League Champions!

[Alex Holowczak]

Birmingham League:
League Division 1: Shirley & Wythall - winning ahead of South Birmingham A. South Birmingham will have five teams in the top two divisions next year!
Terrill Trophy: South Birmingham 1A beat Stourbridge 2: 4.5-4 (4.5-1.5, Stourbridge had 2.5 start on the handicap)
Individual Division 1: Andrew Southall (Warley Quinborne) v John Edge (Halesowen) 1/2-1/2, presumably a second game will take place...
Summer League Division 1: Ongoing

Wolverhampton League:
League Division 1: St. George's A - winning ahead of Bushbury due to a flawed tie-break system (not my words, but the league President's!)
Pittaway Cup: Wolverhampton beat Stafford 6.25-4 - don't know how the handicaps work, but it was an 8-board match...
Rock Cup (Individual): Robert Marshall (Wolverhampton) beat Mike Groombridge (Walsall Kipping) 1-0

Dudley League:
League Division 1: Stourbridge

Cannock League:
League Division 1: Sutton Coldfield

That's about all the leagues I'm involved in!

[Geoff Chandler]

Fantastic posts.

All theses wee stories and drama's.....lost and gone forever unless you want to hawk
around every web site gathering games, final tables, pictures and the glorious tales of woe.
And even then you are depending on who ever runs the site to give you all the info.

I've harked on for years the two national mags should give league chess more
coverage instead of the rare occasional item buried away with other news.

But is it their fault....Not entirely.

Why not try submitting a piece to a mag complete with a final table, pictures of the winning team
(not taken with one of these tatty mobiles, a proper camera and keep it in it's original format
to give them something to work with, don't shrink it down).

Give them the juicy stories and game(s). And get it accurate.
If not someone is bound to write in with corrections,
(you have seen the amount of nit-pickers on here...I am about to join in and step out again.)

It appears the Chester v Penyfford match was not the final match of the season as David reported.
(I like that bit: ' Further atrocities against our noble game were committed ...' I'm nicking that for a rainy day.)

Chester still had to play and not get beaten by Formby in the last match of the season.
A very moot point but these editor chaps are busy and don't have time to check
all the facts so they rely on trusting you and then find they have to print retractions.
(you can guess what will happen to your next submission.)

The Chester v Penyffordd match was the decider though.

Penyffordd out scored the top four boards but enter Juan Lasheras who scored a vital win
on board 5 to help draw the match. (supply game and pic of Juan).
Juan was recruited into the Chester team late on in the season and finished with the stats: P4 W4.

Also in this match Bob Clark (Penyffordd) inflicted the first ever defeat in John Carleton’s Wirral Chess League career.

This is GOLD!

There is the cover picture. Smiling Bob, John in an insert.
Inside the game with brief notes and the stats on John's Wirral Chess League.
At the moment all we have is P W? L1 D?

It gets better.
This win over John Carleton also enabled the Penyffordd captain John Gorman to become Wirral's Division One Player of the Year.

Wirral Division One Player of the Year stats 2012/13 (the top 5)

1 John Gorman Penyffordd A 6½/7
2 John Carleton Chester A 6½/8
3 Mike Coffey Wallasey A 6½/8
4 Dave Tebb Hoylake A 6/8 (Hi David........just saying hello to an old friend.)
5 Phil Davies Wallasey A 5½/8

And that took....10 minutes.

http://www.wirralchessleague.com/?page=news

(there is that not more interesting than what Carlsen has for breakfast?)

Come on lads, do your bit, go for it.
Some of you guys have a wonderful and refreshing turn of phrase.
(got anymore pearls Dave...?)

They might offer to pay, if so say no.
They will be happy enough with the sudden influx of new subribers and donate
a small sum to the leagues that supply the most copy.

Well done Edinburgh C.C. for winning the Edinburgh League, the SNCL and the Richardson Cup.
(and for beating London in the 1825-29 match....that last one was a late result.)

[Christopher Kreuzer]

There are some clubs that publish accounts of their matches, usually written by the captains. An example is Ealing Chess Club, though as of late the reports have been more sporadic:

http://www.ealingchess.com/matchresult/1479/

I particularly like that one, because the opening comment by the Ealing captain refers to a sacrifice I played!

"I did not see much of the action in this match because after a blunder in the opening I spent the rest of the evening fighting for my life."

Sadly the sacrifice didn't come off, but it is nice to see comments like that made.

