Mid-Sussex League Division 1 2012-13: Horsham 1 – Eastbourne 1

Posted on February 20, 2013 by James Mansson

Horsham 1 achieved a narrow 3-2 victory over Eastbourne 1 in their match last night. Gavin Lock, Dix Roberts and Paul Taylor all won, but Phil Stimpson lost a safe-looking endgame, while I managed to blunder my queen against Oliver Froom. Continue reading →

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County Match (Open) 2012-13: Sussex – Kent

Posted on February 18, 2013 by James Mansson

Last Saturday saw Sussex matched against Kent in the County Open competition. Despite being outgraded by 11 points per board, Sussex put up a good fight. They took an early lead by racking up a series of wins on the lower boards, but were gradually pegged back as Kent’s superior firepower on the higher boards started to tell. The final result of the match is still undecided, as the top board game finished in controversial circumstances. The score was 7.5-7.5 on boards 2 to 16. In the board one game, in a position where his opponent Neil McDonald has just been left with Rook and Knight against his Rook, Feliks Kwiatkowski immediately claimed a draw with 6 seconds left on his clock. The consensus even among Sussex players seemed to be that his claim was unlikely to be upheld, but we will have to wait for the official decision. Continue reading →

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Mid-Sussex League Division 1 2012-13: Horsham 1 – Hastings 1

Posted on February 13, 2013 by James Mansson

Horsham 1 have secured a win in their match against Hastings 1, which was played yesterday. With one game outstanding, the score is 2.5-1.5 in Horsham’s favour, and the undecided encounter is at least a draw for Horsham. Continue reading →

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Horsham Club Championship 2012-13: Higgs – Mansson

Posted on February 6, 2013 by James Mansson

My Rook game on Tuesday against Anthony Higgs sparked into life after a dull opening led into an equally dull endgame. A risky move by me, followed by a dubious one a few moves later, gave him the chance to land a strong tactical blow. However, he rejected the chance to win two pieces for a rook, and the game then soon fizzled out into a draw. Continue reading →

Posted in Club Championship, Games, Miscellaneous Queen's Pawn, Opening Analysis, Reports | 1 Comment

Horsham Club Knockout 2012-13: Mansson – Denning

Posted on January 30, 2013 by James Mansson

I won my semi-final match in the Knockout Plate against Julie Denning last night. Julie’s choice of defensive formation against the Sämisch was not the best; having chosen the quite reasonable 6…Nbd7, she should have followed up with 7…c5, which was John Nunn’s choice in his famous win against Alexander Beliavsky at Wijk aan Zee 1985. Continue reading →

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Mid-Sussex League Division 1 2012-13: Horsham 1 – Hastings 2

Posted on January 24, 2013 by James Mansson

It looks like we will win our match from last night against Hatsings 2 (see the report here). My game against Alfredo Luaces was the first to finish, as I won in only 20 moves as Black. My opponent was unsettled by a bad day at work, and by his own admission did not play well. Although after the game he was pessimistic about his chances out of the opening, he was in fact only definitely losing after 19 Rh1, although his position had been uncomfortable since I played 13…e5. Continue reading →

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Horsham Club Championship 2012-13: Marshall – Mansson

Posted on January 23, 2013 by James Mansson

Last night I played my Rook game against John Marshall. In a typical Najdorf position, John ran out of ways to improve his position, while I was able to build up mine. After swinging my queen across to the kingside, I managed to break through using my pawns. However, I did make a significant error when breaking through, which fortunately John did not spot, otherwise it looks like he would have reached a balanced endgame. Continue reading →

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McArthur Cup 2012-13: Horsham – Brighton

Posted on January 16, 2013 by James Mansson

As documented on the Horsham Chess Club website here, Horsham’s attempt to progress in the McArthur Cup once again failed at the first hurdle, as we once again lost to Brighton. Continue reading →

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4NCL Division 1 2012-13: e2e4.org.uk 1 – Cheddleton 1

Posted on January 15, 2013 by James Mansson

The match on Sunday saw e2e4.org.uk 1 paired against Cheddleton 1. We were outgraded on every board, in most cases by a clear margin, so it was no surprise that we went down 6.5-1.5. Alexey Slavin and Peter Sowray managed draws against Jonathan Hawkins and Keith Arkell respectively. In my game, I secured a draw with White against Robert Bellin. The game was not hugely eventful. I obtained a slight advantage, but could not find a way to improve my position, and so took the safe route of a repetition. Continue reading →

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4NCL Division 1 2012-13: e2e4.org.uk 1 – Sambuca Sharks

Posted on January 14, 2013 by James Mansson

Last weekend saw rounds 3 and 4 of the 4NCL season played at Staverton Park (Division 1 and 2) and Daventry Court Hotel (Division 3 South). I was moved up to the first team for this weekend and played on board 7 both days. Continue reading →

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