Fleet & Farnborough Chess Club

Dennis Cup

Announcing the Dennis Cup

Start Date: 22nd July 2024

We are thrilled to announce that the first round of the inaugural Dennis Cup has been played! Named in honour of Dennis Parkinson, our most senior member and a pillar of the Fleet and Farnborough Chess Club, this knockout tournament promises to be an exciting addition to our club’s activities.

Tournament Details

The Dennis Cup is a club knockout tournament in which primary pairings are drawn at random by Dennis himself. Each match consists of two 15 | 0 games, with players alternating colours. In the event of a tie, players can choose between a 5 | 0 blitz match or a drinking contest to determine the winner.

Dennis Parkinson, who has been a dedicated member of our club for many years, is not only the tournament’s namesake but also an active participant in this inaugural event.

Quarter-final

The first round saw some intense and thrilling matches. The quarter-final matchups are now set:

Praveen vs Jack T

Dennis vs Lee

Cameron vs Hywel

Phil vs Samuel

Semi-final

Dennis vs Hywel

Phil vs Jack T

Final

Dennis vs Jack T

Winner's Words

After receiving the inaugural Dennis Cup, the tournament's namesake and winner shared a few gracious words:

"I thought I'd tell the story of where this clock came from. This clock actually used to belong to Philip Gething who is well-known to some of our older members. When he unfortunately passed away a couple of years ago his son gave this to me to deal with it, and somebody here has converted it into a nice Dennis trophy. Interestingly, somebody else gave me another old chess clock only two weeks ago but I gifted that away in another direction.

But thank you very much, it's been quite a journey over COVID, as you remember or can imagine. Putting the club back together again after COVID was quite tough. There were some nights when I was on my own in here. But I'm very happy that everything with the club is back on the up and up after passing the torch over to Dave, and I hope this lasts a few more years."

About Dennis Parkinson

Dennis Parkinson has been a cornerstone of the Fleet and Farnborough Chess Club for many years. His dedication, skill, and passion for chess have inspired many, and we are honoured to have him play such a central role in this tournament. Without his resilience and perseverance, Fleet & Farnborough Chess Club may not have survived the COVID-19 pandemic. We are forever indebted to you.

Cheers, Dennis!