| Position | Teams | Pl | W | D | L | Match Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nottinghamshire | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 2 | Warwickshire | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| 3 | Lincolnshire | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 4 | Staffordshire | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
| 5 | Worcestershire | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Date | Match | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 7 Nov | Lincolnshire v Nottinghamshire | 5-7 |
| 5 Dec | Lincolnshire v Worcestershire | 9-3 |
| 6 Feb | Staffordshire v Lincolnshire | 6-6 |
| 5 Mar | Warwickshire v Lincolnshire | 6½-5½ |
| Date | Match | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 23 Apr | Kent v Lincolnshire | 4-7 |
| 21 May | Norfolk v Lincolnshire | 7½-4½ |
Lincolnshire v Nottinghamshire
Report from William Orr
Lincolnshire's U120 team played Nottinghamshire at the Lindum Group headquarters in North Hykeham, with both sides fielding some good junior players. Lincolnshire got off to a good start as three early wins came rapidly in succession. Arya Parnian won a piece early on in his game and went on to win. Kishore Murugesh’s opponent resigned shortly after, and when Paul Fischer won in a difficult major piece endgame things seemed to be going well for us. Andy Giles agreed a draw but defeats for Mark Newstead and David Scott showed that Nottinghamshire might claw their way back. Frank Robinson added another win, but Chris Cumbers was gradually outplayed by his young opponent, and Mike Dew agreed a draw in a closed pawn endgame. This left the score at 5-4 in Lincolnshire's favour with three boards still to finish, an hour of play remaining and promising positions for our players on two of those boards. Then Phil Gutcher’s opponent initiated a strong attack he was unable to find a defence. Graeme Rae lost his advantage when his opponent counterattacked and he was forced into a losing endgame. When Andy Pollock eventually lost on time, Nottinghamshire had turned the match around to win by 7-5.
| Lincolnshire (Home team) | Nottinghamshire (Away team) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Board | Colour | Name | Club | Grade | Score | Name | Club | Grade |
| 1 | B | Mike Dew | Barton | 119 | ½-½ | Abhishek Thakar | West Nottingham | 116 |
| 2 | W | David Scott | Lincolnshire Juniors | 118 | 0-1 | Nigel Wright | Ashfield | 112 |
| 3 | B | Kishore Murugesh | Lincolnshire Juniors | 118 | 1-0 | Lukasc Kacprzak | Nottingham Central | 110 |
| 4 | W | Andy Pollock | Grimsby | E115 | 0-1 | Andy Flint | Ashfield | 107 |
| 5 | B | Andy Giles | Barton | 114 | ½-½ | Ben Gilpin | West Bridgford | 107 |
| 6 | W | Arya Parnian | Grimsby | 113 | 1-0 | Bob Garnett | West Bridgford | E105 |
| 7 | B | Chris Cumbers | Grantham | 111 | 0-1 | Armaan Gogia | West Nottingham | 104 |
| 8 | W | Graeme Rae | Horncastle | E110 | 0-1 | Allan Brown | West Bridgford | 104 |
| 9 | B | Frank Robinson | Spalding | 108 | 1-0 | Alberto Rodgriguez | Nomads | 100 |
| 10 | W | Paul Fischer | Lincoln | 105 | 1-0 | Marten Kats | Derby | 96 |
| 11 | B | Dr Mark Newstead | Horncastle | 97 | 0-1 | Bob Abrahart | West Bridgford | 96 |
| 12 | W | Philip Gutcher | Grimsby | 92 | 0-1 | Charlotte Attwood | Radcliffe and Bingham | 91 |
| 5-7 | ||||||||
Lincolnshire v Worcestershire
Report from William Orr
We got off to an early start against Worcestershire when their captain informed me on the evening before the match that they were a player short and would have to default one board. Then on the morning of the match higher powers intervened and requested that Arya Parnian play for the minor team, leaving me to fill the seat on board 8. My opponent and I eventually agreed a draw and I missed most of what had happened up until that point, but by then the match was already Lincolnshire’s. Paul Fischer had also agreed a draw, and Andrew Watson had lost, but the rest of the team had made steady progress. Phil Gutcher had delivered a quick tactical win, Chris Cumbers had a winning material advantage, and Will Taylor had promoted a pawn to secure his point. Graeme Rae and Peter Damms had also won: I didn’t get a chance to see their games, but the top three boards were still playing and I was able to watch them more closely. Andy Pollock had traded his queen for three minor pieces and a good position but agreed a draw as he was short on time, while Francis Birkbeck and Kishore Murugesh were both shepherding passed pawns forward. Francis’ opponent eventually resigned, but Kishore could not find a way to move his rook off the promotion square and eventually accepted a draw, leaving Lincolnshire with a comfortable 9-3 match score.
