LEAGUE CUP - FINAL ROUND RESULTS

SENIOR CUP - Team drew with Heathcote Arms - Spinney Hill win the Cup

 

	25-Mar-10	v.	Heathcote Arms (H)
1.	A. Byron	0.5		G. Sharpe	0.5
2.	A. Morley	1		D. Bray	1
3.	P. Khanna	1		R. Ganger	0
4.	S. Smith	0		M. Cowley	1
	Bonus	0		Bonus	0
		2			2

 

JUNIOR CUP - Team Beat Cup Winners Loughborough but only drew after handicap applied.

 

	25-Mar-10	v.	Loughborough (H)
1.	B. Cooper	0.5		P. Hickman	0.5
2.	C. Eastlake	0.5		T. Adcock	0.5
3.	D. Wilkins	0.5		V. Uski	0.5
4.	P. Winterton	1		S. Gordon	0
	Bonus	0		Bonus	1
		2.5			2.5

Chess Puzzle

Hello everybody,


This puzzle is also from one of my games - but I happy to use other peoples games if you have a nice tactic to show off. In fact, the position is from my last game, part of the key Wigston 2 v Heathcote Arms 1 match. The match was going to be very close, with 2 games already agreed a drawn by the time this position appeared on the board:

[ Mike Cowley (148) v Phil Watkinson (143)]  [Black to play and win]

I had been playing sharply, and up to now Mike had not been able to castle. The thing about playing sharply is that you must continue to play sharply until you have achieved a winning game. The loss of initiative in these knife-edge positions can easily lead to a lost game.

A win for Black would mean a won or drawn match for the 2nd team, securing their place in the Division 1, and more importantly probably giving the 1st team the Division 1 Championship. No pressure, then.


Black to play and win. To get the best out of this puzzle, you need not only to spot the first move, but to treat as a calculation exercise, and see how much of the variations you can find. There are two main variations, one of which is quite forcing so you could probably get quite far.


Have fun,
Phil.

LEAGUE RESULTS - WEEK 16

1ST TEAM RETAIN DIVISION ONE TITLE

 

DIV 1 - 1st Team win away at Loughborough 1

 

	17-Mar-10	v.	Loughborough 1(A)
1.	S. Sheahan	0		A. Byron	1
2.	J. Mitchell	0.5		P. Horspool	0.5
3.	G. Eagleton	0.5		A. Morley	0.5
4.	A. Jimenez	0.5		A. Ward	0.5
5.	G. Adcock	0.5		P. Khanna	0.5
		2			3

 

DIV 1 - 2nd Team have a great win against Heathcote 1 to help 1st team to title

 

	18-Mar-10	v.	Heathcote 1(H)
1.	W. Dehnen	0.5		G. Sharpe	0.5
2.	A. Morley	0.5		D. Bray	0.5
3.	P. Khanna	0.5		R. Ganger	0.5
4.	S. Smith	0.5		G. Booley	0.5
5.	P. Watkinson	1		M. Cowley	0
		3			2

 

DIV 2 - 3rd Team win away at Market Harborough

 

	17-Mar-10	v.	Mkt Harborough (A)
1.	R. Ilersic	0.5		I. Dodds	0.5
2.	C. Oppenheim	0.5		P. Watkinson	0.5
3.	J. Thomson	0		J. Wells	1
4.	P. Hatton	0.5		A. Pike	0.5
5.	R. King	0		J. Daniel	1
		1.5			3.5

 

DIV 3 - 4th Team lose to Ashby 3

 

	18-Mar-10	v.	Ashby 3 (H)
1.	B. Shuter	0		D. Reynolds	1
2.	P. Gray	0		R. Williams	1
3.	D. White	0		N. Wyld	1
4.	B. Cooper	1		N. Roberts	0
		1			3

 

DIV 4 - 5th Team have drawn match away at Syston 2

 

	16-Mar-10	v.	Syston 2 (A)
1.	C. Johnson	0		D. White	1
2.	S. Hollingworth	0.5		C. Eastlake	0.5
3.	E. Gist	1		G. Hammond	0
4.	P. Cresswell	0.5		P. Winterton	0.5
		2			2

 

Neil

Answer to Chess Puzzle

If you haven't seen the chess puzzle yet, quickly scroll down a couple of posts and give a try; because here is the answer.


The correct response to 12. Qxa5 capturing a knight, is : 12. ... Qc8:

(Please note I have turned the board round from the usual layout, because I was playing Black).

If you got this, there are three points to be awarded, one for each reason why this is a good move:


1.  Give yourself one point if you saw that moving the queen frees up the square d8 for the bishop to attack the queen.
2. And give yourself another if you saw that moving the queen to c8 defends the last flight square of white queen, a6.
3. Lastly, and this is the difficult one, that separates the men from the boys,  award yourself a third point if you recognized that the only way White could release his queen would be to return the knight with: 13. Nxb5 cxb5.  This then provides Black's queen on c8 the open c-file, and the check at c3, winning a rook. This is this threat that prevents White simply taking the (second) b pawn, ending up with 2 pawns and a probable winning position:

This is how far I had looked when allowing white to take my knight on the twelfth move, and I was happy at the time to go into this position a pawn down, but with chances to trap White's queen, and plenty of activity.


However, when we got to the position (as the graphic above) I got really worried with White's reply 14. Bd2 a6, threatening 15. Rc1. But my opponent told me after the game that I would simply take the rook: 15. ...Qxc1! 16. Bxc1 Bd8 and I would end up with the exchange for a pawn.


So the game continued instead:  14. O-O a6  15. Qb6?? (a "50% move", which allows the Black queen to escape to c5 if I move the bishop, or to go to a7 if I move the rook, but there is a third piece I can move....:)
Nd5! 0-1.  


Hope you liked that one.
Phil.

LEAGUE RESULTS - WEEK 15

DIV 1 - 1st Team beat Heathcote 1 in top of table clash

 

	11-Mar-10	v.	Heathcote 1(H)
1.	M. Burrows	0.5		G. Sharpe	0.5
2.	A. Byron	0.5		D. Bray	0.5
3.	P. Horspool	1		R. Ganger	0
4.	W. Dehnen	1		G. Booley	0
5.	A. Morley	0.5		M. Cowley	0.5
		3.5			1.5

 

 

DIV 1 - 2nd Team gain excellent draw with strong Melton 1

 

	10-Mar-10	v.	Melton 1 (A)
1.	J. Brookes	0		A. Morley	1
2.	G. Lee	1		I. Dodds	0
3.	J. Denton	0.5		E. Galyov	0.5
4.	J. Billingham	0.5		P. Watkinson	0.5
5.	T. Reynolds	0.5		P. Khanna	0.5
		2.5			2.5

 

 

DIV 4 - 5th Team draw away at top of table Red Admiral 2

 

	10-Mar-10	v.	Red Admiral 2 (A)
1.	B. Thomas	1		C. Eastlake	0
2.	A. Engels	0		G. Hammond	1
3.	M. Slater	0.5		F. Hulford	0.5
4.	D. Watson	0.5		D. Wilkins	0.5
		2			2

 

Neil