News

Annual General Meeting (14th Dec 2024)
THE BRISBANE TEST & THE AGM.

Members of the Tahs and family members gathered at The Gabba for the first day of the 3rd Test in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series between Australia and India. Quite a few Brisbane locals were joined by members who had travelled from Armidale, the NSW Mid-North Coast, the Sunshine Coast and Hong Kong.

Unfortunately, only 13.2 overs of play were allowed before heavy rain fell for most of the day, before a wash-out and stumps were called at 4.18pm local time.

Despite the disappointing weather, those in attendance enjoyed the day – catching up with each other and hearing news of life’s journeys since last they were together. There were also many tales recounted from the days of playing together, from both on-field and off-filed exploits. Much interest and laughter – and no stretching of the truth, of course!

The cans of beverages that fueled those tales also allowed the first earnest trial of the newly minted club stubby-holders. They passed with flying colours – of royal blue and red, of course. Many thanks to Michael Connolly and Simon Joyce for the design and production of these keepsakes. Those who have already ordered these through the Facebook page should look out for their arrival in the post soon. If you haven’t secured any yet, please look to the links on the Facebook page. All proceeds go to the Ian Campbell Scholarship fund.

With the friendly support of ground officials, we were also able to display the recently produced club flag from the railings in the stand. Thanks to James Campbell for providing the flag. The flag, with the same central design as on the stubby-holders, was later signed by members in attendance along with their player numbers. The flag will now be sent to Peter Langston for safe-keeping, with other names and numbers to be added as opportunity permits.

Prior to the commencement of play, the 2024 Annual General Meeting of The Tahs Inc. was held in the southern stand of The Gabba. The meeting saw the receipt of annual report on activities and the financial statements for the 2023/24 financial year. The committee for the next year was also elected, being:
• President – Andrew Davis
• Secretary – Peter Langston
• Treasurer – James Campbell
• Ordinary Committee Members – Michael Connolly, Simon Joyce and Steve Hadfield.

The last item of business for the AGM was to consider a motion to confer Life Membership of The Tahs on Peter Langston. Members will recall being asked by email in October to support the resolution proposed by the Committee (absent Peter himself). There was unanimous support from the members in response.

Unfortunately, Peter was unable to join us in Brisbane, but we were able to get him on a videocall for consideration of this motion by the meeting. Peter remained unaware that this resolution had been proposed and supported prior to our putting the motion to the AGM, which was again supported unanimously.

Of course, we all owe Peter a large debt of thanks for his tireless work in generating and curating the history of the Tahs, and his total dedication to our now being connected through the Tahs. He is more than deserving of Life Membership.

While Peter was unable to be there in person, his wife, Sue, was on hand with Peter to complete the reveal while he joined us online, handing him a package with the certificate of Life Membership along with a number of the new stubby-holders which include his name on the list of Life Members. Peter expressed his overwhelming gratitude for this honour.

Again, despite the weather and little play, all other events ensured a good day. We look forward to the next opportunity to gather. Finally, as 2024 races to a close faster than a Travis Head century, our very best wishes to all for an enjoyable, relaxing and safe Christmas and New Year season.

“Father” Andrew Davis 

Committee Meeting (June 2024)
Father Davis (chair), Peter Langston, James Campbell, Michael Connolly. Steve Hadfield and Simon Joyce absent.
* membership stands at 47
* On This Day posts will lighten off for Winter but birthdays, book reviews, information about club events and members will still be posted
* contact with Mike Porter indicates the ADCA Committee will give a recommendation that The Tahs be accepted as associate members at their AGM
* records have been enhanced by the addition of the missing Yearbooks (1996-2006) and the records contained therein. Further research needs to be undertaken to find match results but this is unliely to be completed before the middle of 2025
* 15 members have purchased tickets for the first day of the Brisbane Test v India on Dec 14
* James Campbell outline requirements for conducting a cruise of the Brisbane River on Dec 15. This requires further discussion in regard defer costs involved. In principle, it would be a four hour cruise, including a bbq lunch with drinks a available
* encouragement of members to conduct local Tahs events - coffee dates, golf days, drinks etc - and to provide Peter Langston with photos for the Facebook page
* Michael Connolly will organise a quantity of stubby holders for sale to raise funds for the Ian Campbell Scholarship.
* it was decided that club members would be asked to donate $5 for each Australian century and five wicket haul in Test matches. This would be voluntary at this stage. The century donation would be called a "Guiley" and the five wicket donation called a "Joicey". Peter Langston said on past Australia performances, this would average $20 a series. All funds would go to the ICS
* a replacement to maintain the Facebook page while Peter is absent in the second half of 2024 has still not been found
* Simon Joyce has been added to the Committee
* Michael reported that a "Back To Armidale" weekend has been suggested previously by Kevin Pike but has currently stalled. Perhaps The Tahs could be involved

