English Chess Forum

Date: Sunday 23rd September 2012
Venue: Eton College, Windsor SL4 6DW
Play in Upper School, above the porter’s lodge; team rooms in Eton College Math’s department (New Schools).
Time: Registration from 10.15am (in New Schools), play start 11am, finish about 5pm
Event Format: 6 round Swiss rapid play tournament. Chess clocks will be used in all games, 25 minutes for all moves. With digital clocks: all moves in 20 minutes + 10 sec/move. All games will be ECF graded.
Teams: Teams will consist of 6 players in school years 7 to 13. Schools can enter one or two teams. We have space for a maximum of 20 teams, allocated in order of application.
Cost: Free.

Please bring a packed lunch –tea and coffee will be provided.
If you have any queries please feel free to contact me

Neill Cooper
[email protected]
ECF Manager of Secondary School Chess

Neill Cooper wrote:Date: Sunday 23rd September 2012

....

All games will be ECF graded.

......
Cost: Free.

Membership requirements? I suppose the loophole is that the ECF doesn't charge Game Fee to itself and if it then waives the requirement for participants to be members, then grading is "free".

Roger de Coverly wrote:Membership requirements? I suppose the loophole is that the ECF doesn't charge Game Fee to itself and if it then waives the requirement for participants to be members, then grading is "free".

I know you can't resist turning every single forum thread into a membership debate (there was even a discussion on facebook to try to identify a topic, any topic, that you couldn't turn into game fee v membership), but surely you remember that one of the changes at the April Council meeting was regarding junior game fee?

Sean Hewitt wrote: ... there was even a discussion on facebook to try to identify a topic, any topic, that [Roger] couldn't turn into game fee v membership) ...

Did anyone manage to come up with one?

David Sedgwick wrote:

Sean Hewitt wrote: ... there was even a discussion on facebook to try to identify a topic, any topic, that [Roger] couldn't turn into game fee v membership) ...

Did anyone manage to come up with one?

Not yet. We thought we'd tackle something easier first like solving the crisis in the middle east, or working out the square root of -1. (Apologies for going seriously off topic).

Whilst entry is free (mainly thanks to Eton College not charging us anything), this event will prove an ideal opportunity to promote joining the ECF to a collection of schools as well as their players.

I'm pleased to report that there have already been 6 entries, including one within 10 minutes of my sending out an email about it to schools.

Sean Hewitt wrote:but surely you remember that one of the changes at the April Council meeting was regarding junior game fee?

As I recall it, there was a Junior Game Fee, but charged on the same basis as all the other Game Fees, namely nothing to members but the Game Fee amount to non-members?

4) Increased charges for grading the results of non-members

...

In junior-only events, a Game Fee will be charged of 50p per result (Standard play) and 25p per result (Rapid play). This applies to all graded events restricted to juniors only, including league and club competitions and congresses.

Surely every event from 1st September onwards has to state whether it's restricted to members and what class of member and what the charges are for non-members if they are allowed to take part?

Clubs, leagues and Congresses are going to come up with all manner of different rules depending on how willing they are to charge or collect £ 2 per game or £ 6 per event for inclusion in the grading system of games played by non-members.

With this new schools event being after 1st September, graded and free, then either the ECF have waived Game Fee and membership requirements, or there's a patron or sponsor willing to pick up the bill, which will be unknown until the membership composition of the teams taking part is known.

Now up to 13 entries from 10 schools. 7 places left.

Neill Cooper wrote:Now up to 13 entries from 10 schools. 7 places left.

An excellent website

http://englishchess.org.uk/Juniors/ecf- ... ournament/

Neill Cooper wrote:Now up to 13 entries from 10 schools. 7 places left.

With places filling up so quickly, I could easily see it being oversubscribed. Any chance of increasing the allocation if this is the case?

No, I pushed Eton to the limit with 20 teams, which still makes this the biggest such school event for many years. Obviously if it is oversubscribed I will look to hold more events in future, hopefully some in bigger venues. This is just a pilot to see if schools would like a one day event. It seems they would.

Now up to 15 teams from 12 schools:

Abingdon School
Bristol Grammar School
Dame Alice Owen’s School (2)
Dr Challoner’s Grammar School
Eton College
Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys (2)
Radley College
RGS Guildford
St Paul's Girl's School
The Abbey School, Reading
Wilson's School, Wallington (2)
Worth School

I've just noticed that this is the same day as the NYCA U14 and U18 Team Championships.

Matthew Turner wrote:I've just noticed that this is the same day as the NYCA U14 and U18 Team Championships.

That is probably because the NYCA date has only recently been added to the ECF Calendar. It is a pity about the clash, which has affected some players and schools.

We are now up to 17 entries, so just 3 places left.

Abingdon School
Bristol Grammar School
Dame Alice Owen’s School (2)
Dr Challoner’s Grammar School
Eton College
Haberdashers’ Aske’s Boys (2)
KE, Camp Hill, Birmingham
Radley College
RGS Guildford
St Paul’s Girls’ School
The Abbey School, Reading
Vandyke Upper, Leighton Buzzard
Wilson’s School, Wallington (2)
Worth School, West Sussex