Shrewsbury Chess Club

Peter Kitchen writes. Shrewsbury A enjoyed their most emphatic win of the season with a 4-0 online town derby triumph over Telepost A. On a night when Shrewsbury Town FC enjoyed their biggest win of the season – a 5-0 League One win over Morecambe – the town’s namesake chess team also showed no mercy to their admittedly under-strength opponents to complete a welcome online league double over their rivals. Tuesday’s convincing victory was a fine way for the A’s to finish their Shropshire Online Chess League division one campaign – and has also given them a chance of finishing second in the table. They will finish runners up if…

Peter Kitchen writes. Shrewsbury’s first team players face two potentially season-defining matches against local rivals Telepost – starting on Tuesday night. The first fixture will see Shrewsbury A aim for an online league double over Telepost A, who despite being reigning online champions have endured a difficult season and are currently three points adrift at the bottom of the online division one table. It will be Shrewsbury’s final online league fixture of the season, and they need just a point to mathematically ensure they cannot finish bottom. They still harbour hopes of a second place finish, but need to win and hope Oswestry B drop points. It comes ahead of…

Peter Kitchen writes. Peter Kitchen and Mark Smith were the victors as Shrewsbury came from behind twice to rescue a point against Oswestry. On a historic night for Shrewsbury as they hosted their first Shropshire Chess League match at their new Nerdy Café home, Oswestry threatened to spoil the party as new signing Rudy van Kemenade beat Francis Best on top board. Smith made light of turning up half an hour late to impressively defeat Oswestry captain Charles Lowick Higgie on board three, only for James Joynson to put the visitors back in front by defeating over-the-board debutant Richard Vernon on board three. After Dan Lockett and Gary Slegg drew…

The big day is almost here – Shrewsbury Chess Club will host its first league match at its new venue on Friday. Oswestry A will be the first competitive visitors to the Nerdy Café for a Shropshire Chess League division one match that could have major repercussions in the battle to stay in the top flight. Shrewsbury are currently bottom of the table having not played since the league was temporarily suspended in December, while Oswestry have been in freefall since Christmas – losing both matches while fielding weakened teams. Oswestry have taken steps to remedy that by this week registering 2000-rated player Rudy van Kemenade, though it is not…

Peter Kitchen writes. Defeats on the top two boards proved costly as Shrewsbury A were edged out 2.5-1.5 by Oswestry A in Shropshire Online Chess League division one. Both Francis Best and Peter Kitchen came unstuck early in the middlegame, succumbing to defeats against International Master Paul Littlewood and Charles Lowick Higgie respectively. It meant Dan Lockett’s battling win with the black pieces against Peter Fisher was in vain. Mark Smith and Peter Lovatt had earlier agreed a quiet draw on board three. The result leaves Shrewsbury likely to finish third in the four-team division one table, now trailing their victors by two points and having an inferior goal difference.…

Peter Kitchen writes. Shrewsbury C sprang a surprise by holding their high-flying B team compatriots to a 1.5-1.5 draw – breathing fresh life into the Shropshire Online Chess League division two title race. The B’s had looked on course to maintain their three-point lead at the top of the table after Ivor Salter eased to victory over Richard Vernon on bottom board. But despite Stephen Priestley holding a stable edge over Tony Purser in the final game on board two, a costly misjudgement allowed Purser to crash through on the kingside, securing a victory for the C team that squared the match. The result cut the B team’s lead over…

Shrewsbury’s three online teams will all be in action within the space of 24 hours – with two coming up against each other. The A’s will take on Oswestry B on Thursday in a match that is likely to decide who finishes runners up in Shropshire Online Chess League division one behind runaway leaders Oswestry A. Their opponents have fielded Inernational Master Paul Littlewood during the current campaign – including in the reverse fixture in November – although it is not yet known if he will feature this time around. Meanwhile, Shrewsbury B and Shrewsbury C were doing battle in division two on Wednesday in search of league points for…

A failure to make their superiority count proved Shrewsbury C’s undoing as they slipped to a 2-1 online league defeat to Oswestry C. Shrewsbury were well on top in the games on both boards one and two – but both ended as draws. It meant that Richard Vernon’s defeat against Alf Evans on bottom board was a costly one as it was the only decisive game in the match – and one where Vernon had also been on top for spells. It leaves the C’s marooned in the bottom half of the Shropshire Online Chess League division two table with two wins and four defeats from their six games. Norman…

Shrewsbury Chess Club’s latest club night has been called off due to the impact of this week’s flooding in the town centre. The club’s Nerdy Café venue has been forced to close this week after being affected by the River Severn flooding in the town centre. While the flood waters have now started to recede, the venue remains closed while repairs are carried out. Club members had been due to meet for friendlies and social games on Friday (February 25), but have been notified by email that this will now not take place. As a club, we wish our hosts at the Nerdy Café all the best with the clean…

Superior class eventually told as Shrewsbury A were outgunned by a formidable Oswestry A side in the online top-of-the table battle. The A’s put up a tough fight before going down 3-1 to their higher-rated opponents, who now have a three-point lead at the top of Shropshire Online Chess League division one. Victories with the black pieces for both Mehmet Altinsoy and Leon Cox on boards two and four proved decisive as the league leaders ultimately were just too strong. Francis Best and Mark Smith both battled to excellent draws in their games against Brian Whyte and Tim McMahon respectively. Shrewsbury have now slipped to third in the four-team table,…