Committee Meeting (April 2024)
* membership is going well, standing now at 44;
* as a result of the rules that govern incorporation, we do have charge a membership fee but it’s only $2. It can be included as part of your first donation;
* 14 members have donated $40 and received the new Tahs cap;
* a letter of thanks has been sent to Simon Joyce for his generosity in donating the 49 new caps that are now available for members;
* the first combined function will be attendance at the Brisbane Test v India Dec 14-18. The following season, we’ll be in Sydney v the Poms. More details once we have appointed a co-ordinator;
* we are awaiting a reply from the ADCA (Armidale Cricket) over our request to be an associate, non playing member and our offer to support a junior cricketer through the Ian Campbell Scholarship. Given that the Pathways program dominates junior development, perhaps financially supporting a young cricketer who couldn’t afford to attend a carnival might be a good use for the ICS. The fund currently holds over $300;
* as well as major events, we want to encourage members to hold smaller events in their local areas - bbq’s, dinners, golf days, social gatherings - the ideas are yours to come up with. They may or may not incorporate fund raising. The most important thing is bringing people together;
* other ideas for fund raising include voluntary donations of $5 every time an Aussie scores a Test hundred or takes a pfeiffer; coffee mugs with the Tahs logo on one side and whatever you want on the other (a photo, the scorecard from your favourite game, your stats … any image), made to order for $25; stubby holders or club ties;

All members should consider themselves ambassadors and recruiters for the club. Tell others. Pass on the membership application link. Buy a cap. Run an event - it might just be coffee with some mates.

Anyone who is interested in accessing the records/stats/match results to solve that next cricket argument, contact Lango at thetahs@gmail.com and he can show you how. Links to the club records will work on any mobile device.


The Tahs (Feb 2024)
The Tahs Inc, a social club formed by the remnants of Waratahs Cricket Club, has been formerly registered with NSW Fair Trading and has begun it affairs. Its aims will be to:
(a) support the wellbeing of its members through:
    (i) providing opportunities for members to gather, be that in-person or via electronic or other means of communication, in real-time or asynchronously, and
    (ii) maintaining and communicating the Club’s history as well as
information on individuals associated with the Club throughout that history, and
    (iii) communicating information on the association, its activities and members, and
(b) support the development of cricket in Armidale, New South Wales,
and surrounding districts, through the establishment of a scholarship fund to support the attendance of local cricketers, who are 16 years of age or less, in a cricket training and/or development program.

The Ian Campbell Scholarship has been established and fundraising has begun through the sale of the new Tahs playing cap, 40 of which were donated generously by Simon Joyce. The committee has been established:
Andrew "Father" Davis - President
Peter Langston - Secretary
Steve Hadfield - Treasurer
Michael Connolly - Committee
James Campbell - Committee

Membership is open to all former players, family members, supporters, opponents and people who admired Waratahs. All you have to do is follow this link - The Tahs Membership Application - it takes 90 seconds. This will allow us to keep in touch and provide contact information so you can be involved at what ever level you like in future functions.

