Puzzle of the Week #027

Plus Bonus Match Report from London 4!

Our last Puzzle was almost a month ago, but fear not – props to Kostis for spotting the correct line: 1.Bb5!! (threatens Ne5# and Be8+, Kf8 Bg6#), Nc6 2.Ne5+, Nxe5 3.Be8+, Kf8 4.Bg6

Down to business this week – Black to move and win. Answers in the comments please, and don’t forget to read on for a writeup of last Friday’s demolition of Morley College…

25.01.19 – London Division 4: Morley College v Hammersmith

Good tidings from London 4 where Hammer 2 recorded a wünderbar 7-1 victory over Morley College.

It was expected we’d out grade them across the board and that proved to be the case, as we ran out comfortable winners. A much needed victory that keeps us in contention with the chasing pack in the hunt for promotion. Sterner tests are to come against Battersea, UCL and Greater London in February.

Full scorecard below:

At one point it looked like a clean sweep was on the cards, as Andy, John, Dan and Jonathan recorded wins in no time at all. This, coupled with our 1-0 walkover advantage, handed us an unassailable 5-0 lead and the match result already secure.

Andy’s game was particularly noteworthy for its strange pawn structure (doubled pawns ahoy!), and the melee of activity in the centre of the board that suggested a magnet that was drawing all the pieces together. Strange one. To quote our esteemed Secretary, Mr. Mackenzie: “There were too many good moves”. Full game below:

Two draws then followed from Brian and Dave, tainting the once beautiful scorecard of its uniformity. Brian played an attacking variation against his opponent’s Sicilian, which opened things up into a fine tactical battle in the middle game. Our man eventually forged a slight advantage but it wasn’t enough to secure the full point in an endgame with both Queens still on the board. An enjoyable game nonetheless, that is presented here: 5.5-0.5

Dave’s game soared the heights of supreme attacking chess, and plumbed the depths of outright stupidity. All with a few moves.

Playing the Sicilian Najdorf, I took advantage of some slow play in the opening to drive open my opponent’s long-side castled defence with a raiding b-pawn. Soon I had Queen and Rook in his back yard, and was threatening mate as his sorry King scarpered away. +20.8 reckoned Stockfish.

But it hadn’t reckoned on me blundering away my Queen in a maelstrom of madness. Now severely down on material, I somehow (no idea how) fought back to claim a draw. Discretion the better part of valour in terms of presenting the abomination here… 6-1.

Last but not least, Master Auchi cooly despatched their Board 1 in impressive style by offering a Rook sacrifice in an endgame with both players short on time. His opponent took the bait and handed Nadhmi a one-move checkmate. Well done, sir. The great form continues. 7-1.

Until next time,
Dave.

The Chess-Up in a Brewery

Yes, Hammer and our frenemies Battersea renewed their rivalry by boldly taking our brilliant sport to places it has never been before.

Saturday saw the inaugural event of a Chess-Up in a Brewery. Some said it couldn’t be arranged, and it was a tough ask for members who had committed to a dry January, and even tougher for those of us who have not, but could not attend.

Not mentioning names but Carsten, our Great Dane, was subjected to huge online banter due to the fact he could not attend and was bemoaning the missed chance of sampling Sambrook’s excellent range of beer remedies. [They also do fantastic pies!!]

Due to various factors a serious OTB encounter between our great clubs was not feasible, so a handicapped rapid tourney was put in place instead. In some ways, this was by far the best choice for the day as the X-Factor of beer certainly lent itself very well to this slightly more sociable format of chess.

Some big shout-outs before I get to the gory details of the chess:

To Sambrook’s brewery for the invitation and the hospitality. They really went out of the way to accommodate us… the beer and venue are superb. On a scale of 1 to 10, Sambrook’s is an 11!!
Our barman Jacob, who looked after us so well – nothing was too much trouble.
Finally, to the incomparable Aldo, who brought all the kit along and the software for the pairings – I also know he hates public acclaim but he made sure the day chess-wise went very smoothly indeed.

To the chess.

