Phil Rafferty writes:
On Friday 20 March the 2026 AGM Tournament began at the Mercure Sheffield Parkway Hotel. After a speedy taxi from Sheffield station, where our driver didn’t stop for one single red light, we arrived at the hotel. The layout of the hotel was very simple, with the front desk immediately in front of the opening doors, the restaurant to the left and the playing room to the right, and the lift only a few steps from the front desk. The hotel rooms in use by members of the BCA were over all three floors, but all floors had a single hallway and were easily navigable. I was particularly delighted that the hotel room had a mini fridge for storage use, and plenty of charging ports for an array of electronic devices. There was also a good amount of green space only a short walk from the hotel.
The food at the hotel was a particular plus point with plenty of the members, and there was agreement each night that portions were hearty, enjoyable, and served in a timely manner. I am personally easily won over by any hotel that serves black pudding with the breakfasts and was even more charmed by cheesecake on the dessert options on two of the evenings. The hotel staff were helpful at dinners and at breakfasts and always had a friendly manner, joking particularly that they do like to serve a lot of food in Yorkshire.
The chess room was large and had a sensible temperature for the weekend, and there were no ambient noises from any other meeting rooms in use or general noise from the hotel, which was nice. All games were finely stewarded by Richard Murphy and arbitered expertly by Gerry Walsh and James Connors. While the members were captivated by their games, the guide dogs in attendance were themselves captivated by the sight of bunnies in the field behind the hotel, from the big windows in the playing room. The room also served for the AGM and for the usual social of the weekend, where lucky members of the BCA were treated to well-loved and eagerly awaited renditions of classic songs from our more talented members.
The quality of games over the weekend was as excellent as always, and although I managed to finish the weekend with only one point (and from a bye at that), there was plenty to celebrate at the prizegiving for the tournament, with many grading prizes given out. The victor in the Open section of the tournament was Chris Ross (after a close-run competition against Tristram Cole), while Rosie Irwin finished as the winner of the Challengers, both with an impressive 4.5 points from five games.
Overall, there were plenty of positive comments from members about the hotel and the tournament over the weekend, and I would fully expect that we will return there for a weekend tournament very soon. Members were pleased with the quality of the food, the friendliness of the staff, and the simple and easily navigable layout of the hotel, especially when compared to some of the hotels for previous AGMs and weekend tournaments. I eagerly look forward to a comfortable atmosphere and lashings of food.
