Division 5 at the Christmas Break

With seven out of fifteen league games played, a couple more wins in the new year should hopefully make it difficult to catch us. Melton, recently, however, have been scoring well.

Colin

Chess Programme on BBC4

On Monday 21st December,at 10PM, BBC4 are broadcasting a programme called Timeshift: How to Win at Chess. This is how it is described:

Many people know the basic rules of chess, but few can play really well. This programme offers some essential tips on how to raise our game.

British grandmasters Dan King and Ray Keene go through a special demonstration game from opening gambit to checkmate, revealing the key moves that can lead to victory. They explain the opening, middle and end games, and how to outwit an opponent with techniques such as forks, pins and skewers.

Along the way the colourful and diverse world of British chess playing is celebrated, including speed chess and chess boxing, and useful advice is offered on how not to be humiliated by a child prodigy.

Also taking part are novelist Martin Amis, writer Dominic Lawson, Britain's youngest grandmaster David Howell and under-16 champion Sheila Dines.

Get those video recorders ready,

Colin

Braunstone 4 (0.5 - 3.5) Heathcote Arms 2

A jolly good result, given that these chaps beat us in the first match of the season.
I won my first game in ages, Rob had no problems, Pete had a sharp game which simplified into a king and pawn endgame with his having seven pawns to his opponent's five. Dave was a piece down and his game looked to be over until a mistake allowed him to equalise.

Jeff Toon (108)0-1 Pete Harrison (140)
Paul Martin (97) 0-1 Rob Ensor (135)
Steve Barlow (96) 0-1 Colin Ross (112)
John Impey (90) Draw Dave Ricketts (104)
Braunstone (4) 0.5 - 3.5 Heathcote Arms (2)

There were no losses for HA2 for the second week running, and it looks as though we head into the Christmas break at the top of Division five. Heathcote Arms 1 also look to be at the top of Division 1.

Well done everyone.

The next match for HA2 is on Thursday 14th January away at Ashby and is a Junior League Cup match.

Club night on Tuesday 14th December.

Colin

No Major Screw Ups Against Hinckley

Heathcote Arms 2 were at home against Hinckley 2 on Tuesday. Three out of four of us outgraded our opponents. In a knife edge battle of the tortoises, Terry Clay and i agreed a draw shortly before the first time control - we each had two minutes left on the clock with five moves to make, in a complicated position. Rob then also agreed a draw on the top board. Despite multiple draw offers from his opponent, Ray "eye of the tiger" Beach forced his pieces through a board clogged with pawns causing the higher graded Douglas Opie enough trouble to lose on time. John had the advantage of a piece over Barry Bailey and, in a fast and furious finish, Barry's flag dropped.

Rob Ensor (135) Draw Gary Compton (117)
John Manger (134) 1-0 Barry Bailey (116)
Colin Ross (112) Draw Terry Clay (99)
Ray Beach (90) 1-0 Douglas Opie (104)
Heathcote Arms (2) 3 - 1 Hinckley (2)

Well done everyone, especially to Dave whose rather scary Haka seemed to do the trick.

Next Tuesday, we are away against Braunstone 4.

Colin.

Heathcote Arms (2) Draw Red Admiral (2)

In the second round of the junior league cup we played at home to Red Admiral 2 (actually their third league team). Owing to illness, our opponents defaulted a board. The handicapping system gave the Red Admiral a two point bonus, minus one point for defaulting the board, leaving them with a one point advantage. I wanted to play Ray on board 3 rather than myself, since he is playing better, but the rules did not allow this.

John won his game first. Rob sacrificed a couple of pawns early on to lead his opponent's king into the open and then clobbered him. Rob's opponent,Mick, in a hopeless situation for at least the previous half an hour, eventually lost on time. When his flag dropped, he loudly proclaimed 'oh ****! I've lost!'- nobody else was surprised. I thought i had the edge for most of my game against Stan. He turned down my offer of a draw on the grounds that it would lose Red Admiral the match. Stan went on to sacrifice his queen to force mate.

