Charity number: 1166178 ## **NEWCASTLE STAFFS. VOLLEYBALL CLUB** (A Charitable Incorporated Organisation) ## Accounts and Trustees’ Annual Report for the year ended 31[st] May 2024 _1_ ## **NEWCASTLE STAFFS. VOLLEYBALL CLUB** ## **Contents** |Trustees|3| |---|---| |Trustees reports, and charitable objects|4| |Chair’s report|5| |Annual Awards Winners|7| |Safeguarding|8| |Junior Volleyball|9| |Social Volleyball|13| |Women’s 1stTeam|14| |Men’s 1stTeam|15| |Women’s 2ndTeam|16| |Men’s 2ndTeam|17| |Women’s 3rdTeam|19| |Men’s 3rdTeam|20| |Financial statement|22| _2_ ## **TRUSTEES** - Marie Barley (Secretary) - Matt Smith (Treasurer) - Hannah Donaldson - Els Drijfhout - Ben Fernandez-Fontan - Richard Guest - Flossy Owen (Safeguarding) - Will Roberts (Chair) - Rod Stockwell - Sharon Sturland _3_ ## **TRUSTEES REPORTS** The trustees present the annual report together with the financial statement for the charity for the year ended 31[st] May 2024. ## **OBJECTS** The objects of the CIO are: The promotion of the amateur sport of volleyball, beach volleyball and sitting volleyball for the public benefit and the promotion of community participation in healthy recreation, by the provision of facilities for playing volleyball, beach volleyball sitting volleyball in Newcastle, North Staffordshire and South Cheshire. _4_ ## **CHAIR’S REPORT** It has been another year to be proud of as a club with so much going on. In 2020 we launched our ‘Ambition 2030’ strategy setting out three aims to achieve by our 50[th] anniversary as a club in 2030. ## **2030 Ambition 1: Double our Membership** Through an increased media presence, direct approaches with schools and others, and targeted social media promotion this growth happened remarkably quickly, and relatively easily. The challenge has been keeping up pace and the implication of achieving the target three years after setting it has been significant on our requirements for venues and coaches. We must now ensure we provide high quality experiences for our members and consolidate on this growth. - 2020 baseline (September): 135 members - 2021/22 season: 263 members (up 95% vs baseline) - 2022/23 season: 276 members (up 104% vs baseline) - 2023/24 season: 367 members (up 172% vs baseline) However, work is required to cleanse our membership database in summer 2024 as the 2023/24 figure is likely inaccurate due to the Social membership figures not having yet been assessed for members that attended no sessions in 23/24 – these should be removed from a final figure. ## **2030 Ambition 2: Create a home for the Club** We set-out with two options in this ambition, a home at Madeley School, and/or at Keele University Beach courts. The costs and complexities relating to working with the University mean that in 2022 it became evident that this would not be a viable option unless the University changes its approach to investment in facilities. Initial conversations with Madeley School were positive with an in-principle ‘yes’ to creating a club room with kitchen, storage and indoor changing facilities on the small basketball court area between the sports hall and the new nursery. This led to the creation of initial drawings in January 2024 but since that time the Trust that runs Madeley School has indicated it would contribute no funding to the project – meaning that at this time we have no viable means of progressing any further given their restriction on funding sources (i.e. they would not accept use of available local funding source for ethical reasons). _With this ambition now seemigly out of reach for now, the Trustees will consider the development of a new ambition to ensure we keep moving forwards to our 50[th] anniversary in 2030!_ **2030 Ambition 3: To ensure our players and teams are at the top table of English Volleyball** Our achievements in the 23/24 season: - Women’s 1[st] team – promoted to NVL 2 through play offs - Men’s 2[nd] team – promoted to NVL 2 as Champions - Men’s 3[rd] team – promoted to West Midlands division 2 as Champions - U18 Boys A team – National Ranking #1, National Championship Silver - U18 Girls A team – National Gold Cup Winners _5_ - U16 Boys A team – National Gold Cup Winners - U15 Girls A team – Last 8s and National Ranking #9 - U15 Boys A team – Last 8s and National Ranking #5 - Two players capped by England Men - Four players played for England Men Development - One player in the England Girls Cadets team - Six players played for England Boys Cadets team - Four girls trained at England Junior Talent Pathway Camps - Five boys trained at England Junior Talent Pathway Camps - Five players played for West Midlands girls teams - Nine players played for West Midlands boys teams - Two coaches in the England National Team programmes This is an impressive list, however we must recognise the potential impact of relegation from the Super League for Men1 – a symptom of the ongoing strengthening of those teams able to create full time training programmes through large Universities, and those in large metropolitan areas with significant populations from strong volleyball countries. Being based in a small market town on the outskirts of an unfashionable industrial city means we punch well above our weight and are at the top table! We could not achieve this without the support of our sponsors and partners. Local businesses Parogon Pub Group, one of Staffordshire’s premier employers and