A six-round Swiss Tourney with a 15-minute start and 2 second increment – however there was a handicap based on grade differential.

The final table looked like this:

On face value, no surprises at the top where Blair and Ryszard dominated proceedings, both scoring 5.5/6 – the half-point coming from their drawn game against each other.

However, the table also tells of some great performances from some Hammer Heroes – Paul K in 3rd place, and Dave Lambert in 4th – some great wins there by both these guys.

Adam and potential new Hammer member, Javier in joint 5th place – very solid performances and well deserved.

I must also mention Edward and Kennedy for joining in, again, two new potential Hammer members and both performed very creditably. We hope to see them and Javier at a club night very soon.

An honourable mention must also go to Charlie, for winning the beer side of things. The strains of his singing along to Led Zeppelin made for an excellent chess backdrop, and it must be said that the choice of soundtrack was generally excellent!

The true winner of the day, however, was camaraderie, banter and the beer. This is a brilliant venue and we will repeat this event. The chess played was certainly of the imaginative variety!

Clueless in rehab – again – over & out!

Match Reports, Swashbuckling Chess & ECF Grades

Read on for a draw snatched from the jaws of defeat, some truly swashbuckling chess, a classic writeup from our Reporter of the Year, and details of the January 2019 ECF grades!

15.01.19 – London League 4: DHSS v Hammersmith

Hammer 2 were forced to walk on a knife edge to secure the 4-4 DRAW against a combative DHSS side in London Division 4. We managed to put out our strongest squad of the season so far, yet still found ourselves running toe-to-toe against everyone’s favourite government department. After all, the others don’t provide free tea and biscuits…!

Full match card below:

Looking at the grades, our opposition had the slight edge over the top 4 boards, and we had the advantage over the lower 4. And thus, the results tended to edge that way too. It certainly wasn’t as straightforward as that though.

Sheikh appeared to have the advantage in a fairly tricky endgame. Certainly the material favoured the Hammer man, but his opponent had a raiding a-pawn which proved problematic as it moved up the board.

Tommaso was also disappointed as he blundered material in a relatively even position, playing into a time disadvantage. It looked a very un-Tommaso position. I don’t think there were any captures within the first 16 or so moves, resulting in a positional struggle. You normally expect a King-walk at that point in one of his games!

Adam continued his fine run of form with what looked like a fairly comfortable win against their captain. Playing as Black, he faced a dangerous looking pawn storm, but then the decision was made to castle behind the pawns. It seemed an odd decision as suddenly those pawns became a liability! The position certainly suited Adam and tactics abound to help him run out the victor.

Charlie and Chris also helped chalk up points onto the board, scoring a half and full-point respectively, but probably from positions that looked precarious at best. With both players short on time, and in a cramped position, Charlie offered his opponent a draw, which was gratefully received. Further computer analysis suggested he was actually -8.0 with correct play. Maybe that was a case of the superior grading working to our advantage.

By his own admission, Chris made a hash of the opening and found himself a couple of pawns down with little compensation. His natural attacking instincts kicked in and he offered a Knight sacrifice in order to prepare a crushing attack. Only problem was that he planning on using that Knight in the attack…!! (great analysis in the pub). Still, he clearly had his man spooked and he soon blundered his Queen, handing the win back to our man.

Brian succumbed following persistent pressure after finding himself down the exchange, and we were staring defeat in the face. Down 2.5-3.5 with Paul and your captain to finish. At this point, Paul’s match looked dead drawn and I was struggling to avoid being mated, after having the edge in the match for some time. My only salvation was that we were both short of time.

Moments later, I wandered over to Paul’s board hoping to see some unforeseen masterstroke to bring us victory, but instead I saw two players shaking hands and agreeing that it had looked drawn for some time. 3-4 down.

All the focus was now on my match, with the inevitable pressure of 6 blokes stood over your shoulder watching your every move. Something to focus the mind if ever it were needed! It was now 2 rooks and 4 pawns vs. my bishop, knight and 3 pawns. Two minutes apiece and with the advantage still very much with my opponent, he missed a couple of chances to force exchanges which would have extended his advantage.

