This year has been good in that our expenditure was down primarily due to budget cuts being applied across the board in all areas of spend within the ICU. Most spending occurred in June/July starting with the pre-Glorney coaching which had a slight hitch when a number of players that had hoped to avail of the coaching had to be turned away on ineligibility grounds. This happened due to a communication error. The result was that a number of parents had to be refunded.

The last four months of season 2012-13 had its moments from the treasury side of things and most were outside of my control and this was explained to all concerned at the time of occurrence. To those parents and coaches affected due to the delays in payments etc my apologies on behalf of the ICU.

The Glorney competition was held in Wales and turned out to have a sweet taste of success. I personally took on the task, having committed to it the previous year, of organising all the accommodation arrangements which had its moments due to the closed communication system the Welsh employed. However, and with apologies to some of the parents that I might have given a few sleepless nights, everything worked out well in the end. Leading up to the Glorney competition our Junior Officer Darko Polimac suggested to me that it would be a nice gesture given that it was the centenary year that we should supply tee-shirts. I agreed and we ordered tee-shirts for the occasion. However, late delivery and a few tee-shirts missing left us in an awkward situation in that it was better to leave things as they were rather than having some children upset at not receiving any. The tee-shirt saga has not ended but I have received a commitment from the supplier that they will try to take care of the short fall. This particular issue was most frustrating and was not envisaged at the time. Apologies again to all involved.

Next up came Mureck (EUYCC) and this went well except for one individual that remained completely uncommitted to actually going and did not communicate in any way what their real intentions actually were and this lead to an embarrassing situation whereby the ICU having the competitors name cancelled officially the day before the competition through the Austrian Federation, only to find this individual turned up mysteriously the following day in Austria. This was unsporting behavior.

Next up will be the EYCC in Montenegro and the selection committee had much the same experience from the same quarters which was a waste of a lot of people's time and energies pandering to all the unreasonable requests. As a union we should apply the rules and regulations firmly to all with no exceptions.

Apologies for all the above distractions above but ordinarily a treasurer would not be involved in these areas of the organisation. On a brighter note to all current and prospective members we will not be increasing of membership subs for the coming season 2013-14.

In the mean time due to unfortunate circumstances in April last our membership officer resigned his post and the executive committee in their wisdom volunteered me for this position. I accepted this role and have been working away dealing with membership issues most of which are cleared in about 2 days. This is running very smoothly and works quite well in tandem with the treasurer position. Both positions involve the use of money which requires a lot of discipline. In that I mean all monies received have to be lodged within 1 or two days otherwise this can lead to confusion later. The issue of confirmations to those involved is an absolute. This role also has to liaise very close with our Wemaster Mark Orr.

Depending on the outcome of the AGM and if left in both roles here below are my humble aspirations for the Irish Chess Union for next season 2013-14.

Membership Officer Role

To make this area more transparent once our banking system has been completely changed over. To keep all members satisfied when queries arise and above all give them the confidence that any monies given are acknowledged accordingly.

Treasurer Officer Role

Last year I started the banking change over which has had its moments but we are nearly there. My intention is that once I and Mark Orr (Webmaster) sort out the final issues which will allow us to switch over completely which should be in the late October time frame. I intend to do the following:

1. Make our banking extremely simple to use and more efficient
2. I will have all FIDE outstanding amounts due paid next month (I know this has raised a few eyebrows among a few people). This area had been neglected due to lack of funds but not now so this will happen.
3. Preparation of accounts should be seamless and easier to prepare. There will be less manual records which generally slow the process down.
4. All Budgets to be published early in the new seasons so that everyone can see at a glance what the spending proposals are for the ICU. Then each officer charged with a responsibility will know their limitations in advance. This will lead to better planning and organisation.

Final note for all in the ICU: Apologies to all concerned for not having the accounts Audited. These will be independently checked and available soon. We have a nominated auditor selected and he will be contacted shortly. I have had a number of personal issues which have delayed my reports. I can conclude that our accounts are well in the ‘Black’ and there are plenty of funds for next season. I have asked our Chairperson to explain briefly my absence at the AGM. I trust all will understand my situation. Finally I would like to thank all the outgoing committee members for their support throughout the year and also their frank opinions at various debates on matters arising. I would also like to make a special mention to John McKenna and his selection committee for this year and all the great work they carried out. Sincere thanks to all for their efforts. To all parents a special thanks for your understanding and patience throughout the season.