| Lincolnshire (Home team) | Worcestershire (Away team) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Board | Colour | Name | Club | Grade | Score | Name | Club | Grade |
| 1 | B | Kishore Murugesh | Lincolnshire Juniors | 118 | ½-½ | Giles Stanton | Redditch | 113 |
| 2 | W | Andy Pollock | Grimsby | E115 | ½-½ | Kevin Day | Redditch | 113 |
| 3 | B | Francis Birkbeck | Louth | 112 | 1-0 | Richard Collett | Greenlands | 107 |
| 4 | W | Chris Cumbers | Grantham | 111 | 1-0 | Terry Radford | Droitwich | 105 |
| 5 | B | Graeme Rae | Horncastle | E110 | 1-0 | Maureen Clark | Halesowen | 103 |
| 6 | W | Paul Fischer | Lincoln | 105 | ½-½ | Paul Thomas | Kidderminster | 100 |
| 7 | B | Frank Robinson | Spalding | 108 | 1-0 | Default | ||
| 8 | W | William Orr | Horncastle | 105 | ½-½ | Michele Clack | Redditch | 95 |
| 9 | B | Peter Damms | Louth | 98 | 1-0 | Terry Pountney | Kidderminster | 94 |
| 10 | W | Andrew Watson | Horncastle | 96 | 0-1 | David Cleak | Droitwich | 90 |
| 11 | B | Will Taylor | Kings School Grantham | 93 | 1-0 | Joyce Evans | Halesowen | 62 |
| 12 | W | Phil Gutcher | Grimsby | 92 | 1-0 | Frank Cassidy | Greenlands | 55 |
| 9-3 | ||||||||
Staffordshire v Lincolnshire
Report from William Orr
The U120 side travelled to the neutral venue of Thurmaston, anticipating a tough encounter with a strong Staffordshire team. We suffered an early defeat on one board, and by the time the match passed the half-way mark we still trailed by a single point, though wins for Chris Cumbers and Will Taylor, and draws for Mark Newstead and Phil Gutcher kept us in contention. Fortunately we were in a strong position on three of the remaining boards, and Andy Pollock, David Scott and Graeme Rae duly delivered to turn the score around leaving us a single point ahead with one game still to finish. On board 10 Andrew Watson seemed to be gaining an edge in a minor piece endgame, when his opponent played two illegal moves in succession. Thinking that it would be best if the game continued I tried to indicate to Andrew that I would like speak to him, upon which his opponent claimed that my action handed Staffordshire the game. The match therefore ended with a discussion of the legalities rather than on the board. In the end I decided that a sporting draw was better than a disputed win and agreed to concede the point, the match ending in an unfortunate and unsatisfactory 6-6 draw. I have to say that although he was extremely disappointed at the outcome, Andrew accepted it with good grace and behaved entirely correctly throughout the game and the subsequent discussion. All errors were entirely mine, my apologies to everyone and particularly Andrew.
| Staffordshire (Home team) | Lincolnshire (Away team) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Board | Colour | Name | Club | Grade | Score | Name | Club | Grade |
| 1 | B | Barry Smith | Mercia | 117 | 0-1 | Andy Pollock | Grimsby | E115 |
| 2 | W | David Johnson | Kidsgrove | 115 | 0-1 | David Scott | Lincolnshire Juniors | 118 |
| 3 | B | John Day | Newcastle-under-Lyme | 114 | 1-0 | Paul Fischer | Lincoln | 105 |
| 4 | W | Michael Page | Rugeley | 117 | 0-1 | Graeme Rae | Horncastle | E110 |
| 5 | B | Nicholas Wright | Newcastle-under-Lyme | 112 | 0-1 | Chris Cumbers | Grantham | 111 |
| 6 | W | Peter Shaw | Newcastle-under-Lyme | 115 | 1-0 | Peter Damms | Louth | 98 |
| 7 | B | Peter Evans | Stafford | 107 | 0-1 | Will Taylor | Kings School Grantham | 93 |
| 8 | W | Chris Cox | Mercia | 117 | ½-½ | Mark Newstead | Horncastle | 97 |
| 9 | B | Simon Jones | Bushbury | 103 | 1-0 | Wilf Watson | Horncastle | 99 |
| 10 | W | Danny Torbica | Lichfield | 96 | 1-0 | Andrew Watson | Louth | 96 |
| 11 | B | Arthur Hall | Lichfield | 96 | ½-½ | Phil Gutcher | Grimsby | 92 |
| 12 | W | Kevan Ward | Mercia | 97 | 1-0 | Cameron Marnoch | Louth | 91 |
| 6-6 | ||||||||
Warwickshire v Lincolnshire
Report from William Orr
The U120 side lined up against Warwickshire with both teams aware that the outcome would decide second and third places in the table. My own game was barely out of the opening when I noticed Cameron Marnoch watching, having already won his. After that I concentrated on my board, until I eventually accepted my opponent’s draw offer and set about sizing up the match. Andy Pollock and Chris Cumbers had also agreed draws, but Paul Fischer and Gary Scott had lost and the match had swung towards Warwickshire. Graeme Rae and Peter Damms were next to finish, both winning their games and the match swung back to Lincolnshire with four games still in progress. David Scott was behind on material and eventually had to resign and Andrew Watson failed to meet the time control. So Warwickshire were ahead once again. However Phil Gutcher had reached an advantage in the endgame with queen and pawns against rook, knight and pawns, and gradually converted it to a win that levelled the match score. Everything now rested with Mark Newstead who was a pawn down in a knight endgame. Mark couldn’t prevent his opponent promoting, and although he played on while the chance of a stalemate remained, the game could not be saved. Warwickshire therefore finished the match 6½ – 5½ winners, securing second place in the table. Lincolnshire finished the season in third place, and will next play in the preliminary round of the ECF inter-counties competition.
