Pepper Mill - Potteries Juniors Chess Festival 1st to 8th August

The festival takes place at the Pepper Mill, Phoenix Way, Longton, Stoke-on-Trent, ST3 2JD, from Saturday 1st August to Saturday 8th August.  For further information please contact Chris Hankey by email or phone 07866 400719.

Events will be from 1pm-4pm unless stated. The entry fee for all events will be only £1, and prizes will be awarded. All events will conclude with the Pepper Mill Cup on Friday 7th August. If weather permits all events will be held outside. There will be Junior Rapid Play and Blitz events at Under 12 and Under 18 culminating with the Champions League on Friday 7th August. A full timetable of events may be viewed here.

Jonathon Blackburn Simul to celebrate Alsager's new venue

Alsager Chess Club is delighted to welcome FM Jonathan Blackburn, Welsh International, former Welsh Under-21 Champion and reigning Staffordshire Champion, for a simultaneous exhibition on Tuesday 21 July at their new venue, Wesley Place, Methodist Church, 30 Lawton Rd, Alsager, Stoke-on-Trent ST7 2RU

This is a rare opportunity for local players to test themselves against one of the strongest players in the region and enjoy an evening of competitive chess in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere.

For an Entry form please click here.

Gables are Moving and Changing their name to Pepper Mill Chess Club

 Gables Chess Club are on the move again to the Pepper Mill, Phoenix Way, Longton, Stoke, Staffordshire, ST3 2JD. Match and Club Nights will be on Mondays. Potteries Juniors will also meet at the Pepper Mill on Saturdays. The club will compete in the 2026-27 NSDCA Season under the Pepper Mill name.

Staffordshire Chess Association AGM Wednesday 24th June

  The Annual General Meeting of the Staffordshire Chess Association will be held at St Bertelin's Church, Holmcroft Road, Stafford, ST16 1JH, Wednesday 24th June at 19:30.

Crewe Congress Friday 26th to Sunday 28th June

 It is not too late to enter the ever popular Crewe Congress which is being held on the last weekend of June, Friday 26th to Sunday 28th June. For entry form and further details please check here.

The Congress is supported by Mornflake Mighty Oats and sponsored by ChessPick.

Congratulations to all Competition Winners

 With all the NSDCA league and cup titles decided please see a list of winners

Honours Board for Season 2025-26

Division 1- 1st Alsager A,  2nd Crewe A

Division 2- 1st Crewe D, 2nd Stafford

Division 3- 1st Holmes Chapel B,  2nd Crewe G

Division 4- 1st Crewe I,  2nd Cheddleton C

Division 5-  1st  Meir,  2nd Holmes Chapel C

Major Cup- 1st Stafford Maj, 2nd Alsager Maj

Inter Cup- 1st Crewe Int, 2nd Alsager Int

Perry Trophy- 1st Crewe Perry 1, 2nd Cheddleton Perry

Stafford win Major Cup

 Stafford have retained the Major Cup after a close game against Alsager. The match was drawn 2½-2½ and Stafford won on board count, with Stafford winning on board 3 and losing on the fourth board with the remaining ties all drawn. For a fuller description of the match from Stafford's point of view see here.

Alsager A Division 1 Champions

 Congratulations to Alsager A who become NSDCA Champions with their 3-1 victory over Crewe B. Despite having two matches to play Alsager cannot be overtaken. Several teams are in competition for Runners-up. Well played.

First Titles of 2025-26 Season Decided.

Congratulations to Holmes Chapel B who are Champions of Division 3 and to Meir who have won NSDCA Division 5. Both Championships were decided on Friday 10th April when the challenging teams in each division dropped points. In Division 5 Crewe L beat Cheddleton D, which confirmed Meir as champions and the third division was decided when Crewe H triumphed over Cheddleton B by a similar 3-1 score. 

Holmes Chapel C are Division 5 runners up. Both Holmes Chapel C and Cheddleton D have won 7 matches, but Holmes Chapel have won more games.

NSDCA Division 4 has  been won by Crewe I after a run of five unbeaten games, including two victories over  as runners up Cheddleton C.

The Open Cup has been awarded to Macclesfield when the Crewe OC1 side withdrew.

Tables and results so far may be seen on the LMS.

Staffordshire Congress Results

 Congratulations to Neil Hankey and his team of organisers who ran a great Staffordshire Congress at Kidsgrove Town Hall on the last weekend of March. A great effort to hold the event so soon after the August 2025 Congress.

Alsager’s Jonathon Blackburn won the Open Section winning all five of his matches with former Cheddleton player, Jacob Connor Boswell in second place with 4 wins.

The Higher Section (Under 1850) was another Welsh triumph as Janie Roberts of Crewe took first place with 4 points. Also, with 4 out of 5 were Chris Hankey of Gables and David Hulme of Crewe. Just to prove that running a chess club needs not affect a player’s form.

The Standard Section (Under 1550) was won by U. Kachak, with 4.5 points ahead of Crewe’s Nigel Gardener who scored 4 points.

Thanks to the Arbiter team of Matthew Carr, David Price and Colin Abell.

Excellent Photos of the event by Lilija Bekisa may be seen here, and the full results may be viewed.