brands. Parogon feature as kit sponsor across all of our senior teams but their support behind the scenes again extended beyond this – thank you so much! The importance of two further partners can never be underestimated – Madeley School, now entering its 21[st] year as an active partner of the club, and Staffordshire University. Both partners accommodate our frequent requests for court time and are open to suggestions of how they might help the club progress further. Huge “thank you” messages should go to both. To close I would like to express my thanks to all of the club’s volunteers, coaches and trustees – and all our members as the club is in such wonderful health thanks to the culture and environment that we have together. Will Roberts Chair of Trustees June 2023 _6_ ## **ANNUAL AWARDS WINNERS 2023-24 SEASON** |Chair’s Award - Senior|Diane Gentle||Chair’s Award – Junior|Alex Viggars| |---|---|---|---|---| |Women 1 – Coaches Player|Shev Watson||U18 Girls - MVP|Vika Kroll| |Women 1 – Players’ Player|Alex Viggars||U18 Girls – Most Improved|Lori Bettany| |Women 1 – Most Improved|Vika Kroll||U18 Girls – Special Award|Kornelia Chudyk| |Women 2 – Coaches Player|Isabelle Regan||U18 Boys - MVP|Josh Sturland| |Women 2 – Players’ Player|Manuela Trafane||U18 Boys – Most Improved|Freddie Guest| |Women 2 – Most Improved|Niamh Barrow||U18 Boys – Special Award|Jim Cox| |Women 3 – Coaches Player|Jennyfer Jung||U16 Girls - MVP|Ryleigh Heron| |Women 3 – Players’ Player|Lydia Shabong||U16 Girls – Most Improved|Kaitlyn Hurlstone| |Women 3 – Most Improved|Sydney Pace||U16 Girls – Special Award|Eloise Guest| |Men 1 – Coaches Player|Elliot Francis||U16 Boys - MVP|Jim Cox| |Men 1 – Players’ Player|Michael Lee||U16 Boys – Most Improved|Rudy Whittaker| |Men 1 – Most Improved|Josh Sturland||U16 Boys – Special Award|Seb Karas| |Men 2 – Coaches Player|Connor Grimes||U15 Girls - MVP|Eve Swindells| |Men 2 – Players’ Player|Rich James||U15 Girls – Most Improved|Emma Vaughan| |Men 2 – Most Improved|Komari Burey||U15 Girls – Special Award|Charlotte Keen| |Men 3 – Coaches Player|Ollie Panther||U15 Boys - MVP|Seb Wood| |Men 3 – Players’ Player|Elliot Wilde||U15 Boys – Most Improved|Michal Karas| |Men 3 – Most Improved|Adrian Chudyck||U15 Boys – Special Award|Seb Wood| |Social – Most Social|Vyacheslav Paslar||U13 Girls - MVP|Jess Simpson| |VolleyStars – u7 to u11s:
Thomas Dodd, Jacob Roberts, Edward Goodwin,
Annie Goodwin, Georgi Parakasov, Vladi
Parakasov, Abigail Wood, Clara Jackson, Elliott
Deaville, Hattie Marsh, Lily Satchithananda, Roo
Lang, Riley-Mae Summat, Pedr Summat|||U13 Girls – Most Improved|Viv Burke| ||||U13 Girls – Special Award|Laicie-Jo Williams| ||||U14 Boys - MVP|Dylan Jones| ||||U14 Boys – Most Improved|Thomas Jackson| ||||U14 Boys – Special Award|Ollie Groom| _7_ ## **SAFEGUARDING** As a club we have been fortunate to have had no issues regarding the welfare and safeguarding of our members this season. We are grateful to our coaches for their hard work and vigilance, and as club we should be proud of our commitment to the members in our club but must ensure we don’t become complacent. Florence Owen Safeguarding Officer, June 2024 _8_ ## **JUNIOR VOLLEYBALL** Our junior membership this season stands at 134 with a highly comprehensive programme that has seen players 14+ training 2x per week thanks to our dedicated coaching team – all volunteers. We have also run outreach coaching at the Orme Academy, and guest sessions at Kings School in Kidsgrove further growing our membership. The VolleyStars aged 7-11 years old have had a consistent group of around 12 children training weekly. Our Beach Volleyball Development Centre launched in May 2024 means many young players are able to train twice a week on the sand at Keele University and are making rapid progress with Josh Sturland selected to play for England at the u20 Northern European Championships, and Eve Swindells/Sarika Krishnadas and Seb Wood/Rudy Whitaker selected to play for West Midlands at the Beach Inter Regionals in July. ## **U15 Girls** The club took full advantage of three Tier 2 Grand Prix events taking place before Christmas to give as many girls as possible competitive experience, and through parental support teams of u13 also played Grand Prix 4 and 5 in the new year. This gave the girls a strong performance platform and led by Jess Keen and Will Roberts with close support from Geoff Keen and at Tier 1 Grand Prix at Wirral they finished 2[nd] behind a strong Urmston team, and beating the hosts in a close and tense encounter. Grand Prix 2 saw the Castle girls return to court with another month experience under their belts and knowing that if they won the Grand Prix they should qualify for the last 8s. In that gap, the girls had progressed leaps and bounds and the convincinglu beat Hull Thunder, before comprehensively beating the Wirral team that had so recently pushed them very hard. The season ambition was to make it to the Last 8s and the girls had done it! With a very young squad featuring four u13s in the starting 7 we knew this would be a learning experience and the coaches of the other teams all commented on how much the team came on on the day. The two finalists were in the ‘Castle team’s group at the last 8s… there is much to be proud of and look forward to. _Sarika Krishnadas and Isabelle Roberts attended England Talent Pathway camps, and Eve Swindells, Sarika