, but agreed to revisit this topic and report back to the membership.

With Steve Hemmings moving up to the Chair, Andrew Daish, a former Junior Representative, was unanimously elected as Vice Chair. Lynn Willrich was unanimously elected onto the committee and will take over as Minutes Secretary from Julie Smillie who will carry on as Welfare Officer and Club Coach. The remainder of the committee was unanimously elected en bloc; Secretary: Bev Scott-Johns, Treasurer: Malcolm Floyd, Development Officer: Shaun Newcomb. Committee Members: Peter Daish (Junior Representative), Malcolm Douglas, Frank Handy and Phil Handy.

With the official business over, Club President Bob Fagan presented the annual trophies. First of all, Bob thanked Bev Scott-Johns for another set of extremely well organised tournaments this season. Bob announced that the James Lewis Shield for Most Improved Player would go to Kai Major by unanimous vote by the committee. This promising 12 year old achieved a very creditable 48% winning average in Div 4 in his first year in the league. He won the BDTTA Junior 13 title and was also the Under 40s champion in the club tournaments. He also won the Dorset School Games hot on the heels of winning the Hampshire School Games. Definitely one to watch for the future!

Also by unanimous vote, but at the opposite end of the age spectrum, Malcolm Floyd was awarded the Doris Marshall Memorial Plate for Club Person of the Year. Malcolm is one of only two club members who have been awarded this honour twice (in the heady company of the legend that is Bev Scott-Johns). Malcolm, in addition to performing his Treasurer’s duties and acting as Press Secretary, also put in a tremendous amount of work in ensuring that the club was re-accredited as a Premier Club this season.

The full listing of trophy winners is below:-

Scratch Singles: Phil Handy, Runner-up Matthew Daish

Handicap Singles: Matthew Daish, Runner-up Phil Handy

Ladies Singles: Sylvia Smith, Runner-up Julie Smillie

Over 40s: Shaun Newcomb, Runner-up Steve Hemmings

Under 40s: Kai Major, Runner-up Simon Daish

Juniors: Matthew Daish, Runner-up Peter Daish

Doubles: Steve Hemmings & Svet Ignatov, Runners-up Sylvia Smith & Gerard Redman

James Lewis Trophy for Most Improved Player: Kai Major

Doris Marshall Memorial Plate for Club Person of the year: Malcolm Floyd

The new playing season starts in September, so anybody interested in joining our very friendly club should contact Club Secretary Bev Scott-Johns on 01425 619552.