Alnwick Chess Club

A disappointing result on Wednesday as we only drew 2-2 with Morpeth B in the Northumberland Summer Tournament. Under the handicap system that meant we lost 2-3.5. But there were good wins for Darren and Andrew. Our final match of the season will be on July 15 - opponents as yet unknown. AGM this coming Monday June 29!

I have been going to Alnwick Chess Club, with one short break, since 1986. Last night (Monday June 22) we had 15 people down for a club night. I really don’t think we have had that number on one night in the last 40 years. But be careful about coming down next week though unless you are into meetings, as we will be holding our AGM. It won’t last all evening and I am sure some chess will be played afterwards! This Wednesday evening we have a match against Morpeth B in the Northumberland Summer Tournament. We are currently mid table with a win and a loss.

Better luck for Alnwick in their second match in the Northumberland summer Tournament last Wednesday. We were drawn against local rivals Morpeth A. Because of the difference in rated strengths, the Alnwick team started with 1.5 points and so Morpeth A had to win 3-1. But wins from John and VInce made the over the board score 2-2, so including the bonus points that made it 3.5-2 in favour of Alnwick. Certainly not what Morpeth will have been expecting. The next round will be on June 24.

The final league match of the season for Alnwick was the C team taking on Forest Hall Pheasants on Wednesday night and they went down 1.5-2.5, but with a good win from Vince and a very good draw from Charles. This means that at the end of the season, the A team finished 6th in Division 2, and the B and C teams finished 5th and 6th in Division 5. So, unless there is another league reorganisation, each team can expect to be in the same division next season.

At the Durham Congress last weekend, our best performer was John in the Major with 2.5/5. George also got 2.5 and Phil 1.5 (in his first Congress for 30 years!) in the same section and surely both felt they should have done better. Andrew got 2/5 in the Minor and probably thought the same.

This coming week we take on Division 1 champions Gosforth Empire in the Northumberland Summer Tournament. Could be a bit of a challenge …

Needing to draw their final match on Wednesday evening against relegation rivals Leam Lane Bullets, the A team had a bad start when we had to forfeit a board in the afternoon due to illness. But, in a very topsy truvy match, the result was a 2-2 draw thanks to wins from Phil and John H. So the A team avoid relegation and should stay in Division 2 next season.

The C team played the same evening against already relegated Morpeth C. Unfortunately, the C team lost 1-3 against a surprisingly strong Morpeth team. Our point came through draws from Andrew and Charles, both against stronger players. The B team have their final match next week against relegated Newcastle University C, with the C team having their final match the following week against mid table Forest Hall Pheasants.

The weekend after next, at least four of us will be off to Darlington for the Durham Congress. Then the Northumberland Summer Tournament should begin. There is no rest for the wicked …

Good results for both the A team and C team on Wednesday. The A team beat Gateshead 2.5-1.5 with wins from George and John H, and a very good draw from Phil against a much higher rated player. This result relegates Gateshead and gives us a 3 point lead over Leam Lane Bullets. We have one match remaining, and this is against Leam Lane (who have two matches remaining). This match is next Wednesday. If we avoid defeat in this match we avoid relegation whatever the result of Leam Lane’s remaining match.

The C team also won. They beat Newcastle University C 2.5-1.5 with wins from Andrew and Vincent, and a draw from Steve S. this means that they are safe from relegation. So a good evening all round!

Two league matches played this week. Firstly, the B team got a very very creditable 2-2 draw with runaway Division 5 leaders, Gosforth Siths, with a win from Charles and draws from Andrew and Michael. With one league match to play, this leaves the B team comfortably mid-table in fifth position. The A team also played and drew 2-2 with Gosforth Centurions. They had a win from John H and draws from George and Kieran. This point lifts the A team just out of the two relation positions and into 6th position by just one point. The A team have two matches remaining and these are against the two team below them. Next up next week for the A team are Gateshead on Wednesday. On the same evening, the C team take on Newcastle University C and need just one point from their three remaining matches to avoid relegation.