MQL MEETINGS 2023-2024
COUNCIL
Sun 10th September 2023 (online)
Sun 10th December 2023 (online)
Sun 24th March 2024 (online)
Sun 23rd June 2024 (online)
AGM
Sun 7th April 2024 (online)
All online meetings commence at 7.30 pm
AGENDA FOR most recent/next mEETING
Agenda for the Council Meeting of the Merseyside Quiz Leagues to be held online on Sunday 24th March 2024 at 7:30 pm
1 Apologies
2 Minutes of the last Meeting
3 Matters Arising
4 Chairman’s Report
5 General Secretary’s Report
6 Treasurer’s Report
7 Assistant General Secretary’s Report
8 Area Reports
9 Competitions
President’s Trophy and Shield
Buzzer Tournament
Mimir
MCC (including writing sets for Finals)
Feeny and Rendon (including potential numbers and dates)
10 Venues for Events (including availability and hire charges)
11 Feedback regarding any progress with introduction of EQD
12 Update on a specification for potential external writers
13 Any Other Business
minutes of most recent council meeting
Minutes of the Council meeting of the Merseyside Quiz Leagues held online on Sunday 10th Dec 2023 at 7.30pm
1. In Attendance: were Bill Thomas, Brian Bates, Bill Morris, Dag Griffiths, Derek Moody, David Hodgson, Angela Doyle, Danny Grimes, Frances Mason, Cliff Houghton, Jim Eccleson, Steve Lomas, Pam Baker, Colin Foster and Brian Thompson.
Apologies: Paul Davitt, Angela Houghton, Jon Stitcher
2. Minutes of previous meeting: These were accepted as a true record of the meeting.
3. Matters Arising: There were no matters arising that were not on the Agenda for this meeting.
4. Chairman’s report: The Chairman, Danny Grimes, had been able to watch and /or take part in a wide range of matches in order to meet more players and teams.
5. General Secretary’s report: General Secretary, Brian Thompson reported on the results of the Pairs Competition and had nothing else to report.
6. Treasurer’s report: Treasurer, Dag Griffiths, reported that expenses for typing up sets were still outstanding from Liverpool. He added that accounts were in a healthy state. He had received 12/25 fees for the Buzzer Tournament, but it had slowed, and he had advised Jon Stitcher who would prompt teams.
7. Assistant General Secretary’s report: Assistant General Secretary, Cliff Houghton and co-distributor Frances Mason, reported that there had been postal problems and that deliveries were not consistent across areas even in the same week. Sets were being sent out earlier and earlier, but while some don’t arrive, others arrive in two days. Cliff said that he had worked out and posted the schedule for the remainder of the season. Some sets and envelopes had been received already.
8. Area reports:
Liverpool
Liverpool Secretary, Paul Davitt, was absent. Danny reported the deaths of Keith Spencer (Standard Bearers) and Jeff Dunn (Judges). 2024 sets were coming in ahead of 31 Jan deadline. The league continued to be frustrated by the number of postponed games.
Ormskirk
Ormskirk Secretary, David Hodgson, was sad to report the death of Paul Prior of Ormskirk Tennis Club. Greyhound had won the League. In the two-division League post-Christmas, Div 1 will have six teams and Div 2 five teams. All 2024 sets were in, most of them with 10 rounds.
Southport and Formby
S&F Secretary, Dag Griffiths, reported that Div 1 had been won by Casablanca and Div 2 would be resolved in the coming week. The Handicap League begins after Christmas.
Warrington
Warrington Secretary, Derek Moody, was sad to report the death of Geoff Weston of Ex-Men. He reported that Hatton Coterie had won the League in the final match. The divisions after Christmas would have six in Div 1 and 7 in Division 2.
Wirral
Wirral Secretary, Jim Eccleson, reported a successful Presentation Evening and that their League competition was at the halfway stage.
9. Competitions
• President’s
o With two match nights (4 games) to go, the Trophy was very much heading Ormskirk’s way once more.
o After three match nights Liverpool 2A, Wirral and Liverpool 2B are sharing the lead in the Shield.
• MCC
o Third round of Group matches will be played this Wednesday. Cup and Plate QF were scheduled for 14 February.
• Buzzer Tournament
The 2024 event is scheduled for 10th February. The writing team have completed about half the questions and are behind schedule. With 25 teams taking part anyone who is able to help for all or part of the day in any capacity would be welcome and should contact Brian.
