Just a final message for 2016 to let you know what’s been happening as we work towards season 2017…
New Committee Members
Welcome to our new Committee Members! Mark Armstrong and Vic Chiappini have put their hands up to join the Committee as Social Coordinators. Club social events have been lacking in the past few years without anyone filling this role so we’re glad to be able to address this gap. We also welcome Chris McGeachan, who has taken on the important role of Player Welfare Officer. We now have enough Committee Members but still need volunteers for other key roles such as Communications Manager, Registrar and Property Manager. More information on these roles is listed below. Please let me know if this is something you might consider – we can achieve much more as a club with more volunteers helping out.
Communications Manager. This primarily involves updating information on the website and sending out the club newsletter. Time commitment around 2 hours per week during season and much less off season. Management of the Facebook page is already sorted (Thanks Ros!)
Registrar. This person handles the registration queries, player transfers, registration payments, payment plans etc. Time commitment peaks February – April at about 5 hours per week but is much less during the rest of the year.
Property Manager. This person is responsible for sales and ensuring adequate supplies of shorts, socks and playing jumpers, as well as any other club merchandise. They also prepare the team manager and training kits at the start of the season. Availability to attend training/ match days for uniform sales would be a help. Time commitment also peaks February – April at 4-5 hours per week, with 1-2 hours per week for the remainder of the season.
Girls Teams in 2017
We are moving ahead with plans for three girls teams in 2017 – Under 10s, U12s and U14s. We have invested in new female fit jumpers for each of these teams and are planning clinics for players new to football in the lead up to the season. Please encourage your friends, sisters, cousins neighbours and school mates to join in. 2017 will be an exciting year for female football and we want to be part of it – keep an eye on our Facebook page for the latest updates or contact Steve Harford (0414 573 737 or stephenharford@hotmail.com).
Sponsors Required
We would like to have NJFC training tops available for all players for the coming season. It our intention that these tops be available at no additional cost to all players, funded by sponsorship from local businesses. Although several potential sponsors expressed interest following the 2016 season we have still not confirmed these sponsorships, or heard from other possible sponsors. Unless this happens soon we won’t be able to get these tops organised and ready for 2017. Please contact me if you are interested in being a sponsor for these tops, or could consider other ways of supporting the club.
Survey Results
Thanks to all families who completed surveys in 2016. The response rate from many teams was disappointing, so we are likely to move to an online survey for 2017 . A brief summary of the main findings:
Responses were generally positive, with team level responses highly rated as we have seen in previous years. One area of some dissatisfaction is player rotations in older age groups. Pre-season planning and communication, especially at Under 9 level, was a concern that will need to be addressed. Email remains by far the most preferred means of communicating with families.
The club level questions also indicated a high level of satisfaction. Areas of concern were around club-wide social events and the lack of healthy options in the canteen. The suggestion of running more social events will be possible now that we have Social Coordinators. On average the canteen remains the area of lowest satisfaction level across the club.
Responses related to age groups with multiple teams indicate a need to make teams as even as possible while maintaining friendship groups, and to consider how to balance age group teams training together or as individual teams. This latter issue is very much determined by the availability of coaching staff. The question about if or when players should be streamed on ability rather than friendship groups again produced a range of responses. The average age suggested as appropriate for streaming was 13.6 years, slightly up from 2016.
Canteen Operations
In response to the survey findings we’d like to invite anyone interested in changing the way the canteen operates to consider becoming Canteen Manager. In the past few years we have contracted out the operation of the canteen, but in the years prior to that it was managed by club members. The revenue to the club is obviously greater if it is run by volunteers, but a paid canteen manager (or managers) is something that could be discussed. Time commitment varies depending on the management arrangement but would involve ordering and delivering supplies as well as Auskick and match day preparation and sales. We expect to make a decision about 2017 canteen arrangements at our next meeting on 23 January so please contact me ASAP if you are interested.
Child Safe Standards
The Victorian Child Safe Standards will apply to all sports clubs from 1 January 2017. We are looking for a general parent member to join our subcommittee that is overseeing the rollout of the Standards in the lead up to the season. Please contact me if you can help out.
Preseason Dates
We hope to be able to announce coaching arrangements and pre-season training dates late in January. As always it is complicated as we don’t have access to the grounds and clubrooms until the cricket season finishes. I’d like to thank Dennis Cricket Club for being so cooperative and allowing us to fit in around their training and match schedules.
There will be a ‘Come and Try’ Day on 9 February (4.45-6.45pm), with players from Carlton FC in attendance. All players are welcome to come along on this day for a bit of a kick around the park.
Registrations
Registrations for 2017 are open: click on the link on the webpage http://njfc.com.au/ to take you to the form. Fees for 2017 are $240 (or $180 for Health Care Card holders) for the first child in each family. Members will also need to pay the NFL Junior Levy in order to register – please note that this levy can only be paid online. The NFL now require new members to upload a copy of the player’s birth certificate as part of the registration process.
Wishing you all the very best for a safe and happy festive season,
Ann-Maree
