Categories
Club Championship

Club Championship – Round 5 – Tue 2 April

About

The 2023/24 Queens Park Chess Club Championship is a six round classical tournament at the 60+5 time control. Please visit our Club Championship page for full details of the format and rules.

The tournament started in October 2023 and will conclude in April 2024. The standings and results are available on the Chess Scotland website.

Pairings & Results

A live draw for round five was made at the Bungo by Competitions Manager Jordan McNaught during the Club meeting of Tuesday 19 March.

The round five pairings are as follows. This table will be updated with the results as they come in.

BoardWhiteRatingScoreBlackRating
1Jordan McNaught1664Connor Thompson1607
2John McKenna1606Alistair Ahmed1688
3Craig Thomson1566Moray Lennox1470
4Thomas Fowley1398David Logue1603
5Rhys McCrosson1665Ash Angappan1286
6Hunter Mackay1561Jonny Livingstone1468
7Caitlin McCulloch1120Tommy Lally1545
8Giuseppe Bosco1360Campbell Dougan1664
9Alex Lane1375Jack Gallagher0
10Andy Chisholm1284Harvey Dellanzo1384
11Moray Jones0Malcolm Theodoreson1335
12Derek Rankine1311Greg Forrest1012
13Jack Spillane0Philip Blaber1244
14Iain Shields11870-1Jonny Linney0
15Chris Dinwoodie11050-1† Joao Carrapico0
16Ryan McGill1101Andrew Speirs0
17Marc Sheridan1419Ciaran Melvin0
18Douglas Veitch1253Andy McCulloch1109
19Wull Swales879Paul Cumming1382
20Marianne Burns00-1Julien Papillon1217
21Scott McCartney1180Thomas McAleer926
22Ronnie Martin1021Josh Cummings0
23Paul Chapman0David Hughes0
24Jack Crawford0Tom Cox0
† Default win. All ratings given are live Chess Scotland classical
Chess Scotland have indicated that the Club Championship is the biggest in Scotland

Playing Your Game

By default, all games will take place in The Bungo on the designated date for round five: Tuesday 2 April (7pm).

IMPORTANT! If you cannot make this date, you must contact your opponent in advance to make an alternative arrangement.

Games must be played over-the-board, with a clock at the 60+5 time control, on or before 9 April at the The Bungo (including the Club nights of Tue 26 March and Tue 9 April), or in another public space.

You can contact your opponent by speaking to them at the Club, by posting in the Club Championship WhatsApp group, or by contacting a Committee Member to request their contact details (we have obtained GDPR consent from members to share details with their opponent for the purpose of rescheduling Club Championship ties if required).

If you do not show up for your game on Tue 2 April, and make no attempt to contact your opponent or notify a Committee Member beforehand, you will lose the game by default. Repeat offenders will be removed from the tournament.

Please use the Club Championship Whatsapp group, or email us at contact@queensparkchessclub.com, or speak to Jordan or another Committee Member at a Club night, if you have any questions.

Categories
Club Championship

Club Championship – Round 4 – Tue 5 March

About

The 2023/24 Queens Park Chess Club Championship is a six round classical tournament at the 60+5 time control. Please visit our Club Championship page for full details of the format and rules.

The tournament started in October 2023 and will conclude in April 2024. The standings and results are available on the Chess Scotland website.

Pairings & Results

A live draw for round four was made at the Bungo by Competitions Manager Jordan McNaught during the Club meeting of Tuesday 20 February.

The round four pairings are as follows. This table will be updated with the results as they come in.

