Welcome

Welcome to the website of the Nottinghamshire Chess Association (NCA). The NCA administers chess in Nottinghamshire.

If you are a new or experienced chess player looking to join a club in Nottinghamshire contact one of the club secretaries shown on the list of clubs. New members are always welcome.

Latest news

For older news items see the news page.

Milton Keynes Congress (19 Nov)

There was only a small group of Nottinghamshire players that took part in this event. Daniel Wells narrowly missed out on some prize money in the Open. Results for all the Nottinghamshire players who took part are summarised below:

Hull Congress (19 Nov)

Dave Dunne (West Notts) played very well, winning the Minor section with a perfect score of 5/5 and received £250 prize money. Daniel Broughton (West Bridgford) scored 4/5 in the U126 section and won £50 prize money. Here is a summary of all the Nottinghamshire players who took part:

Nottinghamshire County Championship (4 Nov)

The 2008 County Champion is David Coates of Grantham, who won the title from Mike Barnes (Gambit) on count back (both scored 4). Full details to follow soon.

Scarborough Congress (4 Nov)

Alex Combie (Newark) came equal 3rd in the Major section and won £83.33. Janos Wagenbach (Mansfield) came equal 1st in the Intermediate section with a score of 4½/5 and won £375. Dave Dunne won the Foundation section with a score of 5/5 and won £500 prize money. Here is a summary of all the Nottinghamshire players who took part:

Some of these results are incomplete. If you can fill in the gaps then please email the webmaster.

4NCL: First weekend (23 Oct)

New season, new captain, new players: the 4NCL season got under way on 18-19 October with a win and a loss for Notts 1 and a draw and a loss for Notts 2. Ian Kingston reports.

Leicester Congress (23 Oct)

Marcel Taylor (Radcliffe & Bingham) won the Intermediate section with a score of 4/5. Tracey Clegg (West Nottingham) shared first place in the Minor section with a score of 3½/5. Arun Maini (West Nottingham) won the Amateur section with a score of 4½/5. Results for all the Nottinghamshire players who took part are summarised below:

Site news (27 September)

No one has yet stepped forward to be the new webmaster, but the site will not go cold. Will Place, the Records Secretary, will be posting results in a similar format to recent years, while the ex-webmaster, Ian Kingston, will be keeping the essential news up to date. Other pages (county teams, 4NCL etc.) are up for grabs, so if you feel like contributing (without having to take on the whole package), contact Ian and he'll show you the ropes.

League Handbook (27 September)

Printed copies aren't yet available, but a PDF version has been sent to all club secretaries for distribution to captains. Alternatively, you can download a copy.

County Championship (27 September)

The Nottinghamshire County Championship will be held at the Nottingham Boys High School on 1–2 November. Entry is free to all juniors. Entry form.

Leicester FIDE-Rated Event (27 September)

Sean Hewitt's second pair of FIDE-rated tournaments were held at the Plough Inn, Littlethorpe, on 23–25 August and 6–7 September. Former Nottinghamshire Under 11 top board Brandon Clarke dominated the A group, scoring 7/9 and proving just how seriously undergraded (and underrated) fast-improving juniors can be. West Nottingham’s Ian Kingston finished fourth with 5½ points and David Coates (Newark) was seventh with 5 points. Everyone who played, whether FIDE-rated or not, will appear in the 1 October 2008 FIDE rating list. Full details.

ECF National Schools finals (8 July)

Neil Graham

Both Kishan Lakhani and Oliver Exton were unavailable for the ECF National Schools Finals held at Upppingham School on 4–5 July. The result was that Nottingham High School lost their title to Millfield School in the Final. As the High School had two teams in the competition and in the finals, they were unable, according to the rules, to bring in players from the B team to replace those in the A team. Although Joel Lamy substituted he lost both games.

In the Plate competition, the High School’s B team was beaten in the semi-final by Wilson’s School, but bounced back to take third place by beating Leeds Grammar School.

National Club Championship – Minor Final (8 July)

Neil Graham

After beating Lancaster in the semi-finals by 2–2 – the win came on board count – Ashfield played Hackney in the final after the London side had also progressed on board count. The ECF Controller chose Syston as the venue, so both teams duly turned up there on 6 July.