Heathcote Arms (2) Vs Red Admiral (2)
Rob Ensor (135)1-0 Mick Slater (100)
John Manger (134) 1-0 Andy Carter (100)
Colin Ross (112) 0-1 Stan Parsons (83)
Ray Beach (90) 1-0 Default
Bonus 0-2
Total 3-3

Rob Ensor Vs Mick Slater
1 d4 d5, 2 c4 dxc4, 3 e3 b5, 4 Nc3 c6, 5 Nf3 Bg4, 6 Be2 f6, 7 b3 b4, 8 Ne4 f5, 9 Nc5 c3, 10 d5 Qxd5, 11 Qxd5 cxd5, 12 Bb5+ Kf7, 13 Ne5 Kf6, 14 f4 e6, 15 Ncd3 a6, 16 Be8 Ra7, 17 h3 Re7, 18 hxg4 Rxe8, 19 g5+ Ke7, 20 Ng6+ Kd8, 21 Nxh8 g6, 22 Rxh7 Nc6, 23 Nxg6 d4, 24 Nxf8 Rxf8, 25 a3 e5, 26 fxe5 Re8, 27 axb4 a5, 28 b5 Nxe5, 29 Nxe5 Rxe5, 30 Rxa5 Ne7, 31 Ra7 dxe3, 32 Rh8+ Ng8, 33 Rxg8+ Re8, 34 Ra8+ Kc7, 35 Rxe8 Kd6,
36 Rxe3 c2, 37 Rd8+ Kc7, 38 Rd5 f4, 39 Re6 Kc8, 40 Re7 f3, 41 gxf3 Black Lost on Time

Well done everyone.
On Tuesday we play at home against Hinckley (the handbook is wrong about the date).
This is followed by a match away against Braunstone 4 on Tuesday 8th December which will be our last match before the Christmas break.

Colin

Victory away at Red Admiral

At the risk of becoming predictable, I lost to Andy Carter after getting a knight trapped. Ray continued his run of fine form with an early win. Dave played Amber Carter (the Red Admiral's 10 year old Giga final champion)and turned down a draw, but then changed his mind after a couple more moves when he thought there might be trouble coming. John and Graham H had a very close game, but John was able to force home a win.

18.11.09
Red Admiral 3 v Heathcote Arms 2
1 B 129 Hewitt, Graham 0-1 Manger, John 134
2 W 100 Carter, Andy 1-0 Ross, Colin 112
3 B 80 Carter, Amber ½-½ Ricketts, Dave 104
4 W 80 Burton, Calvin 0-1 Beach, Ray 90
1.5-2.5

Well done everyone. This was RA2s first loss of the season. We play the Red Admiral again on Tuesday - this time, at our place and as part of the Junior League Cup.

Colin

Melton Mowbray (3) Draw Heathcote Arms (2)

On Wednesday, we played away at Melton who had kindly agreed to play five boards.
Firstly, the Captain lost ('surely not!' you cry), playing white against Roy Toon's French Defence. In a sharp game where both had chances, Dave proved that - actually -he can win with the black pieces. Rob ran in to trouble and dropped a pawn against Ian Farquharson.
The last two games were real nailbiters with both Ray and John looking roughly equal with their opponents. John agreed a draw. Ray had offered his opponent a draw earlier and had been turned down - now he needed a win for us to draw the match - which, of course, he did. Ray promoted a pawn, and though there was still a struggle, Ray got him.

Melton Mowbray 3 v Heathcote Arms 2
2½-2½
1 B 135 Farquharson, Ian 1-0 Ensor, Rob 135
2 W 107 Smith, Peter ½-½ Manger, John 134
3 B 109 Toon, Roy 1-0 Ross, Colin 112
4 W 80 O'Gorman, David 0-1 Ricketts, Dave 104
5 B 80 Keightley, Andrew 0-1 Beach, Ray 90

A decent result.

Well done everyone.

Next Wednesday, we are away against Red Admiral 3. Rob is away, so, just the four boards this time.

Colin

Heathcote Arms 2 (3-1) Syston 3

There was a bit of excitement in the couple of hours prior to the match. John had been called back into work and so we had to find a fourth player quickly. Pete was around, however, and we were able to field the full number of players for the four boards.

