Clubs from across the country gathered for the Camanachd Association Annual General Meeting which took place at The West End Hotel, Fort William on Friday 24 November 2017.
- 2017 Annual Report -
In his final Annual Report, out-going Camanachd Association President Jim Barr referred to a challenging last 12 months.
There was a six month gap between the anticipated departure of Chief Operating Officer Torquil Macleod and his replacement, Chief Executive Officer Derek Keir, taking post. This meant additional responsibilities and increased workload for the association staff and Directors throughout the intervening period.
It was also clear from the 2016 budget deficit that the organisation was living well beyond its means and the requirement to urgently reverse this situation placed additional demands on the personnel involved.
Against this difficult backdrop, the 2017 development programme and competition schedule were delivered within the constraints of the new budget realities.
Although the association expect to record a modest financial surplus for 2017, the financial outlook remains very challenging, highlighting the importance of the game’s loyal commercial sponsors.
The association will look to new CEO Derek Keir to bring fresh energy and outlook whilst the election of Keith Loades for the next 3 years leaves the governance of shinty in good hands and they have already forged an effective partnership.
Colin Cameron and Wendy Chamberlain were co-opted onto the CA Board during the season whilst Ted McDonald retired from the Board in April having served for 6 years and his role was acknowledged.
With one of the wettest summers of recent times in Scotland interrupting and extended senior league programme for several clubs, all the cup winners and the majority of league outcomes were determined before the end of October.
The Shinty / Hurling / Camogie programme gave senior Head Coach Ronald Ross a fourth successive home win against Ireland whilst Alan MacRae’s U21 side showed much promise for the future. Stuart Reid’s women’s team also recorded success in Ireland in July against a Dublin County Select.
The Development team are making specific efforts to retain interest at secondary schools by organising round robin competitions, the women’s game is growing and developing apace under the careful direction of the WCA and the Marine Harvest Awards night is always an enjoyable occasion with Lord Robert Smith of Kelvin, former SSE Chairman and personal sponsor of the Balliemore cup for 21 years, and Steve Bracken, who has been instrumental in facilitating the 33 years of Marine Harvest involvement, both richly deserving the presentation of two silver mounted camans.
Tulloch Homes signing up as the Camanachd Cup Sponsors until 2020 is a major boost whilst Anderson, Shaw and Gilbert stepped in at short notice as match day sponsors for the MacTavish Cup Final. Marine Harvest extended their sponsorship package of all Leagues, the International programmes and the annual awards until 2020; a record breaking 33 years of continuous sponsorship.
Jim Barr also used his report to acknowledge and express appreciation to all volunteers who give up their time to be members of the CA committees and sub-committees, as well as those who support the wide variety of competitions and development activities as coaches, team leaders, drivers, grounds men, supporters and match officials.
In signing off, Jim Barr thanked all the staff and Board members, partnership managers and member clubs who he has worked with over the last 9 years, particularly the last 3 years as President, and he added, “Shinty has a new CEO in post, an experienced President Elect, a refreshed and more diverse Board, a small but effective professional organisation, a new four-year strategic plan with clear opportunities for growth; in short, much to look forward to and a future as bright as we dare to dream.”
Jim Barr was presented with a silver-mounted caman by past-President Archie Robertson as a token of appreciation for his work in office.
- New Appointments -
The Camanachd Association has a new President after Keith Loades was unanimously elected into the position.
Keith Loades has been shadowing outgoing President Jim Barr for the last 6 months in a President-elect role and he has been a Camanachd Association Board member for the last 3 years; latterly as Vice-President.
Both Colin Cameron and Wendy Chamberlain were voted in unanimously as Directors with Chamberlain becoming shinty’s first female Director.
- 2016 Annual Accounts -
Members were told that the Camanachd Association’s 2016 Annual Accounts reported a £38,573 reduction in turnover prompting a £48,066 deficit for the year. This means the Association’s reserves reduced to £75,962 as t 31 December 2016.
