Division 1

Nidum now have both hands on the Dr Hanson Trophy thanks to a resounding 4½-½ victory over Morriston B. They have an unbeatable 32 points with one match still to play. Unofficially they are the champions. White Knights A will be finishing in second place while third spot will be between Morriston A and White Knights B. The crucial struggle, however, is all about relegation. Emperors lost 1½-3½ to White Knights A but stay ahead of Morriston B thanks to a superior game point total. Both teams are on 7 points, two ahead of White Knights C. All three still have four matches to play but the Knights will need to beat the Emperors in their two forthcoming encounters if they are to stand any chance of staying up.

Division 2

In Division 2 the match on Tuesday saw Bluebell keep up a bit of pressure on the University thanks to a solid 4-1 win over De la Beche A. Catching the University is, however, something of a forlorn hope and on the Wednesday the University matched Bluebell’s result with 4-1 win over White Knights D. The University now need to lose both their remaining matches for Bluebell to have any chance of catching them.

At the other end of Division 2 the situation is still tight with just three points separating all but the top two teams. Morriston C travelled to Briton Ferry on the Thursday and managed to scrape a 3-2 win against the Giants. It gives the Morriston team some breathing space and with a match or two in hand keeps them in a favourable position. De la Beche A and Merlins meet this coming week with Merlins needing the win to lift them off the bottom.

Division 3

The close run tussle for the Division 3 title became slightly less close when contenders, Morriston D, turned up one short at Upper Killay to take on the Harriers. Their first default of the season proved to be the difference between the teams and allowed the Harriers to take the match 3-2. Although Morriston D have the superior game point score they are now 2 match points behind their E team with both having just two matches to play. In the other match played Tribunes were also one short with the result that they could only draw with De la Beche B. This keeps them in third place but they will need a result against the Harriers this coming Tuesday if they want to stay there.

E.J. Clarke (West Wales Closed Championship)

The remaining game between Neil Stuart and Paul Bevan has been played with the result ending in favour of Neil.

Round 4 is scheduled for Wednesday 12th April 2017 at the Upper Killay Chess Club (7:15pm start)

Notice

Another reminder from the League Secretary but this time it concerns match cards and the exchange of team lists (Rule 3.7). As well as showing the playing order the team list must also show each player’s grade and the secretary is reminding team captains that, currently, the grade to be used is the one calculated for January 1st. These grades are available on the grading site with the grade listed under W1 being the January 1st grade. The other grade quoted is the “live” grade which will vary with each result and is ignored for match purposes.

18/03/2017