This was Rob Ensor's first outing for HA2. Rob used to play for the University a few years back. He recently took part in the Intermediate section of the Atkins Congress and with three draws and two wins managed to walk away with a share in the prizemoney. Welcome Rob.

We outgraded our opponents by some way, but the games were close.
I lost in a king and pawn endgame in a game where the advantage had changed hands at least three or four times. Rob dropped a piece early on, but managed to regain it and was able to promote a rook pawn just ahead of a chasing king. Ray was able to trap his opponent's queen early on and exchange it off for a knight (Ray is on fire at the moment with two wins and two draws from the first four games). Pete exchanged a piece for two pawns early on and things looked very close for a long time before he triumphed in the endgame.

A few beers were had in the bar afterwards.

Heathcote Arms (2) 3 - 1 Syston (3)
Pete Harrison (140) 1-0 Ron King (105)
Rob Ensor (135) 1-0 Judith Mitton (90)
Colin Ross (112) 0-1 Mo Martin (90)
Ray Beach (90) 1-0 Reg Agger (82)

Well done everyone.

Our next match is on Wednesday 11th and is away at Melton Mowbray.

Colin

Disaster at Wigston

HA2 played away at Wigston on Thursday in the first round of the Junior League Cup.
Readers may remember that this was where we lost our chance of winning the Junior Cup in last year's final round. The gradings of our sides were only 11 points apart - so no bonuses.

Dave was the first to fall, with an early piece blunder; John had looked alright earlier, but ran into trouble on board 1; Ray accepted his opponent's third draw offer, and i found myself a pawn down in a blocked position with no real hope of progress - so resigned.

Wigston Heathcote Arms
B Cooper (118) 1-0 John Manger (134)
C Eastlake (117) 1-0 Colin Ross (112)
F Hulford (114) 1-0 Dave Ricketts (104)
P Winterton (102) Draw Ray Beach (90)
Bonus 0-0
Score 3.5-0.5

Well done to Ray.

On Tuesday, we play at home to Syston 3 and we get to try out a new secret weapon.

Colin

HA2 Victorious at Hinckley

Dave attacked like crazy and was rewarded with a swift victory. John was offered a draw and accepted. Ray outplayed his opponent. I messed up royally and lost to Terry Clay on time - though my position was awful anyway. Howard Philips was literally jumping up and down trying to make my flag fall.

Afterwards, Howard told both sides how useless they all were.

Scores on the doors were:

B Bailey (116) Draw John Manger (134)
T Clay (99) 1-0 Colin Ross (112)
J Smith (85) 0-1 Dave Ricketts (104)
D Chizra (80) 0-1 Ray Beach (90)

Hinckley (2) 1.5-2.5 Heathcote Arms (2)

Our first victory of the season.

A break for half term now. We have a League Cup match away against Wigston on Thursday 29th October, and our next League match is at home against Syston 3 on Tuesday November 3rd.

Well done everyone,

Colin

Shaky Start to Season for Heathcote Arms 2

For once we had the grade advantage. Fat lot of good it did us.
John dropped a piece early on. Ray drew. Dave lost and was rather angry with himself.
From a winning position, i managed to throw the advantage away, but my opponent agreed a draw about 5 seconds before my flag dropped.

Heathcote Arms (2) Vs Braunstone (4)
John Manger (134) 0 -1 Paul Martin (97)
Colin Ross (112) Drawn Steve Barlow (96)
Dave Ricketts (104) 0-1 Guy Closs (95)
Ray Beach (90) Drawn John Impey (90)
Score 1-3

Next match for HA2 is on Thursday 15th away against Hinckley.

Well done everyone.

Colin.

Near Miss at Home Against Syston

The last round of the Harrod Cup had us at home against Syston. Everybody won a game except the home Captain. Shame on him!

