Suffolk Chess

Just before midnight last night, on the first anniversary of this website, the number of page views hit 40,000.   That may sound a lot, but it's still only an average of a little over 100 per day.   It's impossible to ascertain the actual number of people looking at the site, but the statistics show that there are viewers from all around the World, especially USA and Russia.

I would like more Suffolk players to look at the site.   If you follow this site regularly, please tell your chums about it.

Since the start of the season on 1 September, there have been 30 postings, one every day.   The subject matter is, I hope, of interest to most people.   More input from clubs and individuals would always be appreciated; as you will appreciate, it's not always easy to think of something interesting to say!

I'm determined to maintain the daily postings, except if I'm away at holiday times.

Both Suffolk players, Adam Taylor (u16) and Anita Somton (u10G) lost today in the first round of the European Youth Chess Championships in Budva, Montenegro.   Adam had a tough opponent in a French FM rated 2305, whilst Anita faced a 1400-rated opponent, also from France.

If you want to follow the daily progress of our players (and the rest of the team, which includes Cambridge juniors Akito Oyama and David Redman), click here.

The event continues for ten days, with five rounds being played between today and Thursday, a day off on Friday, followed by four further rounds, finishing on Tuesday 8 October.

At 09.30 next Saturday, 5 October, the first round of the Bury St Edmunds Chess Congress will start.

But work for the organisers will commence much earlier at 07.00, setting up the tables, boards, sets and clocks.   Any local chess players, or parents of juniors, who can assist at that time, will be most welcome at the Apex (come to the stage door in St Andrew's Street South).

As of 14.00 today, total entries stand at 117.   We need 140 to break even, so a few more last-minute entries will be much appreciated!

Sections:
Open - 20
Major - 25
Intermediate - 34
Novices - 38

The top players in the Open are GM Alex Cherniaev (237), IM Adam Hunt (232), FM Justin Tan (229) and IM/WGM Dagne Ciuksyte (222).

Entries will be accepted right up to the start time, although entries 'on the day' incur a £5.00 surcharge.   Enter here.

The last two posts have focused on Stowmarket and Felixstowe; today it's Manningtree's turn.

The Club meets at the Methodist Church in South Street, where car parking can be difficult to find.   Matches usually take place in one of the rooms next to the church itself, whilst Club nights take place at the rear of the church.   But last Wednesday, because there were other groups holding meetings, their Division 3 match took place in the church.   It's a rather narrow space, but just roomy enough for four games to take place.

Manningtree are fielding two teams this season, for the first time in a long while.   Their Division 1 team, boosted by their 15-year old Board 1, Adam Taylor (photo right), is more than capable of holding their own.   Adam is currently in Montenegro, representing England in the European Youth Championships, together with Bury St Edmunds' Anita Somton (as mentioned elsewhere).

Their second team is in Division 3 and managed to draw their first match, against Bury St Edmunds' fourth team.

Felixstowe Chess Club is the first Suffolk club to have its own Facebook page.   Run by Phil Hopkins, you can view the page here.

Congratulations to Felixstowe for taking this initiative.   The photo shows the winning team proudly holding the Under 125 Cup, won last season by Felixstowe, their first trophy for 20 years!

One of their aims is to increase membership.   It'll be interesting to see if this happens as a result of using Facebook.

If you're already a Facebook member, you can 'like' their page.

The Club meets at the British Legion, 39 Mill Lane, Felixstowe on Tuesday evenings from 7.30 pm.

Stowmarket Chess Club has enjoyed an excellent start to the new season.   They have already played three matches, two in the Suffolk League and one in the Bury Area Chess League - and they have won them all!

Suffolk League Div 2 - Won 2½-1½ v Bury St Edmunds C
Suffolk League Div 3 - Won 3 - 1 v Felixstowe
Bury Area League Div 3 - Won 3½-1½ v Bury St Edmunds E

Stowmarket Chess Club now has 17 registered members, and is well-known as the only club (in either league) that provides free tea/coffee and biscuits for their opponents!

On Friday, Anita Somton, accompanied by her father, will be heading out to Budva in Montenegro to represent England in the European Youth Championships.