BoardWhiteRatingScoreBlackRating
1Connor Thompson16211-0Hunter Mackay1573
2Alistair Ahmed16600-1Jordan McNaught1673
3Thomas Fowley13980-1John McKenna1598
4Thomas Lally15340-1Rhys McCrosson1642
5Craig Thomson1588†1-0Jonny Linney0
6David Logue15951-0Andrew Speirs0
7Jonny Livingstone14631-0Jack Spillane0
8Moray Lennox14321-0Alex Lane1365
9Jack Gallagher00.5-0.5Giuseppe Bosco1384
10Angus Gillies00-1†Ash Angappan1286
11Harry McGrory01-0Moray Jones0
12Malcolm Theodoreson13260.5-0.5Chris Dinwoodie1093
13Caitlin McCulloch11371-0Douglas Veitch1254
14Campbell Dougan16641-0Ryan McGill1115
15Joao Carrapico00.5-0.5Marc Sheridan1407
16Harvey Dellanzo13841-0Ronnie Martin1021
17Wull Swales8790-1Derek Rankine1329
18Philip Blaber12631-0Marianne Burns0
19Julien Papillon12180-1Andy Chisholm1269
20Josh Cummings00-1Iain Shields1172
21Andy McCulloch11180.5-0.5Ciaran Melvin0
22Thomas McAleer9220-1Greg Forrest1013
23Paul Cumming13510.5-0.5Paul Chapman0
24Tom Cox00-1Scott McCartney1116
25David Hughes01-0Jack Crawford0
† Default win. All ratings given are Chess Scotland classical
50 players will take part in round four of the Club Championship

Playing Your Game

By default, all games will take place in The Bungo on the designated date for round four: Tuesday 5 March (7pm).

IMPORTANT! If you cannot make this date, you must contact your opponent in advance to make an alternative arrangement.

Games must be played over-the-board, with a clock at the 60+5 time control, on or before 12 March at the The Bungo (including the Club nights of Tue 27 Feb and Tue 12 March), or in another public space.

You can contact your opponent by speaking to them at the Club, by posting in the Club Championship WhatsApp group, or by contacting a Committee Member to request their contact details (we have obtained GDPR consent from members to share details with their opponent for the purpose of rescheduling Club Championship ties if required).

If you do not show up for your game on Tue 5 March, and make no attempt to contact your opponent or notify a Committee Member beforehand, you will lose the game by default. Repeat offenders will be removed from the tournament.

Please use the Club Championship Whatsapp group, or email us at contact@queensparkchessclub.com, or speak to Jordan or another Committee Member at a Club night, if you have any questions.

Categories
Club Championship

Club Championship – Round 3 – Tue 6 Feb

About

The 2023/24 Queens Park Chess Club Championship is a six round classical tournament at the 60+5 time control. Please visit our Club Championship page for full details of the format and rules.

The tournament started in October 2023 and will conclude in April 2024. The standings and results are available on the Chess Scotland website.

Pairings & Results

A live draw for round three was made at the Bungo by Competitions Manager Jordan McNaught during the Club meeting of Tuesday 23 January.

The round three pairings are as follows. This table will be updated with the results as they come in.

BoardWhiteRatingScoreBlackRating
1John McKenna16800.5-0.5Tommy Lally1533
2Alex Lane13830-1Connor Thomson1659
3Jordan McNaught16301-0Jonny Livingstone1470
4Giuseppe Bosco13720-1Alistair Ahmed1623
5Hunter Mackay15411-0David Logue1597
6Rhys McCrosson15930-1Thomas Fowley1330
7Douglas Veitch00-1Craig Thomson1599
8Marc Sheridan14370-1Moray Jones0
9Jonny Linney01-0Harvey Dellanzo1381
10Ryan McGill11050.5-0.5Malcolm Theodoreson1360
11Derek Rankine13290-1Moray Lennox1396
12Andrew Speirs01-0Philip Blaber1269
13Julien Papillon12100-1†Jack Spillane0
14Joao Carrapico00.5-0.5Caitlin McCulloch1161
15Iain Shields11590-1Harry McGrory0
16Andrew McCulloch11180-1Jack Gallagher0
17Chris Dinwoodie10630.5-0 5Campbell Dougan1673
18Ash Angappan12841-0Thomas McAleer1026
19Angus Gillies01-0†Declan Mooney0
20Ronnie Martin10231-0Paul Cumming1398
21Jack Crawford00-1Wull Swales879
22Josh Cummings01-0†Paul Baran0
23Marianne Burns01-0David Hughes0
24Greg Forrest10221-0Paul Chapman0
25Andy Chisholm12831-0Scott McCartney0
26Ciaran Melvin01-0Tom Cox0
† Default win. All ratings given are Chess Scotland classical
Over 50 players compete in Queens Park’s Club Championship

Playing Your Game

By default, all games will take place in The Bungo on the designated date for round one: Tuesday 6 February (7pm).