Heathcote Arms Vs Syston
John Manger (139) 1,0 Vs J Leonard (121) 1,0
Colin Ross (90) 0,0 Vs Stuart Hollingworth (116) 1,1
Dave Ricketts (90) 1,0 Vs R Stone (100) 1,0
Ray Beach (74) 0,1 Vs R King (100) 0,1

3 Points Vs 5 Points

Ray played especially well and was unfortunate not to take both points.
Well done everyone.

Atkins Congress this weekend.

Colin

Leicester Chess Congress 2009

The H E Atkins Memorial Congress will be taking place from 2nd to 4th October at Regent College. Contact www.leicesterchess.co.uk for details. It looks as though our club will be well represented.

Colin

Harrod Cup 4th Round

Unfortunately, we were a player down on Wednesday when we played Red Admiral 2 in the Harrod Cup 4th round. We came close to drawing the match, however, and with a fourth player who knows what might have been?

board 1 Ross, Colin 93 1-0 1-0 104 Slater, Mick
board 2 Ricketts, Dave 95 Drawn 0-1 95 Winterton, George
board 3 Beach, Ray 75 1-0 0-1 80 Carter, Andy
board 4 **DEFAULT** 87 0-1 0-1 Parsons, Stan

Heathcote Arms 3.5 Vs Red Admiral (2) 4.5

Well done everyone.

Colin

Gradings

The new grades have been amended on the ECF website. They are now:

Graham Sharpe 192 (Rapid 169)
Dave Bray 168 (Rapid 162)
Graham Booley 157 (Rapid 133)
Mike Cowley 148 (Rapid 154)
Pete Harrison 141 (Rapid 147)
John Manger 134 (Rapid 139)
Colin Ross 112 (Rapid 90)
Dave Ricketts 104 (Rapid 90)
Ray Beach 90 (Rapid 74)
Herve Tribouilloy 62 (Rapid 37)

Colin

Club Night At The Heathcote

This Tuesday, 4th August, there were no matches - Just some casual games of chess and some beer. A most enjoyable evening.

Raymond Keene has sent me a copy of Chess For Tigers by Simon Webb for solving the Sunday Times Winning Move Thingy. A great prize except that i already own a copy. If anybody wants it let me know, otherwise we can use it as a prize for winning games (or, perhaps, the most stupid move) at a future club night.

Colin

Heathcote Arms Collapse in 3rd Round of the Harrod

On Wednesday we travelled to Loughborough. We were outgraded on every board - by 30 points in Dave's case. In the first round, Dick drew despite having looked better in a king and pawn endgame, i also drew in a deadlocked position, and Dave and Herve were both beaten.

The second round was disasterous with us all losing (and we couldn't even blame the Polish Lager). Herve's game was closer than in the first (Yuki Okuda clearly being stronger than his nominal 80 grading), Dick lost having missed a winning sacrifice on h7, Dave was outplayed and i lost on time despite being a bishop up.

The results were:

Loughborough Vs Heathcote Arms
Peter Hickman (139) 0.5/1 - 0.5/0 Dick Salter (129)
Barnabas Osigho (125) 1/1 - 0/0 Dave Ricketts (95)
Michael Fraser (100) 0.5/1 - 0.5/0 Colin Ross (93)
Yuki Okuda (80) 1/1 - 0/0 Herve Tribouilloy (60)

Score 7 -1

Commiserations everyone.

Colin

Victory Against Spinney Hill 2 in 2nd Round of Harrod Cup

A great result at home. We are now undefeated after two rounds. An exciting match with a few blunders here and there. We were winning by 2.5 to 1.5 at the half way stage, and we held on to finish the match at 4.5 to 3.5

The results were:

Pete Harrison 0/0.5 - 1/0.5 Karl Potter
Dave Ricketts 1/1-0/0 Stevan Preocanin
Colin Ross 1/1-0/0 Rich Davis
Ray Beach 0/0-1/1 Alan Butler

Well done everyone.

Colin

HEATHCOTE ARMS 2 CRASH OUT OF CHAPMAN CUP

Despite Graham Booley getting creditable half against Jim Miller, the rest of the side couldn't pull off an upset against higher ranked opposition, so despite the 2.5 points start (due to a grading difference of 151), the side lost 3.5-2.5. On the other three boards, Dave and Ray both lost inside thirty moves, whilst Colin lost to a sucker punch having gone material up.

