22 teams of 4 players compete in 4 all-play-all qualifying groups, followed by Knockout semi-finals and finals for the Knockout Cup and Plate. Trophies shall be awarded by the NCA to the KO Cup and Plate winning teams at the September League meeting. Matches are played according to the established NCA KO Rating Handicap system.
Schedule
Qualifying Groups, based on geography, to play at three different club locations: Morpeth (1 group), Gosforth (2 groups) and Newcastle (1 group).
Group 1 @ Gosforth: Gosforth Empire, Gosforth Regents, Gosforth Jedis, Newcastle C, Jesmond, Forest Hall Magpies
Mon April 8, Mon May 13, Thurs Jun 6 (at Punch Bowl, Jesmond), Mon Jun 24, Mon Jul 8
Group 2 @ Gosforth: Gosforth Salters, Gosforth Ivy, Gosforth Hawthorns, Forest Hall Badgers, Newcastle University, Newcastle A
Mon April 8, Mon May 13, Mon Jun 3, Mon Jun 24, Mon Jul 8
Group 3 @ Morpeth: Morpeth A, Morpeth B, Tynemouth, Alnwick
Wed April 10, Wed May 15, Wed Jun 5
Group 4 @ Newcastle: Leam Lane, Gateshead, Tynedale, South Shields, Newcastle B, Gosforth Centurions
Tues April 9, Tues May 14, Tues Jun 4, Wed Jun 26, Wed Jul 9
First-placed team in each group to qualify for the KO Cup Semi-Finals. Second-placed team in each group to qualify for the KO Plate Semi-Finals. Semi-Finals and Finals to be played at Gosforth CC in September.
Note: Second-placed team in Morpeth group goes into playoff match v highest-scoring third placed team from all the other groups to qualify for the KO Plate Semi-Finals.
Tie-breaks for Semi-Final places
1 Total match points;
2 Lowest average combined rating per team (over all group stage matches).
3 Blitz match (3 mins plus 2 seconds per player) between the teams according to the handicap system. Board 1 colours to be decided by coin toss.
Eligibility
A player may only play for one team per Summer KO Cup season.
To play in a Semi-Final or Final, a player must have played at least twice for that team in the qualifying stages.
Match Scores
Teams will score points in the League based on the established NCA Handicap System (see below). A team’s score in each round shall be the number of game points scored, plus additional handicap points.
Pairings will be posted on the ECF League Management System (LMS) by the KO Organiser.
Team captains are responsible for completing the results on LMS and ensuring that players are ECF Bronze members or above. Players can pay for their ECF membership retrospectively until the following May 31, but any membership dues outstanding past this date will be payable by clubs to the ECF.
Team managers should submit their players in board order for each team by 7:00pm on the evening of the round.
Handicap System
Teams will be designated a category for each match, according to the following rating bands:
Points are added to the lower ranked side as follows:
Time control & start times
The start time for all rounds shall be 7:15pm.
The time control shall be 75 minutes plus 10 seconds per move.
The default time will be 30 minutes after the start of play.
Ratings and estimated ratings
Players should play in strict ECF rating order in teams.
Handicap calculations will use the March ECF Standard Play published ratings, or a player’s first ECF Standard Play rating, if that happens in later months.
P (partial) ECF ratings will not be used. Players with no rating or a P rating will be assigned an estimated rating for the competition by the KO Organiser.
Any team fielding an unrated player should email the player’s proposed estimated rating to the KO Organiser not later than 48 hours before the player’s first match. The KO Organiser will then send the estimated rating by email to the team captain before the match.
Northumberland Chess Association 