Inverclyde Central Chess Club travelled to face Cumbernauld
in the knowledge that defeat for either team would almost certainly mean
relegation from the First Division of the Glasgow Chess League. So far, Cumbernauld
had lost their first four games, and Inverclyde had fared little better, with
three defeats and a draw.
Although away from home, Inverclyde began the match as
slight favourites, their splayer having higher grades on more of the boards.
The match started very well for Inverclyde with Carsten Bolln scoring a quick
win after his opponent’s blunder allowed Carsten to play a simple trick to capture
his queen. Inverclyde’s David Logue faced the drawish Petroff Defence in the
second game to finish, and wasn’t able to make much progress; a draw was agreed
after thirty moves. Cumbernauld drew
level with a win over Stephen Doherty on board five. This was a good as it got
for Cumbernauld, however, as Inverclyde’s Gary McPheator won well on board four,
Stephen Hilton won comfortably on board three and Jim Montgomery won a complex
game on board two to give Inverclyde an unassailable lead. In the final two
games Kevin McDonald drew in a game that featured a highly unusual end game in
which he had four pawns versus his opponent’s bishop and pawn. In the final
game to finish Andrew Curran made good use of his minor pieces to secure the
last point, and a comfortable win for Inverclyde.
This result lifts Inverclyde out of the relegation zone for
the first time this season and gives them a realistic chance of avoiding
relegation. They next face Cathcart who are often title challengers, but whose
team so far this season has been less strong than usual. A win or a draw in
this game is achievable and would go a long way towards helping the club avoid
relegation.
Full Result
|
Bd
|
Grade
|
Cumbernauld A
|
(3)
|
vs
|
(8)
|
Inverclyde
|
Grade
|
Comments
|
|
1
|
2102
|
Robertson, Ian C
|
½
|
-
|
½
|
McDonald, Kevin
|
2117
|
Draw
|
|
2
|
1922
|
Marks, Ian A
|
0
|
-
|
1
|
Montgomery, Jim
|
2106
|
Away Win
|
|
3
|
1803
|
Kelly, J Steven
|
0
|
-
|
1
|
Hilton, Steve H
|
1722
|
Away Win
|
|
4
|
1835
|
Sneddon, Iain D
|
0
|
-
|
1
|
McPheator, Gary
|
1752
|
Away Win
|
|
5
|
1658
|
Stirrat, Ralph
|
1
|
-
|
0
|
Doherty, Stephen
|
1743
|
Home Win
|
|
6
|
1522
|
Bonella, David
|
0
|
-
|
1
|
Bolln, Carsten
|
1682
|
Away Win
|
|
7
|
1519
|
Thomson, George
|
½
|
-
|
½
|
Logue, David
|
1671
|
Draw
|
|
8
|
1494
|
Johnstone, David
|
0
|
-
|
1
|
Curran, Andrew D
|
1562
|
Away Win
|
|
|
2
|
-
|
6
|
|
||||
