NO SOONER does one season end than another begins and at the time of writing, we are just one month away from our first league game of the season, at home to newly promoted Teignmouth.

Much has happened both on and off the field for Crediton during the brief close season. At the recent Annual General Meeting, Club Treasurer Ray Grigg was elected the new President, Paul Harris stepping down as his three year term had come to an end.

We are delighted to welcome Liz Bayley to the committee, taking over as Membership Secretary from Ruth Daniells, who had done a tremendous job over the previous three years.

The Committee remains much the same and fortunately Edward Trick will remain as Chairman for at least one more year.

The Club is in a sound state, financially and has bucked the trend by increasing bar turnover and profit during the last financial year. Expenses had been kept to a minimum and income increased marginally; all in all, a good year so far, as the Club accounts are concerned.

Mindful of the current economic pressures on people, the Committee has decided not to increase the Membership charges for the forthcoming season. Members are reminded that the fees are due by September 1 and letters will be sent out shortly, together with the forms.

The Dining area has been re-floored thanks to financial contributions from the Junior section and the hard work and persistence of Martin Phillips and his band of helpers. There are ongoing projects to complete before the season begins with the anticipated refurbishment of the bar area.

The Clubhouse is approaching 50 years old and the cost of maintaining the premises seem to increase annually. The newly fitted kitchen was the most expensive project of the year and this was overseen by Mel Rice and again completed without having to borrow money.

On the playing side, Wayne Reed continues as Senior Coach, with former player Ian Gillard assisting as the backs coach. Ian was a part of the successful Colts' coaching panel last season and has a wealth of playing experience with the Club.

Gavin Best will start his second season as Club Captain with Mike Pearce as Vice Captain. The mixture of youth and experience will, I am sure, serve the club well during the 2009-10 season.

Kevin Ellis continues as second team skipper following the success of last season where the second place finish in the Devon Two Merit Table earned the 'Quins promotion back to the Devon One Merit Table section.

Training has begun well, with the bi-weekly sessions well attended and the first trial game taking place at Bude on August 15 followed by a trip to Withycombe on August 22.

The league programme is a little more intense this season as the Cornwall and Devon League has been expanded to 14 clubs, which means an additional four league games.

Penryn, Okehampton, Truro and Tavistock were all promoted last season and because there was no relegation, six new teams have come up.

From Devon One, Teignmouth, Exeter Saracens and Torrington whilst from Cornwall One we welcome Stithians, St Austell and Liskeard.

Five of those six will, of course, be familiar names to rugby followers. However, Stithians will, no doubt, be a new name to most people. They were winners of Cornwall One and also the Cornwall Junior Cup Champions last season and will doubtless pose as much a threat as the others.

As previously mentioned, the league season opens with the visit of Teignmouth on September 5, followed by a trip to Bideford on the September 12 and successive home games against Falmouth and Exeter Saracens.

Bideford have proved a bogey side for us over the past two seasons and they will be among the favourites for promotion, together with ourselves and Wellington.

Falmouth surely cannot have such a dismal season as last year and likewise Hayle will always be competitive. It is likely that Cornwall and Devon league will be as tight at the top this season as last. However, I get the feeling that there could also be some serious mis-matches.

The Devon Cups have been re-structured with three competitions, the Senior Cup where the top 12 seeded Clubs will compete; the Intermediate Cup in which we are entered is for the next 12 clubs – (we are 15th seeded) and the Junior Cup.

Our first Cup game is on November 21, at home against Bideford with the winners proceeding to the semi-final stage.

The 'Quins have a challenging task ahead as we are, in effect, the lowest ranked Club whose second string compete in the Devon One Table. However, we have been there before and it was not that long ago (2000-01) that we actually won it.

Strength in depth is always the key and it is imperative that all players make the effort to attend training. The fact that some of the Clubs whose Second Fifteen's compete in the same Merit Table as ourselves actually play two leagues above us by no means suggests that we will struggle.

Indeed, last season we did gain wins over a couple of those sides in friendly games. Our players are capable and of course it is important that we maintain a good standard of fixtures for the 'Quins.

The Hornets, too, will no doubt enjoy the season in Merit Table Three and will be familiar with most of the opponents that they come up against.

The Colts have a great opportunity to improve on last season's Shield Final victory. Many of the players will be in their second and final year as Colts and with the addition of many of last years successful Under 16's adding to the strength, there are high hopes of an even better season to come.

As with any sport, training is the key. It is impossible to produce the goods on a Saturday afternoon if the midweek training sessions are not attended. Players have a responsibility to support each other and their coaches to make that effort on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

It is all about commitment and enjoyment and the latter seldom comes without the former.