Win Eases Relegation Fears for Inverclyde Central

Inverclyde Central Chess Club took a massive step towards avoiding relegation from the First Division of the Glasgow Chess League by beating Polytechnic A 5.5-2.5. Inverclyde were in a precarious position before the match, hovering just above the relegation zone, with more difficult fixtures remaining than the teams around them. Realistically, Inverclyde required at least a draw from this game to have a chance of staying up: their final game is against runaway league-leaders Bearsden.

The history of matches between the teams did not bode well for Inverclyde: they had only ever beaten Polytechnic A once. That was last season, but against a greatly weakened Polytechnic team in an unimportant end-of-season match, with both clubs sitting comfortably in mid-table. Inverclyde were missing two regular first team players in Gary McPheator and John Calder, but could call upon Carsten Bolln, playing his first game for the club, and an in-form Andrew Curran. Polytechnic, at full strength, could call upon Grandmaster Colin McNab and John Shaw, as well as three other players graded over 2000 and two more graded over 1900. Inverclyde currently have two players graded approximately 2100 and a cluster of players rated 1600-1800. Fortunately for Inverclyde, Polytechnic, out of title contention and sitting in upper mid-table, again fielded a weakened team (though considerably stronger than the one that Inverclyde had beaten last season). Apart from a 150 point grading advantage Inverclyde’s Kevin McDonald held over his opponent on board two, the grades of the teams were approximately even. All the pressure, though, was on Inverclyde.

The match started very well, with Stephen Riley recording an emphatic 22-move win. However, Polytechnic soon equalised, with a win over Jim Montgomery on board one. This was Jim’s first defeat in an otherwise outstanding season for the club, and he remains the club’s highest scorer, with 6.5/8. Third to finish was David Logue, who recovered well from a difficult opening position as black in a Ruy Lopez, only to let his advantage slip; running short of time, he accepted his opponent’s draw offer. On board seven, Carsten Bolln played a solid game in his debut, and was able to win a central pawn in the endgame; however, his opponent was able to activate his rooks and create threats against Carsten’s king and second rank pawns . With neither side in a position to force a win, a draw was agreed. This left the score tied at 2-2 with four boards to finish. The match then turned in Inverclyde’s favour as Stephen Hilton won a complex knight and pawn endgame to give Inverclyde the lead, and Kevin McDonald exploited weaknesses in his opponent’s kingside to secure victory on board two. This left Inverclyde leading 4-2, with two games to finish. On board four Stephen Doherty had won the exchange of a minor piece for one of his opponent’s rooks - a significant advantage - and was well placed to win his game. However, as Inverclyde only needed half a point to win the match, he agreed a draw for the sake of the team, and victory was secured. In the final game to finish, Andrew Curran was able to extend Inverclyde’s margin of victory: outplaying his higher-graded opponent, he forced the promotion of a pawn to a queen, and his opponent resigned with checkmate looming.

The win lifts Inverclyde out of the relegation zone and into mid-table with one match remaining. There is still a mathematical chance of relegation, as the teams below them still have more games to play, though it would require a highly improbable series of results to put Inverclyde’s Division One status in jeopardy again. In all likelihood they will face Bearsden in their final match on April 16^th with their league position secure.

Full Results Shown Below:

Bd Grade Inverclyde vs Glasgow Polytechnic A Grade

1 2114 Montgomery, Jim 0 - 1 Swan, Iain 2139

2 2095 McDonald, Kevin 1 - 0 Kasabali, Cagri 1918

3 1717 Riley, Stephen 1 - 0 King, Graeme E 1738

4 1745 Doherty, Stephen ½ - ½ Jenkins, David M 1731

5 1765 Hilton, Steve H 1 - 0 Whelan, Liam 1730

6 1637 Logue, David ½ - ½ Laidlaw, Basil H 1660

7 1675 Bolln, Carsten ½ - ½ Brookens, Lewis 1639

8 1471 Curran, Andrew D 1 - 0 Breslin, Daniel 1544

5½ - 2½

GCL Division 1 League Table

								Boards
			Matches					Played			Defaults			Score
Pos	Team	Team Name	P	W	D	L	Pts	W	D	L	W	D	L	Boards	%
1	1	Bearsden A	8	8	0	0	16	40	16	8	0	0	0	48	75
2	10	Shettleston A	8	7	0	1	14	34	22	8	0	0	0	45	70
3	2	Cathcart A	8	6	0	2	12	22	18	22	2	0	0	33	52
4	6	Glasgow Polytechnic A	8	4	0	4	8	20	22	21	1	0	0	32	50
5	8	Inverclyde	8	3	0	5	6	22	16	26	0	0	0	30	47
6	7	Hamilton A	7	3	0	4	6	20	18	17	0	0	1	29	52
7	9	Phones A	8	2	1	5	5	15	19	28	0	0	2	24½	38
8	4	East Kilbride A	7	2	0	5	4	17	15	24	0	0	0	24½	44
9	5	Glasgow Montrose A	8	2	0	6	4	17	11	34	1	0	1	23½	37
10	3	Crowwood A	8	1	1	6	3	11	23	30	0	0	0	22½	35
			78	38	2	38	78	218	180	218	4	0	4	312