U2050 Team 2021-22

Team Captain: Paul Kenning

ECA Teams navigation: U2050 | U1850 | U1650 | U1450 | SCCU U2050 on ECF LMS

  • Fixtures
    eDate Home Team v Away Team Time
    Sat 13th November 2021 Essex 9½–6½ Middlesex 13:30
    Sat 11th December 2021 Surrey 8–8* Essex 14:00
    Sat 29th January 2022 Essex 9½–6½ Kent 13:30
    Sat 19th February 2022 Middlesex 10–6 Essex 14:00
    Sat 5th March 2022 Essex 10½–5½ Surrey 13:30
    Sat 19th March 2022 Kent 4½–11½ Essex 12:15
    Sat 21st May 2022 Essex 6½-9½ Yorks – ECF QF 13:00
    Sat 11 June 2022 Notts – ECF SF 0-16 Essex –

    *14 board match, contested games 7-7.

    SCCU Cross table (teams in alphabetical order)

        Essex Kent Middx Surrey
      Essex   9½ – 6½ 9½ – 6½ 10½ – 5½
      Kent 4½ – 11½   10½ – 5½ 7½ – 8½
      Middx 10-6 9-6   7½ – 8½
      Surrey 8-8 10-6 10-6  
  • Middx (H)

    Played 13 November 2021

    Board Essex v Middx
    1 Myall, Ivan J 2028 (B) 0–1 Mackenzie, Colin 2013 (W)
    2 Rix, Steven JL 2028 1–0 Hayler, Andrew 2013
    3 Hughes, Gavin James 2013 0–1 Calvert, D Ian 1993
    4 Ismailov, Roman 1990 ½–½ Fulton, Anthony R 2028
    5 Davenport, John 1975 ½–½ Cowan, Xavier 1900
    6 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 1–0 Kay, Jonathan 1900
    7 Wilson, Edgar 1953 1–0 Fincham, Leon HJ 1900
    8 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1983 1–0 McAleenan, Charles T 1893
    9 McCall, Martin 1915 0–1 Tello, Yasser 1885
    10 Whitton, Terry D 1924 ½–½ Phillips, William 1870
    11 Reynolds, D Ian W 1915 1–0 White, David J 1863
    12 Hampton, Christopher 1923 0–1 Kennelly, Paul 1863
    13 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1893 1–0 Conway, Paul Bernard 1855
    14 Ramage, Colin R 1908 1–0 Healeas, Simon 1863
    15 Muhunthan, Charukgan 1852 1–0 Lepetun, Jan 1840
    16 Woodward, Ian P 1852 0–1 Hermes, Geoff R 1848
      Average: 1947
    		 9½–6½ Average: 1908

    Commentary by skip Paul Kenning

    Well done everyone who played on Saturday. A great victory to start our county campaign and defence of the SCCU championship – 9½-6½.

    An early win from Colin Ramage sent us on our way. We looked good on several boards but it was a while before the match advanced further with Roman saving a particularly difficult position and wins from Sebastian Ponuklak (an excellent late addition to our team), Peter Jaszkiwskyj and Ian Reynolds establishing a comfortable lead. Despite a couple of set backs, further wins form Malcolm Kingsley, Edgar Wilson (a smart rook sacrifice), Charukgan Muhunthan (another welcome addition) and Steve Rix ensured victory.

  • Surrey (A)

    Played 11 December 2021

    Board Surrey v Essex
    1 Foley, John P 2020 (2027) (B) 1-0 Myall, Ivan J 2028 (2041) (W)
    2 Agrawal, Shivam 1976 (1971) 0-1 Moore, John C 2013 (2000)
    3 Shepley, Julien M 1971 (1970) 1-0 Ismailov, Roman 1990 (1993)
    4 Stimpson, Philip M 1968 (2023) 1-0 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1983 (0)
    5 Dupré, Paul D 1968 (1975) 1-0 Davenport, John 1975 (1975)
    6 Gosling, Marcus 1938 (1930) 1-0 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1962)
    7 Anvarinaeini, Alireza 1930 (1942) 0-1 Hunnable, Ian D 1976 (1959)
    8 Faulks, Nick W 1938 (1898) 1-0 Twitchell, Neville H 1923 (1940)
    9 Edwards, Nicholas L 1917 (1865) ½-½ Robinson, James M 1953 (1932)
    10 Baker, Matthew JD 1900 (1882) 0-1 McCall, Martin 1915 (1910)
    11 Fox, James 1840 (1842) ½-½ Hampton, Christopher 1923 (1902)
    12 Ashworth, Arthur 1810 (1810) 0-1 Ramage, Colin R 1908 (1891)
    13 Alcock, Graham P 1803 (1788) 0-1 Figueroa, Edison 1906 (1891)
    14 Jones, H Trevor 1720 (1711) 0-1 Kenning, Paul H 1890 (1875)
    15 Not contested* ½-½ Not contested*
    16 Not contested* ½-½ Not contested*
      Average: 1669 8-8* Average: 1711

    *For this covid season, non-contested boards – here a 14 board match was agreed – are scored ½-½ to even out game points for tie-break calculations.

    Skipper Paul Kenning’s commentary:

    A strange afternoon! It was compulsory to wear masks and only a 14 board match. As we are strong all the way to 16, this weakened us a little.

