Congratulations to Matthew Carr - FIDE Recognition

 Congratulations are due to Staffordshire's own International Arbiter, Matthew Carr who has been awarded a FIDE Certificate of Appreciation for his work in managing congresses and training future Arbiters. The full ECF Tribute may be seen here.

Matthew has recently been the Chief Arbiter at the very successful revived Staffordshire Congress and for relaxation he represents Rugeley Chess Club in both the Wolverhampton and Cannock Leagues.

Incidentally, Matthew is not the only Staffordshire Chess Player who has received a FIDE Certificate this year, Andrew Crosby of Kidsgrove Chess Club was awarded a FIDE Certificate of Appreciation for his work behind the scenes at June's World Rapid and Blitz Team Championships.

Junior Chess Events for the Last Week of the School Holidays

Two Junior Chess Events will take place in the North Staffordshire in the last week of August. They are being tun by Staffordshire Junior Chess Secretary Jonathon Blackburn. To enter or for further information please contact him.

📍 Event 1: Wednesday 27th – Newcastle Bridge Club, King Street, Newcastle-under-Lyme, ST5 1EL

📍 Event 2: Thursday 28th – Mount Pleasant Village Hall, Scholar Green, ST7 3LG

⏰ Both events run from 9:30am to around 1:00pm

These events are also especially designed as a friendly introduction to competitive chess. We’ll encourage newer players to consolidate the rules and build confidence playing full games. More regular players can compete against each other!

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♟️ Junior Chess Tournament – Open to All Under 18s! ♟️

💷 Entry Fee: £5

🕒 Format: 5 Rapid-play games (10 minutes + 5 seconds increment per player)

✨ Open to all juniors, whatever their level of experience! Players will be grouped by age or rating to ensure fair and enjoyable games.

🏅 Prizes & Certificates for All

☕ Tea & Coffee available for parents/guardians

🤝 A great chance to gain tournament experience, meet fellow young players, and enjoy a fun morning of chess!

📩 To register or for enquiries, please contact: jonathan.blackburn1985@gmail.com

Best wishes to Ray and Eunice Dolan

 Ray and Eunice Dolan stepped down from their Midlands Counties Chess Union (MCCU) roles at the June Annual General Meeting. Together they have made a massive contribution to local chess with roles at the MCCU, the Staffordshire Chess Association, the Cannock and District Chess League and the formation and management of the Junior Club at Bloxwich. I am sure all Staffordshire Chess Association players and friends will join me in wishing them a happy retirement.

Peter Evans

Staffs Players at the Crewe Congress

 There was success for two North Staffordshire players in the Open Section of the Crewe Congress. Jacob Connor Boswell, who began his chess career at Cheddleton and Leek, as a junior, won the section with a score of four wins and a draw from 5 rounds. Among the runners up was Staffordshire Junior Secretary Jonathan Blackburn with four points.

There was plenty of participation by Staffordshire players in all sections.

Staffordshire Under 1450 miss out on Finals Day

 Saturday 7th September saw the Staffordshire Under 1450 team face Essex in the semi final of their section of the ECF Counties Championship. The match was played at a neutral venue, Finedon Community Centre in Northamptonshire. The Staffordshire Chess Association would like to thank the centre for all of their arrangements.

The match was a victory for Essex by 8.5 to 3.5 and Staffs wish them good luck in the final. Possibly the could have been stronger if a couple of young players whose rating in September 2024 qualified the for the team. Please see here for match score.

Thanks to Stephen Smithson for running the team, to the players and the parents of any juniors who played.

The next county season begins in September. Any player for any Staffordshire, Stoke, Wolverhampton or Walsall based club who wishes to play next year should contact Stephen or Peter Evans

Team Staffordshire at Chess.com

 Paul Hodgson is the organiser of Team Staffordshire who play matches using correspondence mode on Chess.com. For further information check here or for further details of contact Paul.

Staffordshire Chess Congress is back

 The Staffordshire Chess Congress for 2025 will be held at the King's Hall, Stoke-on-Trent on Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th August. The Staffordshire Chess Association and the NSDCA thank Stoke-on-Trent City Council for their generous sponsorship and provision of the hall. Further details and an online entry form are available here.