01.12.16 – London League 4: Metropolitan 3 v Hammersmith
It’s normally a tough selling job finding cause for celebration in a drawn match, but that was certainly the case when we tied the score at 4 points a piece against Metropolitan 3. We’d salvaged a draw against their 4th team in our last match-up so we looked to be up against it as we stepped-up against their “big brother”.
In terms of paper-grades our opponents outranked us by over 10 points a board. But as any scholar of the game knows, matches are played over 64 black and white squares. They’re thankfully not decided by a pools panel who consult the ECF database!
The heroes of the night were Andy, Robin and John, each clocking-up victories against their higher-graded opponents, and each a great example of dynamic attacking chess.
Andy swept aside his opponent with a well-calculated kamikaze Bishop attack on their advanced h3 pawn. It was soon curtains with Queen and Rook waiting in the wings.
Robin looked under the cosh in a wildly open position, with roughly one minute left on the clock for both players. But one inaccuracy later, and Robin left the board beaming having delivered check-mate. A real lesson for anyone about remaining calm as the seconds tick away.
John’s win was built on a strong positional plan around pawn structures and how best to leverage to his advantage. Well, that, and a marauding Knight with fork opportunities at every turn. His opponent resigned a whole piece and 3 pawns down. Impressive stuff.
Brian had clearly been inspired by the final match of the World Championship between Carlsen and Karjakin! Taking his lead from that match, he agreed a draw in record time, but still with lots of “spaghetti on the board”.
The less said about my game, the better. I was two pawns up but under time pressure allowed a back-door perpetual check. No shame, but still felt like it represented a missed opportunity.
Details of the other games are sketchy at best – though I do have a near-perfect recollection of the buzzer noise that sounded every 5 minutes to let someone into the venue! I’m reliably informed that Orial’s opponent has an unbeaten run lasting 5 years, though I can’t swear to how many games he’s played in that time.
Special mention to David Pearson who made his debut for the team – better luck next time! – and to Dan Rugman who stepped in to cover a last-minute withdrawal. Ruggers, consider yourself the first name on the team-sheet next time.
So, lots of positives to take forward. We’re unbeaten after 4 games, there’s lots of competition for places, and we’ve already racked-up more points than we did in the whole of last season. Genuine progress! As a result we find ourselves in the “Europa League” spot, breathing down the neck of the top 4.
I think we all deserve a little break after all that, and as luck would have it that was our last game before Christmas! Enjoy the down time, and have a wonderful Christmas and New Year. We go again in January!
Dave.
Result: Metropolitan 4 – 4 Hammersmith