In the semi-final the only Ashfield winner was Alan Robinson as captain Bob Taylor was unavailable. However, Bob was back for the final and unfortunately played a combination with the moves in the wrong order. He lost a piece and also the game, so Ashfield were one down.

The remaining games were destined to go the whole distance. Phil had an equal game, but his opponent misplayed what should have been a drawn ending and the match was tied at 1–1. Neil scrambled to the first time control with half a minute to spare. The ending was a complex N + 7 vs. B + 6, and after a frantic half hour when the local player played a further 43 moves in ever-increasing time trouble, the bishop found itself trying to prevent pawns on f2 and a2 queening. So with about 45 seconds remaining the second Ashfield win was scored. Unfortunately, Stan had lost a piece on Board 1, and in an ending of N + Ps v Ps, the London player was able to give the knight back for a pawn and create an unstoppable brace of pawns. So the result was 2–2 and Hackney won on board count. All the games were won with black; so much for winning the toss!

S. Cranmer (132) 0–1 E. Lee (147)
N. Graham (129) 1–0 R. Oakley (124)
R. P. Taylor (129) 0–1 D. Shaw (119)
D. P. Morgan (109) 1–0 M. Rivlin (104)

Inter-County U100 final (6 July)

The U100 team finished as runner-up in the national U100 championship, losing 7–5 to Hertfordshire on 5 July. Neil Graham reports.

Leicester FIDE-rated all-play-all tournaments (30 June)

Sean Hewitt is once again organising FIDE-rated all-play-all tournaments over two weekends (23–25 August and 6–7 September). This is an opportunity for unrated players to gain a FIDE rating. Enter via the link above.

Inter-County Under 150 semi-final (15 June)

The U150 side missed out on the national final, losing 9–7 to Yorkshire. Neil Graham and Drag Sudar report.

NAG Challenge IV (14 June)

Drag Sudar reports on this year’s triangular challenge between Navigation, Ashfield and Gambit, held on 20 May. Ashfield finally broke Gambit’s stranglehold on the invisible trophy.

Mark Radford’s Chess Material blog (14 June)

Navigation’s Mark Radford has set up a blog in which he analyses his own games in public. You can find it at:

http://www.chessmaterial.com/

This looks like an excellent idea. Take a look and see what you can contribute.

Dave Brown (12 June)

Geoff Gibson sends the sad news that Long Eaton’s Dave Brown died of a suspected heart attack at his home on Monday 9 June. There will be no funeral, but a wake will be held in his honour – details to be advised. He also requested that a beech tree be planted in his memory.

Handicap KO final (12 June)

Mansfield beat Gambit Boys 7–2 on 10 June to retain the Handicap KO title. Full details.

Inter-County Under 100 semi-final (12 June)

Nottinghamshire beat Surrey 6½–5½ in the U100 semi-final on 7 June, although confirmation had to wait an ECF Arbiter’s ruling on one game. Neil Graham reports.

Notts will face Hertfordshire in the final, scheduled for 5 July 2008 at Moat Community College, Leicestershire.

County Championship semi-final dates (26 May)

Neil Graham advises that the following dates have been set: for the semi-final matches:

Squad members should keep the dates free if at all possible.

County Under 100 Championship – Quarter-Final (18 May)

The U100 side matched the U150 team’s success last week, beating Lancashire 8–4 to reach the national semi-final. Neil Graham reports. The semi-final is away against Surrey on 14 June.

County Under 13 and Under 18 Championships (18 May)

Thanks to Ashfield’s Sally McIntosh a successful tournament was held at Heanor Gate Science College on 10 May. Nottinghamshire entered two teams in the Under 13 event, with the stronger of the two taking third place, as well as a team in the Under 18 Minor, finishing second despite missing two players. Penny Mackay organised the Nottinghamshire teams.

County Under 150 Championship – Quarter-Final (11 May)

Nottinghamshire swept into the National U150 semi-final with a 10½–5½ win over Essex in a match that was almost perfectly balanced on paper. Drag Sudar reports. The semi-final is away against Yorkshire on 14 June.