Clubs Opening New Venues

Thanks to the hard work of Colin Abel the fixtures for the coming 2025-26 season are all available on the LMS. 

Three NSDCA Clubs are opening additional venues. Alsager are playing matches on both Tuesday at Alsager Cricket Club and on Thursdays at the 13 Club. Gables are still meeting at the the Gables pub, but their first team will play on Tuesdays at the New Finney Gardens.

Holmes Chapel's A & B teams will continue to play at the Victoria Club on a Thursday Evening. They will be holding a club night on Wednesday at the Kings Lock Inn, Middlewich. The Holmes Chapel C team will host their home games at the Kings Lock on a Thursday.

For full address and post codes of the new venues please see either the LMS or the Member Clubs Page.

Staffordshire Revival Congress

 The Staffordshire - Stoke Centenary Congress was held in August and was enjoyed by most entrants. Thanks are due to the City of Stoke-on-Trent who provided the excellent Kings Hall free of charge as part of the Centenary celebrations. The Lord Mayor, Councillor Steve Watkins opened the event.

Fittingly the congress winner, Jonathon Blackburn and two of the section winners Alan Thomason of Alsager Chess Club and Mark Hughes of Kidsgrove all play in the NSDCA.

For a fuller description of the event and details of the organising committee please see the Staffordshire Chess Association website. Andrew Crosby (Kidsgrove Chess Club) has written a full report from the ECF magazine, Chess Moves.

Busy Summer for Crewe Chess Club

These days chess no longer stops for the summer months and at Crewe Chess Club it is certainly the case. Apart from the popular Crewe Congress which sees most members as either participants or organisers; the club played their annual WC challenge against Wallasey  over 32 boards.

This gave Crewe two mentions in the July Edition of Chess News on Pages 20 and 43.

AGM Report: Julian takes the chair and Northwich join the League

 At the AGM held on July 16^th, Julian Cook of Kidsgrove Chess Club has been elected Chairman of the NSDCA. He has been assisting retiring Chairman Robert Milner over the last two years. Julian’s term as President of the Association has come to an end and it is hoped that Robert will accept the Presidential role so that his wisdom and experience are not lost to the league.

Next season we will have a new club joining. The request of Northwich Chess Club to enter the league has been accepted. It is not yet agreed which division they will enter. This is the first new club entering since the return of Crewe Chess Club in 2014.

The meeting was well attended, and the association would like to thank Meir Chess Club for giving up their regular club night so the meeting could be held.

Late News: Robert Milner has become NSDCA President.

Local Success at Crewe Congress - Congratulations to Jacob

 The 2025 Crewe Chess Congress was held this weekend. There was success for two NSDCA players in the Open Section of the Crewe Congress. Jacob Connor Boswell, who began his chess career as a junior at Cheddleton and Leek,  won the section with a score of four wins and a draw from 5 rounds. Among the runners up was Jonathan Blackburn of Alsager Chess Club with four points.

NSDCA AGM Wednesday 16th July at Meir Chess Club

 The AGM of North Staffs and District Chess Association will be held the home of Meir Chess Club on Wednesday 16th July starting at 19:30. The venue address is The John Marston, 44 Longton Hall Rd, Stoke-on-Trent ST3 2NQ. Any member of a club playing in the league is entitled to attend. Trophies will be presented to winners of the 2024-25 competitions.

Season Review and Summer Congresses

 The 2024-25 winter season of the NSDCA has finished and in most of the Divisions and Cup Sections Crewe Chess Club has been triumphant. With the exceptions of Macclesfield’s triumph in Division 2 and Stafford’s victory in the Major Cup, Crewe have made a clean sweep of the leagues and cups. Congratulations to Crewe Chess Club on the tenth anniversary of their re-entry to the NSDCA as Crewe Rooks and Crewe Bishops. Please see the honours list for more details.

There is still a lot of chess to play this summer. The Staffordshire Under 1450 Team face Essex in the County Championship Semi-Final. Also, there are two local Congresses to enter, the Crewe Congress from Friday 27^th to Sunday 29^th June and the Staffordshire Congress celebrating the Centenary of the City of Stoke on Trent will be held on Saturday 16^th and Sunday 17^th of August.

Dick Martin Funeral

 Dick Martin, formerly of Alsager Chess Club has died at the age of Ninety Seven. His funeral will be held on Thursday 8th May at St. Mary Magdalene Church, Crewe Road, Alsager at a time of 13:30. The will be a wake at the Wilbraham Arms later.

Dick represented both Alsager and the old chess club at the Broughton Arms. He was active and independent until recent years and although he could no longer attend the club he would welcome his former teammates for a game over the board.

Geoff Laurence Funeral Details and Macclesfield Tribute

 Geoff's funeral will be held at Macclesfield Crematorium (Prestbury Road, Macclesfield, SK10 3BU) on Thursday April 24th at 3:30pm and then afterwards at the Cock and Pheasant (15 Bollington Road, Bollington, SK10 5EJ). 

Macclesfield Chess Club have recorded a moving tribute to Geoff on their website which is well worth reading.

More Trophies Decided

 As a fitting tribute to Geoff Laurence his Macclesfield Team secured the Division Two Championship with a home win over Crewe E.  

Crewe have also won the Open Cup (six boards) after a close win against Alsager. The scorecard may be seen on the LMS.