    For a long time, all was progressing as usual, a very early win thanks to John Moore (you can view his game below). Then through the afternoon wins from Ian Hunnable, Colin Ramage, Martin McCall and Edison Figueroa established a narrow but what I thought was a safe lead. However, we then uncharacteristically hit problems on our top order. A missed mate in three, a loss on time and various other reverses and to my surprise we were suddenly 6-7 down with only my game to complete. Fortunately, for once, I was able to contribute to the team and convert my small one pawn advantage into a win and secure a drawn match. Thank you everyone that travelled to Surrey.

  • Kent (H)

    Played 29 January 2022

    Board Essex v Kent
    1 Rix, Steven JL 2028 (2054) (B) 1-0 Johnson, Jim A 2043 (2044) (W)
    2 Moore, John C 2013 (2018) ½-½ Verma, Shlok 1970 (2002)
    3 Ismailov, Roman 1990 (1982) ½-½ Spanton, Tim R 1965 (2042)
    4 Freeman, Ashley 1795 (1960) 1-0 Anstead, Jerry 2005 (1963)
    5 Wilson, Edgar 1953 (1990) ½-½ Clear, David E 1983 (1968)
    6 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1957) 1-0 Nevols, Keith 1945 (1959)
    7 Hampton, Christopher 1923 (1901) ½-½ Jacob, Sydney J 1923 (1930)
    8 Shaw, Matthew H 1968 (1955) 0-1 Gluckman, Tim 1885 (1866)
    9 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1983 (0) 1-0 Heard, Andrew H 1855 (1861)
    10 Hunnable, Ian D 1976 (1939) 1-0 O’Gorman, Brendan 1843 (1878)
    11 Whitton, Terry D 1924 (1908) ½-½ Cox, Charles 1825 (0)
    12 Ramage, Colin R 1908 (1911) ½-½ Cook, John 1825 (1862)
    13 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1893 (1894) ½-½ Bernard, Chris PJ 1817 (1796)
    14 Kenning, Paul H 1890 (1853) 0-1 Alvares, Owen 1810 (1795)
    15 Levy, Christopher A 1870 (1874) ½-½ Brown, Chris M 1810 (1810)
    16 Spurr, Michael 1863 (1870) ½-½ Oyvat, Cem 1735 (1744)
      Average: 1936 9½-6½ Average: 1890

    Commentary by Mark Murrell

    A match that was in the balance almost to the very end.

    Kent won the toss and took an early lead amongst a string of draws. A trio of middle order wins reversed that but Kent seemed to have the advantage in several games.

    However, a couple of Essex conversions at the top and saves of inferior positions saved the skip’s nerves!

  • Middx (A)

    Played 19 February 2022

    Board Midddx v Essex
    1 Mackenzie, Colin 2013 (1982) 0-1 Wilson, Edgar 1953 (2010)
    2 Hayler, Andrew 2013 (1957) 1-0 Ismailov, Roman 1990 (1972)
    3 Calvert, D Ian 1993 (1949) ½-½ Davenport, John 1975 (1964)
    4 Fulton, Anthony R 2028 (2073) 1-0 Hunnable, Ian D 1976 (1930)
    5 Chan, Nevil 1968 (1992) 1-0 Shaw, Matthew H 1968 (1934)
    6 Fincham, Leon HJ 1900 (1870) 0-1 Barton, Tom A 1908 (1945)
    7 McAleenan, Charles T 1893 (1867) 0-1 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1983 (0)
    8 Phillips, William 1870 (1837) ½-½ Ramage, Colin R 1908 (1921)
    9 White, David J 1863 (1858) 1-0 McCall, Martin 1915 (1895)
    10 Kennelly, Paul 1863 (1840) 1-0 Hampton, Christopher 1923 (1890)
    11 Healeas, Simon 1863 (1871) 1-0 Bowden, Madison B 1809 (1891)
    12 Hermes, Geoff R 1848 (1856) ½-½ Kingsley, Malcolm P 1893 (1889)
    13 Jones, Keith S 1840 (1787) ½-½ Levy, Christopher A 1870 (1872)
    14 Price, Michael C 1743 (1717) ½-½ Kenning, Paul H 1890 (1838)
    15 Beachley, Evan 1660 (1699) 1-0 Woodward, Ian P 1852 (1814)
    16 Ward, Cian 1570 (1624) ½-½ Pereslavtsev, Sergey 1150 (1490)
      Average: 1871 10-6 Average: 1873

    There is something very odd about this match. Essex could only assemble a weakened team to travel to take on Middx, at a new venue. Some regular players found themselves playing five or six boards higher than the previous match at home to Kent. So perhaps it was no surprise to find the Home team winning by a clear margin. Yet, there was nothing between the two teams on average ratings; Essex held a slender two points a board edge.

    Points were shared in the top half, where Middx had a clear ratings advantage. The damage was done in the middle order. But there are always positives to be taken; as skipper Paul Kenning said: “On the good side marvellous wins for Tom Barton, Seb Ponulak and Edgar Wilson.” And an excellent result for Sergey on bottom board.

    Surrey snatched a narrow win away to Kent, so Essex drop two points behind, but still have a three poit advantage over Kent and Middx.

