Christmas Newsletter

Published 23rd December 2008

Merry Christmas to everyone at the Cambridge City Chess Club.

2008 ended with our festive Christmas party at the club. We played lots of fun chess, and our special thanks go to Alvin's mother Yuko for bringing some delicious Sushi to really make the evening special. The teams have been doing really well so far this season, and the Captains have written a mid-season summary to keep everyone up-to-date with our progress:

The Academicals got off to a flying start in the Bury League this season. We raced to the top of Div 1 with a succession of victories. With each match the opposition got stronger and yet the Academicals won more convincingly each time. Obviously, once at the top the only way was back down again. Facing the toughest two teams last, we were held to a draw by the Choristers, and the wheels finally fell-off with a heavy defeat to Linton! Our best performer is actually our reserve, Tim Davison, closely followed by Tom Bramley and Chris Davison.

The Choristers without performing to their true potential find themselves tucked in just behind the leaders in the league table. We remain unbeaten this season which has been achieved by a combination of skill, stubborn determination and a fair share of luck. Hopefully we can fire on all cylinders in the 2nd half of the season and put in a serious challenge to win the title.

Despite dodging relegation last season and Division I now getting stronger, the Oddfellows' with their excellent team spirit have decided to fight-it-out again in Div. 1. We're struggling hard to stay afloat and after 3 lost and 3 drawn matches we're uncomfortably close to the bottom again. Richard Newman is our top scorer with 3.5 from 6. The team Captain, by spurning draws, has suffered 3 defeats but also won three. Simon Doherty obtained his (customary!) win over Hans Richter, while David Cattermole is finding this year harder despite dropping down a board. Our ambition for 2009 is to win at least one of those elusive bonus points!

In the Division 2: the Bollards started with a drawn match against Bury Cannons C but then managed to win all the following matches so that we find ourselves in the lead at the halfway point. David Hatfield is our top scorer with 3.5 from 5.

Nine players have represented the Examiners so far this season - congratulations to Ed for managing this. The team has four wins and a draw from six closely-fought matches and is well-placed to challenge in the second half of the season. Everyone has chipped in with some points and all have scored at least 50%.

The Dons got off to a flying start in the new Bury League third division. We approach the Christmas break having won all 6 matches, and those bonus match points have helped us climb straight to the top of the table. Both Ian Dickson and Lee Chapman enjoyed a 100% record for their first 5 games, but sadly succumbed in the 6th round match against Stowmarket. Ian played well to get a draw against a stronger opponent, while Lee threw away what turned out to be a mate-in-11 win by withdrawing his queen to a square where it was promptly taken by his opponent's knight. Perhaps we need a new section on the website called "Top Match Blunders"...? Thanks to the regulars (Jan van Niekerk & Ian Dickson), the newcomers (Roland Tiba & Joe Brown), the old hands (Stephen Pride & Tapan Pal) and not-so-old hands (Ashley Stewart & Alvin Gardner) for playing for the Dons so far.

Despite a draw and two losses in the first three fixtures, the Gowns are finally hitting their stride with back-to-back wins in the last 3 matches. Thanks to the regulars and to everyone who's stepped-in to help us. Let's keep up our winning streak into the New Year and beyond!

In the Roger Goldsmith, the Cambridge Masters were leading the field after two rounds, but were unhorsed in the local derby by Cambridge Porters in Round 3. But we are quietly confident of qualifying for the semi-finals. The Cambridge Porters have started extremely well. We won two out of two with a win over Linton followed by a 3-1 win against the other Cambridge team. We are on 6.5 points just half-a-point ahead of Newmarket who we are playing in the next round. Our best players so far are Ashley Stewart and Tim Davison with 2/2 and Joe Brown on 1.5.

In the University leagues, City 1 has made a steady start in its bid to retain, or at least compete for the Div 1 title. We have managed three 2.5 - 2.5 draws; against Churchill (which included two players from the Varsity match team) Caius and Queens. Refreshingly, virtually all matches have been played to schedule with only one default. We have used 9 members in the squad, only Ashley has played on all three occasions scoring 2 draws and a win. Jean, Ed, Colin and Alvin all have perfect 1 out of 1's. We also entered Cuppers this year and saw off a strong Queens' team 3.5 - 1.5. We meet last years' winners Trinity in the next round!

At the mid-season break, City II has scored 2-3 against Trinity III, 4-1 against St John's and 2-3 against Magdalene College. In the Plate competition, City II has advanced with wins by forfeit over Pembroke College, a 3-1 win over Peterhouse, and we'll face either Trinity II or Queens' in the next round. Thanks to Jan van Niekirk, Joseph Brown, Luca di Mauro, Roland Tiba, Alvin Gardner and Lee Chapman for getting us this far. (Jean Bigras)

In the Cambridgeshire League Div 1, Cambridge A beat both Buckden and New England 5-0. Unfortunately Paul Kemp fell sick before the matches against our toughest opponents, Peterborough A and Warboys, and we lost both more narrowly. The Cambridgeshire League is decided by match points so that left us on 50%. After beating St Neots we're now third equal and on our way back up the table. Special thanks to Melford John for stepping in as a last minute driver, and a special mention of Ola Winfridsson who beat Peterborough's Andrei Timoshenko (209).

In Division 2, Cambridge B are flying high with two wins out of two and currently joint second in the table. The star team-performance was a 3-1 away win to Spalding who had beaten last year's league winners. The star individual-performance was Melford's win against Chris Hamilton deep in a quick play finish.

The going is getting tough in the Cambridgeshire Individual County Championship. Stephen Pride has got through to Round 3, where he may face Timoshenko. Paul Kemp is also through to round three, while Will Stimpson has been stopped convincingly, but perhaps unsurprisingly, by Chris Ross (Cambridgeshire's Board 1)

The Cambs League's "500" competition has yet to play a match, and in the Fenland Cup we have already reached the semi-finals without having played a match either! We will meet either Warboys or St Neots sometime around February time.

So from myself and all the Captains at the club, a Merry Christmas to all and a Happy New Year. See you on Weds January 7th.

Philip Fallon
President Cambridge City Chess Club