SA SCHOOLS SQUASH
MINUTES OF THE SA SCHOOLS CONVENTION HELD ON
SATURDAY, 27 AUGUST 2016 AT THE CULLINAN HOTEL, CAPE TOWN
1. Welcome and apologies
The Chairman thanked everyone for coming and apologies had been received from:
● Sally White who is on tour in Malaysia
● Kevin Craigen of North West Province
Gertjie Scholtz paid tribute to Angela Difford who had passed away and this was followed by a minute’s silence.
The two main focuses of this convention would be feedback and the registration process.
2. Minutes of 2015 Convention
The delegates were given time to peruse the minutes. These were taken as read, confirmed and signed.
Proposed: Estelle Thiel Seconded: Nickie Vlok
3. Matters arising from minutes
Steve Doeg will discuss the registration process and Duncan de Groot will discuss feedback and sub-committee suggestions and proposals.
4. Chairman’s report 2016
The Chairman stated that the delegates were welcome to read through his report and to look at it in their own time.
5. Financial report 2016 – Margo Morgan to report
Costs for the year were made up as follows :
Convention Costs 18%
Selectors Costs 6%
Admin Related Costs 8%
Medals and Certificates 6%
Other 5%
Players 57%
Expenditure reflected that 57% had been put back into the players’ directly - to support development players.
64% (the bulk of the income) was also being put back into the players’ and the SA Schools Executive were contributing as much as they were able to towards investing funds back into the players and provinces.
All income now fell under one umbrella body. This included the levy account. The levy account income (R15 per player for individual events on the calendar) is used largely to subsidise overseas tours when and where possible. Interest on investments is capitalised and not drawn. Other investments and the interest thereon is kept for emergencies.
The Chairman thanked Margo Morgan for all her work on the finances.
Proposed: Maxine Gouweloos Seconded: Duncan de Groot
6. Squash SA feedback – Liz Addison to report
Liz Addison undertook to explain what Squash SA means for us and what they do. They are essentially the contact between SRSA (the Ministry) and SASCOC. If the body did not exist, we would not be able to participate in international tournaments and our reffing and coaching would not be recognised. They work hard to get money and they monitor things like transformation, as there is a lot of pressure from Government. SASCOC are the Governing Body and they have to approve National Colours. We have to obtain permission to hold “World Masters”, there are specific selection criteria and a procedure that needs to be followed. There are a maximum number of players that can participate in World Tournaments. Different colours apply to Nationals and SA Schools and SA Schools may not wear green and gold.
Squash SA has a council of which Steve Doeg is the Chairman. Schools/Junior Body should have a representative on the Senior Body to allow these bodies to work together. They want 9 provinces constituted and established by October 2016. We need these structures in order to obtain funding. North West and Limpopo are the only geo-political regions. This is nothing new. It has been have tried this before and it simply doesn’t work. However, essentially nothing much has changed. It just involves a lot of paperwork to formulate an umbrella body for each of the nine provinces. The senior bodies need to drive the process and the junior bodies will follow suit. There was a Constitution drafted 4 years ago already to assist provinces with this process. This is a much more political thing than just a squash thing.
SRSA has contributed R3,5 million since 2011 and these funds have been directed back to the various provinces. If we are kicked out of SASCOC, we will not be allowed to play overseas.
KZN, for example, have seven regions and we need two people from each region to form a committee. Strategic planning needs to take place and everyone needs to be on the same page in terms of setting targets etc. Coaching and refereeing is a problem as we need more qualified coaches. In 2022, squash is being recognised as a core sport in the Commonwealth Games, so we have 6 years to work towards improving coaching, players, etc.
Liz Addison urged all delegates to ensure that information that is sent out, is circulated to EVERYONE. The Chairman thanked Liz Addison for all that she does for Squash.
Liz Addison requested that all stats and player information be submitted to her please.
Maxine Gouweloos raised concern at the fact that not many big tournaments are played in the smaller provinces. As a result, these referees are not gaining much experience. It would be great if they could get the kind of exposure that Matthew Reid has. Liz Addison stated that more PSA tournaments are needed in an effort to try and improve and that they are fully aware of this problem.
Jacques Henning queried what level of coaching is needed. Either 1 or 2 and it should be funded by the province. Liz Addison thanked Blaar Coetzee for his work on the Squash SA website and suggested that the names of qualified coaches and referees be uploaded to the site.
7. IPT 2016 report backs - U19, U16, U14, U13 and U11
The Chairman thanked all of those provinces who had hosted IPT’s in 2016. They had all been very successful and a lot of hard work had been put in.
U19
Feedback forms had been sent with the Managers. It had been a very successful tournament. There had been 1 minor incident which is being dealt with at province level. 3 players were caught drinking and were sent home and the legal process still continues. Steve Doeg is busy putting procedure document together, not only for IPT’s, but for use at any tournament in the future.
Maxine Gouweloos queried the number of courts available at Stellenbosch because some of their players had expressed concern about travelling at night. Blaar Coetzee mentioned that there had been concern from their side at the fact that the A teams had played in Paarl, while the others had played at Stellenbosch and they hadn’t been able to “mix” or interact with one another. He also expressed concern about having to travel and felt that it would be easier to have everyone at one venue.
