Two of Shrewsbury’s first teamers have made the shortlist in the search for the best game of the season by a Shropshire player. Two games by top board Peter Kitchen – his win over Newport’s Nick Rutter in the Shropshire Chess League division one encounter in April and his recent victory over Dan Lockett in Shrewsbury Town Championship – are among the nine matches under consideration for the Colin Roberts Memorial Trophy. Captain Francis Best’s spectacular triumph over Maddocks A’s Adrian Zdanowski is also on the shortlist of matches. An independent panel of Shropshire chess players will be convened to decide which game will be awarded the title. Other matches…

Title glory is almost in touching distance for Shrewsbury B, who are now 11 points clear at the top of the table after victory over the club’s C team. The B’s triumphed 2.5-0.5 over the C’s to extend their unbeaten run in division two of Shropshire Online Chess League to 14 matches. They now have a huge lead at the top of the table with just two matches left – and could be confirmed as champions before they face nearest rivals Telford. Telford have four games in hand, but to win the division must win all their remaining six matches – including the encounter against Shrewsbury B in the week…

Shrewsbury C are facing an uphill fight to avoid finishing bottom of Shropshire Online Chess League division two – despite two battling displays against top half sides in recent weeks. The C’s lost 2-1 to Newport Juniors before gaining a creditable 1.5-1.5 draw with Oswestry C. It comes ahead of a key intra-club derby with promotion-chasing Shrewsbury B, which took place on Tuesday this week (June 7). Despite their efforts, the C’s are bottom of the table with just two fixtures to go, a point adrift of Telepost D. The next trio of sides up the table – Telepost B, Telepost C and Newport A – all have games in…

Four players still have a chance of becoming this season’s club champion going into the final round. Defending champion Francis Best lies in pole position to reclaim his crown, holding a half point lead over Dan Lockett and knowing he needs to only match his rival’s result to clinch the title. Both of the first team players have the white pieces in their final round matches – Best against Stephen Priestley and Lockett against arguably the tournament’s surprise package Norman O’Connor. Intriguingly, if both Priestley and O’Connor won the matches – or if Priestley wins and Lockett and O’Connor draw – it would force a three-way playoff to decide the…

Shrewsbury’s ultimately disappointing Shropshire Chess League season ended with a 4-1 home defeat against Newport A. But despite the heavy loss, there are really hopeful signs for the future. Will Apted played his first ever competitive game of chess with a clock and scoresheets, and held his own before being beaten by Phil Love on bottom board. Richard Vernon had probably his strongest game of the campaign, giving rising star Daniel Hilditch-Love one of his toughest games of the season – and those were Dan’s words – before eventually succumbing to defeat. Francis Best provided the night’s highlight with a nice win over Chris Lewis on board two. Elsewhere Newport’s…

Shrewsbury B have moved nine points clear at top of Shropshire Online Chess League division two – with the finishing line in sight. Their latest triumph was a 3-0 victory over mid-table Oswestry C – a 10th victory in 13 undefeated league games. Telford’s surprise loss to Newport A has helped the B’s increase their lead at the top of the table. They are nine points clear with just three games to play – but Telford do have three games in hand and the top two sides will face each other before the end of the season. The battle of the Smiths on top board was won by Shrewsbury captain…

Shrewsbury’s over-the-board team will look to end a difficult campaign on a high note tomorrow night (Friday) – after it was mathematically confirmed the side will finish bottom of the Shropshire Chess League division one table. Newport A’s 3-2 win over Oswestry on Tuesday night means Shrewsbury cannot overhaul Oswestry, even if they win their final match against Newport at the Nerdy Café. New member Will Apted is in line for a competitive debut for Shrewsbury, which would make him the club’s third debutant of the season following in the footsteps of Robin Nayman and Richard Vernon. Club officials hope that the experience gained by new members this season in…

Peter Kitchen writes: A Lazarus-style escape from Francis Best helped Shrewsbury’s over-the-board clinch a crucial point en route to moving into second place in Shropshire Rapidplay League. Best was involved in a bizarre finish against Shane Greenwood on board two of the opening match against hosts Newport, where both players left the kings en prise in the time scramble at the end of the game. First, Best left his king in check while facing what looked like a potentially lethal attack from his opponent, and both players stopped, believing the game to be over. They even briefly discussed a possible variation until they realised that Best’s penalty was not to…

Shrewsbury B took another step towards clinching the Shropshire Online League division two title – without a move being made. The B’s were awarded a 3-0 default win over Newport Juniors – one of their closest rivals who were unable to raise a team on the night of the match. It means Mark Smith’s side remains seven points clear with four games left to play – and the clash with nearest challengers Telford in late June is already looking like a pivotal one. Telford have three games in hand and victory in all their remaining seven matches would see them overhaul the B’s. But it wasn’t such a great week…

Peter Kitchen writes. Shrewsbury Chess Club is delighted to welcome Nathanael Paul – one of the county’s strongest players – as a new member. Nathanael has joined the club to enable him to attempt to defend his Shrewsbury Town Championship title, which he won last Summer while registered with our town rivals Telepost.Nathanael was one of the key figures for Newport A during their recent domination of Shropshire Chess League division one, proving to be the strongest board two in the league. On current ECF ratings, he is the county’s number three player behind Nick Rutter and Nigel Ferrington with a grading of 2142. He has been taking a break…