Hampshire had won the Montague Jones Cup the previous two years, and would have come into this season as the favourite to win for the third time. But the fell short, losing to the eventual winners Hertfordshire in the semi-final. Before this, they had won the first two rounds, but had lost a friendly against Dorset.
Apart from these four OTB matches, Hampshire played 5 Correspondence Matches, including a 100 board Hampshire Advertiser vs Glasgow Herald.
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 8½ – Bedfordshire 7½ – 4th Nov 1933 – London
Hampshire’s first match was against Bedfordshire, who they had comfortably beaten in 1927 and 1928, only dropping six points in total from the 32 games played. This was certainly not the case in this match, where Hampshire won by the narrowest of margins. In fact Hampshire went into the adjudication stage requiring 2½ points from the 3 adjudicated games. The games went Hampshire’s way though, with Elwell and Ives games as wins, whilst the Tinker game was drawn.
It certainly seems that the result of the adjudicated game was a surprise for Bedfordshire, as reported in the Bedfordshire Times and Independent. They were expecting this to be a win for them due to the passed pawns. But it seems this was enough, as the result was adjudicated as a draw.
Chess Southern Counties Championship Match
Bedfordshire Times and Independent – Friday 10 November 1933
The Bedfordshire side, comprising thirteen Luton players and three from the county town, met Hampshire at the St. Bride Institute, London, Saturday. Bedfordshire, who continue to show steady improvement, put up an excellent fight against one of the strongest counties in the competition; in fact, this match probably ranks as their best performance.
At the close play three games remained unfinished. In two of these (Ivanoff and Norwood) Bedfordshire have made no claim, but on the result of the third (Knight) depends the result of the match. In this case Bedfordshire have confidently claimed a win, and if the adjudicators’ decision is in their favour they will proceed round two, the bottom board being eliminated. Mr. Knight has two passed pawns for the exchange, one being firmly established on the seventh rank, and the position looks a certain win for him.
As usual the top half of the team proved more than a match for their opponents, Bowden, White, and Lotan excelling. Rushton, Church, and Dickens played strongly, but the last-named, after giving the queen for two pieces, missed a pretty mate and took a draw perpetual check. P. Hughes, means of adroit play with the knights, secured a firm grip on the game and won in hurricane style. Hillier deserves praise for a sternly-fought drawn game.
The three Bedford players, Lotan, Browne, and Brooks, rendered splendid service. If the Bedfordshire claim is upheld the next match, against Northamptonshire, will almost certainly played Bedford, and if the county town can provide another player two of the same calibre further succors practically assured
Apart from the adjourned game, for which there is no record, Bedfordshire missed a win in the AB Coe – SW Dickens game, where the Bedfordshire player failed to spot a mate in 6, and had to settle for a draw by perpetual. This game was available, as published in the Hampshire Advertiser, although it is not clear if the final position was when it was agreed drawn.
| Board | Hampshire | Colour | Result | Bedfordshire | Colour | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | WJ Fry | Black | ½ | RH Rushton | White | ½ |
| 2 | FJH Elwell | White | 1 | V Ivanoff | Black | 0 |
| 3 | HA Way | Black | ½ | W Church | White | ½ |
| 4 | AB Coe | White | ½ | SW Dickens | Black | ½ |
| 5 | Revd W Proctor | Black | 0 | J Bowden | White | 1 |
| 6 | AS Dance | White | 0 | GL White | Black | 1 |
| 7 | AH Yerbury | Black | 0 | C Lotan | White | 1 |
| 8 | FJ Tinkler | White | ½ | LH Knight | Black | ½ |
| 9 | FL Taylor | Black | 1 | F Baulk | White | 0 |
| 10 | ST Smith | White | ½ | OL Browne | Black | ½ |
| 11 | GC Ives | Black | 1 | WEH Norwood | White | 0 |
| 12 | JW Webster | White | 0 | PH Hughes | Black | 1 |
| 13 | Revd AR Witt | Black | ½ | CH Brooks | White | ½ |
| 14 | LC Whetham | White | 1 | R Lynn | Black | 0 |
| 15 | A Gale | Black | ½ | J Hillier | White | ½ |
| 16 | LA Amphlett | White | 1 | GS Hales | Black | 0 |
| Total | 8½ | Total | 7½ |
Hampshire 12½ – Northamptonshire 3½ – 25th November 1933 – London
After the close call in round one Hampshire were paired against Northamptonshire in the second round. This was the first time that these counties were paired1 and Hampshire were comfortable winners, just losing the one game (by default), whilst another five were drawn. Hampshire were especially dominant on the bottom boards, winning all the games on boards 10 to 16.