Krishnadas and Kornelia Chudyk played for West Midlands u15s._ ## **U15 Boys** We entered two teams in each of the tier 2 4v4 Grand Prix with the support of parents to run the teams – with so many teams in the club without parents prepared to do this we would not be able to give so many youngsters great opportunities to compete. The boys came on a great deal and the year 8/9 boys made great progress. The A team played a very strong season coached by Karl Wood, and found that their nemesis opponent Urmston ended up winning the National Title. The team finished 5[th] in the national rankings and are very clearly the 5[th] best team – having beaten all the teams below them in the rankings comfortably, and lost out in close matches to the four teams that finished above them. With a rapidly improving group of young boys emerging strongly, the u16 boys team for next season should aim to go further than this ranking! Exciting times! _9_ _Seb Wood trained with England Cadets, and Sam Mitchell, Max Butterworth, Dylan Jones, and Tom Satchithananda attended England Talent Pathway Camps. Seb, Sam and Max represented West Midlands u15s._ ## **U16 Girls** The u16s had an extremely disappointing season in that despite having a reasonable group of players they never actually played together and the club unfortunately had to withdraw our tier 1 Grand Prix entry. A group of girls did play in tier 2 competition and regularly trained on Fridays. The disconnect between the group appeared to be that the better players who trained and played at a higher level (eg u18s/ Ladies 2) did not feel able to play/commit with others in their own age group? This is obviously a massive disappointment for the club and a problem that we somehow need to solve as the age group moves forward. We also entered our younger girls in the u16s competitions and in two of the Grand Prix took a ‘C’ team too. This was invaluable experience for them and undoudtedly helped them get to the u15 last 8s, and making some great memories beating some good quality older teams. _Gracie Wilmer trained with the England Cadet Squad and represented the West Midlands u17 team at the recent Inter Regional Championships_ ## **U16 Boys** Whilst we had plenty of players meaning that we could have entered two teams in the u16 boys competition this season we were unsure of the commitment levels of younger players in that group and therefore decided to focus on one team, led by Matt Smith and Karl Wood. After being drawn in a tough initial Gold Pool with eventual Champions Leeds, Castle missed out on the Platinum Pool and went into a Gold Pool stacked with talented teams all from London and travelled to the capital for a long day and very late night. With the venue booking starting in the afternoon a series of three set matches meant no warm-ups for Castle’s last two matches and injuries were sustained in a controversial atmosphere and the boys just missed out on the Last 8s and went into the Gold Cup. The team admirably recovered from this disappointment to win the Gold Cup! _Jim Cox represented England Juniors, and West Midlands u17s._ _Seb Wood attended England Cadets Camps, and along with Sam Mitchell and Max Butterworth played for West Midlands u15s._ ## **U18 Girls** In this age group we again had ‘A’ & ‘B’ teams competing in tier 1 and 2 Grand Prix competitions respectively. The ‘A’ team was again made up entirely of girls training within the Development Group, whilst the ‘B’ team also included some of the stronger u16 players also. Teams and sessions were coached by Anthony Viggars and Richard Guest. ## _**‘A’ Team**_ This yea’rs team was probably our strongest and certainly most cohesive group of junior girls that we have fielded for many years. The team was boosted in September by the arrival of 2 international students from, Brazil and Switzerland ,who presence hugely elevated the level of _10_ play that we were able to achieve. The hard work and dedication of other in the squad must also be commended. With the arrival of Manuela and Vika coming after the Grand Prix entry deadline the team were left to go with our original plan to play tier 2 for round, 1 before then moving up to tier 1. This was based on the decision that the team were all actually u17s and this season was seen as more of a preparation exercise for next season. ThIs left the team with a possible target of competing for the Gold Cup in the final Grand Prix weekend. Over the 4 Grand Prix’s the strength of the team became apparent as we generally served and passed better than our opponents and were physically more equipped at the net – taller. With the group also playing together in the West Midlands League the understanding and confidence amongst the girls grew between each round. Overall the team won 12 of 13 matches over the season and successfully achieved their goal of Winning the Gold Cup This was a fantastic achievement for a totally u17 team and the girls should be really proud of the level of play that they achieved. ## _**‘B’ Team**_ Our ‘B’ Team competed in all four tier 2 Grand Prix’s played at Wirral and Madeley. A combination of coaches staffed the team across the season with Adrian Chudyk a constant factor as either Coach, organiser or Manager. With good commitment from a regular group of girls the team quickly settled into a playing system and results steadily improved throughout the series, The