A very good morning to you all…..

Easter has come and gone….slipped passed far too quickly….but what it has done is sprinkled the air with some ice flakes….to show us that summer is starting to disappear into the distance….and the cooler climes are fast approaching….instead of cutting lawns, we are now sweeping leaves…. Instead of pulling on whites and spikes, we now don track suits and studs….our running colleagues are now starting to take torches with when they run….and jerseys and closed shoes are becoming the norm.

A quick run down of what has happened at the Club over the last little while….

Our cricketers capped off a very quick season with a comprehensive win over their proverbial arch rivals Kempton in the T20 league that we hosted….after us posting a quite respectable 151 in our batting innings….Kempton were sitting in a favourable position after 9 overs needing only 60 runs and still having 6 wickets in the bank…..but our bowlers came to the party and “blitzed” their way through the rest of the batting….for us to win by 39 runs….a massive round of applause for Dylan, Nic, Kurt and the boys….the celebrations definitely continued late into that night….and while we say goodbye to the cricketers, I wish to offer congratulations to Kurt on his marriage… may married life bring you years of joy and happiness….

The soccer boys have also shown flair in their matches just before Easter….with the matches for both of our sides at Impala going in our favour…although all reports say that neither side was at its best….it is hugely encouraging to see that we can still pull it off…the reserves kept a clean sheet whilst securing a two goal advantage, but the first side score sounded more like a game of tennis the match ending up in our favour 6-4!…we are ging to need to be at our best this weekend, as we host Robertsham, both of their teams topping the log at the moment…with our sides in second place….these should both be marvellous games, in this top of the table clash….please still remember that in strict terms of the law, there are no spectators allowed….I am sure that there will be plenty of “parties” in the beer garden of people “not watching”….Junior soccer also makes a welcome return to our fields and there will be little (and some not so little anymore, as our kids have grown so tall over lockdown) bodies scurrying around, emblazoned in their beloved Northerns kit….. welcome back, it marvellous to see you all….

Hockey makes a welcome return to the astro’s of the East….with Benoni High now being added to the list of available grounds….Ladies hockey starts on Saturday with men starting their run around on Sunday…so please expect an influx of hockey players in and around the club house over the weekend….please tap them on the shoulder if they happen to be facing the soccer fields and remind them that we still aren’t allowed to spectate yet…. 😊

The joker draw is still happening with another week or so passing since my last letter….and the “pot” has pushed up over R30k…..settling at R30391 for this week….we are now 19 weeks into the current draw….please come along to try your luck at finding the Joker…

Another bit of good news if you are planning to come down to the North on Friday…is that our night market makes a welcome return….this is always a fun evening and this week will include a putt-putt course adding to the almost 50 stalls that are available…please do pop along….for those that haven’t been to the Club for a while, you will also be able to visit our Craft bar, which also offers a variety of cocktails….this is housed in the old Ladies Bar and would welcome your presence….

Rugby practices have already started… so if any of our Members know of players who would like to join us, please get hold of the office for the contact details of the relevant people for dates and times of practices…

A reminder to Members that the Executive Committee has some exciting news to share with you at a Special General Meeting on Wednesday 14th April….please join us at the Club at 19h00 to find out what could be happening….

Join us this weekend….lets make it an epic one at the North…

Please stay safe and take care, cheers
Rod