The Association signalled a potential £44,000 loss at the 2016 AGM so the final count was slightly above expectations.
The Association’s financial target for 2016 was to deliver a break-even outcome or, in the event that a sponsor for the Camanachd Cup was not found, to manage any deficit to below £20,000.
With the target not achieved, the Association re-based its activities, re-doubled its efforts to attract commercial sponsors, improved its business processes and made economies across the board in order to balance the books for 2017.
The 2016 Annual Accounts show Grant funding reduced by £23,743 from 2015. The sportscotland grant remained similar and was the largest single contributor to shinty funding. However local authority based grants were reduced due to the general squeeze on budgets. In addition, specific activity events/grants from Awards for All (£10,000) and Cholmcille / BnG (£5,000) were not forthcoming. Sponsorship income also reduced in 2016, down by £21,368 which was largely attributable to the loss of SSE sponsorship for the Camanachd Cup, partially offset by the establishment of the Shinty Business Club.
Not for the first time, Marine Harvest were shinty’s principal sponsors in 2016, combined with additional support from the Royal Bank of Scotland, Gilmour Sports and the BBC.
Total expenditure in 2016 was £595,655, an increase of £1,806 on the previous year. Key areas of expenditure remain: Competitions, Development, Wages and Office Expenses. An increase on Wages is principally as a result of having the central belt Development Officer in place for the full reporting year.
Competition costs reduced in 2016 as a result of savings made across the programme. Membership numbers increased slightly in 2016 to 2,900 generating an associated increase in income.
The Association expects to record a modest profit of around £5,000 in 2017 which will go towards rebuilding reserves to the target level of £90,000 which the Board believe is appropriate for the size of our business.
However the Association looks likely to break the VAT de-minimis threshold this year and most every year from now onwards. This will place an extra annual burden of between £8,000 and £10,000 in VAT payments unless the de-minimis threshold, which has been in place for many years, is revised upwards.
- New Resolutions -
With 27 voting clubs in attendance, a raft of minor amendments to Byelaw 1 (Rules of Play) went through unopposed.
- Minor alterations to the ball composition.
- Players will no longer have to wear the same colour helmets as their team mates.
- Secondary shorts no longer need to be the same colour as the team shorts.
- The procedures following a sending off have been expanded to include any team officials and all persons representing a club who have been dismissed.
- If the two centre players are one left-handed and the other right-handed, the choice of the side for the throw up shall alternate throughout the game.
- The rules in relation to “cleeking” have been clarified.
- A warning for persistent fouling will be issued after a minimum of three fouls and a caution will follow if the player continues to foul.
- Foul and abusive language (including frustration with oneself) is now a distinct cautionable offence and could be a red card if directed specifically at the referee or a goal judge.
- Deliberately preventing a clear goal scoring opportunity through foul play is now categorised as a cautionable offence.
- 2017 Competitions -
Members were told that participation in the 2017 senior leagues increased to 54 teams from 52 in 2016. This was as a result of Strachur re-joining the league and Strathglass entering a second team.
In total there were 689 senior fixtures scheduled in 2017 compared to 618 in 2016. However 39 fixtures were unfulfilled due to team raising difficulties, an increase from 27 in 2016. Of the 125 fixtures which were postponed and rescheduled, 103 were due to unplayable fields and 13 due to bereavement. A further 9 fixtures were rescheduled at the request of both clubs in compliance with the Byelaws. This compared with 75 postponements in 2016. During 2017, 9 fixtures were reversed or transferred to an alternative venue to ensure the game took place on the scheduled date which compares to 12 in the previous year.
There were no changes to fees for membership, insurance, competition entry or player transfers and there were no appointments for members of Honour or Honourary Patrons
There were very discussion points after the meeting finished although Kilmallie did voiced displeasure at the switching of fixtures at short notice.
A few clubs questioned the need to provide after-match meals and although this is an issue for the clubs, the Camanachd Association did agree to circulate a poll to gather views.