  • Surrey (H)

    Played 5 March 2022

    Board Essex v Surrey
    1 Rix, Steven JL 2028 (2064) 1-0 Foley, John P 2020 (2048)
    2 Myall, Ivan J 2028 (2020) 1-0 Shepley, Julien M 1971 (1977)
    3 Moore, John C 2013 (2022) 1-0(def) Stimpson, Philip M 1968 (2008)
    4 Wilson, Edgar 1953 (1996) ½-½ Dupré, Paul D 1968 (1970)
    5 Freeman, Ashley 1795 (1995) 0-1 Collins, Anthony S 1960 (1936)
    6 Ismailov, Roman 1990 (1972) 1-0 Faulks, Nick W 1938 (1937)
    7 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1968) ½-½ Gosling, Marcus 1938 (1926)
    8 Davenport, John 1975 (1964) ½-½ Baker, Matthew JD 1900 (1860)
    9 Hunnable, Ian D 1976 (1924) ½-½ Fox, James 1840 (1867)
    10 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1983 (0) 0-1 Eckert, Jonathan M 1818 (1860)
    11 Twitchell, Neville H 1923 (1935) 1-0 Alcock, Graham P 1803 (1814)
    12 Reynolds, D Ian W 1915 (1940) ½-½ Grey, Nicholas D 1795 (1772)
    13 Pert, Max P 1788 (1895) ½-½ Sedgwick, David R 1788 (1797)
    14 McCall, Martin 1915 (1895) 1-0 Shah, Meet 1756 (1798)
    15 Hampton, Christopher 1923 (1890) ½-½ Jones, H Trevor 1720 (1722)
    16 Pert, Nina P 1788 (1823) 1-0 Babu, Rahul 1375 (1657)
      Average: 1937 10½-5½ Average: 1848

    Report by Mark Murrell

    Skipper Paul Kenning had the luxury of an excess of talent for this match, a stark contrast with the last match away to Middlesex. With a rating advantage all the way down the card, Essex were favourites in this crucial penultimate group match both in terms of securing qualification for the national stage (Essex are reigning Champions in the old U180 format) and regaining the SCCU title.

    Another weekend of disrupted travel saw a 15 minute delay to the scheduled start to assist players from both teams endeavouring to reach the match by circuitous routes; with only one player abandoning the attempt after a series of updates on route.

    The early concession to Essex was soon cancelled out with an early Surrey win from Jonathan Eckert, who has the distinction of having played in every Surrey U2050 and U1850 away match so far in 2022. It was not until the concluding moments of the match that Surrey notched up their second win, with Anthony Collins getting the better of a highly tactical and almost a full 4½ hours battle with Ashley Freeman. There might have been a couple more but for some dogged resistance as Edgar and Chris were taken to almost the end of the session.

    In the meantime, Essex had notched up six wins over the board (helped by a few gifts along the way) to secure the win and return to the top of the table ahead of Surrey on the head-to-head tie break. With qualification to the national stage secured for both teams the Championship will be decided in the final round of matches on 19 March. Essex away to Kent must match (or better) Surrey’s performance at home to Middlesex. Put simply, the Championship is in Essex’s own hands.

  • Kent (A)

    Played 19 March 2022

    Board Kent v Essex
    1 Anstead, Jerry 2005 (1953) (W) ½-½ Rix, Steven JL 2028 (2069) (B)
    2 Clear, David E 1983 (1976) 0-1 Myall, Ivan J 2028 (2047)
    3 Owens, Trefor H 1960 (1971) 1-0 Moore, John C 2013 (1995)
    4 Nevols, Keith 1945 (1907) 0-1 Wilson, Edgar 1953 (2007)
    5 Keenan, Brendan 1945 (1942) ½-½ Freeman, Ashley 1795 (1995)
    6 Tapp, James 0000 () 0-1 Ismailov, Roman 1990 (1990)
    7 Jacob, Sydney J 1923 (1915) 0-1 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1974)
    8 Stanchev, Stoyko 0000 (1963) 1-0 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1983 (0)
    9 Gluckman, Tim 1885 (1891) ½-½ Davenport, John 1975 (1959)
    10 Houghton, Mark 0000 () ½-½ Reynolds, D Ian W 1915 (1933)
    11 Waters, Andrew C 1848 (1853) ½-½ Barton, Tom A 1908 (1948)
    12 Bernard, Chris PJ 1817 (1762) 0-1 Ramage, Colin R 1908 (1915)
    13 Brown, Chris M 1810 (1794) 0-1 Hampton, Christopher 1923 (1893)
    14 Lane, Robert E 1774 (1773) 0-1 McCall, Martin 1915 (1910)
    15 Oyvat, Cem 1735 (1792) 0-1 Figueroa, Edison 1906 (1918)
    16 Bishop, Geoffrey L 1735 (1718) 0-1 Spurr, Michael 1863 (1873)
        4½-11½  

    The task in this final match of the SCCU campaign was to do as least as well as Surrey at home to Middx.

    Surrey beat Middx 10-6, so it was as well that Essex took a strong squad to St Mary Cray and chalked up the best performance of any team in this season’s contest to take the SCCU U2050 Championship. Essex and Surrey both finished on 9 points, Essex taking the Championship on Game Points between them, 18½-13½.

