Your Board

CNSW Board of Directors

Kate McLoughlin - Chair

What brought you to being a member of the Board?
I was persuaded to join, and was keen to ensure Clubs outside Sydney and the interests of Golf Croquet were well represented. I know organisations can only thrive if the members step up and contribute.

What is your Board portfolio and what is your key focus for this for the next 12 months?
I am looking forward to this year: I have taken on the role of Chair, with a Board of seven enthusiastic members. I plan to focus on building membership, rolling out the Hubs project, and continuing to work with Cooks River Croquet Club. Competitions, coaching, and the growth of junior croquet are all passions I look forward to furthering.

What is your vision for croquet in NSW and what do you think Clubs and individual members can do to support that?
I would like to see membership growth, the development of centres of excellence, the growth of competitive excellence, and regular communication with our members engaged in the sport. We have many skilled members, and look forward to more people engaging with The Board to improve our capacity to deliver on some exciting goals.

Tell us a bit about your local club and what you like best about it?
My local club is Canberra. It’s a friendly and competitive club, with members improving their skill across the disciplines of Association Croquet, Golf Croquet and Gateball.. We have a full membership and are looking to start new clubs in Canberra. We strive to be the best Club in NSW with great coaching, adherence to the rules, and lots of opportunities to play, and compete.

Rik Mills - Secretary

What brought you to being a member of the Board?
I was persuaded to join the board in late 2020 and am keen to ensure that the interest of regional Clubs is represented. I also believe that an organisation’s strength and growth is reliant on the participation and support of its members at all levels of the sport.

What is your Board portfolio and what is your key focus for this for the next 12 months?
My position on the board is an ordinary member. I am the nominated contact person for the AC Selection Committee and AC Refereeing, this is to ensure there is a defined communication pathway to the Board.

What is your vision for croquet in NSW and what do you think Clubs and individual members can do to support that?
That croquet continues to grow as a community and competitive sport in NSW. That more members become involved in the administration of the sport at all levels from Club to State to support the growth of the Sport. The introduction of regional hubs as an ACA/C NSW initiative will be an opportunity to support local clubs in improving the skills of players and promote interest in all levels of competition.

Tell us a bit about your local club and what you like best about it?
My local club is Orange City. It’s a friendly club, with members improving their skill across the disciplines of Association Croquet and Golf Croquet. We have a growing membership and run regular learn to play sessions throughout the year. The Club is involved in friendly competition with other Clubs in the region.

Steve Miles - Treasurer

What brought you to being a member of the Board?
With four directors retiring from Croquet NSW in 2019 there seemed to be a need for new resources. Croquet NSW board members have worked hard and successfully to advance the sport of Croquet but I saw some things that could be improved. Rather than just complain, I decided to do something about it. Since I joined it has been great to see the Board grow to full strength.

What is your Board portfolio and what is your key focus for this for the next 12 months?
I am the Treasurer and my main focus will be streamlining financial processes so resources can concentrate on what matters.

What is your vision for croquet in NSW and what do you think Clubs and individual members can do to support that?
My vision doesn’t count as we are only here to service the needs of clubs and their members. We have a Strategic Plan which outlines how we do that but members still need to let us know what they need and provide continual feedback.

Tell us a bit about your local club and what you like best about it?
I have just stepped down as President of Cammeray Croquet club after serving the maximum three year term. The strength of Cammeray is that everybody pitches in to do what is needed. Things just get done with a minimum of fuss. I am also a member of Mosman, Chatswood and Cooks River. I like to have variety in my games!

Liz Friend - Newsletter

What brought you to being a member of the Board?
After being asked if I would be interested in joining the Board, I was very pleased that my Club nominated me as I believed I would be able to bring my knowledge and experience to the Board. My work experience in various roles as well as my involvement in a service organisation have given me a sound understanding of effective marketing strategies and engagement with a diverse range of stakeholders.

What is your Board portfolio and what is your key focus for this for the next 12 months?
My portfolio includes Membership and Selection (GC) and I will also prepare the monthly newsletter. I am also looking forward to being on various committees and working groups. To date, communication with members and clubs has been very effective and I plan to continue with this good work to promote and market croquet, not just to members, but to the wider community.

What is your vision for croquet in NSW and what do you think Clubs and individual members can do to support that?
Since I became involved with croquet five years’ ago, I have observed how inclusive croquet is. It is certainly a sport that most people can enjoy, both socially and competitively, with the opportunity to play different codes in many locations. I see that the volunteer spirit in clubs is strong and this can be seen in club activities, including their commitment to Club, inter-club and CNSW tournaments, either by holding events or attending events. Croquet is a sport that is thriving and this can be attributed to the volunteers who willingly step up as well as the positive culture that has been nurtured over the years. I believe that CNSW, together with all stakeholders, will continue to see great outcomes from this support.