tournaments provided valuable court time (without huge travel demands) for several girls who we hope will go onto compete in tier 1 over the next few years and for current u18 girls not yet ready to play tier 1. Lori Bettany did also transition Into becoming ‘A’ team Libero _Alex Viggars trained with the England Cadet Squad and represented the West Midlands u17 team at the recent Inter Regional Championships_ ## **U18 Boys** Two teams were entered in Tier 1, with a very strong ‘A’ team largely composed of u17s coached by Julian Kobylarz, and a mixed ‘B’ team with a blend of u15-u18 boys coached by Karl Wood. ## _**‘A’ Team**_ Like the girls, this year’s team was probably our strongest and certainly most cohesive group of junior boys that we have fielded for many years, with a strong group having progressed together through from being u14s to now largely be u17s, with added strength from Kieran Carstens who joined in spring 2023 and Joshua Chizewa. The team won their initial pool to be in the new ‘Platinum Pool’ which meant that they would automatically qualify for the Last 8s and would take on the other top teams in the country mutliple times in the season – great for their development. In January down in London, the Castle lads were excellent winning all their matches to be top ranked in the Grand Prix series. At the last 8s they saved their best performace to beat Leeds in the semi-finals after losing to Richmond in the pool – and made the club’s first u18 boys National Final since 2012. Sadly in the final the boys could not bring their best performance and lost 3-0 vs a well organised Richmond team and despite trying a number of options, could not find a way to win. _11_ The boys will come back stronger next season with only two players not coming through for another season. ## _**‘B’ Team**_ Our ‘B’ Team competed in all four tier 1 Grand Prix events and played for the club with pride, coached excellently by Karl to balance the ambitions, abilities and experience levels of a committed bunch. It was absolutely right to play in Tier 1, meaning the players got a good challenge and they represented the club brilliantly through to the Bronze Cup. _Josh Sturland played for England Men’s Development team, and the England Juniors where he was joined by Jim Cox, Kieran Carstens, Albert Biryukov-Wang, Finn Chalkley-Beales, and Charlie Kobylarz. These players all also played for West Midlands at the Inter Regionals._ _12_ ## **SOCIAL VOLLEYBALL** NSVC Social Volleyball has had another very good year. Our venue is Madeley Sport shall, where we are every Wednesday from 6-8pm. The aim is to give adults the opportunity to play volleyball, regardless of their skill; so even very inexperienced players can have a go and learn from those who have had lots of training and/or experience. We use the Spond app to sign up for sessions. This is working fine. We have 173 people listed (61 more than last year!), though some have not played at all this year. We have reached the maximum of 42 players (6 team of 7) a few times. We have a mix of beginners and advanced players, and try to mix abilities in the teams. We have players from all over the world, who for work or study are in the area and have found us via the internet or via friends. Students from Keele are in the majority most evenings, they are very glad for the extra opportunity to play, as indoor facilities at Keele are limited. We play on a pay as you play basis and payment goes via the Sumup app, though some people prefer to pay straight into the club account, and some pay the annual fee in one or 3 instalments. Great as it is to have 3 courts to play on in the hall, we have noticed that the school is lagging in the maintenance of the hall, mainly the holes in the floor. We try to put equipment away in a safe way, but do not always find it tidied away safely. Both are cause for concern. For the first time a women’s and a men’s team has been entered in the West Midlands league. We try to help each other out with scoring and lining, and cheering each other along. Els Drijfhout 21[st] May 2024 _13_ ## **WOMEN’S 1[st] TEAM REPORT** I took over the head coach role for the Womens 1 team at the start of the 2023/4 season with support being provided by Keeley Guest both as an Assistant Coach but also as the key pastoral contact for the players. It was important to provide that additional support as part of the agreement of me to take on the team was on the basis we would focus purely on performance and player development which would need greater levels of interaction and support. During the close season we held a meeting with the core players to understand their own individual and collective ambitions and to ensure the views of the coaching team and players were aligned. This was a positive meeting and the womens 10 year vision and mission document was created on the back of it which we would refer back to at times to ensure we were continually aligned. As part of the revamp of the focus, the team gained a new home at the Orme Academy which was fitted out with a new court, new equipment and our own access keys which was clear evident of the backing of the club in the team. We welcomed some brand new players into the playing squad – Jenny Jung, Emma Willhoite, Vika Kroll; promoted Alex Viggars from the development squad & we brought younger players Grace Wilmer & Isabelle Regan into the training