Broadstairs 3 Woodnesborough 2
| 1 | Shani Rezvany (163) | 1-0 | Harry Sharples (144) |
| 2 | Richard Clement (129) | 1-0 | John Thorley (140) |
| 3 | Chris Stampe (124) | 0-1 | William Grummitt (133) |
| 4 | Paul Johnson (116) | 1-0 | Raj Sookhurry (e110) |
| 5 | Michael Doyle (91) | 0-1 | Mark Towlson (94) |
Grade totals: 623/625 621/625
John Couzens reports:
So we made it to the final after a spell of eight years in the Mick Croft Cup wilderness!
My first choice team were all available so I had high hopes of a good result (no cannon fodder needed this time)
Woodnesborough at home ….. Come on!
Harry’s boys showed up and my confidence took a bit of a knock when I saw John Thorley (140) was on board two, William Grummitt (133) on board three, Raj Sookhurry estimated at 110 on board four (we all know how estimated grades can differ from real grades!) and Mark ‘Thanet Congress king’ Towlson 94 on board five….
mmmmmm not going to be as easy as I’d anticipated
My expectations took another hit when after 20 moves Michael ‘reliable’ Doyle lost his queen for nothing!
Soon after he gave up his rook, resigned and went home. (We missed you in Cramptons, barmaids and all – come back soon!)
The other four boards all looked equal for ages, then Chris hit a central brick wall and lost the exchange
John Thorley offered Richard a draw (declined) and Paul’s game looked like drawing too
Looking good for the visitors
Then Paul dug deep and finished a tense endgame, forcing Raj to resign
Shany was pushing Harry hard, won a knight and eventually Harry had to resign
2-1 up
All we need now is a draw from Chris or Richard and the Cup would be ours (with a drawn match, the bottom board result is eliminated -Ed)
Then Richard ‘Cliff Thorburn’ Clement finally ground poor old John Thorley into submission
The cup was ours!
Small consolation for Woodnesborough as William finished off Chris in the final minutes
Final score 3-2
Well done, Broadstairs superstars!