Christmas lunch
There are still some spaces available on Sunday December 16 for this year’s TPCC Christmas lunch. Around 70 people have already booked for this lovely festive, family occasion. The price is just £15 for a two-course lunch and you can purchase wine at just £10 per bottle on production of your membership card. Forget about Brexit, put on your favourite Christmas jumper/frock and come and wonder at how green and gorgeous the square is looking right now!. Book your place(s) with an email to Adam at tringcricketreservations@hotmail.co.uk

Boxing Day Football
The clubhouse will be open from 10am on Boxing Day, when once again, members are invited to blow away the festive cobwebs with a friendly (ho, ho) game of football, followed by free-flowing sparkling water in the clubhouse. Do come along, if only to see which member is suffering the biggest hangover and which has the biggest expression of relief having escaped the relatives!
So that we can plan the pitch activity, please let Gareth Darby know if you intend to play garethdarby@btopenworld.com

Fair Play Award
It’s a great feeling to win promotion, but it’s even better when it’s accompanied by the news that you have won a ‘fair play’ award based on the results of ratings provided by your opponents. It gets even better when the league sends you a cheque for £500 to celebrate the achievement! Take a bow Andy Grout and the fourth XI who proved last season, that winning and playing the game in the right spirit, can go hand in hand.

Ladies Cricket
I’m delighted to report that Barrie Miles has stepped up to help drive TPCC ladies’ cricket forward in 2019. Anyone interested in finding out more can get in touch with Barrie here: barriemiles25@hotmail.com

Umpiring Course
We will be running an Umpires course in the clubhouse on Sunday February 24th. This will be free to attend and anyone who would like to do a spot of umpiring for the club in 2019 – especially non-players, is very welcome to attend. Simon Wastling is your man and will provide more details shortly: simon.wastling@ntlworld.com

Dates for your diaries – Lords Taverners and our End of Season Dinner Dance
Yes, it’s not even the end of the year yet, but we’re already planning our two major end of season events for 2019. The simple reason is that by planning these two events together we can share the costs of a marquee and have the best possible chance of making them a huge success. So here are the dates:
Saturday September 14th – End of Season Dinner Dance
Wednesday September 18th – Lords Taverners v Tring Park Cricket Club Chairman’s X1, supported by Dayla Drinks as part of their centenary celebrations.
The Taverners date is chosen as it is just after the final Ashes test finishes and gives us a great opportunity to sell the event to the corporate market on the back of the end to what we hope will be an exciting series. Tim Cooper, MD of Dayla Drinks is not only contributing to the cost of the marquee but has also offered to promote tables to his suppliers, as part of his 100th birthday celebration. Meanwhile our good friend Mervn Ramsay will delve into his black book and endeavor to gain commitment from a number of celebrities to appear on the day.
Both these events will require a huge team effort at our end. With the right level of support, I’m confident that we can build on what was achieved this year and make them both, occasions to be proud of.
Stand by for some Chairman and Club Captain arm twisting, but if any members would like to come forward to join the organizing teams, please contact me: chairtpcc@gmail.com

Twenty Twenty Cricket
Thanks to the energy and enthusiasm of James Wheels Wheeler, we are planning on creating a midweek Twenty Twenty side next season, complete with coloured kit! Watch this space for more news, but if you want to register your interest now, simply let the good man know: wheeler_james@hotmail.co.uk

Chesham Rising Stars
We’re delighted to report that Waj and the boys will back next season, for a minimum ten games on our second ground on Sundays. While other clubs struggle, CSR continue to go from strength to strength and we’re very happy to play a small part in their story.

Balcony Refurbishment
I’m delighted to report that at our last meeting, the Management Team approved a five-figure expenditure for refurbishment of the main balcony (to the left of the scoreboard as you look at it). The plan is to replace all decking and the rotten supporting timber with a new hardwearing composite material. A huge thank you to Guy Masters for the research he put into this project and for securing the services of a contractor who comes with a strong seal of approval for major works carried out on behalf of one of our members.
This work, along with the imminent kitchen refurbishment and the work recently completed on our car park (no more ominous puddles gathering on the edge of the main ground) reflect the solid financial status of the club and is a tribute to the hard work of the Management Team and other volunteers over the last 12 months, to get us to this position.

2018 has been a great year for Tring Park Cricket Club. Have a wonderful Christmas and may your 2019 be full of wickets, runs, joy and happiness…. especially on our new balcony.

Best wishes
Nick

PS. One final thought. If you like the idea of sending a digital card to friends and family this Christmas, you can do so easily via Just Giving and make a small donation to TPCC at the same time. I did one and it’s dead easy! Just follow this link:
https://www.justgiving.com/givecards/charity/uk/2453842