U2050 Team

Defending ECF U2050 Champions 2021-22.

Team Captain: to be announced.Contact ECA Match Captain, Mark Murrell.

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Team fixtures

 Home Team Result Away Team Date Time
Essex 10½–5½ Surrey Sat 1st Oct 2022 13:30
Middlesex 7½–8½ Essex Sat 15th Oct 2022 14:00
Essex 12½–3½ Kent Sat 12th Nov 2022 13:30
Surrey 7–9 Essex Sat 26th Nov 2022 14:00
Essex 9–7 Middlesex Sat 21st Jan 2023 13:30
Kent 6½–9½ Essex Sat 18th Feb 2023 12:15
Yorks 6½–9½ Essex
 Sat 10th June 2023 13:30
Essex 16-0 Warks
 Sat 21 Jul 2023  

Match cards and stats

  • U2050 player stats
     U2050 @  01 Jul 2023 P W D L Pts %
    Martin McCall 1958 6 3 3 0 4½ 75.00
    Alexandr Pereslavtsev 1722 4 4 0 0 4 100.00
    George Horan 1879 5 3 2 0 4 80.00
    Ian Hunnable 1913 5 3 2 0 4 80.00
    Peter Jaszkiwskyj 1990 6 2 4 0 4 66.67
    Neville Twitchell 1965 7 4 0 3 4 57.14
    Michael Spurr 1857 4 3 1 0 3½ 87.50
    John Moore 1970 5 3 1 1 3½ 70.00
    Edgar Wilson 2009 6 2 3 1 3½ 58.33
    Malcolm Kingsley 1850 6 2 3 1 3½ 58.33
    Chris Hampton 1879 4 3 0 1 3 75.00
    James Robinson 1903 4 2 2 0 3 75.00
    Philip Staniland 1855 4 2 2 0 3 75.00
    Colin Ramage 1900 6 2 2 2 3 50.00
    Ivan Myall 1994 4 2 1 1 2½ 62.50
    Matthew Shaw 1934 2 1 1 0 1½ 75.00
    Gavin Hughes 1957 3 1 1 1 1½ 50.00
    Charukgan Muhunthan 1878 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
    Ben Harte 1726 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
    Ruqayyah Rida 1565 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
    David Flynn 1906 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
    Edison Figueroa 1890 2 1 0 1 1 50.00
    Ian Reynolds 1953 3 0 2 1 1 33.33
    Steve Rix 2033 4 0 2 2 1 25.00
    Tom Barton 1935 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
    Barry Sheppard 1810 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
    Raul Ghose 1929 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
    Terry Whitton 1892 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
    Ashley Freeman 2000 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
    Czeslaw (Sebastian) Ponulak 1960 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
    James Evans 1878 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
    Trevor Coote 2047 2 0 1 1 ½ 25.00
    Paul Kenning 1834 2 0 1 1 ½ 25.00
    Mark Murrell 1908 2 0 0 2 0 0.00
    Jim Arbuckle 1733 1 0 0 1 0 0.00
    Vladimir Parols 1998 2 0 0 2 0 0.00
    Mohammad Rezaul Islam 1150 1 0 0 1 0 0.00
    Walkover 1 1 0 0 1 –
                 
     37 players 112 48 41 23 68½ 61.16%
  • Surrey - H

    Played 1 October 2022, at 13:30

    at Wanstead House

    Board Essex v Surrey
    1 Rix, Steven JL 2033 (2035) (B) ½–½ Foley, John P 2037 (2039) (W)
    2 Wilson, Edgar 2009 (2010) ½–½ Heppell, Ian N 1994 (1994)
    3 Myall, Ivan J 1994 (1994) 0–1 Dupré, Paul D 1983 (1989)
    4 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1992) ½–½ Shepley, Julien M 1982 (1979)
    5 Moore, John C 1970 (1969) 1–0 Phillips, Owen S 1963 (1963)
    6 Twitchell, Neville H 1965 (1965) 0–1 Faulks, Nick W 1956 (1912)
    7 McCall, Martin 1958 (1958) 1–0 Hortin, Matthew J 1937 (1937)
    8 Hughes, Gavin James 1957 (1957) 0–1 Babu, Rahul 1930 (1930)
    9 Robinson, James M 1903 (1906) 1–0 Eckert, Jonathan M 1895 (1899)
    10 Ramage, Colin R 1900 (1902) 1–0 Fenwick, Hugh F 1890 (1888)
    11 Hampton, Christopher 1879 (1879) 1–0 Odunaiya, Victor 1883 (1865)
    12 Horan, George 1879 (1885) 1–0 Sedgwick, David R 1846 (1846)
    13 Spurr, Michael 1857 (1857) ½–½ George, Olufemi 1831 (1820)
    14 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1850 (1851) 1d0 (Fox, James 1825 (1825)) – Default
    15 Kenning, Paul H 1834 (1834) ½–½ Alcock, Graham P 1825 (1813)
    16 Not Named 0000 () 1d0 Default 0000 ()
        10½-5½  

    Webmaster’s Commentary, having loaded all the games from Mark’s emailed snapshots of the score sheets (see game board at the bottom of this page).

    The first match of the new campaign featured last season’s two ECF U2050 County County Championships Finalists – and who can forget that famous Essex come-from-behind victory?

    Faced with travelling across London on a train strike day, Surrey are to be commended for not postponing, while their U1650 team (also due to play Essex at Wanstead) did. Surrey lost a player on the day due to illness and suffered a further default, an hour after the delayed start, for a player stuck in traffic.

    Chairman Colin set a fine example to his colleagues with a brilliancy, Essex’s first win of the day; while Colin eschewed a gambit today, he offered at least three pieces in sacrifice. While none could quite match the Chairman’s example, George Horan had a nice win on debut. Essex were never behind and built up a six point lead before Surrey reduced the winning margin to five.