• Mimir
The area heats will be held in the week commencing 19 February and the MQL heats in Warrington on the 20 March. Could sets be with Brian by 5 Feb and 6 Mar respectively? Fay Howard had offered to check the MQL sets for duplication of questions [the latter two sentences were not announced at the meeting]
10. Question Allocation and Distribution: There was considerable discussion about the notes regarding how many sets should be requested from each area. Cliff explained that although it may be fairer to request sets from a league in proportion to the number of teams in that league, this would cause imbalance in the variety of sets that each league receives. A greater economy in the use of sets could be achieved with prudent arrangement of matches in the smaller leagues in the second half of the season.
In terms of fairness, a good point was made that although some Leagues have more teams, some smaller Leagues require more sets as they play both Monday and Tuesday.
It was suggested again that a few sets could be bought in or shared with another league to lessen the pressure on League secretaries. It was also suggested that a set might be used on more than one night, but it was agreed that this needed further discussion as it was something that had been avoided for many years.
ACTION: A small group was to meet to redraft a specification to be sent to a potential external setter. Please contact Brian if you’d like to be involved along with Danny and Jim.
A discussion about Question Distribution followed. League secretaries shared feedback from their teams regarding Electronic Question Distribution. While there was an increased number in favour of trying it, it was clear that we run the risk of losing teams if we enforce EQD. The suggestion of an initial period where both Mail and EQD were in use, was not embraced nor was it dismissed.
ACTION: If Warrington teams agree, then Frances will send out their sets electronically from the start of next season.
ACTION: Other leagues were encouraged to try out EQD for friendlies in order to familiarise teams with the process.
11. AOB: Feedback about Sets. The meeting agreed that leagues need some feedback on how its sets played. Although it is up to each League as to how much data they need.
ACTION: Each league should
Find out from Cliff when and where the league sets that they wrote were played.
Contact the appropriate league secretaries / results secretaries to request the information they would like *
The meeting closed at 8.40pm
Next Council meeting: Sunday 24 March 2024 at 7.30pm online
* Already available for sets played in Liverpool and Warrington
minutes of most recent AGM
Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of the Merseyside Quiz Leagues held online on Sunday 16th April 2023 (commenced at 7.30pm)
Attendees: Bill Morris, Colin Foster, Cliff Houghton, Angela Doyle, Derek Moody, Bill Thomas, Brian Bates, David Hodgson, Dag Griffiths, Jim Eccleson, Geoff Poole, Jim McGrath, Paul Davitt, Steve Lomas, Pam Baker, Angela Houghton, Danny Grimes and Brian Thompson representing sixteen teams and all five areas.
1. Apologies for absence. Frances Mason, Jim Martin
2. The minutes of the previous AGM. The minutes, having been circulated to all teams, were accepted as a true and fair record of the meeting.
3. Matters Arising. There were no matters arising not covered by the Agenda.
4. Chairman’s Report. Chairman, Danny Grimes, asked for a moment’s silence for the following members and associates of the MQL who had passed away in the last year.
Liverpool
Minutes of the Annual General Meeting of the Merseyside Quiz Leagues held online on Sunday 16th April 2023 (commenced at 7.30pm)
Attendees: Bill Morris, Colin Foster, Cliff Houghton, Angela Doyle, Derek Moody, Bill Thomas, Brian Bates, David Hodgson, Dag Griffiths, Jim Eccleson, Geoff Poole, Jim McGrath, Paul Davitt, Steve Lomas, Pam Baker, Danny Grimes and Brian Thompson representing sixteen teams and all five areas.
1. Apologies for absence. Angela Houghton, Frances Mason, Jim Martin
2. The minutes of the previous AGM. The minutes, having been circulated to all teams, were accepted as a true and fair record of the meeting.
3. Matters Arising. There were no matters arising not covered by the Agenda.
4. Chairman’s Report. Chairman, Danny Grimes, asked for a moment’s silence for the following members and associates of the MQL who had passed away in the last year.
Liverpool Mike Doyle, Frank Smith, Tony Coady
Ormskirk Dot Heyes, Jim Dawber, Barrie Westmoreland
Southport & Formby Sylvia Sawyer, Dermot Williams, Mike Williams, Roy Shannon
Warrington Mike Rhodes, Dave Hatton
Wirral Bernie McGuigan, Peter Maddocks, Martin Roberts, Mike Devitt
He then continued by congratulating Pat Gibson who in September had become the British Quiz Champion for the seventh time. Danny also commended the performance of Alan Gibbs (Ormskirk, who was seventh), Sarah Trevarthen (Warrington), Jamie Hall (Warrington), James MacGregor (Liverpool) and Ben Vincent (Warrington) in the same competition. In November, Sarah went on to become BBC Radio 4’s Brain of Britain making it three wins in a row for Merseyside players.