Anita will be a member of the 23-strong English contingent which will be led by former Suffolk player GM Nick Pert.   Also accompanying the team will be GM Glenn Flear.   WGM Jovanka Houska is also in the party and Anita has been receiving some online coaching from her recently.

The Championships begin on Saturday (28 September) and continue until Wednesday 9 October.

Anita is playing in the Under 10 Girls section, where the 78 entrants are headed by WFM Nurgyul Salimova, from Bulgaria.   It won't be easy, but Anita has already beaten strong adults in recent months.   You can follow her progress on the Championship website.

The popular e2e4 congress at Bedford last weekend attracted a host of Suffolk players.   In the Open section, headed by four Grandmasters (Arkell, Williams, Gormally, Wells), Suffolk were represented by IM Adam Hunt and FM Justin Tan (Woodbridge School), FM Alan Merry, Ed Player and Somton Ukken (Bury St Edmunds) and Nick Savage (Ipswich).

There was a major upset in the first round, when after an extraordinary series of exchanges, Nick Savage (Black) reached this position against Alan Merry:

Alan now played 22. Bf5?, when Bd3 was necessary to stop the Black rook from gaining control of the d-file.   The game continued:
22.... Rd8
23.   Nf3    Nc3+
24.   Ka1    Rd5
25.   Rb1    Ra5
26.   Rxb3    Bc1+
0 - 1

Unfortunately, this was the highlight of Nick's weekend, as he only managed a further half-point from his remaining four games.

Ed Player started well, with 2½/3 at close of play on Saturday.   But he faced GM Keith Arkell on Sunday morning, with the expected result.   His final round was against London-based WIM Sue Maroroa (ECF 200).   Ed should have drawn this game, but played the wrong move in the endgame. In this position he played 54. Kd3 instead of c4, and quickly lost.

The £500 first prize was won outright with 4½ points by FM David Eggleston, ahead of two GMs on 4 points.

Suffolk scores were:
Adam Hunt, Justin Tan, Alan Merry - 3
Ed Player - 2½
Nick Savage, Somton Ukken - 1½

The only Suffolk player in the Under 2000 section was 9-year old Anita Somton, gaining some useful high-level experience prior to her imminent triip to Montenegro to represent England in the European Youth Championships (more on this tomorrow).

After taking a half-point bye on Friday night, she lost two, drew one and won one, to finish on a creditable 2 points.   Her win featured a strange blunder by her 144-graded opponent.   In this position he played 19... h6, clearly fearing that Anita was about to play h6 herself.   Of course, Anita played 20. Qxf6, forcing immediate resignation.

At the start of every season, the Bury Area Chess League holds a 'Jamboree' where all clubs in the league are invited to send teams to participate in a three-round Rapidplay tournament.   For the past three years, 10 teams participated, but this year 12 teams took part.  

Six of these teams were from the host Bury St Edmunds club, whilst Cambridge City fielded two teams with the remaining four clubs (Ely, Linton, Newmarket and Stowmarket) having one team each.   The 24 Bury St Edmunds members played against the 24 from the other clubs, requiring a complex pairing effort to ensure that no one had more than two games with the same colour, and each team having six Blacks and six Whites.

The Bury St Edmunds A team (Mike Harris, Bob Jones, Emilia Jewell, Hugo Smith) led for the first two rounds, but collapsed in the third round to hand Bury St Edmunds B the trophy.   The photo shows the winning team of Ed Player (2½), Scott Taylor (3), Anita Somton (2½) and Colin Roberts (2).

Final scores (out of 12) were:

10 - Bury St Edmunds B
9 - Linton
8½ - Ely Beet
7½ - Bury St Edmunds A
7 - Cambridge City A
7 - Cambridge City B
5½ - Bury St Edmunds F
4½ - Bury St Edmunds C
4 - Bury St Edmunds D
3½ - Bury St Edmunds E
3 - Stowmarket
2½ - Newmarket

The Bury St Edmunds Chess Congress is just two weeks away.   Confirmed entries now stands just short of 100.

This next week should see quite a few entries and with a ceiling of 176, please do so now if you intend to play.