    Game of the Day by a distance: Colin’s brilliancy against Hugh Fenwick.
    Best Win on Debut: George Horan – OK he was the only debutant today, but a nice game with a neat combination to win a centre pawn (20 Nxe6).
    Easiest Score Sheet to Follow: – neatest, most legible, fewest mistakes (none) – Martin McCall, though we imagine there were further moves in a time-scramble beyond those recorded.
    Today’s Gutsy Decision: Surrey’s sporting choice not to postpone in the face of a train strike, while their U1650 team chose to play another day. While Surrey had already lost a player to illness, they suffered a second default with a player stuck in traffic.

    Blow-by-blow blog – latest items at the top – from Mark Murrell

    18:29 – Good to win over the games played in what was an evenly matched 14 so as to render the defaults by-the-by.
    17:20 – Chris Hampton secures victory converting the R and Ps ending. (Game added.)
    17:55 – Ivan fails to hold N and Ps and top board draws. (Games added.)
    17:35 – Martin turns his game around; an unexpected win. (Game added.)
    17:00 – …and a draw on 2. (Game added.)
    16:55 – With Essex on cusp of victory, Surrey score their second win of the afternoon on bd 6. Essex four up with four to play. (Game added)
    16:50     – Swiftly followed by a John win on 5. (Game added.)
    16:45 – Peter draws on bd4. (Game added.)
    16:40 – Another Essex win,  James Robinson. (Game added.)
    16:20 – George wins on debut. (Game added.)
    15:55 – And the skips (old and current) battle ends in a draw. (Game added.)
    15:45 – Surrey pull one back as Gavin traps his queen. (Game added.)
    15:00 – First Essex win -a brilliancy by our Chairman – and without a gambit (Game below).
    14:40 – Default win on 14 after an hour elapsed from delayed start.
    14:30     – Draw on 13… 3-fold repetition. (Game added.)
    13:55 – Essex all present, Surrey missing two, 1 in car and one on bus.
    13:40 start – M11 broken down lorry holding up some of the Essex Team. Surrey had illness intervening depriving them of a middle order player.
    13:30     – Surrey won the toss and have White on odd numbered boards
    12:05     – Surrey declared one short.

    Games

    Tips
    To flip board: click on squre e7 (with Black at the top); click on square d2 (with White at the top).
    To play through variations onscreen, click on moves within [square brackets], then click back to game move to continue the game.

  • Middx - A

    Played 15 October 2022

    at Phoenix Academy, The Curve, Shepherds Bush W12 0RQ

    Board Middx
    		 v Essex
    1 Patel, Rishi 2046 (B) 1-0 Rix, Steven JL 2033 (W)
    2 Brixel, Christof 2034 0-1 Wilson, Edgar 2009
    3 Mackenzie, Colin 2015 ½-½ Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990
    4 Calvert, D Ian 1993 1-0 Twitchell, Neville H 1965
    5 Dhemrait, Jagdeep 1963 0-1 McCall, Martin 1958
    6 Hayler, Andrew 1961 0-1 Hughes, Gavin James 1957
    7 Tobisch, John 1906 ½-½ Barton, Tom A 1935
    8 Tello, Yasser 1896 1-0 Murrell, Mark RA 1908
    9 Rubeck, Jonathan 1880 0-1 Robinson, James M 1903
    10 Fleming, Liam 1867 1-0 Ramage, Colin R 1900
    11 McAleenan, Charles T 1871 0-1 Figueroa, Edison 1890
    12 Kay, Jonathan 1868 ½-½ Horan, George 1879
    13 Kennelly, Paul 1848 0-1 Staniland, Philip 1855
    14 Healeas, Simon 1845 ½-½ Kingsley, Malcolm P 1850
    15 Fincham, Leon HJ 1844 ½-½ Sheppard, Barry S 1810
    16 Hayali, Laith 1787 1-0 Arbuckle, Jim A 1733
      Average: 1914 7½-8½ Average: 1911

    Report by Mark Murrell

    A much better venue at Middlesex, accessible, spacious, refreshments and parking. However, the M25 could not be avoided for our out of London players who had traffic delays to contend with on route. Fortuitously, not quite long enough to trigger the default time.

    With a number of regulars otherwise engaged almost enough to be a team in themselves, we were reliant on two returning Thurrock players from the U1850 squad to complete the team. As it turned out Middlesex were similarly stretched at their new venue, with the teams proving to be finely matched on paper.

    So the match proved with Middlesex taking and holding the lead for most of the afternoon but never able to pull away. They were helped in their cause by your skip and Chairman, messing up good positions. The lower middle order wagged to bring the match level at 7-7 with the last two Essex players to arrive left in play. One was dead drawn but they slogged it out anyway, leaving Edgar on two, a pawn down in a R and Ps endgame striving to save the match. Playing on increments he did better than that, advanced his King behind enemy lines to create a passed pawn that proved decisive. Well worth the travails of the M25.

    A battling effort that puts the defending SCCU and national Championships in a strong position with two wins from their October double bill.

  • Kent - H

    Played 12 November 2022

    Board Essex v Kent
    1 Wilson, Edgar 2009 (2014) (B) 1-0 Clear, David E 1990 (1987) (W)
    2 McCall, Martin 1958 (2001) ½-½ Tucker, David S 1986 (2002)
    3 Parols, Vladimir 1998 (1998) 0-1 Gluckman, Tim 1945 (1923)
    4 Myall, Ivan J 1994 (1988) 1-0 Charles, Cosmo 1870 (1870)
    5 Moore, John C 1970 (1981) 1-0 Packham, Tony B 1822 (1829)
    6 Reynolds, D Ian W 1953 (1964) ½-½ Brown, David E 1799 (1815)
    7 Twitchell, Neville H 1965 (1939) 1-0 Rutland, Paul C 1795 (1794)
    8 Ghose, Rahul 1929 (1944) ½-½ Lane, Robert E 1776 (1777)
    9 Horan, George 1879 (1926) 1-0 Bishop, Geoffrey L 1712 (1707)
    10 Ramage, Colin R 1900 (1891) 1-0 McKenna, John R 1697 (1654)
    11 Hunnable, Ian D 1913 (1891) ½-½ Verbytski, Oleg 1695 (1760)
    12 Hampton, Christopher 1879 (1884) 1-0 Woolacott , Rob 1688 (1703)
    13 Muhunthan, Charukgan 1878 (1878) 1-0 McKenna, James F 1668 (1608)
    14 Staniland, Philip 1855 (1863) 1-0 Brightley-Davies, Ciaran 1608 (1628)
    15 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1850 (1864) ½-½ Mourant, Malcolm P 1581 (1565)
    16 Pereslavtsev, Alexandr 1722 (1808) 1-0 Jefferies, Tyrone R 1567 (1574)
      Average: 1916 12½-3½ Average: 1763

    Exchange of the team lists revealed a signficant ratings advantage in favour of Essex – by an average of nearly 150 points a board – but it was the visitors who opened the scoring with the win on Board 3. This turned out to be Kent’s only win of the afternoon (not counting the win of the toss).