I improved my rook into an active position and clawed my way back somehow. With time ticking away, he allowed a cheap-shot checkmate with a rook check, and his escape square covered by my Knight. Extremely lucky, but somehow it rounded out the 4-4 DRAW. Relief all round.

Here’s the game. I’m afraid the last few moves weren’t captured due to severe time pressure!

Next up is Morley College on Friday 25th, and then we have 3 quick fire matches in February. Please keep your eye out for that mail! Plenty of chances to play coming up over the next few weeks.

Swashbuckling Chess

A truly stunning game (which he won!!), courtesy of Tony “The Surgeon” Nicolli!

One can only watch and admire this game:

21.01.19 – Thames Valley Div 3: Ealing B v Hammersmith B

It was a grey night as I trudged towards the Old Actonian Sports Club, built in some kinder era to remind us of our country’s venerable sporting culture, football, cricket, and other sports.

This was the end of January, and I recalled Beware the Nones of January, for the tax man cometh, and rules over the land with cold iron. Not auspicious anyway, and I had shaved that morning, courting disaster as Samson has foretold.

Very much, this was a match in 2 halves, with our Stalwarts Paul K, John W, and Brian D on the top 3 boards, and 3 young’uns un the lower boards: Kostis, Javier, and David S.

For the first hour it was very quiet, and I was able to admire the spacious accommodations, with each player separated by about 10 foot or more from his neighbour. New flooring and fine wall decorations made it all so much better than the Citadines.

First to stand was Brian Dodgeon, however, with a draw. Perhaps he sensed the outcome, because he begged off the offer of a drink and left quickly. Then in quick succession the two bottom boards tramped out, with losses both, score 0.5-2.5.

Bu yes, John White stood up, shaking his head, and – apologetically perhaps – said his opponent had flagged out. 1.5-2.5. So it went, with Kostis and Paul adjourning eventually.

Overnight, the adjournments were settled – a draw by top man Paul K and a loss conceded by Kostis. Final score, 2-4, Ealing winning.

Fitting defeat perhaps, overhead a wan red moon could be seen dimly in the dark sky as I trudged back to the tube. I could almost hear the wolves baying for blood in the far hills.

Quick Analysis:

Our stalwarts played or caused to play 3 Sicilian Openings.
Our top half tends to score at par, which is to say average 1.5 per match over 3 boards.
Our bottom half tends to determine matters, they can win or lose the match.

Quick Conclusion:

Bottom boards better learn the Sicilian or its Grand Prix white variant.
Beef up the bottom half grades

ECF Grades

The ECF’s January 2019 grades are now out, and available here: ECF Grading

The full Hammer roster is beneath, and also available on our Members page.

Saturday 26th – Sambrook’s! & Much more

El Chess Up in a Brewery – it’s on! This Saturday 26th, Hammersmith will be taking on local upstarts Battersea, in a Rapidplay tournament at the home of Wandle, Sambrook’s Brewery!

Starting at 1pm sharp, and running all afternoon (until roughly 5pm), we’ll be in the taproom at their Brewery on Yelverton Road, SW11 3QG – nearest station, Clapham Junction!

It will be 15 minutes per game, with 3 sec increments, with some handicaps for extreme grading differentials.

It’s going to be a fun day, and we hope to see you all there – the venue is superb and the beer outstanding, and well-priced!

What? Rapidplay tourney, 15 min + 3
When? Saturday 26th Jan, 1-5pm
Where? Sambrook’s Brewery, Yelverton Road, SW11 3QG
How much? FREE!

The Hammersmith Rapid League 2019 – Round I

After the success of last year’s event, the second season of the Hammersmith Rapid League got underway last Monday. Six teams, five nights of chess, four boards, three senior chess teams, two junior chess teams, and one footy stats team… sums up the 2019 incarnation nicely!

This is the league where you play two games of rapid chess against the same opponent each night – one as black and one as white. All the games are rated and count towards an ECF rapid grade.

What more could any chess player want??

