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Shuttles Crisis Looms
- Published 07/16/2008
Shortage of goose feathers, the May 2008 harvest was about 30% less than expected and required to satisfy demand. It would appear that several of the smaller shuttlecock factories have switched production to duck feather. Whilst, the factories still using goose feathers have allegedly agreed to reduce their production to cater for the reduced supply of feathers. Other factories have simply closed, unlikely that they will reopen the near future.
Changes in the eating habits of the Chinese people, who now prefer to eat duck rather than goose. The need to farm geese has reduced and also been hampered by severe weather conditions. Also the land can be used more profitably to produce alternative crops.
The price of a cut feather (16 are required for one shuttlecock) has increased by over 100% during the last 3 years.
A shortage of labour in China! After Chinese New Year many of the workers didn't return to their jobs in the shuttlecock factories.
There has been a 20% increase in wages in the past few months.
New employment laws in China that are financially difficult for employers. An employee can decide to leave after say 5 years service and must be paid 5 months salary.
The huge increase in the price of crude oil has resulted in an increase in transport costs. But the Chinese are now using corn oil as an alternative fuel, so corn which is used to feed the geese has also increased in cost.
The Chinese Renminbi (Rmb.) has appreciated in value against the US$, 10 months ago the rate was around 7.75 Rmb = 1 US$ today it is 6.84Rmb = 1 US$. This equates to a 14% increase in our purchasing cost, which is totally outside our control or that of the manufacturer. Currency forecast are not encouraging, the rate could drop as low as 6.80Rmb = 1 US$. Manufacturers refuse to give fix price quotations and adjust the rate at the date payment.
A direct quote - "I have been in this trade for over 20 years and never known the situation to be so bad, clubs are in a for a massive shock this season."
Bellys is back and has to go before next season
- Published 04/28/2008
Your secretary requires your help if you see him in or around any sports bars after next weekend or eating what is more commonly known as FAT stuff, bacon fries, nuts, scampi fries etc.
You are to remove the offending item from his grasp.
The previously published picture (removed after complaints from slimmer fitter users) was taken on the county doo on the weekend by Judith with Mr Wilson insisting on me having the embarrassing picture taken.
FYI Huw I know I am FAT again but it will be gone before next season, ps I am still quicker than you on court.
RVBA Supported by Memory Lane Cakes take Welsh Club title
- Published 03/25/2008
The Richard Vaughan Badminton Academy supported by Memory Lane Cakes Won the Welsh Top Clubs competition this weekend at Brecon Leisure Centre.
The event now re-established by events co-ordinator James Phillips of the Welsh Badminton Union brings together all the top clubs in Wales who fight it out over 9 matches. 1 Men’s singles, 1 Ladies singles, 2 men’s doubles, 2 ladies doubles, and 3 mixed doubles. The winners of the event gain entry to the European club championships which are this year in Russia.
The RVBA beat Monmouth Badminton club 8-1 in the semi final, and then over came Glamorgan Rackets club in the final 5-4.
Head coach Richard Vaughan said "It was great the team were able to win with so many youngsters playing, I hope it will be of great benefit to them in the future".
Richard was unable to be at the event due to a training camp in Germany prior to the Polish Open next Wednesday. In his absence the team was managed by another coach Simon Rowe.
Simon Rowe said "Everyone played really well and it was great to win.
We lost a few close matches in the final which might have given us a slightly greater margin but overall it was a positive experience. I deeply hope we can find some funds to send a team to the Europe Cup finals.
At this time however I am not sure if any funding is available. Players like Vikki Jones, Sarah Thomas, Kelly Blake, and Gareth Day would only benefit from the international exposure.
Richard and I are deeply appreciative of Memory Lanes support over the past 2 years which has enabled the Academy to be brought together giving both opportunity to talented youngsters and at the same time allowing Richard to try and achieve his 3rd Olympics goal which is especially impressive after his previous career threatening injury".
Welsh Senior Inter County Championships
- Published 03/24/2008
REGULATIONS FOR THE WELSH INTER COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIPS (WICC) (Amended - May 2007)
NAME
1. The competition shall be called the Welsh Inter County Championships (WICC) and shall be competed for annually in accordance with the following regulations as Welsh Badminton Union Ltd (WBU), or a committee duly appointed for the purpose, may from time to time approve, and the laws of badminton as adopted by the WBU.
