The season is just about on us. In 2010 there is an abundance of new players into both the men's and women’s club. The 2010 season launch will give everyone an opportunity to get to know everyone not only from their team, but also from other teams throughout the men’s and women’s club. It is a fairly informal event that everyone will enjoy. It will fall on the 20th of March starting at 7pm at Toowong Bowls Club, 59 Gailey Road, Toowong. This will be on the 2nd round of the women’s turf grades and after the first round for the men's club.

The cost of the event is only $5 to be paid at the door. I think we all agree this is not much and is only to cover the expense of the night. There will be nibbles provided and fun raffles and games to be involved in. There will be small speeches from people of importance just saying a few words about the exciting season ahead. Drinks can be purchased over the bar at very reasonable prices.

I hope to see everyone there, 2010 is looking like one of the most promising years for both the women’s and men's clubs for some time. Lets get excited and kick it off in style with a few beverages with friends.

With only a few weeks until the start of the season, there is a lot of information to take on board …

There is a lot of info below but it is all important so please take the time to read it.

Training

Turf training – For March we have the following times on Thursday nights at the SHC, for all players

March 4^th – 8-9 pm

March 11^th – 9-10 pm

March 18^th – 7-8pm

Division 1 and 2 players will also have an extra turf session on Tuesday March 2^nd and 9^th, you will be notified accordingly. Tues 2/3/10  and 9/3/10 is 7-9pm at SHC (including one hour of fitness).

Fitness Training

For many years now, we have held once a week turf sessions at SHC and once-a-week at fitness at UQ ovals. For 2010, it looks as though we will be going away from this model. The competitiveness of Div 1 and 2 and the importance of turf skills means we will be having an extra session on turf for Div1/2 players and the traditional fitness training will be incorporated into this session.

More details to follow, as we are yet to finalise this extra session with the new Easts Turf Facility. Fitness training at UQ for Tuesday 2^nd March is cancelled, with anyone wanting extra fitness welcome to turn up to SHC for running from 7-8pm. Please watch this space. Any lower graders with a strong opinion on this please speak to Keno or Cholo.

**Attendance at training has been improving, but there is still quite a few faces yet to surface. Please make an effort to get along to training so the selectors have a much better idea of who will be playing in what grade.

Trial Games

The following trial games have been confirmed over the next two weekends –

Sat 6^th March – Div 1 and 2 @ Burringbar, 3-6 pm vs Saints – squads to be finalised at training 4/3/10 and players notified

Sat 13^th March – Div 1 and 2 @ Redcliffe, 3-6 pm vs Redcliffe – squads to be finalised next week

Sun 14^th March – Div 3-5 @ SHC, 3-6pm vs Easts – this will involve all players not involved in Div1/2 trials, teams to be announced next week

The season starts in only 3 weeks, on the 20^th March!!

Selections

Selectors are endeavouring to best place players in the appropriate grade in terms of skills and how they fit into a teams needs. Please feel free to speak to the primary selectors – Alan Ferguson or Chris Fenton – about selection issues/desired grade.

This year the selectors email system is running again. If ever you are unavailable for a game(s), you must email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with the details – name, grade, games going to be missed and reason. This goes for all players and needs to be done regardless of who else you have told (coaches, captains etc) or what grade you play. This needs to be done by Wed night for each round and also for the trial games!!

Registration and Fees

It is absolutely vital that people get online and fill in registration forms. To do this go to 2010 Registration Form.

The response so far has been very slow and underwhelming. We need people to fill in these forms so we can get team registrations sorted and team numbers and selections sorted. Also, if you have changed contact details remember to update your rego form to reflect this so we can best contact you.

Also, a reminder to keep fees rolling in. $350 is due by the first game, with the balance due April 30. All fees not paid by then incur a $50 penalty. The fee schedule and amounts are clearly outlined when you click on the Registration. We don’t want to be chasing people for fees!

Uniforms

This year the club is going back to the old model of team sets of uniforms. We have brand new uniforms for the whole club and the system will work that you only get your shirts for game day, with someone to take them home each week for washing. We will need someone from each team to volunteer for this role, probably coach/manager where applicable etc. This also means you will not, under any circumstance, be able to keep your shirt at seasons end.

You will not be required to purchase a shirt, however we have matching new shorts which will need to be purchased prior to the first game (this is compulsory – old shorts are not to be worn).  These will be $30 and will be available from this Sat onwards, see Cholo. We also have club socks for sale at $10 each and club dress shirts for $30.

Social – Season Launch

For those of you unaware, we are using Toowong Bowls Club as an interim clubhouse/social venue this year and into the future in an attempt to Revive some club spirit and have a common meeting place. As part of joining up to UQHC you will become a social member of Toowong Bowls club for free. It is a great arrangement for us as it is somewhere a bit more casual for us to have a drink and hopefully get back a bit of what we have lost by not having a club house for several years.

We are planning to hold an informal Season Launch at the Bowls Club on sat 20^th March. Please keep this date free, more details to follow after training this Thursday.

Apologies for the information overload, but it is vital everyone stays up to date prior to the start of the season. Any questions or enquiries don’t hesitate to contact me.

Cholo

0400 178863

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it