News

MEMBERS LETTER - 31 MARCH 2020

To all our valued NDs players and friends,

We all wish to live in interesting times, but the times are we live in now are truly remarkable.

In the two short weeks since we played our last days of cricket, our world looks and feels very different. We are being challenged in ways we couldn’t have imagined.

Though the season is over, the Club is always concerned about the wellbeing of our players, members and friends and we want you to know we’re thinking about you in these challenging times.

We know some of you have lost employment or income, and we know almost all of you will be feeling at least a little uncomfortable or concerned, and are increasingly uncertain about the future. Our daily actions and ordinary lives are highly disrupted and it’s not easy.

However, we are amongst the lucky ones; we live in a great country and we belong to an organisation that cares about its people. As a result, the Club is full of good people.

If 2020 is the toughest year of our lives, as the Prime Minister says, it will also be a year that defines us individually and as a community. As a community service organisation, the Club is here to play its role, immediately to help you see through the current situation and later, to make life fun and enjoyable again when cricket recommences on the other side.

As cricketers, we judge ourselves by how we go against the best and toughest competition, and so we might note how we cope with current difficulties. So to that end I have written a few thoughts for you, which I trust will help give context to what we are all going through:

• Crises are actually a part of life. Virtually every generation has experienced one or more crises. Our society has grown throughout; despite wars, famines, and pandemics.

 • Many things, like emotions, are temporary, and as we deal with profound change, and our expectations adjust. That’s how we manage big changes. We are more than just the emotion that rides over us today – we’re the product of years of work from ourselves, parents, mentors. We’re built to survive the short-term.

 • The future has always been uncertain! We debate what happened in the past so why would the future be predetermined? The future, with all its uncertainty – good and bad - is what makes life so interesting. Embrace it if you can – good will emerge from current difficulties.

 • Do not get your daily mood from the front page of the newspaper. The media has a job to do, but if you binge on media at this time you will only find it counter-productive to the need to maintain balance and a good outlook on life. Our game throws us up so many highs and lows, and while not as confronting as real life, sports such as cricket can prepare you for the real world’s highs and lows.

 • We need people – humans are social creatures, and we need each other. We need to keep in contact with friends and family, even if not in person, via other methods. So if you can’t catch up in person at the pub or café, use phone and video conferencing.

 • Your friends at a club like NDs are true friends. In Kerry O’Keefe’s biography he regrets not understanding the quality of the friendships from his club (St George). As an older man, he realised the bonds formed in the game and the quality of the people in it. He would tell us now – appreciate your teammates and Club.

 • If you need to chat to someone, one of your cricket friends or mentors (a captain or coach), or committee members (like myself) are here to help. Because you are a member of the NDs family, your physical and mental health and wellbeing is extremely important to us. I thank those in our Club who make the effort to reach out and help others; or even just have a chat. These are the acts no one sees that defines really good people - and makes great organisations.

 In the coming weeks, the Club will ask all players (male and female) about your season and how you felt about it, via questionnaire and/or videoconference (no meetings just now!). We want to know how you’re going as well. We will begin to plan the season ahead; we want to work out how we can help you reach your potential and your goals. We look forward to your thoughts and comments to help make the Club – and your experience as a member - better.

 It’s disappointing that we have had to cancel the Presentation Night scheduled for May 8th, as it’s always such a great gathering of the Club’s people, and a great night to recognise the season top performers. We don’t know yet whether we can hold our AGM on Thursday July 16th, but we will advise closer to the time. We have been in planning for a big Cricket Lunch on Friday 23rd October and will let you know more about this later on.

 For the time being, we all know that we need to follow the health advice seriously. We know a small number in the community have ignored warnings; the Club and the cricket community know we all have to do the right thing. Once we manage the health threat through everyone playing their part, we can begin to get to work on our cricket again, and can look forward to season 2020/21.

 Take care of yourselves, and best wishes to you and your family and friends in these trying times. We’ll get through this.

Jeremy Hook

President 

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