ELIGIBILITY TO COMPETE
2. The competition shall be open to every Welsh County Association affiliated to the Welsh Badminton Union.
3. Every County shall be entitled to enter more than ONE team.
MANAGEMENT
4. The competition shall be managed by the WBU Events Committee who will act on its’ behalf.
5. Subject thereto the arrangements of each competing County shall be undertaken by the County Association which shall be responsible for all matters affecting its county teams.
FILING OF ENTRIES
6. A County desirous of competing shall give notice through its County Association to the WBU Events Coordinator not later than 31st July immediately preceding the season of competition.
7. Entry fees shall be determined annually by the Events Committee and communicated to each County Association by 31st August of the preceding season, and shall be payable on or before 1st October in the season concerned.
METHOD OF COMPETITION
8. The competition shall be divided into a number of divisions by the WBU Events Coordinator, the number of which shall be directly determined by the number of entries.
9. Such classification and constitution of divisions shall be notified to all competing County Associations not later than one month prior to the date of the event.
10. The events will be held on weekend day on a date and at a venue to be nominated by the Events Committee.
ARRANGEMENTS FOR PLAYING OF MATCHES
11. Teams will be arranged in divisions dependant on the number of teams entered.
12. Each team will play all other teams within their division.
13. Play off ties will be played to determine the final positions as follows:
· The divisional winners will play each other to determine the Champions and 2nd placed team
· Teams finishing 2nd in their divisions will play each other to determine the 3rd and 4th placed teams
· Teams finishing 3rd in their division will play each other to determine the 5th and 6th placed teams, and so on.
· In the event of there being 3 or more divisions the WBU Events Committee will decide on the method of determining the final positions and will communicate this decision to each participating County Association not later than one month in advance of the date of the Championships.
In the event of a team not fulfilling a fixture that team shall have the fixture awarded against them by a score of 12-0 (each game being lost to love).
MATCH EXPENSES
14. Travelling expenses shall be borne by each team of its County Association.
15. Each team shall pay an equal share of the cost (towards the cost of court hire, shuttles, administration, etc.) as advised by the WBU.
16. In the event of a sponsor being obtained for the Championship, then finance may be allocated by the Events Committee via the WBU office as it deems appropriate to each County Association participating in the Championships.
QUALIFICATION OF PLAYERS
17. Providing that he or she is an amateur or licensed player in good standing with his or her national association, and is a member of any club/county affiliated to the WBU such player shall be qualified to play.
a) For the county in which he or she was born.
b) For the County in which he or she has resided immediately preceding the time of playing;
(i) For at least 12 months or in the case of a student 3 months if the player is a native of Great Britain.
(ii) For at least 2 years if the player is not a native of Great Britain.
c) For the County for which the player shall previously have played, provided that he or she shall not subsequently have played for any other County.
d) For the County in which he or she shall have resided at any time for 10 consecutive years.
e) In the case of a student, for the County in which he or she is residing for the purpose of attending a full time course at a University, College or School, provided that sub-paragraph b) is observed.
18. No player shall play for more than one County during the same season of competition.
19. The WBU shall recognise any newly formed County only from the date of the formation of a County Association to govern the area.
CONSTITUTION OF TEAMS
20. A team for each tie shall consist of a minimum of 4 men and 4 women. A County Association shall appoint a captain of its team/s for each tie and in default a team shall choose its own.
21. Each team shall be arranged in such a way as to provide for 2 men’s singles, 2 women’s singles, 2 men’s doubles pairs, 2 women’s doubles pairs and 4 mixed double pairs. There shall be no restriction with regard to the number of events for which any player shall be selected, but the doubles pairs in each event shall be composed of entirely different players, and they, as well as singles players, shall be ranked strictly in order of merit. Each captain shall present the composition of their team to the Referee in writing before the start of play, and no alteration therein shall be made thereafter except as provided in Rule 23 of this regulation.
