Today I was delighted to receive a glowing report about our club from Colin Abell the LMS Administrator, on behalf of Cheddleton and particularly Bill after the league match between Crewe G and Chedd B on Tuesday, as follows:
Hello David,
I want to thank you for the provision you put in place for Bill on Tuesday.
I spoke to Bill on the phone yesterday and he was effusive in his praise for the way you accommodated his needs and also for Neville’s gentlemanly behaviour during the game.
For various reasons it is likely to be his last Stoke League game and he was very pleased to have finished on such a positive note.
David Shiers has also told me how much he enjoyed seeing two senior gentlemen displaying not only a high level of skill but also such a friendly and sporting approach to the game.
Reporters comment: I was in awe to witness the match on Tuesday, where Neville Layhe and Bill played on board 2. Due to Bill’s fading eyesight he contacted us in advance to request so he could play on a separate Brail board to be used alongside the normal matchplay board. It was great to see two senior citizens with a combined age of just over 170 !, engage in a tough and skilful game of chess and both play in a brilliant spirit that was a credit to both of them, our clubs and the NSDCA.
This just shows how powerful our great game can be in bringing together players and clubs. When there was a discrepancy in the positions on the two boards, chairman Dave Price intervened and using his newly acquired Arbiter knowledge was able to reconcile the two boards with great assistance and co-operation from both players who were so keen to play in the proper spirit.
Thank you to Neville and Bill and it was fitting that after some two and a half hours of competitive play, they sportingly agreed a draw !