SECRETARY’S REPORT 2023-2024
I am pleased to have completed my fourteenth season as a member of the HBA Executive Committee, including my ninth season as Secretary.
From an HBA perspective, this was again a highly successful season.
All pennant matches, shield matches, President’s Cup matches, Champ of Champ events, and finals were successfully conducted – we did not lose many matches through inclement weather, and the difficulties encountered in recent seasons with Covid seem to be behind us.
There were only a few issues that arose at Club level that required Executive intervention, and I was fortunate to be involved with a sensible and informed group of people on the Committee, who give all matters due and fair consideration, without favour to their own clubs.
Many thanks to Dora, Alex, Val, Adrian and Barry – as well as Mike (Guerin) who assisted with an overhaul of the HBA rules.
Special thanks to President Dora for all of her assistance. As usual, she undertook the majority of the programming and Bowlslink set up for the season, in addition to running events and finals, and conducting all meetings. Dora constantly engages with players from all clubs to ensure that she is fully informed of views across the Association, and like all Committee members, acts without preference or favour for the views of her own club. I look forward to assisting her again next season in my role as Secretary.
Programming remains an extremely complex task – and anyone who read my recent email regarding the Bowls SA Calendar for the coming season would understand the difficulties that we continue to encounter. It is a huge balancing act as it is, trying to ensure that all sides get an equal number of home and away matches – made even more difficult with different clubs and a different number of sides involved in each division. I would hope that the clubs would continue to show faith in the programming role undertaken by the Committee, without seeking to impose further conditions or constraints.
A serious downside continues to be the lack of interest in club members prepared to contribute in a committee role – whilst there remains an abundance of people within the Association prepared to criticise and berate committee members. I thank all current Committee members for agreeing to continue next season – and make special mention of new nominee, Roger Jarman of the Lobethal Club. Roger has a considerable background in sports administration, and his enthusiasm and knowledge of bowls will not doubt be a huge asset.
Criticism is commonplace when one serves on a committee – but it remains tiresome to have a few individuals continue to pick fault. Fortunately, the vast majority of players and clubs are prepared to engage in calm and constructive discussion with committee members.
The only issue of significant controversy that arose during the season related to the premature cancellation of round 11 matches. However, I have liaised with the President of the Uraidla Club in coming up with a proposed amendment to the wet weather rule, which will hopefully overcome further problems.
However, the incident did highlight the flaws in a system which allows just a handful of delegates to override decisions made by the Committee, and to determine the outcome of all matters raised at delegates meetings. The Committee is proposing some changes – including the reinstatement of a voting system which gives the HBA Committee a say in decisions, as well as reverting back to the previous system which allowed motions to be discussed and referred back to clubs for further consideration before any final vote is taken.
Over the past few years clubs have passed many motions which increasingly constrain the powers of the Committee – yet those same clubs will be the first to blame the Committee for not bringing about changes to the Association. If the Association is to go forward, I believe that more power needs to be vested back into the management committee.
Terry Stephen