This year’s lineup was as follows:

The fearsome Tony’s Tigers
The awesome Tony’s Lions
The dreaded Hackney Posse
The Crazy Gang of Football Radar
The ferocious Battersea Crew
And the Mighty Hammer

To the matches – the first round saw some really close matches with an internecine battle as the Tigers took on the Lions, Football Radar taking on Battersea, and Hackney squaring up to the Hammers.

Tigers vs. Lions

This was a seriously competitive match with a real heavyweight clash on top board, and the other three all closely contested. All the games went to the bitter end with no quarter given.

The Lions shaded it in Round One, with wins for Connall and Xu. Taymour struck back for the Tigers and the top board was drawn.

At the halfway stage the Lions had sneaked ahead, 2.5-1.5.

The Tigers had been wounded but were not down – the come back was possible. Plus we all know there is nothing more frightening than a wounded Tiger.

The second round saw the Tigers go to work and with three wins and a draw they swept to a well-deserved victory. Both these teams will be serious contenders for the title.

Final Score: Tigers 5 – 3 Lions

Battersea vs. Football Radar

This saw the clash of the newboys. Football Radar, and our beloved Frenemies Battersea.

Things did not go well for the Footy boys in the first round and they succumbed to a narrow but decisive 3.5-4.5 defeat. This match really could have gone either way and Battersea can consider themselves very unlucky.

Great performances from both Alistair of the Radar and Darius of Battersea, who both went 2-0. The game that attracted my attention was the second game between Alistair and James that had a very nice tactical sequence. It is one that will hopefully feature in a later posting.

Final Score: Battersea 3.5 – 4.5 Football Radar

Hammersmith vs. Hackney

Following the trend set by the other two matches, the Hammer boys were leading 2.5-1.5 at the halfway point. It could have been a half-point more but for a tactic missed by Wyatt. That game was the longest of the first round and could have gone either way. In the end, stoic defence from Wyatt secured the half-point.

However, the Hackney boys were not down, and definitely not out. They rallied superbly in the second round of games with three wins on the top three boards. Dipli bravely held the line on board 4 against Hackney captain, and great bloke, Bryan, but alas could not prevent Hammer going down 3-1.

A tough loss for Kostis to take, especially in his captain’s debut, but he can feel proud of his team.

Congratulations to captain Bryan and the Hackney team – they really fought back well. The sportsmanship in this contest was totally indicative of the whole evening, and all teams and players must be applauded for that.

Final Score: Hammersmith 3.5 – 4.5 Hackney

So after Round I the cross table looks like this:

And the normal table looks like this:

Roll on Round II – we look forward to seeing all the teams back on the 29th of January!

10.01.19 – Middlesex Div 3: Harrow 2 v Hammersmith

With Adam away gracing Europe’s ski slopes, it was left to your author, Dave, to captain the Hammer side in Middlesex Division 3, as we took on Harrow 2. Fortunately we ran out 4.5-3.5 winners which meant I could welcome Adam back with some good news!

Full score-card as follows:

In the end, a very satisfying victory against a side almost matching us grade-for-grade as we moved down the board order. Even more so when you consider that we started the match 1-0 down due to a default. Very well done one & all… !

I’m able to present two games for your enjoyment here, both of which ended up as full points for the good guys.

Brian secured the victory with some aggressive play as White in a Sicilian Najdorf, creating complications which ultimately led to a tactical mistake from his opponent. Some fine play, particularly when trying to make up some time on the clock.

Your temporary captain for the evening took home the point after playing out a slightly unusual encounter. Playing as Black, I felt I was slightly on the back-foot for the first 14-15 moves before my opponent exchanged several pieces. Each exchange seemed to favour me, and before I knew it, I had some fairly well-placed pieces, with the threat of mate or serious material advantage. Resignation soon followed.

Keep your eyes peeled for upcoming games, when normal service resumes under Adam’s stewardship.

Dave.

And Finally…

The lovely folk who sponsor us, Chess & Bridge, are happy to offer any Hammer Members a FREE 3 month subscription to Chess magazine!

To claim this offer, simply drop them an email info@chess.co.uk or call them (020 7486 7015), and provide your name, address, telephone and email – of course, mention Hammersmith Chess Club!

