Horsham Club Championship 2015-16: Mansson – Warren

Posted on October 19, 2015 by James Mansson

I got off to a good start is this year’s Horsham Chess Club Championship, with a 26-move win against Nick Warren two weeks ago. We reached a sharp position after my 21st move, where Black was still doing fine, but my opponent slipped up and lost rapidly. Continue reading →

Posted in Club Championship, Games, Opening Analysis, Reports, The Gruenfeld Defence | 2 Comments

Horsham Club Championship 2014-15: Pavlovic – Mansson

Posted on May 29, 2015 by James Mansson

My latest game in the Horsham club championship was against Tim Pavlovic. I was very lucky to win after he blundered in a completely winning position, allowing me to turn the tables with a simple temporary queen sacrifice. Continue reading →

Posted in Club Championship, Games, Opening Analysis, Reports, The King's Gambit | Leave a comment

County Match (U180) 2014-15: Sussex – Warwickshire

Posted on May 29, 2015 by James Mansson

Sussex were up against Warwickshire in their ECF stage quarter-final match. The match was not a happy experience for the Sussex team. We had a long journey to the match venue near Birmingham. Because of some delays, I (along with John Cannon and Paul Taylor) arrived late at the match, thus starting behind on the clocks. We then discovered that the team was two players short, which did not help matters either. The overall result was a crushing defeat for Sussex by the score 11.5-4.5. Continue reading →

Posted in County Matches, Games, Opening Analysis, Reports, The Giuoco Piano | Leave a comment

Horsham Club Championship 2014-15: Kington – Mansson

Posted on May 28, 2015 by James Mansson

At the start of this month, I played my Horsham club championship game against Paul Kington. Paul has a reputation for being hard to beat, so I was pleased to score a victory against him, especially as I had the Black pieces. Continue reading →

Posted in Club Championship, Games, Opening Analysis, Reports, The Symmetrical English | Leave a comment

4NCL Division 3 2014-15: e2e4.org.uk 2 – Warwickshire Select 2

Posted on May 17, 2015 by James Mansson

Following our narrow defeat in the penultimate round, we were pessimistic about our chances of promotion. However, it was still possible if we won and the right combintation of results occurred in the other matches. We were up against Warwickshire Select 2 and I was paired against Nicholas Fallowfield, whom I had previous played in one of my very first correspondence chess games back in 1989! I was able to score a win in only 24 moves, which put us one up. Although there were a few tense moments in the other games, our players held firm for a draw in all of them, which gave us the necessary victory. It was then down to the other matches, which also went in our favour, so against the odds we had won promotion! Continue reading →

Posted in 4NCL, Games, Opening Analysis, Reports, The Chigorin Defence | Leave a comment

4NCL Division 3 2014-15: e2e4.org.uk 2 – North East England 1

Posted on May 12, 2015 by James Mansson

In round 10, I played on bottom board for the second team against North East England 1. The match was a tense affair. My game was a fairly uneventful draw. All the others saw the two players split the point eventually, except for Alan Byron’s game against Nick Tavoularis as Black. In this Alan was apparently holding firm for a long time. However, his position suddenly collapsed, not only losing the match but also appearing to end the second team’s chances of promotion.

Continue reading →

Posted in 4NCL, Games, Opening Analysis, Reports, The Ruy Lopez | Leave a comment

4NCL Division 3 2014-15: e2e4.org.uk 3 – Downend & Fishponds

Posted on May 9, 2015 by James Mansson

The final 4NCL weekend of this season started with both the second and third teams having a chance of promotion. I played for the third team on board one in round 9; we were paired against Downend & Fishponds. I faced David Buckley, a strong opponent, who surprised me in the opening with a variation I had not looked at before. I didn’t react in the best way, and soon ended up a pawn down. However, my opponent played inaccurately, allowing me to win my pawn back and hold the endgame. Unfortunately, this did not help the team, as we lost the match comfortably.

Continue reading →

Posted in 4NCL, Games, Opening Analysis, Reports, The Semi-Slav Defence | Leave a comment

4NCL Division 3 2014-15: e2e4.org.uk 3 – Manchester Manticores 2

Posted on April 6, 2015 by James Mansson

The third team following up its win in round 7 with another in round 8, this time by 4.5-1.5 against Manchester Manticores 2. I was able to contribute a win this time, as my opponent made some early strategic errors, which allowed me to build up a big attack on the kingside. Continue reading →

Posted in 4NCL, Games, Opening Analysis, Reports, The Nimzo-Indian Defence | Leave a comment

4NCL Division 3 2014-15: e2e4.org.uk 3 – Oxford 2

Posted on April 6, 2015 by James Mansson

The e2e4.org.uk third team was successful in both its matches on the last 4NCL weekend, leaving it well placed to push for promotion. In round 7, they were up against Oxford 2 and scored a comfortable 4-2 victory. Continue reading →

Posted in 4NCL, Games, Opening Analysis, Reports, The Sicilian Defence | Leave a comment

County Match (U180) 2014-15: Sussex – Surrey

Posted on April 4, 2015 by James Mansson

Three weeks ago I played in the Sussex U-180 team’s match against Surrey. We managed to score a fine 9.5-6.5 win and on a personal note I was pleased to record a win against Daniel Rosen, although I have to admit there was a degree of good fortune in this! Continue reading →

Posted in County Matches, Games, Opening Analysis, Reports, The Dutch Defence | Leave a comment