News

Date: 16/09/2025    25/26 League Season Rules

Please note there will be no rating cap on the D division this season. Nomination rules and promotion and relegation details are below:

Nomination Rules:
-All A division teams nominate 3 players who can’t play in the divisions below.
-All B division teams nominate 3 players who can’t play in the divisions below.
-All C division teams nominate 3 players who can’t play in the divisions below.
-No nominations needed in the D division.
-E division has a rating cap of 1300.
-Clubs with more than 1 team in a division can spread their nominations however they see fit. Eg a club with 2 teams in a division could go 6-0, 5-1, 4-2 or 3-3.
-To ensure games remain competitive at the top level, a special rule is needed in the A division. Clubs with 2 teams in the A division nominate their top 3 rated players who can only play for one of their 2 teams. The next 3 players can’t play for teams in the lower divisions, but can play for either A division team.
-In all other divisions, individual players can only play for one team in a division.


Promotion and Relegation:
-At the end of the season, the top 2 teams in each division will be promoted (except A division) and the bottom 2 in each division (except D division) will be relegated.
-If a higher division has 7 or less teams for any reason, only 1 team would be relegated.
-Clubs can request for teams not to be relegated or promoted, but they must accept it if a division becomes too small or too big as a result.
-No team can be relegated into a division with a rating cap if the club do not have enough players under that rating to run a team.
-We would remind clubs that there is flexibility for the exec here as we demonstrated with Billingham in 24/25 and no club will be forced into a position that makes it impossible for them to run the number of teams they want to.

25/26 Summary
Division Teams Promoted Relegated
A 8 0 2
B 8 2 2
C 7 2 1
D 6 2 0
E 4 2 0


Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 01/09/2025    New CCA Season Entry Form

The entry form for this season for existing clubs is below. If you could let me know your final entries as soon as possible. If you have an idea of your intentions now, it does still help with our planning even if it is not your final confirmed entry. The closing date is Sunday 21st September, with fixtures due to start on Monday 29th.

There are a couple of changes to what I sent at the start of the Summer:
-We have agreed that the Tom Wise Cup will be a handicap team rapid event this season. Full details are in section G of the league rules document.
-The high number of Thornaby teams in the D division and low number of other teams means we have decided to split the D division into 2 smaller divisions. The E division will have a rating cap of 1300. That means there will be 6-10 games in these 2 divisions instead of 12-14, so less travelling and less of a commitment to put a team in.


CCA ENTRY FORM 2025/26
(Closing Date Sunday 21st September)
1) Are you entering all and happy with the divisions of your existing teams?

2) How many new teams would you like to enter in the:
C Division (open)
D Division (Under 1500 rating)
E Division (Under 1300 rating)

3) How many teams would you like to enter in each of the knockout events (5 player teams):
Tom Wise Cup (Rapid Knockout) (4 player teams)
Jeremy Burnett Plate (Under 1700 rating)
Knights Shield (Under 1500 rating)


LEAGUE STRUCTURE 2025-26
-4 divisions with as close to 8 teams in the top 3 divisions as entries allow. Exec to make any necessary adjustments after all club’s entries are received in consultation with any affected clubs.
-D and E division expected to be smaller with 6-10 games in the season.
-A division will have 5 player teams. All other divisions will have 4 player teams. (Knockout cup events will be 5 players per team)

Nomination Rules
-All A division teams nominate 3 players who can’t play in the B or C division.
-All B division teams nominate 3 players who can’t play in the C division.
-No nominations needed in the C division.
-D division has a rating cap of 1500.
-E division has a rating cap of 1300.
-Clubs with more than 1 team in a division can spread their nominations however they see fit. Eg a club with 2 teams in a division could go 6-0, 5-1, 4-2 or 3-3.
-To ensure games remain competitive at the top level, a special rule is needed in the A division. Clubs with 2 teams in the A division nominate 3 players who can only play for one of their 2 teams. The next 3 players can’t play for teams in the lower divisions, but can play for either A division team.
-In all other divisions, individual players can only play for one team in a division.


Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 01/09/2025    New Cleveland Chess Association Season 2025/26

The Cleveland Chess Association (CCA) new season starts on Monday 29th September. We run a 5 division league and 3 knockout cups.

We’re always keen to get new clubs and venues involved in the league. All you really need is 4 players who know the rules of chess.

