Mick Croft Cup Final

                                                 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!

 

Tata Steel Chess Tournament 2019

The Tata Steel Chess Tournament which begins tomorrow (Jan 11) is one of the biggest events in the chess calendar. This year is the 81st tournament and although its name has changed in that time, it has always been held in the Dutch town of Wijk aan Zee. It regularly attracts the best players in the world – Magnus Carlsen will be playing for the fifteenth time – and six of the world’s top ten players will be competing this year. The second seed behind the world champion is the Azerbaijani, Shakhriyar Mamedyarov, known throughout the chess world as Shakh. He is the current world number three and for those who think Carlsen is unassailable these days, it is worth noting that he and Shakh met nine times last year in all formats with Carlsen only winning once and that was in a blitz tournament. Here is Shakh’s neat victory over the champion at Biel in the summer where he finished clear first by one and a half points.

White:  Shakhriyar  Mamedyarov (2801)      Black:  Magnus Carlsen (2842)

 Biel International Chess Festival 2018 

The average ELO rating in the Masters Tournament is 2753 and there is also a Challengers Tournament where the average is 2580. Both sections have fourteen players. The website  http://tatasteelchess.com has all the information you need and a lot more. The archive is worth a look – it provides details of the most games played (of current players, Vishy Anand 221) and the highest win percentage. Of this year’s competitors it is not Carlsen but Ding Liren with 63.46% so perhaps he is worth a punt if you are a betting person. One curious feature of the Masters Tournament is that for the past six years it has gone ‘on tour’ with two of the rounds taking place in alternative venues to Wijk aan Zee. This year Round 5 will take place in Alkmaar (see below) and Round 10 in Leiden.
In addition to the two major tournaments, there are also several events for those mere mortals quaintly described on the official site as ‘amateurs’. These tournaments attract thousands of entries. Finally there is the Tata Steel Chess Festival on January 19-20 and if you can understand Dutch, there is more information here  (I couldn’t find a translate button). The Masters gets under way on Saturday and there will be updates on this site from our Dutch correspondent, Rook van Zugzwang.

Game of the Week 4

Here is a heavyweight clash for Game of the Week: numbers two and three in the club championship. Imagine Man City v Spurs.  Thank you to Trefor for sending this in. He modestly claims in his email that he is ‘not sure it qualifies as Game of the Week but the finish was quite nice’.  As we are becoming accustomed to seeing with Trefor’s games, his notes are a welcome addition and explanation to the game.  Don’t hold back if you think you have a game that is worth sharing with a wider audience. I suspect players are too modest to send them in but please do so – they are often much better than you think.

White:  Trefor Owens (167)      Black:  Shany Rezvany (163)

 Goodall Cup (Broadstairs Club Championship) 

Walker Shield v Margate (h)

                                             Broadstairs   2½      Margate 1½                      

1 Bob Cronin (103) 0-1 Leon Garfield (102)
2 Reg Pidduck (101) ½-½ John Clarke (98)
3 Michael Doyle (91) 1-0 Roy McAloney (86)
4 Michael Jenkinson (78) 1-0 Cameron Plater (49)

Capt Mike Doyle writes:

To stay in the running for Walker Shield, we had to beat Margate who had won both their matches. Captain Mike was the first winner against a tricky opponent. He finished a pawn up and Roy resigned before the pawn changed to a queen. Our next winner was Michael Jenkinson, who on the 14th move took his opponent’s queen with a rook: 2-0. It was hunky-dory until then but then came a blow – Bob lost to a formidable opponent in a tight game: 2-1. It was then down to Reg who was last to finish. He was up against John Clarke, who had one or two tricks up his sleeve.  It all came down to a white rook and knight against a rook and bishop. In the end a draw was agreed and Broadstairs won 2½-1½. Well done, boys! We are second in the league now and that’s a winning start to the New Year. Next on our calendar is Bridge at home. Go for it!

Happy New Year

With yesterday being the twelfth day of Christmas, this seems like a good time to look forward to 2019 and see what is in store. The Thanet League has reached the mid-point stage of the season so it is worth a look to see how the Broadstairs teams stand. Tomorrow (January 7th) the Walker Shield team resume their campaign with a crucial home match against Margate. A glance at the table below shows how important this is. Our team is quite strong but one reason for its modest start is that seldom has the club been able to field its best team. Couple that with a four-player format where one error can prove decisive and a 2-2 draw can easily become a 2½-1½ defeat. However, there is still some way to go and a victory tomorrow would make a huge difference. Here is the current position:

Team Play Won Draw Lost For Against Points SP MP IM
Ramsgate 4 3 0 1 10 6 6 0 0 0
Margate 2 2 0 0 6½ 1½ 4 0 0 0
Broadstairs 4 1 1 2 9 7 3 0 0 0
Folkestone 3 0 2 1 5½ 6½ 2 0 0 0
Bridge 2 1 0 1 2½ 5½ 2 0 0 0
Sheldwich 3 0 1 2 2½ 9½ 1 0 0 0

Compared with the busy season enjoyed by the Walker Shield team, the Hargreaves Shield players have had few opportunities to display their talents. What began as a four-team competition was soon reduced to three when Woodnesborough withdrew almost before the season had started. Nevertheless, with two wins from two matches, the Broadstairs team are in a strong position to retain the trophy won last year. The two remaining matches are Bridge (away) on January 29th and Folkestone (home) on March 4th. Here is the current table:

Team Play Won Draw Lost For Against Points SP MP IM
Broadstairs 2 2 0 0 6½ 1½ 4 0 0 0
Folkestone 3 1 1 1 5½ 6½ 3 0 0 0
Woodnesborough 1 0 1 0 2 2 1 0 0 0
Bridge 2 0 0 2 2 6 0 0 0 0

The situation with the Millar Cup is perhaps the most intriguing. For many years in this competition Broadstairs have been not so much the bridesmaids but more like the  pageboys (appropriately) bringing up the rear and holding up the bride’s lengthy train.  However, the fortuitous and indeed fortunate arrival of several new members this season has suddenly galvanised the team and a narrow defeat to Folkestone was followed by the first win over Bridge in living memory. A second win against Margate leaves Broadstairs in silver medal position at the half-way stage. The return fixtures against Folkestone (January 21st) and Bridge (April 29th) will be crucial as the latest table shows:

Team Play Won Draw Lost For Against Points SP MP IM
Folkestone 2 2 0 0 9½ 4½ 4 0 0 0
Broadstairs 3 2 0 1 12 9 4 0 0 0
Bridge 3 1 0 2 12 9 2 0 0 0
Margate 2 0 0 2 1½ 12½ 0 0 0 0

The Mick Croft Cup, named in honour of the man who did so much for Thanet chess over many years, reaches its conclusion next week (January 14th) when Broadstairs play Woodnesborough in the final at home. Five players make up a team where the total grade must not exceed 625 so an average of 125 per board is the maximum allowed. Broadstairs has won the competition before but not for a while. John Couzens is in charge of the team and he will be scratching his head and polishing his selection over the next few days.

Mick Croft was one of the prime movers behind the instigation of the Thanet Chess Congress in 1970. The event of the year for local players will therefore be the 50th Thanet Chess Congress in August. Plans are already underway to include a few special prizes and we are hoping for a suitably large turnout. It is also hoped that some of those who played in the first congress will be able to play again. Watch this space for further information. The congress will take place from Friday August 16th – Sunday August 18th and the official website will be up and running in March.