22. Different players and pairs may be selected for different ties subject to the provisions of Rule 26. The Events Committee shall have power to cancel the results of any match, and to award walk-overs to the other team, if, after full consideration of any protest made in writing within 7 days of the date of the tie, it is upheld.
23. In the event of any player being incapacitated after play in a tie, which has begun, so that he or she cannot continue playing, a captain shall be entitled to include a substitute in any subsequent matches in which the incapacitated player should have taken part, provided that;
a) the consent of the Referee has been obtained.
b) the injury or any other incapacity was caused entirely after play in the tie had begun and was not due solely to tiredness or the worsening of an existing ailment.
c) the substitute selected shall not cause a team to consist of more players than is provided for in Rule 20 or cause default of Rule 22.
CONSTITUTION OF TIES
24. Each tie shall consist of 2 men’s singles matches, 2 women’s singles matches, 2 men’s doubles matches, 2 women’s doubles matches and 4 mixed doubles matches. Each player/pair shall only play his/her/their opposite number.
25. The order of play in each tie, unless otherwise mutually agreed (with the agreement of the Referee), be firstly the singles matches, secondly the men’s and women’s doubles and thirdly the mixed doubles
26. All matches shall consist of 3 games to 21 points with extended play.
27. All rubbers must be completed except:
a) If court time does not permit, or
b) If Rule 25 comes into effect.
SHUTTLES
28. Feathered shuttles of a variety approved by WBU must be used in all ties.
NOMINATIONS AND ELIGIBILITY OF PLAYERS
29. Every County Association which shall have more than one team competing shall:
a) Send in writing to the WBU Events Coordinator and Chairman of Events Committee at least 7 days before the date fixed for its first tie of its first team in ranking order.
b) In the event of any County not having submitted such nominations before playing its
first tie of any denomination, the players who take part in the first team’s first tie shall be regarded as the nominated players for that team.
30. No player shall be eligible to play for a lower team if he or she shall have played for a higher team on the day of the Championships.
DECISION OF TIES
31. The winner of a tie shall be decided by the number of matches won in such a tie.
a) The winner of a tie will be awarded 2 points.
b) The teams in a drawn tie shall be awarded 1 point.
32. The winner of a division shall be decided by the number of ties won.
a) Should 2 or more teams be equal in this respect the total number of matches won in all such ties shall decide.
b) Should the number of matches be equal then points difference shall decide.
NOTIFICATION OF TIES
33. The results of every tie, together with the full scores of all the matches therein and the names of the players, shall be sent by the Referee, within 7 days of the conclusion of play to the WBU Events Coordinator and the Chairman of the Events Committee.
CLOTHING
34. All clothing must be suitable badminton clothing (no ‘fun’ T-shirts, cycling shorts, etc.) and may be of any colour or combination of colours.
a) Abstract designs are permitted when devoid of advertising commercial or promotional content.
b) No commercial advertising on clothing shall be allowed other than permitted by WBU regulations for Advertising on Clothing.
TROPHIES
35. The County winning the Championship shall be regarded as the Champion County and shall have the right to hold until the following 1st March the trophy presented by WBU.
36. The trophy shall remain the property of the WBU, which shall be responsible for insurance, but the holders shall be responsible for the engraving of the County’s name and for general care and maintenance.
UMPIRES AND REFEREES
37. The Events Committee may appoint Referee and Umpires (if available) for the Championship and teams may not refuse to play under such officials.
GENERAL
38. The Events Committee appointed by the WBU shall have full powers to decide upon any points not covered by the foregoing regulations.
Welsh Senior Top Club Competition - written by Kelly Morgan
- Published 03/21/2008
Badminton's Senior Top Club Competition will get underway this Saturday 22nd March at Brecon Leisure Centre from 10am.
With no representation from North Wales and just 3 participating clubs from the South, each team will play one another. The winning club then has the opportunity to compete at the Europa Cup, which is an annual European Club Competition, and face the top clubs from each country competing for European supremacy.
Each match consists of 9 games - 1 Men's Singles, 1 Ladies Singles, 2 Men's Doubles, 2 Ladies Doubles and 3 Mixed Doubles.