    Essex levelled the scores with the second result – Alexandr on Board 16. After the draw on Board 6, Essex opened a two point lead with the wins on 12 (Chris) and 14 (Philip). Kent steadied the ship with the draw on Board 2, but Essex then took the match out of Kent’s reach with a scorching run of four wins – Ivan, John, Charukgan and Colin – to make the scores Essex 8-2 Kent.

    The draw on 15 took Essex over the winning line, with five games still in play. The Essex effort didn’t let up – game points may count – with further wins coming from Neville, George and Edgar – the last ten results bringing seven Essex wins and three draws. The final winning margin was nine points – 12½-3½.

  • Surrey - A

    Played 26 November 2022, at Cheam

    Board Surrey v Essex
    1 Foley, John P 2037 (2020) (W) 1-0 Rix, Steven JL 2033 (2039) (B)
    2 Way, Julian M 2025 (2044) ½-½ Wilson, Edgar 2009 (2012)
    3 Heppell, Ian N 1994 (1983) ½-½ McCall, Martin 1958 (2001)
    4 Young, Daniel J 1984 (1985) ½-½ Myall, Ivan J 1994 (1995)
    5 Dupré, Paul D 1983 (1984) ½-½ Moore, John C 1970 (1986)
    6 Shepley, Julien M 1982 (1987) ½-½ Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1982)
    7 Faulks, Nick W 1956 (1937) ½-½ Hughes, Gavin James 1957 (1956)
    8 Stimpson, Philip M 1944 (1932) 0-1 Twitchell, Neville H 1965 (1937)
    9 Babu, Rahul 1930 (2056) ½-½ Horan, George 1879 (1943)
    10 Edwards, Nicholas L 1921 (1949) ½-½ Robinson, James M 1903 (1902)
    11 Eckert, Jonathan M 1895 (1864) ½-½ Shaw, Matthew H 1934 (1918)
    12 Gosling, Marcus 1882 (1901) 0-1 Hunnable, Ian D 1913 (1895)
    13 Sedgwick, David R 1846 (1842) ½-½ Whitton, Terry D 1892 (1910)
    14 Fox, James 1825 (1831) 1-0 Figueroa, Edison 1890 (1892)
    15 Alcock, Graham P 1825 (1826) 0-1 Pereslavtsev, Alexandr 1722 (1832)
    16 Default 0d1 Walkover
      Average: 1815 7-9 Average: 1814

    Report by Mark Murrell

    At Cheam, a late withdrawal on bottom board just before match start gifted a point start to Essex. Michael Spurr graciously stood aside allowing young Sasha to get a game moving up a board to defeat the Surrey skip and open up a two point lead after five draws.

    With nothing between the teams on 1 September average rating over the 15 boards in play, it was perhaps not surprising that there was a high draw tally of 10 draws. Of the five decisive games, Essex edged those 3-2.

    An emboldened Edison sacrificed a rook for an advantage that proved to be a mirage and spent the rest of the match on tenterhooks even though Neville restored the two point lead, which was held until the close, reaching three for a while when President Ian Hunnable took the team over the finishing line converting his rook and pawn ending. Just as well his opponent turned down an earlier draw offer.

    The match was decided on three boards with Knight for pawn(s). Sasha made his Knight count whilst Ivan and Gavin made enough of their pawns to secure crucial draws (and calm Edison’s nerves).

    Essex qualify for the national stage with two matches to spare.

    Progressive scores:
    Games to go Progressive (S – E) Board
    16 0d1 16
    15 ½-1½ 5
    14 1-2 6
    13 1½-2½ 10
    12 2-3 9
    11 2½-3½ 13
    10 2½-4½ 15
    9 3½-4½ 14
    8 3½-5½ 8
    7 4-6 3
    6 4½-6½ 2
    5 5-7 11
    4 5½-7½ 4
    3 5½-8½ 12
    2 6-9 7
    1 7-9 1
  • Middx - H

    Played 21 January 2023, at Wanstead

    Board Essex v Middx
    1 Coote, Trevor D 2047 (2045) (B) ½-½ Brixel, Christof 2034 (2042) (W)
    2 Freeman, Ashley 2000 (2018) ½-½ Mackenzie, Colin 2015 (2023)
    3 Wilson, Edgar 2009 (2018) ½-½ Calvert, D Ian 1993 (2007)
    4 Parols, Vladimir 1998 (1998) 0-1 Dhemrait, Jagdeep 1963 (1974)
    5 Moore, John C 1970 (1991) 0-1 Tobisch, John 1906 (1914)
    6 McCall, Martin 1958 (1984) 1-0 Rubeck, Jonathan 1880 (1898)
    7 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1970) ½-½ Fleming, Liam 1867 (1892)
    8 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1960 (1951) ½-½ Kay, Jonathan 1868 (1862)
    9 Reynolds, D Ian W 1953 (1965) ½-½ Sivanandan, Bodhana 1852 (1933)
    10 Twitchell, Neville H 1965 (1936) 1-0 Kennelly, Paul 1848 (1841)
    11 Hampton, Christopher 1879 (1889) 1-0 Fincham, Leon HJ 1844 (1800)
    12 Hunnable, Ian D 1913 (1894) 1-0 McGuinness, Andrew 1843 (1833)
    13 Ramage, Colin R 1900 (1887) 0-1 Sheard, Jack 1836 (1845)
    14 Staniland, Philip 1855 (1873) ½-½ Breed, Greg J 1830 (1849)
    15 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1850 (1861) ½-½ Phillips, William 1792 (1809)
    16 Spurr, Michael 1857 (1856) 1-0 Parikh, Naavya 1669 (1735)
      Average: 1944 9-7 Average: 1878

    Selection of games below the report…

    Report from acting U2050 Captain, Mark Murrell

    Yesterday’s match was a rather nervous affair and went down to the final minutes of the 4½ hour playing session. 

