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A great season so far
A great season so far
Meir began the season with the fairly long drive to play Crewe K. They have a large modern venue at the Catholic Club with several matches on most Club nights and a separate room for discussion and analysis. Bob's game ended surprisingly quickly but the others were longer and hard fought. A 3-1 win.
Crewe L brought young players to the John Marston the following week - great to see them starting out on competitive over-the-board chess. Again 3-1 to Meir.
On 9 October, we travelled to Holmes Chapel, where the score was closer at 2.5 - 1.5.
The following week saw us playing The Gables C in Blurton, a young but able team. At least one of our players was impressed by the standard of play of their young opponent. 2.5 - 1.5 to Meir.
The Gables D came to the John Marston on 22 October, another very young team, who all seemed to really enjoy their chess. 4-0 to Meir.
These results leave us top of Division 5 with 10 points from 5 matches. There is a link to the League Table on the Links page of this site.
Friendly chess in Leek
Friendly chess in Leek
Ken and Martin often go to play chess at the University of the Third Age (U3A) in Leek. It is one of the groups at U3A, and meets between 2 and 4 on Tuesday afternoons. U3A is run by volunteers for people who are over 50. All Members pay an annual subscription and members of the Chess group pay £1 at each session (which includes a cup of tea). This is friendly, social chess. One of the members likes the group partly because it meets in the afternoon rather than running late into the dark winter nights. There is a link on the "Links" page.
Some of the U3A members
Staffordshire Chess Congress
Staffordshire Chess Congress
Bob and Martin, from Meir, joined some 90 players at the Staffordshire Congress on August 16 and 17. It marked the centenary of the establishment of the City of Stoke-on-Trent. The Congress was held in the impressive Kings Hall at Stoke Town Hall, thanks to the generosity of the City Council. The congress was opened by the Lord Mayor, Councillor Steve Watkins, who, after a short speech, played the first move on the top board.
Nearly half the players were from local clubs, while others had travelled to the City for the congress. The volunteer organisers worked hard to make the event an enjoyable success. There are more details on the Staffordshire Chess Association web site.
Bob won two games, drew one game and lost two; Martin won one, drew two and lost two. Both played in the Minor section (for players with a grade below 1450).
The Lord Mayor makes the first move on the top board to start the Congress
Chess in City libraries
Chess in City libraries
Martin, from the Meir Chess Club, joined the group that plays chess in Hanley Library every Wednesday afternoon from 2 pm. It is run by volunteers, guided by the charity "Chess in Schools and Communities." Sikhander Ali and Andrew Crosby oversee the group. They also started a group in Tunstall Library on Friday afternoons. Martin played in the first inter-library match, at Tunstall.
Players, from beginners upwards, can drop in, have a cup of tea, and play chess.
Library staff and the group volunteers will make you welcome. It is a sociable way to play chess "over the board."
Andrew Crosby at Tunstall Library
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