He reported that he had attended a number of MQL events over the last year, playing in some of the competitions and officiating in others, with the express intention of meeting as many players and teams as possible. These included the Jubilee Pairs competition, the Jubilee Buzzer competition, the Mimir heats, the President’s Shield, and the Feeny Cup, as well as watching online competitions. He also spectated some MCC Plate games and matches in Liverpool Division 2. Danny paid tribute to all who contributed in any way to these competitions and repeated what he had said before about these events showing the MQL at its finest and setting a high standard in all aspects of competitive quizzing and organisation.
He noted that the Council had instigated the idea of a back-up QP for online competitions and advised teams to informally keep check on their scores during a match and to raise any queries at the end of a round.
He thanked all the officers of the MQL and all of the representatives of the constituent leagues for their input, support and diligence over the last year in helping the MQL not just to function but to excel in so many areas. ‘We are all truly indebted to them’.
Danny then summarised the ongoing aims of the MQL Council.
- To increase the number of players and teams.
- To publicise more widely and effectively the good name of the MQL.
- Linked into the previous two points is to hopefully appoint a Publicity Officer.
- To monitor closely the situation regarding venues and starting times.
- To ensure that setters and vetters adhere closely to guidelines, specifically in order to avoid any repetition of unsuitable content.
5. General Secretary’s Report. General Secretary, Brian Thompson, reported that just after the AGM last April we had a very closely fought Merseyside Mimir competition which was played online over 2 evenings. The Trophy was won by Jim Eccleson. It was Jim's 4th win and was a new record interval between titles, as his third win was in 1994, 28 years ago! However, he’s back defending his crown in the 2023 final that is being played next month. As for the other 2021-22 competitions, the MCC and Plate had already been completed and were reported last year, and sadly, as in the previous two seasons, the Feeny and Rendon Cups were cancelled.
In September, Chris Quinn of Liverpool and Neil Wright of Wirral became the second Jubilee Pairs Champions in an event that attracted 38 participants, and which was hosted by Ormskirk at the Prescot Cables FC club. The S&F Pair of Jack Gardner and Dag Griffiths won the Plate.
As a mark of respect, all MQL matches were postponed on the day of HM Queen’s funeral on 19 September.
In October, disappointingly only 15 teams elected to take part in the 2022-23 Challenge Cup. Efforts were made to attract teams including a relaxation in eligibility rules and offering the competition online or face to face. What little feedback there was, indicated that the main reason for non-participation was that teams cannot or do not wish to raise a team for a second match in a week. Although occasionally this was also due to venue availability, a factor that is becoming an increasingly worrying issue. Many thanks to Bill Thomas for administrating and Dave Tilley for writing the sets. Bill has indicated that he will step down from this role after the 2023-24 season.
Thanks to the efforts of the Question Distributors, Cliff Houghton and Frances Mason, the effects of the postal strikes in the late Autumn and Winter were minimal. Fran is unfortunately in hospital at the moment. She is unwell but improving, so I’m sure you’ll join me in sending our best wishes to her.
The fourth Jubilee Buzzer Quiz Tournament took place at The Parade in Hoylake in February. It attracted 20 teams from all over the UK and Ireland and, according to the positive feedback we received, it was a great success. The winners were a team called Northern Lights and the Plate winners were Teesside. Thank you to Jon Stitcher and the team of writers and readers for all their hard work.
The President’s Trophy competition continued online and was won by Ormskirk for the 5th successive year. Five teams took part in the President’s Shield competition which returned and was played face to face. It was won in a very close finish by Wirral 2. Liverpool 2b won the Presidential Challenge
The Merseyside heats of the Mimir competition were hosted by New Brighton Cricket Club and produced four qualifiers for the final in next month at the Annual Presentation Evening. We are very pleased that this event returns for the first time since the pandemic and will take place at Aigburth Peoples Hall in Liverpool at 8pm on Wednesday 17 May. The finals of the Merseyside Challenge Cup and the Plate will also be played that evening.
Ongoing concerns about falling numbers and lack of recruitment have now been joined by loss of venues either by closure or by reduced opening hours. Area Secretaries are currently consulting their teams about electronic question distribution both from the point of view of cost saving and being greener.