Entering online is the easiest method, as you can pay using PayPal, thus saving you the cost of having to post your entry.

Of the 98 entrants to date, 42 did not play last year.   And half of those have never played at Bury before.

The newly crowned Suffolk Ladies' Champion, 15-year old Emilia Jewell, was presented with the magnificent silver trophy at the Bury Area Chess League Jamboree, which took place last evening.

The picture shows Emilia receiving the trophy, which has been presented (almost) annually since 1933-34, from Bury St Edmunds Secretary Steve Lovell.   There have been a few years when no competition was held, but the engraving dates back to the first winner, Miss C B Lincoln, of Bury St Edmunds.

Recent winners include:

2004-05 to 2006-07 - Chris Hargan (Stowmarket)
2007-08 to 2009-10 - Anna York-Andersen (Ipswich)
2010-11 - Vicky Allen (Stowmarket)

The first results of the season in Suffolk League Division 1 have seen a couple of upsets, with the top two Ipswich teams both losing.   Last season's Champions Ipswich A went down 1½-2½ to a resurgent Manningtree, whilst newly-promoted Bury St Edmunds B managed to beat Ipswich B by a similar margin.

In this latter match, played on Tuesday in Ipswich, Bury's Board 1 Chris Davison faced Martin Fogg.   With the match score level at 1½ points each, both players were running desperately short of time.   With less than a minute remaining, Martin (Black) made a fatal error in the following position:

The game continued 40... Qe4+, 41. Bf3 and Black resigned, with White a rook to three pawns ahead.

If, instead of ... Qe4+, Black had played ... Rxh5, the position might have been survivable, although after 41. Qf6+, followed by 42. Qxf7+ forcing off the queens, his scattered pawns would have made it difficult for Black to hold on for the draw.

The EACU is considering holding an Arbiters' training course.   If it goes
ahead it will consist of a two-day course to be held at the Memorial Hall, in
Whittlesford.   At the end of the course there will be an examination and
to pass you will need to score at least 80%.

The course is a useful tool for anyone who wishes to understand the Laws
of Chess and their application, as well as getting to know some aspects
of organising events and Swiss pairings.   You can just take the course
and examination but if you wish to go further and qualify as an Arbiter
you will need to be observed at three or more events.

Most of the cost of the course will be met by EACU.   If anyone is interested they should contact .

For further details contact John Charman on 01603 861140.

Competitions Secretary Mike McNaughton has now made the draw for the SCCA cup competitions, as follows:

Under 125

Round 1
A - Woodbridge School v Clacton - Monday 7 October
B - Stowmarket v Bury St Edmunds - Tuesday 8 October

Semi-Finals
Ipswich v winner of A - Tuesday 19 November
Felixstowe v winner of B - Tuesday 19 November

Final
Week commencing 21 April

Under 145

With only three teams entered, this will be played as an all-plays-all:

Manningtree v Felixstowe - Tuesday 15 October
Felixstowe v Ipswich - Tuesday 10 December
Ipswich v Manningtree - Tuesday 22 April

League Cup

The teams have been split into two groups:   
Group A - Ipswich A, Sudbury, Adastral Park
Group B - Ipswich B, Manningtree and Clacton

Ipswich A v Adastral Park - Tuesday 15 October
Manningtree v Clacton - Wednesday 16 October
Sudbury v Ipswich A - Monday 2 December
Clacton v Ipswich B - Tuesday 3 December
Adastral Park v Sudbury - Tuesday 28 January
Ipswich B v Manningtree - Tuesday 28 January

The winners of each group will play in the Final in week commencing 28 April.

Norfolk & Suffolk Cup Final (Suffolk section)

This will between Bury St Edmunds and Ipswich, to be played on Thursday 8 May.

Moving away from Suffolk for a change...   The Women's World Championship is currently taking place in Taizhou, China.   The current World Champion, Anna Ushenina from Ukraine, is being challenged by the talented 19-year old from China, Hou Yifan.

The match started on 10 September and after four rounds, Hou Yifan is leading 3 - 1.   The fifth round begins tomorrow (Tuesday) at 7.00pm GMT and you can watch the moves, live on the excellent (and free) ChessBomb site.   The winner is the first to 5½ points; in the event of a tie four rapidplay games will be played.