Northants had just re-joined the SCCU after playing in the MCCA (Midland Counties Chess Association), They had left the SCCU 32 years previously. They joined under the agreement that they would fulfil their obligations for travelling2. They would continue to play in the SCCU until the 2nd World War, but did not re-join when County chess resumed after the war.
There was some talk before the match that it would be played by Telephone, due to the distances. In the end though it was played in London. The Northampton Mercury reported on the match, and it was good to see Joseph Blake was in attendance (along with other chess masters).
Hampshire’s new board one CHOD Alexander was held to a draw by PN Wallis. Philip Norman Wallis was a strong player, who stepped in as a replacement to William Winter in the 1939 Bournemouth Premier won by Max Euwe.
Hampshire winners were FJH Elwell, HA Way, FL Taylor, LA Amphlett, LC Whetham, WT Dickenson, JW Webster, JM Harris, GC Ives and FT Sutton.
| Board | Hampshire | Result | Northamptonshire | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CHOD Alexander | ½ | PN Wallis | ½ |
| 2 | WJ Fry | ½ | FW Shaw | ½ |
| 3 | FJH Elwell | 1 | JS Greaves | 0 |
| 4 | WA Way | 1 | G Hopkins | 0 |
| 5 | HD Lloyd | ½ | WW Church | ½ |
| 6 | HA Way | ½ | HJ Wilson | ½ |
| 7 | FL Taylor | 1 | C Peach | 0 |
| 8 | Default | 0 | BTH Smith | 1 |
| 9 | AH Yerbury | ½ | CA Blaxley | ½ |
| 10 | LA Amphlett | 1 | EW Buttery | 0 |
| 11 | LC Whetham | 1 | AG Blaxley | 0 |
| 12 | WT Dickenson | 1 | DA Saunders | 0 |
| 13 | JW Webster | 1 | W Thomas | 0 |
| 14 | JM Harris | 1 | D Morris | 0 |
| 15 | GC Ives | 1 | GO Green | 0 |
| 16 | FT Sutton | 1 | He de B Leach | 0 |
| Total | 12½ | Total | 3½ |
Hampshire 8½- Dorset 10½ – 20th Jan 1934 – Bournemouth
Before the semi-final of the Montague Jones Cup Hampshire had a friendly against Dorset over 19 boards. The Hampshire team was not as strong as the ones they put out in the Montague Jones Cup, but certainly had a number of regular players in the team. Dorset were going from strength to strength, and had several strong players in their team, and in the end won the match by two points.
The position from the Coe – Napper game was included in the Hampshire Advertiser. Both these players were their respective Counties league secretaries. White was claiming a win, but after Black’s move it was Black that was on top. The position in the paper was not that clear, as I think the Bishop on h4 is White rather than Black. This ties in with the description which has White with 11 pieces and Black 10. The result is normally giving in the paper the following week, but this seemed to refer to a different game, therefore there is some assumption for the position supplied for this game.
It seems Black has a mate in 7.
Hampshire winners were AB Coe, SL Russell, JA Harris, M Clifford, JP Kirby, VE Blackmore and G Cardell.
| Board | Hampshire | Colour | Result | Dorset | Colour | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | WJ Fry | Black | 0 | BW Wood | White | 1 |
| 2 | CT Bennett | White | 0 | H Streeter | Black | 1 |
| 3 | AB Coe | Black | 1 | DH Napper | White | 0 |
| 4 | SL Russell | White | 1 | EL Raymond | Black | 0 |
| 5 | EW Haughton | Black | ½ | AF Thomas | White | ½ |
| 6 | TY Carter | White | ½ | GH Smith | Black | ½ |
| 7 | RG Duce | Black | 0 | R Boxon | White | 1 |
| 8 | HL Gardiner | White | 0 | DB Kitchin | Black | 1 |
| 9 | AE Thornelove | Black | 0 | FWC Mitchener | White | 1 |
| 10 | JW Webster | White | ½ | A Gray-Wallis | Black | ½ |
| 11 | JA Harris | Black | 1 | EL Millward | White | 0 |
| 12 | M Clifford | White | 1 | P Ward | Black | 0 |
| 13 | FH Pilcher | Black | 0 | Capt PH di Marco | White | 1 |
| 14 | Brig-Gen GF Muspratt | White | 0 | L Fortnum | Black | 1 |
| 15 | FLA Gibbs | Black | 0 | WT Wilkinson | White | 1 |
| 16 | JP Kirby | White | 1 | HF Hawkins | Black | 0 |
| 17 | VE Blackmore | Black | 1 | HW Gregory | White | 0 |
| 18 | G Cardell | White | 1 | Col GC Bliss | Black | 0 |
| 19 | FW Fraser | Black | 0 | AF Alexander | White | 1 |
| Total | 8½ | Total | 10½ |
Hampshire 7 – Hertfordshire 10 – 3rd March 1934 – London
Hampshire were paired with Hertfordshire in the semi-final of the Montague Jones Cup and surprisingly lost by three points. Hampshire had previously defeated Hertfordshire in five of the six matches they had played, and drawn the other. They also had a strong team with CHOD Alexander on board 1, who lost to GSA Wheatcroft.
