Position | Teams | Pl | W | D | L | Match Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Lincolnshire | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
2 | Nottinghamshire | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
3 | Warwickshire | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
4 | Staffordshire | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
5 | Worcestershire | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
Date | Match | Result |
---|---|---|
4 Oct | Worcestershire v Lincolnshire | 6-6 |
8 Nov | Nottinghamshire v Lincolnshire | 9½-2½ |
6 Dec | Lincolnshire v Staffordshire | 7½-4½ |
24 Jan | Lincolnshire v Warwickshire | 6½-5½ |
Date | Match | Result |
---|---|---|
16 May | Lincolnshire v Kent | 5½-6½ |
Worcestershire v Lincolnshire
Report from John Grasham
Lincolnshire went into their first match of the season in confident mood having beaten today’s opponents by an 11-1 scoreline in their last match however we knew Worcestershire weren’t going to be as charitable this time around. We went 1-0 down after youngest team member Arya Parnian lost to a skewer of his king and rook in an endgame that should have been drawn. Wins followed for Peter Damms who forked a rook and queen with his knight, Behzad Parnian who capitalised on an unguarded pawn and Will Taylor when his opponent inexplicably tried to promote a pawn on the sixth rank. Dan Southern won after his opponent missed a mating attack against her when a piece up but the score was levelled after defeats to Charles Ayton who tried an ill advised sacrifice, Geoff Roe who defended valiantly to no avail and Mark Newstead who got into such a bad position his opponent asked him to resign! Philip Gutcher proved a rook could be better than two bishops and Gary Scott put us on the brink of victory when his astuteness in sacrificing his extra pawn to engineer a king and three pawns each endgame left him in a won position. However the victory was not to come. Both Paul Fischer and William Orr fought on in time difficulty in tight endgames but neither could secure a draw. This left the honours even and after two matches unbeaten Lincolnshire head to Nottinghamshire on the 8th November for their second match of the season.
Worcestershire (Home team) | Lincolnshire (Away team) | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Board | Colour | Name | Club | Grade | Score | Name | Club | Grade |
1 | W | David Smith | Redditch | 119 | 1-0 | William Orr | Horncastle | 117 |
2 | B | Maureen Clark | Halesowen | 118 | 1-0 | Paul Fischer | Lincoln | 117 |
3 | W | Richard Collett | Greenlands | 117 | 1-0 | Charles Ayton | Louth | 109 |
4 | B | Giles Stanton | Redditch | 107 | 0-1 | Gary Scott | Horncastle | 109 |
5 | W | Kevin Day | Redditch | 106 | 0-1 | Behzad Parnian | Grimsby | 108 |
6 | B | Michele Clack | Redditch | 105 | 0-1 | Philip Gutcher | Grimsby | 104 |
7 | W | Paul Thomas | Kidderminster | 104 | 1-0 | Geoff Roe | Lincoln | 95 |
8 | B | Terry Radford | Droitwich | 99 | 1-0 | Dr Mark Newstead | Horncastle | 86 |
9 | W | Terry Pountney | Kidderminster | 96 | 1-0 | Arya Parnian | Grimsby | 83 |
10 | B | Tony Taylor | Halesowen | 91 | 0-1 | Will Taylor | Kings School Grantham | 81 |
11 | W | Frank Cassidy | Greenlands | 63 | 0-1 | Peter Damms | Louth | 67 |
12 | B | Joyce Evans | Halesowen | 62 | 0-1 | Dan Southern | Kings School Grantham | 57 |
6-6 |
Nottinghamshire v Lincolnshire
Report from John Grasham
I knew Lincolnshire would be up against it in their second match when I saw the Nottinghamshire teamsheet and they had 11 players graded over 100 and so it proved. We got off to a bad start when Cameron Marnoch lost after picking up the wrong piece. Defeats followed for Chris Cumbers, Will Taylor and Dan Southern and even though David Scott fought on when two pieces down he succumbed as well. Phil Gutcher lost despite being the exchange up and when Frank Robinson lost a double edged endgame when a pawn up we were 7-0 down with match already gone. Charles Ayton restored some pride after winning from two pawns down after his opponent unexpectedly gave his rook away. Then defeats followed for Mark Newstead who was crushed in the middlegame and Paul Fischer who couldn’t stop his opponent’s pawns in the endgame. Gary Scott’s extra knight proved decisive in the endgame to give us our second win and William Orr was able to grind out a draw against his highly rated young opponent. We will be hoping to cut out these unforced errors in our next match against Staffordshire on 6th December.