environment to further their continued development. Pre-season was really positive and the players adapted well to the new style of play & more intense training sessions. The main season was an overall success with the team finishing second in the league only losing to the unbeaten divisional winner Black Country. Overall in the league & cup we played a total of 18 games winning 14 & losing 4; winning 46 sets & losing 17. The team put the new quicker style of play into practice really well – often beating teams three to zero and restricting them to very low set scores. This meant that the season would be defined in a one off play off game vs Hull in Ashcombe. The team prepared exceptionally well for the game with clearly defined and focused training sessions over a 5 week period. The game itself was challenging with the noise from the adjoining court a clear distraction to the players and coach as communication was almost impossible. That said despite not playing our best on the day the team showed incredible resilience and team spirit to win the game 3-2 and 17-15 in the final set. The aim for the season was to intensify the sessions, improve the style of play and develop players technically – all of which was achieved so it has been a huge success overall. The fact the team won promotion in the first season was a deserved outcome for all their efforts and certainly places us one year ahead of plan on the wider vision and mission for the female section of the club – both for this team and the wider plans. The team are now better equipped from a technical, tactical & style of play perspective but next season we will provide greater support for players on the mental side of the game as this will be more required as the quality of opposition increases and the games intensify even further. Richard Guest 31[st] May 2024 _14_ ## **MEN’S 1[ST] TEAM REPORT** After losing two of England’s leading international players and graduates of our club’s junior development programme in the summer of 2023 (Zakk Hadgett, current England captain – to a pro contract in Denmark; Adam Bradbury – preceding England captain – returning to Australia where he first played professionally) it was always going to be a tough season and sadly after a play-off it ended in relegation from the Super League. Despite these departures, we were pleased to recruit Michael Lee from Derby, David Hodson from University of Nottingham, Jermaine Miles from London Malory Eagles and Lichfield based former FIVB World Beach Tour player for Australia Cole Durant, and trained excellently through the summer period approaching the season well prepared. The Super League structure saw our ‘home’ match vs reigning champions Durham take place at Kettering on a show court event which sadly saw this controversial match live streamed, laying bare the challenges in the NVL as part way through the match the appointed scorers realised that a starting player for Durham was not on the scoresheet. This controversy led to a 30 minute delay followed by a ‘cold restart’ with no warm-up for the teams and ‘Castle played out the match under protest losing 3-2 but on appeal being awarded a 3-0 win. Big thanks to Richard Guest for his support in managing this appeal. Pre-Christmas the team’s form was up and down, playing fantastic volleyball at times and at others looking like a disjointed team that had no confidence, and these ups and downs coupled with only two league matches at home saw us critically lose away at Leeds and also drop points at vs Sunderland. These were results that came back to haunt us. Over the Christmas period Cameron Rhodes and Mike Lee excelled for England at the Novotel tournament and the team felt good going into a busy period with lots of home games, but in the first training session back Cam suffered a serious ankle injury which meant we were without England’s number 1 setter for most of the rest of the season never quite making it to 100%. We also lost Josh Wainwright to ill health and Jermaine Miles and Cole Durant due to work, and David Hodson also suffered a bad ankle injury, and Sam Stevenson had to take time out as coach due to family illness. Matt Smith and Sam Allen came out of retirement, as did Will Roberts (again!), and u17 star Josh Sturland became a real star… and the team managed to finish 9[th] , so go into a relegation playoff rather than automatically go down. Going full circle to the farce of the opening game, the playoff was played in the south east with a 370 mile round trip to play in the ‘central’ location against London Giants. The opposition spectators were ferocious in their support creating a hostile atmosphere with Castle going down 3-1 including a 33-31 second set defeat, and will play in NVL1 next season. A very sad way to end a draining season. Thank you to all those who have supported the team through the season especially Hannah for the secretarial support, Liv and others for scoring, Simon for coaching support, Kate and the Staffs Uni team for the background support and the club members who cheered us on! Sam Stevenson, Head Coach 4[th] June 2024 _15_ ## **WOMEN’S 2[nd] TEAM REPORT** Our Ladies 2nd team again competed in the West Midlands League with all matches( bar one) comprising of players training in our Development Group. The emphasis of the team was to give our younger players valuable court time to further aid their progress, with