  • Yorks - ECF QF

    Played 21 May 2022

    Board Essex v Yorks
    1 Myall, Ivan J 2009 (2028) (W) 0-1 Hodge, Steve R 2036 (1998) (B)
    2 Ismailov, Roman 1992 (1990) 1-0 Shapland, David 2029 (1978)
    3 Davenport, John 1976 (1975) 1-0 Cuaresma, Gerald 1990 (1791)
    4 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1971 (1983) 0-1 Bramson, Mike 1974 (1983)
    5 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1968 (1990) 1-0 Wedge, David C 1936 (1893)
    6 Barton, Tom A 1959 (1908) ½-½ Round, Jonathan 1934 (1930)
    7 Reynolds, D Ian W 1954 (1915) ½-½ Thompson, Keith 1922 (1930)
    8 Twitchell, Neville H 1946 (1923) 1-0 Stephenson, David W 1909 (1893)
    9 McCall, Martin 1937 (1915) 1-0 Johnson, Paul A 1874 (1851)
    10 Ramage, Colin R 1927 (1908) 0-1 Dean, Robert A 1861 (1866)
    11 Hunnable, Ian D 1923 (1976) ½-½ Brown, Geoffrey D 1831 (1893)
    12 Figueroa, Edison 1892 (1906) 1-0 Patrick, David A 1827 (1881)
    13 Murrell, Mark RA 1895 (1861) 1-0 Bettley, Andrew D 1817 (1852)
    14 Hampton, Christopher 1893 (1923) ½-½ Clegg, Robert 1813 (1866)
    15 Whitton, Terry D 1883 (1924) ½-½ Colledge, Dave 1766 (1781)
    16 Spurr, Michael 1873 (1863) 0-1 Webster, Vivien 1638 (1686)
      Average: 1938 9½-6½ Average: 1885

    Blow-by-blow from Mark Murrell

    Board Score Cumulative (E-Y) Comment
    04 0-1 0-1 Sebastian Ponulak falls early.
    07 ½-½ ½-1½ Ian Reynolds gets Essex going with a draw.
    10 0-1 ½-2½ Colin Ramage goes down as Yorks go 2 clear.
    15 ½-½ 1-3 Terry Whitton doubles the Essex score with a draw; no sign of the expected wagging tail.
    08 1-0 2-3 Neville Twitchell achieves the first Essex win.
    14  ½-½ 2½-3½ Chris Hampton also draws; opposite colour bishops.
    16 0-1 2½-4½ Michael Spur loses, as the tail droops and Yorks restore their 2 point margin.
    13 1-0 3½-4½ Reserve skip, Mark Murrell narrows the gap as king side pressure bears fruit.
    01 0-1 3½-5½ Ivan Myall falls too (head over tail) as that two point gap appears for the third time.
    11 ½-½ 4-6 Ian Hunnable draws too (luckily he says).
    03 1-0 5-6 John Davenport starts the Essex fight back.
    05 1-0 6-6 Peter Jaskiwskyj takes Essex back to level pegging for the second time of the afternoon (first 0-0).
    06 ½-½ 6½-6½ Tom Barton maintains the balance, with three to play.
    02 1-0 7½-6½ Roman Ismailov takes Essex into the lead for the first time; a very long time in coming.
    12 1-0 8½-6½ Martin McCall joins the party and wins the match.
    09 1-0 9½-6½ Edison Figueroa adds the scalp of the Yorkshire skip to complete an impressive finishing run as Essex take 5½ points from the last 6 games.
  • Notts - ECF SF

    Was to be played 11 June 2022

    Match conceded by Notts.

  • U2050 stats
    U2050 P W D L Pts %
    Martin McCall 1958 2 2 0 0 2 100.00
    James Robinson 1903 2 2 0 0 2 100.00
    Edgar Wilson 2009 2 1 1 0 1½ 75.00
    George Horan 1879 2 1 1 0 1½ 75.00
    Malcolm Kingsley 1850 2 1 1 0 1½ 75.00
    John Moore 1970 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
    Chris Hampton 1879 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
    Edison Figueroa 1890 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
    Philip Staniland 1855 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
    Peter Jaszkiwskyj 1990 2 0 2 0 1 50.00
    Gavin Hughes 1957 2 1 0 1 1 50.00
    Colin Ramage 1900 2 1 0 1 1 50.00
    Michael Spurr 1857 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
    Paul Kenning 1834 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
    Tom Barton 1935 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
    Barry Sheppard 1810 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
    Steve Rix 2033 2 0 1 1 ½ 25.00
    Ivan Myall 1994 1 0 0 1 0 0.00
    Neville Twitchell 1965 2 0 0 2 0 0.00
    Mark Murrell 1908 1 0 0 1 0 0.00
    Jim Arbuckle 1733 1 0 0 1 0 0.00
    Walkover 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
                 
     33 players 126 51 42 33 72 57.14%
eDate Home Team v Away Team Time
Sat 13th November 2021 Essex 9½–6½ Middlesex 13:30
Sat 11th December 2021 Surrey 8–8* Essex 14:00
Sat 29th January 2022 Essex 9½–6½ Kent 13:30
Sat 19th February 2022 Middlesex 10–6 Essex 14:00
Sat 5th March 2022 Essex 10½–5½ Surrey 13:30
Sat 19th March 2022 Kent 4½–11½ Essex 12:15
Sat 21st May 2022 Essex 6½-9½ Yorks – ECF QF 13:00
Sat 11 June 2022 Notts – ECF SF 0-16 Essex –

*14 board match, contested games 7-7.

