James Schofield is our new Club Champion
Steve Levy wins the Cookworthy Cup
Review of the 2024-25 Season
The main internal club competitions were
- the Homan League - an "all play all twice" competition to determine the Club Champion
- the Coockworthy Cup - a knockout competition with the draw made at random.
Homan League
Ever since Steve Levy re-joined the Club in 2015, he has been the Club Champion (an honour which he shared with David Archer in 2021-22 and 2023-24). This year Steve didn't have it all his own way, and David Archer became the bookies' favourite after beating Steve with both the white and the black pieces. However James Schofield achieved a consistent set of victories and, on the last day of the season, overtook David to finish on a very impressive 18/20 and thereby become the Club Champion. Many congratulations to James.
Cookworthy Cup
A season without Steve winning silverware would be inconceivable, and Stave duly got his revenge on David by winning both legs of the Cookworthy Cup final. Many congratulations to Steve..
The trophies were presented by Alan Davies (Club Chairman) at the AGM on 29th May.
Torbay Chess League
In the Torbay Chess League, South Hams finished second in Division 1, (pipped on "goal difference" by a very strong Totnes team). In Division 3, South Hams finished 4th out of 7 teams, with Plymouth winning the title. In the Rapidplay, Newton Abbot won all four of their matches, with South Hams and Devonport High School winning one apiece. South Hams did not enter teams in Division 2 (won by Newton Abbot) or Division 4 (won by Torquay Boys' Grammar School). The final Torbay Chess League tables for the 2024-25 season can be viewed here.
In the Knockout competition, South Hams lost by 2½ - 3½ in the semi-finals to eventual winners Newton Abbot.
Full details are on the ECF League Management System.
Next Season
The 2025-26 season will start on Thursday 4th September. Enquiries from prospective new members are most welcome.
Dartmouth Summer Chess July 2024
The 2024 Dartmouth Summer Chess events for 2024 were originally scheduled for June, but bad weather meant they were deferred to Thursday 18 July (evening) and Saturday 20 July (day time).
Playing conditions for the Thursday event were lovely, with plenty of sunshine and a gentle breeze. Bad light stopped play after six rounds, and the outright winner was Trefor Thynne who was undefeated on 5/6. Alan Brusey was second on 4½, while Steve Levy and Andrew Kinder were joint third on 4. The full cross table for the Thursday event can be viewed here.
Relaxing between rounds
Charles Doidge 0 - 1 Mike Cuggy
Richard Thomas 0-1 Andrew Kinder
Chris Collins 0 - 1 Trefor Thynne
As usual, Tony Tatam was a wizard with the pairing software
Congratulations to Trefor Thynne, seen here with the trophy
Unfortunately the Saturday brought heavy rain. Rather than postponing the event twice, the decision was made to move indoors. The top four boads were set up in one room, while the remaing boards shared the Conservatory with the refreshments table. As has become traditional, a fish 'n' chips lunch for everyone was ordered from the Wheelhouse, Dartmouth.
Boards 1 - 4
Boards 5+
In the foreground: Les Barron 1 - 0 Mike Bender
Round 7 Boards 1 - 4
One loo for boards 1 - 4, another loo for the riff-raff
Ian Henry 1 - 0 Trevor Hurt
Steve Cawser
Charles Doidge
Mike Bender
Les Barron
After 9 rounds, the clear winner was Steve Levy who scored a very impressive 8½. Trefore Thynne came second with 7, while Chris Collins was third with 6½. The final cross table can be viewed in full here.
Luckily the rain stopped in time for the presentation of trophies to take place outdoors.
On 19 May 2023 local artist Miranda Housden launched an exhibition of her art in Plymouth featuring 32 paintings of chess pieces representing people who have had a significant impact on her life. A blitz chess competition of players from Devon and Cornwall took place on the opening night, and the winner was presented with a fantastic glass trophy made by internationally renowned glassmaker Gill Mannings Cox, commissioned by Miranda in memory of her grandfather Richard Kenber who taught her how to play chess. A video of the event can be viewed here. Miranda kindly agreed that each year this trophy should be presented to the winner of the "Saturday Dartmouth Chess" event. Miranda, accompanied by Gill, very kindly agreed to attend and present the trophy to this year's winner - Steve Levy.
Left-to-right: Gill Mannings Cox, Mike Cuggy, Barry Lippard, Chris Collins, Trevor Hurt, Gerard 't Hart, Charles Doidge.
Left-to-right: Les Barron, Alan Brusey, Trefor Thynne, Ian Henry, Miranda Housden, Mike Bender.
Miranda Housden describes the origins of the trophy...
... which she presented to Steve Levy. Left: Gill Mannings Cox.
Trefor Thynne kindly commissioned a wooden trophy (to keep permanently) for highest-finishing player with a rating of Under 1600. Congratulations to the winner of this trophy - Mike Cuggy.
Trefor Thynne introduces the trophy...
... which he presented to Mike Cuggy.
Thank you to everyone for making these occasions so enjoyable - despite the weather on the Saturday. A very special thank you to Tony Tatam in particular, whose fantastic organisation and efficiency kept the pairings and results under perfect control.
Outdoor Chess in Dartmouth 15 June 2023
The first of two planned outdoor events for the summer of 2023 took place on 15th June, from 6:30pm until bad light stopped play just before 10pm. The event included guests from the Brixham, Newton Abbot, Plymouth, Teignmouth and Totnes clubs. The time contols were 10 minutes plus 5 seconds per move. Many thanks to Tony Tatam for arbiting and sorting out the pairings.
