Greens glory leads to red figures in ledger

The price of Shropshire success on the green is red figures in the county association's accounts.That will be the message from county treasurer Brian Kitson who will report a loss of £592 on last season at Monday's AGM at the new venue of the Reman club (nee Perkins!) in Shrewsbury at 7.30pm.

Shropshire's juniors reached the Drakes Pride county championship final and the seniors had one extra game too as they suffered an agonising eight chalk defeat in the Endsleigh semi-finals.

And the travel costs in terms of buses for the junior team amounted to £1,945 - £250 more than the income generated from their county matches!

Kitson admitted: "We are paying the price of success. It's a double edged sword because, ironically, the more successful you are the more you are penalised.

"But that's what the county association is there for. There is money in the bank so it's not a problem."

Shrewsbury-based Kitson, who is also secretary/treasurer of the Shropshire Premier Cricket League, enjoyed a honeymoon period in 2007 as the sale of jackets paid for by sponsors QA Kitchens generated income of £1,200 in an overall profit of £2,628.

A new £500 deal with Shropshire irrigation company Osprey will help next year's accounts, and Kitson will make recommendations to the county executive as to how they can be guided on to an even keel.

The pleasing thing for Kitson was that county competitions made a profit of £183 last season, when prizemoney was tailored to suit the number of entries.

He will also be supporting moves to steamline the accounts further, with a proposal for a one-off £20 fee to enter the County Cup the first to be considered at Monday's meeting.

It would stop the more successful clubs being penalised by having to pay a fee for each round, and would also significantly cut down on postal costs.

Kitson and county secretary Mo Corley also want to do away with the end of season list of players registered by all affiliated clubs, using the NR1a form that is required by the BCGBA instead for the £1 per player annual registration.

The meeting will end with Isobel Jones becoming county president for a second time, with Alan Mayhew as her deputy.