The name of the Cricket Club shall be Somerset Strikers and shall be referred to Hereafter as the Club.
The administrative headquarters of the Club shall be at 3 Seaview Road, Somerset West, 7130.
The objects, intents and purposes of the Club shall be:
3.1. To promote the development of junior cricket in the Somerset West area by creating a safe, constructive, and competitive environment in which children can develop as cricketers, and people, with the assistance of committed and responsible parents.
3.2. To be an inclusive community junior cricket club with a goal of catering for all junior players wanting to play competitive cricket.
The management, control and administration of all matters and affairs of the Club shall be vested in a controlling body, hereafter referred to as the Committee and which shall be composed as follows:
The Committee shall have the power to accept, refuse and cancel membership of the Club. The Committee and any sub-committee will be made up of volunteers, no remuneration will be paid to these positions.
5.1.1. The Chairperson shall represent the Club at all outside meetings, unless otherwise decided by the Committee.
5.1.2. The Chairperson shall be known and accepted as the functional Head of the Club.
5.1.3. They shall exercise a casting vote as well as a deliberate vote, where the voting is equal.
5.1.4. The Chairperson shall be empowered to convene special meetings of the Club.
5.1.5. The Chairperson shall convene all internal meetings.
5.1.6. They shall be an authorised signatory and must co-sign any authorised payments
5.2.1. To assist the Chairperson in fulfilling their duties.
5.2.2. To stand in for the Chairperson where necessary and/or requested.
5.2.3. Membership management - communicate membership applications to the committee and manage the welcome and information for that new member - including introducing them to their age group manager.
5.3.1. The Club Captain shall act as the intermediary between a member and the Committee.
5.3.2. They shall bring to the notice of the full Committee any grievance, or part grievance, of a member and report back to the member on the action taken or decision made by the Committee.
5.4.1. The Honorary Treasurer shall have the control of the receipts and payments of the Club, shall submit financial reports to the Committee, as and when so required, and to present accounts for payment. It shall be the duty of the Honorary Treasurer to see that all monies received are to be deposited in the Club's account.
5.4.2. They shall act ex-officio on any sub-committee which may be concerned with income and/or expenditure. They shall be empowered to pay all authorised and routine accounts and to submit proper books of accounts for auditing once seasonally before the Clubs AGM, with an unaudited review mid season and shall cause the preparation of a financial statement for presentation to the Annual General Meeting.
5.4.3. They will be an authorised signatory and must co-sign any authorised payments
5.5.1. To conduct all correspondence under the direction of the Chairperson.
5.5.2. To issue all notices of meetings by direction of the Chairperson.
5.5.3. To prepare and present the minutes of previous meetings for confirmation.
5.5.4. To bring all communications directed to the Club, or through any other channel, to the notice of the Committee members at the first meeting subsequent to the receipt of such communication.
5.5.5. To perform all duties relevant to the Secretary's Office.
In addition to their duties, members of the Committee shall be vested with the following powers:
6.1. To institute or defend any action, or any action at law by or against the Club.
6.2. The Committee shall formulate all the forms required in connection with rules and regulations of the Club.
6.3. In the event of an emergency arising, the Chairperson shall have the power to act for and on behalf of the Committee, with the proviso that such action be confirmed at the next meeting to the entire Committee.
6.4. To fill any vacancy/vacancies that may occur on the Committee, temporarily, without having to call a Special General Meeting.
6.5. To appoint sub-committees and confer on them all or any of the powers vested in it under these rules. The Disciplinary Committee shall consist of the ruling Committee, which shall deal with all cases of misconduct, misdemeanour, breach of Rules of the Constitution and for bringing the Club into disrepute.
6.6. To hear, to deal with, consider and decide upon appeals or complaints by bona fide members.
6.7. No member having been suspended shall be reinstated without the consent of the Committee.
6.8. To decide any disputes, points and questions arising out of competitions played under the Club's jurisdiction.
6.9. In any enquiry, the Committee shall have the right to subpoena any official or member to give evidence.
6.10. To generally carry out the objects of the Club and for such purposes to do and perform all such acts and things as may be required as necessary.
6.11. Should the Committee disregard their responsibility towards any member, such member shall be empowered to demand a meeting between the Committee and themself. The member concerned shall inform the Club Captain in writing for such a meeting, which shall be held within 7 days of receipt of such letter.
6.12. For meetings as requested above, the Committee shall consist of no less than 3 members and no more than 5 members. The voting powers shall be equal, except in the case of the Chairperson or the Vice-Chairperson, should they chair the meeting, who shall have a casting vote as well as a deliberate vote.
6.13. The Committee shall have full power and authority to do any act which could or might be done by the Club, except in respect of such matters as are reserved by this Constitution, to be dealt with by General Meeting.