    On paper it should have been much easier with nearly half of the opposition drawn from the marauding Middlesex U1850 squad but then Essex and Middlesex matches never are.

    The toss was lost, traffic problems delayed six Essex players and then Middlesex took the early lead but fortuitously that was short lived. 

    Twice we took the lead only to be pegged back, but not so for the third time of the afternoon, with just three games left in play including the top two boards, where Trevor Coote and Ashley Freeman were trying to make the most of their first outings this season for the team. 

    Until the decisive penultimate result, there was never more than a game point between the teams. It was fitting that ever-present Martin McCall added that win to secure the SCCU Championship, maintain his unbeaten record and top the U2050 player stats on 4/5.

    As it happened:

    Seq Board Result E – M
    01 08 D ½-½
    02 13 L ½-1½
    03 16 W 1½-1½
    04 12 W 2½-1½
    05 14 D 3-2
    06 09 D 3½-2½
    07 03 D 4-3
    08 04 L 4-4
    09 11 W 5-4
    10 05 L 5-5
    11 15 D 5½-5½
    12 07 D 6-6
    13 10 W 7-6
    14 01 D 7½-6½
    15 06 W 8½-6½
    16 02 D 9-7

    Colour key: Red = score where Middx took the lead   Amber = score where Essex took the lead  Royal blue = winning point

    Selection of Games

  • Kent - A

    Played 18 February 2023, at St Mary Cray

    Board Kent v Essex
    1 Clear, David E 1990 (1977) (B) ½-½ Rix, Steven JL 2033 (2026) (W)
    2 Tucker, David S 1986 (1998) 1-0 Wilson, Edgar 2009 (2027)
    3 Jefferies, Tyrone R 1567 (1556) 0-1 Moore, John C 1970 (1988)
    4 Anstead, Jerry 1955 (1937) ½-½ McCall, Martin 1958 (1993)
    5 Stanchev, Stoyko 1955 (1955) 0-1 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1998)
    6 Wigbout, Rod 1935 (1909) 0-1 Twitchell, Neville H 1965 (1946)
    7 Nevols, Keith 1924 (1934) 1-0 Reynolds, D Ian W 1953 (1934)
    8 Waters, Andrew C 1885 (1902) 0-1 Horan, George 1879 (1983)
    9 Charles, Cosmo 1870 (1863) 0-1 Shaw, Matthew H 1934 (1908)
    10 Packham, Tony B 1822 (1773) ½-½ Hunnable, Ian D 1913 (1903)
    11 Lane, Robert E 1776 (1789) ½-½ Ramage, Colin R 1900 (1871)
    12 Bishop, Geoffrey L 1712 (1697) 1-0 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1850 (1867)
    13 Verbytski, Oleg 1695 (1797) 1-0 Kenning, Paul H 1834 (1855)
    14 Woolacott , Rob 1688 (1686) ½-½ Evans, James 1878 (1878)
    15 McKenna, James F 1668 (1633) 0-1 Pereslavtsev, Alexandr 1722 (1835)
    16 Brightley-Davies, Ciaran 1608 (1624) 0-1 Harte, Ben 1726 (1708)
      Average: 1815 6½-9½ Average: 1908
    As it happened

    By Mark Murrell

    To Play Board Kent Essex Result
    16 13 1 0 L
    15 5 1 1 W
    14 8 1 2 W
    13 11 1½ 2½ D
    12 10 2 3 D
    11 16 2 4 W
    10 14 2½ 4½ D
    9 3 2½ 5½ W
    8 15 2½ 6½ W
    7 6 2½ 7½ W
    6 4 3 8 D
    5 7 4 8 L
    4 1 4½ 8½ D
    3 12 5½ 8½ L
    2 9 5½ 9½ W
    1 2 6½ 9½ L
  • ECF SF - Yorks

    Played 10 June 2023, at syston, Leics

    Board Yorks v Essex
    1 Varley, Joe 2026 (2120) (B) 0-1 Rida, Ruqayyah 1565 (2078) (W)
    2 Wills, Tom 2000 (2105) 1-0 Coote, Trevor D 2047 (2010)
    3 Edwards-Wright, Miles D 2034 (2066) 0-1 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1999)
    4 Larchikov, Maksym 1756 (2065) 0-1 Myall, Ivan J 1994 (1994)
    5 Sullivan, Daniel JS 2010 (2046) 1-0 Twitchell, Neville H 1965 (1979)
    6 Hodge, Steve R 2016 (2038) ½-½ Staniland, Philip 1855 (1927)
    7 Gostelow, Luke 1869 (2018) 1-0 Hampton, Christopher 1879 (1912)
    8 Morgan, John M 2001 (2009) ½-½ Ramage, Colin R 1900 (1911)
    9 Barker, Arron 1947 (1967) 0-1 Flynn, David 1906 (1888)
    10 Hall, James 1808 (1934) 0-1 Hunnable, Ian D 1913 (1886)
    11 Redmond, Pete 1921 (1912) 0-1 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1850 (1875)
    12 Thompson, Keith 1916 (1886) ½-½ Robinson, James M 1903 (1865)
    13 Johnson, Paul A 1903 (1881) 0-1 Spurr, Michael 1857 (1863)
    14 Westmoreland, Steve 1853 (1825) 0-1 Pereslavtsev, Alexandr 1722 (1856)
    15 Cullum, Dale H 1860 (1814) 1-0 Murrell, Mark RA 1908 (1841)
    16 Butterworth, Paul 1722 (1782) 1-0 Islam, Mohammad Rezaul 1150 ()
      Average: 1916 6½-9½ Average: 1838

    Commentary by Mark Murrell

    Well what a semi-final that was!

