ESA English Championships 2025/26 – Round One Report

Bristol – Sunday 19th October 2025

The new ESA English Championships season flicked off in style this past Sunday, as Round One took place in Bristol. A superb field of 41 players assembled for a day of top-class Subbuteo action, featuring current English Champion Chris Short, reigning Youth Champion Jamie Warren, and a host of other domestic and international stars.

From the first whistle, the group stages delivered excitement and drama in equal measure. Two thrilling 4–3 scorelines stood out, Malcolm Jamieson edging Simon Goodman, and Jamie Warren narrowly defeating Simon Bodily, while elsewhere, results largely followed form. Group winners included: Chris Short, Kevin Cordell, Rudi Peters, Mick Hammonds, Aaron Skinner, Richard Badger, Kye Arnold, Marco Ghigliotti, Victor Jones, Paul Andreas, and Panos Stemitsiotis.

Knockout Stage Drama

The Round of 16 saw several big names fall early. Home favourite Aaron Skinner suffered heartbreak in a golden-goal defeat to Jason Christopher, while Alan Lee overcame Marco Ghigliotti in another sudden-death thriller. Kye Arnold narrowly beat Paul Andreas 3–2 in a tense encounter.

By the Quarter Finals, only eight elite contenders remained:

• Mick Hammonds 1–0 Jason Christopher

• Chris Short 2–0 Alan Lee

• Justin Scott 2–0 Kye Arnold

• Kevin Cordell 1–0 Rudi Peters

The Semi-Finals promised quality and didn’t disappoint. In the first, Chris Short took an early lead against Mick Hammonds, was pegged back, but rallied superbly to win 3–1.In the second, Justin Scott led Kevin Cordell 1–0 at half-time before Cordell produced two stunning strikes to complete a memorable 2–1 comeback.

That set up a heavyweight final: Chris Short, the defending champion, versus Kevin Cordell, one of the most consistent performers on the circuit.

The Final

The final was a tense and tactical showcase of elite Subbuteo. Both players demonstrated superb defensive discipline and blocking skills, creating few clear chances. After a string of finely-balanced exchanges and tight refereeing decisions, it was Kevin Cordell who found the breakthrough, scoring the decisive goal to seal victory and claim the Round One title, beating the reigning champion in the process.

Event Runner-up Chris Short (Right)

Event Winner Kevin Cordell (Right)

Youth Players

Top finishing Youth player was Stanway's Jamie Warren who advanced out of his group into the knockout rounds and second was Connor Gregory

Youth runner-up Connor Gregory (Right)

youth winner Jamie Warren (Right)

Plate Competition

In the Plate, Rob Paterson of the Midlands triumphed with a narrow 2–1 win over Worthing’s Malcolm Jamieson, who has been in fine form in recent months. Other notable performers included Rob Piggott, who reached the semi-finals after an epic 5–3 quarter-final victory over Bob Fairbrother, and Adam Douglas, who edged England youth star Connor Gregory by a single goal in another excellent contest.

Plate Runner-up Malcolm Jamieson

Plate Winner Rob Paterson (Right)

The Shield Competition

The Shield event saw an all-Bristol showdown, as clubmates Dave Fletcher and Stuart Briffett battled it out for local bragging rights. After a closely contested match, it was Dave Fletcher who emerged victorious with a 2-1 win to take the honours and complete a memorable day for the host club.

Shield Winner Dave Fletcher (Right)

Shield Runner-up Stuart Briffett (Right)

Thanks, and Next Round

A huge thank you goes to Steve Wonnacott and his Bristol team for hosting a superb opening round of the season, with a special mention to Alex Salter on car park security!

The next round of the ESA English Championships will take place on Sunday 30th November 2025 at the Gillingham Labour and Social Club, hosted by Terry and Kye Arnold.