Some clubs publish end-of-season reports, such as these ones from Surbiton Chess Club:

http://www.surbitonchessclub.co.uk/capt ... ports.html
http://www.surbitonchessclub.co.uk/Surb ... review.htm

But a lot of reports are likely circulated internally by e-mail (if written at all), and don't see the light of day (I write reports at times when a match is exciting, but am not able to reel off names of openings so that is a weakness). Some of the reports circulated by e-mail would likely have to be edited (for length and sensibilities) before being published! In the past, something might have been written for a printed club newsletter, but this seems less common now.

[Alan Burke]

Just to complete the details of 3Cs' season in the Manchester League ...

3Cs' 1 - A Division Champions (11th time in 13 seasons)
3Cs' 2 - A Division 3rd (Having been promoted last season)
3Cs' 3 - C Division Champions
3Cs' 4 - C Division 3rd (Behind on pts difference to runners-up)
3Cs' 5 - D Division Champions
3Cs' 6 - E Division 3rd (Behind on pts difference to runners-up)

3Cs' 1 will play 3Cs' 2 in the Final of the Reyner Shield (The league's premier knockout trophy)

3Cs' 6 won the Milner Trophy (Knockout tournament for teams in lower divisions)

3Cs' 1 have fielded seven different players aged under 20 throughout their successful Division A league campaign and over 40 amongst the various teams - but, in the famous words of Allan Hanson - "You can't win nothing with kids !"

However, the more notable aspect is that all these youngsters have been nurtured through the club's own youth policy and the teams have not had to rely on several players being "brought in" to just win titles.

[David Robertson]

Yes, Geoff, I forgot about the subsequent Formby match. Chester were nailed on to win that, and did, with a promising youngster on bottom board. Keep an eye out for Daniel Savidge, aged 12. If he trains on, he'll be very good. But Chester-Penyffordd was the deciding match. The report on the Wirral website completely misses the drama and significance of Jameson-Robertson in which the destiny of the league title, and hence of an entire season's collective effort, changed hands three times in the space of five moves!

Incidentally, completing the picture, Chester league Player of the Year:

Dave Simpson (Wrexham) 10.5/13
John Carleton (Chester) 10/13
Richard Dineley (Wrexham) 10/14
Dave Robertson (Chester) 10/13

[PeterFarr]

Mid Sussex League:

Div 1: Brighton & Hove 1 9.5 / 12 followed by Hastings, Worthing & Horsham, all 8/11
Div 2: Worthing 2
Div 3: Worthing 3
Knock-out trophy (handicap) Argumentatives.

The geography of the mid-Sussex league is rather odd - it's basically all of Sussex minus Bognor and Chichester, who play in the Portsmouth league.

Must point out the victory of my own team, Argumentives, winning the KO trophy after a gap of 34 years. Is this a record? Our Final opponents Hastings chose the tactic of picking a low-rated team, so we had to win 4-1 to beat the handicap, and we just scraped it by 4.5 - 0.5.
Also the last time we got a new player was 17 years ago; can anybody else claim a worse recruitment record?

[Geoff Chandler]

Hi Dave.

So how about a wee article about Daniel Savidge, aged 12. with a pic
and few lightly noted games to BCM.
Him seeing his name and pic in print may just be that wee nudge in the right direction
between him and a chess career and that Play Station in his bedroom.

Every league has these kids, where do they go?
Encouragement is the key, Let them see that someone somewhere thinks their games belong to be seen.

If you don't think you can note up the game then BCM has Andrew Martin,
he can note them up or add comments.What a thrill for a kid that would be.

Don't forget to mention his school, he will show it to the school, they will give him time off
to play chess when he needs it, the other kids will get jealous and they too will take up chess.

You might end up with 5 new clubs members from that one school all because of that one article.

I'm wrong?

I wonder how many kids took up chess in Britain when Nigel first hit the headlines and are still playing.

Hi Chris.

I see and get a lot of these in house reports.
I see the games, some of them are so instructive and entertaining.
Some I have managed to rescue but there are 1,000 of really good games
played by players we have never heard of that will never see a chessboard.

These are not the if's and but's that appear in the notes to GM games in magazines and books.
(infact the if's and but's are often deemed so basic they do not even get a mention.)

These unseen variations are actually appearing in the the games of league players.

And some of the in house reports hide some amazing tales.
Yet they are viewed by only a very very few.

Is it too much to ask that one/two issues of CHESS are turned over entirley to League Chess once a year
to capture all the tables, news and games.

(But they do need the copy.)

Nah...
I suppose it's easier to start a thread complaining about the lack interest in league chess
and the number of clubs closing rather than to try and actually and do something about it.