You can contact the Tahs via any of the following email addys:
Andrew Father Davis thetahs.pres@gmail.com
Peter Langston thetahs@gmail.com
 
Waratahs Scholarship (Oct 2023)
In the run up to the 2023 reunion, ideas were sought from members as to suitable activities for the reformed club. 1980's player Steve Hadfield suggested Waratahs sponsor a junior cricketer, selected by the ADCA, to attend a suitable development camp. In this way, the club is not just concerned with the past but also the future of cricket. This idea was accepted with acclaim at the Reunion and plans , will be made to formalise the arrangement with the ADCA. Several ideas have been floated as to how it will be funded apart from the obvious fact it will require the financial support of the member base. 1990's player, Mark Tanner, has offered to conduct fundraising for the scholarship fund. More on this as it develops.

The Reforming of Waratahs Cricket Club (Oct 2023)
During the 2023 Reunion, those assembled, representing the remnants of the Waratahs Cricket Club, decided to reform the club for the purpose of providing a means by which members can rally around. The aim will be to carry on as a social club which will not seek to play in regular cricket competitions and to use a more official status as a means of more regular get togethers. Meeting will be held annually, either in person at events or via electronic communications. There will be no fees and only two elected officials: the administrative leader and the historian. Andrew Davis was elected unanimously as the the new leader, which a group suggested at the breakfast which followed, should be known as the Waratahs "Father". It was a term of endearment and recognition of high status, invented by either Graham Johnson or Alan Gray and as such, pays tribute to the fore-fathers of the club. Join now by following the link.


Repairing the Website (Aug 2017)
Still a long process but proving to be worthwhile. Individual years have been reinstated from the 50"s through to the 70's. Because of interest being expressed on the Facebook page, the focus has been on the 80's of late and these will be finished by early September. New records have turned up as the scoresheets have been reviewed and many players are have their figures adjusted upwards as a result. An ambitious project will be to provide a match count, which will, like other aspects of the stats, not be entirely accurate because of how games have been recorded or whether a match appears in the record at all. However, it will act as an indicative measure of service.

Website Activity (Dec 2016)
Part of the site crashed earlier this year, taking out all of the match result from before 1984-85 - about 35 years of the club's fifty! The rebuild has started (see the Matches tab) but it will take some time. This time, a click on the title of each match will give you the complete scorecard (where available).

Passing of Ian Campbell

Very sadly, James Campbell reports the passing of his Dad, Ian Campbell. Great is a word overused these days. Legend likewise. However, for Campbelli, these are truisms. He joined the club in the 1967-68 season, playing a few seasons in first grade with some success and then lower grades for the bulk of his career. He played in more Premiership teams (four) than any other Waratahs player, including captaining his beloved 5th grade boys in the mid 1980's. Ian was my first captain at Waratahs. He was a former player at St George in grade cricket in his earliest days but his renown is for the many years he steered youngsters in their fledgling years in senior cricket, including many who went on to be some of our finest players. Ian taught these boys about the game and a lot about being a man. He was a thoroughly decent human being; one of the very best most of us have ever known. His only flaw was his misunderstanding of the lbw law; a flaw which led him to believe that it was not possible to be given out when struck on the pad, despite the many times it occurred in his career. He was a lecturer in German at UNE and a few beers after the game, he who regale the gatherings with his goose stepping impersonations of a certain Austrian corporal, claiming, with tongue firmly in cheek, that NeoNazis were soft.
Our thoughts and a great warmth of affection is sent out to his wife Liz and his five boys, all of whom eventually played for Waratahs: Matt, Tom, James, Martin and Ben.

Website activity

It must be the changes/additions to the website but September 2013 was the most viewed month of the website's history!

Current Updates

Match scores from 1990-91 to 1993-94 have no been completed (never before seen on the website). The records for 1st Grade, including 60 new entries recovered during research, are now available on the "Grades" tab.

Website Changes

The website is currently undergoing some cosmetic and content changes to make it more accessible and more attractive. You will notice that tabs have been added to the top of the page which link you to the many features which were previously along the right edge of each page. Peter Langston's poem, "The Days of Old Waratahs" can now be found on the Sundries page. We are going for a cleaner look and links which are more obvious and easier to use. During the rebuilding of the website, please be patient.