    Outrated on the vast majority of boards by 100 points with a morning late withdrawal to increase the odds in favour of Yorkshire, the team led from the start and did not look back. A sterling effort combated the top 8 to halve the points, with Peter early on, then Ruqayyah on debut smashing a 2100+ and in the last game to finish with the match already won, Ivan, doing the damage. This together with Sasha setting up the early lead and then a powerhouse middle order drive from David, Ian and Malcolm, Essex took the lower half and the match.

    The upset never looked in doubt.

    The Games

 U2050 @  01 Jul 2023 P W D L Pts %
Martin McCall 1958 6 3 3 0 4½ 75.00
Alexandr Pereslavtsev 1722 4 4 0 0 4 100.00
George Horan 1879 5 3 2 0 4 80.00
Ian Hunnable 1913 5 3 2 0 4 80.00
Peter Jaszkiwskyj 1990 6 2 4 0 4 66.67
Neville Twitchell 1965 7 4 0 3 4 57.14
Michael Spurr 1857 4 3 1 0 3½ 87.50
John Moore 1970 5 3 1 1 3½ 70.00
Edgar Wilson 2009 6 2 3 1 3½ 58.33
Malcolm Kingsley 1850 6 2 3 1 3½ 58.33
Chris Hampton 1879 4 3 0 1 3 75.00
James Robinson 1903 4 2 2 0 3 75.00
Philip Staniland 1855 4 2 2 0 3 75.00
Colin Ramage 1900 6 2 2 2 3 50.00
Ivan Myall 1994 4 2 1 1 2½ 62.50
Matthew Shaw 1934 2 1 1 0 1½ 75.00
Gavin Hughes 1957 3 1 1 1 1½ 50.00
Charukgan Muhunthan 1878 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
Ben Harte 1726 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
Ruqayyah Rida 1565 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
David Flynn 1906 1 1 0 0 1 100.00
Edison Figueroa 1890 2 1 0 1 1 50.00
Ian Reynolds 1953 3 0 2 1 1 33.33
Steve Rix 2033 4 0 2 2 1 25.00
Tom Barton 1935 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
Barry Sheppard 1810 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
Raul Ghose 1929 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
Terry Whitton 1892 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
Ashley Freeman 2000 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
Czeslaw (Sebastian) Ponulak 1960 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
James Evans 1878 1 0 1 0 ½ 50.00
Trevor Coote 2047 2 0 1 1 ½ 25.00
Paul Kenning 1834 2 0 1 1 ½ 25.00
Mark Murrell 1908 2 0 0 2 0 0.00
Jim Arbuckle 1733 1 0 0 1 0 0.00
Vladimir Parols 1998 2 0 0 2 0 0.00
Mohammad Rezaul Islam 1150 1 0 0 1 0 0.00
Walkover 1 1 0 0 1 –
             
 37 players 112 48 41 23 68½ 61.16%

Played 1 October 2022, at 13:30

at Wanstead House

Board Essex v Surrey
1 Rix, Steven JL 2033 (2035) (B) ½–½ Foley, John P 2037 (2039) (W)
2 Wilson, Edgar 2009 (2010) ½–½ Heppell, Ian N 1994 (1994)
3 Myall, Ivan J 1994 (1994) 0–1 Dupré, Paul D 1983 (1989)
4 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1992) ½–½ Shepley, Julien M 1982 (1979)
5 Moore, John C 1970 (1969) 1–0 Phillips, Owen S 1963 (1963)
6 Twitchell, Neville H 1965 (1965) 0–1 Faulks, Nick W 1956 (1912)
7 McCall, Martin 1958 (1958) 1–0 Hortin, Matthew J 1937 (1937)
8 Hughes, Gavin James 1957 (1957) 0–1 Babu, Rahul 1930 (1930)
9 Robinson, James M 1903 (1906) 1–0 Eckert, Jonathan M 1895 (1899)
10 Ramage, Colin R 1900 (1902) 1–0 Fenwick, Hugh F 1890 (1888)
11 Hampton, Christopher 1879 (1879) 1–0 Odunaiya, Victor 1883 (1865)
12 Horan, George 1879 (1885) 1–0 Sedgwick, David R 1846 (1846)
13 Spurr, Michael 1857 (1857) ½–½ George, Olufemi 1831 (1820)
14 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1850 (1851) 1d0 (Fox, James 1825 (1825)) – Default
15 Kenning, Paul H 1834 (1834) ½–½ Alcock, Graham P 1825 (1813)
16 Not Named 0000 () 1d0 Default 0000 ()
    10½-5½  

Webmaster’s Commentary, having loaded all the games from Mark’s emailed snapshots of the score sheets (see game board at the bottom of this page).

The first match of the new campaign featured last season’s two ECF U2050 County County Championships Finalists – and who can forget that famous Essex come-from-behind victory?

Faced with travelling across London on a train strike day, Surrey are to be commended for not postponing, while their U1650 team (also due to play Essex at Wanstead) did. Surrey lost a player on the day due to illness and suffered a further default, an hour after the delayed start, for a player stuck in traffic.

Chairman Colin set a fine example to his colleagues with a brilliancy, Essex’s first win of the day; while Colin eschewed a gambit today, he offered at least three pieces in sacrifice. While none could quite match the Chairman’s example, George Horan had a nice win on debut. Essex were never behind and built up a six point lead before Surrey reduced the winning margin to five.

Game of the Day by a distance: Colin’s brilliancy against Hugh Fenwick.
Best Win on Debut: George Horan – OK he was the only debutant today, but a nice game with a neat combination to win a centre pawn (20 Nxe6).
Easiest Score Sheet to Follow: – neatest, most legible, fewest mistakes (none) – Martin McCall, though we imagine there were further moves in a time-scramble beyond those recorded.
Today’s Gutsy Decision: Surrey’s sporting choice not to postpone in the face of a train strike, while their U1650 team chose to play another day. While Surrey had already lost a player to illness, they suffered a second default with a player stuck in traffic.