SCCU Cross table (teams in alphabetical order)

    Essex Kent Middx Surrey
  Essex   9½ – 6½ 9½ – 6½ 10½ – 5½
  Kent 4½ – 11½   10½ – 5½ 7½ – 8½
  Middx 10-6 9-6   7½ – 8½
  Surrey 8-8 10-6 10-6  

Played 13 November 2021

Board Essex v Middx
1 Myall, Ivan J 2028 (B) 0–1 Mackenzie, Colin 2013 (W)
2 Rix, Steven JL 2028 1–0 Hayler, Andrew 2013
3 Hughes, Gavin James 2013 0–1 Calvert, D Ian 1993
4 Ismailov, Roman 1990 ½–½ Fulton, Anthony R 2028
5 Davenport, John 1975 ½–½ Cowan, Xavier 1900
6 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 1–0 Kay, Jonathan 1900
7 Wilson, Edgar 1953 1–0 Fincham, Leon HJ 1900
8 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1983 1–0 McAleenan, Charles T 1893
9 McCall, Martin 1915 0–1 Tello, Yasser 1885
10 Whitton, Terry D 1924 ½–½ Phillips, William 1870
11 Reynolds, D Ian W 1915 1–0 White, David J 1863
12 Hampton, Christopher 1923 0–1 Kennelly, Paul 1863
13 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1893 1–0 Conway, Paul Bernard 1855
14 Ramage, Colin R 1908 1–0 Healeas, Simon 1863
15 Muhunthan, Charukgan 1852 1–0 Lepetun, Jan 1840
16 Woodward, Ian P 1852 0–1 Hermes, Geoff R 1848
  Average: 1947
 9½–6½ Average: 1908

Commentary by skip Paul Kenning

Well done everyone who played on Saturday. A great victory to start our county campaign and defence of the SCCU championship – 9½-6½.

An early win from Colin Ramage sent us on our way. We looked good on several boards but it was a while before the match advanced further with Roman saving a particularly difficult position and wins from Sebastian Ponuklak (an excellent late addition to our team), Peter Jaszkiwskyj and Ian Reynolds establishing a comfortable lead. Despite a couple of set backs, further wins form Malcolm Kingsley, Edgar Wilson (a smart rook sacrifice), Charukgan Muhunthan (another welcome addition) and Steve Rix ensured victory.

Played 11 December 2021

Board Surrey v Essex
1 Foley, John P 2020 (2027) (B) 1-0 Myall, Ivan J 2028 (2041) (W)
2 Agrawal, Shivam 1976 (1971) 0-1 Moore, John C 2013 (2000)
3 Shepley, Julien M 1971 (1970) 1-0 Ismailov, Roman 1990 (1993)
4 Stimpson, Philip M 1968 (2023) 1-0 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1983 (0)
5 Dupré, Paul D 1968 (1975) 1-0 Davenport, John 1975 (1975)
6 Gosling, Marcus 1938 (1930) 1-0 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1962)
7 Anvarinaeini, Alireza 1930 (1942) 0-1 Hunnable, Ian D 1976 (1959)
8 Faulks, Nick W 1938 (1898) 1-0 Twitchell, Neville H 1923 (1940)
9 Edwards, Nicholas L 1917 (1865) ½-½ Robinson, James M 1953 (1932)
10 Baker, Matthew JD 1900 (1882) 0-1 McCall, Martin 1915 (1910)
11 Fox, James 1840 (1842) ½-½ Hampton, Christopher 1923 (1902)
12 Ashworth, Arthur 1810 (1810) 0-1 Ramage, Colin R 1908 (1891)
13 Alcock, Graham P 1803 (1788) 0-1 Figueroa, Edison 1906 (1891)
14 Jones, H Trevor 1720 (1711) 0-1 Kenning, Paul H 1890 (1875)
15 Not contested* ½-½ Not contested*
16 Not contested* ½-½ Not contested*
  Average: 1669 8-8* Average: 1711

*For this covid season, non-contested boards – here a 14 board match was agreed – are scored ½-½ to even out game points for tie-break calculations.

Skipper Paul Kenning’s commentary:

A strange afternoon! It was compulsory to wear masks and only a 14 board match. As we are strong all the way to 16, this weakened us a little.

For a long time, all was progressing as usual, a very early win thanks to John Moore (you can view his game below). Then through the afternoon wins from Ian Hunnable, Colin Ramage, Martin McCall and Edison Figueroa established a narrow but what I thought was a safe lead. However, we then uncharacteristically hit problems on our top order. A missed mate in three, a loss on time and various other reverses and to my surprise we were suddenly 6-7 down with only my game to complete. Fortunately, for once, I was able to contribute to the team and convert my small one pawn advantage into a win and secure a drawn match. Thank you everyone that travelled to Surrey.

Played 29 January 2022

Board Essex v Kent
1 Rix, Steven JL 2028 (2054) (B) 1-0 Johnson, Jim A 2043 (2044) (W)
2 Moore, John C 2013 (2018) ½-½ Verma, Shlok 1970 (2002)
3 Ismailov, Roman 1990 (1982) ½-½ Spanton, Tim R 1965 (2042)
4 Freeman, Ashley 1795 (1960) 1-0 Anstead, Jerry 2005 (1963)
5 Wilson, Edgar 1953 (1990) ½-½ Clear, David E 1983 (1968)
6 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1957) 1-0 Nevols, Keith 1945 (1959)
7 Hampton, Christopher 1923 (1901) ½-½ Jacob, Sydney J 1923 (1930)
8 Shaw, Matthew H 1968 (1955) 0-1 Gluckman, Tim 1885 (1866)
9 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1983 (0) 1-0 Heard, Andrew H 1855 (1861)
10 Hunnable, Ian D 1976 (1939) 1-0 O’Gorman, Brendan 1843 (1878)
11 Whitton, Terry D 1924 (1908) ½-½ Cox, Charles 1825 (0)
12 Ramage, Colin R 1908 (1911) ½-½ Cook, John 1825 (1862)
13 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1893 (1894) ½-½ Bernard, Chris PJ 1817 (1796)
14 Kenning, Paul H 1890 (1853) 0-1 Alvares, Owen 1810 (1795)
15 Levy, Christopher A 1870 (1874) ½-½ Brown, Chris M 1810 (1810)
16 Spurr, Michael 1863 (1870) ½-½ Oyvat, Cem 1735 (1744)
  Average: 1936 9½-6½ Average: 1890

Commentary by Mark Murrell

A match that was in the balance almost to the very end.