Jim Miller - Graham Booley 0.5-0.5
John Glover - Dave Ricketts 1-0
John Dawkins - Ray Beach 1-0
Greg Adcock - Colin Ross 1-0

So we will have to win the Birstall Cup instead.

1st Round Harrod Cup Draw Against Ashby

Away at Ashby, it all went according to grade:

Lea Adlard (128) 0-1, 0-1 Pete Harrison (144)
David Reynolds (126) 0-1, 0-1 Dick Salter (129)
Paul Gibson (122) 1-0, 1-0 Dave Ricketts (97)
Nick Wyld (115) 1-0, 1-0 Colin Ross (93)

Well done Pete and Dick,

Colin

Wigston B 3-2 Littlethorpe D in Last Round of D34 Cup

For our team, this was to be the most important match of the season. Only a draw was necessary for the D34 Cup to be ours.

The differences in grading gave us a 1.5 point lead, meaning that a win and a draw from four boards was all that we needed. Unfortunately, Aaron called fifteen minutes before the start of the match to tell us that he could not make it.

In the calculation of bonuses, we had to discount Aaron's grade, and average out the grades of the remaining three players. The bonus therefore became 1 point rather than 1.5. With our bottom board defaulted, our two sides were now even at one point each, but Wigston had the stronger side.

The results were:

Wigston B 3-2 Littlethorpe D
Barrie Cooper (119) 0-1 Dick Salter (132)
Frank Hulford (123) 1-0 Colin Ross (100)
Charles Eastlake (124) 1-0 Ray Beach (99)
Paul Winterton (118) 1-0 Default (110)

Dick won an excellent game.

Well done to Wigston B.

Colin

Littlethorpe (5) 2-2 Syston (3)

On Tuesday, Littlethorpe 5 had their final match of the season against Syston 3.
Ray agreed to swop places with Alan Goodwin to help Littlethorpe 3 out. We defaulted a board.

I swindled a win. Dave dominated in his game. Alan ran into time trouble, but otherwise could have won.

Littlethorpe (5) 2-2 Syston (3)
board 1 Ross, Colin 100 1-0 111 Creasey, John
board 2 Ricketts, Dave 100 1-0 UG Mitton, Judith
board 3 Goodwin, Alan 85 0-1 85 Agger, Reg
board 4 **DEFAULT** 0-1 UG Sanghani, Tam

Result: 2-2

Over the season we have had 2 wins, 6 draws and 10 losses. A good season's performance, i think, given that we were outgraded on every board for almost every match. All of us: Dave, Ray, Aaron, Herve and myself have had wins and have played above our grades.

In the D34 Cup, we have been even better. It all comes down to tonight...

Well done everyone,

Colin

Littlethorpe (5) 1-3 Wigston (5)

Our second to last league match of the current season saw us playing at the Heathcote against one of the 4th Division's stronger teams. We managed two draws, and Dave narrowly missed out on a win against David White. The results were:

Littlethorpe (5) 1-3 Wigston (5)
Colin Ross (100) Draw Paul Gray (128)
Dave Ricketts (100) 0-1 David White (123)
Ray Beach (99) Draw Charles Eastlake (124)
Herve Tribouilloy (62) 0-1 Denis Wilkins (122)

Well done everyone,

Colin

Spinney Hill 3 (3-1) Littlethorpe 5

Not as bad as it sounds. Heavily outgraded as usual, our team managed two fine draws - Dave against Dave Pyke, and Ray against Stevan Preocanin. Due to a mix up over days, Aaron did not arrive. My game was even until around move 50 when i crumbled in an endgame where both of us were fighting for pawn promotion.

The scores on the doors were:

Spinney Hill 3 (3-1) Littlethorpe 5
Dave Pyke (138) Draw Dave Ricketts (100)
John Colver (127) 1-0 Colin Ross (100)
Stevan Preocanin (121) Draw Ray Beach (99)
Alan Butler (103) 1-0 Default

Well done Dave and Ray.

