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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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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.

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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.

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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 →

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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 →

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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 →

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County Match (Open) 2014-15: Sussex – Kent

Posted on March 15, 2015 by James Mansson

Prior to this season, I had not played Jerry Anstead for many years. Now, in the space of a few months, I have played him twice, both in county matches! Our most recent encounter was in the county match between Sussex and Kent on the 7th March, which unfortunately was lost by Sussex. However, I did have the consolation of winning an interesting game against Mr Anstead. Continue reading →

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

Posted on February 22, 2015 by James Mansson

Last Saturday, the Sussex U-180 team took on Middlesex up in London. Unfortunately, the team captain had great difficulty finding players, and the team ended up having to default 5 boards. Despite this, a spirited performance saw them restrict the losing margin to 6.5-9.5. Continue reading →

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