U11 Girls’ EPSCA National Final, 24th March 2018, Oxford
Headline Results
| R1 | R2 | R3 | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Barnet | 9 | 8½ | 10 | 27½ |
| 2nd | Kent | 9 | 8 | 8½ | 25½ |
| 3rd | Berkshire | 8 | 8½ | 8 | 24½ |
| 4th | Wey Valley | 7½ | 7 | 8 | 22½ |
| 5th | Sussex | 6 | 9 | 7 | 22 |
| 6th | Essex | 8½ | 6 | 6 | 20½ |
| 7th | Richmond | 4 | 8 | 7 | 19 |
| 8th | Manchester | 5 | 4 | 4½ | 13½ |
| 9th | Herts | 3 | 5 | 4½ | 12½ |
| 10th= | Oxford | 5 | 2 | 3 | 10 |
| Nottinghamshire | 3½ | 3 | 3½ | 10 | |
| 12th | Wiltshire | 3½ | 4 | 1½ | 9 |
The Team:
Sophia Blin, Madison Cox, Elena Currah, Lowenna Godfrey, Thea Godfrey, Charlotte Kay, Lucy Lai, Lauren Manchester, Maya McMahon, Ruby Rayment, Amelie Rees, Sophie Rees, Charlotte Robson, Sammy Sareen, Darcey Walker-Lee, Thamadi Wickramanayake, Madelaine Wilkinson
Report:
An enthusiastic squad of seventeen girls gathered in Oxford to compete in the national U11 girls’ final. Sussex were holders of the shield having won a thrilling final last year but the majority of that team were no longer eligible, so retaining the title was going to be a tough task. The vagaries of the jamboree format meant that Sussex were playing black on eight of their twelve boards in the first round which didn’t help their cause. Undaunted, the girls made a solid start and scored six points, although not enough to put them amongst the leaders.
The spirit amongst the squad was excellent throughout the day and in round two it was translated into results with an excellent nine points. This was the top score in the round and moved Sussex up the table so that going into the final round they were in fourth place, just two and a half points behind the first placed county.
With all to play for the girls gave their all in the third and deciding round, but a medal position just eluded them on the day. There were many positives to be taken from the day with tremendous application on all boards from one to seventeen. It was very encouraging to see excellent performances from the new and younger faces in the squad which bodes well for future years.
Thanks go to the host county, Oxfordshire for a spacious venue and to the parents for bringing their children and to Jonathan Tuck for his excellent coaching and encouragement.
Mark Currah
(U11 Girls Squad Manager)
Sussex U11 Girls vs Sussex U9s friendly, 4th March 2018, Hassocks
The annual friendly between our U9 and U11 Girls teams results in victory for the U9s by the narrowest of margins.
U11 Girls’ Inter-County Match, 24th February 2018, Copthorne
Headline Results
| R1 | R2 | R3 | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Sussex | 9 | 7½ | 10 | 26½ |
| 2nd | Kent | 9 | 9½ | 4 | 22½ |
| 3rd | Berkshire | 3 | 4½ | 5 | 12½ |
| 4th | Wey Valley & Friends | 3 | 2½ | 5 | 10½ |
The Team:
Sophia Blin, Madison Cox, Elena Currah, Thea Godfrey, Lucy Lai, Lauren Manchester, Maya McMahon, Amelie Rees, Sophie Rees, Sammy Sareen, Darcey Walker-Lee, Thamadi Wickramanayake, Madelaine Wilkinson
Report:
The U11 girls’ squad began their warm-up for the national final in Oxford next month with a very useful Four Counties friendly at Copthorne Prep School. Berkshire, Kent and Wey Valley brought squads to play a jamboree format with twelve boards per county.
Some cracking chess was played with great levels of concentration and after two rounds Kent had a narrow lead over Sussex in second place. Then came the much-anticipated lunch break with vast quantities of pizza being devoured by the girls, and there were rumours of chocolate cake although this correspondent never saw any, and then back to the chess for the final round. Jonathan Tuck delivered an inspiring team talk and the girls responded in style, turning round a two point deficit into a four point win.
Thanks go to
- Berkshire, Kent and Wey Valley for bringing their teams and playing with such determination and good spirit, and for contributing to such a successful day
- Jonathan and Trevor for coaching,
- Catherine for pairing
- and all the parents for giving up their Saturday to support the girls