Shirley B 1 - 3 Leamington A
23 March 2015Results involving other teams having continued to go our way, we came into this game needs only a single point to clinch the title. Dan's move to Ireland did make our task a bit harder, but we were still able to field a strong team.
Andy Collins set us on our way with a quick win. His opponent, playing the Pirc, made some unusual choices in the opening, giving White the opportunity to build some serious pressure on the f-file. An unshakeable pin on the f6 Knight gave Andy a material advantage that he converted into a win without alarm.
The other Andy, playing against a higher rated player, had no problems maintaining equality; a draw was agreed in the early endgame with a totally balanced position.
The honour of clinching the title fell to Ola. Playing with two bishops against two knights from early on, he pegged White's forces back around his king. Patience was required, but eventually Ola won the exchange, and more material gains were to follow. He was up by a clear rook when the resignation came.
My game was interesting, being one of the sharpest lines of the Elephant Gambit. My opponent opted to give up a knight for three pawns, an imbalance which looked likely to lead to a win for one of us. I eventually gained a pawn, but my opponent offered me a draw shortly afterwards when the match was decided. While I felt able to win - and subsequent analysis showed that my chances were better than I had realised - I was happy enough to accept under the circumstances.
Champions then! A great effort by the team to put right what went wrong a year ago. With ten wins and two draws, our only remaining challenge is to try and finish unbeaten.