Shrewsbury A’s frustrating start to the season continued with a narrow 3-2 loss in the big county town derby away to reigning champions Telepost A last Wednesday. Despite Stephen Priestley’s fine sacrificial kingside attack against Keith Tabner on bottom board giving Shrewsbury the lead, the match turned on boards two and three. Peter Kitchen suffered a dispiriting loss with the white pieces versus Fred Bench on board three, before Charles Lowick Higgie’s decision to win an exchange rebounded on him as he fell to defeat against Dan Hilditch-Love. That left the remaining players with a little too much to do. Olusegun Ilesanmi smoothly converted a rook ending against John Westhead…

Shrewsbury B are the new leaders of division three of the Shropshire Chess League after a comfortable 4-0 win against Newport Junior B. Shane Greenwood, Nick Holmes, Ivor Salter and David Edwards all won their games again at their youthful opponents to clinch a second win in three matches, writes Peter Kitchen. For Salter it heralds a remarkable start to the season as he has now got three wins out of three matches. The result elevated Richard Vernon’s side to the top of the standings – albeit having played a game more than the chasing pack – while their young hosts are still chasing their first board point of the…

Two debutants and the return of top board Jamie Hopkins were not enough to stop Shrewsbury A slipping to an unfortunate 3.5-1.5 defeat away to Maddocks A in their opening Shropshire chess League division one match of the campaign. Defeats for Stephen Priestley and Shane Greenwood proved decisive, as the remaining three games ended in draws and Shrewsbury left Oakengates empty-handed, writes Peter Kitchen. But despite last season’s problem of not winning boards rearing its head on a night the A team fired blanks, there were plenty of encouraging signs for captain Dan Lockett and his players to take away. All three of the new signings included in the line-up…

A loss on the final board to finish sentenced Shrewsbury B to defeat in a tense clash at home to Newport B. David Edwards was the unfortunate man to lose – making an error in opponent Lewis Clarke’s time trouble that proved to be the decisive moment in their board three encounter. It meant the Bs slipped to a 2.5-1.5 home defeat – but Richard Vernon’s side can take great encouragement from a competitive display against a side expecting to be challenging for honours in Shropshire Chess League division three, writes Peter Kitchen. Having fallen behind on a night where most of the games went close to the distance, Shrewsbury…

Shrewsbury Chess Club is delighted to confirm the signing of three new players for the new season. Shropshire & Friends 4NCL captain Charles Lowick Higgie has joined the club from Oswestry and will bolster the A team’s top order in division one of Shropshire Chess League. Meanwhile, Shane Greenwood and Nick Holmes have both joined the club from local rivals Telepost and will be available for all of the club’s over-the-board, rapidplay and online teams. It is a major boost for the club as it looks to grow its membership and be more competitive in all competitions, writes Peter Kitchen. Marquee signing Higgie approached the club earlier in the summer…

Shrewsbury B got their league campaign off to a flying start by comfortably beating Telford C 3-1 Captain Richard Vernon, David Edwards and Ivor Salter all won relatively swiftly to help the Bs to victory in their Shropshire Chess League division three opener at Cromwell’s Tap House, writes Peter Kitchen. New signing Nick Holmes fell to defeat against Andy Jones on top board, but the destination of the points had long since been decided. The victory sets up Vernon’s team nicely for this week’s home clash with Newport B – who themselves got off to a great start by beating Newport Junior 4-0. Vernon’s victory was a particularly sweet one…

Last Sunday saw Shrewsbury playing in the Shropshire Quickplay event, held at Maddocks. With each player having just 15 minutes to play his or her moves, this allowed for a marathon day of chess between the six competing teams. Although we didn’t win, there were some interesting games. Mark Smith scored best for the team over those 10 rounds, but the best game finish has to go to Charles Higgie with his win in round 6. You can view the full game in our interesting games section.

Richard Vernon and his Shrewsbury B side will lead the club into the new Shropshire Chess League season when they host Telford C on Wednesday. The division three encounter at Cromwell’s Tap House will be the club’s first foray into league action of the campaign – one where it is hoped the club will be able to blood some new faces and welcome some new arrivals, writes Peter Kitchen. The B team will then face a double header against Newport sides, hosting Newport B on October 2 before travelling to face Newport Junior B six days later. Shrewsbury A must wait until October 3 to start their division one campaign,…

A new leadership group have been unveiled to take Shrewsbury Chess Club forward for the coming year. Peter Kitchen, David Edwards and Stephen Priestley were voted in as secretary, treasurer and club championship organiser respectively at the club’s annual general meeting. While it marks the start of what is hoped will be a bright future for the club, it does represent the end of an era with previous incumbents Mark Smith, Ivor Salter and Tony Purser stepping down from their roles after many years of continuous service. The club would like to place on record its thanks to all three of them for their sterling work, which included keeping the…

Captain Dan Lockett admits he has “mixed feelings” about Shrewsbury A’s reprieve from relegation – but is hopeful his side can be more competitive in division one of Shropshire Chess League in the coming campaign. The club’s first team skipper said he believed difficulties in getting a full-strength team out on a consistent basis contributed to an alarming drop off in form that saw the A team win one and lose nine of their final 10 matches to finish six points adrift of safety, writes Peter Kitchen. But with potential new signings due to be confirmed imminently, Lockett believes the team can make a strong bid to finish with their…