31 January 2018
Our Team A were playing in the Oval Office – so named from the shape of the main playing table: players at board 3 need extra-long arms: they don’t shake hands, they just touch fingertips.
The team cruised to a 4½-½ victory over a lower-graded Rose Forgrove D. There were wins for Paul Johnson, Bob Maltby and Eric Brodie, a draw for Tom Leah and one win by default. The result leaves the A Team in top position in the Division 2 league table.
In the Outer Room (conveniently nearer the bar) our B and C teams were pitched against each other. Team B had an average 20 grade points advantage but Team C don’t give up easily. At board 3, in the longest game of the match, Barry Fulthorpe for the C Team managed to convert a hopelessly-lost endgame position into a stalemate draw. Phil Higgins too put up a spirited performance that kept Chris Tatham occupied for a long time. The final result was 3 wins for Team B and 2 draws, giving the B Team victory by 4 points to 1, strengthening their mid-table position on Division 3.