News Archives from the 2009-2010 Season:
SSAFA
This
years tournament was another great success, with some exciting chess
being played in all sections, and some very close finishes in the team
tournament. The day raised £332.50 for SSAFA, and a big thankyou to John
Royle MBE who accepted the cheque on behalf of SSAFA, as well as
presenting trophies to the winners.
Many thanks also to Kate French, the head of Ruskin Junior School, for the continued use of the school, not just for the SSAFA tournament, but also for many of our County training sessions that we hold there during the year.
The full results of the day can be found by clicking here.
To find out more about the wonderful work that SSAFA does click here.
Many thanks also to Kate French, the head of Ruskin Junior School, for the continued use of the school, not just for the SSAFA tournament, but also for many of our County training sessions that we hold there during the year.
The full results of the day can be found by clicking here.
To find out more about the wonderful work that SSAFA does click here.
Northern Gigafinal
Owen Robinson
Many
congratulations to Owen Robinson and Seth Tsang, who both managed to
qualify for the Terafinal by scoring 5 out of 6 at the recent Northern
Gigafinal.
Overall Northants were represented by 13 players across the age groups. In the under 7s were Connor Arthurs and Pacey Gwynne, with Connor finishing 4th equal. In the under 9s we had Joshua Owen. In the under 10s Seth Tsang, James Virtue, Zachary Rogers, Curtis Allen, and Sam Smith. And in the under 11s Owen Robinson, Kyle Patel, Samuel Herring, Matthew Thompson, and Thomas Arthurs all put on a good show for the county - well done everybody.
To see all the Gigafinal scores in more detail Click Here.
Overall Northants were represented by 13 players across the age groups. In the under 7s were Connor Arthurs and Pacey Gwynne, with Connor finishing 4th equal. In the under 9s we had Joshua Owen. In the under 10s Seth Tsang, James Virtue, Zachary Rogers, Curtis Allen, and Sam Smith. And in the under 11s Owen Robinson, Kyle Patel, Samuel Herring, Matthew Thompson, and Thomas Arthurs all put on a good show for the county - well done everybody.
To see all the Gigafinal scores in more detail Click Here.
Northants successfully obtain LJCC qualifier status
We
are very pleased to announce that the NSCA have been successful in
making this autumns Junior Chess Congress a qualifying event for the
London Junior Chess Championships. Our competition will take place on
20th November 2010, and those scoring sufficiantly will then play in
their respective competitions during December. For further details of
the LJCC tournament and scores required to qualify Click Here.
The LJCC is one of the tournaments that EPSCA use for qualification for an England trial, and that the ECF also use for England qualification, so we are very proud to have secured our place on the list of qualifying tournaments.
For further details of all the tournaments that EPSCA and the ECF use for England qualification purposes Click Here.
The LJCC is one of the tournaments that EPSCA use for qualification for an England trial, and that the ECF also use for England qualification, so we are very proud to have secured our place on the list of qualifying tournaments.
For further details of all the tournaments that EPSCA and the ECF use for England qualification purposes Click Here.
National Primary Schools Chess Championships
Following
on from their successes earlier in the year in the local zone of the
Championships, Laxton Junior and Redwell Junior have both been
participating in semi-finals of the National Primary Schools Chess
Championships.
For the weekend of 15th/16th May Laxton travelled to Brean Sands near Weston-Super-Mare in Somerset, and scored 19 points, resulting in 3rd place out of 10 teams.
Then on the weekend of 19th/20th June Redwell travelled to Prestatyn in North Wales, and scored 17.5 points, resulting in 10th place out of a field of 34 teams.
Congratulations to all those involved - showing the rest of the country that Northants Schools can mix it with the best of them!
For the weekend of 15th/16th May Laxton travelled to Brean Sands near Weston-Super-Mare in Somerset, and scored 19 points, resulting in 3rd place out of 10 teams.
Then on the weekend of 19th/20th June Redwell travelled to Prestatyn in North Wales, and scored 17.5 points, resulting in 10th place out of a field of 34 teams.
Congratulations to all those involved - showing the rest of the country that Northants Schools can mix it with the best of them!
Megafinal Results
The
Rockingham area Megafinal took place in Loughborough on Sunday 23rd
May, and Northants had a substantial contingent in attendance. Everybody
played well, and despite a few dubious adjudication decisions many of
the players qualified for the Gigafinal, with 3 of our players becoming
the Supremo in their section. As soon as the full results of the day are available I will post a link to the relevant website.
