Club news

Let the adventure begin — Ferndown Junior Chess Club returns!

Graham Morris 21 August 2026
A vintage-style recruitment poster: an older gentleman in a fedora and tweed jacket points straight out at the reader across a chessboard, with a black knight and a white king standing behind him. The lettering reads “Our chess club needs you” and invites the reader to join now, play and compete, and to come for the games and stay for the friendship. It also carries the club’s name and an email address for enquiries, the same one in the footer of every page.

Ferndown Junior Chess Club returns on Saturday 5 September. The library doors open and the boards awaken. Pawns march, knights leap, and juniors gather for another season of adventure, laughter, and clever tactics.

Bring your imagination, your favourite opening, and your best “I didn’t mean to blunder” face.

An illustrated poster: cartoon chess pieces and three smiling children around a board outside a lit-up library, framed by autumn leaves. The lettering announces that the Ferndown Chess Club returns on 5 September, that the library doors open and the boards awaken, and promises adventure, laughter and clever tactics.

New season, new challenges, new champions

The first week of the 2026–27 season begins on Saturday 5 September. We meet at Ferndown Library every Saturday, 10am–12 noon, and the club is open to 6–16 year-olds.

Sharpen your tactics, prepare your endgames, and join us for a year of growth, competition, and fun.

Basic principles for beginners

The opening is finished: the centre is held, every minor piece is developed, the king is castled and the rooks are connected.
  1. Control the centre squares of e4, d4, e5 and d5.
  2. Develop your Knights and Bishops to help protect your advanced pawns.
  3. Castle as soon as possible to get your King safe and release the Rook to the centre area.
  4. Move the Queen to connect your Rooks.
  5. Be patient, and do not be tempted to attack until all your pieces are developed and protected.

A middle-game tactic for the more advanced player

A “free” pawn may not always be the best option, as this position demonstrates.

The poisoned pawn 1–0 
1. Be3
          White plays Be3, leaving the b2 pawn unprotected
      1… Rxb2
          Rxb2 not aware of the danger
      2. dxe5  fxe5  3. Nxe5
          White sacrifices the Knight
      3… dxe5  4. Qxd8+  Kxd8
          Now the cunning move which loses Blacks Rook
      5. O-O-O+  Bd7  6. Kxb2
      1–0
Black takes the free pawn on b2 and the rook never gets home. Step through it and watch the white king come to collect.

See you all soon.

Filed under #season #beginners #tactics
Graham Morris
Club organiser & coach

Graham runs Ferndown Junior Chess with Jon Catchpole, and has taught junior chess for over eight years across the Ferndown, Bournemouth and Poole clubs.