| Warwickshire (Home team) | Lincolnshire (Away team) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Board | Colour | Name | Club | Grade | Score | Name | Club | Grade |
| 1 | B | Adrian Hussain | Warley Quinborne | 126 | ½-½ | Andy Pollock | Grimsby | 143 |
| 2 | W | Joshua Altamura | Leamington | 119 | 1-0 | David Scott | Lincolnshire Juniors | 123 |
| 3 | B | Richard Evans | Olton | 119 | 1-0 | Paul Fischer | Lincoln | 116 |
| 4 | W | Dennis Horsley | Solihull | 118 | 0-1 | Graeme Rae | Horncastle | 115 |
| 5 | B | Rayyan Farooq | Solihull | 115 | ½-½ | Chris Cumbers | Grantham | 113 |
| 6 | W | Paul Kelly | Olton | 115 | 0-1 | Peter Damms | Louth | 112 |
| 7 | B | Karol Grzywaczewski | Olton | 111 | ½-½ | William Orr | Horncastle | 108 |
| 8 | W | John Llewelyn | Olton | 111 | 1-0 | Gary Scott | Horncastle | 107 |
| 9 | B | Rob Mantel | Leamington | 108 | 1-0 | Mark Newstead | Horncastle | 99 |
| 10 | W | Paul Davies | Stratford | 108 | 1-0 | Andrew Watson | Horncastle | 94 |
| 11 | B | Peter Stiff | Stratford | 96 | 0-1 | Phil Gutcher | Grimsby | 92 |
| 12 | W | Tom Evans | Olton | 89 | 0-1 | Cameron Marnoch | Louth | 86 |
| 6½-5½ | ||||||||
Kent v Lincolnshire
Report from William Orr
The U120 side took on Kent in Whittlesford, where the Cambridgeshire U160 side were also playing an ECF match and had generously shared their venue with us. The match got underway without opponents for myself or Frank Robinson, giving us an immediate two point advantage and an opportunity for me to watch the match unfold. Things looked even better when Paul Fischer, playing the black side of the Falkbeer counter-gambit, won a rook in the first few moves. I mentally chalked up another point and settled down to await our inevitable victory, only to see the match slip out of our grasp. James Smith was our first player to finish, losing material and resigning. Then Arya Parnian lost queen for rook and eventually resigned, followed by Chris Pegg who had a losing endgame. Paul Fischer duly delivered his point to level the match score, but most of the remaining games were too close to call. Phil Gutcher was next to lose, but Peter Damms won to keep us in contention. Chris Cumbers seemed to have a good position, but failed to exploit it and eventually lost in a queen and pawns endgame. Peter Metcalfe played steadily and won his endgame, but David Scott was under pressure at the time control and had missed his opponent’s knight fork. That left Kent one point ahead, with only board 10 still playing, where Mark Newstead had won the exchange, his opponent resigning when Mark’s pair of rooks broke open his position. With the scores level at six points each we calculated the board counts, which clearly gave Kent the edge and a quarter-final place.