IMPORTANT! If you cannot make this date, you must contact your opponent in advance to make an alternative arrangement.

Games must be played over-the-board, with a clock at the 60+5 time control, on or before 13 February at the The Bungo (including the Club nights of Tue 30 Jan and Tue 13 Feb), or in another public space.

You can contact your opponent by speaking to them at the Club, by posting in the Club Championship WhatsApp group, or by contacting a Committee Member to request their contact details (we have obtained GDPR consent from members to share details with their opponent for the purpose of rescheduling Club Championship ties if required).

If you do not show up for your game on Tue 16 Feb, and make no attempt to contact your opponent or notify a Committee Member beforehand, you will lose the game by default. Repeat offenders will be removed from the tournament.

Please use the Club Championship Whatsapp group, or email us at contact@queensparkchessclub.com, or speak to Jordan or another Committee Member at a Club night, if you have any questions.

Categories
Club Championship

Club Championship – Round 2 – Tue 16 Jan

About

The 2023/24 Queens Park Chess Club Championship is a six round classical tournament at the 60+5 time control. Please visit our Club Championship page for full details of the format and rules.

Round one of the tournament commenced in October and resulted in 25 decisive results. All 54 members will take part in round two.

The standings and results are available on the Chess Scotland website.

Pairings & Results

A live draw for round two was made at the Bungo by Competitions Manager Jordan McNaught during the Club meeting of Tuesday 12 December. The round two pairings are as follows. This table will be updated with the results as they come in.

BoardWhiteRatingScoreBlackRating
1Philip Blaber12690-1John McKenna1680
2Connor Thomson16591-0Julien Papillon1210
3Caitlin McCulloch11610-1Jordan McNaught1630
4Alistair Ahmed16231-0Iain Shields1159
5Thomas Fowley01-0Craig Thomson1599
6David Logue15971-0Angus Gillies0
7Moray Jones00-1Rhys McCrosson1593
8Tommy Lally15331-0Jonny Linney0
9Hunter Mackay1541†1-0Dabbi Taylor1508*
10Jonny Livingstone14701-0Andrew Speirs0
11Jack Spillane00-1Alex Lane1383
12Harry McGrory00-1Guiseppe Bosco1372
13Paul Cumming13980.5-0.5Douglas Veitch0
14Tom Cox00-1Marc Sheridan1437
15Harvey Dellanzo13811-0Jack Crawford0
16Malcolm Theodoreson13601-0Greg Forrest0
17Josh Cummings00-1Derek Rankine1329
18Andy McCulloch1118†1-0Scott McCartney0
19David Hughes00-1Chris Dinwoodie1063
20Thomas McAleer10261-0Ciaran Melvin0
21Moray Lennox13961-0Ronnie Martin1023
22Wull Swales8790-1Joao Carrapico0
23Ryan McGill1105†1-0Paul Baran0
24Kris Barr00-1†Jack Gallagher0
25Declan Mooney01-0Marianne Burns0
26Paul Chapman00-1Ash Angappan1284
27Campbell Dougan16731-0Andy Chisholm0
† Default win. All ratings given are Chess Scotland classical except * FIDE rating
Defending champion Rhys McCrosson (left) beat Tom Cox (right) in round one

Playing Your Game

By default, all games will take place in The Bungo on the designated date for round one: Tuesday 16 January (7pm).

IMPORTANT! If you cannot make this date, you must contact your opponent in advance to make an alternative arrangement.

Games must be played over-the-board, with a clock at the 60+5 time control, on or before 23 January, at the The Bungo (including the Club nights of Tue 9 Jan and Tue 23 Jan), or in another public space.

You can contact your opponent by speaking to them at the Club, by posting in the Club Championship WhatsApp group, or by contacting a Committee Member to request their contact details (we have obtained GDPR consent from members to share details with their opponent for the purpose of rescheduling Club Championship ties if required).

