The MTTTL recently approved the setting up of a new MEDWAY JUNIOR DEVELOPMENT GROUP who's brief will be to format policies and a strategy for the future of Table Tennis in the Medway Towns.

They will report to the MTTTL Executive Committee on a regular basis with recommendations as to support required with regard to human resources, financial funding and overall facilities. These will be duly considered by the Executive Committee who have generally agreed to release funds for realistic and well-designed propositions.

Initially, this group will consist of the following volunteers:

John Kemp

Steve Bannister

Steve Waud

Chris Martin

Claire Moore

Ian Gordon

Sally Wilson

Ken Walter

Mike Smith

Julie Hall (Maidstone)

Brian Steer (Sittingbourne)

Meeting at Howard Table Tennis Centre Monday 24th Nov 08 at 7pm
In attendance;
Steve Bannister (SB)
John Kemp (JK)
Steve Waud (SW)
Claire Moore (CM)
Julie Hall - Maidstone (JH)
Brian Steer - Sittingbourne (BS)
Apologies received from;
Ian Gordon, Chris Martin, Sally Wilson, Ken Walter & Mike Smith

1. Introduction
SB gave a brief history of MTTTL's development plans which has been well documented & discussed over the last few years (Howard & CTTC).
SB also informed the meeting of some alarming stats;-
Registered Players 2004/5 to 2008/9
2004/5 287 (of which 51 were Juniors)
2005/6 306 (of which 55 were Juniors)
2006/7 347 (of which 66 were Juniors)
2007/8 350 (of which 72 were Juniors)
2008/9 291 (of which 47 were Juniors)

The drop in the last year (2008/9 over 2007/8) was 59 players (17% drop) of which 25 were juniors. These figures are alarming particularly when we have the Howard centre. Where are we going wrong?

2. Facilities & time slots at Howard Centre
SW explained that the Howard TTC is used throughout the school day.

Evenings & Week-ends;-
· Monday 7pm onwards general practice & training.
· Tuesday from 7pm CTTC (League matches).
· Wed from 7pm Howard TTC (Club night),
· Thursday HTTC & CTTC league matches,
· Friday 5.30pm to 7.30pm CTTC Junior Club training, 7.30pm onwards senior club coaching/practice night.
· Sat 10am until 12 noon Junior coaching
· Sunday 5.30pm until 9pm Junior Coaching

Timeslots available for use;-
· Mon to Thursday 4pm until 7pm
· Saturday after 12 noon (but subject to bookings)
· Sunday until 5.30pm (but subject to bookings)

During the Summer nights free from league matches apart from a limited number of Summer League matches

3. Development

· New Juniors & Adults
Much discussion took place regarding coaching & development. JK was keen to have a structure in place to manage C & D. SB expressed concerns as any structure was subject to the availability of human resources. JK made the point that we should put the structure in place & then fill the positions. It was agreed that SB & JK would hold a separate meeting to discuss a structure.
· League Players
SB made the point that we should also provide current league players with the opportunity to develop their game. He also suggested that coaches (whether qualified or not) may be more willing to help out in this area. BS supported this view & went on further to say that going into a school as a Table Tennis coach could be something that many would not want to do on their own.
· Top Players
As time was short this area was not discussed but will be in future meetings.

4. Marketing
It was agreed that we do little if any marketing at all. This subject will need to be carried over for the next meeting.

5. Human Resources
This was an area which we all agreed was the most concerning. Table Tennis 'help' is charitable & as such league administrators & clubs are grateful for any help they can get!
JK's view was that we needed to give coaches/helpers more direction which an organised structure would provide. SB's view was that our structure needs to accommodate resources available & by imposing on those who put in the time it may drive them away.
SW produced details of the qualified coaches in Kent (there were 18 on the list provided by Lisa Bosley) interestingly neither Steve Waud nor Steve Bannister were on the list (& nor were Mike Smith or Mark Walsh). What does this say about central records!
SB talked about the 12 potential coaches that were created from a week-end course organised & paid for by MTTTL. Unfortunately only half of those who attended the course went to the assessment evening to gain the level 2 qualification. SB admitted that MTTTL had not followed up the course & the 6 who qualified have not been asked to be involved in coaching. It was wrongly assumed they would apply their newly learnt skills!
BS raised the point about how much time could individuals give to coaching & development & that once a week may be too much to ask & that is why people are not coming forward. BS suggested that if people were asked to help out once a month on a rota basis they are more likely to respond. All agreed that was a better (& perhaps more realistic) way forward as it is not asking too much.
For the record the coaching/development going on in the Howard TTC includes;-
Mike Smith (Sat & Sun)
Chris Martin (Sun)
Mark Walsh (Sun)
Ian Gordon (Sat)
Ron Osborn (Sat)
Trevor Towers (Sun)
Paul Cronin (?)

In the CTTC (mainly Friday nights);-
John Kemp
Bernie Winter
Roger Chipperfield
Dennis Harrington
Malcolm Kay

BS informed the meeting that in Sittingbourne they have a rota system for helpers with Adrian Snelling being the regular coach.

6. Everyone had a 5 minute slot.
I detail below a summary of the comments;-

· We need a pool of coaches that can go into schools
· We need to create a Junior Summer League played at weekends perhaps once a month.
· CM pointed out that limited funds are available to support development (after school clubs).
· Once we get Juniors interested we should also focus on getting the parents playing (rather than just helping).
· Recognise & accept the amount of time coaches/helpers are prepared to give & work around them.
· JH informed the meeting that Maidstone intend to set up a Junior Winter League comprising of a 2 player team playing two matches probably on a weekend day.

7. Where do we go from here?

SB thought that whilst we had made very few (if any) decisions, the meeting had highlighted a number of areas that requires more thought/discussion & that the next meeting will enable us to go forward. A wider input from those interested would also help. In terms of timetable, Summer of 2009 was the target date to have plans in place & some form of coaching/development program up & running.

8. Date of next meeting - to be set.

Anyone wishing to join this group or to volunteer some help in an agreed structure should contact John Kemp 01795 841094