Ian Davis / Decline

Sub-page of IanDavis

The inspiration for this page came from [ext] Pok's Go Space, which is an excellent web site covering Go in Austria. It seems true to me that Go in the UK has somehow lost its way. This page is not about to point the finger of blame in anyone in particular. I want merely to examine the rise and fall of British Go. It is a work in progress at the minute, detailing facts, with no fixed narrative in between them

Until the late 60s / early 70s, there was no real breakthrough in the level of Go in the UK. For instance the European Go Congress was held in London in [ext] 1966, but no UK player competed in the top group. By [ext] 1971 the situation had changed, the congress was held in Bristol, and featured 2 British players. Tony Goddard picked up 5th place, while Jon Diamond took 7th (last) place. In the intermediate years, both players had competed in the top European group. Admittedly they both placed in the bottom half of the table, but, they were there!

Britain, alongside West Germany, Austria, Yugoslavia, and the Netherlands, was at the top. Diamond and Goddard each took a 3rd place in the European Championship in 1972 and 1974 respectively. BGA [ext] membership figures were looking healthy. Between 1972 and 1975 membership went from 516 to 1048. Helped, perhaps in part, by the opening of the London Go Centre in 1975. A third name, Jim Bates, also entered the top group for Britain in the same year. 1976 saw the Congress come to Cambridge, and Tony Goddard almost won on home ground, but lost to the emerging France in the last round.

This looks rather like a picture of health. There was not an isolated group of players at the top. Matthew Macfadyen and Brian Castledine emerged in 1977, taking, respectively, 4th and 10th place, in the European Championship. However Paul Prescott, another top player, seemingly gave up in 1978. Then came 1979, which can only be described as a sad year. Brian Castledine, who had challenged for the [ext] British Championship, was tragically killed in a cliff fall. The London Go Centre also closed in this year, due to financial problems.

Nevertheless the power of Macfadyen was undiminished, and he was soon to be joined by Terry Stacey. Macfadyen won the European title in 1980, 1984, 1987, and 1989. Stacey took 3rd place in 1983, as well as besting Macfadyen twice in the battle for the British Championship in 1985 and 1986. Very tragically, like Castledine before him, Stacey was killed in a horrible accident in 1988. We can see that in this year, despite the clear and indisputable success of the top players, Go was not in a clearly healthy state. The membership figures were 515, that is 1 lower than they had been in 1972. Success at the top, had seemingly not translated into recruitment at the bottom.

.....

At the turn of the century, certainly on one hand, the BGA seemed to have completely lost its way in terms of a vision of the future. These two letters [a| [ext] http://users.durge.org/~gandalf/bgj117cm.html] [b| [ext] http://users.durge.org/~gandalf/bgj119cm.html] by Charles Matthews point out very accurately the travesty that was the change of the Championship System to effectively restrict it to 3 dan and above. On the other hand some very nice initiatives like Go Zone were being developed to develop the game amongst children, the Cambridge Double Figure Kyu league was broader still in its outreach. Then again, it was also battling against exploitation of the internet Go scene, rather than embracing it. A rather blinkered view.

Hikaru No Go was a welcome boost for recruiting new players. In 2003, the membership figures peaked at 703. By 2011 they had fallen to 467, that is the lowest recorded number. That is a drop of around 33%, a very substantial reduction. The BGA's income stream was damaged by the death of their book seller, the gentleman, Gerry Mills, for whom no replacement could be found.

Youth Championship numbers are a useful metric From 52 to 13

A short essay on the Decline of Go in the UK

The inspiration for this page came from [ext] Pok's Go Space, which is an excellent web site covering Go in Austria. It seems true to me that Go in the UK has somehow lost its way. This page is not about to point the finger of blame in anyone in particular. The BGA formed in the year 1953. Led by Jon Diamond and Tony Goddard, they became one of the 'big six' nations in European Go. Membership figures peaked during the time of the London Go Centre, at 1048 in 1975. The pinnacle of peformance came with Matthew Macfadyen's European titles in the 1980s. Since these highpoints, what has happened to British Go? Well, it has gradually gone downhill. What reasons could there be to explain this sad fact?

Tragedy

It is a sad fact of life that people die far too young. Would that the BGA be could be immune to that, but it is not the case. I would pick out two key persons in the short history so far, whose death can be said to have had a significant negative impact on British Go. Other key players have, of course, been lost to other circumstancial foes.

  • Brian Castledine. At the time of his death, not only was he a President, but he was also one of the strongest players, having challenged for the title in 1978. He was killed in an acidental cliff fall in 1979. Volunteers have always been hard to come by, so losing a key figure in such a sudden manner is a blow to any amateur organisation. Under Brian, the [ext] schools plan was being driven forward.
  • Terry Stacey. When we look at contenders for Macfadyen's crown, Terry is the only native player who actually got the better of him. Although he didn't quite share Matthew's success at the European Level, he was an active, and clearly beneficial player for the general scene. To lose him, in his prime, in a motorcyle accident, was a big loss indeed. Terry Stacey died in 1988.