Our next League game is against Wigston 5 at The Heathcote, in Croft, on Tuesday 5th May.
As Littlethorpe D, we now have a date for our fifth round match in the D34 Cup. We will be playing away against Wigston B on Thursday 14th May - a win would secure us the silverware.

Colin

Littlethorpe 5 Panned by Ashby 3

On Thursday, Littlethorpe 5 consolidated its position at the bottom of the fourth division.
We played away against Ashby 3, this season's 4th division champions, already promoted. Our best performance was by Ray who lasted longer than the rest of us.
Results were:

Steve Rigby (140) 1-0 Dave Ricketts (100)
Paul Gibson (135) 1-0 Colin Ross (100)
Vic Armstrong (121) 1-0 Ray Beach (99)
David Reynolds (119) 1-0 Aaron Engels (82)

Ashby (3) 4 - 0 Littlethorpe (5)

Commiserations everyone.

Colin.

Littlethorpe D Still At The Top Of The Table After 4 Rounds

Littlethorpe D played away against Loughbrough on Thursday. With Aaron and Herve not available, we went for a change in strategy and brought in some muscle on the top two boards:

Yannis Karsisiotis on board 1, and Dick Salter on board 2, left myself and Ray further down the board order. Loughbrough had played two 140s on the top two boards in the first three rounds so this seemed to make sense - we were going for a win rather than a bonus and the chance of an upset. On the night, however, Loughbrough played a weaker side and they actually ended up with a one point bonus due to grade difference.

We played white on the odd boards.

First, Ray won on board 4 with the black pieces. Dick won convincingly despite his opponent slamming pieces down and distracting a number of people in the room. Yannis agreed a draw and later declared that if he had been playing his opponent's position he would have won. The match came down to my game. I was in a decent position, but in serious time trouble:

Black had just played 47...Nf6+

From here i played 48 Rxf6+ and Fritz gave me a touche! Black then played 48... Kxf6, and my flag dropped. 49 e7 would then have won for me (49 e7 Bd6 50 e8Q Kxg6 51 Re6+ Kg7 52. Rxd6 Rxf7 53 Qe5+ Kh7 54 Qh5+ Kg8 55 Qg6+ Kf8 56 Rd8+ Ke7 57 Qd6#). Sorry, everyone.

Results were:

Loughbrough B Vs Littlethorpe D

G Adcock (139) Draw Yannis Karsisiotis (154)

B Osigho (125) 0-1 Dick Salter (132)

M Fraser (100) 1-0 Colin Ross (100)

M Adcock (80) 0-1 Ray Beach (99)

Bonus 1-0

Match Result 2.5-2.5 A Draw

At the time of writing, not all the results have been posted for this round - but, with one round to go, we are in the lead on 7 points, and Loughbrough B and Wigston B are both on 6 points. Hinckley may (or may not) also be on 6 points.

Well done everyone.

The next Littlethorpe 5 match is on Thursday 23rd April away against Ashby 3.

Colin

Syston 2 (2-2) Littlethorpe 5

On Tuesday, we scored our third consecutive draw.

Fresh from a weekend of 4NCL games (and 7.5 hours of defending), Dave was in the mood for attack. This resulted in an early win. Ray then won against John Creasey, I lost against Stuart Hollingworth, and Alan lost out to Ron King in the endgame.

Liz Gist 121 (0-1) Dave Ricketts 100
Stuart Hollingworth 116 (1-0) Colin Ross 100
John Creasey 111 (0-1) Ray Beach 99
Ron King 105 (1-0) Alan Goodwin

Outgraded on every board again - this was a decent team result and good wins for both Dave and Ray. Well done everyone.

This Thursday, as Littlethorpe D, we will be playing away at Loughbrough in the fourth round of the D34 Cup with everything (the Cup) to play for.

Colin.

