This week saw the final of the U19 National School's Championship. 16 schools from across the country including KEGS from Chelmsford qualified for a two day final at Uppingham School.
The competition was for teams of 6 although KEGS took 8 players along. Despite having England internationals Daniel Gallagher and Elliot Cocks we were seeded 13th out of the 16 schools.
KEGS performed well above all expectations to win 3 out of 4 matches and finish in 5th place. This included victories over 2015 winners Haberdasher's Aske's and 2011, 2012 and 2013 winners Manchester Grammar School. There are some photos on the KEGS twitter feed at
https://twitter.com/KEGS_Chelmsford?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
All 8 players are or were regular competitors at the Essex Junior Chess Association Grand Prix tournaments and deserve huge credit for this result. They showed great determination as a team to dig in and fight even when their opponents' were simply stronger players than them. Chess is an individual game but being part of a close-knit team can raise a player's level to unexpected heights.
Best Wishes
Robin
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