Tell us a bit about your local club and what you like best about it?
Following retirement, I moved from Canberra five years’ ago and started playing croquet. I am a very proud of my club, Nelson Bay, as there has been strong leadership over many years that has developed both the Club and its players. Coaching has been one of the priorities, at all levels, and the opportunity to compete has been encouraged without affecting the desire of those members who just wish to improve their game with no real plans to compete. It is a friendly club with many volunteers who enjoy giving their time to ensure that things run smoothly. I enjoy the social side as well as the competition, but the best part has been the opportunity to meet people and make friends when I moved to the area only knowing a few people.

Ray Chapman - Board Member

What brought you to being a member of the Board?
With three vacancies this year I thought I could make a difference if I got on the Board. I am a practical, positive, energetic, hardworking individual with a work background that allows me to be highly organised with an attitude of getting things done.

What is your Board portfolio and what is your key focus for this for the next 12 months?
My position on the Board is that of a general Board member. I am the nominated contact person for the Tournament Committee,Ricochet and Junior Croquet. This will ensure there is a communication link to the Board. My key focus will be assisting in any way possible to increase croquet participation throughout the State.

What is your vision for croquet in NSW and what do you think Clubs and individual members can do to support that?
My vision is to see Croquet youth participation numbers grow through the introduction of croquet as a sports option within schools and the establishment of junior croquet squads throughout the state for coaching, practice and competitions. Clubs will need to support this vision by approaching individual schools and hopefully setting up dates and times for schools to participate. Individual members will need to assist where possible in making this vision a success.

Tell us a bit about your local club and what you like best about it?
Ballina Cherry Street is the largest croquet club in the Northern Rivers Croquet Association with over 80 members who play all forms of croquet from club games to State events. What I love about our club is that, every new member is welcome like they were a member of the family. Our club is one of the social hubs in the area where members can come along have chat with friends, cup of tea, and play croquet.

Fidye Westgarth - Board Member

What brought you to being a member of the Board?
The Board had good representation from clubs across NSW, but needed a stronger input from metropolitan clubs. I have spent some years on the management committee of our local club. I play Association Croquet and Golf Croquet, and a bit of Ricochet. I have played in state championship tournaments in AC and GC. I am an ACA qualified coach. So all this gave me a broad understanding of how the croquet community works.

What is your Board portfolio and what is your key focus for this for the next 12 months?
I hold a General Board Member position, and I am the central point of contact for coaching issues. My key focus in the next 12 months is developing strategies for creating wider interest in croquet in the community, and for increasing membership across NSW.

What is your vision for croquet in NSW and what do you think Clubs and individual members can do to support that?
I see croquet as both a social and a competitive activity, and both aspects should be valued within clubs. During COVID lockdown we came to see how important it was for our members to be able to get together for games whilst maintaining COVID-safe practices. Our members develop friendships and care about each other's well-being.

Tell us a bit about your local club and what you like best about it?
I belong to Mosman Croquet Club. We are the largest club in NSW, having 150 playing members. We had to set a cut-off point at 150 members because our lawns were getting worn-out from so much use. We now have a 4-year waiting list for membership.
Our club is fun, and we enjoy competitions as well as social activities at the club. I have made wonderful friendships through playing croquet, and can see this is very common throughout our club.
Volunteering is a critical part of the enjoyment of our club, and we rely on our member volunteers for smooth running of our club. Different people bring different skills, and we find that the more people contribute the more enjoyment they get from their participation.

Stephen Burns - Board Member

What brought you to being a member of the Board?
The reason I joined was to understand how CNSW managed the competing claims of the many clubs affiliated with it. Also, I wished to understand the relationship with government agencies and councils.

What is your Board portfolio and what is your key focus for this for the next 12 months?
I am charged with U21 development and Gateball. I was a secondary school teacher before converting over to Information Technology. This background hopefully will provide a pathway for development of U21 croquet. U21 will be my focus as well as the progressive introduction of Gateball and encouraging more coaching in CNSW clubs.

What is your vision for croquet in NSW and what do you think Clubs and individual members can do to support that?
I will encourage CNSW to better support individual clubs in establishing their own tournaments and coaching in the various forms of croquet. I also will suggest more individuals volunteer for work within clubs as a it is a truism that many clubs are run by small, dedicated groups of volunteers and normally with minimal support by the majority of club members.

Tell us a bit about your local club and what you like best about it?
I am a member of Coogee and Cooks River clubs. Coogee is a very well run and sociable club with 2 courts not far from Coogee beach. Unfortunately, one of its courts is severely overshadowed by 2 large Moreton Bay figs resulting in only just over half available for play. Otherwise, it has a very picturesque clubhouse built in 1950 and an outlook onto Barden Park. It is used by a meditation centre plus many other groups for mahjong, cards etc.
Cooks River Club uses 4 excellent courts at the CNSW Headquarters at Tempe which is often used for major tournaments. The club, however, is restricted by having a very small club room attached to the Concordia Club. So, it is difficult to have any social events at the club, which is essential for binding people as a good club. We do have a very good program of Come and Try events to introduce local Inner West Council rate payers to croquet, this being the reason the Marrickville Council requested CNSW to set up a club.