A very good day to everyone out there….

Wow!! What a week it has been….firstly we found a winner for our Joker Jackpot….then we were captivated by the massively competitive London Marathon, which enjoyed some great support at the North and was shown on the big screen….and then we had our Main Club executive thinking out the box and proposing some far reaching innovations to our Joker draw….I will deal with each of these events separately to offer an overview of our week…..

I have had the pleasure of knowing the gentleman whose name was drawn for the Joker draw….having played sport with and against Bruce “Buffel” Nortje from a young age…..and have known him as talented and fiercely competitive…. One of my lasting memories of Bruce will be the lonely Good Friday that we sat together at a very quiet North, contemplating why we weren’t on a hockey tour with the rest of our mates….Bruce being home unexpectedly with some Army leave…and I have been granted the weekend off, after thinking that I was to work the entire Easter….when we looked at each other and said….Let us get in the car and drive to Strathvaal and join the Hangovers on their tour there….which we promptly did….to enjoy an epic and memorable tour!! I will refuse to elaborate further and will take the “fifth”….and exempt myself from having to implicate anybody in the resultant shenanigans…..

That now being revealed…when Bruce had his name drawn from the beeeeg black box, he quietly made his way to the Joker cabinet in the Main Bar, looked ar me and asked, “Where is it”….followed by my standard answer “in the box somewhere”….so amidst the cheers, jeers and shouts of encouragement from the crowd….he calmly pointed to the second card in the third row down….pinned by a yellow drawing pin….and stood back to await Glenda’s reveal of which card he had drawn….and as the Joker card was turned…I watched Bruce’s face reflect shock and joy in the same instant…..and I think the fact that he had won never really hit him until the next morning….when he sent me the details of his bank account….and he possibly only really realised the full extent of his good fortune, when the amount of R66876 reflected in his bank account on Tuesday morning…..well done Buffel….I am really chuffed that the draw was won by a Club member….and that he is one of my mates, is an absolute bonus….enjoy using the winnings Buffel….mine is Hansa….but I am sure you know that already, I did mention it often enough on Friday…..#shygrin#…

Now onto the London Marathon….the Athletics Club had asked that we show this clash of the Titans as there has been a frenzy of interest with some (if not all) of the quickest marathon runners on the planet competing…..and with the Kenyan Kipchoge being unbeaten since 2013…it was going to be up to the pretenders to his crown to beat him at his own game…..the Marathon was altered to a multi-lap format due to the COVID pandemic….and there being a limited field and with no spectators…it was definitely going to present some challenges for all the competitors….and with the day dawning in true English style, overcast and wet…it was going to take some grim determination from all to produce the quick time that was promised….I watched with interest as it appeared that Kipchoge was not at his best and there was a group of runners led by Kitata and Kipchumba that were definitely pushing him to his limits….it was revealed after the race that the kingpin Kipchoge had suffered from cramps and an ear infection, resulting in him finishing in eighth position in one of his slowest times in many a year….the leading group had separated from Kipchoge by the last lap and the pace started to quicken significantly, building the pressure and suddenly the pack began to diminish….from five…to four…down to three and finally two mentioned earlier….and the sprint kick from Kitata was enough for him to be crowned as the 2020 London Marathon Champion….not the quickest time which was promised and expected….but a truly memorable and enthralling race…there were also plenty of smiles of appreciation of our followers at the Club too, as they realise the conditions under which marathon runners compete….thanks to all those who came through to watch at the Club….it was really a fantastic day out…..

Finally, I get to the new Joker draw….the COVID disaster has affected everybody in some way or another….and the Benoni Northern Sports Club has been no exception….the pandemic has caused us to dip into our reserves to ensure that Club has remained financially sound and has also been able to the ensure that our employees have not been stranded during the crisis……with the Joker draw now being won, the Executive Committee has had to think laterally to come up with ways to continue to keep the Joker draw as an incentive and drawcard to the Club and its Members….so the draw this week will start again this Friday October 9….with a Jackpot of R10000….and everyone will gasp and say, why the lower amount? The Exec has thought that is better to err on the conservative side of the scale, rather than the opposite and have to try to perform financial gymnastics if the plan goes awry….that said, there are some creative improvements that are being implemented in this draw…

1. We are reverting back to the popular price of R5 a ticket again
2. The person who’s name is drawn from the beeeeg black box weekly, if they do NOT draw the Joker, will be granted a drinks voucher to the value of R250 (when the person happens to be a Member, the amount will double) and will be loaded onto their Membership card immediately on the night (please ensure that you have your card with you…)
3. The split of the winnings and the Club portion has been altered, from the current 60:40 basis….to a more generous 75:25 allocation…this will ensure that the available Jackpot will climb quicker in the future….
4. And now for another twist in the tail….each week, a card will be drawn from a separate pack and be on display above the Joker cabinet….if the person drawn is a Member and is not lucky enough to draw the Joker….but happens to match the card on display….they will be awarded 10% of the available Joker Jackpot for their good fortune….

All the altered terms and conditions relating to the new joker draw will be on display at the Club, please feel free to read through and familiarise and acquaint yourself with them….if there are any questions that you may have regarding the changes, please feel free to come and ask me….I will attempt to clear up any confusion or query….

On that positive note…I am going to sign off….

Have a super reminder of the week and an even better weekend….

Take care and stay safe….
Rod