Duffield Rackets and Fitness
23 Town Street • Duffield, Derby • DE56 4EH
Tel: 01332 841702
It has come to my attention in recent days that some of our members have received messages about the future of the club’s property from a small group who wish to assert a level of control over the club. Given the extraordinary nature of the communications, I feel compelled to write to the full membership, as a member of the Council appointed at the same time as our chairperson, Tony King.
The messages from this group, who refer to themselves as the squash directors of Duffield Sports Club Limited, are cogently written, as is now possible from all of us in a modern world of AI-generated documents.
However, the litany of fallacies, mistruths and insinuations need to be confronted head on. My aim is to redress the following key misrepresentations of the truth:
• The personal attacks on the chair of our club, Tony King
Tony has been under sustained and orchestrated personal attack since his election two years ago. Rumours have been circulated that he is seeking to take control of the club for personal gain. This is not true in any way. I was not familiar with Tony until appointed to the council two years ago, but know him to be a man of principle and outstanding integrity. His only concern is the best interests of our club’s future and its members. Tony has worked diligently towards achieving that outcome. Any suggestion to the contrary is scurrilous. Tony’s direct style may not please all, this is the lonely part of leadership. However, he is honourable and driven to do the right thing for the club.
Conversely, the real risk to the club and its future is the prospect of the land and buildings being controlled by 10 directors and shareholders of DSCL, some of whom seem to think that they have the right to exercise control over the assets. The truth is that DSCL Ltd exists only as a trust to serve the club (DRF) and its members. The property is best positioned sitting under the control of all our members, as would be explicitly the case via the Articles of Association of an incorporated (Ltd) club.
• The rewriting of history as to the purpose of Duffield Sports Club Limited (DSCL) and the hijacking of DSCL as a vehicle to usurp the decision-making power in the club
I have been a member of this club for over 20 years, and I know a substantial proportion of members have been for far longer. Until this year, 90+% of club members were not aware of the existence of Duffield Sports Club Limited, and, even if they had heard of its existence, 99% of members would have no idea why it was set up. For clarity, DSCL was established in 1960 as a vehicle in which to hold the assets of the tennis and squash clubs, since unincorporated clubs are not allowed to own assets. It is not a conventional trading company, but a convenient mechanism set up for a singular purpose. Former chairman of squash, Mike Taylor, has always confirmed this position when new directors were assigned. On 3 February 2026, two new directors were nominated to DSCL’s board, and they have since taken control of the narrative, claiming that the company was set up to make decisions about the future of the site.
This is a complete fabrication and not true.
The board of DSCL exists as trustees to enact the instructions of the club and nothing more. Insurgent members identified DSCL as a vehicle from which to attempt to exert control over the club and prevent progress of club development. As such, they are rewriting history to support this disruptive goal. They have neither the moral nor legal right to do so.
Our members would be absolutely correct to ask why we have apparently made no headway with a project for the redevelopment of our club. Put plainly, we have been thwarted by the objections of the same small group every time we try to make progress. This has continued since spring 2024. The club is being held hostage by a tiny minority of unreasonable members (despite the reasonable impression created by the tone of their memos), and it is time this impasse comes to a head.
As a final comment we have repeatedly asked what objective this group is trying to achieve. No response has ever been forthcoming, yet they continue to sow seeds of mistrust in the Council using false assertions and fabrications. It is a sad fact that the club has a bleak future if this group are allowed to succeed in their power grab. No sane future Council would ever proceed to spend funds to develop a club for which they did not own the assets.
The proposed future of the club is designed as a limited company solely to protect liability of members. It does NOT change the voting rights of members which remain the same as today. It does NOT prevent us being a CASC organisation with the protections this brings. It DOES help us to build a better future of our treasured community organisation.
Thank you if you have taken the time to read this letter. You, as members, and we, as the council members, are all supposed to be doing this as an enjoyable pastime. It would be opportune to let you know that the Council is preparing a suite of communications for members for the forthcoming EGM, so there will be quite a lot of reading matter over the coming couple of weeks. This will include original documentation regarding DSCL as well as other key documents, including the legal advice we have been given. We shall also be sending out the note from the squash directors of DSCL together with a council response to it, as has always been our intention.
Feel free to ask questions if you are unsure. I commit that the Council will continue to be open and transparent in its communications with members.
With thanks for your support going forward.
Mike Corne
DRF Fitness Lead
16/10/2026
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