This match was played at Corbridge on Thursday March 16th, with the following line-up:
- Derek Harris (u) v Noel Boustred (134)
- Alex Ashworth (131) v Tony Neville (92)
- Derek Blair (119) v Dave Turner (107)
- Steve Larkin (120) v Brian Ord (88)
- Bruce Reed (107) v Default
On the face of it, this looked likely to be a comfortable win for the Reivers, the more so when Gosforth’s boards 2 and 3 only arrived after their clocks had been ticking for some twenty minutes (Gosforth had already defaulted on board 5 before the match). But in chess, as we all know, nothing is certain and, sure enough, Derek B and Alex both lost their games in quick succession: I saw nothing of their games and so cannot comment. 1-2
The two remaining games were much longer affairs. Steve’s game involved fierce kingside attacks by both sides, but though Brian fired the first shot, Steve’s response ensured that both queens came off, thereby neutralising Brian’s attack, while also winning rook for pawn. Brian fought a long rearguard action but, once a forced swap of rooks occurred, the writing was on the wall. 2-2
Derek Harris made a welcome return to the club and, though a pawn down in the endgame, managed to hold the drawn position – no mean feat in his first over-the-board game for many months. 2.5-2.5
And so the Reivers completed their season undefeated, with 7 wins and 2 draws from 9 matches, leaving clear water between them and the second-placed side in the division. Congratulations to all involved – a splendid team effort!
