English Chess Forum

They definitely checked in advance of the match. As to why they were allowed, well it is mildly intriguing but probably only really GM with any true motivation, and even that is a bit weak with no GM open team. I'd actually be tempted to do something like relaxing the rules to let people in a countr...

Only the one 2600 for Manx today it seems (Dietmar on 3, then Ottosen etc.).

Gonzaga seemingly defaulting on 6, so I guess they've given up on promotion for the year.

Mick Norris wrote:Manx must be the biggest drop between top and bottom half of the team

The whole thing is a bit fascinating They do have some decent mid/lower boards not playing, so presume it isn't a straight promotion push.

I heard some talk the GM might simply have been the 6th player they could find......

Fine for the majority of players that, some? Well...... Waving score sheets at people definitely happens in close matches, although I've never been absolutely convinced of the point. If a draw is enough to seal the match then your opponent should know that too! I'm not sure how many people can effec...

I've certainly never had trouble with wandering to and fro over the border :) Hopefully the top of the Yorkshire league should be fine, the lower divisions more worrying perhaps. Regarding the local leagues I just checked for York and in the first division 20 out of 70 players (7 teams) seem to play...

Anyone worried about the new grades in general should look at http://grading.bcfservices.org.uk/newgrades.php - lots of useful information including how they're being calculated, where the %iles are moving to etc. It's really very helpful. To go back to the point that Richard Palliser raised earlier...