Two of our divisions and one of our knockout competitions are restricted so that the strongest players cannot play. This has proven to be a great way to start for many players over the last few years and the league has grown rapidly. Chess really can be played by anyone, the participants in the league are a diverse bunch with the current age range from 7 to 94!

All competitions are half home games and half away games. The C division is 12-14 games in a season. The D and E division are 6-10 games. The knockout cup is 1-4 depending on how far you progress.

Having a chess team is a great way to get more people to a venue on quiet nights. Our season runs from September to May and most of the league games are played from Monday to Wednesday.

Please get in touch via mail@ClevelandChessAssociation.co.uk if you would like more information. We can help you get started in several different ways.

CCA competitions that can be entered by any team:
-C Division (open to all players)
-D Division (restricted to players rated under 1500)
-E Division (restricted to players rated under 1300)
-Knockout Cup (restricted to players rated under 1500)


Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 01/09/2025    Cleveland Individual 2025/26

This year, the Cleveland Individual will be a 6 Rounds Swiss System. All games in a round are played on the same date at the same venue. The top 6 clubs in the CCA will each host 1 round. All 6 dates will be free of any league fixtures.

From round 1-4, if an opponent does not show, a match with another player will be arranged. Either with another player in the same position or a suitable volunteer from the host club.

Players can choose to take 1 half point bye. (Before the round is drawn)

The overall winner is the Cleveland Individual Champion and wins £100. There will also be 2 grading prizes (boundaries to be confirmed after entry).

To enter, please email the organiser Chris Swales. The closing date is Sunday 14th September, the first round will be drawn the following day. Entry costs £2 and can be paid in cash on the first night of competition or by bank transfer to the CCA.

Schedule
ROUND DATE/MONTH HOST
1 Tuesday 16th September Thornaby
2 Monday 20th October Hartlepool
3 Monday 24th November Middlesbrough*
4 Wednesday 28th January Great Ayton
5 Wednesday 25th March Darlington
6 Wednesday 20th May Billingham*
*=Venues to confirm.

Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 23/07/2025    AGM Results

The results of the votes at the 2025 AGM can be found here.

Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 20/02/2025    A Division Split

The first part of the A division season has completed. Great Ayton A, Darlington A, Darlington B and Thornaby Aces finished in the top 4 and will play each other again. The other 5 teams will play each other again. All fixtures are now on LMS.

Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 10/10/2024    Cleveland Individual

At the AGM we elected to return the Cleveland Individual to its previous format. To enter, players just need to drop me an email before the closing date.

This is a very prestigious event that has been running for over 100 years. The winner becomes the Cleveland County Champion. Previous winners include Nic Tavoularis, David Baillie, Mike Closs, David Wise, Sean Marsh, Norman Stephenson, Richard Hall, Steve Dauber, Paul Gregory and others I know less well. It is open to any player in the league and I know lots of players enjoy the chance to pit their wits against some of the best players in the league.

Full rules will be circulated round clubs, but the main things to say:
-It is a 5 round Swiss competition.
-The winner will receive £100 as well as the title of county champion and there will be 2 grading prizes of £25.
-£2 entry fee.
-You arrange your match with your opponent on a mutually convenient date. Normally the player with the black pieces plays at home.

Key Dates
Closing Date for Entries: 25/10/2024
Round 1 : By 20/12/2024
Round 2 : By 07/02/2025
Round 3 : By 14/03/2025
Round 4 : By 18/04/2025
Round 5 : By 30/05/2025

Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 10/10/2024    Extra B Division Team

Thornaby have decided to enter an extra team in the B division. The Thornaby B52s will play the teams who previously had the byes in each week. Fixtures have been added to LMS. They are 1 game behind which will be re-arranged as soon as possible.

B Division Nominations for Thornaby will now be:
Challengers: Steve Rodgers, Sagar Patil, Mike Creaney, Joe McGinnis, James Urwin
B52s: Santiago Palencia

Santiago did play in the first Challengers game, but the league committee have agreed to an exception as the B52s did not exist at that point. To make it fairer for Hartlepool B, he will be "cup tied" for the first B52s games against them.

Just a reminder that the bye spots in the A,C and D division can still be filled by clubs as long as it is before the end of this Sunday.

Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 10/10/2024    Middleton St George Chess

From Monday October 21st, Pete Townson from Thornaby club will be running chess sessions in Middleton St George scout hut. The sessions are from 6pm-8pm with the aim of bringing chess to a new area. Anyone is welcome from beginner to Grandmaster!

We'd love to see this lead to a new CCA club springing up for us to play matches against. If you're interested, please try to attend and support this new venture for more chess in the area.

Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 20/09/2024    CCA Nominated Players 24-25

A DIVISION
Billingham Synthonia Synners
John Garnett
Stephen Cole
Harry Tennant

Darlington A
Steve Dauber
Giuseppe Magazzu
Kevin Wilson

Darlington B
Luke Owen
Matthew Holton
Nick Webb

Great Ayton A
Virgil Szekely
David Wise
Richard Hall

Great Ayton B
Mike Hardman
Steve Booth
Andrew Smith

Hartlepool A
Raymond Stonehouse
Bill Wilson
Bernard Price

Middlesbrough Rooks
Nicholas Tavoularis
Paul Gregory
Peter Ridsdale

Thornaby Aces
Chris Ross
Francis Batchelor
Matthew Jackman

Thornaby Bombers
Sam Greig
Chris Swales
Brian Ellis



B DIVISION

Billingham Synthonia Belasis
Ben Dodgson
Paul Frank
Stuart McLaughlin
Keith Harrison
Sean Cassidy
Paul Weightman

Billingham Synthonia Chemics
[None. Billingham have chosen to place their 6 nominated players in the Belasis team.]

Darlington C
Jonathan Sams
Liam Bellwood
Dominic Leigh

Great Ayton C
[None. No team in a lower division]

Hartlepool B
Peter Harker
Stephen Roe
Graham Matthews

Middlesbrough Knights
[None. No team in a lower division]

Thornaby Challengers
Steve Rodgers
Mike Creaney
Sagar Patil


(Nominated players cannot play for a team in a lower division and must play at least 1 game for their club before Christmas)

Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 17/09/2024    Cup Draws

The draws for the Jeremey Burnett Plate and the new "D Division Cup" are now on LMS. The deadline for Quarter Final matches is week beginning 16th December. I have had a look at club fixtures and put some suggested earlier dates next to all of the matches that look to me like they might suit both clubs. Unlike the league, we do ask captains to try to find a mutually convenient date for cup matches. However, we have deliberately put a weeks break in the league in the 16th December week, so all Quarter Final games can be fitted in this week if nowhere earlier is convenient.

We do have 2 teams that will feature some "guest" players entering the D Division Cup, as a result players will not need an ECF membership if this is the only CCA event they intend to play in. Marsh's Angel's will be returning to the CCA and Thornaby are also entering an all ladies team "Thornaby Queens". Players in this category should still be registered with the league grader before a match in the normal way.

The rest of the schedule for the 2 competitions is Semi Finals by the end of March and then Finals in April or May.

Any questions or date changes, please let me know.

Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 15/09/2024    CCA League Fixtures

Thank you to everyone for getting their league entries in so promptly and for giving us an early indication of your club intentions. It has been much easier for us to plan the league and discuss potential problems with clubs early by having a rough idea what clubs were thinking of doing in July. The fixtures are now on LMS.

The league continues to grow. We have 4 full divisions with 3 more teams than last season. Middlesbrough have had some bad luck with several key players leaving the area over the Summer and are dropping to 2 teams this year. They are stepping up their marketing and online presence, so will hopefully be back up to 3 teams again next season. Hartlepool and Redcar have really grown over the last 12 months and are both entering an extra team. Thornaby are entering an extra 2 teams.

The knockout events have attracted a lot of interest with 23 teams in total across the 3 events, compared to 8 across 2 events last season. Due to a slightly shorter A division schedule, the Tom Wise Cup will be scheduled at the end of the season. The other 2 competitions will take place across the season. The draw for the Tom Wise Cup is up. I'm just waiting for confirmation from 1 club before the other 2 competitions are drawn.

We agreed with Billingham club that they could move a team from the B division to the A division. The way last season worked out, they ended up with 3 teams in the B division and that would inevitably cause squad issues. As a result, the A division will run with 9 teams with a 4/5 split after each team has played once (similar to last season). The other 3 divisions all have 7 teams, so will be a straightforward home and away season of 14 weeks.