Offer is valid until the end of Jan, and it is well worth signing up – a great magazine, and 3 free issues is a great offer!

Hammer Goes Global!

A couple of recent match reports follow, but first up some exciting news from chess-site.com:

Hammer Joins the Global Elite of Chess Clubs

In a sign of our increasing reach, and a digital ‘pat on the back’ for our ongoing efforts to improve the club, I’m pleased to report that Hammersmith has been added to the illustrious list of “The Best Chess Clubs” on one of the top chess resource websites in the world, chess-site.com

Taking our place alongside 11 other top performing clubs world wide, it’s a huge honour to be mentioned in the same breath as the likes of the world-famous St. Louis Chess Club, and the Bangkok Chess Club. [dis-honourable mention to our frenemies at Battersea!]

As fellow lovers of the game, John Jackson, the CEO of Chess-Site, and his team, have written up a wonderful and generous profile of Hammersmith, as part of their mission to produce a definitive one-stop resource for the game.

Their website contains a ton of useful information for chess-lovers, and is a terrific resource for anyone with an interest in the game. Well worth a read and a share, and we thank John for taking the time to profile us. Long may the association continue!

10.01.19 – London League Division 2: Metropolitan v Hammersmith

Happy new year to all my Hammer colleagues and comrades. We began the first of six matches in January/February with a visit to one of our main rivals for promotion. The anticipated difficulty of accessing their base somewhere in the depths of Middle Earth did not prove to be quite as baffling as anticipated, the match however was a sterner test of our resolve.

My apologies for being blunt, but an issue has been growing over our opening four matches which I cannot avoid mentioning.

How seriously does Hammersmith, both as a club and we as individuals, really care about having a team in London League D1?

Of course, I fully understand that we all have very busy schedules, of which chess can only be a small part. Also, as a relative newbie, perhaps it is not for me to say. But still, with our resources, while promotion to D1 should be very do-able, the reality is a little different. As it stands, our promotion chances appear rather slim.

For whatever reasons, a sizeable minority of nominated players are unable to play regularly. A very unhelpful state of affairs. This is then compounded by the restriction on bringing in players from second and third teams, since this would quickly bar them from those teams. Worse still, our fixture list is so congested that asking people to play at short notice is rarely successful.

One thing I would ask for is for people to at least reply promptly (or indeed at all) to say whether they can play. A “no” is much preferable to no response.

Okay, with that little moan over with, on to the match. I will say that everyone gave the proverbial “110%” effort befitting a Hammerite. Particular thanks to those stepping in at short notice.

The match went very much to expected grading results. Although Thomas lost a complex struggle on top board, Carsten, Tony, Bajrush and Sylvain powered to convincing wins on boards 2-5. Bajrush continued his imperious form with a fourth straight win in his inimitable style. Hopefully he will be annotating his game for us shortly. We were also assisted a little by Met’s late substitution on board 2.

Alas, the engine room stalled a little on boards 6-8. Tomasso going down, while myself and Paul laboured in vain.

The last two games to finish, both ferociously fought, saw Charlie and Wyatt finally forced to tilt their kings in defeat. Nonetheless, great fighting chess by both against much higher graded opponents.

So the match ended 5-5, which can be interpreted in either glass half full or glass half empty mode as you prefer. We play five more matches before the end of February – Hammers, over to you!

Jim.

London League Blitz/Rapidplay – the people have spoken!

From social media this week, the London Chess League (@ll_chess) were spotted canvassing opinions for a new, London-wide Rapid or Blitz league using a Twitter poll.

The results were more resounding than the Prime Minister’s recent defeat – with a whopping 97% of respondents in favour of the launch of a London-wide Rapid or Blitz (or both!) league.

Food for thought indeed… we’d be keen to hear the views of Hammerites!

A Bumper Week

It’s only the 12th of January, but already we have loads of things to update you all on – read on for a taste of what’s coming up, featuring foreign travel, breweries, more competitions, and a couple of GM’s paying us a visit in the next few months…

Poland trip

In case it’s escaped your notice this last week, the Annual Hammer trip abroad has been confirmed – we’re off to Breslau, Poland!