6.14. The Committee will be responsible for the nominations and selection of trophy winners using the criteria approved by the Committee.
7.1. All players at present affiliated to the Club shall, in future, be known and referred to as members.
7.2. All members of the Club shall be duly registered in the members' register of the Club.
7.3. Any junior candidate for admission to the Club shall require a parent / guardian to complete the prescribed online registration form.
7.4. The Committee shall be empowered to deal with all questions of eligibility and shall have the power, without giving cause to reason, to refuse, suspend or cancel any such application and the Chairperson or the Honorary Secretary of the Club, shall inform such candidate accordingly.
7.5. All members shall be deemed to pay the annual subscription fees in full on or before 31st October and if split, by 31 October and 31st January each year, irrespective of whether the subscription fees may be increased at a forthcoming Annual or Special meeting of the Club.
Playing members shall be all those members who are, at the date and adoption of this Constitution, registered in the books of the Club as members or are hereafter elected as playing members.
Social members are those players who participate in practice only and do not play league or competitive matches. If a social member wishes to change their status to playing member, notice must be provided in writing, via email to the Vice Chairperson who will communicate the change of membership status request to the committee. Deadline for this request will be by the end of the calendar year and adjusted fees will be applied.
The Selection Policy will meet the expectations and playing needs of the majority of the players enrolled at the club. The Selection Policy will be made available prior to the annual subscription due dates, 31st October and 31 January and may be reviewed at the end of the season by the standing committee.
Refer to the published “Selection Policy” document for a full explanation on the Selection Policy.
The Club strives to be an inclusive club. Discrimanation against any player or person based on race, culture, language, gender, or any other group, will not be tolerated.
Please refer to the “Anti-Discrimation Policy” document for the detailed policy.
The financial year shall run from May through the end of April.
12.1. Annual subscriptions are due by 31 October, with a split payment facility whereby the second payment is due by Jan 31st.
12.2. Should any member fail to pay their subscriptions by 31 October and/or 31 January, such member will be classified as a defaulter and refused any further credit. All defaulters could be suspended from playing by the Committee.
12.3. The Committee shall keep a register of members and the required details, which shall be kept by the Honorary Secretary and Treasurer.
12.4. The Committee will review annual subscription rates annually and communicate any changes to the club members.
13.1. Meetings of the Committee shall be held as often as necessary to properly conduct the affairs of the club.
13.2. A quorum for such a meeting shall be three.
13.3. Honorary Secretary to notify the Committee one week in advance of such a meeting and gather agenda items.
13.4. Any Committee member failing to attend 3 (three) consecutive meetings without acceptable explanation, shall be deemed to have vacated their seat and the Committee shall have the power to select another member in their place until the next Annual General Meeting.
14.1. The Annual General Meeting of the Club shall be held once a year prior to the new junior season starting, and the Secretary shall give at least (14) fourteen days' notice of the date thereof to all members.
15.1. The Committee members shall have one (1) vote each, except in the case of the Chairperson, who shall have a casting vote as well as a deliberate vote, when the voting is equal.
15.2. Each junior member shall have one (1) vote which must be represented by their parent or legal guardian.
15.3. No member shall be allowed to vote at any meeting of the Club unless they are a fully paid up member.
15.4. Details of the Election of Committee Members process is published separately.
A quorum for the Annual General Meeting shall be a minimum of 33% of fully paid up members eligible to vote. The Quorum can be achieved either in person or digitally or a combination of both [1].
[1] Quorum amended Thursday 13 April 2023 to reflect the vote to amend. See minutes of 2023 AGM.
A Special General Meeting of the Club shall be called by the Committee as it may deem fit or on a resolution or requisition delivered to the Secretary of the Club signed by 75% of the members.
19.1. To read the notice convening the meeting.
19.2. To discuss the special business for which the meeting was convened.
19.3. To resolve or reject item (2) above in its original or amended form.
19.4. Closure.
Should the Club cease to exist then all monies and assets shall be donated to any registered charity or organisation chosen by the last elected Committee members of the Somerset Strikers Cricket Club.
The aforementioned articles, rules and by-laws of the Constitution have been accepted by the Somerset Strikers founding members.
Somerset Strikers is an inclusive club that strives to include players of all abilities. Our primary goal is to encourage a team environment where players understand their roles in the team and through the support of their teammates have the confidence to fulfil that role without fear of failure. Somerset Strikers will play cricket in a sportsmanlike fashion, giving due respect to the game and its traditions.
Committee: Wesley Moodie (Chairperson), Paul Watson (Vice Chairperson), Fiona Haughney (Honorary Secretary), Leonard Willemse (Honorary Treasurer), Jimmy Sounes (Club Captain)