AGM 2026 - Durham Colleges Staff Cricket Club

Minutes of the 2026 AGM

The 77th AGM of the Durham Colleges Staff Cricket Club took place in Grey College SCR at 7pm on Thursday February 5th 2026

Present: Ian Boothroyd (IB), Patrick Card (PC), Ashish Chauhan, Tony Cleaver (TC)(Chairman), Christian Drury, Joanne Fulton (JF), William Hall (WH), Benjamin Kelly, Theo McCarthy (TM)(Secretary), Nigel Metcalfe (NM), Guy Paxman (GP), Benjamin Shone (BS), Eckart Wrede (EW).
Apologies for absence: Christopher Cowie (CC), Paul Ghosh, Terry Harris, Raj Malik, Jolyon Mitchell, Peter Swift, Keerthi Vasishta

Minutes of 2025 meeting: Approved unanimously without amendment.
Matters Arising: Item 6 – Treasurer’s report, NM has audited the 2024 accounts. Balance was £1181 upon close of year not as stated in the treasurer’s ( CC) report, which included a payment from January 2025. The accounts state £1020 for the annual dinner, but the bank statement only shows £990 to County Hotel. There is an unexplained £30 payment to Kalanikethan CIC. NM will confirm with CC. Item 8 – Constitution, NM notes that the amendments to the Constitution were passed and can now be viewed on the club website. Item 10 – AOB: TM has mentioned the state of the Racecourse pitch to MC when booking this year’s fixtures, but no other official complaint. Instagram has been revived by JF. The Euan Squires Trophy went ahead against a mostly Grey SCR team. Participation in the indoor league is going ahead as planned. TM contacted Beamish but they are no longer running the tournament due to lack of finances. TM has contacted a few speculative clubs about a club tour but no response as yet.
Chairman’s Report: A long season with good weather. Welcomed a number of new players, 41 players across the season. Thanks to new president JM who came to nets and opened the batting for us. Peter Collins, our Honorary president and longest serving player (≈ 40 years) is in a care home and wishes to remain in touch – NM has emailed the website and match reports to him which he has taken joy from. Thanks to those who made the season possible, with special mentions to those who travelled from afar and the captains. Annual dinner went well. The chairman would like to nominate some further awards for this year’s dinner:
* Jemima Puddleduck award – best duck;
* ‘Pearl Necklace’ award – most dot balls in a row;
* Tom Daley Award – best dive.
Tony Cleaver
Captain’s Report: As Patrick so eloquently put it at the annual dinner, 2025 was a triumphant year for DCSCC. As co-captains for the last two seasons, we have gained a full appreciation of the hard work that goes on in the background to keep the club running smoothly. In this regard we must give thanks to our secretary Theo, treasurer Chris, webmaster Nigel, social-media mogul Joanne, kit-bearer Eckart, and chairman Tony. We also welcomed a new club player-president in Jolyon Mitchell, who, among other distinctions, has a daughter (Jasmine) who won The Great British Bake Off in 2025!
The club saw excellent growth in playing membership in 2025, with 43 players making an appearance over the course of the season, including 10 debutants who all made superb contributions. Thanks to the dry weather we played a staggering 29 matches in 2025, emerging with a strong record of winning 17 and losing 10, with two games abandoned due to rain before a result (DCSCC victory) could be achieved. Most importantly, the club conducted itself excellently throughout the season, establishing new (and maintaining old) connections with clubs across the northeast and beyond.
The club performed strongly in the college league this season, winning all three games (including one by walkover) against Trevelyan, Josephine Butler, and Stephenson. This should mean promotion into the Premier Division for 2026.
Across the rest of the season, some notable highlights were:
* A fantastic performance in the first game against a strong Stamfordham side, scoring 136-6 in 20 overs, with three 30s (retired) by three debutants.
* We compiled the 5th highest team score in the club’s history against Ponteland Utd, 207-6 in 35 overs, winning by one run thanks to Jo Fulton’s dramatic catch.
* A thrilling one-wicket defeat against Farmers in awful conditions where we almost snatched an unlikely victory in a game that was marked by some brilliant catching.
* A Freddie Flintoff 2005-esque season from Ashish Chauhan, who scored 667 runs and took 20 wickets across 24 matches this year!!