Littlethorpe 5 (2-2) Braunstone 4

On Tuesday, at home against Braunstone, we scored another draw.
John Impey wasn't well - so Braunstone defaulted a board.
I lost after an attack went hideously wrong. Herve lost too. Aaron managed a nice win against Guy Closs.
The results were:

Littlethorpe 5 (2-2) Braunstone 4
Colin Ross (100) 0 - 1 Jeff Toon (127)
Aaron Engels (82) 1- 0 Guy Closs (107)
Herve Tribouilloy (62) 0 - 1 Paul Martin (105)
Dave Ricketts (100) 1 - 0 Default

Well done Aaron and Dave.

Colin.

Ashby 4 (2-2) Littlethorpe 5

Ashby 4 played a stronger team than last time we met. As the only team below us in the fourth division, it was important that we did not lose. We played our left handed players on the odd numbered boards - a strategy that resulted in a draw.

Ashby 4 (2-2) Littlethorpe 5
Richard Williams (111) 1 - 0 Dave Ricketts (100)
Peter Page (110) 0-1 Colin Ross (100)
Neil Roberts (97) 0-1 Ray Beach (99)
Matthew Storer (80) 1-0 Herve Tribouilloy (62)

Well done everyone.

On Tuesday 10th March we play at home against Braunstone 4 - we drew with them last time.

Colin

oops - Herve is left handed too

Littlethorpe 5 (1-3) Red Admiral 2

One of our less good performances, although Dave managed to checkmate Mick Slater.

The results were:

Littlethorpe 5 (1-3) Red Admiral 2
Colin Ross (100) 0 - 1 Paul Wyley (130)
Dave Ricketts (100) 1-0 Mick Slater (110)
Ray Beach (99)0-1 Stan Parsons (110)
Aaron Engels (82) 0-1 Andy Carter (110)

Our next League match is on Thursday 5th March away against Ashby 4.
As Littlethorpe D, in the D34 Cup (which we are still winning after three rounds) we will be playing away against Loughbrough B, our nearest rivals, on Thursday 26th March.

Well done Dave,

Colin

Littlethorpe 5 Draw Away at Oadby

On Wednesday, we travelled to Oadby with only three players.
Dave played board 1 against Don Candlin, i played board 2 against Mike Thornton, and Ray played Ted Williams. We defaulted board 4.

I managed to lose a piece fairly early on and after that i had difficulty in keeping anything together. After 32 moves, things looked like this:




















A bishop down with the black pieces, i knew that i was going to lose unless i did something immediately. I played 33... Qd3

34 Rc1 would have won for white, but instead, Mike played 34 Kg1 allowing me onto the seventh rank. 34...Rc2 and it was all over, 35 Qa1, Qe2 and White resigned unable to prevent the inevitable. I was very lucky to get away with this.

Dave had played well and the position had looked very drawish. Material was down to queens and pawns, when Dave put his queen on the wrong square leaving it en prise (Sorry Dave).

This left our hopes of drawing the match with Ray. It was down to rook and a knight each with the centre blocked with lots of pawns. Time was getting short for both players. Ted felt that he had the better position and was playing for a win, having rejected Ray's offer of a draw (which would have won Oadby the match). Players crowded around the table and the Oadby team watched powerless to say anything as Ted's flag dropped whilst he stared at the board. So, Ray won giving Littlethorpe 5 a draw and our first league point in quite a while.

Well done everyone. Next for L5, we are playing at home on Tuesday 17th against Red Admiral 2.

Colin

Littlethorpe D Continue Run of Victories in D34 Cup

Littlethorpe D yesterday lengthened their lead at the top of the D34 cup table with three wins from the first three rounds.

Melton had defaulted a board giving us a point, and with another 2 point bonus due to grade difference, Littlethorpe only needed a draw from three games to win, and even if we had lost all three games, we would still have drawn the match.

The first result settled the match as Herve scored a great win against Peter Poolan. I sketched out the position shortly before the end (below). Herve, with the white pieces, was a knight and a pawn up, and had just moved the pawn to g5. From this position, he was able to force his way through.




















Aaron, also scored an impressive win against Peter Smith. A back rank combination won Peter's queen, and mate was not far behind.

Ray had been losing by a piece, but managed to equalise on material with a queen and a minor piece against two rooks and a minor piece, but time was against him.