the added benefit that it would also benefit our u18 teams preparation for their Grand Prix Series. With several fixtures clashing with either NVL games or National Squad weekends we were not always able to field our strongest team, but this did have the benefit that certain players experienced more court time than they might otherwise have had. This did however also highlight that we currently do lack numbers of setters able to currently perform at this level. Fortunately Keeley Guest and Manuela Trafane did sterling jobs when asked to step into the role. As usual with a young team, performances did improve as the season progressed. This was perhaps best highlighted in the fact that we lost the first game of the season 0-3 to Telford and beat them 3-0 in our final game. The team ended with 7 wins and 7 losses and finished a in very creditable top half, 4th place in the league. Overall I feel that the season was a success and our young team should be proud of their efforts. In fact several of our best performances came in defeats against the few strong teams that finished above us in the league, who featured many experienced NVL players. Thanks must go to Diane Gentle who had the task of trying to navigate the numerous fixture problems that the West Midlands League always generates. A big thanks also to Bee Yusuf for officiating the majority of home games. Anthony Viggars, Coach 3[rd] June 2024 _16_ ## **MEN’S 2[ND] TEAM REPORT** The 2023/24 season has been an outstanding period for Newcastle Staffs Men 2, showcasing our team's dedication, hard work, and exemplary performance on the court. This report summarizes the key achievements, statistics, and highlights from the season, reflecting on our journey and looking forward to future success in Men Division 2 North in the 24/25 season.. ## **Team Performance Overview** We demonstrated exceptional prowess throughout the season, participating in a total of 16 matches. The team secured 15 wins and suffered only 1 loss, underscoring our dominance and consistency. This stellar performance earned us the top position in the league, a testament to the collective effort and strategic excellence displayed by our players and coaching staff. 19 players contributed to the season with 6 of these U18 with a number of the team also playing up into the Men’s 1 team. ## **Statistical Highlights** - Matches Played (P): 16 - Wins (W): 15 - Losses (L): 1 - Sets For (SF): 46 - Sets Against (SA): 15 - Sets Quotient (SQ): 3.067 - Points For (PF): 1428 - Points Against (PA): 1196 - Points Quotient (PQ): 1.194 - Total Points (PTS): 42 ## **Detailed Analysis** - Winning Streak: The team achieved a remarkable winning streak, securing victories in 15 out of 16 matches. This impressive record highlights our tactical superiority and resilience. - Sets Dominance: With 46 sets won and only 15 sets lost, the team's sets quotient stands at an impressive 3.067. This reflects our ability to dominate matches and finish strong, often outpacing our opponents significantly. - Scoring Efficiency: Scoring a total of 1428 points while conceding 1196, our points quotient of 1.194 showcases our offensive efficiency and robust defence. The ability to maintain a positive points differential has been crucial in our overall success. ## **Achievements and Milestones** _**League Leaders:**_ Finishing the season at the top of the league with 42 points is a monumental achievement, demonstrating our team's superiority and consistency. This compared to winning and losing 7 games last season show a marked improvement. _**Player Development:**_ Several players have shown significant growth and development, contributing to the team's success and setting the stage for future achievements. The mix of young talent and seasoned veterans contributed to the consistency of the team over the season with a large number of the team getting the opportunity to play up. We hope to continue using U18 players in the 24/25 season to give them NVL experience as this also gives us a good basis for National U18’s competition and gives us a pipeline of talent. _17_ _**Team Cohesion:**_ The synergy and teamwork displayed this season have been exemplary, with each player contributing effectively to the collective goal. ## **Conclusion** The 2023/24 season has been one of the most successful in recent history for Newcastle Staffs Men 2. The dedication and hard work of our players, coaching staff, and supporters have been instrumental in achieving our goals. As we reflect on this season's accomplishments, we also look forward to building on this success in the upcoming season. ## **Future Outlook** We aim to continue our trajectory of excellence by focusing on player development, strategic enhancements, and maintaining the high standards we have set this season. With the unwavering support of our Club and the relentless drive of our team, we are poised for a great 24/25 season in National Men’s Division 2 North. ## **Acknowledgements** A special thank you to our supporters, sponsors, and everyone involved with Newcastle Staffs Men 2. Your continued support and encouragement have been invaluable. Here’s to another successful season ahead! Julian Kobylarz, Men’s 2 Head Coach 4th June 2024 _18_ ## **WOMEN’S 3[RD] TEAM REPORT** 2023/2024 has been a real challenge for Ladies 3, after the decision to diversify NSVC ladies into three teams for this