Hampshire played four matches this season, with the three SCCU ones, and their annual match against Wiltshire. Following on from the disappointing season the previous year, this year was actually worse, with Hampshire losing all four fixtures!
For the record of Hampshire County matches, and links to any articles I have written, the table on the Hampshire County Chess Matches page will detail these. The Hampshire County Chess History page summaries the leagues Hampshire have played in, and the successes Hampshire have achieved. Both of these are available from the menu at the top of the site as well.
Hampshire 6 Sussex 10 – Sept 26th 1903 – Chichester
Hampshire’s first match was against Sussex and was played in Chichester.
The report in the Bognor Regis Observer was very informative and I would agree that Sussex had the strength in depth, and Hampshire missing players such as WC Kenny (normally board 3 to 6) and HD Osborn (4 to 7) was a bigger issue than the missing Sussex players. Hampshire only scored half a point on the bottom five boards, confirming the view about Hampshire’s weak tail.
The game between Elwell and MacDonald which was submitted to adjudication and did come down in the Hampshire players favour, which meant the final result was 10 – 6.
Hampshire winners were Blake, Elwell, Clayton and L Hewett. Also playing was the future Sir George Thomas, who drew against the strong Sussex player HW Butler, who often played higher than board 4.
COUNTY CHESS AT CHICHESTER – SUSSEX v HANTS. Many of the best chess players in Sussex and Hampshire assembled at the Anchor Hotel, Chichester, on Saturday, when there took place the first for the season of the series of inter-county chess matches arranged by the Southern Counties Chess Union, Hampshire were without such notable players as Messrs. Kenny and Osborn, and had a weak “tail.”
Bognor Regis Observer – Wednesday 30 September 1903
On the other hand Sussex had a fairly representative side, for although they were without Messrs. Reed and Manlove, and were perhaps not quite so strong as when they won last year by 9½ points to 6½, they had skilful recruits in Mr. E. Macdonald. recently Champion of Scotland, and Mr. J. W. Wright, secretary of the Metropolitan Club. Thus it was not surprising that Sussex won by 10 to 5.
Some good tough games were played, but the curtailment of time to three hours’ only necessitated adjudications of games which with 20 minutes’ more play would have been finished. The arrangements were carried out in a most able manner by Mr. Eugene Street (Chichester) and Mr. Mannington (Sussex Hon. Sec.). Mr. Dobell is in excellent form this season, and should be well to the front in this year’s Sussex Championship; his was the first win recorded to the home team in this match.
Mr. Macdonald, the ex-Scottish champion, is an undoubted acquisition to the Sussex ranks. His game with Mr. Elwell was a good example of position play. At the finish he was a pawn down, but held so strong a hold of the position that the captains were unwilling to give the game to the Hants player. The position will therefore be submitted to Mr. Blackbume for his decision. The two captains are well-known authorities in the Ruy Lopez opening and their game was very interesting. The winning of the match by so great a score will doubtless ensure a very strong contingent journeying to London on October 17th to play against Kent – a match which was won by Sussex last year by nine games to seven.
| Board | Hampshire | Result | Sussex | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JH Blake | 1 | HF Cheshire | 0 |
| 2 | FJH Elwell | 1 | E MacDonald | 0 |
| 3 | T Crassweller | 0 | HE Dobell | 1 |
| 4 | Sir GA Thomas | ½ | HW Butler | ½ |
| 5 | E Draycott | ½ | Thos Durant | ½ |
| 6 | E Clayton | 1 | FW Womersley | 0 |
| 7 | HD Roone | 0 | Castle Leaver | 1 |
| 8 | HS Hewett | ½ | LE Mannington | ½ |
| 9 | G Wood | 0 | GM Normann | 1 |
| 10 | GI Gribble | 0 | JD Wright | 1 |
| 11 | L Hewett | 1 | J Chandler | 0 |
| 12 | DHH Wassell | 0 | FE Purchas | 1 |
| 13 | TL Hutchings | 0 | FJ Mann | 1 |
| 14 | E Atkins | 0 | F Brook | 1 |
| 15 | S Pilch | ½ | P Shaul Hallett | ½ |
| 16 | WF Sanders | 0 | HT Grover | 1 |
| Total | 6 | Total | 10 |
Hampshire 6½ v Kent 9½ – Nov 21st 1903 – London
The Kent match was played again in London (Kent don’t like to travel).