Waratahs Ashes Reunion @ The Gabba

A small but enthusiastic party of Waratahs members will be attending the first of the Ashes Tests for the 2013-14 Australian summer (November 21-25). Apart from watching some glorious cricket, there will be a reunion dinner on the Saturday night and even if you are not attending the match, the dinner will give you a chance to get together to talk old times or if you can't remember them, to here some exciting tales for the first time.

Tickets have already been organised and more details on the dinner and other matters pertaining to the trip will be advised through the website. For more information, you can contact:
Andrew McNeill            ajtjjjsjmcneill@bigpond.com
James Campbell            jamescampbell@live.com.au
Andrew Davis                 ardavis62@bigpond.com
Bob Barwick                   brbarwick@iinet.net.au
Peter Langston              plangsto@bigpond.net.au

Waratahs 60th Reunion DVD
Graham Frost & Michael Connolly



Now available, a DVD record of the fabulous Waratahs Reunion Weekend. The
slide show records moments and characters from the cricket match, the dinner and the golf.

Cost is only $5 including postage & packaging. Given the small cost, please send your $5 to Peter Langston, 19 McRae St, Tamworth 2340 and the DVD will be sent to you by return post.
Caps can still be ordered at a cost of $25 - the extra $5 is for postage. Please note there is at least a four week turn around between ordering and delivery.

Waratahs Names Its First XII

At a well attended 60th Anniversary Reunion Dinner, former players of the Waratahs Cricket Club represented all eras of the club's life, except the most recent. Among the guests were champion bowler Tom Cooke, batting tyro of the sixties Bill Thompson and Milton Milligan, a member of the 1952-53 side which was the first Waratahs team to win a premiership. Milton relived that epic final in which Waratahs were dismissed for a second innings 27 but still won the game outright thanks to a remarkable bowling performance from midium pacer Don Paul, who too 13-38 on the second day to spearhead the win.

Brian Connolly (1970-71 to early 1980's) spoke warmly of his memories of mates and larikans he had played with and Andrew Davis delivered the keynote address on the right of passage to manhood being so brilliantly catered for under the stewardship of the men of Waratahs.

Life Members Syd Philp and Graham Johnson presented commemorative club caps to all players presented.

A culmination of the evening was the anouncement of the Waratahs First XI - the best of the best - which had been determined through the voting of thirty players, iccluding opposition players.

The Waratahs First XI is, in batting order: 1. Alan Gray, 2. Bill Thompson, 3. Michael Connolly, 4. Graham Johnson (Capt), 5. Bede Ryan, 6. Graham Frost, 7. Terry Betts, 8. Brian Joice, 9. Andrew McNeill, 10. Tom Cooke (vc), 11. Joe Harrison, 12. Tim Muldoon.

Throughout the evening, players records were displayed on the screen, as well as photographs from the past and photographs from the cricket match played earlier that day against The Golden Oldies.

It was a magnificent evening and the highlight of several events held over the weekend of celebration.

The following attended at least one activity of the reunion: Phil Allen, Brian Battersby, Tony Bennett, Tim & Joanne Bindley, Laurie Blake, Ian & Liz Campbell, James Campbell. Mark Charter, Brian & Nancy Connolly, Mike Connolly, Tom & Eileen Cooke, Andrew Davis, Graham Frost, Cindi Blanch, Brian Joice, Graham & Gaye Johnson, Peter & Sue Langston, Brian Mair, Terry & Jenny Mackenzie, Andrew McNeill, John McIntyre, Ken Marshall, Milton Milligan, Bill & Judy Thompson, David & Celia Tilbury, Brian Rhodes, Roger Sattler, Tony Scanlon, Jack & Mrs Trestrail, Paul Marquardt, Graham Spooner, Kevin Pike, Mike Porter.

Armidale Express Reporting the 60th Reunion

Click on the following for the story about the Reunion in the Armidale Express

2AD's Steve McMillan Interviews Peter Langston About the 60th Reunion




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