Blow-by-blow blog – latest items at the top – from Mark Murrell

18:29 – Good to win over the games played in what was an evenly matched 14 so as to render the defaults by-the-by.
17:20 – Chris Hampton secures victory converting the R and Ps ending. (Game added.)
17:55 – Ivan fails to hold N and Ps and top board draws. (Games added.)
17:35 – Martin turns his game around; an unexpected win. (Game added.)
17:00 – …and a draw on 2. (Game added.)
16:55 – With Essex on cusp of victory, Surrey score their second win of the afternoon on bd 6. Essex four up with four to play. (Game added)
16:50 – Swiftly followed by a John win on 5. (Game added.)
16:45 – Peter draws on bd4. (Game added.)
16:40 – Another Essex win,  James Robinson. (Game added.)
16:20 – George wins on debut. (Game added.)
15:55 – And the skips (old and current) battle ends in a draw. (Game added.)
15:45 – Surrey pull one back as Gavin traps his queen. (Game added.)
15:00 – First Essex win -a brilliancy by our Chairman – and without a gambit (Game below).
14:40 – Default win on 14 after an hour elapsed from delayed start.
14:30 – Draw on 13… 3-fold repetition. (Game added.)
13:55 – Essex all present, Surrey missing two, 1 in car and one on bus.
13:40 start – M11 broken down lorry holding up some of the Essex Team. Surrey had illness intervening depriving them of a middle order player.
13:30 – Surrey won the toss and have White on odd numbered boards
12:05 – Surrey declared one short.

Games

Tips
To flip board: click on squre e7 (with Black at the top); click on square d2 (with White at the top).
To play through variations onscreen, click on moves within [square brackets], then click back to game move to continue the game.

Played 15 October 2022

at Phoenix Academy, The Curve, Shepherds Bush W12 0RQ

Board Middx
 v Essex
1 Patel, Rishi 2046 (B) 1-0 Rix, Steven JL 2033 (W)
2 Brixel, Christof 2034 0-1 Wilson, Edgar 2009
3 Mackenzie, Colin 2015 ½-½ Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990
4 Calvert, D Ian 1993 1-0 Twitchell, Neville H 1965
5 Dhemrait, Jagdeep 1963 0-1 McCall, Martin 1958
6 Hayler, Andrew 1961 0-1 Hughes, Gavin James 1957
7 Tobisch, John 1906 ½-½ Barton, Tom A 1935
8 Tello, Yasser 1896 1-0 Murrell, Mark RA 1908
9 Rubeck, Jonathan 1880 0-1 Robinson, James M 1903
10 Fleming, Liam 1867 1-0 Ramage, Colin R 1900
11 McAleenan, Charles T 1871 0-1 Figueroa, Edison 1890
12 Kay, Jonathan 1868 ½-½ Horan, George 1879
13 Kennelly, Paul 1848 0-1 Staniland, Philip 1855
14 Healeas, Simon 1845 ½-½ Kingsley, Malcolm P 1850
15 Fincham, Leon HJ 1844 ½-½ Sheppard, Barry S 1810
16 Hayali, Laith 1787 1-0 Arbuckle, Jim A 1733
  Average: 1914 7½-8½ Average: 1911

Report by Mark Murrell

A much better venue at Middlesex, accessible, spacious, refreshments and parking. However, the M25 could not be avoided for our out of London players who had traffic delays to contend with on route. Fortuitously, not quite long enough to trigger the default time.

With a number of regulars otherwise engaged almost enough to be a team in themselves, we were reliant on two returning Thurrock players from the U1850 squad to complete the team. As it turned out Middlesex were similarly stretched at their new venue, with the teams proving to be finely matched on paper.

So the match proved with Middlesex taking and holding the lead for most of the afternoon but never able to pull away. They were helped in their cause by your skip and Chairman, messing up good positions. The lower middle order wagged to bring the match level at 7-7 with the last two Essex players to arrive left in play. One was dead drawn but they slogged it out anyway, leaving Edgar on two, a pawn down in a R and Ps endgame striving to save the match. Playing on increments he did better than that, advanced his King behind enemy lines to create a passed pawn that proved decisive. Well worth the travails of the M25.

A battling effort that puts the defending SCCU and national Championships in a strong position with two wins from their October double bill.

Played 12 November 2022

Board Essex v Kent
1 Wilson, Edgar 2009 (2014) (B) 1-0 Clear, David E 1990 (1987) (W)
2 McCall, Martin 1958 (2001) ½-½ Tucker, David S 1986 (2002)
3 Parols, Vladimir 1998 (1998) 0-1 Gluckman, Tim 1945 (1923)
4 Myall, Ivan J 1994 (1988) 1-0 Charles, Cosmo 1870 (1870)
5 Moore, John C 1970 (1981) 1-0 Packham, Tony B 1822 (1829)
6 Reynolds, D Ian W 1953 (1964) ½-½ Brown, David E 1799 (1815)
7 Twitchell, Neville H 1965 (1939) 1-0 Rutland, Paul C 1795 (1794)
8 Ghose, Rahul 1929 (1944) ½-½ Lane, Robert E 1776 (1777)
9 Horan, George 1879 (1926) 1-0 Bishop, Geoffrey L 1712 (1707)
10 Ramage, Colin R 1900 (1891) 1-0 McKenna, John R 1697 (1654)
11 Hunnable, Ian D 1913 (1891) ½-½ Verbytski, Oleg 1695 (1760)
12 Hampton, Christopher 1879 (1884) 1-0 Woolacott , Rob 1688 (1703)
13 Muhunthan, Charukgan 1878 (1878) 1-0 McKenna, James F 1668 (1608)
14 Staniland, Philip 1855 (1863) 1-0 Brightley-Davies, Ciaran 1608 (1628)
15 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1850 (1864) ½-½ Mourant, Malcolm P 1581 (1565)
16 Pereslavtsev, Alexandr 1722 (1808) 1-0 Jefferies, Tyrone R 1567 (1574)
  Average: 1916 12½-3½ Average: 1763

Exchange of the team lists revealed a signficant ratings advantage in favour of Essex – by an average of nearly 150 points a board – but it was the visitors who opened the scoring with the win on Board 3. This turned out to be Kent’s only win of the afternoon (not counting the win of the toss).