Nottinghamshire (Home team) | Lincolnshire (Away team) | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Board | Colour | Name | Club | Grade | Score | Name | Club | Grade |
1 | W | Hambel Willow | West Nottingham | 118 | ½-½ | William Orr | Horncastle | 117 |
2 | B | Rob Ensor | Gambit | 117 | 1-0 | Paul Fischer | Lincoln | 117 |
3 | W | Dave Dunne | West Nottingham | 117 | 1-0 | Chris Cumbers | Grantham | 112 |
4 | B | Mike Swanwick | Nomads | 114 | 0-1 | Gary Scott | Horncastle | 109 |
5 | W | Chris Fraser | West Bridgford | 113 | 0-1 | Charles Ayton | Louth | 109 |
6 | B | Lukasz Kacprzak | Nottingham Central | 112 | 1-0 | Philip Gutcher | Grimsby | 105 |
7 | W | Graham Garside | West Nottingham | 113 | 1-0 | Frank Robinson | Spalding | 105 |
8 | B | Michael Tellier | Nottingham University | 108 | 1-0 | David Scott | Horncastle | 99 |
9 | W | Len Morrell | Radcliffe & Bingham | 107 | 1-0 | Dr Mark Newstead | Horncastle | 86 |
10 | B | Margaret Gretton | Gambit | 104 | 1-0 | Will Taylor | Kings School Grantham | 81 |
11 | W | Steve Luland | Nottingham University | 103 | 1-0 | Cameron Marnoch | Louth | 75 |
12 | B | Rohan Tandon | Nottinghamshire Juniors | 75 | 1-0 | Dan Southern | Kings School Grantham | 57 |
9½-2½ |
Lincolnshire v Staffordshire
Report from John Grasham
Lincolnshire went into their crucial match with Staffordshire already 2-0 up after their opponents could only raise 10 players. Phil Gutcher agreed an early draw and Andrew Watson won after his opponent decided to swap off queens at the wrong time to put us further ahead. Geoff Roe lost after deciding to save his rook rather than his bishop in a swap off and was then overrun. Chris Cumbers and Paul Fischer then agreed draws to put us closer to the target. Will Taylor played an interesting line leaving his queen open to attack from a bishop but his opponent decided against taking and Will won a rook. He was then able to win comfortably. William Orr then lost after failing to spot a mate in one. Behzad Parnian was then able to win the match for Lincolnshire by slowly picking off four of his opponents pawns and waiting for his opponent to run out of time. Peter Damms put us further clear after his opponent couldn’t stop his passed central pawn. Steve Cade was the last to finish but he couldn’t salvage anything after losing a piece. After a comfortable win Lincolnshire will be in a confident mood going into their last game against Warwickshire next month where a win will see us qualify for the knockout stages.
Lincolnshire (Home team) | Staffordshire (Away team) | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Board | Colour | Name | Club | Grade | Score | Name | Club | Grade |
1 | W | Stephen Cade | Louth | 118 | 0-1 | Mike Jarocki | Brewood | 118 |
2 | B | William Orr | Horncastle | 117 | 0-1 | David Johnson | Kidsgrove | 115 |
3 | W | Paul Fischer | Lincoln | 117 | ½-½ | Peter Windows | Stafford | 115 |
4 | B | Chris Cumbers | Grantham | 112 | ½-½ | Sandra Blackburn | Holmes Chapel | 114 |
5 | W | Behzad Parnian | Grimsby | 108 | 1-0 | Danny Torbica | Lichfield | 112 |
6 | B | Philip Gutcher | Grimsby | 104 | ½-½ | Peter Evans | Stafford | 109 |
7 | W | Andrew Watson | Louth | 99 | 1-0 | Arthur Hall | Staffordshire | 104 |
8 | B | Geoff Roe | Lincoln | 95 | 0-1 | Simon Jones | Bushbury | 104 |
9 | W | Peter Damms | Louth | 67 | 1-0 | David Buckley | Bushbury | 91 |
10 | B | Will Taylor | Kings School Grantham | 81 | 1-0 | Stuart Green | Stafford | 74 |
11 | W | Arya Parnian | Grimsby | 83 | 1-0 | Default | ||
12 | B | Haydn Godfrey | Kings School Grantham | 74 | 1-0 | Default | ||
7½-4½ |
Lincolnshire v Warwickshire
Report from John Grasham
Lincolnshire went into their final match against a strong Warwickshire side knowing that a win would take them through to the national stages for the first time. Things got off to a good start when 10 year old Arya Parnian won against Warwickshire’s former captain. A quick draw followed for Paul Fischer and then a win for Arya’s father Behzad who had the advantage of three minor pieces to two in the endgame extended our lead. Dan Southern then won from a position that looked lost when he was able to promote a pawn with check but Mark Newstead lost after his opponent trapped his queen in the centre of the board. Gary Scott resigned when several pawns down and Peter Damms lost when zugzwanged in the endgame but Andrew Watson got us closer to our target when his opponent moved a rook to leave a mate in one. At this point we needed two more wins and with Will Taylor having a won game with an extra queen we needed something on another board but we were behind in all the remaining games. However we took the win when Chris Cumbers informed his opponent that he had run out of time. Late losses for Phil Gutcher who misjudged a rook move which led to a back rank mate and William Orr who ran out of time could not put a damper on an excellent performance for Lincolnshire this season. We will return to action in the national quarter final on 17th May.