The trip takes place on the weekend of 7-9th June, and it’s going to be a brilliant experience. Breslau is a stunning medieval city, steeped in European history. Direct flights are available at reasonable cost from Standsted and Luton airpots, and there are already 10 Hammers booked to travel. What more could you ask for?

If you’re keen to join the intrepid party, please take the following steps:

Email John to confirm your attendance: john.white49@ntlworld.com
Book your flights (this part is your responsibility, however as there are only a couple of flight options, chances are you’ll be on the same plane as at least one other Hammer)
Join the Breslau WhatsApp group to sort accommodation – similar to previous trips, this will be a combination of Airbnb for those wishing to share or reduce costs, and hotels for the well heeled who prefer their own space! It’s entirely up to you.

Don’t delay – flights are still cheap, so get in there while you can!

Chess Up in a Brewery

Could this be a World’s First? A chess match in a brewery??

Yes, the mighty Hammer is taking on the slightly-less-mighty Battersea Chess Club over 14 boards in a local brewery – Sambrook’s!

A brilliant confluence of many enjoyable things, this is going to be a fantastic afternoon of entertainment.

The match takes place on Saturday 26th January, 1-5pm, and we are looking for players! If you’re keen to play, get in touch with John: john.white49@ntlworld.com

Places are going fast, so sign up soon if you want to be involved!!

Hammersmith & Celtic Tigers Raffle

A special raffle is taking place as we speak, to raise funds for Hammersmith and our sister club in the 4NCL, Celtic Tigers! Amongst the 50+ prizes on offer are:

Several training sessions with top players
Digital clocks
Championship chess sets
Ginger GM DVD’s
…and much more!

The odds of winning a prize are well over 50% , so you don’t even need to be that lucky to win something!!

Tickets are £10 a pop, or £15 for two, and the money is going to two great causes, supporting chess in the local area. If you want to nab a ticket, please contact fellow Hammer, Chris Skulte: chrisskulte@gmail.com

Good luck!!!

BBCA Rapidplay goes Monthly!

After the huge success of their annual big-money Rapdiplay tournament, our good friends in East London, the British Bangla Chess Association, have now launched a MONTHLY Rapidplay competition, and I’m pleased to report that the big money prizes are still there!!

Starting Sunday 27th January, and hosting up to 60 players per month, the competition will have Open (no limit) and Minor (Newcomers up to 80 ECF) sections, with prizes for 1st and 2nd places, plus several grading prizes – plenty of chance to win something!

Further details as follows:

Dates (all Sundays): January 27th, February 24th, March 31st, April 28th, May 26th, June 30th, July 28th, August 25th, September 29th, October 27th, November 24th, December 29th.
When: 4pm – 8pm
Where: The Hason Raja Centre, Spitalfields Housing Association, 117 Vallance Road,E1 5BW
Time Control: 15 minutes per player
Prizes: Open: 1st – £100, 2nd – £70; Minor: 1st – £30, 2nd – £20. Grading prizes: £25, for each of U180, U160, U140, U120, U100
Cost: £20 for ECF Silver or Gold, £27.50 for ECF Bronze or non-ECF, and £10 for all entries in the Minor section.
Contact: britishbanglachess@gmail.com
Entry forms are available here: https://form.jotform.co/90074668579876

As usual, we expect this will be a brilliant competition, and the BBCA do a fantastic job in their local community – well worth your support!

And don’t forget – our last foray into this competition saw a couple of Hammers walk away with cash prizes:

Thames Valley Division 1 – Hammer Riding High!

Our Thames Valley team are continuing their unbeaten run in this season’s league. We ‘stole’ a victory from Ealing A on Monday night, who put out a very strong team.

With two games left, Ealing were edging it 3.5-2.5, with just Bajrush and Tony to finish. Thankfully, both Hammers brought home the bacon and we squeaked out a 4.5-3.5 win! Amazing result:

We now sit top of the table, and are the only unbeaten team in the league. After Surbiton’s 5.5-2.5 win at Wimbledon A, we also have a game in hand over our nearest rivals.