Good luck to all those that travel to the northern Gigafinal on July 10th/11th. Scores were as follows:
Good luck to all those that travel to the northern Gigafinal on July 10th/11th. Scores were as follows:
|
Under 7:
Pacey Gwynne 4 points (Second) Tyler Gwynne 4 points Reece Patel 3.5 points Under 9: Joshua Owen 5 points (Second) Under 10: Seth Tsang 6 points (Supremo) James Virtue 4 points Zac Rogers 4 points Sam Smith 4 points |
The Northants contingent
|
Under 11:
Alex Speechley 5 points (Second) Owen Robinson 4 points Thomas Arthurs 4 points Kyle Patel 4 points Finlay Goodman 3 points Under 14: William Knight 3.5 points (Supremo) |
William Knight - Supremo!
|
Congratulations to Leah!
Our
congratulations go to Leah Mitchell, who has been invited to attend a
National Junior Squad training weekend in January, where International
Master Andrew Martin, the Junior Squad coach, will be giving his help
and advice.
Northants County Junior Championships
Well
done to everybody who played in the very successful Youth Congress,
rearranged from January. There was a very good turn out, with over 100
competitors, and despite the chilly playing room some very good chess
took place.
For photographs and a list of winners go to the "Latest NSCA Results" page, or simply click here.
For photographs and a list of winners go to the "Latest NSCA Results" page, or simply click here.
EPSCA Under 11 Championships - Final
Whilst
we were hosting our Youth Congress, those teams that qualified from our
zonal held back in March, along with the best teams from the south and
the north, were battling it out in Bolton to see who would win the
final. Kent, who were second in our zonal, were second again, but this
time to our close rivals Nottinghamshire. It was another very close
finish, with Notts finally coming out on top by just half a point. For a full list of the results, visit the EPSCA website, or click here.
National Chess Junior Squad Championships
This
year's competition moved south from Liverpool to Wolverhampton, and
Northants continued their recent trend of being well represented at top
national tournaments with Seth Tsang in the under 10 section, Marcus
Rose and Owen Robinson in the under 12 section, and, due to the change
of age calculation dates, William Knight had to move up to the under 16
section. The tournament took place at the Royal Wolverhampton School,
and with most of the top players in the country taking time out from
their Easter breaks to attend, the standard was very high and the
opponents very tough, but Seth managed 2 points, Marcus 3.5 points, Owen
1.5 points, and William 2.5 points. Well done to all four players. A
full list of the results should soon be available on the Junior Squad
website, which can be found at www.ncjs.co.uk. A
link to this site has also been added to the Useful Chess Links page.
Good luck from everybody at NSCA to Owen who will now go on and play in
this years England trial in Liverpool on April 24th/25th to try and
qualify for the England Junior Squad.
EPSCA Under 11 Eastern Zone 2010
On
Saturday 20th March we hosted the Eastern Zone of this years EPSCA
Under 11 championships, from which the first 5 teams qualify for the
Finals in Manchester.
Unfortunately after a promising start we had a rather disappointing second round, and by the end of the competition we finished in 8th place.
Barnet and Kent were always going to be the teams to watch, and indeed it proved the case with both teams only dropping 9 points each throughout the whole day. The overall winners had to be determined by number of wins, and so Barnet took the title by 50 wins to Kents 49 wins - couldn't have been much closer! Third place had to be determined in a similar fashion. Here are the overall results:
1st Barnet 51 points
2nd Kent 51 pts
3rd Richmond 30 pts
4th Hertfordshire 30pts
5th Essex 30 pts
6th Lincolnshire 23.5 pts
7th Cambridgeshire 23 pts
8th Northants 17 pts
9th Norfolk 14.5 pts
Well done to all those that played in this difficult competition, and special congratulations to Edmund Corker who was our only undefeated player on the day. Also to Nazmul Islam, Harry Bowman and Zachary Rogers who each scored 2 out of 3, and to James Walker, who was our only player to take a point from either Barnet or Kent when he won his first game of the day against his Barnet opponent.
Many thanks to all the players (and all their parents) for giving their best for Northants.
For details of all three zonal competitions click here.
