Shrewsbury A will go into this week’s local derby with Darwinian Knights A in desperate need of some festive cheer – after captain Dan Lockett admitted there were “no real positives” to take from a 3-2 loss at Maddocks A last time out. While the defeat in Oakengates was determined by the final – and only decisive – game of the night, in truth Shrewsbury rarely looked like winning a board and could gave few complaints at the final outcome, writes Peter Kitchen. It meant a fourth loss in a row for the As, and they are now a couple of points adrift of the midfield pack in Shropshire Chess…

Team effort helps C team to an unbeaten week Shrewsbury C emerged from last week’s gruelling fixtures without tasting defeat as the side continues to edge its way up the Shropshire Chess League division three table. Ben Howells’ side drew 2-2 away to the division’s bottom side Newport Junior C on Tuesday night before achieving the same score 24 hours later in a local derby at home to Darwinian Knights D, writes Peter Kitchen. The results – in their final two league fixtures before the Christmas break – have helped the Cs move up to fifth place in the eight-team division, although some of the teams below them do have…

Debutants Patrick Fitch and Chris Warrilow enjoyed nights to remember as their two stylish victories helped Shrewsbury Pirates to only their second win of the season. On a night where Shrewsbury fielded three players making their competitive bow for the club across two matches, Fitch and Warrilow were the first pair two finish as the Pirates crushed Wessex J 4-0 in 4NCL Online division four. Old stagers Tony Purser and Ivor Salter finished the job off with victories of their own on the top two boards, helping the pirates move up to 21st in the 29-team table, writes Peter Kitchen. While a place in the end-of-season promotion playoffs is mathematically…

Shrewsbury B hope their first league win of the season can be the springboard to being competitive in every Shropshire Chess League division two match for the remainder of the season. Vice-captain David Edwards said the aim was to be competitive on all boards, and said despite facing higher quality opposition following last season’s promotion from division three, he was hopeful the team could pick up some more wins along the way, writes Peter Kitchen The Bs ended a three-game losing streak by defeating Newport Junior B 3.5-1.5 last time out – which also ended a rotten recent run of results for the club’s teams at Newport’s Royal British Legion…

Shrewsbury C this week had two opportunities in the space of 24 hours to build on their first Shropshire Chess League division three victory of the season. The Cs travelled to face bottom-of-the-table Newport Junior C on Tuesday (November 18) before hosting a local derby against Darwinian Knights D the following night, writes Peter Kitchen. It is the second time in the space of a few weeks that the C team has unusually been asked to play two nights running – but captain Ben Howells is looking forward to the challenge. Last time out saw the C team defeat Newport Knights 2.5-1.5 to pick up their first points since the…

Shrewsbury Chess Club’s first designated “social night” has been declared a massive success after more than 20 people crammed into the club’s playing room at Cromwell’s. Club stalwarts and recently signed-up members were among those who attended Wednesday’s event, which was aimed at helping to get all players get to know a bit more about the club and each other following an influx of new faces throughout 2025, writes Peter Kitchen. Club stalwarts and recently signed-up members were among those who attended Wednesday’s event, which was aimed at helping to get all players get to know a bit more about the club and each other following an influx of new…

Shrewsbury A’s stand-in players have been hailed for their contribution as the side goes through a challenging spell of results. David Edwards and Richard Vernon were both among the stand out players as the A team were well beaten 4-1 by Newport Junior A last time out, writes Peter Kitchen. Edwards came closer than anyone to winning a game as he pushed Malcolm Fletcher hard all night on board four, at one point missing a clear opportunity to win a piece before eventually seeing his attack fizzle out. And Vernon defended stubbornly in a difficult position against Mohanaditya Poluru on bottom board before eventually bowing to defeat. Vernon was a…

The aim of Wednesday night’s event is for long-standing and new club members to get to know a little more about each other – whether that’s about their chess-playing experiences or other aspects of life. There will of course be chess played too – but as we’ve had an influx of new faces in recent months we thought it would be a good chance for everyone to find out more about their fellow teammates. We hope to see as many of you as possible from 7.30pm

Shrewsbury Pirates slipped to their third 4NCL Online division four defeat in five games, as they slipped to a 3-1 loss to War & Piece Banner. The Pirates could only field three players after the named board three Richard Vernon was called up to play for Shrewsbury A against Newport Junior A on the same evening, writes Peter Kitchen. And in a match between two evenly-matched teams on paper, it proved to be a key difference as Shrewsbury were unable to claw back the deficit. The Pirates had not played for four weeks since their heavy defeat at the hands of Epsom Salties 2 in round three – they had…

Shrewsbury B will look to end the club’s apparent autumnal hoodoo at Newport when they bid to get their Shropshire Chess League division two campaign up and running. Richard Vernon’s side will travel to face Newport Junior B on Tuesday with both clubs searching for their first points of the season, writes Peter Kitchen. The match falls within an intriguing subplot between the two clubs. It will be the third week in the last four that Shrewsbury teams have travelled to Newport Royal British Legion – and Shrewsbury are yet to pick up a point from any of them. Shrewsbury A lost 5-0 against Newport A as Shrewsbury C went…