Kent won the toss and took an early lead amongst a string of draws. A trio of middle order wins reversed that but Kent seemed to have the advantage in several games.

However, a couple of Essex conversions at the top and saves of inferior positions saved the skip’s nerves!

Played 19 February 2022

Board Midddx v Essex
1 Mackenzie, Colin 2013 (1982) 0-1 Wilson, Edgar 1953 (2010)
2 Hayler, Andrew 2013 (1957) 1-0 Ismailov, Roman 1990 (1972)
3 Calvert, D Ian 1993 (1949) ½-½ Davenport, John 1975 (1964)
4 Fulton, Anthony R 2028 (2073) 1-0 Hunnable, Ian D 1976 (1930)
5 Chan, Nevil 1968 (1992) 1-0 Shaw, Matthew H 1968 (1934)
6 Fincham, Leon HJ 1900 (1870) 0-1 Barton, Tom A 1908 (1945)
7 McAleenan, Charles T 1893 (1867) 0-1 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1983 (0)
8 Phillips, William 1870 (1837) ½-½ Ramage, Colin R 1908 (1921)
9 White, David J 1863 (1858) 1-0 McCall, Martin 1915 (1895)
10 Kennelly, Paul 1863 (1840) 1-0 Hampton, Christopher 1923 (1890)
11 Healeas, Simon 1863 (1871) 1-0 Bowden, Madison B 1809 (1891)
12 Hermes, Geoff R 1848 (1856) ½-½ Kingsley, Malcolm P 1893 (1889)
13 Jones, Keith S 1840 (1787) ½-½ Levy, Christopher A 1870 (1872)
14 Price, Michael C 1743 (1717) ½-½ Kenning, Paul H 1890 (1838)
15 Beachley, Evan 1660 (1699) 1-0 Woodward, Ian P 1852 (1814)
16 Ward, Cian 1570 (1624) ½-½ Pereslavtsev, Sergey 1150 (1490)
  Average: 1871 10-6 Average: 1873

There is something very odd about this match. Essex could only assemble a weakened team to travel to take on Middx, at a new venue. Some regular players found themselves playing five or six boards higher than the previous match at home to Kent. So perhaps it was no surprise to find the Home team winning by a clear margin. Yet, there was nothing between the two teams on average ratings; Essex held a slender two points a board edge.

Points were shared in the top half, where Middx had a clear ratings advantage. The damage was done in the middle order. But there are always positives to be taken; as skipper Paul Kenning said: “On the good side marvellous wins for Tom Barton, Seb Ponulak and Edgar Wilson.” And an excellent result for Sergey on bottom board.

Surrey snatched a narrow win away to Kent, so Essex drop two points behind, but still have a three poit advantage over Kent and Middx.

Played 5 March 2022

Board Essex v Surrey
1 Rix, Steven JL 2028 (2064) 1-0 Foley, John P 2020 (2048)
2 Myall, Ivan J 2028 (2020) 1-0 Shepley, Julien M 1971 (1977)
3 Moore, John C 2013 (2022) 1-0(def) Stimpson, Philip M 1968 (2008)
4 Wilson, Edgar 1953 (1996) ½-½ Dupré, Paul D 1968 (1970)
5 Freeman, Ashley 1795 (1995) 0-1 Collins, Anthony S 1960 (1936)
6 Ismailov, Roman 1990 (1972) 1-0 Faulks, Nick W 1938 (1937)
7 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1968) ½-½ Gosling, Marcus 1938 (1926)
8 Davenport, John 1975 (1964) ½-½ Baker, Matthew JD 1900 (1860)
9 Hunnable, Ian D 1976 (1924) ½-½ Fox, James 1840 (1867)
10 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1983 (0) 0-1 Eckert, Jonathan M 1818 (1860)
11 Twitchell, Neville H 1923 (1935) 1-0 Alcock, Graham P 1803 (1814)
12 Reynolds, D Ian W 1915 (1940) ½-½ Grey, Nicholas D 1795 (1772)
13 Pert, Max P 1788 (1895) ½-½ Sedgwick, David R 1788 (1797)
14 McCall, Martin 1915 (1895) 1-0 Shah, Meet 1756 (1798)
15 Hampton, Christopher 1923 (1890) ½-½ Jones, H Trevor 1720 (1722)
16 Pert, Nina P 1788 (1823) 1-0 Babu, Rahul 1375 (1657)
  Average: 1937 10½-5½ Average: 1848

Report by Mark Murrell

Skipper Paul Kenning had the luxury of an excess of talent for this match, a stark contrast with the last match away to Middlesex. With a rating advantage all the way down the card, Essex were favourites in this crucial penultimate group match both in terms of securing qualification for the national stage (Essex are reigning Champions in the old U180 format) and regaining the SCCU title.

Another weekend of disrupted travel saw a 15 minute delay to the scheduled start to assist players from both teams endeavouring to reach the match by circuitous routes; with only one player abandoning the attempt after a series of updates on route.