We also won (surely) a record 19 coin tosses this year, including an unbroken streak of 11 from the start of the season to 17th June. Huge thanks to Ian and Vinay who covered for us this year, doing us a favour by losing their tosses – it’s not as easy as we make it look.
Thank you also to everyone who gave lifts to matches or volunteered to score, umpire, or sub-field this year. These unsung contributions make a huge difference and are what allow us to play as many games as we do. A special shout out to Theo McCarthy for hosting excellent social events in the summer and at Christmas.
The annual dinner at the Royal County Hotel was an excellent occasion as always, superbly organised by Tony Cleaver. The following awards were presented: Player of the season and batter of the season went to Ashish Chauhan, bowler of the season Theo McCarthy, fielder of the season to Patrick Card, champagne moment Joanne Fulton, and spirit of cricket to Nigel Metcalfe (and Lionel B. Wicket). A special condolence goes to Rich Root for missing out on proper recognition for his hat-trick and winning runs against KSOB.
As a final reflection, we would like to note how strong attendances (and performances) have been at winter nets since the 2025 outdoor season concluded, where we have also welcomed several new players. We have even taken a bold step into the unknown in 2026, entering the college indoor cricket league for the first time. The enthusiasm for cricket at the club remains undimmed.
As for the enthusiasm of the co-captains, we’ll see where we are by the end of the evening. But both of us remain certain in our conviction that the future is very bright for the club as it moves into yet another era.
Guy Paxman and Patrick Card
Secretary’s report: Successful season with plenty of games. Notable fixtures against new teams – Greenside CC and Ponteland CC. Despite best efforts, no successful fixtures at a castle venue!
Theo McCarthy
Treasurer’s report: (in the absence of the treasurer, his report was read by GP) We have ended the year with a balance of £626. The total balance has fluctuated over the course of the year, but the present amount is not unrepresentative of where it has generally been this year. This is on the low side. To give you some context, at the start of the 2023 season we had a balance of £1171, at the start of the 2024 season we had a balance of £1676 (unrepresentatively high as a large payment was about to go out), and at the start of the 2025 season we had £1181. So, overall, we’re lower than we should be. We should be around £1000, and we’re gradually sinking further and further below. This is an issue because we get bills from MC not irregularly for in the region of £350. We want to make sure we can always pay one of these and have a float sufficient to pay another.
I’ll spare you the details, but the general pattern is clear; the loss is coming from nets. Matches, especially seeing as we have been charging for away games, are making us a (small) profit. By contrast, an average net session is making us a not insignificant loss. Given that we net twice a week, that cost adds up. We are currently charging £3 and £1 for waged and unwaged members, respectively. An in- creasing proportion of our attendees are paying the £1 charge. This is because of a change in the club’s demographic towards postgraduate students and away from wealthy senior people like myself, Eckart, Tony, Nigel and others. Bearing this in mind, and in order to make sure that our costs are properly covered, net fees need to rise. I suggest £4 and £2 at a minimum. With this, we should break even. I realise that this is a not insignificant rise, but I’m afraid it is needed. I would appreciate if the AGM could decide whether to approve this proposal.
If this does not work, we can exercise the option, mentioned in the minutes of the previous AGM, of levying a £10 membership charge. But I would rather leave this option unless we need it, and charge people only for the events (nets/games) that they are attending.
Given that this is my last year as Treasurer and that the club has lost money during my tenure, many of you will be asking what my legacy has been. A fair question. The answer is that this has been our second year with a Lloyds Business account. It is working well, with both Nigel and I having access to the accounts; a marked improvement on the Virgin Money years of Dr Stephen Boothroyd’s reign. Guy Paxman will have access shortly, replacing me as Club Treasurer, with the say-so of the assembled company. I recommend him for the role wholeheartedly in the absence of any feasible alternative.
Chris Cowie