The results were:

Littlethorpe D Melton B
Ray Beach (99) 0 Ian Farquharson (125) 1
Aaron Engels (82) 1 Peter Smith (109) 0
Herve Tribouilloy (62) 1 Peter Poolan (104) 0
Colin Ross (100) 1 Default (113) 0
Bonus 2

Final Score:
Littlethorpe D 5 Melton B 1

Well done everyone. A tremendous effort.

Colin

Littlethorpe (5) 2 - 3 Spinney Hill (3)

We met Spinney Hill at home over five boards.
As usual, each of us were outgraded by our opponents.
A look around the room after the first hour had boards 1,3,4 and 5 all equal on material with Dave a Bishop and a Pawn up.
Sadly, Herve later succumbed to a knight fork against his two rooks.
With six pawns and a Bishop (me) against six pawns and a mischievous looking Knight (my opponent), i agreed to a draw.
Aaron then won his game in 28 moves.
Ray, having at one point lost his queen, but then managing to trap his opponents and win their's, eventually lost too.
This left Dave requiring a win to draw the match, but in a rook and pawn versus rook endgame, it didn't work out and a draw on the second board was agreed.

The results were:

Littlethorpe (5) 2 - 3 Spinney Hill (3)
Colin Ross (100) Draw Dave Pyke (138)
Dave Ricketts (100) Draw John Colver (127)
Ray Beach (99) 0 - 1 Stevan Preocanin (121)
Aaron Engels (82) 1 - 0 Rich Davis (121)
Herve Tribouilloy (62) 0 - 1 Maurice Cooper (90)


Here was Aaron's game. Aaron had the white pieces:

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Nf3 Ne4 5. Qc2 Bxc3+ 6.
bxc3 d5 7. e3 Nf6 8. Ba3 c6 9. Bd3 Nbd7 10. O-O dxc4 11. Bxc4 Nb6 12. Bd3 h6
13. Rfe1 Nbd7 14. Rad1 Qa5 15. Bb4 Qc7 16. e4 a5 17. Ba3 g5 18. c4 b6 19. Bb2
Bb7 20. c5 b5 21. a4 b4 22. Bc4 Ba6 23. d5 Bxc4 24. Qxc4 cxd5 25. exd5 O-O-O
26. c6 Nb6 27. Qa6+ Kb8 28. Be5 1-0

Our next League match is away against Oadby on Wednesday 11th February. However, (as Littlethorpe D in the D34 Cup) we will meet at Home against Melton B on Tuesday, February 3rd (now Tuesday 10th because of snow).

Well done everyone.

Colin

Wigston (5) 3 - 1 Littlethorpe (5)

We knew that this side were all likely to be 120's. We have all been playing above our grades this season, but we were not really expecting to win this one. Aaron and Herve both did well and scored much deserved draws. Ray and i both lost.
The match went like this:

Wigston (5) 3-1 Littlethorpe (5)
B Cooper (119) 1-0 C Ross (100)
C Eastlake (124) 1-0 R Beach (99)
D Wilkins (122) Draw A Engels (82)
P Winterton (118) Draw H Tribouilloy (62)

On Tuesday 20th January, we do battle against Spinney Hill 3, at home, over five boards.

Colin

Littlethorpe D (3.5) - (2) Ashby in League 3/4 Cup

After two rounds of the League 3/4 Cup, Littlethorpe D remain at the top of the table with another fine win. With a 1.5 point bonus (in our favour) due to grade difference, and a defaulted board (not in our favour), we needed 1.5 points to win.
Aaron, and then Ray, both won their games. I lost, but the match was already won.

Littlethorpe D (3.5) - (2) Ashby

Colin Ross (100) 0 - 1 David Reynolds (119)
Ray Beach (99) 1 - 0 Nick Wyld (115)
Aaron Engels (82) 1 - 0 Peter Page (110)
Default 0 - 1 Neil Roberts (97)

Bonus 1.5 - 0

Well done Ray and Aaron.

On Thursday 15th, we turn back into Littlethorpe 5 and will be playing away against Wigston 5.

Colin.