On Board one JH Blake had his revenge against OC Muller who he had lost to last season. In addition, Hampshire winners were TE Haydon, RF Barlow and JA Barclay in their 6½ – 9 ½ loss. Looking at the Hampshire team S Pilch played board 2 in this match and 15 against Sussex. It is likely he was a replacement (I cannot find him playing for Hampshire after this season – update he actually played for Sussex going forward). As FJH Elwell did not play in this match, it could be that he stood in for him as board three was T Crassweller the same as the Sussex match.
The report from the Beckenham Journal is below. It stated Kent had defeated Devon, but this was in fact Sussex (11½ – 4½) and had a big match against Surrey in the near future.
CHESS. SOUTHERN COUNTIES UNION. KENT v HAMPSHIRE. The above match was played in London on Saturday last, and resulted in a creditable victory for Kent by 9½ games to 6½. Kent have now won two matches in the competition amongst the Counties forming the above Union, defeating necessarily Sussex and Hants.
Beckenham Journal – Saturday 28 November 1903
The most formidable opponents, however, whom they have yet to meet will be found in Surrey
| Board | Hampshire | Result | Kent | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JH Blake | 1 | OC Muller | 0 |
| 2 | S Pilch | 0 | EL Raymond | 1 |
| 3 | T Crassweller | ½ | E Creswell | ½ |
| 4 | TE Haydon | 1 | C Chapman | 0 |
| 5 | RF Barlow | 1 | AL Stevenson | 0 |
| 6 | WC Kenny | 0 | GA Felce | 1 |
| 7 | A Thomson | 0 | WB Dixon | 1 |
| 8 | E Clayton | 0 | CH Lorch | 1 |
| 9 | WR Neve | ½ | JH Eastwood | ½ |
| 10 | GA Cosser | ½ | H Storr-Best | ½ |
| 11 | G Wood | ½ | Dr Vinogradoff | ½ |
| 12 | E Clarke | 0 | AR Ropes | 1 |
| 13 | GR Sloper | ½ | WH Joanes | ½ |
| 14 | J Rogers | 0 | TS Cannon | 1 |
| 15 | JH Barkley | 1 | Miss Finn | 0 |
| 16 | DHH Wassell | 0 | CF Delecomyn | 1 |
| Total | 6½ | Total | 9½ |
Hampshire 3½ v Surrey 12½ – Feb 6th 1904 – London
Hampshire’s final SCCU opponent was Surrey, and as per the previous couple of years Hampshire lost heavily. This was one of the matches which I have been unable to find the full result of (maybe a good thing). I was able to locate that the board 1 match between JH Blake and GE Wainwright was drawn and that SW May won his match. As SW May’s win was stated the assumption was that S Oaten lost his. Update Jan 2024: I have located the additional results, which are now included.
Looking forward, Surrey domination in the SCCU Shannon Championship came to an end, with Devon taking down the title. The report in the Brixham Western Guardian stated that the Group Winners were Norfolk, Surrey and Devon, and Surrey had already defeated Norfolk. Norfolk defaulted their final match against Devon, which game them the championship.
SOUTHERN COUNTIES CHESS CHAMPIONSHIP DEVON v SURREY: The final for the Southern Counties Chess Championship between Devon and Survey took place on Saturday in London and Salisbury. The group winners were Norfolk, Surrey; and Devon, and Surrey, having already defeated Norfolk, had only to beat Devon on Saturday to secure the Championship. Five of the games were played in London, and the remainder at Salisbury, the conditions being sixteen a-side a rate of play, 24 moves an hour.
Brixham Western Guardian – Thursday 30 June 1904
Devon won seven games and Surrey four, five games being unfinished. The adjudication of these gave the victory to Devon.