Grant Norton stated that, from an executive point of view, we are a school body so must act within the confines of the Schools Act, which protects the minor in a way. A new substance abuse form is being drafted. The proposed form with amendments, supplied by Steve Doeg needed some adjustments and work as it placed too much responsibility on the Tournament directors/organiser E.g. A great deal of responsibility regarding the player and banning them for 6 months placed on the director. All the relevant issues will be considered and escalated to a level where it can be handled. Event organisers do not necessarily have the skills and knowledge to handle these issues. Breach of discipline is very different when dealing with seniors as opposed to minors (learners). The schools act also needed to be taken into account
Margo Morgan added that the onus is on the provinces to ensure that the players sign the alcohol declaration. It was felt that the punishment had not been consistent. Non-participation at Jarvis is the ONLY punishment for the U19’s as this is the last tournament they will be able to participate in. We must show that we will not condone the conduct.
Grant Norton mentioned that the situation was fraught with difficulty because this happens during school holidays and there is a time delay between the action and the child returning to school.
Steve Doeg suggested a procedure manual for use during all tournaments. A very strong legal letter had been received but no lesson had really been learned by some of the learners. Legal letters must go out as soon as things happen according to the Squash SA Code of Conduct.
Darren Bruce-Brand queried how valid the declaration is. Steve Doeg confirmed that the declaration put on the table had, in fact, been drafted by an Attorney. It was completely transparent and there were no hidden clauses. He suggested that the player not be allowed to play or participate in the tournament if the declaration/contract has not been signed. The onus is on the province to ensure that these are, in fact, submitted/received. Grant Norton said that there were huge loopholes in the declaration that had been put on the table and he knows that it was drawn up by an Attorney and he isn’t a legal expert, but this needs to be relooked at. When appointing Managers for IPT’s and other tournaments, we need to ensure that they are responsible and that they have been made aware of all of the rules and regulations. They need to take responsibility for their players.
Maxine Gouweloos said that it is hard to find responsible people. Grant Robinson mentioned that his feeling is that, if parents want their children to play squash, then they need to get involved. Margo Morgan suggested that players that have left the school system be equipped with the knowledge to manage a team.
Grant Norton proposed that the Executive look at ways of strengthening this issue and of implementing a procedure manual.
U16
Blaar Coetzee reported that they had taken the IPT on very late, as they had taken over from Boland. All in all, the tournament had gone very well. There had only been 1 or 2 issues with the facilities at the court, but had received mostly positive feedback.
Margo Morgan mentioned that players cannot share a room with the Managers (even if they are the parents). Managers also cannot be accommodated in a different building. It was suggested that Managers from different provinces also not have to share facilities and the same should apply to the players. The players had really enjoyed the tournament and Blaar Coetzee confirmed that they will work on this.
Sue Penhall added that, from Border’s point of view, they were sorry and regretted having had to withdraw from hosting the IPT. An unusual set of circumstances had resulted in them not being able to host and thanked Northerns for picking it up.
U14
Irene Maxton mentioned that there had been some issues regarding no curtains in the showers. The tournament went very well and they were very happy with how it had been run.
Maxine Gouweloos said that these players are young and were very tired after travelling and still had to play 2 matches in one day. The night match was supposed to have taken place on the Tuesday and the players were absolutely exhausted on the Saturday. Margo Morgan added that travelling was an issue but that the IPT rules for U14, 16 & 19 allow not more than for 2 matches to be played per day. Rankings need to be taken into consideration - if the team leaves early, then they could pay a little extra and be given the opportunity of attaining the best results. Peter Furstenburg suggested that we extend the play on the Wednesday in order to get an extra round in. Margo Morgan felt that it was better to do it before the time as the players end up sitting in the hostel doing nothing. Grant Norton suggested that the IPT organisers liaise with the Executive in this regard on how best to make it work in their specific situation.
Maxine Gouweloos said that the girls had been kicked out of the playroom and all they wanted to do was spend time with the boys. So, they spent a lot of time in their room. Irene Maxton replied that the person in charge of the hostel is paranoid as this is a boys only school.
U13
Estelle Thiel reported that the tournament had gone well. All accommodation was in close proximity. Some of the players got sick on the last day but they couldn’t pinpoint where they had picked up the illness as it was very random. Peter Furstenburg said that WP managers had reported that they had split the 4 teams by putting 3 teams in one lot of accommodation and 1 at another venue. Perhaps they could have split them equally with 2 teams at each venue as the one team felt isolated from the rest of the group. Estelle Thiel said that this was only applicable to the sleeping arrangements as they had all played at the same venue. It was also mentioned that there was no team from Gauteng.
Irene Maxton said that the reason for them not sending a team was because 3 of their players are at IEB schools so they weren’t on holiday at the time and 3 of their players were development players and the costs were prohibitive. Estelle Thiel queried whether it was true that some U13 players had played at U14 level and Irene Maxton confirmed this to be correct. Grant Norton mentioned that the problem with composite teams is that the tournament becomes lopsided.
Liz Addison said that we need to push for girls to start playing squash as there needs to be a bigger base from U11 level. This is showing at Jarvis.
Grant Robinson said that he would prefer that, if parents approach provinces with regard to their players participating in a combined tournament, that they include him in their discussions. They need to ensure that everything is channelled through the Chair.
U11
Jaco reported that he had no knowledge of what happened. Maryna had been terrific and he thanked her for her role in her absence. He was with his own son at the IPT’s, so he was not present at the U11 tournaments but had received very positive feedback. He has pleaded with Maryna to continue running the IPT.