It had to end….A team lose to Breadsall!
On Monday evening (10/02/25) Derby A, hoping to stay in the hunt for top place, faced Breadsall.
John, on top board, was first to finish. On the white side of an Old Indian, he had a space advantage out of the opening and a clear edge - but amid the slow manoeuvrings, he didn’t find an optimal set-up and the game petered out towards equality.
Gina came under pressure after mixing up her theory on the black side of a Grand Prix Attack Sicilian. She conjured some counter-play on the queenside, and this potentially played a helping hand. Straight after her opponent missed what looked like a breakthrough knight sacrifice, he offered a draw.
Kevin entered a fantasy Caro-Kann position and Steve declined any possible tactical response with a solid setup. Kevin attempted to inject life into the position by sacrificing a pawn with Steve's king uncastled. He could have won the pawn back but chose to complicate the position but allowed his opponent to gain control. Kevin lost the resulting endgame a pawn down.
I reached an equal position after 17 moves in a Caro-Kann but blundered after a miscalculation.
A bump back to earth after a good run of results!
| Breadsall | 3 - 1 | Derby A | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Molyneux, John | 2090 | ½ - ½ | Tompson, John C | 2087 |
| 2 | Madden, Paul | 2114 | ½ - ½ | Morea, Georgiana-Steluta | 2060 |
| 3 | Burke, Steven J | 1867 | 1 - 0 | Dalley, Kevin J | 1853 |
| 4 | Jarvis, Derek A | 1916 | 1 - 0 | Williams, David | 1879 |
Dave Williams 11/02/25