The limited results from the Hampshire Surrey Match are given below.
| Board | Hampshire | Result | Surrey | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | JH Blake | ½ | GE Wainwright | ½ |
| 2 | T Craswaller | 0 | GA Hooke | 1 |
| 3 | TE Haydon | 0 | FL Anspach | 1 |
| 4 | WC Kenny | 0 | CEC Tatterall | 1 |
| 5 | WR Neve | ½ | HS Barlow | ½ |
| 6 | GH Caws | ½ | CF Cornwell | ½ |
| 7 | G Cosser | 0 | LP Rees | 1 |
| 8 | WJ Turner | 0 | Dr Dunstan | 1 |
| 9 | HC Payne | 0 | H Greenwell | 1 |
| 10 | GR Sloper | 0 | PJ Allingham | 1 |
| 11 | G Wood | 0 | AW Fisher | 1 |
| 12 | S Oaten | 0 | FA Sisley | 1 |
| 13 | GH Barclay | 0 | WT Dickenson | 1 |
| 14 | DHH Wassell | 1 | HR Allingham | 0 |
| 15 | W May | 1 | PH Pollock | 0 |
| 16 | TL Hutchings | 0 | A Ashby | 1 |
| Total | 3½ | Total | 12½ |
Hampshire 7 v Wiltshire 14 – July 6th 1904 – Salisbury
Hampshire’s final match of the season was their friendly against Wiltshire. Last season Wiltshire managed to draw this match, which was their best ever result. This year Wiltshire went one better, with a crushing 14 – 6 win!
The match returned to the the format of a few years previous, with some players playing two games. This favoured Wiltshire, as they won all but one of these mini matches, and Hampshire won none. The Hampshire team were noticeably weaker than in previous years, with the board 1 (WC Kenny) playing on board 6 in the Kent match.
This year saw the last time that Revd JC Welsh represented Wiltshire in this fixture, as he was made the Bishop of Trinidad and Tobago! The Revd had scored 5 draws and 3 losses in his 8 games against Hampshire, always playing on the top four boards. His best result was probably his draw against JH Blake in 1892.
He had been the President and Secretary for the SCCU as well as his other activities as detailed in Britbase. I am sure he was missed by the Wiltshire Chess team in future fixtures.
| Board | Hampshire | Club | Result | Wiltshire | Club | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | WC Kenny | Portsmouth | 0 | Revd AG Gordon Ross | Swindon | 1 |
| 2a | WB George | Romsey | 0 | A Rumboll | Calne | 1 |
| 2b | WB George | Romsey | 0 | A Rumboll | Calne | 1 |
| 3 | WJ Turner | Andover | 1 | W McCrum | Salisbury | 0 |
| 4 | HC Payne | Portsmouth | ½ | Revd CJF Welsh | Warminster | ½ |
| 5 | W May | Winchester | ½ | A Schomberg | Devizes | ½ |
| 6 | G Wood | Portsmouth | 0 | F Sutton | Salisbury | 1 |
| 7a | GH Barclay | Andover | 0 | W Bruges | Warminster | 1 |
| 7b | GH Barclay | Andover | 1 | W Bruges | Warminster | 0 |
| 8 | S Oaten | Winchester | 1 | E Fear Hill | Bradford | 0 |
| 9a | SD Caws | Cowes | 0 | FJ Welsh | Warminster | 1 |
| 9b | SD Caws | Cowes | ½ | FJ Welsh | Warminster | ½ |
| 10 | WH Hewett | Cowes | 0 | BG Borradaile | Mere | 1 |
| 11 | AE Chater | Southampton | 0 | HW Beaven | Bradford | 1 |
| 12a | R Chipperfield | Southampton | 0 | Revd E Wells | Salisbury | 1 |
| 12b | R Chipperfield | Southampton | ½ | Revd E Wells | Salisbury | ½ |
| 13 | HJ Penwill | Southampton | 0 | J Crompton | Bradford | 1 |
| 14 | WF Sandell | Southampton | 1 | FE Young | Salisbury | 0 |
| 15 | R Waldron | Southampton | 1 | A Watson | Salisbury | 0 |
| 16a | F Martin | Portsmouth | 0 | JW Clark | Salisbury | 1 |
| 16b | F Martin | Portsmouth | 0 | JW Clark | Salisbury | 1 |
| Total | 7 | Total | 14 |
Hampshire Player Performance
Although Hampshire played four matches, I am missing the majority of the results from the Surrey match. Not much can be seen on the performance front, as no-one had results for more than three games (and that was only JH Blake, who had an excellent season).
