August 2022
Senior Softball - Spring Newsletter
Kia ora koutou
The Nelson Softball Association extends a warm welcome to all those involved with softball this season.
Nelson Softball Association 60th Anniversary:
This season in particular is a special one as we launch into the new season with the celebration of 60 years of softball in the region. What a milestone and what a lot of softball.
We have a range of events planned and encourage everyone to get involved. See below for an outline of what we have organised for the weekend. There is a link on our website and facebook page to register.
Friday 30th September 2022
Meet and Greet: The meet and greet is an informal event where those attending will be welcomed with an official address and an overview of the weekend. Memorabilia will be on display and people are encouraged to bring items as well as their stories to share. There is no charge for this event.
Venue: Nelson Softball/Hockey Pavilion
Time: From 5:30pm - 10:00pm
Bar: Will be open (at own cost)
Food: Light finger food and nibbles will be provided
Saturday 1st October
Mystery Bus Trip: This early morning start will see you stop at 6 historical locations that have been significant in the history of Nelson Softball Association. There will be a scheduled morning tea break along the way. This is included in the cost.
Time: 9:00am - 1:00pm
Total pp: $25.00 (Once registered updates will be emailed out)
Nelson Softball Opening Day: At 12:00pm we invite you to join us for the launch of the 2022/2023 softball season with the first pitch being thrown by one of our distinguished life members. The day will see our senior men and women’s competition start with games played throughout the day. The softball/hockey pavilion will also be open with memorabilia on display. Again we encourage past members to bring items to share and their stories.
Venue: Saxton Softball Park and Softball/Hockey Pavilion
Time: From 12:00pm
Food: This will be available at the park and the bar will be open from 2:00pm
Saturday Evening Function: Saturday evening is the formal part of the weekend with guest speakers to cover the narrative of Nelson Softball throughout the 60 years. We look forward to you joining us for this special occasion as we celebrate softball, the game that brought us together. This is an RSVP event as numbers are limited for catering purposes.
Venue: Nelson Softball/Hockey Pavilion
Time: 6:00pm - 10:00pm
Dress Code: Formal dress
Food: Dinner cost $60.00pp
Payment: 03-1354-0241754-00 (Reference with NAME and SAT Dinner)
Bar: Will be open (at own cost)
Core Business:
This year sees the following head up the Nelson Softball Association Board. Sub committee areas are still to be organised. If you are keen to help out we would love to have you on board supporting one of our key areas; grounds and facilities, competition and participation, officials, coaches and volunteers, high performance and events and media.
Nelson Softball Association Board:
President: Don Glenie
Secretary: Nicky Mason
Treasurer Shared role: Kathryn Dowdle
Treasurer Shared role: Tracey Green
Executive: Chris Vercoe
Executive: Nicola Hone
Grounds and Facilities:
As you can imagine the pre-season grounds preparation has been put on hold while we have had all this wet weather. Please keep an eye out for up and coming working bees. These will be posted up on the Nelson Softball facebook page in the coming weeks.
Signage and Sponsorship: We would love to see your business sign up on the outfield fence this season. If this sounds like you, please let us know so we can discuss further.
Competition and Participation:
Registrations:
Nelson Softball is completing all registrations online again through the sporty.co.nz website. Clubs are encouraged to get their members to complete all registrations by the 25th September.
Each Club /Team is to then present a team list with full names. This can be added to as registrations are completed throughout the season. A Nelson Softball Team sheet will be sent out in the coming weeks for Clubs/ Teams to complete.
Senior Softball Forum Zoom Hui:
On Monday 5th September, 6:30pm via zoom, Nelson softball invites all Senior Coaches and Managers to a softball forum to review the Competition Hand Book of the 2022/2023 Softball Season. Please ensure that this information is shared throughout your Teams and advise who will be attending so a zoom link can be shared.
Senior Competition:
The senior men and women will play in the NSA 2022/2023 Competition. The competition will be played in two halves, Spring and Summer. All games will be played at Saxton Softball Park apart from a few games that we are looking to schedule in Blenheim. Once team entries are confirmed a draw will be prepared and shared out to all Coaches and Managers.
Spring League Start Date: Saturday 1st October - Saturday 17th December 2022
Summer League Dates: Saturday 14th January - Saturday 25th March 2023
$1200.00 (Inc GST) per team for the 2022/2023 season
Invoices will be sent to Clubs upon team entry
Team Entries close: 18th September, 5:00pm
Coaches, Officials & Volunteers:
Umpires: Save the date for the Umpires clinic. All players are invited to attend this at no cost.
Date: Saturday 3rd September
Venue: Saxton Field Softball Pavilion and Park
11:00 – 12:00 pm Introductory level – theory
12:00 – 1:30 pm Advanced theory and practical
2:00pm – 3:00 pm Introductory level - practical
Presented by: Rikki Thompson and Mark McFarlane
Coaching: This season it is hoped that we can coordinate some coach specific sessions - more information to come on this. Nelson Softball would also like to highlight the resources that are available on the Softball New Zealand website. This is the best place to get up to date information; https://www.softball.org.nz/Development/Coaching.html
High Performance:
You would have also seen a few weeks back that expressions of interest were called for Coaches and Managers for the 2022/2023 Representative Season. Rep Coaches and Managers are still being worked through for the various teams. Watch this space for more information.
Events and Media:
This is an area that we are continuing to grow. It has been great to see the activity on both the website and facebook page. This season we would really like to be able to do some live streaming. If this sounds like you get in touch with us so we can talk some more.
Other Events:
USC Mixed Social Slo-Pitch League: This 8A-Side softball league starts Wednesday 2nd November, Cost $160.00 per team, 5 weeks Spring / 5 weeks Summer.
USC Monday Night Youth League: Spring League starts Monday 31st October, game times are 4:30pm and 5:30pm. T-ball and U11’s play for FREE. U13’s and U15’s Cost $120.00 per team, 6 weeks.
For more information on these two grades please contact: nelsonunitedsoftball@gmail.com
Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.
Be Safe and Be Kind!
Ngā Mihi
Duck, Nicky, Tracey, Kathryn, Chris and Nicola
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