Horsham 1 had a disappointing draw against Brighton 2 last Tuesday. My game proved crucial, as it was the last to finish with the score at 2.5-1.5 in our favour.
It started with Paul Selby (who was White) playing the Morra Gambit against me. Although I managed to establish a sound position with an extra pawn after 15 moves, I then played carelessly to allow him to build up a strong attack. It is not clear whether there was a good defence; certainly I failed to find it. However, by move 25 (with the time control at move 42) both players had started to run very short of time, and the outcome of the game became something of a lottery. First Paul managed to blunder his queen for a rook, although as he was already a piece for a few pawns up at the time, this was not a complete disaster. In the moves that followed, he offered a draw, but I refused. I was unaware of the precise match situation and didn’t have time to check, while my gut reaction was that I was doing well. After trading several weak moves, which saw the advantage swing back and forth, I managed to reach the time control with a second to spare, only to discover that I had allowed my opponent a mate in one!
The match therefore ended with the score at 2.5-2.5 and a draw.
I give the game below with some notes.