Lincolnshire (Home team) | Warwickshire (Away team) | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Board | Colour | Name | Club | Grade | Score | Name | Club | Grade |
1 | B | William Orr | Horncastle | 117 | 0-1 | James Madden | Leamington | 119 |
2 | W | Paul Fischer | Lincoln | 117 | ½-½ | John Pakenham | Warley Quinborne | 119 |
3 | B | Chris Cumbers | Grantham | 112 | 1-0 | Kim Gilbert | Shirley | 112 |
4 | W | Gary Scott | Horncastle | 109 | 0-1 | John Green | Solihull | 113 |
5 | B | Behzad Parnian | Grimsby | 108 | 1-0 | Dennis Horsley | Solihull | 110 |
6 | W | Philip Gutcher | Grimsby | 104 | 0-1 | Peter Stiff | Stratford | 106 |
7 | B | Peter Damms | Louth | 101 | 0-1 | Penny Wood | Solihull | 108 |
8 | W | Andrew Watson | Louth | 99 | 1-0 | Simon Weaver | Coventry Chess | 103 |
9 | B | Dr Mark Newstead | Horncastle | 86 | 0-1 | Bernard Visgandis | Nuneaton | 101 |
10 | W | Will Taylor | Kings School Grantham | 81 | 1-0 | Mark Armitage | Leamington | 100 |
11 | B | Arya Parnian | Grimsby | 83 | 1-0 | Pauline Woodward | Warley Quinborne | 86 |
12 | W | Dan Southern | Kings School Grantham | 57 | 1-0 | Harvey Watkins | Warley Quinborne | 86 |
6½-5½ |
ECF Quarter Final Lincolnshire v Kent
Report from John Grasham
I knew we would be up against it in our quarter final against Kent and despite pulling out all the stops to get the strongest team that had ever played for Lincolnshire out, we were still outgraded by an average of 10 points on every board. Things were looking bleak after we quickly found ourselves 3-0 down. Will Taylor left his queen en prise after 12 moves, Behzad Parnian played the wrong move order to leave himself the exchange plus a rook down and Chris Cumbers overlooked a mating threat. William Orr got us on the scoresheet with his first win of the season after forcing a bishop plus pawns endgame when his opponent had a bad bishop. It looked as if Kent’s matchplay tactics were working after the next four matches were all drawn. Kishore Murugesh played a very steady game on his debut for the county, Arya Parnian couldn’t force one of his pawns home in a knight and two pawns versus rook endgame, Peter Damms couldn’t convert a pawn advantage and Paul Fischer drew also. This left four matches remaining and as we were ahead in three at the time this match was going to the wire. Frank Birkbeck’s passed pawn in the centre was too strong and he queened it to give him the win and promising positions for Phil Gutcher and Mark Newstead who had turned his game around after being a piece down meant that the match was going to be decided on board 6 with Charles Ayton. Charles, despite being two pawns up was not able to hold on in the endgame and his position was slowly eroded until he had to accept defeat. A win for Mark and a draw for Phil was academic at the end but the team acquitted themselves remarkably and we were commended on our efforts by the Kent captain afterwards.
I would again like to thank everyone who played for the team this year, especially those who provided transport.
Lincolnshire (Home team) | Kent (Away team) | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Board | Colour | Name | Club | Grade | Score | Name | Club | Grade |
1 | Behzad Parnian | Grimsby | 120 | 0-1 | Mikey Watson | Kent Junior Congressese | 127 | |
2 | William Orr | Horncastle | 114 | 1-0 | Peter Belka | Gravesend | 115 | |
3 | Chris Cumbers | Grantham | 113 | 0-1 | Stephen Bond | Tunbridge Wells | 117 | |
4 | Kishore Murugesh | Lincolnshire Juniors | 112 | ½-½ | Peter Blundell | Swale | 118 | |
5 | Francis Birkbeck | Louth | 112 | 1-0 | John Fowers | Gravesend | 118 | |
6 | Charles Ayton | Louth | 110 | 0-1 | Andrew Gillard | Swale | 110 | |
7 | Arya Parnian | Grimsby | 104 | ½-½ | Phil Wheeler | Pretts Wood & Orpington | 125 | |
8 | Paul Fischer | Lincoln | 104 | ½-½ | Eric Hazell | Kent CCA | 115 | |
9 | Philip Gutcher | Grimsby | 103 | ½-½ | Lee Brockwell | Kent CCA | 117 | |
10 | Peter Damms | Louth | 97 | ½-½ | James Robertson | Tunbridge Wells | 112 | |
11 | Dr Mark Newstead | Horncastle | 91 | 1-0 | Joe Neanor | Pretts Wood & Orpington | 105 | |
12 | Will Taylor | Kings School Grantham | 90 | 0-1 | Neil Lang | Kent CCA | 111 | |
5½-6½ |