The 2010/11 season again proved highly successful.
Notwithstanding an unusually wet cricket season, a number of highly entertaining and closely-fought fixtures were battled out on the Field of Dreams. The second assistant grounds- man was present every week to see the ground was turned out in its usual immaculate state. This season we were privileged to obtain the services of Jim Stringleman as the weekly match manager. His love of the game was soon evident to all at The Willows and we are delighted to have him on board.
There were two particular highlights to the season of equal importance, which I will deal with them chronologically. First, we were privileged when our honorary member, Sir Tim Rice, managed to travel to Adelaide via Christchurch. Sir Tim was travelling to Adelaide to present the prestigious Bradman Oration. He addressed a dinner of Club members at the beautiful Octagon Restaurant (whose fate at the moment remains uncertain due to the February earthquake). It was an outstanding success, enjoyed by all those present who were delighted by Sir Tim’s easy wit and ready charm. It was also a pleasure to see Sir Tim so thrilled by the medley of his songs sung by the pupils of Burnside High School and by Rachel Doig and her daughter Zara.
The second notable occasion was the dinner with the Governor-General and the Governor- General’s game. Sir Anand Satyanand has been an outstanding supporter of youth during his tenure as Governor-General. In particular, I pay tribute to his support of both The Willows and the Wanderers Club in Wellington. It was a delight to host Sir Anand and Lady Susan at a dinner the night before the game at Medbury School. This was originally planned to take place at St Andrew’s, but due to earthquake damage had to be shifted to Medbury. I am particularly grateful to the principals of both St Andrew’s and Medbury for agreeing to the use of their facilities. As to the game, once more the Governor-General triumphed comfortably and we await the day when our sole selector manages to entice some younger former Black Caps into the fold. Notwithstanding that, it was a delight to welcome a number of old friends who have appeared in all of these fixtures back to The Willows, and we trust to see them again in the future.
Once more we are indebted to our sponsors ASB Bank, Anthony Runacres and Associates, Mobil Oil and Bradley Nuttall. We extend our thanks to Peter Devlin, for his untiring work as grounds- man, and to Tony Campbell who attends week- in, week-out as scorer. The same gratitude must be extended to our umpires who serve outstandingly at The Willows, as their contribution throughout New Zealand can too readily be overlooked.
I wish to acknowledge four members who received awards in the New Year’s and Queen’s Birthday Honours lists. Andrew Davidson for his ONZM, Don Neely for his MNZM, Sir John Graham for his KNZM and Christopher Doig for his CNZM. All of these were richly deserved accolades.
Once more, Sir Hugh and Lady Blackett graciously hosted two Willowers at Matfen. This longstanding relationship is extremely important to the Club and has been of enormous benefit to those young cricketers fortunate enough to be recipients of that scholarship.
We continue to value the support of Justin Vaughan and all at New Zealand Cricket, and all of the stalwarts at Canterbury Cricket. Notwithstanding the disruption of the earthquake and the fact he was leaving the country the next day, we were delighted that Justin attended the Governor-General’s dinner and spoke to members.
Finally, I must make special mention of our caterers, Liz and Lionel Ford. Our caterers do a wonderful job, and in any normal year would warrant special mention. But in this year it goes much further, as Liz was one of those fortunate enough to survive the collapse of the CTV building. I am told as she rode the building down from the top floor her main thought was who would do the catering for The Willows. Liz, there are more important things than catering for The Willows, but we are so grateful to you and Lionel for your continued participation at our beautiful ground.
Each year it is proper that I recognise the outstanding support we receive from schools that play at The Willows, their Coaches and importantly their Principals. Given the aims and principles of the Club, this relationship is vital to our continued success, and we look forward to that on-going relationship with all of those schools.
To all the membership, both playing and non- playing, my thanks for your continued support which makes The Willows the vibrant, successful club it is. It is that support which makes The Willows the envy of many cricket clubs in New Zealand and worldwide.
Finally we have two A M Ellis’s as members. One was the top performer for the Canterbury Wizards this year and he was rightly honoured. The other we confidently predict will be a member of the All Blacks’ world cup squad.
May the Willows Flourish.