The 2025 accounts may be viewed here.

NM pointed out that some of the figures in the original report were not correct – these have now been updated.
Election of Officers:

President: Jolyon Mitchell (unopposed)
Chairman: Tony Cleaver (unopposed)
Secretary: Theo McCarthy to remain in post with discussions at the end of the season for a replacement.
Captains: Pat Card to continue as a Co-Captain, William Hall elected as Co-Captain, with Guy Paxman stepping down after two successful years as captain, we thank him for his service.
Vice-Captain(s): Ian Boothroyd to continue as a Vice-Captain, with Ash Chauhan enthusiastically elected as well.
Treasurer: Chris Cowie resigns amid speculations of a defection. Guy Paxman elected as the continuity candidate.
Kit Man: Eckart Wrede happy to continue.
Auditor/Webmaster: Nigel Metcalfe re-elected on his manifesto of radical digital reform.
Social Media Officer: Joanne Fulton (re)elected – post renamed to Director of Communications!
Net and match fees: (there was a long and lively debate on the state of the club’s finances, led by the outgoing captain)
GP – Looking at treasurer’s report, it is clear we have lost money the last couple of seasons. Clear pattern of making a small profit on matches, with a large loss on nets and equipment expense. Current fee structure is not sustainable, with insolvency likely within 5 years if issues not addressed. Ideas include a £1 raise in the net levy for both waged and non-waged players. Option also for annual membership which has been discussed previously.
NM – Do we know what we are currently charging for matches?
GP – £6 & £4, home and away.
NM – the minutes show CC wanted to raise net fees last year, but didn’t?
GP – Yes, but we started charging for away matches as well as home matches.
TM – Ushaw Moor are increasing their pitch fees from £80 to £100.
GP – Projections: Loss on nets is about £200 per year, £100 per term. Increased fees to £4/£2, would increase by £400 which would cover the loss, assuming the same attendance as last year. Possible to go down to 1 lane for term 1. Lots of clubs ‘sniffing’ around MC for training time.
TC – Attendance may not remain the same, thoughts about a membership fee?
GP – With 40 players, it would raise £400. But may see a slight decrease in playing membership.
BS – Players at Bangor got a free session for their membership fee.
TC – Might encourage some people to be more engaged with club throughout the season.
TM – Worried about 2 things. There should be a minimum number of games played before the fee is charged. Also worried the charge will increase year-on-year.
GP – Worried about not over-formalising the membership as may exclude people.
WH – Could we charge higher match fee for non-members? Consensus – Not a bad idea.
NM – How much are we losing each net?
GP – Approximately £5 each net.
NM – Reiterates point he made last year that nets are getting very expensive, and it now costs nearly as much for a net session as an actual matche.
TC – Do we propose net fee rise or membership fee?
PC/WH – Propose a membership fee, feel it is better long term.
EW – We have standing costs that are independent of net attendance.
BS – Refer back to WH’s point. In colleges levy-payers and non-levy-payers pay different rate.
TC – Proposal: Membership Fee £10, Matches fees: £6/£4 waged/unwaged for members, £8/£6 for non-members. Net stay at £3/£1 for members, £4/£2 for non-members.
NM – When does this get charged / paid? Bills are imminent and we are not asset-rich.
GP – Next bill will be for this term.
TM – Need to make it clear when the annual membership would run to/from.
EW – Run the annual membership for the calendar year?
Consensus – yes.
BS – Need to consider PhD students who join in September / October.
Consensus – Could give them the first three months ‘free’.
Annual membership fee passed to be reviewed next year.
NM – Is this actually going to solve the financial problem?
GP – Lots of uncertainty, doesn’t posses the numbers to make a clear assertion. But we can review at the end of the season.
Indoor nets schedule: GP – Are we happy with the current schedule for nets? Two blocks (terms) with two sessions a week.
PC – Too risky to go down to one lane, only 7 needed for that to be an issue. Recommends keeping the same number of days.
EW – noted it has been busy since he came back in January.
PC – If high turnout continues to be an issue, could informally poll to see when people are turning up (on whatsapp). People may be more likely to switch days if certain days are very busy.
It was agreed to trial a poll.
Kit: EW – We have a lot, wardrobe needs clearing out. The bat we bought last year is not in good condition. GP donated a bat that is heavy but very solid. EW has three old bats of varying quality. One new bat needed, ≈ £150.
GP – Case for bat is well made but need to think about cost.
EW – keepers pads are ok(ish) but if they fall apart he will get new ones from Lorimers. 4 match balls in the bag. Duke’s majestic from last season, they don’t degrade enough to do good swing bowling (according to TC). Would prefer to buy the Duke’s Velocity. £150 for 6, so expensive. Still have 4 pink balls. Still some used balls available for use on wet / damp days.
NM – What happened to the cow-bell [Note – the cow bell was a gift from Alpenhorn during the International Festival of Cricket in 2004]?
EW – Not sure. Still some tin cans available for marking bowler’s run-ups.
Fixtures for 2026 (indoor and outdoor): PC – Worth asking Fred Whiles about Whitley Bay match?
TM – Nothing out of the ordinary about the fixtures this season.
Euan Squires Trophy 30^thanniversary: GP – Last year we had a game. Do we mark the 30th year with Grey SCR/ They struggle to get a team out / do not play much cricket. One option is an annual Staff vs Staff game with any of Grey SCR invited if they wished.
NM – What do Grey think?
GP – They were keen for this year. Sensible to do something nice for 30th and then keep the fixture as a staff vs staff.
WH – Could we invite related family?
TC – Could we ensure people congregate at the pub afterwards?
NM – Could retire the trophy after this year (Unless of course Grey wish to continue).
EW – Should we organise this in a similar fashion to the 75th anniversary.
TC – Should this be a Sunday game? At the Racecourse?
NM – Might be worth mentioning it to the Maths department as Euan was a Maths professor.
AOB: Indoor Match: IB – Do we want an indoor staff match?
PC – Yes, hopefully about March time. Will organise.
Ustinov: WH – Some Ustinov players are joining the Monday net sessions. Would like to confirm they will be paying – including the revised rates as of this AGM.
TC – notes that Mallards have been in contact saying they want to recruit more players. They won more games than they lost last season, no thanks to the Chairman!

Meeting closed at 20:39

Actions:

PC / TM – To organise Boothroyd Cup for March.

GP – To check with CC regarding figures in treasurer’s report.

TM – To contact Grey SCR regarding Euan Squires Trophy.

EW – To purchase new bat & balls.

Outcomes:

Charge of annual membership fee, £10 per annum.
Rise in match fees for non-members, £8/£6 for waged/non-waged.
Rise in net fees for non-members, £4/£2 for waged/non-waged.

Theo McCarthy/Nigel Metcalfe, February 2026