Watford Gap Syndrome

Authority in BGA seems continually to have resided around London. This is not entirely surprising, given the population distribution of the UK. It is precisely these distibutions, and the increasingly poor transportation networks of the UK, that can foster a sense of internal isolation. It is hard to see how the BGA can, or could have, countered this. Certainly, it moves the British Go Congress arond the country in an effort to stay national. Nevertheless, the lack of activity in certain areas, is bound to prove a dampener on the uptake of Go there. One key example of this is at around the time of the London Go Centre. Then, the BGA council sacked the journal editor team in Bristol, and gave the job to a team in London. [ext] Two letters then appear in the next journal. (I can't help but suspect that they were not both written in complete isolation.)

Planning

It could be said that the BGA lacks whole board vision. I am not genuinely sure that this has been the case. However, one can find letters making said accusation throughout its history. David Mitchell's [ext] letter is a prime example of this, pointing out that progress is painfully slow, and that (sometimes) Go players can be brought together to do things. The two instances he cites (Go Press and Shusai) soon ceased to exist after his letter. It can be said that he does have a point, the BGA does not have a solid plan to expand its membership. Perhaps it has concluded that no viable plan exists. In the 1991 a [ext] letter appeared claiming that Go would never overtake Chess, it met with criticism, but it seems accurate. Eventually, when membership dropped by around 30%, the official response was to say "The BGA is doing okay, relatively". I still can't fathom how a President can state that and not meet with any open criticism from the membership base.

Youth

Teachers who play Go are, as it were, a gift from heaven. Much of the youth work in the UK has been performed by them. By the 1970s, the BGA had realised it needed to create a structured program to break into schools. At that point in time, 3rd level education was well covered. Since then, it can be said that this is not an area that has been significantly neglected. GoZone?, the Youth Grand Prix, a Youth Championship, the DFK league. All of these initiatives are to the credit of the organisation. Peter Wendes also present the game to thousands of schoolchildren every year. What we can point to, is the lack of higher level tuition for any of the youth players. There is a curious lack of desire to drive the kids forward thorugh the ranks.

Championship

The British Championship, in terms of player aspirations, should clearly be one of the focal points for ambitious improving players, as well as established top players. Yet, it is a system that has seen a good deal of instablilty over the years. In part, this can be put down to the changing shape of the organisation. In recent years, however, this excuse fades away. Probably the reforms instituted at around the turn of the century, are the key example of bad policy. Given the tournament system prevalent in the UK at that point, they served merely to perpetuate a static elite. Little, or no, enouragement was given to the upcoming players. See Charles Matthew's letters [ext] a and [ext] b for an accurate and withering attack on this.

International Representation

Most selection policies are based around certain key ideas. The basic strength of the players. The activity within the circuit or the game. The potential of the player to benefit. BGA policy initially focused on strength, but it was decided, quite rationally, that the benefits of a free trip to Japan, and the opportunity to learn, should be spread around a little more. The initial selection system chosen for the WAGC was, initially completely adequate. Initially. As time went by, you only had to look at the sprawling points table to notice the adjustment that was needed.

Subsequent systems, including those for other events, have had the same marked defect. Too much weight is placed upon the history of the player. That is, a player consistently scoring a paucity of points over a period of 30 years, may at last be chosen to travel to the some international title. This reward is at the expense of the up and coming players. Achieving a balance on this problem would not be a difficult task, but it is simply not attempted. This is, undoubtably because it was never seen as a problem. When, in 2010, a change was made, it was then ignored the very next year.

Another point to make here, is that Council simply forgot to pick players for the European Student Championship for 3 years in a row. The European Pair Go Championships also suffered from such neglect. Such failures may seem minor, compared to its forgetting to send a candidate to the WAGC in 2012, but I believe they are not so. At precisely such a time as when there was a lack of new students emerging, the BGA neglected in its duty to encourage them via international selection.

Internet

Sometimes people playing Go on the internet is said to be a curse! It saps the hunger to meet up with other Go players in real life. Clubs, tournaments, membership will suffer.. blah, blah. Initially the BGA was anti-internet Go. I believe that this was a terrible mistake to make. In the beginning, there was absolutely no planning on how to use this new development. Even today, I think there is still little idea. Broadcasting Championship games, this is a useful activity! Where are the other activites? Structured teaching? Tournaments? National leagues? Friendship matches? It took a decade for any of these to come about, which is incredibly sad and backward. Especially so, considering the quality of the BGA's website, which has, from its inception, been a continuing example of best practice to others.

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