If you do not show up for your game on Tue 16 Jan, and make no attempt to contact your opponent or notify a Committee Member beforehand, you will lose the game by default. Repeat offenders will be removed from the tournament.

Please use the Club Championship Whatsapp group, or email us at contact@queensparkchessclub.com, or speak to Jordan or another Committee Member at a Club night, if you have any questions.

Categories
Club Championship

Club Championship – Round 1 – Tue 7 Nov

About

The 2023/24 Queens Park Chess Club Championship is a six round classical tournament at the 60+5 time control. Please visit our Club Championship page for full details of the format and rules.

Pairings & Results

A live draw for round one was made at the Bungo by Competitions Manager Jordan McNaught during the Club meeting of Tuesday 24 October. The round one pairings and results are as follows.

The standings and results are available on the Chess Scotland website.

BoardWhiteRatingScoreBlackRating
1John McKenna16801-0Wull Swales879
2Paul Baran00-1Connor Thompson1659
3Jordan McNaught16301-0Kris Barr0
4Marianne Burns00-1Alistair Ahmed1623
5Craig Thomson15991-0Paul Chapman0
6Andy Chisholm00-1David Logue1597
7Rhys McCrosson15931-0Tom Cox0
8Jack Crawford00-1Tommy Lally1533
9Dabbi Taylor1508*1-0Josh Cummings0
10Greg Forrest00-1Jonny Livingstone1470
11Marc Sheridan14370-1Thomas Fowley0
12Angus Gillies01-0Paul Cumming1398
13Alex Lane13831-0†David Hughes0
14Moray Jones01-0Harvey Dellanzo1381
15Giuseppe Bosco13721-0Moray Lennox0
16Jonny Linney01-0Malcolm Theodoreson1360
17Derek Rankine13290-1Hunter Mackay0
18Scott McCartney00-1Philip Blaber1269
19Julien Papillon12101-0Ryan McGill0
20Ciaran Melvin00-1Caitlin McCulloch1161
21Iain Shields11591-0Thomas Robertson0
22Andrew Speirs01-0Andrew McCulloch1118
23Chris Dinwoodie10630-1Jack Spillane0
24Douglas Veitch01-0Thomas McAleer1026
25Ronnie Martin10230-1Harry McGrory 0
† Default win. All ratings given are Chess Scotland classical except * FIDE rating
All members are participating in this years Club Championship.

Playing Your Game

By default, all games will take place in The Bungo on the designated date for round one: Tuesday 7 November (7pm).

IMPORTANT! If you cannot make this date, you must contact your opponent in advance to make an alternative arrangement.

Games must be played over-the-board, with a clock at the 60+5 time control, on or before 14 November, at the The Bungo (including the Club nights of Tue 31 Oct and Tue 14 Nov), or in another public space.

You can contact your opponent by speaking to them at the Club, by posting in the Club Championship WhatsApp group, or by contacting a Committee Member to request their contact details (we have obtained GDPR consent from members to share details with their opponent for the purpose of rescheduling Club Championship ties if required).

If you do not show up for your game on Tue 7 Nov, and make no attempt to contact your opponent or notify a Committee Member beforehand, you will lose the game by default. Repeat offenders will be removed from the tournament.

Please use the Club Championship Whatsapp group, or email us at contact@queensparkchessclub.com, or speak to Jordan or another Committee Member at a Club night, if you have any queries about the Club Championship.

Categories
In The Media

Greater Govanhill Magazine

Queens Park Chess Club is the focus of an item in Issue 12 of Greater Govanhill Magazine, which explores arts, culture and subcultures in the local area.

Staff journalist Devon McCole and photographer Alexander Hoyles visited the Club in September and interviewed Club President Caitlin McCulloch, Glasgow Chess League Division 4 Team Captain Ronnie Martin, and Camila Fanizza, a new visitor originally from Argentina.

Caitlin (top left), Camila (middle left) and Ronnie were interviewed & photographed

The article, appearing in the Oct/Nov 2023 edition, covers the Club’s history, its appeal to players both experienced and new, our Feb 2023 simultaneous exhibition with International Master Andrew Greet – which will be repeated in May 2024 – and even our supposed missing apostrophe.