Unfortunately after a promising start we had a rather disappointing second round, and by the end of the competition we finished in 8th place.
Barnet and Kent were always going to be the teams to watch, and indeed it proved the case with both teams only dropping 9 points each throughout the whole day. The overall winners had to be determined by number of wins, and so Barnet took the title by 50 wins to Kents 49 wins - couldn't have been much closer! Third place had to be determined in a similar fashion. Here are the overall results:
1st Barnet 51 points
2nd Kent 51 pts
3rd Richmond 30 pts
4th Hertfordshire 30pts
5th Essex 30 pts
6th Lincolnshire 23.5 pts
7th Cambridgeshire 23 pts
8th Northants 17 pts
9th Norfolk 14.5 pts
Well done to all those that played in this difficult competition, and special congratulations to Edmund Corker who was our only undefeated player on the day. Also to Nazmul Islam, Harry Bowman and Zachary Rogers who each scored 2 out of 3, and to James Walker, who was our only player to take a point from either Barnet or Kent when he won his first game of the day against his Barnet opponent.
Many thanks to all the players (and all their parents) for giving their best for Northants.
For details of all three zonal competitions click here.
National Primary Schools Chess Championships
Many
congratulations to Laxton Junior School and Redwell Junior School who
finished first and second in the under 11 section of Zone 16 of the
National Primary Schools Chess Championships at Great Houghton School on
Sunday 28th February, and hence now qualify for the semi-finals. Good
luck to both teams.
Full results of all zones can be found by clicking here.
Full results of all zones can be found by clicking here.
East Midlands Grand Prix
The
third and final leg of the East Midlands Grand Prix took place in
Nottingham on Saturday 27th February, and Northants were well
represented by Owen Robinson, Elliott Reed, Tommy Winstone, William
Knight, and Seth Tsang - many congratulations to Seth in particular, who
through his performance in this final leg, along with two outstanding
performances in the previous two legs, managed to secure 2nd place
overall in the
tournament. A brilliant result.
tournament. A brilliant result.
Northants Player makes the England Squad
Owen, Marcus & Seth
Our
congratulations go to Marcus Rose who, through a very good result at
the recent West of England Championships, has been invited to join the
England Junior Squad. Marcus had tried to qualify for the squad for the
past two seasons, so it's been third time lucky !
The county was also represented in the under 12 championships by Owen Robinson and Seth Tsang, and all three players seemed to have a very enjoyable weekend, even though the level of competition was extremely high and the games very tough. Meanwhile, in the Minor section, the winner was Ben Jackson with a perfect 6 !!!
The county was also represented in the under 12 championships by Owen Robinson and Seth Tsang, and all three players seemed to have a very enjoyable weekend, even though the level of competition was extremely high and the games very tough. Meanwhile, in the Minor section, the winner was Ben Jackson with a perfect 6 !!!
Midlands Championships
Northants Under 11 team for the Midlands Championships
Well
done on a very good result at the Midlands - the Under 11 team achieved
their highest score for some years, and came very close to overcoming
Lincolnshire for second place - some lovely play, and we actually took
more points off of Nottingham 'A' than the other teams did put together
!!! Final scores were:
Nottingham 'A' - 50 pts
Lincolnshire - 28 pts
Northants - 25.5 pts
Nottingham 'B' - 16.5 pts
Everybody played their part in a great day in Nottingham. Well done to all.
Nottingham 'A' - 50 pts
Lincolnshire - 28 pts
Northants - 25.5 pts
Nottingham 'B' - 16.5 pts
Everybody played their part in a great day in Nottingham. Well done to all.
BSCA Individual Championships 2010
On
Sunday 24th January the Barnet Knights successfully held their
Individual Championships, and Northants were very well represented by
Seth Tsang, Owen Robinson and Harry Bowman. There were 46 competitors,
and Seth won the title, with a brilliant 5.5 out of 6. Owen scored 4.5,
and finished joint 5th, whilst Harry scored 3.5 and finished joint 14th.
A marvelous result and many congratulations to Seth in particular.
Full results can be found by clicking here.
Full results can be found by clicking here.
6th Christmas Cracker
The
Christmas Congress always takes place between Christmas and the New
Year, making a nice break from all that eating of chocolates, cake, and
mince pies !