Suffolk isn't short of talented young female players either.   The current Suffolk Ladies' Champion 15-year old Emilia Jewell will be presented with her trophy at the Bury League Jamboree on Thursday, whilst 9-year old Anita Somton will be heading off to Montenegro in a a couple of weeks' time to represent England in the European Youth Championships (Under 10 Girls section).   Before that she will get some useful practice (and tough opposition) by competing in the u2000 section of the e2e4 Congress in Bedford next weekend.

The dates for this season's EACU inter-County matches have now been decided.   All matches will take place at the Turner Hall in Newmarket.

First teams:

Saturday 23 November
Sunday 2 February
Sunday 2 March

Under 160s:

Sunday 8 December
Sunday 26 January
Sunday 16 March

A team captain is still needed for the County First Team, whilst I (Bob Jones) remain as captain of the Under 160s.

Also, Suffolk would still like to field an Under 100 team (8 boards), but to do so requires someone to be captain.   We need a volunteer!   The Under 100s will probably play on two of the above dates for the Under 160s.

70 games were played in the Open section of last year's Bury St Edmunds Congress.   For some reason we didn't receive the score sheets for one game, so the following statistics are based on 69 games.

In these games, White only played one of three first moves:
e4   -   33 (48%)
d4   -   31 (45%)
c4   -    5 (7%)

Breaking down each move, the following replies were made by Black:
After e4:
...c5   -   46%
...e5   -   15%
...e6   -   12%
...Nf6   -   9%
...d5   -   6%
...d6   -   6%
...c6   -   3%

After d4:
...Nf6   -   52%
...d5   -   32%
...f5   -   10%
...e6   -   3%
...d6   -   3%

After c4:
...c6   -   40%
...f5   -   20%
...Nf6   -   20%
...e5   -   20%

The most popular opening, by far, was the Sicilian, with 15 games starting 1. e4   c5 (22% of all games played).   There were 3 Closed Sicilians (2. Nc3), with the remainder being 2. Nf3.   As might be expected with such a popular opening, many variations were played, the most popular being 2...d6 (5 games), followed by 2... Nc6 (3 games).   No Morra Gambits, but perhaps we'll see some this year, following last year's publication of IM Esserman's acclaimed 'Mayhem in the Morra'.

Last Friday I reported that entries stood at 53.   Since then a further 30 have been received, a total of 83.   At the same stage last year entries stood at only 49.

The maximum number that can be accommodated in the Apex is 176.   To date, 85 of last year's participants have not entered yet; if all were to enter (which admittedly is most unlikely) there would only be eight places remaining.

So if you are reading this, and plan to play, perhaps you should get your entry in as soon as possible, 'to avoid disappointment'!

With the new season about to start, here's a list of recent trophy winners for the various divisions and cup competitions in the Suffolk League.   It would be good to see some new names appear this season.

Season	Division 1	Division 2	Division 3	u125	u145	League Cup
2007-08	Ipswich A	Adastral Park A	Adastral Park B	Ipswich	Woodbridge Sch	Sudbury
2008-09	Ipswich B	Bury Cannons B	(No competition)	Bury Cannons	Adastral Park	Ipswich B
2009-10	Ipswich B	Manningtree	Adastral Park B	Clacton	Adastral Park	Ipswich B
2010-11	Ipswich B	Ipswich C	Clacton	Clacton	Adastral Park	Ipswich B
2011-12	Ipswich B	Manningtree	Bury St Eds C	Stowmarket	Ipswich	Ipswich A
2012-13	Ipswich A	Bury St Eds B	Ipswich D	Felixstowe	Ipswich	Ipswich

The Under 125 Cup was won last season by Felixstowe, their first trophy since they won Division 2 in 1991-92!

Sudbury's Rob Sanders took last week off work to travel down to Paignton in Devon, where he played in the Boniface Memorial Tournament.   This tournament runs alongside the main event, but is held in the mornings only.   Thus, Rob was able to enjoy the weather and scenery in the afternoons.   He's not saying what happened in the evenings.

