Post date: 08-Oct-2013 21:24:16
This was our first match of the season, and it was against MBCS in their first match in division 1. We outgraded our opponents on most boards, so we expected a win, but there was still a hint of nerves before the match started. The top two boards both started with Caro-Kanns, early queen development, and quick wins for Cowley. Ray was first to finish with a fast win over John Place. Antonio, in his first Cowley match, played black against ex-Cowley Jon D'Souza-Eva. This was a very interesting line, starting with 1 e4 c6, 2 Ne2, d5, 3 e5 d4. Jon was soon forced to walk his king around the board, and Antonio sealed the win.
I was next to win against Ian Bush. I got a decent position and pressure against the Pirc, and when Ian tried to relieve the pressure by exchanging, he dropped his queen. Nick encountered tough resistance in his match against Eric Ward, but managed to create a passed pawn which led to victory.
MBCS's best results came from the Cole family, Graham and James. Graham and Will played a 19th century style game. This is usually Will's forte, but this time he came off worse on the Black side of a Max Lange attack, after making an unwise lunge down the g-file. Despite laying lots of traps, he couldn't stave off defeat. Finally, James played a fianchetto variation against Paul's Alekhine. Paul developed some pressure, but the game ended in a draw.
So our first game of the season ended in a 4.5-1.5 win and we are top of the league! Oh, OK I have to admit that only 2 games have been played in the league so far, but we will enjoy our position whilst we can. The full result can be found here