Halloween is over and Guy Fawkes has just passed but there were plenty of fireworks over the board today at the sleepy Bournemouth Library! We welcomed Lennie, Leo and Oliver for their first time at the club – we hope they will continue to come along to learn and play chess. 27 juniors in all, 4 coaches and a really enjoyable morning.
Children In Need 2026
Our 2026 Children In Need Campaign is underway! The club will match equal £1 for £1 donations and with your very kind donations so far we have received £55, making £110 in total. We are trying to beat last year’s target of £290 – this is a great cause and one we have supported for over 4-5 years now. Donations can be made online to the same bank account and reference CIN. Anything you can give is greatly appreciated.
Eric has bought a dancing teddy to get everyone in the spirit – bit of fun!
Remainder of Term Calendar
14th Nov – Normal club
21st Nov – Normal club
28th Nov – Normal club
5th Dec – Final week for ladder board games
12th Dec – All-play-all 5-second buzzer competition (both sessions)
19th Dec – Final week: an open competition for all, with players from Ferndown and Bournemouth clubs joining us. Limited to 30 players. Competition from 10am-1pm with prize giving and certificates for all including the ladder board winners. Further details to follow.
1st Session
Tony’s Coaching – Advanced Visualisation
Tony had his usual group of advanced players with a mixture of 1 and 2 ply puzzles. We reinforced our knowledge of forks, skewers and back rank mates. Real signs of progress from Harvey, Jake and Hektor but congratulations to Harvey who solved all 6 puzzles!
Graham’s Coaching – Senior Advanced
Graham had a full class of three advanced and five intermediate players. His lesson used puzzles from the book “Take and Mate” – abstract positions constructed purely to stretch the imagination of the solver. The main event was analysing a B&DCL (Bournemouth and District Chess League) game featuring a Pirc Defence. Key teaching points included transposition of openings, the middle game battle between Knights and Bishops (keeping closed for Knights, opening up for Bishops), time pressure tactics and endgame scenarios. The final 15 minutes were spent with William, taking him through the Bb5 Nimzovitch-Rossolimo variation against the Sicilian Defence – simplifying the lines for White.
Eric’s Coaching – Intermediate Group
Eric concentrated on our two new players Lennie and Leo, both at senior school. He reviewed a game they were playing and pointed out candidate moves for both. Leo is clearly the stronger of the two and both show promise and are very keen. Welcome to the club!
Steve’s Coaching – Beginners
Steve had Saint, Omer and newcomer Oliver in the beginners group. They covered the basics of chess, tactics, openings and the benefit of castling either side. Welcome Oliver – hope to see you back next week!
2nd Session
Our 2nd session of 10 players was well received and it was good to see all returning after half term. Peter, Graham and Eric shared the intermediate group with all aspects of the game, and William played a good game against Eric. In the beginners group Manvik (2) is showing real progress and is clearly taking in all of Steve’s lessons – very pleasing.
Ladder Board Games
Results
1st Session: Harvey ½ Jake ½, Rafan 0 Neil 1, Hektor 0 Nathaniel 1, Ram 0 Leo 1, Omer 0 Markas 1, Arini 1 Alexander 0, Nirvan 1 Lennie 0, Preston 1 Saint 0.
A great win for Leo in his first ever ladder game, beating Ram. Nathaniel continues his dominant run at the top. Most games are won and lost by mistakes – leaving pieces unprotected, miscalculation etc. All these are under your own control and I urge you to treat every piece as one of your most valuable.
2nd Session: William ½ Coach ½, Milan 1/2 Coach, Erin 1 Leo 0, Emmanuel 0 Manvik 1, Manvik (2) 0 Ritha 1, Kiara 1 Jenson 0.
Ladder Board – 1st Session (Round 8)
| Name | P | W | D | L | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nathaniel | 8 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 14 |
| Harvey | 8 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 11* |
| Neil | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 10 |
| Ram | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 8 |
| Kit | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
| Hektor | 7 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 8 |
| Nirvan | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 7 |
| Markas | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 6 |
| Omer | 8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 6 |
| Jake | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Sarah | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Preston | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Arini | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 |
| Rafan | 7 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 5 |
| Alexander | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 |
| Lawrence | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Leo | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Lucas | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Lennie | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Saint | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
*
Ladder Board – 2nd Session (Round 8)
| Name | P | W | D | L | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Milan | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 12* |
| Manvik 1 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 10* |
| Emmanuel | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 8* |
| William | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 8 |
| Leo | 7 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 8 |
| Erin | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
| Ritha | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
| Kiara | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 5 |
| Manvik 2 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 4* |
| Koko | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| Atlas | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 4 |
| Markas | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Jenson | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Adelyn | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1* |
There are 5 rounds to go so all to play for! Nathaniel is marching on with 7/8 = 14 pts with Harvey chasing on 11 pts and Neil on 10 pts. The intermediate players are all very close with Kit and Nirvan leading on 7 pts, and both Markas and Omer on 6. In the 2nd session Milan is the clear leader on 12 pts with Manvik on 10 – these two are clear of the field.
All games are played with a 15 minute time control and all players are now notating all moves. There is room for progress with the notation but it serves a good purpose in reviewing the games afterwards. Another good way to learn.
As always thank you to Steve, Graham, Tony and Peter for helping with all. I look forward to seeing you all next Saturday.