A trip to Lord’s is always one of the highlights of the season. Historic surroundings, good company and competitive chess always makes for a good night.
Unusually the games room was unavailable, being occupied by backgammon players, so the match took place in the 2nd floor bar. The NLC players, a friendly match and a bar – what could go wrong? In theory lots but in practice not much. Even the bar’s balcony with a view of the hallowed pitch didn’t divert attention for long.
The match was tightly fought. With the score at 2-2, Doctor Kirby agreed a draw seeing Captain Giffin KC MA (Oxon) a pawn up and cruising with the opponent’s Knight entombed on h8. In the end our skipper was lucky to escape with a draw. So the match ended up 3-3, which is hardly a problem. A draw at Lord’s with dinner to follow. Quite possibly the ‘Ideal Friendly’.
Board 1
Following Captain Giffin KC MA (Oxon) following tradition and losing the toss, Doctor Kirby settled into a Caro-Kann advance variation (3 e5). There followed a cagey opening with black attempting to free his cramped pieces onto good squares. White tried to press but was beaten back with a tactic which gained material. In the end Black was a pawn up but white had more space and open lines. In the end both sides opted for safety and a draw by repetition.
Board 2
Captain Giffin KC MA (Oxon) secured a draw with MCC stalwart Wil Ransome with only Kings left on the board. The route there was far from simple. In a Grand Prix attack our skipper eventually got a decent attack going which left him a pawn up. Then the wheels came off with a few blunders, one of which gave the opponent a mate in two which thankfully he missed. Then Wil Ransome got in on the act by losing all his pawns leaving King and two pawns vs King and Knight. It’s unclear whether White had a win but he only had 45 seconds left. The opponent managed to block the threats and secure a draw.
Said the Captain after the game: “After a slightly cramped opening, yet again I got a lovely attack going yet contrived to blow it – 31 fg is a mistake, 36 Rg4 a hideous blunder, and 37 b3 even worse, since it allowed him a mate in two which he missed . . . Wil then managed to go wrong and lose all his pawns, at which point I thought I might have a win, but I only had 45 seconds left and either I did it wrong under pressure of time, or else it was truly by then drawn.”
Board 3
Mister Rosenbaum had Black in a Stonewall Dutch against Colin Ferguson. He eventually gained an advantage and started pressing on the kingside. A slip which would have allowed a drawish position was thankfully missed. The opponent then started exchanging material and whittled it down to a won ending with Mister Rosenbaum the exchange up (Rook and 5 pawns v Bishop and five pawns) with his Rook about to maraud over the board.
Board 4
Doctor Saldanha was white on Board 4 against Nick Clark. Doctor Saldanha had an advantage in the opening but let it slip (5 Ng5 wins a pawn). Following this the match swayed to and fro. In the end black overplayed with 23…f5 which allowed the white attack through to gain material and take it through to a won ending.
Said Doctor Saldanha’s opponent later on: “I lost. But had a hell of a game. Knife edge stuff for the first half”.
Board 5
Mister Dias was black on Board 5 against Geoff Dawson. Effectively it turned into a Queen’s Gambit accepted where Mister Dias rather unwisely tried to hold onto the extra pawn. White managed to get the pawn back, had a significant lead in development and open Q-Side files to maraud through. Mister Dias unsurprisingly went down to defeat.
Board 6
Finally there was Mister Rhatigan on Board 6 against Nick Esseo. No record exists of the game but Mister Rhatigan had an early attack with the Fried Liver that looked like it would press home. Sadly something went wrong between this and your correspondent’s next visit to Board 6 (as so often it does with this opening) by which time Mister Rhatigan was a piece down.
Dinner
Dinner at the MCC is held in the President’s Dining Room. Supreme of chicken with mashed potato and vegetables was followed by a strawberry pudding in the form of a sphere. It looked like half a cricket ball but tasted very good. There were also good supplies of MCC chardonnay and Malbec to wash it all down. Good food and good company, it’s what Club Chess is all about!