Teams -
Glamorgan Health & Racket Club - Amy Genders, Helen Jones, Helen Stoddart & Rebecca Paterson. Dave Charters, James Phillips, Joe Morgan & Martin Dix.
Monmouth - Angela Ball, Carol Davey, Carol Pell & Hilary Isaac. Gary James, Paul Flanders, Roy Watkins & Steve Miles.
Richard Vaughan Academy - Amy Moran, Kelly Blake, Michelle Smith, Sarah Thomas & Vikki Jones. Gareth Day, Liam Ingram, Simon Rowe, Vaughan Tovey & Zhu Min.
Order of play
10am - Richard Vaughan Academy vs. Monmouth
12pm - Monmouth vs. Glamorgan Health & Racket Club
1.30pm - Glamorgan Health & Racket Club vs. Richard Vaughan Academy
For its 1st time running the response is poor, however as an annual event on the Welsh Badminton Calendar the hope is that the competition will grow and have a greater number of entries next year.
Mid Glamorgan Badminton Tournament
- Published 03/18/2008
Top class badminton returns to Mid-Glamorgan this coming April, the 2008 edition of the Sue Noake Mid-Glam Open Badminton Championships are being held at the University Of Glamorgan Sports Centre on April 12th 2008, this season sees the tournament being part of Welsh Badminton's 'Welsh Senior Series', and Badminton England's 'Carlton Orbital' circuit.
Tournament organiser and WSS player Vaughn Tovey commented 'The Sue Noake Mid-Glam Open tournament this season is offering £600 in prize money, which is one of only 2 I can think of which offer prize money in Wales, this is only possible with the help of generous sponsors: Carlton, Richard Vaughan badminton academy, FD Systems, Alzak and the University Of Glamorgan, - I'd like to thank them all for their involvement with the tournament, without them, prize money would not be possible.'
Vaughn went on to say 'This season the tournament is the only tournament in the UK to hold dual circuit status, we are part of the WBU's Welsh Senior series, and Badminton England's Carlton Orbital circuit, I am hoping having players from both series at one event will make for a popular and strong entry, previous years the entry has been phenomenally good, and I am hoping this year will be no different. As with previous tournaments, I am sure it will remember Sue Noake in a fitting manner'
Entry forms for the tournament can be downloaded from the WBU and BE websites, in addition - an online entry form has been created.
Entries for the Mid-Glam WSS/Orbital have to be submitted by March 22nd 2008 – please get your entries in ASAP
Good review of the Rally Points system
- Published 03/17/2008
ALL ENGLAND SUPER SERIES - Interview with Richard Vaughan
- Published 03/6/2008
Wales’s Richard Vaughan went out in the 2nd round of the All England Super Series qualifying to Scottish Open winner Tago from Japan.
We caught up with Richard who had this to say.
Welsh National National Championships 2008
- Published 02/5/2008
Mid Glamorgan County Pairing of Vikki Jones & Nicole Walkley are the new Welsh National Ladies Doubles Champions for 2008 after their success in the finals on 2nd Feb.
Other county players including :-
Simon Rowe & Andy Mickleborough (Mens Doubles 1/4 finalist),
Chris Jeynes (Mens Doubles 1/4 finalist),
Michelle Smith (Mixed Doubles 1/4 finalist partnering Andy Mickleborough),
Helen Stoddart, Huw Wilson, Gareth Day, Craig Walkley and Andrew Woodland also entered the prestigious event. Good turnout from County Team players !
Team - Mid Glam vs Northampton - Sunday 10th Feb 2008
- Published 01/25/2008
Mens Singles:
1-Andrew Woodland
2-Craig Walkley
Ladies Singles:
1-Vikki Jones
2-Nicole Walkley
Mens Doubles:
1-Simon Rowe& Chris Jeynes
2-Gareth Day & Craig Walkley
Ladies Doubles:
1-Vikki Jones & Nicole Walkley
2-Sally Lockear & Michelle Smith
Mixed:
1-Roy Watkins & Nicole Walkley
2-Andrew Woodland & Michelle Smith
3-Chris Jeynes & Helen Stoddart
11am start.
Cwrt Rawlin after match for a few bevvies & a bite to eat!