This seasons event was attended by 24 players, with the top three being:
Seth Tsang - 5 pts
Jonathon Hare - 4.5 pts
Elliott Reed - 4 pts
Congratulatuions to these three, and also to all those that turned up despite the cold weather we have experienced this year.
This seasons event was attended by 24 players, with the top three being:
Seth Tsang - 5 pts
Jonathon Hare - 4.5 pts
Elliott Reed - 4 pts
Congratulatuions to these three, and also to all those that turned up despite the cold weather we have experienced this year.
London Junior Chess Championships (continued)
The
second weekend of this years LJCC took place between Christmas and New
Year, where we had Marcus Rose and Owen Robinson both playing in the
Under 12 Major section, finishing with 5 pts and 3 pts
respectively. Well done to both players. The overall results and cross tables can be
found by clicking here.
Northampton Chesspoints vs NSCA
At
the Guildhall in Northampton an informal training match took place
between the Chess Point Junior Squad and an NSCA invited Squad. We were
represented by Alex Fisher, William Knight, Ciaron O'Sullivan and Marcus
Rose. Each player from each team played each player from the other at
both Rapidplay and also at Blitz play (5 minutes on each clock!)
I am very pleased to say that the NSCA came away with overall wins in both competitions, winning the Rapidplay 12pts to 4pts (Alex and William both scoring full points), and the Blitz 10.5pts to 5.5pts (with Marcus the only undefeated player from both teams) A very successful day for all concerned and well done to all the players - you did us proud !
I am very pleased to say that the NSCA came away with overall wins in both competitions, winning the Rapidplay 12pts to 4pts (Alex and William both scoring full points), and the Blitz 10.5pts to 5.5pts (with Marcus the only undefeated player from both teams) A very successful day for all concerned and well done to all the players - you did us proud !
London Junior Chess Championships
This
prestitigious competition takes place over two weekends depending on
which age group players are in. Seth Tsang was the counties sole
representative in the under 10 competition, where he had a very tough
draw, coming up against the England player Matthew Wadsworth in round 2
of this years Major section. Seth finished with 2 pts. Northants was
also represented in the Under 14 minor section by Henry Lambley, who
also scored 2 pts. Well done to both players. The overall results and cross tables can be
found by clicking here.
International Quadrangular
Whilst
Seth and Henry were battling it out down south, up north in Liverpool
William Knight and Marcus Rose were both playing in the Midlands Under
14 team against teams from The North, Scotland, and Wales - well done to
both players for being picked to represent our part of the country.
Royston
Northants
had 4 players at Royston this year. In the LJCC qualifier on Sunday 6th
December in the under 14 section William Knight, hot on the heels from
his 3rd place at Nottingham the day before, scored 5 out of 6, whilst
Henry Lambley scored 3.5
In the under 10 section James Virtue got oh so close to qualification with 3 out of 6.
Meanwhile, in the two day Annual Congress Marcus Rose scored 3 out of 5 in the Minor Section, making him the joint top Junior within that section of the competition.
In the under 10 section James Virtue got oh so close to qualification with 3 out of 6.
Meanwhile, in the two day Annual Congress Marcus Rose scored 3 out of 5 in the Minor Section, making him the joint top Junior within that section of the competition.
East Midlands Grand Prix, Nottingham - Day 2
Northants
continued to give a good account for themselves in this seasons East
Midlands Grand Prix in Nottingham.
The scores from Day 2 on 5th December are as follows:
Under 14:
William Knight 4 pts (and 3rd place)
Under 12:
Owen Robinson 3 pts
Under 10:
Seth Tsang 5 pts (and 2nd place)
Tom Winstone 4 pts
Elliott Reed 4pts
Well done to all these players and good luck if you are going to Day 3 of the Grand Prix which takes place on 27th February 2010.
The scores from Day 2 on 5th December are as follows:
Under 14:
William Knight 4 pts (and 3rd place)
Under 12:
Owen Robinson 3 pts
Under 10:
Seth Tsang 5 pts (and 2nd place)
Tom Winstone 4 pts
Elliott Reed 4pts
Well done to all these players and good luck if you are going to Day 3 of the Grand Prix which takes place on 27th February 2010.
Maidenhead
On
21st November 3 players travelled to Maidenhead, where William Knight
scored 4 and Henry Lambley 2.5 in the under 14 section,
and Daniel Lambley scored 1.5 in the under 12 section. Their day was not helped by an unfortunate tyre blow out on the way!