Essex levelled the scores with the second result – Alexandr on Board 16. After the draw on Board 6, Essex opened a two point lead with the wins on 12 (Chris) and 14 (Philip). Kent steadied the ship with the draw on Board 2, but Essex then took the match out of Kent’s reach with a scorching run of four wins – Ivan, John, Charukgan and Colin – to make the scores Essex 8-2 Kent.

The draw on 15 took Essex over the winning line, with five games still in play. The Essex effort didn’t let up – game points may count – with further wins coming from Neville, George and Edgar – the last ten results bringing seven Essex wins and three draws. The final winning margin was nine points – 12½-3½.

Played 26 November 2022, at Cheam

Board Surrey v Essex
1 Foley, John P 2037 (2020) (W) 1-0 Rix, Steven JL 2033 (2039) (B)
2 Way, Julian M 2025 (2044) ½-½ Wilson, Edgar 2009 (2012)
3 Heppell, Ian N 1994 (1983) ½-½ McCall, Martin 1958 (2001)
4 Young, Daniel J 1984 (1985) ½-½ Myall, Ivan J 1994 (1995)
5 Dupré, Paul D 1983 (1984) ½-½ Moore, John C 1970 (1986)
6 Shepley, Julien M 1982 (1987) ½-½ Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1982)
7 Faulks, Nick W 1956 (1937) ½-½ Hughes, Gavin James 1957 (1956)
8 Stimpson, Philip M 1944 (1932) 0-1 Twitchell, Neville H 1965 (1937)
9 Babu, Rahul 1930 (2056) ½-½ Horan, George 1879 (1943)
10 Edwards, Nicholas L 1921 (1949) ½-½ Robinson, James M 1903 (1902)
11 Eckert, Jonathan M 1895 (1864) ½-½ Shaw, Matthew H 1934 (1918)
12 Gosling, Marcus 1882 (1901) 0-1 Hunnable, Ian D 1913 (1895)
13 Sedgwick, David R 1846 (1842) ½-½ Whitton, Terry D 1892 (1910)
14 Fox, James 1825 (1831) 1-0 Figueroa, Edison 1890 (1892)
15 Alcock, Graham P 1825 (1826) 0-1 Pereslavtsev, Alexandr 1722 (1832)
16 Default 0d1 Walkover
  Average: 1815 7-9 Average: 1814

Report by Mark Murrell

At Cheam, a late withdrawal on bottom board just before match start gifted a point start to Essex. Michael Spurr graciously stood aside allowing young Sasha to get a game moving up a board to defeat the Surrey skip and open up a two point lead after five draws.

With nothing between the teams on 1 September average rating over the 15 boards in play, it was perhaps not surprising that there was a high draw tally of 10 draws. Of the five decisive games, Essex edged those 3-2.

An emboldened Edison sacrificed a rook for an advantage that proved to be a mirage and spent the rest of the match on tenterhooks even though Neville restored the two point lead, which was held until the close, reaching three for a while when President Ian Hunnable took the team over the finishing line converting his rook and pawn ending. Just as well his opponent turned down an earlier draw offer.

The match was decided on three boards with Knight for pawn(s). Sasha made his Knight count whilst Ivan and Gavin made enough of their pawns to secure crucial draws (and calm Edison’s nerves).

Essex qualify for the national stage with two matches to spare.

Progressive scores:
Games to go Progressive (S – E) Board
16 0d1 16
15 ½-1½ 5
14 1-2 6
13 1½-2½ 10
12 2-3 9
11 2½-3½ 13
10 2½-4½ 15
9 3½-4½ 14
8 3½-5½ 8
7 4-6 3
6 4½-6½ 2
5 5-7 11
4 5½-7½ 4
3 5½-8½ 12
2 6-9 7
1 7-9 1

Played 21 January 2023, at Wanstead

Board Essex v Middx
1 Coote, Trevor D 2047 (2045) (B) ½-½ Brixel, Christof 2034 (2042) (W)
2 Freeman, Ashley 2000 (2018) ½-½ Mackenzie, Colin 2015 (2023)
3 Wilson, Edgar 2009 (2018) ½-½ Calvert, D Ian 1993 (2007)
4 Parols, Vladimir 1998 (1998) 0-1 Dhemrait, Jagdeep 1963 (1974)
5 Moore, John C 1970 (1991) 0-1 Tobisch, John 1906 (1914)
6 McCall, Martin 1958 (1984) 1-0 Rubeck, Jonathan 1880 (1898)
7 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1970) ½-½ Fleming, Liam 1867 (1892)
8 Ponulak, Czeslaw (Sebastian) 1960 (1951) ½-½ Kay, Jonathan 1868 (1862)
9 Reynolds, D Ian W 1953 (1965) ½-½ Sivanandan, Bodhana 1852 (1933)
10 Twitchell, Neville H 1965 (1936) 1-0 Kennelly, Paul 1848 (1841)
11 Hampton, Christopher 1879 (1889) 1-0 Fincham, Leon HJ 1844 (1800)
12 Hunnable, Ian D 1913 (1894) 1-0 McGuinness, Andrew 1843 (1833)
13 Ramage, Colin R 1900 (1887) 0-1 Sheard, Jack 1836 (1845)
14 Staniland, Philip 1855 (1873) ½-½ Breed, Greg J 1830 (1849)
15 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1850 (1861) ½-½ Phillips, William 1792 (1809)
16 Spurr, Michael 1857 (1856) 1-0 Parikh, Naavya 1669 (1735)
  Average: 1944 9-7 Average: 1878

Selection of games below the report…

Report from acting U2050 Captain, Mark Murrell

Yesterday’s match was a rather nervous affair and went down to the final minutes of the 4½ hour playing session. 

On paper it should have been much easier with nearly half of the opposition drawn from the marauding Middlesex U1850 squad but then Essex and Middlesex matches never are.

