West Wales Chess League – Monthly Update

With another month gone, it’s time for an update on what’s been happening behind the scenes. Unfortunately, we had to resolve the situation with the De La Beche Chess Club folding, as their fixtures were removed following the old club’s departure after many years in the league. However, the free fixtures have been taken up by several clubs, and the open evenings have allowed more interaction with many of the new non-league clubs that have appeared across the area. Games are now being arranged with Llangyfelach Chess Club (held at the Welcome Inn), Ammanford Chess Club, Gowerton Library, and Carmarthen, which lies at the far end of the league’s boundaries.

Speaking of Carmarthen Chess Club, discussions are once again underway about the possibility of Carmarthen and Pembrokeshire Chess Clubs entering the league — depending on the league boundaries and travel distances. Carmarthen is less than half a mile from the current boundary, making it a realistic candidate for joining next season. This would help boost club numbers once again, though any decision will depend on the AGM vote to slightly adjust the boundary and approve their entry.

The AGM minutes have now been corrected and published online. If you’d like to review what happened at the last AGM, visit the website and check the Documents section — you’ll also find yearbooks, reports, and past minutes, which are useful for anyone interested in the league’s history. Several new articles have been published recently, including one on the history of West Wales chess.

I recently gave a talk on the league’s past, our current operations, and the roles of our committee and officers. A major focus of the talk was the need for more volunteers, as the league continues to face challenges that could worsen if new helpers aren’t found. The talk was hosted at Castell Nedd’s Chess Club and may move to other clubs depending on arrangements.

The Division One Plate has now been made and presented to the Emperors of Castell Nedd Chess Club, while the AOJ Quick Play Junior Shield has been engraved and awarded to Advik Ram for his performance last year. Stephen Smith received the Player of the Year trophy for the plate, and once the Nicholson Shield and Division 2 Cup are engraved, the full trophy set will be complete.

The West Wales Chess Congress will take place in a couple of weeks, and as always, Les Philpin, our tireless organiser, is looking for more entries. I’ll be participating myself this year — for the first time in about ten years — and I’m looking forward to the challenge of a three-day competition.

Castell Nedd is also recruiting teams for the Dragon League (U11s), with Barbarians and Crymlyn expected to compete so far. In the U15 section, Glynneath Library, Dwr-y-felin and another team of Castell Nedd will be taking part. The league (for schools and organisations new to chess) will start in December or January. This is a relaxed event — no clocks, no scoring — designed to encourage new players who are approaching league standard but not quite there. If you know any schools or groups that might be interested, please do invite them to join.

The last of the obituary articles have now been written, marking the loss of several long-standing members over the past year or so. Our thanks and condolences go to their families. A special hats off to White Knights Chess Club for running their Chess Academy, which brought together 75 schoolchildren aged 8–14 from eight different schools. Events like this take tremendous effort and organisation, but seeing so many young players enjoying chess is truly inspiring and will hopefully lead to many future league members.

At the 4NCL, Castell Nedd returned with two wins (albeit in the lower division), while Bill Hewitt represented the league in division three with Rhyfelwyr Essyllwg. This just shows you the standard of the 4NCL when you consider Bill is currently graded 1982 and playing in division three!

It was also great to see Morrison Chess Club travelling across Europe for matches — a wonderful sign of growing enthusiasm. Photos of the team enjoying the sunshine and blasting out over the board can be seen online.

Looking ahead, we are planning a special talk in January by Bill Hewitt, one of the league’s strongest players, alongside FIDE Master Alexis Harakis. The event will raise funds to support coaching for promising junior players, strengthening the next generation of West Wales chess talent. All profits will go directly toward junior training building up representation for the Welsh team.