Four new faces at Board level after North West AGM

The NWCU held its Annual General Meeting by Zoom on Tuesday night as delegates took stock of a difficult 2020 and looked ahead to hopefully better times in the new season.

The region certainly made the most of a very difficult summer where every club completed their reduced schedule and full engagement with clubs has certainly played a major role in that. It’s a policy that the Union is intent on continuing and the number of new faces emerging into committee life is a huge bonus for everyone involved.

That trait also carried over into the NWCU Board of Directors last night with the appointment of four new directors.

Bobby Rao was unanimously voted on to the Board and the popular former Test player and Ireland Head Coach will no doubt have plenty of say in the Development area over the coming seasons. Bobby replaces Andrew Fleming who steps down due to his Cricket Ireland responsibilities.

Terence Patton takes over as Operations Director from Lawrence Moore who is expected to concentrate on PR and Media duties in the new year.

Joanne McLaughlin and Manav Bhavsar also join the Board as Independent Directors – two people who will bring some fresh thinking into the group.

Speaking at the election of officers, Chairman Brian Dougherty thanked those who had served on the Board over the last number of years and who had helped the Union navigate some difficult times. He also welcomed the new members and suggested that the new era would be a chance to stabilise and look to the future with plenty of positivity.

Delegates also unanimously returned Connie McAllister as President while Brian Dougherty, who has done a superb job as Chair, will continue until at least 2022.