The free hard copy magazine is available from selected shops, pubs, cafes, cultural venues and community/service centres in Govanhill and the wider Queens Park area. Some issues were made available at the Chess Club night of Tuesday 17 October.

Click here to read the feature online.

The article was published in October 2023
Categories
Club Meetings

MP & Cllr Visit

Queens Park Chess Club was pleased to host a visit from two local political representatives, Alison Thewliss MP (Glasgow Central) and Councillor Alexander Belic (Southside Central Ward), in The Bungo this week.

The visit, pictured above, took place during a Club night on the evening of Tuesday 3 October. It was arranged in follow up on our recent letter to Alison regarding a £1m funding investment for chess development in England.

Alison and Alexander met with Caitlin and Derek from the Club Committee to discuss several shared interests, including the history of the Chess Club, the social and educational value of over-the-board chess, the general chess and board game scene in Glasgow and Scotland, a successful Dutch initiative to create chess tables in public places, and the scope for governmental investment in grassroots chess in Scotland in the near future.

“There are currently no plans to extend this funding to Scotland…”

Letter from UK Government Minister for Sport, Stuart Andrew MP

While the UK Government’s chess investment package does not include Scotland, Alison kindly offered to write to the Scottish Government to enquire about funding possibilities on our behalf.

Separately, Cllr Belic, who sits on the Queen’s Park Working Group, a partnership featuring Glasgow City Council and Friends of Queen’s Park, helpfully agreed to stay in touch on the outcomes of a recent community consultation, and any possibilities that may emerge to establish a set of permanent chess tables in the park.

Alison previously wrote to the UK Prime Minister on our behalf, to ask if the English chess investment may be extended or proportionately matched in Scotland. We received a response from the Minister for Sport, Gambling and Civil Society, which is available for download below.

We are grateful to Alison and Alexander for their time. We will share further developments as we receive them.

Categories
In The Media

Guesting on Radio Scotland

Queens Park Chess Club President Caitlin McCulloch today contributed to a live discussion on making chess more accessible to people under 30, on Radio Scotland’s Mornings with Stephen Jardine.

The radio discussion follows a formal UK Government announcement this week on a funding package of just under £1m to develop chess in England, which will be shared by the English Chess Federation, local authorities, and primary schools in disadvantaged areas. Culture Secretary Liz Frazer said the investment is focused on young people, and designed to help give them, “someone to talk to, something to do and somewhere to go.” She also stated chess teaches young people important skills, including critical thinking and patience.

Caitlin invited Harry Marron, who manages junior club Lenzie Chess Academy, to join her for the discussion on providing young people in Scotland with greater exposure to over-the-board chess. The conversation featured the following points:  

Caitlin: “We’re quite a new Club, we had to take a break during the pandemic, then we came roaring back in 2022. We have 45, 46 members now, last year we had seven, there’s been an absolute boom in popularity. We have quite a wide range of people, all different backgrounds. The main reason I got back into chess was over lockdown… I had a revenge arc to learn and beat a friend! What’s nice about chess is, you don’t need anything fancy, whether you are new or a Grandmaster, you always have the same board, the same pieces.”

Harry: “Chess is more popular to young people than it has been for a long time. It’s thriving in Scotland – during Covid young people started playing online… Queen’s Gambit was very entertaining and the chess part was done particularly well. Parents watched and they encouraged their children [to play].”

Caitlin: “We have tennis courts, outdoor gyms, basketball courts – outdoor chess tables isn’t anything different. We go to random picnic benches at the moment and bring some chess boards along. What you find is, people come walking past and go, “Oh – chess!”. It’s almost always that they play chess as a child and haven’t played in a while and come back. Being physically visible is really important, and promoting chess to young people is really important.”

Harry: “I had a five year old visit Lenzie, who is now the number 2 ranked under 9 player in the world. Although he knew how the pieces move, I taught him. He has sight, determination and a tremendous work ethic. At the top it’s 1% talent and 99% hard work. But there’s a lot of creativity in chess too.”

