I would also second thanks to Scott, Harry and Sam for all their hard work. It may not always seem so lads, but it is well appreciated. I think we've seen some great development of the club over the past 18 months or so.

One thing I would suggest is that either at the AGM or beforehand we have a general debate about where we play. By virtue of our name and heritage we're clearly not averse to a move in principal if it were deemed the right thing to do after looking at the facts and options.

Whilst Morley has good facilities and has been home for some time it does have some issues:

- Lights being turned off early
- Flood lights temperamental and bulbs often out with some seemingly never replaced
- More expensive even at the current rates than other clubs I would expect?? (certainly more than what we used to pay at West Leeds so I'm told)
- We pay for a pitch but often have to share with other people
- Very poor drainage so v muddy and standing, often stagnant water through a good 2 or 3 months of the year (clearly a big disadvantage to a mud dodging Douglas Bader wing commander like me!)
- Bit of a distance for some people to travel?


They're the gripes but I don't honestly know what the alternatives are. For all I know we might have had a good look into this already. If not it might be worth doing some investigations so we have an informed view of our options.

To my mind our case should be an easy sell. You would expect most clubs would be happy to have us if they have a Monday night pitch available. If all they need to do is turn floods on and open changing rooms its easy money for them. At Adam's old quoted rate it works out at £900 a year in a club's coffers for turning a lock and flicking a switch each week (not to mention their bar takings). Their only costs are some electricity and water.

As long as we have somewhere with floods and changing rooms available on a Monday we're sorted. I would suspect there's a good number of places with 6 or 7 miles of the city centre that fit that criteria.

Anyone have anything to add on this?



On the other points:

>I'm afraid I'm on the fence about the Hunslet thing. I think it'd be a shame to officially lose the club name (and Mark raises a valid point about kit!) but clearly the benefits financially and in terms of support are not to be sniffed at!

> I have no major beef with paying £3 a week as I always look forward to and enjoy Mondays but I do think its an increase that I'm sure could be avoided.

Indeed, all in jest.

The showers at Hunslet were nicer.

Did I miss anything else because I am not sure what else it was that was so much better than Morley? Certainly not the picth, probably not the light and certainly not as convenient.

I can live with getting down and dirty in the showers at Morley.

1.0 Present:

H Evers
S Johnson
S Grundy
I Johnson (part)
B. Whitley
M. Whitley
T Durant
A Marshall
J Hope
M Schlag
B Day
K Worsnop
K Horner
H Leacock
P Johnson (PJ)
G Allen (part)
A Harrison (part)

2.0 Apologies

3.0 Introduction

After returning from the tour of the facilities Sam welcomed the attendees to the meeting and briefly explained the proposed agenda.

4.0 Officers

Although no official titles have been allocated, Scott, Harry and Sam have been dealing with the finances, Morley rent, RFL, Tag Merit League, equipment, etc. There were no other volunteers nor nominees for the duties therefore it was agreed that they continue the good work.

5.0 Subs

Sam explained the problems last year with lack of funds and that Scott had paid some bills himself when the club could not afford it. It was agreed that this should not happen in future. The suggestion was that the subs be increased to £3 to build up a “float” in the accounts for any unforeseen expenditures and also for the presentation night, etc.
During the discussions it was agreed that the accounts were being closely monitored by Scott which should prevent a repeat of last year. Scott confirmed that the accounts were currently approximately £300 in credit.
It was proposed that the subs remain at £2 per week but are reviewed during the summer to ensure that this is sufficient, if Scott sees the accounts dwindling he will notify the members and the subs can be raised to £3 if necessary. This was decided by a majority vote.

6.0 Tag League

Sam explained the proposed changes in the Tag Merit League which was being taken over by the RFL. This would ensure that the rules were strictly non-contact, virtually as we play each week.

Gareth and Adam H left the meeting.

Discussions took place regarding the RFL proposed points system at Tournaments and the fees for each player. It was not clear whether the £10 fee covered all the festivals and also the insurance that we currently pay for. Sam, Scott and Harry to check with Tom Allen (RFL).

Teams are also encouraged to play friendly games as well as the tournaments/festivals. The Lost Loiners are planning to attend the Murrayfield tournament, Rochdale Festival and also are scheduled to play a friendly at Bridgend on the 10th April. It was agreed that we would not attempt to play at every one.

Scott, Sam & Harry are to get confirmation of tournament dates, venues and whether they are mixed sexes or not, as soon as possible, to plan teams and transport, etc. Scott explained that the Scorpions are playing against Hunslet on 22nd August and that if they wanted to play us that day it could be a curtain-raiser! It was agreed that Harry would contact Bridgend.

7.0 Hunslet Offer

Ian Johnson (Hunslet) was invited to address the meeting and explain the offer from Hunslet Hawks. The offer is described on the previous note to members (attached).
Discussions took place regarding the offer which highlighted the following concerns:
• The all-weather pitches would possibly be unavailable in snow and/or heavy frost.
• The travel distance from Bradford, Huddersfield and Halifax is greater and would make a 7pm start more difficult.
• The training pitch is a considerable walk from the changing rooms which potentially adds to the delayed start.
• If we moved to Hunslet and things didn’t work out would we have burnt our boats with Morley?
• We would have to change the club name and we have just spent a lot of money on a new kit!

Advantages were also discussed:
• Free training at Hunslet
• More options for pitches when flooded.
• Funding towards kit, equipment and transport to games
• Free use of function room for events, subject to availability
• Closer to Wakefield and Leeds therefore easier for some members

After some discussions and alternative suggestions the consensus was to vote on the proposal to accept the partnership with Hunslet Hawks for the next 12 months at least but still train at Morley and pay £2 subs. The annual rent at Morley will be paid in full by June and will be due for renewal in September. The situation will be reviewed in August. We would however hold a coaching/training session at South Leeds once every month, or so. This would enable us to compare the two venues and the travel situation, etc. The name Lost Loiners could be retained as a nickname if desired.

This proposal was agreed by a majority vote.

The meeting was closed by Sam who thanked everyone for attending.

Harry. Can you summarise that in just a couple of sentences please?

Thanks H. Apologies for the early departure but I have to have my fix of exercise to maintain this figure.

The above outcome sounds to me like an eminently sensible solution.