Individual player performance is detailed below in a sortable table.
| Hants Player | Win Percentage | Points Scored | Games Played |
|---|---|---|---|
| JH Blake | 83.3% | 2.5 | 3 |
| R Waldron | 100.0% | 1 | 1 |
| S Oaten | 100.0% | 1 | 1 |
| RF Barlow | 100.0% | 1 | 1 |
| WF Sandell | 100.0% | 1 | 1 |
| TE Haydon | 100.0% | 1 | 1 |
| L Hewett | 100.0% | 1 | 1 |
| FJH Elwell | 100.0% | 1 | 1 |
| WJ Turner | 100.0% | 1 | 1 |
| JH Barkley | 100.0% | 1 | 1 |
| E Clayton | 50.0% | 1 | 2 |
| GH Barclay | 50.0% | 1 | 2 |
| GA Cosser | 50.0% | 0.5 | 1 |
| GR Sloper | 50.0% | 0.5 | 1 |
| HC Payne | 50.0% | 0.5 | 1 |
| E Draycott | 50.0% | 0.5 | 1 |
| Sir GA Thomas | 50.0% | 0.5 | 1 |
| WR Neve | 50.0% | 0.5 | 1 |
| W May | 50.0% | 0.5 | 1 |
| HS Hewett | 50.0% | 0.5 | 1 |
| S Pilch | 25.0% | 0.5 | 2 |
| R Chipperfield | 25.0% | 0.5 | 2 |
| SD Caws | 25.0% | 0.5 | 2 |
| T Crassweller | 25.0% | 0.5 | 2 |
| G Wood | 16.7% | 0.5 | 3 |
| TL Hutchings | 0.0% | 0 | 1 |
| AE Chater | 0.0% | 0 | 1 |
| HD Roone | 0.0% | 0 | 1 |
| GI Gribble | 0.0% | 0 | 1 |
| E Clarke | 0.0% | 0 | 1 |
| WH Hewett | 0.0% | 0 | 1 |
| E Atkins | 0.0% | 0 | 1 |
| HJ Penwill | 0.0% | 0 | 1 |
| WF Sanders | 0.0% | 0 | 1 |
| J Rogers | 0.0% | 0 | 1 |
| A Thomson | 0.0% | 0 | 1 |
| DHH Wassell | 0.0% | 0 | 2 |
| WB George | 0.0% | 0 | 2 |
| F Martin | 0.0% | 0 | 2 |
| WC Kenny | 0.0% | 0 | 2 |
Summary
There were some tough matches this season for Hampshire and losing all their matches would have been disappointing.
As some background on Hampshire Chess this season the Hampshire Trophy was won by Southampton B (as per the AGM). The Hampshire Chess Officers had a change with Mr Draycott stepping down as Secretary (and Treasurer) and being replaced by Mr HJ Penwill of Southampton Chess Club.
- R Chipperfield – President
- HJ Penwill – Hon. Secretary and Treasurer
- JH Blake – Match Captain
- FJH Elwell, G Wood – Adjudicator’s
- GR Sloper, JH Blake, E Draycott – SCCU Delegates
I could not locate anything on the Hampshire AGM for 1904 which is a shame as this would have made interesting reading and may have had an indication of what Hampshire planned to do to turn around their poor performance. Update – I have now located this, although it mentions that Hampshire won a match, which was not the case.
Gallery
A selection of newspaper cuttings on the various matches.
Acknowledgements and Sources
- British Newspaper Archives
- Britbase
- Anthony Fulton for historic material on results
- Trowbridge Chronicle
- Hampshire Chronicle
- Evening Star
- Bognor Regis Observor
- Beckenham Journal