As reported in the Hampshire Advertiser the match was lost on the first eight boards, where Hampshire were normally the favourites against other Montague Jones Cup opponents.
Hampshire winners were WJ Fry, Revd W Proctor, AS Dance and A Gale.
| Board | Hampshire | Result | Hertfordshire | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | CHOD Alexander | 0 | GSA Wheatcroft | 1 |
| 2 | WJ Fry | 1 | FN Braund | 0 |
| 3 | FJH Elwell | ½ | AG Fellows | ½ |
| 4 | WA Way | 0 | FW Flear | 1 |
| 5 | AB Coe | 0 | MG Excell | 1 |
| 6 | HD Lloyd | 0 | FH Burn | 1 |
| 7 | HA Way | ½ | GPA Richards | ½ |
| 8 | Revd W Proctor | 1 | FG Attenborough | 0 |
| 9 | JS West | ½ | EJ Fairchild | ½ |
| 10 | FL Taylor | ½ | J Hakannon | ½ |
| 11 | AS Dance | 1 | AH Knight | 0 |
| 12 | FJ Tinkler | ½ | HJ Warren | ½ |
| 13 | GU Ives | 0 | W Hatton-Ward | 1 |
| 14 | HV Dacombe | ½ | Mrs TH Wheelwright | ½ |
| 15 | LC Whetham | 0 | Prof F Tillyard | 1 |
| 16 | A Gale | 1 | H Jacoburn | 0 |
| 17 | JM Harris | 0 | R Lee-Johnson | 1 |
| Total | 7 | Total | 10 |
Summary
After winning the Montague Jones Cup the previous two seasons it was a disappointing loss in the semi-final to Hertfordshire, who would go on to win the final against Somerset 8½ – 7½.
It seems a real push for Correspondence chess was one of the HCA aims this season. in total five matches were undertaken, In the County Championship Hampshire scored 50%, whilst they beat Lincolnshire, drew with Norfolk and lost heavily to Warwickshire, and in the 100 board match just lost by two points, against the Glasgow Herald.
Individual results to all but the 100 board match are included in the FA Taylor document. In addition the Hampshire Advertiser published some of the Correspondence games and I may well look at Hampshire’s Correspondence history in the future.
In the Hampshire league Portsmouth won Division One and Basingstoke Division Two. Their last key match against Broughton was drawn and the final result depended on another game which had been sent for adjudication. The result of this favoured Basingstoke, as the finished a half match point ahead of Broughton.
Frank Elwell was the winner of the HCA Individual Championship finishing half a point ahead of last year’s winner WJ Fry.
The 48st HCA AGM’s main news was FL Taylor being elected as the hon. Secretary, with AB Coe stepping down. As reported previously this may have been due to Coe becoming unpopular within the county, but his was honoured with a Life Vice-Presidency position.
The Hon. Secretary and Tresurer HCA officers remained unchanged:
- JH Blake – President
- FL Taylor – Hon. Secretary and Treasurer
- JH Blake – Match Captain
- FJH Elwell, HW Benest – Hon. Auditors
- JH Blake, HA Way & AB Coe – SCCU Delegates
Acknowledgements and Sources
- British Newspaper Archives
- Britbase
- Anthony Fulton for historic material on results
- Hampshire Advertiser
- Bedfordshire Times and Independent
- Northampton Mercury
- Hampshire Chess Archives