With the A division having 9 teams, promotion and relegation for this season will be:
A/B division : 2 down 1 up
B/C division : 2 down 2 up
C/D division : 2 down, 2 up
We would remind clubs that there is still flexibility for the exec here as we have demonstrated with Billingham and no club will be forced into a position that makes it difficult for them to run the number of teams they want to next season.

A proposal that was passed at the AGM stopped players playing more than 5 games for a second team. Following the AGM and after working out their squad lists, 4 separate clubs have contacted us to say that this change would mean they have to enter less teams. It was pointed out that the effect of this rule is to slowly reduce the number of reserves teams have available as the season goes on, forcing clubs to be cautious. We decided that a total of 5 less teams (meaning 1 less division) was not in the interest of the league, so this rule will not stand. We think increasing the number of nominations to 3 for all teams in the A and B division achieves some of the same intention (which was to give each team within a club a more unique identity) without leaving teams potentially short of reserve players in the 2nd half of the season. This can be discussed again at the next AGM as we do not believe the full effects of this change were understood at the time.

All 4 divisions unfortunately have an odd number of teams, which means there will be 2 bye weeks for each team. The committee have decided that up to 13th October, we will allow clubs to put an extra team in should they get an unexpected influx of new members between now and then. If a space in a division is not be filled by this date, after all teams have played once, there will be another opportunity for an extra team to join in and play the second half of the season. These extra places will be on a first come first served basis. A team entering only the second half of the season will be counted as a “guest team” and not part of the end of season promotion and relegation.

I look forward to seeing you all in the upcoming months, it should be another great season!


Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 19/08/2024    CCA CLUB ENTRY FORM 2024/25

This form has been circulated to all clubs:

(Closing Date Sunday 15th September)
1) Are you entering all and happy with the divisions of your existing teams (shown below)?

2) How many new teams would you like to enter in the:
C Division
D Division

3) How many teams would you like to enter in each of the knockout events (5 player teams):
Tom Wise Cup (Open)
Jeremy Burnett Plate (Under 1700 rating)
D Division Cup (Under 1500 rating)


Chris Swales
League Organiser

Date: 19/08/2024    CCA LEAGUE FORMAT 2024-25

CCA LEAGUE FORMAT 2024-25
-4 divisions with as close to 8 teams in each as entries allow. Exec to make any necessary adjustments after all club’s entries are received in consultation with any affected clubs.
-All divisions will have 4 player teams. (Knockout cup events will be 5 players per team)

Entries
-Deadline for entries is Sunday September 15th.
-Clubs should check they are happy with existing team starting divisions (below) and can enter any new teams directly into either the C division or the D division.

Nomination Rules
-All A division teams nominate 3 players who can’t play in the B or C division.
-All B division teams nominate 3 players who can’t play in the C division.
-No nominations needed in the C division.
-D division has a rating cap of 1500.
-Clubs with more than 1 team in a division can spread their nominations however they see fit. Eg a club with 2 teams in a division could go 6-0, 5-1, 4-2 or 3-3.
-To ensure games remain competitive at the top level, a special rule is needed in the A division. A-teams nominate 3 players who can’t play for the B team. Individual players for B teams in the A division can also play for the club’s A-team if required.
-In all other divisions, individual players can only play for one team in a division.

Promotion and Relegation
-At the end of the season, the top 2 teams in each division will be promoted (except A division) and the bottom 2 in each division (except D division) will be relegated.
-If a higher division has 7 or less teams for any reason, only 1 team would be relegated.
-Clubs can request for teams not to be relegated or promoted, but they must accept it if a division becomes too small or too big as a result.
-No team can be relegated from the C division if a club would not have enough under 1500 rated players to run the team in the D division.

Existing Team Starting Divisions
A Division
Great Ayton A
Thornaby Aces
Darlington A
Middlesbrough Rooks
Hartlepool A
Darlington B
Great Ayton B
Thornaby Bombers

B Division
Billingham A
Middlesbrough Knights
Billingham B
Hartlepool B
Thornaby Challengers
Billingham C
Great Ayton C
Darlington C

C Division
Middlesbrough Bishops
Thornaby Cadets
Thornaby Comets
Billingham E
Thornaby Dynasties

D Division
Billingham D
Thornaby Destroyers
Darlington D
Hartlepool C
Redcar B
Thornaby Juniors


Chris Swales
League Organiser