As it turned out, the drama wasn’t over. After we submitted the results the tournament controller pointed out that Kent had fielded an ineligible player, who did not have a current grade and who had not been given clearance to play. This incurred a penalty which awarded the match to Lincolnshire. Kent immediately appealed against this decision and we had to wait another week before the ECF appeal committee rejected their arguments and confirmed Lincolnshire as quarter-finalists.
| Kent (Home team) | Lincolnshire (Away team) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Board | Colour | Name | Club | Grade | Score | Name | Club | Grade |
| 1 | B | Tyrone Jefferies | Swale | 122 | 1-0 | Arya Parnian | Grimsby | 126 |
| 2 | W | Stephen Bond | Tunbridge Wells | 119 | 1-0 | David Scott | Lincolnshire Juniors | 123 |
| 3 | B | Andrew Gillard | Swale | 109 | 1-0 | James Smith | Spalding | 121 |
| 4 | W | Joe Neanor | Petts Wood and Orpington | 101 | 0-1 | Paul Fischer | Lincoln | 116 |
| 5 | B | Oleg Lyakh | Kent Junior Congresses | 106 | 1-0 | Chris Cumbers | Grantham | 113 |
| 6 | W | Michael Woolley | Lewisham | 93 | 0-1 | Peter Damms | Louth | 112 |
| 7 | B | Default | 0-1 | William Orr | Horncastle | 108 | ||
| 8 | W | Default | 0-1 | Frank Robinson | Spalding | 105 | ||
| 9 | B | Paul Loasby | Gravesend | 91 | 1-0 | Chris Pegg | Louth | 100 |
| 10 | W | David Glenister | Eynsford | 83 | 0-1 | Mark Newstead | Horncastle | 99 |
| 11 | B | Peter Dirmauskas | Maidstone | 94 | 1-0 | Phil Gutcher | Grimsby | 92 |
| 12 | W | Isaac Oluwole | Medway | 84 | 0-1 | Peter Metcalfe | Lincoln | 82E |
| 6-6 | ||||||||
| After penalties and adjustments | 4-7 | |||||||
Norfolk v Lincolnshire
Report from William Orr
The Ouse Amateur Sailing Club in King’s Lynn was the venue for Lincolnshire’s quarter-final match against Norfolk, though before we could play we had to negotiate the local parking congestion. Fortunately the Norfolk captain delayed the start of the match until all our players arrived, and with everyone present I was able to watch from the sidelines once again. Although we played with a slightly longer time control in this match, decisions soon started to roll in. Paul Fischer, James Smith and Arya Parnian agreed early draws but Phil Gutcher was defending against a pair of passed pawns and soon resigned. Peter Metcalfe’s game ended in defeat shortly after, followed by a defeat for Mike Dew that gave Norfolk a three point lead. After Chris Cumbers agreed a draw there were five boards left in play for us to turn the match around. Fortunately Peter Damms had no trouble converting his rook and pawn endgame into a win to give us our first point of the match. Frank Robinson was pressing a strong attack on his opponent’s king but unfortunately his opponent found enough defensive resources, developed some counter-play and went on to win. Mark Newstead was behind in material and also lost after a long defensive effort in the endgame. Wilf Watson had built a strong position and won material only to find himself under pressure from his opponent’s counter-play and eventually agreed a draw. However Richard Coats played on and used nearly all his available time to claim the last point of the match. That still left Norfolk winners by 7½ points to 4½ and brought an end to the Lincolnshire U120 team’s season.
Thanks to everyone who played in this match and in others throughout the season. I will probably be in charge again next season, so you can expect to hear from me again after the summer.
| Norfolk (Home team) | Lincolnshire (Away team) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Board | Colour | Name | Club | Grade | Score | Name | Club | Grade |
| 1 | W | William Bradley | Wymondham | 118 | ½-½ | Arya Parnian | Grimsby | 126 |
| 2 | B | Bruce Carman | Broadland | 116 | ½-½ | James Smith | Spalding | 121 |
| 3 | W | Kevin Searle | Lowestoft | 116 | 1-0 | Mike Dew | Barton | 119 |
| 4 | B | Brian Cunningham | St Johns Norwich | 109 | ½-½ | Paul Fischer | Lincoln | 116 |
| 5 | W | Bruce Carter | King's Lynn | 109 | ½-½ | Chris Cumbers | Grantham | 113 |
| 6 | B | Charlie Neil | St Johns Norwich | 106 | 0-1 | Peter Damms | Louth | 112 |
| 7 | W | Colin Goodchild | Wymondham | 98 | 1-0 | Frank Robinson | Spalding | 105 |
| 8 | B | Craig Robertson | Lowestoft | 96 | 1-0 | Mark Newstead | Horncastle | 99 |
| 9 | W | Bob Grindrod | Broadland | 92 | ½-½ | Wilf Watson | Horncastle | 98 |
| 10 | B | Robert Smith | Broadland | 91 | 0-1 | Richard Coats | Spalding | 93 |
| 11 | W | Steve Cotterell | Lowestoft | 90 | 1-0 | Phil Gutcher | Grimsby | 92 |
| 12 | B | Eric Bradley | Wymondham | 60 | 1-0 | Peter Metcalfe | Lincoln | 82E |
| 7½-4½ | ||||||||
Note: Norfolk grades are taken from the July 2015 list. Lincolnshire grades are taken from the January 2016 list.