Brian thanked fellow officers and council members for their hard work throughout the year in supporting him and in helping the leagues run smoothly.
6. Treasurer’s Report. Treasurer, Dag Griffiths, presented a financial statement for the season 2022-23. Even allowing for catching up with Trophy purchases and engraving and the fact that some outgoings were yet to be made, he reported a healthy financial situation and proposed that no increase to the £25 MQL subs was needed. The statement had been audited by one of the auditors so far.
Auditors (appointed): Paul Davitt and David Hodgson.
7. Assistant General Secretary’s Report. Assistant General Secretary, Cliff Houghton, reported that thanks to early posting to counter the effects of industrial action, the majority of sets had arrived on time. He thanked fellow distributor Frances Mason for her hard work and also Derek Moody for assisting when Cliff had been absent earlier in the year.
8. Election of Officers. President, Angela Doyle, took the chair for the election of the officers. All officers had expressed a wish to continue in their roles and with no other nominations having been received Angela proposed that the Officers be re-appointed en bloc. This was carried nem con.
The Chairman thanked Angela for her work as President as her three-year term was at an end. Danny then went on to say that, following a suggestion by Bill Thomas, Jim Eccleson had been approached and he had agreed be proposed as the new President. Jim was formally proposed by David Hodgson, seconded by Dag Griffiths and was then elected unanimously as the 20th MQL President.
The following are vice Presidents who should have been reappointed last year: Cliff Houghton, Dag Griffiths, Peter Deakin, John Wilson, Ray Oakes, Brian Cunningham and Bill Thomas. They were duly reappointed. The following are vice Presidents who are to be reappointed today: Jim McGrath, Brian Bates and Angela Houghton. This was done.
Danny then proposed that outgoing President Angela Doyle become a Vice President which was carried unanimously.
Therefore, the current (April 2023) Council comprises the following Elected and Ex Officio members:
Chairman: Danny Grimes
Deputy Chairman: Cliff Houghton
General Secretary: Brian Thompson
Treasurer: Dag Griffiths
Deputy General Secretary: Cliff Houghton
Ex officio members are:
President: Jim Eccleson
Question Distributor: Cliff Houghton
Question Distributor: Frances Mason
9. Proposals.
The following two proposals had been received.
‘Start time for MQL league matches to be 8pm with a latest start time of 8:45. Constituent leagues can determine their own start times within these parameters.’
[This is an amendment to Rule 24]
Proposed by Warrington QL. Seconded by Brian Thompson (Gen Sec).
This was slightly amended following a suggestion from Ormskirk Secretary, David Hodgson that the wording for the whole Rule should be included.
‘The start time for league matches should be between 8pm and 8:45pm with an allowance of 15 minutes. Each constituent League has the discretion to determine their own start time within these limits. Should matches be delayed by more than the allowance then the non-offending team has the right to claim the match.’
Warrington Chairman, Derek Moody, gave a background to the proposal that included the problems that teams are encountering with some venues wishing to close early on quiet evenings. Geoff Poole (Judges, Liverpool) supported the proposal saying that 8.45pm was now too late a start time.
The meeting voted with 16 eligible voters. All were in favour and the proposal was carried.
The second proposal
‘Rule 25 be amended so that individual leagues can decide that away teams always start first in their own league quiz matches.’
Proposed by Kluggers (Liverpool). Seconded by Judges (Liverpool).
Brian read out the notes provided with the proposal.
1: That it would mean that all teams have the same opportunity of starting first and second throughout the league season.
2: It would dispense with the current need to mark on the scoresheet which team started first, which often is missed out.
3: Every team will automatically know that they will start first when playing away. (It is unusual for an away team to choose to start second so why not make it standard!)
4: We are not asking for this rule to be across the whole of MQL, (although we believe this would benefit every league,) just for individual leagues to make their own decision for their own leagues.
It was also noted that the proposal has not come from any of the Results Secretaries of the constituent leagues.
The meeting voted with 16 eligible voters. 4 were in favour and 5 were against with the remainder abstaining. The proposal was rejected.
The date for the 2024 AGM is Sunday 7th April. The dates for the four required Council Meetings for the new season are:
Sunday 10 September 2023
Sunday 10 December 2023
Sunday 24 March 2024
Sunday 23 June 2024
The Chairman thanked everyone for their attendance and their support. The meeting closed at 8.05pm.