"I write reports at times when a match is exciting, but am not able to reel off names
of openings so that is a weakness."

I'd consider that as a bonus not a weakness.
This need to fill the reader in with what happened when and where in
another game from another time is nonsense. Who is really interested?
They are padding the notes by cutting and pasting from a DB.
(any dipstick can do that.)

Readers don't go skipping off to look at another half a game.
Only do it if it is really relevant, then do it in full, add it at the end.

You have them at the board with the mag opened at your page.
Keep them there, entertain them, give them what you would like to see.

Write unto others as you would wish them to write to you.

You have a beautiful move or blunder coming up. The Punch line.
(if not then consider why you have chosen this game.)

Build up to it slowly, tease them a little by perhaps hinting the loser is actually going to be the winner.
Then BANG!

Correctly done the lad folds up the magazine and that night he shows the game
to his chums at what remains of his chess clubs.

Try not to copy the style of what you often see in mags and books.

Higgins v Smiggins
Some opening (ECO code here)

first 6 moves

smith v brown last year went (15 moves no conclussion) +=

2 moves

Horace - Moaurice at Ying yan Yong went (15 moves no conclussion) =+

3 moves

Jones - Johnstone at Hona bloody Lulu continued (15 moves no conclussion) =

on and on we go till at last a move that is not in the writers database appears.

21. Rh3 TN (diagram)

(If White wins this game then 21.Rh3 is given an ! )

Fritz analysis, no verbal comments except to slip in one of the players nicknames to give the impression
he's a good lad and the writer knows him well enough to use his nickname, games ends, (reader has
learn't sod all except the guys nickname.) complaint or praise about the venue....the end.

Hi Peter.

Change the name. Who wants to join a chess club call the Argumentives.....apart from me.

[Ian Thompson]

Guildford 1 are the winners of Surrey Border League Division 1, ahead of Drunken Knights (even if Drunken Knights manage to win their last match and draw level on match points). Other division results can be seen here.

That result should provide an opportunity for those who don't like the tie-break rules to raise it yet again - Guildford win based on the results of their two matches against Drunken Knights (one win each, but Guildford won 4-1 and Drunken Knights only won 3.5-1.5). Had the tie-break been total game points, Drunken Knights would have won.

[John Sharp]

To quote Nevil Chan, Drunken Knights were chequemated in the final match against Wood Green, but claim to have won in the bar.
Moving from the ridiculous to the sublime, Leighton Buzzard won the Bedfordshire League by winning the final match against Milton Keynes

Graham, very magnanimous of you to mention that about the Beds League!

Regards, John

[PeterFarr]

Geoff - yes Argumentatives is a bad name, but unfortunately we've never been able to agree on another name because...

[Geoff Chandler]

In that case can I be an honourary member?
(or if you want me too I'll sub up, anything to break that record.)

I always wanted to play for the Drunken Knights after reading articles in CHESS
about them in the 70's (could have been the 60's...it was ages ago.)
Of course that was in the good old days under B.H.Wood.

[Andrew Bak]

Martin's stole my thunder a bit, but I am a proud member of Bradford 159 who won the Bradford and District Div 1 title this year, along with captain Ihor Lewyk.

Bradford players also secured trophies for the best players across all the leagues, Daniel Hubbort scoring 12.5/14 in Div 3 and Ihor Lewyk scoring 12/14 playing on Boards 2 and 3 in Div 1!

[John Clarke]

Barnet Elizabethans have won the North Circular Division A championship - further details here.

[Malcolm Peacock]

In the Blackpool and Fylde League, the team captains put match reports in our web system
http://www.popmalc.org.uk/sc/?q=node/77/home commenting on how the games went which creates a bit of interested because people have a look to see what happens in the other matches. Our press secretary then collates some of them along with the league tables for a report in the Blackpool Evening Gazette. (Preston 1 won division A)

The same system is used in the central lancs league http://www.popmalc.org.uk/sc/?q=clancs (Preston won division A there also!)

[MartinCarpenter]

Various match reports on the Yorkshire league(s) from the Yorkshire website. http://yorkshirechess.org/category/yca-league-reports/
Also from the Sheffield website about their various teams: http://www.sheffieldanddistrictchess.org.uk/sheffield-a (also b,d,e etc.).

Nomads on the Sheffield league: http://www.sheffieldnomads.co.uk/w/doku ... ams:a_team . Some other teams too.

York A's effort in the Yorkshire league this year was fascinating because we started off the season in 'wonderful' form, in drawing with our B team, then losing to a team who gave us two defaults and about twenty grading points a board before winning the rest of the matches to win the league.