League: TVCL, Season 2021-2022
Played : 31st January, 2022
We drew in the home match, our first against Richmond & Twickenham D, with a score of 3-3.
Tony Braine, Michael Stern and David English did well to secure wins in their games.
| Board | Colour | Ealing B | Results | Maidenhead B |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Black | Tony Braine | 1-0 | Alex Shard |
| 2 | White | George Masefield | 0-1 | Barry Sutton |
| 3 | Black | Michael Stern | 1-0 | Dan Donohoe |
| 4 | White | Neville Rowden | 0-1 | George Dokic |
| 5 | Black | Michael Smith | 0-1 | Jim V Anandajeyarajah |
| 6 | White | David English | 1-0 | Ken Broadley |
Contributed comments and chess games (interactive chess board) :
Michael Stern:
Neville Rowden:
Neville Rowden played White on Board and opened with d4 to which Black responded with d5. Black made a disastrous opening from which White took advantage and quickly gained a Pawn. However, Black fought back valiantly. The critical point of the game was at Move 39 when White decided to sacrifice a Knight in order to gain a Rook after promoting its Pawn. As the analysis shows, it could have been played better. After taking Black’s Rook, White played sloppily and lost some Pawns. The end game was very interesting but due to White’s incompetence, the moves were incorrectly recorded and have now been lost in the mists of time. Black eventually won at Move 69 after which White resigned.
Michael Smith:
I lost a pawn early on (move 12) and from then on it was a struggle. He was getting more and more ahead on time. By move 26 he got a passed b pawn but I blocked it with a bishop. I thought I could hold on and lose on time. But he broke through with threats of mate. I should probably have moved my king to e8 to bring it into play as queens were off. But I opted to play safe and moved my king to g8. A few moves later he knight-forked my king and rook. Rather than lose the rook I resigned.
David English:
Still getting used to 90 minute matches, I was very grateful for Michael Smith’s pre-match reminder to take my time and watch out for trickery. I kept repeating this to myself and was able to establish a dominant lead by the 15th move. Being in such a comfortable position, I slipped back into bad ‘rapid chess’ habits and lost focus, committing a horrific giveaway blunder on the 35th move. Luckily for me, the blunder went unnoticed by my opponent and this close shave helped me recapture my concentration, slow things down and see the match through to checkmate.