season. Predominantly due to our team players having busy lives including children of their own, work, other sporting commitments. From last season's team, we now have two new NSVC babies and another one due prior to next season - hopefully more NSVC superstars in the making! Our main challenge was consistently within the team and getting 7+ players to attend matches. Without a structured training session, our only opportunity to meet potential new players were through University links and social on Wednesday evenings. We currently have a pool of about 10-12 ladies who played for us this season, however the struggle will continue into next season as we are losing possibly 2-3 of them to university degrees finishing. Because of this, we forfeited 2 games this season which were opportunity games and had to change one to a double-header at Madeley (vs Stourbridge) spreading 10 ladies over a gruelling 10 sets (losing 3-0, winning 5-2). The other major challenge we came up against was timings of fixtures, for example playing Cleobury on a Tuesday evening at 8pm. We were having to leave Newcastle around 6-6.30pm and not returning home until turned midnight if the match went more than 3 sets. Our star player this season was Jennyfer Jung, a Brazilian player joining the team this year. Jenny earnt MVP in every match she played in, which is extraordinary. Her wing hitting and power serving were incredible and ultra consistent; I don't believe we would have won some of the matches we played without her! The best thing about our team this season was togetherness, everyone pulling their weight and supporting the greater cause from washing kit to supporting with travel and side-line coaching. Every player helped each other out in a different way and it is so showing when we polled for the awards this year which so many names being thrown into the hat for MVP, most improved and best support. _19_ ## **MEN’S 3[RD] TEAM REPORT** With mainly players drawn from Wednesday nights’ social volleyball sessions the Men’s 3rd team proudly played its first match on Sunday 15th October 2023. It was a nervy introduction to competitive West Midlands League volleyball for the squad of 7 players but almost unbelievably, after losing the first 2 sets, resulted in a sweaty 5 set away win against Birmingham City 2. That night the ‘Castle team played a variety of systems with one setter, two setters, no setter and some other “experimental” rotations that are probably best consigned to the dustbin of history. The team has settled on a traditional one setter system, and usually includes a libero in the team. The matchday squads and starting line-up have varied throughout the season, and we’ve had to cope with several injuries, not least to club talisman Falko’s achilles tendon during the first set of his first game of the season. In fact foot, ankle and lower leg injuries have been our collective Achilles heel this year. There have been some notable performances and contributions this season, including; **Setting** – Tom B, considering the sub-optimal physical condition of the player/coach, the team has been surprisingly complimentary about his choices and execution with the ball. Seb, Speake(y), JJ, Matt, Elliott, and latterly, Adam L have all also been called upon to orchestrate our attack. Notably Adam L – having never previously played as setter – won MVP for the 3 games in a row that he played for us! **Hitting** - We have been fortunate to be able to call upon a couple of the club’s rising junior stars, Seb and Max, who have been regulars in the team and they have happily played in any position asked of them, but have mainly been used, and excelled, as “4” hitters. Slightly older are Elliott and Ollie who have also terrorised oppositions with the power of their hitting. Older still are Adam O, Iliya, and Matt who killed their fair share of Mikasas too. **Middle Blockers** – We lost our Dutch star early in match 2 but our other 2 mature, and tall, middle blockers, Apostol and Adrian have both been extremely enthusiastic and both had adrenalin creating, scream inducing moments of first line defence flooring the opposition’s attack. They’ve also been effective in attack, with their timing and connection with the setter improving as games and the season went on. The middle positions have, less frequently, been occupied by Tom B, Ollie and Iliya. **Opposite** – We haven’t had a regular starter at Opposite. Ollie, Elliott, Max, Speake(y), Adam B and JJ have all played Opposite, and their experience this season has mainly been to be part of our block rather than attack. **Libero** – The libero position has been used to fulfil a couple of different objectives, to give the middle blockers a rest and to give as much court time as possible to everyone in the matchday squad. The Team would like to recognise the work of our secretary, Diane, who has arranged our fixtures and registered our (many) players – A HUGE Thank You to her! We would also like to say thank you to Abbie and Wiktoria, who have often scored for us at home and supported us home and away all season. _20_ Looking forward to next season, there has already been lots of interest from social players asking how they can join the Men’s 3rd. |15 Oct ‘23
Sunday|Away|Won 2-3|Birmingham
City2|No system 1 setter / 2 setter / Matt D Libero| |---|---|---|---|---| |30 Oct ‘23
Monday|Away|Won 0-3|Dudley
