Minutes November 2013

2013-11-25

Summary of the Minutes of the Chess Edinburgh Council Meeting held at 19.30 at the Loanhead Miners Welfare Club, 74 The Loan, LOANHEAD on Monday November 25th 2013.

The following issues were discussed at the Council meeting:

Matters Arising

The Council expressed its sorrow at the recent death of Musselburgh�s Frank O�Donnell.

Edinburgh Chess League

It was reported that defaults were slightly up on this time last season. The League Secretary reported that the first three rounds of matches in all division have been completed and that results and league tables are now on the Chess Edinburgh website.

Edinburgh Allegro Chess League

The Allegro League is now underway and the first two nights have been completed. The Tournament Director reported that Ability Centre Arrows did not turn up for the second night of play. Ability Centre Arrows have been asked to clarify whether they have withdrawn or not but have not yet replied. A Council Member offered to explore the possibility of raising a hybrid team to fulfil the Arrows fixtures with graded friendlies. The meeting accepted this offer.
It was reported that other than the issue described above the league is progressing well with results and tables published on the Chess Edinburgh website.

Lothians Congress 2013

The Tournament Director reported that the Congress took place on the weekend of the 21st and 22nd September 2013. The TD reported that the Wester Hailes Education Centre had once more accommodated this annual event but on this occasion there had been issues with the lighting in the main hall. To avoid games being played in poor light some boards had to be moved to allow the players to play in the best lit areas. The main problem appeared to be that several of the strip lights in the main hall were not working.
The Tournament Director reported that the Congress had been successful, despite competition from new events on the Congress circuit. The event attracted over 100 players � only slightly down on the previous year.

Summer Cup/Plate 2013

The League Secretary reported that the final was played in September and that Corstorphine I beat Edinburgh. Congratulations were offered to Corstorphine Chess Club and the meeting noted that the trophy had been presented at the League Fixtures Meeting in October.

Edinburgh Chess Congress 2014

The Tournament Director reported since the previous meeting the proposed use of Mary Erskine School for the 2014 event had fallen through. A sub-committee had been established to find alternative accommodation. The David Lloyd Centre at Newhaven Harbour in Leith has been secured; the event will be staged as previously scheduled. The meeting agreed that the congress should offer a reduced entry fee for players entering and paying early. It was agreed that a �3 reduction was appropriate.

Lothians Allegro 2014

The Tournament Director reported that the Wester Hailes Education Centre (WHEC) has been booked for Sunday 12th January 2014. The TD reported that the entry forms have been published and made widely available, the equipment has been collected from Chess Scotland, three of four arbiters have been booked and the signage box has been collected. Preparations appear to be on schedule to stage the event in January.

Primary & Secondary Schools

The Primary Schools representative reported that the Lothian Junior Chess League is underway with three events planned to take place at WHEC over the season. This season there are 13 teams in two leagues. The representative also reported that the individual event had attracted 65 players � a massive increase from the 27 that played in this event just two years ago. Details can be found on the League�s website via www.lothianschoolchess.org.uk/.
There was no report regarding secondary schools chess as the Council does not have a Secondary Schools Representative at present.

Website

It was reported that results and tables for both the Edinburgh Chess League and the Edinburgh Allegro Chess League are available on the Chess Edinburgh website.

General Secretary

The General Secretary noted that fire at Corstorphine�s playing venue had been in the news since the last meeting and he asked the Council Member who was a member of Corstorphine Chess Club to update the meeting on what had happened since. The member reported that Corstorphine had been very grateful for the support of the Edinburgh chess community. He noted that Edinburgh Chess Club offered its premises until more permanent arrangements were in place. As a result they had played two league matches at Alva Street. The now defunct Lasswade Chess Club donated its equipment. Recently Corstorphine has acquired premises at St Anne�s Church in Corstorphine; they have also discovered that their chess equipment was undamaged by the fire � hence they now have more equipment than they need! If other clubs need assistance in this regard they should contact Angus Ruthven.
The General Secretary reported that Pentland Hills Chess Club will also be moving premises very soon and that clubs will be informed of the new location when the new arrangement has been finalised.

Treasurer

The Treasurer (EG) tabled a paper showing the estimated turnover and costs for 2013-14. The estimate detailed a turnover of approximately �1500 per annum and estimated costs of approximately �1500. This estimate confirms that the Council will continue to work on a break-even basis.

AOCB

It was reported that Edinburgh Chess Club had hosted a magnificent event where a team of �Vikings� visited Edinburgh. The Vikings consisted of 9 strong Nordic players � 5 from Iceland and 4 from Norway. The Vikings played two 9 board Allegro matches beating Edinburgh 7� -1� and beating Wandering Dragons 7-2. The meeting congratulated Neil Berry on organising this event and for raising the profile of chess in Edinburgh.

Date of Next Meeting

The date of the next meeting was agreed to be held on Thursday 20th February 2014 at a venue TBC by email. The meeting closed at 9.15 pm.


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