The tournament was for players graded under 180, and Rob's new grade for this season is (only) 171.   He scored 4½ points out of five to share first place with Paul Isherwood (167), winning £275 for his efforts!

Here's a position from his final (round 5) game against Peter Halmkin (155).   It's Rob (White) to play:

37. f4!   gxf4
38. Kf3   e5?
39. Bxe5   Nxe5+??
40. Rxe5 and Black resigned.

Mate in 1 is threatened and that pawn on d6 is a killer!   40... Rxc3+ doesn't help as after 41. Kxf4 Kc8   42. Re8+   Kb7, the passed pawn cannot be stopped.

At the AGM on 3 September it was agreed that Fischer timing could be used in standard-play games this season, provided both players agree to its use (and of course appropriate digital clocks are available).   In brief, this means starting out with and hour and a quarter on the clock, but instead of a quickplay finish after 30 moves, 10 seconds is added each move from the first move.   Thus, a game of 90 moves moves would last three hours.

Whilst this was approved at the AGM, other methods were also suggested.   Stowmarket's Vicky Allen wondered why we shouldn't simply play for 90 minutes each, with no quickplay finish.   This was supported in a comment to a previous article on the subject, when Clacton's Melvin Steele commented, at some length, "Many of the advantages you quote for Fischer timing could also be gained by simply adopting a single, non-incremental, time control of all moves in 90 minutes... So isn't it a good time to consider that too - because that has similar appeal AND can be equally applied to digital and analogue clocks (rather than being a separate digital option)?

"On analogue clocks, this of course also gets rid of the breaking off to 'fiddle about'.   On electronic clocks it additionally avoids the situation that can occur if players omit pressing the clock for one or more moves, or if players give an extra press, such as an initial 'check it works', or to take back an illegal move.

"By mis-counting the 30 moves in the dual time control, this can cause the move-number-triggered type of digital clock to prematurely flash and stop, falsely indicating that the game is over because the first time control was not met, then needing an 'expert' to do the resetting.   Displayed time with a single Fischer increment would also be affected, and not so easy to reset.

"A final consideration for clubs investing in digital clocks - are 34 modes needed when at least 30 will be unused?  
Some cheaper models are quite adequate for both Fischer and single time controls - but some do not support the present double time control.   So a decision to keep/drop the present time control could determine how many clocks a fixed club budget might buy!"

It's certainly something to consider for a future AGM, but doesn't a single time control (all moves in 90 minutes) take some fun out of the game?

As most Suffolk players will be aware, the county fields teams in the EACU Open and Under 160 sections.   Both Norfolk and Cambridgeshire also have Under 100 teams, and Suffolk has been asked if we could also have a team.   To achieve that, we first need to find someone who will act as captain.   Teams consist of just 8 players, so it shouldn't be too difficult to find a full team.

Here is a list of all Suffolk players graded 99 and below.

If there someone in this list who is prepared to put their hand up?   If so, please contact as soon as possible.

The Bury Area Chess League traditionally starts the season with a 'Jamboree', when many of the affiliated clubs' members come to the Bury St Edmunds club to play three Rapidplay games (25 minutes each) against members of other clubs.   This year the Jamboree is being held on Thursday 19 September.

If any Suffolk League players would like to join together to form a team (or teams) of four, they will be most welcome.   There's a small fee of £4.00 per team (£1.00 each) to cover the cost of the venue and refreshments (usually coffee, tea, biscuits).

It's certainly an opportunity to play against people you don't normally get to meet.   It's all conducted in a friendly, sociable atmosphere.

If anyone from the Suffolk League would like to come along, please let know.   If you're on your own, I'll help you to be part of a team.   Ideally, of course, form a team and come over to Bury together.

The fixtures for the coming season have now been published on Dave Wild's grading website.   The first matches will take place in week commencing 16 September:

Division 1

Tuesday 17 September - Ipswich B v Bury St Edmunds B
Wednesday 18 September - Manningtree A v Ipswich A

Division 2

Tuesday 17 September - Stowmarket A v Bury St Edmunds C

Division 3

Tuesday 17 September - Felixstowe v Stowmarket Rooks;   Ipswich E v Saxmundham B

This season, Woodbridge School will not be playing in the league; they are only entering the cup competitions.   Clacton will only be fielding one team, in Division 3.

