Month: June 2025

“And now the end is near, And so I face the final curtain, My friends I’ll say it clear, I’ll state my case of which I am certain” – Paul Anka/Frank Sinatra

Hammers,

This is my final article as Chair of Hammersmith Chess Club, as I will be stepping down from the post at the next AGM – to be held on the 7th of July 2025. I will be fully supporting our Secretary Adam Cranston as next Chair, and I know he will be do a superb job for our club in the role. Stepping into Adam’s shoes, as Club Secretary, will be David Lambert another stalwart of the club and someone who has been a long serving member and fully knows this club inside out. I will, if you vote me in, be taking up the reins of the Events Officer again and hope to be able to bring lots of activity in 2025/2026.

I want to say it has been one of the greatest honours of my life to lead this club and see it grow and develop into something that is so special and unique. This is down to many people, and I will get to them later in this missive. The journey we have been on, as a club, in the last 10 years has been amazing and I know there are even better times ahead. This has been another fantastic season for our club with a list of huge achievements.

• • The Hammersmith team in the Fide Rapid and Blitz Team World Championships won the u2200 prize. Lead by our great captain Gaston. This was a phenomenal result
  • Our Women’s team won the London Women’s League. Great Captaincy from Ana
  • Hammer 2 won Division 3 and were unbeaten all season – some Captain called Clueless???
  • Hammer 1 came second in London League Division 1 losing narrowly to Wood Green in the winner takes it all match. We were so unlucky – Jim Stevenson did a fabulous job.
  • Hammer 1 in the Middlesex Division 1 came joint first only losing out on points difference – Captain Maria did an amazing job
  • Hammer 3 finished second in Division 4 of the Central London League and gained promotion
  • Our LL Junior team scored 50% and finished mid table an outstanding result.
  • Hammersmith 3 just missed out on promotion in Middlesex 3 as did Hammer 1 in the Central London League
  • We finished 4th in the Thames valley Division 1
  • We also performed well in the other London, Middlesex and CLL divisions.

These are the headlines – for a club that only had 19 members 10 years ago this is some progress. However, as amazing as this roll of honour is I think it pales into insignificance as to what the soul of our club is. We are Hammers – we play for each other, not just ourselves. We support each other…. always. We welcome all to our club and judge people by the content of their character and not their chess ability. We are friends. This is what makes us so unique.

I also want to thank all the Captains, the Trainers, The Committee members and all of you… For what you have contributed to the club – your club – and I will never forget that.

Finally, I want to make a final plea to all of you – none of the above happens without the volunteers – we have a unique culture in our club that encourages people to contribute – I urge all of you to step forward to become a captain, to serve on the Committee, to help with Junior hour or be a mentor to new members.

Thank you once again for supporting me as Chair and now let’s move with confidence and pride to the next chapter of Hammersmith Chess Club.

John aka Lord Clueless
Chair of Hammersmith Chess Club
June 2025

Dear Members, the club’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) is approaching – this year it will be held on Monday 7th July at 7:30pm at the Mindsports Centre.

The Committee gives notice that the following members will stand for re-election:

• • President – Adam Cranston (currently Secretary)
  • Treasurer – Christof Brixel
  • Club Captain – Gastón Franco (currently Webmaster)
  • PR & Events Officer – John White (currently Chairman)
  • Diversity Officer – Anastasija Royce
  • Junior Officer – Tom Townsend
  • Auditor – Nadim Osseiran

We are sorry to announce that Robin Sarfas and Matt Perchard have decided to step down from the Committee this year.

As Club Captain for several years, Robin has carried out a demanding and vital role with dedication and professionalism. Responsible for overseeing 16 teams, he introduced several initiatives to support our ever-changing roster of captains. These include comprehensive documentation to help new captains avoid common pitfalls, as well as organising the now-annual end-of-season captains’ dinner.

In his role as PR & Events Officer, Matt has brought numerous prominent speakers to the club, delivering both entertaining and thought-provoking lectures. His creativity and expertise have been instrumental in shaping the club’s identity — our current logo, branded scoresheets and pens are all the result of his remarkable work.

The Committee is deeply grateful for Robin and Matt’s significant contributions and lasting impact.

With this in mind, David Lambert intends to run for the position of Secretary, and David Steyn for the role of Webmaster. All members are encouraged to stand for any Committee position, and all applications are warmly welcomed.

This year, the Committee proposes to make a significant amendment to club’s status. In short, we are looking into setting up Hammersmith Chess Club as a charitable incorporated organisation (CIO for short).

We have struggled sometimes with not being an official organisation, including difficulties with bank accounts, lease agreements and software to help us manage the club better.

What is a CIO?

The CIO was created in response to requests from charities for a new legal form that could provide some of the benefits of being a company, but without some of the burdens.

What are the advantages of CIOs?

• We can enter into contracts
• We can receive gift-aid
• Other benefits as that of a charity

Specifics of the proposed changes to the club constitution will be shared in due course.

Any member who wishes to stand for a Committee position, or to submit a motion for the meeting, should do so at least 21 days prior to the AGM – that is, 16th June. If you want to support any of the Committee roles, we would love to hear from you too, as there is a lot of work to run the club and any time is valued. There are a number of subcommittees reporting to the Committee that are vital to the club, on which volunteers to help out are invaluable. We are constantly looking for members to help out in areas including (but not limited to) the following:

Operations

– Running club night events
– Point of contact and friendly face for new walk-ins
– Providing suggestions for different types of events to run
– Running occasional club nights on Mondays and Thursdays

Captaincy

– Captains for the 2025/26 season

Juniors

– Coaching at Monday night Junior Hour (6-7pm)

Events/PR

– Help with organising club tours, events and matches

Website/Social Media

– Writing articles for the website
– General maintenance of website
– Creating other useful pages for the website
– Creating content for our social media channels

Please contact Club Secretary Adam if you wish to stand for a Committee position, submit a motion, or are willing to help out in any other way: adam1234321@gmail.com

Thank you for your continued support!