Tarun and I participated in the 32nd 4NCL (Four Nations Chess League) Chess Congress held in Huddersfield, Leeds, England. This weekend tournament took place from January 17–19, 2025, and drew over 150 players across three sections: Open, Under 2000, and Under 1700.
This was our first time playing in the 4NCL Congress Open, we have played in the 4NCL league before.
Journey from Ireland to Huddersfield
We didn’t get much sleep as we needed to catch an early morning RyanAir flight from Dublin Airport to Leeds Bradford. What always surprises us is how busy the airport is at such early hours.


It was a short flight, we landed in Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA) in no time. It’s our 2nd time to this airport, it has a very modern design. We got the A1 FlyerBus to Leeds Train Station.

The bus was almost full, luckily we got the final seats otherwise we had to wait another 30min! The bus ride was about 40min long.

We got down on at Wellington 5 min walking distance to the train station.

After reaching Leeds Railway Station, we hopped on to a train going to Manchester via Huddersfield. The train journey was less than 20min.
At Huddersfield Railway Station

The next part of the journey was to walk towards Huddersfield Bus Stop to catch bus to the tournament venue – Cedar Court Huddersfield.

Day 1
The first round started at 7pm.
Tarun Kanyamarala (2378) vs. Mitchell R. Burke (2000) 1-0

Shriaansh Ganti vs. Trisha Kanyamarala
It was a tough loss in the first round for me.

Day 2:
Tarun and I both won our 2nd round game in the morning.
In the 3rd round Tarun had an interesting game, where he missed a nice tactic.
I got an exchange earlier in the game which I was able to convert
Final Day
I won the fourth round by trapping my opponent’s Queen

Heading into the final round, I was on 3/4 and needed a win to secure a spot at the top. I was paired with GM Mark Hebden and had the Black pieces. The middlegame was balanced, but I made some inaccuracies that left me in a worse position. I was close to losing hope, but an active king turned the tide, allowing me to claim victory.
That was a lucky win! With this game, I managed to share first place. After losing in the first round, I never expected the tournament to turn out this way. I’m happy with how I bounced back, and it’s a great reminder to never give up, no matter how tough things get.

https://chess-results.com/tnr1098999.aspx?lan=1&art=1&rd=5&flag=30
Tarun and I had a great time in Huddersfield, looking forward to play again next year!