Manningtree will have an extra (second) team in Division 3, whilst Bury St Edmunds will have an extra (fourth) team, also in Division 3.

When Competitions Secretary Mike McNaughton returns from holiday in a few days' time, he will issue lists of nominated teams as well as team captains' contact details.

In just four weeks' time, the Bury St Edmunds Congress takes place.   Entries now stand at 53, which is a record.   Even in 2010, when we had our highest-ever entry of 173, there had only been 45 entries at this stage.   Of the 53 entries received so far, only 22 played last year.

If you're planning to play, please don't leave your entry to the last minute.

Go to the Congress website and click on 'Register online'.   All the instructions are there and it's easy to pay online if you prefer (it saves postage!)

The Bury Knights Junior Chess Club, formed over 20 years ago, is the last remaining junior club in the county.   Several years ago there were four or five junior clubs, but Stowmarket, Newmarket and finally Ipswich have all folded.   On Friday this week the Bury Knights re-opens after the summer break and expects some 30 members to turn up.

Why, we should ask, have these other clubs been unable to continue?

The answer is simple - continuity is vital.   When parents run junior chess clubs, they eventually have to leave when their children decide they've had enough, or they age out.   What is needed is permanent helpers - adult chess players who have no children of their own to worry about.

So this is an appeal to Suffolk chess players.   One of the most satisfying aspects of our game is helping others to improve.   Children are sponges, and soak up information at an amazing pace.   Volunteer to help, and let's get at least the Ipswich Junior Club re-started.   Ipswich has a population some four times larger than Bury St Edmunds, so there's no doubt that there will be enough interest from children who live in the town.   Let's hear from you!

17 members attended last evening's Annual General Meeting of the Suffolk County Chess Association.   President Colin Roberts thanked the Ipswich Chess Club for hosting the meeting and for providing refreshments.

The Agenda was completed by 9.45 pm (an hour earlier than last year!)

The Minutes of the meeting will be published on this website as soon as they have been prepared and approved by the President.   A number of officer posts have yet to be filled.   If anyone would like to consider applying for any of the following posts, they should contact :

*    Vice-President
*    Junior Organiser
*    First Team Captain
*    Under 100 Team Captain

In addition, Competitions Secretary Mike McNaughton would dearly love to hand over his job to a successor.   He has done the hard work for the season - compiling the fixture list.   So if anyone would like to take over this important role, again they should contact me.

From Bob Jones:

Entries are rolling in for the 31st Bury St Edmunds Chess Congress, which is being held at the Apex in the town centre, on 5 & 6 October.   You can enter (and pay) online if you prefer, or simply download the entry form and post it with a cheque.

All the information you need can be seen on the Congress website.

As of today the number of entries stands at 44.   This is the highest it has ever been, 4½ weeks before the event.   Even in 2010, when we had a record total entry of 173, only 37 had entered at this stage.

Now is a good time to get your entry in.   It makes my life a lot easier if you don't leave things to the last minute!

At the Riga Open in Latvia, between 5 and 11 August, Alan Merry scored 5½ points out of nine, gaining 24 rating points to take his Elo to 2310.   He has now gained the FM (FIDE Master) title, at the tender age of 16.

But he is not the only youngster in Suffolk to have an FM title.   Nor is he the highest-rated junior in the county....

Justin Tan, from Australia, is starting this term at Woodbridge School under Adam Hunt's tutelage.   He already has a rating of 2333 and is four months younger than Alan!

Alan's ECF grade is 227, whilst Justin is 229.   Suffolk has never seen such talent at this age.

Just a quick reminder that the Suffolk County Chess Association AGM will take place this Tuesday (3 September) at Ipswich Chess Club, starting at 7.30 pm.

Everyone who attends gets a vote, so please come along if you can.   You don't have to be a club official; any member of an affiliated club may attend.

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This is the first posting of the new season 2013-14.   Keep checking this page, or bookmark it, because it is planned to update it every day!.