The purists amongst us will know that since TV records began in 1974, Hammersmith have never been Division 1 champions. Indeed, the last dozen years has seen honours rotated pretty evenly amongst Wimbledon, Ealing, Richmond and Surbiton.

Is this the season we buck the trend? Do we dare to dream??? Stay tuned…

An Evening with GM Matthieu Cornette – Monday 11th February

2016 French Champion, Celtic Tiger, and all-round top player, GM Matthieu Cornette will be gracing the Anvil on Monday 11th February form 7.30pm, for an evening of chess talk!

Matthieu will be providing a 2 hour talk and discussion, focused on club players in the range 100-150 ECF, so this will be of massive interest to many at Hammersmith.

The evening is free of charge, however we are limited to 48 people due to Health & Safety, so places will be limited. As ever, contact John to register your spot: john.white49@ntlworld.com

An Evening with GM Danny King – Monday 29th April

As if one GM isn’t enough, on 29th April we will be bringing you another evening of top-level chess instruction, humour, debate and anecdotes in the form of media-star GM Daniel King!

A GM since 1989, Daniel received huge plaudits for his coverage of the 1993 World Chess Championship on UK Channel 4, and has gone on to have a hugely successful career in chess broadcasting and media, with highlights including coverage of Kasparov v Deep Blue, work for the BBC, and even Cilla Black!

Daniel is a top level tutor and instructor, with a very successful YouTube channel, and remains a top British player. He’s also a native of West London! Couldn’t be better.

This will be a popular evening, so if you sign up as an ‘early bird’ before 10th April, it is only £7 per place, rising to £10 thereafter.

Tickets are exclusively for Hammer members up to March 31st, so don’t delay to secure your place amongst the lucky 48!

Contact John ASAP to book your spot: john.white49@ntlworld.com

And Finally…

Stay tuned in the next few days for write-ups on the first round of the Hammersmith League Rapidplay, and some of this week’s games!

The chess never stops at Hammer! #hammertime

Chess-Up in a Brewery!!

The Hammer vs Battersea Sambrook’s Club Challenge!

The world’s first “Chess-Up in a Brewery”!

There are three absolute truths in our corner of the chess world in early 2019:

The Noisy Neighbours, Battersea, are still smarting from the El Chessico encounter two months ago, and are thirsting for revenge.
The indisputable thirst that chess players have for the combination in liquid format of hops, barley, yeast and water.
Hammer will never not be thirsty for a chess challenge.

A thirst that must – and will – be quenched. That is a lot of thirst. We have the answer.

Yes, the first “Chess-Up in a Brewery” challenge has been arranged, and you bet those Battersea Boyz want revenge!

The challenge will take place in the tap room of Sambrook’s brewery, over in Battersea (SW11 3QG), on Saturday the 26th January from 1-5pm. Check out their website:

www.sambrooksbrewery.co.uk

Due to space constraints, the match will be restricted to just 14 boards, and to ensure an even distribution of all playing strengths, the set-up will be as follows in terms of ECF ratings:

Boards 1&2 – ECF 200+
Boards 3&4 – ECF 180-200
Boards 5&6 – ECF 160-180
Boards 7&8 – ECF 140-160
Boards 9&10 – ECF 120-140
Boards 11&12 – ECF 100-120
Boards 13&14 – ECF below 100

So, we need 14 Hammers to step forward and volunteer for the challenge match! It will be strictly first come, first served, so get involved quickly if you want to play – it will be a brilliant event!

Please email john.white49@ntlworld.com ASAP to reserve your spot!

Captain Clueless – also open to beer bribes to get on the team!

Hammer Goes East! Poland Beckons in 2019

Happy New Year to all Hammers! Chess is back for 2019, and there is plenty to get you in the mood! First up…

Hammer Goes East – Poland Beckons in 2019

Yes, with the Christmas and New Year festivities done & dusted, Hammer Chess Club members and minds – like a TUI Boxing Day advert – are switching to thoughts of destinations for a Summer holiday.