The toss was lost, traffic problems delayed six Essex players and then Middlesex took the early lead but fortuitously that was short lived. 

Twice we took the lead only to be pegged back, but not so for the third time of the afternoon, with just three games left in play including the top two boards, where Trevor Coote and Ashley Freeman were trying to make the most of their first outings this season for the team. 

Until the decisive penultimate result, there was never more than a game point between the teams. It was fitting that ever-present Martin McCall added that win to secure the SCCU Championship, maintain his unbeaten record and top the U2050 player stats on 4/5.

As it happened:

Seq Board Result E – M
01 08 D ½-½
02 13 L ½-1½
03 16 W 1½-1½
04 12 W 2½-1½
05 14 D 3-2
06 09 D 3½-2½
07 03 D 4-3
08 04 L 4-4
09 11 W 5-4
10 05 L 5-5
11 15 D 5½-5½
12 07 D 6-6
13 10 W 7-6
14 01 D 7½-6½
15 06 W 8½-6½
16 02 D 9-7

Colour key: Red = score where Middx took the lead   Amber = score where Essex took the lead  Royal blue = winning point

Selection of Games

Played 18 February 2023, at St Mary Cray

Board Kent v Essex
1 Clear, David E 1990 (1977) (B) ½-½ Rix, Steven JL 2033 (2026) (W)
2 Tucker, David S 1986 (1998) 1-0 Wilson, Edgar 2009 (2027)
3 Jefferies, Tyrone R 1567 (1556) 0-1 Moore, John C 1970 (1988)
4 Anstead, Jerry 1955 (1937) ½-½ McCall, Martin 1958 (1993)
5 Stanchev, Stoyko 1955 (1955) 0-1 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1998)
6 Wigbout, Rod 1935 (1909) 0-1 Twitchell, Neville H 1965 (1946)
7 Nevols, Keith 1924 (1934) 1-0 Reynolds, D Ian W 1953 (1934)
8 Waters, Andrew C 1885 (1902) 0-1 Horan, George 1879 (1983)
9 Charles, Cosmo 1870 (1863) 0-1 Shaw, Matthew H 1934 (1908)
10 Packham, Tony B 1822 (1773) ½-½ Hunnable, Ian D 1913 (1903)
11 Lane, Robert E 1776 (1789) ½-½ Ramage, Colin R 1900 (1871)
12 Bishop, Geoffrey L 1712 (1697) 1-0 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1850 (1867)
13 Verbytski, Oleg 1695 (1797) 1-0 Kenning, Paul H 1834 (1855)
14 Woolacott , Rob 1688 (1686) ½-½ Evans, James 1878 (1878)
15 McKenna, James F 1668 (1633) 0-1 Pereslavtsev, Alexandr 1722 (1835)
16 Brightley-Davies, Ciaran 1608 (1624) 0-1 Harte, Ben 1726 (1708)
  Average: 1815 6½-9½ Average: 1908
As it happened

By Mark Murrell

To Play Board Kent Essex Result
16 13 1 0 L
15 5 1 1 W
14 8 1 2 W
13 11 1½ 2½ D
12 10 2 3 D
11 16 2 4 W
10 14 2½ 4½ D
9 3 2½ 5½ W
8 15 2½ 6½ W
7 6 2½ 7½ W
6 4 3 8 D
5 7 4 8 L
4 1 4½ 8½ D
3 12 5½ 8½ L
2 9 5½ 9½ W
1 2 6½ 9½ L

Played 10 June 2023, at syston, Leics

Board Yorks v Essex
1 Varley, Joe 2026 (2120) (B) 0-1 Rida, Ruqayyah 1565 (2078) (W)
2 Wills, Tom 2000 (2105) 1-0 Coote, Trevor D 2047 (2010)
3 Edwards-Wright, Miles D 2034 (2066) 0-1 Jaszkiwskyj, Peter 1990 (1999)
4 Larchikov, Maksym 1756 (2065) 0-1 Myall, Ivan J 1994 (1994)
5 Sullivan, Daniel JS 2010 (2046) 1-0 Twitchell, Neville H 1965 (1979)
6 Hodge, Steve R 2016 (2038) ½-½ Staniland, Philip 1855 (1927)
7 Gostelow, Luke 1869 (2018) 1-0 Hampton, Christopher 1879 (1912)
8 Morgan, John M 2001 (2009) ½-½ Ramage, Colin R 1900 (1911)
9 Barker, Arron 1947 (1967) 0-1 Flynn, David 1906 (1888)
10 Hall, James 1808 (1934) 0-1 Hunnable, Ian D 1913 (1886)
11 Redmond, Pete 1921 (1912) 0-1 Kingsley, Malcolm P 1850 (1875)
12 Thompson, Keith 1916 (1886) ½-½ Robinson, James M 1903 (1865)
13 Johnson, Paul A 1903 (1881) 0-1 Spurr, Michael 1857 (1863)
14 Westmoreland, Steve 1853 (1825) 0-1 Pereslavtsev, Alexandr 1722 (1856)
15 Cullum, Dale H 1860 (1814) 1-0 Murrell, Mark RA 1908 (1841)
16 Butterworth, Paul 1722 (1782) 1-0 Islam, Mohammad Rezaul 1150 ()
  Average: 1916 6½-9½ Average: 1838

Commentary by Mark Murrell

Well what a semi-final that was!

Outrated on the vast majority of boards by 100 points with a morning late withdrawal to increase the odds in favour of Yorkshire, the team led from the start and did not look back. A sterling effort combated the top 8 to halve the points, with Peter early on, then Ruqayyah on debut smashing a 2100+ and in the last game to finish with the match already won, Ivan, doing the damage. This together with Sasha setting up the early lead and then a powerhouse middle order drive from David, Ian and Malcolm, Essex took the lower half and the match.

The upset never looked in doubt.

The Games

Due to have been played on 1 July 2023

Essex 16-0 Warwickshire

Warwickshire conceded the match the day before, unable to raise a full team.

Essex U2050 are Champions.