For result details via the Berkshire Chess website click here.
and Daniel Lambley scored 1.5 in the under 12 section. Their day was not helped by an unfortunate tyre blow out on the way!
For result details via the Berkshire Chess website click here.
Woodbridge, and Berkshire
On
15th November Owen Robinson and Zachary Rogers travelled to Woodbridge
in Suffolk, where Owen scored a very impressive 4.5,
and Zach scored 3.5.
On the same day Seth Tsang, and Thomas and Connor Arthurs went on their travels, this time to Compton in Berkshire, where Seth scored 3.5 and Thomas 2.5 in the under 12 section, and Connor also managed 2.5 in the under 8 section.
For result details via the Berkshire Chess website click here.
and Zach scored 3.5.
On the same day Seth Tsang, and Thomas and Connor Arthurs went on their travels, this time to Compton in Berkshire, where Seth scored 3.5 and Thomas 2.5 in the under 12 section, and Connor also managed 2.5 in the under 8 section.
For result details via the Berkshire Chess website click here.
Oxford
On
8th November 3 county players travelled to Magdalene College School in
Oxford to take part in their Junior Chess Tournament. Seth Tsang had a
great result, scoring a perfect 6 in the under 10 section. Thomas and
Connor Arthurs also played, with Thomas scoring 3 in the under 12
section, and Connor 1.5 in the under 8 section.
For result details via the Oxfordshire Chess website click here.
For result details via the Oxfordshire Chess website click here.
East Midlands Grand Prix, Nottingham - Day 1
Northants had a very good showing at the first day of this seasons East Midlands Grand Prix in Nottingham.
In the under 14 section William Knight scored 4.5, whilst in the under 12 section Owen Robinson scored 4, very narrowly missing out on another point when his clock ran out just as he was going to win.
In the Under 10 category we had 4 players. Seth Tsang scored an impressive 5, whilst Tom Winstone and David Obreja scored 4,
and Elliott Reed scored 3.
A very good outing by all these players, and congratulations every one of you for playing so well at this tough competition.
Day 2 of the Grand Prix takes place on 5th December.
In the under 14 section William Knight scored 4.5, whilst in the under 12 section Owen Robinson scored 4, very narrowly missing out on another point when his clock ran out just as he was going to win.
In the Under 10 category we had 4 players. Seth Tsang scored an impressive 5, whilst Tom Winstone and David Obreja scored 4,
and Elliott Reed scored 3.
A very good outing by all these players, and congratulations every one of you for playing so well at this tough competition.
Day 2 of the Grand Prix takes place on 5th December.
30th Junior Chess Congress, Northampton
The Playing Hall
The 30th Junior Chess Congress at Unity was another success,
this year with the added bonus of an after presentation raffle which
proved very popular - many thanks to everybody for their support.
This years winners can be found here.
Those players qualifying for a place in the county squad for this season will receive their letters of invitation in the coming weeks.
This years winners can be found here.
Those players qualifying for a place in the county squad for this season will receive their letters of invitation in the coming weeks.
Thetford Rapidplay
The Northants Contingent
6 players from the County attended the Thetford Rapidplay championships on 19th September.
William Knight and Alex Fisher entered the under 15 category, with William scoring 4 out of 6, and Alex scoring 3.
In the Under 12 category Marcus Rose managed to secure 3rd place with a score of 4.5 out of 6. Owen Robinson scored 3 whilst Kyle Patel scored 2 (including a win over Owen!)
David Obreja was taking part in the Under 10 category, and scored 2.5
The tournament was another success for the Thetford Youth & Community Chess Club, this time involving a group of players from Poland as well as the usual group from Holland.
Here you can see the Northants contingent.
William Knight and Alex Fisher entered the under 15 category, with William scoring 4 out of 6, and Alex scoring 3.
In the Under 12 category Marcus Rose managed to secure 3rd place with a score of 4.5 out of 6. Owen Robinson scored 3 whilst Kyle Patel scored 2 (including a win over Owen!)
David Obreja was taking part in the Under 10 category, and scored 2.5
The tournament was another success for the Thetford Youth & Community Chess Club, this time involving a group of players from Poland as well as the usual group from Holland.
Here you can see the Northants contingent.
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