Academy|Falko injured – Joe Machin Libero| |16 Dec’23
Saturday|Home|Lost 1-3|Coventry and
Warwick Riga|Iliya left to go to work| |6 Jan ‘24
Saturday|Home|Won 3-0|Telford 2|Old Guys Rule 1- Tom-ski| |3 Feb ‘24
Saturday|Home|Won 3-1|Birmingham
City2|Old Guys Rule 2 – Tom-ski| |28 Feb ‘24
Wednesday|Away|Won 1-3|Coventry and
Warwick Riga|Adam O – serving demon| |17 Mar ‘24
Sunday|Away|Won 1-3|Telford 3|8 rotation fouls in 1 set| |6 April ‘24
Saturday|Home|Won 3-0|Dudley
Academy|3-0 walkover – Dudley no show| |14 April ‘24
Sunday|Away|Won 1-3|Telford 2|Only 1 rotation foul| |7 May ‘24
Tuesday|Away|Won 1-3|Wombourne
3|2 ankle injuries – Ollie & Apostol Debut of 2
Adams(other Adam injured)| |11 May ‘24
Saturday|Home|Won 3-0|Telford 3|Speake opposite| |12 May ‘ 24
Sunday|Home|Won 3-1|Wombourne
3|Old middles, youth on wings| - 1x Mon (a) - 1x Tues (a) - 1x Weds (a) - 5x Sat (5h 0a) - 4x Sun (1h 3a) - 11 sets dropped 5 in 3 (h) 6 in 5 (a) - • 3-0 x4 (3h 1a) 16-5 (h) - 3-1 x6 (2h 4a) 18-6 (a) - 3-2 x1 (0h 1a) - 1-3 x1 (1h 0a) Tom Barr, Coach 11[th] May 2024 _21_ ## **TREASURER'S REPORT** Dear Members We started the 2023/24 year with an opening balance of £ 31,811.77. As at the 2023/24 Year end on 31/05/2024 the Total Expenditure for the year was £48,849.84, our Total Income was £40,914.78 which left us with a Closing Balance of £23,876.71. A decrease in Last Year’s Balance of £7,935.06. Continuing on from last year the club has decided to carry on the initiatives taken in 2022/23, these being: - the deployment of coaching services and development to aid coaching across the club - facility investment to enable volleyball to be played at Orme Academy - investment into the Awards Evening the club holds - reducing the cost for our members, to celebrate the success of both players, teams and the overall club. - both Indoor and beach court hire have again contributed largely to the overall expenditure of the club and grow aligned with our growth of members and - new Club kits, tournament/travel & accommodation, as well as referee fee expenditure. These has undoubtably attributed to the decrease in the overall balance from last financial year to this year. These initiatives taken were something that was discussed and agreed as a positive initiative by our board of Trustees. The Gift Aid for 2023 was claimed and the amount received during the 23/24 year. For 2023 we received an amount of £3,286.39. The year-end accounts of 2023/24 will be sent to Sefton’s Accountants for auditing. As we are over the £25,000 threshold of income, we require an independent examination. Once audited the accounts and information will be sent to the Charities Commission for publication on the website (last year accounts can already be viewed online) Matthew Smith, NSVC Treasurer 31/05/24 _22_ INDEPENDENT EXAMINER'S REPORT TO THE TRUSTEES OF NEWCASTLE STAFFS VOLLEYBALL CLUB- I'the CIO") I report to the charity trus￿￿$ on my èxamInai￿n of the accounts of Ihe CIO for the year ended 31 May 2024. R•8pon$lbllltl•8 and basls of Trport As the trustees of Ihe Charity. you are respon31ble for the preparation of the accounts in actt)rd8ncè wrth the requirements ol the Charibes Act 20111.the 2011 Act'}. I report in respecl of rny examination of the accounts carried out under section 145 of the 2011 Act and in earrying out my examiftation I have followed all the applicable Directions given by the Charity Commission under section 145{51 Ibl of Ihe Act_ Independent examlnerf¥ 8tstement I have completed rny examination. I conffirm that no material matters have come to my attèntK)n in connection with the examination giving rne cause to believe that in any material respect.. counting records were not kept in ￿Spect of the charity as required by section 130 of the Act". 2. the accounts ¢Jo not accord with those records.. or 3. the attounts do not comply with the applicable requirements conceming Ihe form and ujnlenl of accounts set out in the Charit￿S (Accounts and RepKJrtsl Regulations 2C#)8 other than any requirement that the accounts giv& a true and fair wèw which is nol a matter cons*Jered as part of an independent examination. I have no concerns and have come acrossnoothei.mattet& ￿nne¢lion withllvexanN￿l allenlion shcMJld be drawn In this report in ￿dertO enable a proper uThJeTstandlrYJ otthe a(￿￿￿nts to be reac￿d. D R Sefton FFA 135-143 Union Street, Oldham, Lancashire, OL11TE Date: 8th November 2024 23 Fw S•a•on 2023124 IKO 2023124 EXPe￿TUp£ 202Y24 O rl 8•lanc• frryn 11612023 £31.811.77 E40.492.64 £72,304.41 4B.849.84 23.454.57 £5.746.76 £17,S37.08 213. £170.73 £170.73 £0.00 INCOA c(rtIr￿1on £5,927.80 £13,795.83 e5,052.79 E116.00 Voll•yLwll Elu14￿ Twm •rtry £4238.14 £0.00 £2.928.94 £111.98 ,Jrr |s•cl*l CttrtTIIArtI F••# Mllllati Balart• *t 1 6112123 £$97.69 £3,400.00 £1,525.77 £0.00 £194.44 £9,246.80 £350.00 £0.00 3110%24 Hall Hlr• Gr•ttsl8PCThW8Np I￿￿R￿mIM￿stffl•nl , SwnLV |Awarth E Glft ald I•1￿ ff8rar hlrtmnd U,408.62 É3,286.39 78.26 B••ch Par• £3.687.60 £5,005.59 £735.94 lart• Award Ev• Chrl¥tma• p•rty I cl￿ •v•rt Cc4np•titlon I ffMMm•rt Pthtlr4 ¢rynFxtlll(n l Town•m•rt ¢v•v•l Tolal BI￿ lJ•l•nc• I1￿1. C•Bhl £23.454.57 É1,106.51 1,128.40 to.00 Qu•llneatloNhO•tra1l￿ r•1 £1,357.41 £2.525.12 £0.00 W•b¢lt• £0.00 TOTAL £40,492.64 ) •v•rt I ClYl•lrn•• wrty £744.00 £2.665.27 £7.650.4S £3,$80.68 £2.497.50 U10.00 Klt R•wlr• & Axtsv•• C￿Gh11￿ F•D• knb•rsNp •ryl Ryd•r R•fw¥lB TOTAL £48.849.84 24