Griffith Australian Football Netball Club - A.G.M. (29-10-2014)

Presidents Report

Welcome to the 2014 Griffith Swans Annual General Meeting, thanks for taking the time to come along to have some input into the running of your club. In our 100th year we celebrated all things Red and White and the rich history of the Griffith Swans, considerable efforts put in by many ensured we celebrated this monumental milestone in a fitting way. To have a jumper with the names of all first graders to have played with the club is a amazing effort and the jumper itself will become a rich part of the fabric of our club. The centenary celebration weekend coincided with Anzac day and we were lucky enough to have the local RSL's support in hosting a game on the Friday evening, the Anzac part of the weekend was seen as a great success and something we intend to continue the momentum with in future years. The official dinner held on the Saturday night was very well attended with 375 people, many of which travelled, enjoying the memorabilia on display, the naming of the team of the century and the entertainment provided by Sam Kekovich.

Prior to the start of this season the committee and senior coaches identified the need to increase the effort with junior development and to ensure the junior coaches were well supported in their roles. We created a position with Che Jenkins filling the role and liaising with the junior coaches and rostering senior players through junior training sessions. While somewhat successful we still need to ensure we have the senior player buy in, training schedules for 2015 should hopefully aid in this and we have to continue to refine the way this is done.

The on field successes were mixed with a premiership in the junior football, several other junior teams playing finals some standout in the South West Juniors league awards and senior representation in the finals for the 2 netball teams and the U17's and Reserve Grade in the football. I believe our frame work for success is right but we need to continue to work to make sure this is represented in our premier grades through a strong club culture, proactive player development and strategic player recruitment.

I would like to take the chance to thank all the people that have helped in any way over the past season, it was a big year with centenary celebrations and catering the RFNL Grand Final on top of our regular events and fundraisers, without these people's efforts the club wouldn't function. Can I also encourage everyone connected to the club to consider the ways that they may be able to help carry some of the workload. I am continually amazed at what is required to run a country football and netball club so spreading this workload is vital in keeping good people involved in our club.

In closing I am still excited about the opportunities and the potential within the club and I look forward to seeing what we have to achieve next year, as always there will no doubt be challenges but there's a reason made it through the first 100 years so bring on the next 100!

Carn the Swans

Jeff Harris