The early concession to Essex was soon cancelled out with an early Surrey win from Jonathan Eckert, who has the distinction of having played in every Surrey U2050 and U1850 away match so far in 2022. It was not until the concluding moments of the match that Surrey notched up their second win, with Anthony Collins getting the better of a highly tactical and almost a full 4½ hours battle with Ashley Freeman. There might have been a couple more but for some dogged resistance as Edgar and Chris were taken to almost the end of the session.

In the meantime, Essex had notched up six wins over the board (helped by a few gifts along the way) to secure the win and return to the top of the table ahead of Surrey on the head-to-head tie break. With qualification to the national stage secured for both teams the Championship will be decided in the final round of matches on 19 March. Essex away to Kent must match (or better) Surrey’s performance at home to Middlesex. Put simply, the Championship is in Essex’s own hands.

Played 19 March 2022

Board Kent v Essex
1 Anstead, Jerry 2005 (1953) (W) ½-½ Rix, Steven JL 2028 (2069) (B)
2 Clear, David E 1983 (1976) 0-1 Myall, Ivan J 2028 (2047)
3 Owens, Trefor H 1960 (1971) 1-0 Moore, John C 2013 (1995)
4 Nevols, Keith 1945 (1907) 0-1 Wilson, Edgar 1953 (2007)
5 Keenan, Brendan 1945 (1942) ½-½ Freeman, Ashley 1795 (1995)
6 Tapp, James 0000 () 0-1 Ismailov, Roman 1990 (1990)
7 Jacob, Sydney J 1923 (1915) 0-1 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1974)
8 Stanchev, Stoyko 0000 (1963) 1-0 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1983 (0)
9 Gluckman, Tim 1885 (1891) ½-½ Davenport, John 1975 (1959)
10 Houghton, Mark 0000 () ½-½ Reynolds, D Ian W 1915 (1933)
11 Waters, Andrew C 1848 (1853) ½-½ Barton, Tom A 1908 (1948)
12 Bernard, Chris PJ 1817 (1762) 0-1 Ramage, Colin R 1908 (1915)
13 Brown, Chris M 1810 (1794) 0-1 Hampton, Christopher 1923 (1893)
14 Lane, Robert E 1774 (1773) 0-1 McCall, Martin 1915 (1910)
15 Oyvat, Cem 1735 (1792) 0-1 Figueroa, Edison 1906 (1918)
16 Bishop, Geoffrey L 1735 (1718) 0-1 Spurr, Michael 1863 (1873)
    4½-11½  

The task in this final match of the SCCU campaign was to do as least as well as Surrey at home to Middx.

Surrey beat Middx 10-6, so it was as well that Essex took a strong squad to St Mary Cray and chalked up the best performance of any team in this season’s contest to take the SCCU U2050 Championship. Essex and Surrey both finished on 9 points, Essex taking the Championship on Game Points between them, 18½-13½.

Played 21 May 2022

Board Essex v Yorks
1 Myall, Ivan J 2009 (2028) (W) 0-1 Hodge, Steve R 2036 (1998) (B)
2 Ismailov, Roman 1992 (1990) 1-0 Shapland, David 2029 (1978)
3 Davenport, John 1976 (1975) 1-0 Cuaresma, Gerald 1990 (1791)
4 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1971 (1983) 0-1 Bramson, Mike 1974 (1983)
5 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1968 (1990) 1-0 Wedge, David C 1936 (1893)
6 Barton, Tom A 1959 (1908) ½-½ Round, Jonathan 1934 (1930)
7 Reynolds, D Ian W 1954 (1915) ½-½ Thompson, Keith 1922 (1930)
8 Twitchell, Neville H 1946 (1923) 1-0 Stephenson, David W 1909 (1893)
9 McCall, Martin 1937 (1915) 1-0 Johnson, Paul A 1874 (1851)
10 Ramage, Colin R 1927 (1908) 0-1 Dean, Robert A 1861 (1866)
11 Hunnable, Ian D 1923 (1976) ½-½ Brown, Geoffrey D 1831 (1893)
12 Figueroa, Edison 1892 (1906) 1-0 Patrick, David A 1827 (1881)
13 Murrell, Mark RA 1895 (1861) 1-0 Bettley, Andrew D 1817 (1852)
14 Hampton, Christopher 1893 (1923) ½-½ Clegg, Robert 1813 (1866)
15 Whitton, Terry D 1883 (1924) ½-½ Colledge, Dave 1766 (1781)
16 Spurr, Michael 1873 (1863) 0-1 Webster, Vivien 1638 (1686)
  Average: 1938 9½-6½ Average: 1885

Blow-by-blow from Mark Murrell

Board Score Cumulative (E-Y) Comment
04 0-1 0-1 Sebastian Ponulak falls early.
07 ½-½ ½-1½ Ian Reynolds gets Essex going with a draw.
10 0-1 ½-2½ Colin Ramage goes down as Yorks go 2 clear.
15 ½-½ 1-3 Terry Whitton doubles the Essex score with a draw; no sign of the expected wagging tail.
08 1-0 2-3 Neville Twitchell achieves the first Essex win.
14  ½-½ 2½-3½ Chris Hampton also draws; opposite colour bishops.
16 0-1 2½-4½ Michael Spur loses, as the tail droops and Yorks restore their 2 point margin.
13 1-0 3½-4½ Reserve skip, Mark Murrell narrows the gap as king side pressure bears fruit.
01 0-1 3½-5½ Ivan Myall falls too (head over tail) as that two point gap appears for the third time.
11 ½-½ 4-6 Ian Hunnable draws too (luckily he says).
03 1-0 5-6 John Davenport starts the Essex fight back.
05 1-0 6-6 Peter Jaskiwskyj takes Essex back to level pegging for the second time of the afternoon (first 0-0).
06 ½-½ 6½-6½ Tom Barton maintains the balance, with three to play.
02 1-0 7½-6½ Roman Ismailov takes Essex into the lead for the first time; a very long time in coming.
12 1-0 8½-6½ Martin McCall joins the party and wins the match.
09 1-0 9½-6½ Edison Figueroa adds the scalp of the Yorkshire skip to complete an impressive finishing run as Essex take 5½ points from the last 6 games.