Caitlin: “We play in pubs and cafes around the southside, we currently play in the downstairs area of a pub! People think of chess as being in a big silent hall, and you’re not allowed to talk or do anything, but times are changing, it’s in parks, pubs, cafes. There’s more than sitting silently for three hours. I like the chess side – the focus, the patience – and also the social aspect. It helps with social connections, people have said they came to the Chess Club when they had their schooling disrupted and they were a bit isolated, it was really helpful to have a shared common interest.”

Listen to the full broadcast here. The chess discussion took place on the 24 August show with Stephen, and started at 10:50am (1h:50m into the 9am-noon broadcast). It will be available for one month following broadcast on the BBC Sounds app and website.

The Radio Scotland item follows a special Herald Magazine feature on Queens Park earlier this year, in addition to a Spotify podcast, Evening Times article and ITV News at Ten appearance.

Meanwhile, following our recent letter to Alison Thewliss MP, Alison has helpfully written to the Prime Minister to ask for clarity on whether there are plans to extend, or proportionally match, the UK Government chess funding package in Scotland. We will share further developments when a response has been received.

Categories
Statement

Engaging Parliamentarians

Queens Park Chess Club has formally written to our two constituency representatives, Glasgow Central MP Alison Thewliss and Glasgow Southside MSP Nicola Sturgeon, to request clarity on a recent funding announcement, and encourage investment in grassroots chess in Scotland.

In correspondence signed by all five of the Club Committee elected at this month’s AGM, we asked whether there are plans for a forthcoming £0.5m investment by the UK Government to the English Chess Federation to extend to, or be proportionally matched, in Scotland.

Chess does not currently receive any public funding in Scotland. In the early 2000s, Chess Scotland received a small annual grant from the Scottish Government. In letters to our MP and MSP, we argued that chess is a low-cost, popular and accessible activity that helps people to come together, have an enjoyable experience, and get to know other local people from all walks of life. We stated that encouraging social chess in local communities aligns with many public policy priorities, including reducing social isolation, improving mental wellbeing, and strengthening community development, and presents strong value for public money.

We look forward to developing a relationship with both of our representatives on this matter. Alison Thewliss has already engaged with the Chess Club, having visited our chess drop-in event at the June 2023 Bungo in the Back Lanes Festival, pictured above and below.

We join Chess Scotland in encouraging our Members and visitors, and other Chess Clubs in Scotland, to consider writing to their local MP and MSP on this matter. Following an emergency meeting on 6 August, Chess Scotland advise those writing to their local politicians to: use your postcode; mention the English Chess Federation grant; ask about the scope for a similar investment in Scotland; and write an individual letter, rather than a duplicate, as MPs and MSPs do not engage with standard campaign letters.

Queens Park at Bungo in the Back Lanes: 17 June 2023
Categories
Club Meetings

2023 AGM Summary

Each year, Queens Park holds an Annual General Meeting (AGM) for Club Members to discuss how each season went, and what changes they may wish to look at for the following season, and elect a new Club Committee.

Queens Park Chess Club’s third Annual General Meeting took place on 1 August 2023 in The Bungo, from 7-9pm.

13 Members attended the AGM. They:

  • Heard reports from the President, Secretary and Treasurer, which summarised achievements in participation and competition during a major season (2022/23) of expansion and change, which has left the Club in strong financial health.
  • Agreed a Club Constitution.
  • Elected a new Club Committee.
  • Put themselves forward for Team Captains and Setup/Storage Assistants.
  • Discussed and exchanged on Club finances, the operation of league teams, a proposed expansion of the Club Championship, creating a blitz tournament, and welcoming newcomers.
  • Voted to introduce incremental time controls to the 2023/24 Club Championship.

Full AGM minutes are available here.

Please visit our dedicated AGM page for further information on the purpose of Club AGMs and minutes from previous meetings.

The new season will begin on Tuesday 5 September, 6:30-9:30pm in The Bungo. Check out the Club Calendar for plans to arrange a blitz tournament and an introductory class on over-the-board, classical chess later in September.

Image generated by artificial intelligence using DALL-E