Post date: 15-Jan-2014 00:45:48
Cowley were firm favourites to win this match, but we tempered our confidence with the knowledge that St Clare's had got off to a better start than we this season and besides, unpredictable results are par for the course in fourth division. Following a week of flood-related traffic disruption, I had taken the precaution of selecting the players based largely on their proximity to the club! The resulting team made an impressive showing.
Gefei was responsible for our first point of the evening: sadly he was left without a game when St Clare's arrived with just five players. Following a slightly rocky start, Jasmine upped her game and reliably exploited various tactical opportunities, winning solidly. Newcomer Tobias' desperado bishop bagged him a pawn and a superior position, after which he pressed his advantage home without difficulty.
Meanwhile, John Burgess cunningly trapped a bishop early on. A rapid series of piece swaps soon brought him to a good endgame. However, with his opponent's king holed up in a corner blockading John's pawn, the danger of stalemate remained. Accordingly, John's king shifted its attention to the other side of the board, prompting his opponent's resignation.
The Oklahoma Land Rush of 1889 came to mind as Simon Taylor sprang into action, shamelessly seizing a vast tract of territory in the first moves of his game. This done, Simon's usual dramatic style was not required as he calmly capitalised on the cramped placement of his opponent's pieces, but he did manage to finish up with a flourish.
This left top board Oscar Idle with the most challenging game of the evening. Notwithstanding Nichita Kiseliov's resourceful and optimistic defense ("I am still offering a draw"), Oscar remained determined to convert his extra pawn into a full point. Extensive manoeuvring brought both players into time trouble with the position still unclear. At last Oscar crashed through and rapidly drove Nichita's king to the wall in a crowd-pleasing finish with just a few minutes remaining.
As far as I can see from the OCA website, it has been it least ten years since Cowley last recorded a 6-0 win in a fourth division match.