Was to be played 11 June 2022

Match conceded by Notts.

Board Essex v Surrey
1 Rix, Steven JL 2032 (2028) [B] ½-½ Rosen, Daniel B 2060 (2020) [W]
2 Wilson, Edgar 1995 (1953) 1-0 Young, Daniel J 2027 (2005)
3 Ismailov, Roman 2002 (1990) 1-0 Stimpson, Philip M 1996 (1968)
4 Davenport, John 1992 (1975) 1-0 Smith, Martin G 1975 (1960)
5 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1980 (1990) 1-0 Haridas, Girinath 1964 (1945)
6 Myall, Ivan J 1986 (2028) 0-1 Shepley, Julien M 1953 (1971)
7 Bowden, Madison B 1973 (1809) ½-½ Phillips, Owen S 1967 (1998)
8 Moore, John C 1972 (2013) 1-0 Dupré, Paul D 1964 (1968)
9 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1961 (1983) ½-½ Gibbons, Paul JJ 1935 (1945)
10 Twitchell, Neville H 1977 (1923) 0-1 Gosling, Marcus 1899 (1938)
11 Barton, Tom A 1947 (1908) 0-1 Edwards, Nicholas L 1889 (1917)
12 Hunnable, Ian D 1924 (1976) 0-1 Eckert, Jonathan M 1884 (1818)
13 Robinson, James M 1903 (1953) ½-½ Fenwick, Hugh F 1889 (1855)
14 Whitton, Terry D 1893 (1924) ½-½ Hogarth, Mark J 1855 (1878)
15 Figueroa, Edison 1888 (1906) 1-0 George, Olufemi 1835 (1870)
16 Hampton, Christopher 1891 (1923) 0-1 Fox, James 1831 (1840)
  Average: 1958 8½-7½ Average: 1933
Individual Ratings: July 2022 (September 2021 original). Averages: July 2022

All games are given in the game board the match report.

All the draws were the first five results. 2½-2½.

Then Surrey took the lead on Board 10 and added to it when overturning an Essex winning advantage on Board 12. Further Essex reverses were incurred on Boards 16 and 6 consigning Essex to a four point deficit at 2½-6½. There were some glum Essex faces, not seeing where the points were coming from, apart from John Moore’s winning position.

The Essex fightback began, however, with Edgar’s win following a far-sighted strategy based on a passed d-pawn. Essex hopes rose further with the win by Roman. Two down, five in play. E 4½-6½ S.

Then Tom lost to put Essex three down again. E 4½-7½ S. Four left in play. At this point, in a whispered conversation on the landing, the skipper noted that Essex were ahead on Board Count and now “only” needed to reach 8-8, with two of those games being in the top order.

The impossible was still on as Edison pulled another point back, reaching a winning K&P ending. E 5½-7½ S. Could it be?

John Moore “duly” collected his point – though he subsequently revealed that it might not have been as staightforward as the spectators thought – to make it 6½-7½ with just two left in play, on boards 4 and 5. Peter Jaszkiwsky levelled the scores and now a draw from John Davenport would have been enough. But Essex only lose on Board Count and John was a couple of pawns up in a R and minor piece ending. Soon JD collected a third pawn, before charging down the board with his passed a- and b-pawns to force Martin Smith’s resignation and complete a remarkable comeback to rank alongside Essex previous famous exploits. (Just wind back to the semi-final!)

Essex therefore retained the national U2050 Championship, having won the last (U180) in 2019 (2019-20 not being completed due to covid). A fine sign-off for Paul Kenning who is standing down as U2050 team captain.

U2050 P W D L Pts %
Martin McCall 1958 2 2 0 0 2 100.00
James Robinson 1903 2 2 0 0 2 100.00
Edgar Wilson 2009 2 1 1 0 1½ 75.00
George Horan 1879 2 1 1 0 1½ 75.00
Malcolm Kingsley 1850 2 1 1 0 1½ 75.00
John Moore 1970 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
Chris Hampton 1879 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
Edison Figueroa 1890 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
Philip Staniland 1855 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
Peter Jaszkiwskyj 1990 2 0 2 0 1 50.00
Gavin Hughes 1957 2 1 0 1 1 50.00
Colin Ramage 1900 2 1 0 1 1 50.00
Michael Spurr 1857 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
Paul Kenning 1834 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
Tom Barton 1935 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
Barry Sheppard 1810 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
Steve Rix 2033 2 0 1 1 ½ 25.00
Ivan Myall 1994 1 0 0 1 0 0.00
Neville Twitchell 1965 2 0 0 2 0 0.00
Mark Murrell 1908 1 0 0 1 0 0.00
Jim Arbuckle 1733 1 0 0 1 0 0.00
Walkover 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
             
 33 players 126 51 42 33 72 57.14%