Closer than it appears: B&L 'A' defeat 'B' in season starter
Derbyshire Chess Association Division 1
Although the official fixture list for the Derbyshire Chess Association League isn't online yet, the first agreed fixture of the Division 1 season took place at The Burton Bridge last night, with Burton & Lichfield 'A' taking on the newly promoted B&L 'B' team. The ultimate 3.5 - 0.5 victory for the 'A' Team was less comfortable than it might at first appear, with all four games being closely contested.
The Board 4 match between Joe Parker (B) and Adam Routledge (A) was first to finish. Adam misplayed the opening with Black, allowing Joe to win a pawn with a strong position, but with a time deficit on the clock. Adam offered a draw, and in light of the 250+ grading difference between the players, Joe accepted. Both players were ultimately satisfied with the result, but for different reasons.
In the Board 2 match between John Hoddy (B) and Mircea Mesesan (A), both players manoeuvred their pieces carefully through the opening and early middlegame. John, playing White, eventually lost a pawn, and the game transitioned into a minor piece endgame, with Mircea having Knight and 2 pawns vs. Bishop and 1 pawn. The consensus of the players and observers was that Mircea had a won position, but that still needed proving over the board. John, however, blundered a fork and lost his Bishop, resigning immediately.
On Board 3, Richard Anderson (A), with White, faced Anushka Ramawickrama. Richard offered a pawn for capture by the Black Queen in exchange for rapid development in the opening, and was surprised when the offer was accepted. The Queen was forced to move several times while White's pieces continued to develop, but without a clearly winning tactic. The Queens were eventually exchanged, leading to a position in which the extra pawn for Black was a meaningless doubled h pawn, and in which White's rooks dominated their black counterparts. Anushka's position was difficult to untangle, and under pressure to break free, he blundered a Knight.
The match win now confirmed for the 'A' Team, the only remaining game was the Board 1 encounter between Ben Nevett-Farman (A) and Vinod Fernando (B). The game entered a complex middlegame in which the players had castled to opposite sides. Ben sacrificed the exchange to give him a dominant dark-squared bishop. His resulting kingside attack looked likely to break through, but Vinod defended well, giving the exchange back to remove the Bishop. White, however, still had a positional advantage and a passed pawn on the queenside, and with time running short for both players, Vinod missed a tactic which forced the Queens off the board, resulting in a clearly won King and Pawn ending for Ben. Vinod resigned, giving the 'A' team a 3.5 - 0.5 win. (Match played: 7th September).