Now is when CLUBS need to be organising their first meetings for the summer.

1. Organise your club meetings for a set time / day each month - ensure the secretary is the one who knows what teams are going in so they can pay the relevant fees.

2. Ensure you appoint a representative for your Junior and your Senior committees to attend the PLBA Association committee meetings

3. Your Junior and Senior committee members should then be working out how to advertise teams in local school newsletters etc.

4. Understand that the association is hoping to hold a ONE DAY sign on for BASKETBALL in port lincoln.  Which it's hoped your club sets up a table at that day and encourages all your members to attend so if anyone who is new shows up, we can send them to one of the clubs there on the day.

5. If you need people trained in refereeing, coaching or team manager roles, then get their names together to bring to the next committee meeting so a date to run relevant courses is discussed.

6. Uniforms should be ordered asap - as they tend to take 6 weeks, so you want to make sure you have YOURS ready for the new season.

FINALLY, THE NEW SEASON COMMENCES IN OCTOBER - WITH NOMINATIONS CLOSING SEPTEMBER 20TH.

Personally - from Shona McKeen (Development Officer)

I ask that clubs address the skills issue by not assigning more than three players per team who have represented the Sharks Program in 2009/10 year - unless you are making a Division 1 Team and a Division 2 team - in which case, like with Under 14 boys last year, we will try to ensure Div 2 play in one pool and Div 1 in another, so the players are playing within their own standard - meaning they enjoy the game a lot more.  Mercy rule should not have to be used every game a team plays in if the club has worked the teams out to the right standards.

All clubs should also review the By-Laws and Constitution to ensure they are adhering to those rules when working their teams out.

Clubs also need to make sure that they look at having a program which enables one or two players from the year below to play up a grade - such as Under 14s playing one or two games a year in Under 16s.  Not neccesarily all year - most important is making sure Under 16s and Under 18s are having games in Senior grades to ensure progression.

Remember Under 14s and below are not permitted to play ZONE Defences - so your coaches need to be aware of how to teach man to man.  I will be very keen to run development sessions in your club's training time (which I expect all clubs to be holding trainings). There are some great venues around town.

PLBA are limited in their court use at the Leisure Centre so unfortunatly we can never get time past 6:30pm on a Tuesday and Thursday - which means we are very limited in how the make up of the competition takes place.  Secretarys from clubs are asked to assist in sharing this message - and to make parents aware that times and days are not yet set in stone for grades - other than A Grade men and women and B Grade Men on Mondays nights and B Grade women on Wednesday nights.

Thanks.