Club News 2021-2 season
Most recent news at top
Club helps at Headway’s Acquired Brain Injury games at Worcester Arena27 Aug 2022. Secretary Ray helped at Worcestershire Headway’s1st Acquired Brain Injury Games held at Worcester Arena. He had tough games against guests from Lincoln, and Derby as well as Worcestershire. The games were funded by the National Lottery as part of the celebrations of Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. |
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Summer Chess at the Paul Pry on Mondays
22 Aug 2022. The last summer chess at the Paul Pry. During the summer four new players and several who have not visited for some time played with us.
18 Jul. The Paul Pry had to close because of the extreme heat and play was at the Craft Inn Foregate Street.
20 Jun. There was a good attendance at the first 2022 summer chess at The Paul Pry.
Annual meeting
16 Jun 2022. At the club’s 186th annual meeting made plans for the 2022-3 season starting in September. The unofficial Worcester Wolfpack online team playing in the Four Nations Chess League (4NCL) will play in Division 4 next season and be managed by Ray Collett. The club will enter at least three over-the-board teams and Rob Sutton will captain the City team in Division 1. The secretary and president reported that the club had bounced back from the Covid lockdowns and several new members had joined. Officers were re-elected. The role of honorary secretary and treasurer was split and Jim Keene takes on the treasurer’s role. Stephen Mellor (Highest scorer in Division 1), Phil Austin (Lightning chess champion), and Oxtoby Scott (Most improved player) received their trophies.
Worcester players at Cotswold Congress
6 Jun 2022. Colin Vernon scored 2½ points from his 5 games in the Minor (u1650) tournament.Former Worcester player Matthew Holmes now playing for Witney since his move scored 3½ points and won a rating prize in the Major (u1850) tournament. Club President Andrew Farthing assisted with this three-day event played at Gloucester and ran a charity chess bookstall that raised over £600 for St Richard’s Hospice.
Phil Austin wins City Blitz tournament
Left: Players at the Blitz tournament |
26 May 2022. At a well attended tournament, there were two Groups of players in the preliminary stage. In Group A Phil Austin and Stephen Mellor shared first place with 6 points from 7 games with Simon Berry and Doug Nicholls on 4 and Tony Shaw on 3 points. In Group B, Ed Osbourn was first on 7 points, and Rob Sutton was runner-up on 6 points. A former champion Ray Collett was third on 5 points and new member Scott Oxtoby was fourth on 4 points. In the semi-finals Ed Osbourn (w) lost to Phil Austin and Stephen Mellor (w) beat Rob Sutton. In a hard fought final, Phil Austin, playing white, won on time.
Worcester players at Nottingham
24 Apr 2022. Colin Vernon entered the Minor and new player Hugh Rendle, his first competition in the Improvers tournament. Both players finished on 2 points. Hugh acquired his first standard play rating of 1409.
Worcester Wolfpack runners-up in 4NCL Online Division 5
19 Apr 2022. Worcester Wolfpack finished the season in fine style beating Bromley 2½-1½. This placed them in second position behind Beckenham. See details.
Patrick Greenow
17 Mar 2022. We have learned that Patrick passed away peacefully at home on Thursday at the age of 94. Patrick was an honorary life member of the club having served most recently as the club’s treasurer between 2006 and 2010. He was, however, much more active in the management of the city club in the late 1950s and early 1960s having served as the club’s president in 1963 and was club secretary serving as its representative in the county association. Pat played with success on the lower boards of the first team in the late 1950s and won the Woolwich handicap trophy in 1983 and the 5-minute tournament the following season. He was also team Captain or Vice-captain of a team in the lower division of the district league in the early 1980s. Pat has been missed since having to give up attending the club a few years ago after an episode of ill-health. Never complaining and always a gentleman, Pat was one of the stalwarts that ensured Worcester chess thrived. In addition to chess, Pat was a noted local watercolourist and for a few years was Churchwarden for St Stephen’s Parish Church. He taught water colour to classes of the University of the Third Age for several years and exhibited with the Worcester Society of Artists. Patrick is survived by his wife Vivien, children Jeremy, Charles, Cecily and grandchildren to whom we extend heartfelt condolences. |
Pat Greenow in 2003 |
Worcester Wolfpack to enter 4NCL online
20 Jan 2022. With Wolfpack’s captain busy with his postgraduate course, Ray Collett has entered a Worcester Wolfpack 4-player team in the 5th 4NCL online club season. Colin Vernon founded the online Wolfpack teams in 4NCL with players he had met in Coulsdon Chess congresses, but has too little time to lead the team in the fifth season. Ray offered to lead a single team and the Worcester Wolfpack has inherited players from the former Wolfpack teams, which included three Worcester players Collett, Hayles and Vernon. It is likely that the team will iclude a mix of former Wolfpack players and some additional players from Worcester.
Tournament win for Matt Homes
7 Nov 2021. Former club player Matt Holmes has taken first shared place in the u1800 tournament held at Witney in a field of 25 players. Matt has had to relocate to take up a new job.
Awards for Sutton and Berry
| 30 Sep 2021. At the first general meeting of members for 18 months, players confirmed decisions taken during the period of lockdown and to enter two teams in the Worcestershire Chess League for the 2021-2 season. The Division 1 team will be called Worcester City and the Division 2 team Worcester & Droitwich. During the 2021-2 season Droitwich players will join Worcester for league play. The treasurer reported a generous donation and membrs decided to halve the subscription rates for the 2021-2 season. Andrew Farthing (President) and Ray Collett (Secretary) were re-elected, and Jim Keene was elected treasurer. Rob Sutton takes the roles of captain of Worcester City Team and Competitions Secretary: Ray Collett capatins the Worcester & Droitwich team. Members honoured president Andrew Farthing by granting him life membership. Rob Sutton was presented with the Gross Cup for captaining the club’s online teams in the 2020-1 season and Simon Berry the Dollin Platter for his performance in the Division 2 team last season. |  |
Nick Harris Memorial Match
16 Sep 2021. Two ‘All Stars’ teams competed in the inaugural league match of the 2021-2 season at Worcester in memory of Nick Harris. Stourbridge All Stars, the visiting team strengthened with players from Kidderminster and Malvern, emerged victorious 3-2. Players used the new slightly faster time control 50 minutes plus 20 seconds increment adopted by the league. This led to some very brisk finishes and disasters with players yet to adapt to the new time control. Results and read more about Nick's achievements as a player and an author.
Harris Memorial match |
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Temporary Joint League formed
7 Sep 2021. Worcester’s representatives at the general meetings of the two local leagues approved a proposal to form a temporary league formed from the Worcester Chess Association League and Worcester & Distrcit Chess League. Division 1 would play five-board matches: Division 2 four-board matches. Players will wear face-covering in league matches, clubs will socially distance boards and will make sanitiser readily available at match venues. See WCA website for more information.
Covid-19 and league chess online
1 Sep 2021. At the start of the season there were no travel restrictions because of Covid, but many players did not want to play because of fear of infection. The anticipated reduced activity led the Worcester & District Chess League and Worcestershire Chess Association to call a joint meeting to form a temporary joint league for the 2021-2 season. Ray Collett Tony Shaw and Colin Vernon were playing online for Colin’s Wolfpack team in season 4 of the Four Nations Chess League.