Lockett warns of “tough” Telford test ahead of opener
There’s a sense of excitement as Shrewsbury’s big-name signings from Telepost prepare to make their league bows for the club – but A team captain Dan Lockett certainly isn’t getting carried away.
Lockett has targeted a winning start when Shrewsbury A welcome Telford A to Cromwell’s Tap House for their division one opener on Wednesday. But he is under no illusions that it will be “a tough match” – as they’ve tended to be against Telford in recent years, writes Peter Kitchen.
Nigel Ferrington, Phil Zabrocki and Fred Bench are among those in contention to make their debuts having signed up after Telepost Chess Club closed over the summer – and if picked would significantly strengthen the side’s top order.
But Telford have travelled back down the A5 with the points after their visits on quite a few occasions in recent years – and Lockett himself said that most sides in the division appeared to have strengthened over the summer.
“I’m hoping we can get off to a winning start,” he said. “But the reality is that lots of the sides look like being really strong this season if the nominated players for the team are anything to go by.
“So I think it will be a tough match – but I’m really looking forward to it.”
Telford A enjoyed a strong first half of last season, but suffered through availability issues after Christmas and a late slide saw them finish in the relegation zone, one place above Shrewsbury.
But both received a reprieve from relegation, and Telford have included Mark Keady and Tiago Faustino as nominated players, who would both bolster their side’s top order.
Teams have to nominate four players in the top two divisions and three in division three. According to league rules, nominated players must play half of a team’s fixtures in division one and three games for their side in the lower two divisions.
The aim is to make sure squads are stable and to prevent higher-rated “ringers” being brought in for specific matches. But they have also given an insight into how teams will line up for the current season.
Maddocks A, for example, have named Andy Grillage and Athar Ansari as nominated players, suggesting they will return to the local scene after a spell away.
Lockett has named himself, Ferrington, Zabrocki and Peter Kitchen as his four nominated players. Other Telepost signings Bench and Archie Flavell have not been nominated yet owing to university commitments.
It will mean that some of Shrewsbury A’s regular side from last season may find themselves playing in division two for the club’s B team for much of the campaign – but it is hoped that the club’s top two sides will be more competitive this season as a result. The A and B sides narrowly finished bottom of divisions one and two respectively last season.
“With the strong players coming in, there’s a great chance to finish in a much stronger place than last year,” said Lockett. “Hopefully we’ll be able to field a consistent team, which is what the successful teams have done in the last few years.
“Last year we really struggled to even get a side out on some occasions, but with so many players at the club now I don’t expect us to default any boards. We’ll still need to get our best team out to challenge for a top three finish though.”
The first division one fixtures were played last week – and there were a few shocks too. Defending champions Newport A were well beaten 0.5-4.5 by clubmates Newport Junior A,
while newly-promoted Church Stretton A were surprisingly held to a draw by an under-strength Darwinian Knights A.
The Telford A fixture is part of a busy week for the club – Shrewsbury C will host Newport B in division three at the same time, before Shrewsbury D travel to face new team Maddocks Junior the following night hoping to build on their opening day win over the C team.
Shrewsbury B must wait until October 12 to open their campaign in division two when they host Maddocks B.