In the past two years Hammer have sampled the delights of the beautiful cities of Amsterdam and Cork in search of Summer chess satisfaction.

The 2019 destination will be Wroclaw, in Western Poland. Formerly known as Breslau, and situated on the River Oder, it is the fourth largest city in Poland.

It is one of the most stunning and beautiful European cities, and the trip will encompass chess, culture, new friendships, and the odd beer or two.

I must thank Artur and the Wroclaw Chess Club for agreeing to host us, and we will certainly reciprocate with a return visit (fingers crossed!) in 2020.

From a chess point of view, Wroclaw are a top chess club and this will be a brilliant chess weekend.

I must also thank Ryszard for introducing me to Artur, and must also emphasise the strong ties between Hammersmith and Poland. The Polish Cultural Association is based in the heart of Hammersmith and is a visible example of the friendship and historical ties between our countries.

The visit will take place from the 7th – 9th June. I have just booked my flights and am returning early Monday morning (10th June).

So, how do you book a place:

Email Clueless at john.white49@ntlworld.com, stating that you wish to come!
Next, book your flights – Ryanair and Wizz airlines both fly direct to Wroclaw.
Contact Clueless if you would like to share accommodation – probably airbnb.

Please respond ASAP – the Hammers who have been involved in the last two trips had a brilliant time. This is going to be an amazing weekend!

More Chess Action in January

Plenty more is coming up this month too – The Hammersmith League kicks off again this coming Tuesday 8th, at Lytton Hall, with a second round of fixtures on Tuesday 29th. Captains have already begun arranging their teams – if you are yet to be contacted, please get in touch.

The Celtic Tigers have a match weekend coming up on the 12th and 13th – expect a report the following week once the dust has settled!

If you’ve not done so already, you may wish to purchase a ticket or two for the Raffle being organised to raise funds for Hammersmith and the Celtic Tigers. There are dozens of prizes to be won – including some really valuable training sessions with top players – and the odds are very favourable!

And last but not least, Hammersmith is fielding teams in a further 22 competitive games this month. In fact, there are only 3 weeknights where we’re not in action – amazing! Check out the Calendar for details.

The Hammer-Celtic Tigers Raffle

Amazing Prizes to be Won!

Yes, another first for Hammer members and a great way to help raise monies for the club, and our 4NCL affiliated sister club, the Celtic Tigers, and possibly bag yourself a top chess prize…. presenting, the Hammer & Celtic Tigers Raffle!

There are plenty of prizes available – a positive Potpourri of chess delights, including:

2x 1 hour training sessions with Adam Taylor (200+ ECF)
3x 2-volume signed books from GM Gawain Jones
3x 3-month PRO memberships to one of the greatest chess learning sites around – chessable.com
4x games analysed (from scoresheets) by WIM Sue Maroroa
Ginger GM – 51 (yes, fifty-one!!) DVD’s to be won
2 hour training session from Hammer’s Carsten Pedersen (197 ECF)
2 hour training session from ECF Coach and Hammer, Tony Niccoli (188 ECF)
DGT 2010 digital clock worth £60
Kasparov Championship chess set, worth £50
My System Book, worth £10
Magnetic Wallet Set, worth £5
Kasparov International Master chess set, worth £24
Multiple Books from the Hammer Library

Chris Skulte, the Celtic Tigers Captain and a true Hammer, has put some serious effort into this and we need your help!

With the raffle strictly limited to 150 tickets, there is well over a 50% chance of winning at least one prize! Hammer members have the exclusive rights to buy tickets until 25th January, after which the chance will be offered to the wider chess community.

The draw will take place once all tickets have been sold.

This is a unique chance to get a serious piece of chess training or equipment. But remember – you have to be in it to win it!!

Due to the limited number of tickets, they’ve been priced at £10 per ticket, or £15 for two.

If you’d like to take part, simply email Chris – chrisskulte@gmail.com – or ping him on the Hammer Group WhatsApp with your requirements.

It couldn’t be easier – get buying, and good luck! They are selling fast!!