The Weather Gods gave us a perfect summer's evening, and six rounds were played. Ben Wilkinson and Alan Brusey seemed to think there wouild be a prize for the loudest shirt!
The evening's winner was Trefor Thynne, who scored an impressive 5½. Alan Brusey (the only player who managed to take half a point off Trefor) came second on 5, and third place was a tie between Steve Levy, Chris Collins and Freddie Sugden on 4. The full results can be viewed on the Swiss-Manager results website.
Trevor Hurt 1 - 0 Richard Thomas
Lance Howarth 0 - 1 Roy Greenhalgh
Alan Crickmore 0 - 1 Charles Doidge
Roy Greenhalgh ½ - ½ Alan Davies
Paul Brooks ½-½ Alan Brusey
Cathy Black 1 - 0 Mike Cuggy
Chris Collins 0-1 Freddie Sugden
Ben Wilkinson ½ - ½ Cliff Peach
Freddie Sugden 0-1 Alan Brusey
Richard Thomas 1 - 0 Alan Davies
Alan Crickmore ½-½ Mike Hussey
Trefor Thynne 1 - 0 Charles Doidge
Paul Brooks 1-0 Cathy Black
Ben Wilkinson 0 - 1 Steve Levy
Chris Collins 1-0 Trevor Hurt
Lance Howarth 0 - 1 Roy Greenhalgh
With a cloudless sky, the shade was welcome
Tatiana the cat didn't think much of the chess
Tony Tatam presented the trophy to Trefor Thynne. Very well played, Trefor!
Thank you to everyone who participated - it was a very enjoyable evening. The next Dartmouth outdoor event will be on Saturday 1st July.
Outdoor Chess in Dartmouth 1 July 2023
The second of two outdoor events for the summer of 2023 took place on 1st July, starting at 11am and finishing at 5pm with a fish & chip lunch break. The event included guests from the Brixham, Newton Abbot, Plymouth, Teignmouth and Totnes clubs. The time contols were 10 minutes plus 5 seconds per move and we managed to get nine rounds played. Many thanks to Tony Tatam for arbiting and sorting out the pairings.
Playing conditions were lovely, with plenty of sunshine and a moderate breeze.
After nine rounds, two players - Trefor Thynne and Steve Levy - shared top spot with 7½ points. As Trefor and Steve had drawn their game against one another, the tie-break was determined by Sonneborn–Berger scores and Steve pipped Trefor by 7 points to 6. David Archer and Alan Brusey Brusey shared third place with 6½ points out of 9. The full results can be viewed on the Swiss-Manager results website.
Steve and Trefor played in Round 3 and drew
Steve Cawser 0-1 Cliff Peach
Paul Brooks was the only winner against Steve Levy
Ben Wilkinson 1 - 0 Phil McConnell
Trefor Thynne 1-0 David Archer
Barry Lippard happy with his win over Alan Davies
Chris Collins 1-0 Graham Mill-Wilson
Mike Hussey enjoys views of the Dart estuary
Charles Howard 0-1 Trefor Thynne
Paul Books 0 - 1 Alan Brusey
Chris Collins 1-0 Mike Cuggy
Barry Lippard 0 - 1 Steve Cawser
David Archer 1-0 Alan Brusey (on time)
Charles Howard's hat 1 - 0 Paul Brooks' hat
Trevor Hurt 1-0 Barry Lippard
Graham Mill-Wilson 0 - 1 Charles Doidge
Tony Tatam organised the pairings
Tony Tatam presents the trophy to Steve Levy
Many congratulations to Steve, and thank you to everyone for making it a very enjoyable day.
David Archer presents Steve Levy with the Master Cup
Cathy Black and Steve Levy share the Cookworthy Cup
Review of the 2022-23 Season
It was great to be playing "over-the-board" chess for the entire season - due to Covid-19, the last time this could be said was the 2018-19 season.
Homan League
Steve Levy won both the pre-Christmas and post-Christmas phases of the Homan League, and thus beecame Club Champion without having to go through any kind of playoff. Steve didn't have it all his own way, though - during the season James Schofield, Trevor Hurt and David Archer all denied him a 100% record, and there were several games when Steve looked as if he might draw or even lose until his strong end game play and time management saw himn through to victory.
Cookworthy Cup
The final of the Cookworthy Cup was fought between Club newcomer Cathy Black and Steve Levy. When Cathy won the first leg, it looked as if she might win the Cup outright. However it was not to be; Steve won the second leg and under Club rules the trophy was shared between Cathy and Steve.
The trophies were presented at the AGM on 25th May. Many congratulatyions to Cathy and Steve.
Torbay Chess League
The Torbay Chess League ran
- three 4-player Standard Play leagues - Division 1 (no rating limits), Division 2 (under 6800) and Division 3 (under 6400)
- one 4-player Rapid Play league (under 7000)
- one 6-player Knockout competition (under 10,000)
South Hams won Division 1, Division 2 and the Rapid Play leagues, finished second to Plymouth in Division 3, and lost in the first round of the Knockout to eventual winners Newton Abbot. The final league tables can be viweed here. Full details are on the ECF League Management System.
Next Season
The 2023-24 season will start on Thursday 31st August with a "simul" by Steve Levy, our Club Champion. The following Thursday will be a fun Rapid Play evening, and club competitions will kick off on Thursday 14th September. Enquiries from prospective new members are most welcome.