Year End Message from the Chairman
It is hard to believe the events of the last year since I first became Chairman of the club. None of us will remember this year with great fondness but in the true spirit of this club, it is right that we spend a moment to recall the highlights and pass on our thanks to all involved. We started 2020 with a new Committee, 2 new captains and a lot of plans. Sadly, the pandemic caused many of those plans to be changed or abandoned. However, through careful consultation with the Commune of Walferdange, LCF and our members, we were in fact pretty lucky to have something of a season and often in good weather. Here are some highlights:-
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Walferdange Optimists (WOCC) had a tremendous year starting by winning the LCF Division 2 title in the delayed Indoor League; then taking that further to completing an LCF Double by winning the Division 1 League and the Cup Final in fine style.
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Optimists 2nd XI continued their great progress by winning the revised BCF Division 3 (T20 format) by 24.5 points and thereby winning their respective league for 3 years running.
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Optimists 1st XI could not quite match this but finished as runners up in BCF Division 2 under the leadership of Vikram Vijh.
Obviously, the social side of cricket had to be restrained this year but we still managed to have a great Charity effort to raise money with our OCC Fun Run/Cycle/Walk of the combined distance of the full perimeter of Luxembourg and we hosted both the LCF 10 event and the Luxembourg T20i Trophy versus Belgium and Czech Republic in August whilst continuing to support the development of womens and junior cricket. So given all the considerations, it remains a season to be remembered very positively. However, all this does not happen without the support of many people, especially the Committee members, scorers, umpires and of course the Ground Care team and without this level of volunteer help, simply none of this would be possible.
Now we are in deep mid-winter and the COVID crisis remains with us. But this great club carries its name for a reason and it is important to remember optimism is part of our DNA and so we must look forward with hope and excitement that 2021 will bring more great memories for us to share together. In the meantime, wherever you are, stay safe and I look forward to seeing you all as soon as we safely can.
Happy holiday season and a healthy 2021!
Joost