Of the various sporting activities enjoyed by the staff as part of the Bank's social activities, Golf competitions and Cricket matches
were popular from the early days of the Bank, and a photograph of a Staff Golf Match held in about 1925 has survived. And, as
the Staff Association's History (1947 to 1972) stated: There has always been a Cricket Club and a Golfing Society.
A meeting
of the Staff Socials Committee held on May 30th 1928 agreed that two golf competitions should be held that year, on June 7th (Golf
Match with Councillor Gelling) and September 20th. Occasional tournaments, organised by the Staff Association, appear to have
been held as indicated by a circular dated May 6th 1952 (see below).
The BMB Golfing Society, however, came into being in
1953, and the first Annual Meeting of the Society was held on March 2nd 1954. At that meeting, the following officers were elected
for 1954:
President: H Carver
Captain:
J A Duff
Hon Secretary: W K Robottom
Committee:
Messrs J A Duff; H A Turner; W K Robottom; S F Jones
A circular to branches dated March 25th 1954 informed staff that matches
had been arranged against Lloyds Bank; Midland Bank; the Civil Service; and Metro-Cammell - a complete list of fixtures to be circulated
in due course. Members of staff were also advised that the Annual Dinner would be held in November.
The circular from the Hon
Secretary (Ken Robottom) concluded:
Anyone interested in golf will be welcome to join the Society. Annual Subscription 2/6d - Vice-Presidents
5/-d. Subscriptions should be credited to A/c A.53662 BMB Golfing Society, the name of the member being noted on the MB 143.
On
August 22nd 1955, Ken Robottom informed members that the Annual Medal Competition was to be held at Walmley Golf Club on Monday, September
12th, with the event being followed by the Annual Dinner. The Medal Round was due to commence at 4:30pm, and the Dinner (cost 7/6d)
at 8pm. The Society's Captain that year was Harold Turner.
|
Photograph |
Image Reference |
|
058 |
In addition to the Staff Magazine Articles referred to above, two articles were included in the magazine written by a Bank depositor:
Bridget
Jackson.
During a notable amateur career, Miss Jackson played in the Curtis Cup for Great Britain and Ireland on three occasions
and was selected as an England international nine times. She served as Chair and President of the English Ladies Golf Association
and President of the Ladies’ Golf Union. She was made an MBE in 2003 for her services to women’s golf.
Born in Birmingham in 1936,
Miss Jackson won the Girls’ British Open Amateur Championship in 1954 and two years later triumphed in the English Ladies Closed Championship
and German Ladies Championship. She won the Canadian Ladies Championship in 1967.
The two Articles were:
Following its formation in 1953, the Bank's Golfing Society had an annual programme that included a Knock-out Competition (for the President's Cup - see below) that was open to all members of staff, a Medal Competition for Society members (see below), and a series of matches against opponents that included other Corporation Departments and other banks. The following table provides examples of some of the annual programmes:
1955
May 10
Health
Department
Kings Norton
H Carver
H A Turner
W K Robottom
June 2
Midland Bank
Moseley
June
28
Civil Service
Handsworth
July 5
Lloyds Bank
Walmley
September
12
Annual Medal Competition
Walmley
1956
May 8
Midland Bank
Moor Hall
H Carver
L
A Wright
W K Robottom
May 15
Transport Department
Gay Hill
May 24
Civil
Service
Handsworth
June 26
Health Department
Kings Norton
July
9
Lloyds Bank
Moseley
September 16
Annual Medal Competition
Wrekin
1958
April
29
Midland Bank
Harborne
H J Sutherland
R T Piper
J A Duff
May 6
Public Health Department
Kings
Norton
June 3
Lloyds Bank
Streetly
June 19
Civil Service
Handsworth
July
10
Transport Department
Gay Hill
August 12
Water Department
North Worcester
1964
May
5
Post Office Telephones
Rose Hill
A Green
May 12
Water Department
Kings Norton
May
26
Public Health
Harborne
June 9
Lloyds Bank
Streetly
July
13
City Transport
Kings Norton
August 11
Public Works
Handsworth
September
1
Post Office Telephones
Kings Norton
1966
May 24
Public Health
Kings Norton
A
Green
June 14
Lloyds Bank
Kings Norton
June 16
Guild Trophy
Gay Hill
June
28
GPO Services
Rose Hill
July 7
Public Health
Harborne
July
12
GPO Services
Kings Norton
August 2
Fire Brigade
Kings Norton
1967
May
23
Public Health
Kings Norton
A Green
June 20
Guild Trophy
Kings Norton
June
28
Lloyds Bank
Sandwell Park
July 25
GPO Services
Kings Norton
August
6
National Provincial Bank
Kings Norton
September 24
Annual Medal Competition
Broadway