Keep up with the champions!

The World Chess Championships 2008 starts tomorrow, Tue 14 Oct in Bonn, Germany. The match is between reigning champion Viswanathan Anand (38) and former champion Vladimir Kramnik (33). It promises to be a very exciting match, played out over 12 games, and should put chess back in the news. You can follow the games as they happen on the official website - www.uep-worldchess.com - or at www.chessbase.com

Next Chess Academy

The next Junior Chess Academy takes place on Sat 15 November at Trinity School, Ford nr Shrewsbury. For those of you who haven't been yet, the Academy is a fun way to learn more about chess to help you enjoy it more and, most importantly, win more games! We have now produced course books for the first two stages of the Academy - Pawn and Knight with the Bishop level to follow shortly. The Academy is suitable for all juniors up to age 18 at all ability levels. You can download an information leaflet and enrolment form for the Academy here. See you on 15 November!

Shrewsbury Juniors v Telepost C

Shrewsbury Juniors finished level with Telepost C in Friday's league match. At one stage it looked as if the team could pull off a win but Telepost managed to hold the match in the end. Matthew Best was in a good position on board five but lost to a mating attack against the run of play and then a well deserved draw on top board for Henry Graham and a solid win for Jonathan Newey saw the match 1.5-0.5 in the junior's favour. The final two boards were shared with Francis Rooney outplaying John Casewell on board two and Chris Lovejoy finally succumbing to Brian Holford's amterial advantage despite wome gallant efforts to hold the game. Full result: Telepost C 2.5 Shrewsbury Juniors 2.5 C Micalleff 0.5-0.5 Henry Graham J Casewell 0-1 Francis Rooney B Holford 1-0 Chris Lovejoy S Sweeney 0-5-0-5 J Newey A Bowyer 1-0 Matthew Best

Chess Academy lifts off!

Shropshire's new Junior Chess Academy started last month and the second meeting takes place this Saturday - 4 October - at Trinity School, Ford, near Shrewsbury at 10am. The first meeting last month was well attended with the juniors getting a quick introduction to the Academy structure and the qualifications they can gain, followed by a 5-minute tournament which was won by Francis Rooney with eight points from nine games. See you on Saturday! (PS to find Trinity School take the A458 Welshpool road from Shrewsbury and ford is the first village you come to. HJust after the petyrol station turn right and the school is 100m on your left.)

Shrewsbury Juniors kick off with a win

Shrewsbury Juniors overcame their rivals Newport Juniors in the opening match of the season. The Shropshire League Division 3 match was held at Newport's venue and ended in a thrilling 3-2 win for the visitors. Unfortunately Newport were unable to field a full side so Shrewsbury started off with a default on board 5 for Matthew Best. The first match finished on board one when Athar Mehmood's king-side attack overcame Henry Graham's defence. Then Mark Richards won against Jonathan Newey on board two despite the Shrewsbury player having good chances earlier on. That left Shrewsbury needing two wins from the remaining two games and Chris Lovejoy chalked up his point with a win for Shrewsbury against Huw Davenport. And finally Francis Rooney won against Jamie Allen finding the win in a Rook and King v King ending. Full result: Newport Juniors 2 Shrewsbury Juniors 3 Athar Mehmood 1-0 Henry Graham Mark Richards 1-0 Jonathan Newey Huw Davenport 0-1 Chris Lovejoy Jamie Allen 0-1 Francis Rooney default 0-1 Matthew Best

League gets underway!

The Shropshire league gets underway this week and the county's two junior teams clash as Shrewsbury Juniors travel to Newport Juniors tonight for the opening match. Best of luck to all! Full report to follow here soon ...

Staffordshire Junior chess congress

Staffordshire Junior chess congress takes place on Sunday 19 October at Hassell Community Primary School, Barracks Rd, Newcastle-Under-Lyme, Staffordshire. ST5 1LF. It starts at 9.30am sharp and there are six rounds and players have 30 minutes each on the clock for each round. The event is open to all those under 18 years of age on 1 September 2008. More details and booking form here - www.junior.staffordshirechess.org.uk/congress.html