Bca gazette

The Gazette

February 2020

Registered Charity Number 263049

Supporting Chess Players with Sight Loss.

This issue has kindly been sponsored by The Ulverscroft Foundation

BCA Website Address:www.braillechess.org.uk

Email:customerservices@braillechess.org.uk

Twitter: https://twitter.com/braillechess@braillechess

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/BrailleChess

To contact a member of the committee, please see the Braille Chess Association’s website where there is a facility for emailing each officer.

Note: The views expressed in the Gazette do not necessarily reflect the policies or views of the BCA, nor those of the editor.

CONTENTS

Editorial3

Forthcoming Events3

All Under One Roof5

Call for Haaksbergen 20206

Words from the Whitehouse6

Millennium Club, the BCA’s monthly lottery7

Treasurer’s Report7

Membership Secretary’s Report8

Correspondence Chess Director’s Report8

David Hodgkins Memorial Annual Best Game Prize9

A Game from the BCA Geoff Patching Memorial British Championship 20199

11th BCA Email Tournament13

2019 Hans and Stefi Cohn Memorial International Autumn Tournament15

Letter from Julia and Roy Scott16

The Dresden Trap16

A Five Minute Game17

Planned Changes to the ECF Grading System17

Puzzles Selected by Chris17

Personalia17

David Welch 1945 - 201918

Editorial

The Chinese Year of the Rat began on the 25th of January. Often thought of in the west as plague carrying vermin to be duly eradicated using poison or a Pied Piper, in China these animals are a sign of wealth and surplus. Those born in the Year of the Rat are well-liked and thought to be clever, optimistic, energetic and successful.

The Rat is the first creature in the Chinese zodiac cycle. According to one myth, the Emperor declared that the sequence would be decided by the order in which they arrived at his party. The Rat tricked the Ox into giving him a ride on his back, then, just as they reached the finish line, the Rat jumped down and entered first. Does this put a fresh slant on the term “rat race”? Certainly, it indicates a degree of underhandedness which tallies with insults like “You dirty rat”, as heard in the movies. Thankfully, conduct of this nature is extremely rare at BCA events. This issue contains an article with a fine example of good sportsmanship on both sides of an email game!

People born in the Year of the Rat are said to be frugal and good at making decisions about money so perhaps it is fitting that there is a recurring financial thread running through this quarter’s issue. You can read about how we said farewell to our retiring fundraiser and who has replaced her. Meanwhile our treasurer has suggestions for how all members can help raise funds and, by purchasing BCA branded items, raise awareness of our charity too!

Rats are believed to be content with living a peaceful life. Alas, Stan Lovell, judge of the 2019 best game competition, has had no such luxury lately. He has been busy playing through the dozens of games that were entered. However, now that Stan has selected the winner, we hope that things have calmed down for him. You’ll have to read Stan’s article to find out who won!

Traps are sometimes deployed to deal with rat infestations. As we all know, there are plenty of traps in chess as well and you don’t have to be a rat to get caught! Hugo Roman from Belgium has sent in a captivating example. Hugo is a regular attendee at the friendly Haaksbergen tournament in the Netherlands. There is still just time to book for the 2020 event but you’ll have to be quicker than a rat up a drainpipe!

One member, who shall remain nameless, found that Chris’s November puzzle was gnawing at his or her mind so keenly that they had to contact me for the solution! Naturally this option is open to any members who risk being driven to distraction by Chris’s conundrums. We absolutely cannot have members experiencing mental anguish as a result of these brainteasers so please do not suffer in silence. Anonymity is guaranteed. I won’t rat on you!

Finally, with great sadness, we pay tribute to arbiter David Welch, who passed away in November. His achievements were many and we were fortunate to have him as a controller at our tournaments in recent years.

I will leave you with a rodent related quotation attributed to Viktor Korchnoi: “Skeletons of mice are often to be found in coconuts, for it is easier to get in, slim and greedy, than to get out, appeased but fat.” I sincerely hope that no members find themselves in such a predicament after over indulging during the midwinter festivities!

Please send me your contributions for the May issue by the end of March.

Julie Leonard

Forthcoming Events

17th to 19th April 2020: AGM Weekend Chess Congress

This will take place at The Hallmark Hotel, Derby. The AGM will be held at 2pm on Saturday 18th April. We are pleased to be returning to this popular hotel with its excellent facilities. The hotel is very conveniently located within a few yards walk of Derby railway station.

There will be two five round chess tournaments. The Open section is open to all visually impaired chess players and associate members of the BCA. The Challengers is limited to those graded 100 or below. The entry fee for both tournaments is £10. The cost of dinner, bed and breakfast for members and associate members is £44 per person per night for Friday and Saturday nights in a single room, and £40 per person per night in a double/twin room. For those staying on the Sunday night, the cost will be £65 per person in a single room and £54 per person in a double/twin. For non-members of the BCA, please contact the organiser for the cost of accommodation. The closing date for entries is 21st February. Please send your entry fee and full payment for all accommodation to Gill Smith by this date. Any resolutions or other items for inclusion on the AGM agenda should have been sent to Guy Whitehouse by 31st January 2020. Also, let Guy know if you are planning to attend the AGM without staying at the hotel so that we can let you have the AGM papers.

Organiser Steve Burnell.

Friday 12th to Friday 19th June 2020: The Sheila and David Milsom Memorial Chairman’s Cup.

This will take place once again at the Marsham Court Hotel, Bournemouth, which proved to be a very popular venue for our 2018 event. It is very friendly and comfortable and we also have use of an outdoor heated pool. The parking and green areas are also very good.

The Chairman's Cup is open to all visually impaired players whose grade or estimated grade is ECF 140 (equates to FIDE 1750) or below in either the July 2019 or January 2020 grading lists and to BCA associate members within the same grading limit. The event is played over 7 rounds with one round each day. Players may request a half point bye in any one of the first six rounds. If there are sufficient numbers there will be two sections. Entry fee: £10. Cost of dinner, bed and breakfast accommodation to members and associate members of BCA: £300 for the week irrespective of room type. The cost to those booking for less than the full week will be £45 per day for members and associate members. For anyone wishing to stay additional nights at the beginning or end of the tournament, the cost per night will be £65 per person regardless of room type.

In addition to the chess tournament there will be a varied programme of social activities. Anyone with ideas for social events, or who wants further information is invited to contact the organisers: John and Pam Jenkins.

The closing date for bookings is 27th April 2020. Bookings accepted after that date, at the discretion of the organiser, will be subject to a late booking fee of £10 per person. Bookings, including full payment, should be sent to: Mrs Gill Smith (see list of BCA Officers for contact details). Please note: Rooms will not be reserved until full payment has been received.

Booking Conditions and Procedures

By entering a BCA tournament, a player is deemed to have consented for their name and any special requirements to be passed to the hotel prior to the event. Also, consent is considered to have been given for a player’s name, club, results and possibly also their gender to be sent to the ECF for grading purposes. For juniors, the date of birth is also required if they are to get the age-related grading bonus they are entitled to.

If you have any queries about the hotel or the tournament please contact the organiser. Blind and partially sighted UK residents under the age of 25 receive free entry and free accommodation when playing in BCA events. In appropriate circumstances, free accommodation is also available to a parent or guardian accompanying a junior.

Visually impaired UK residents in their first year of membership receive their first BCA weekend event free or £100 reduction in the cost of a week-long event. They may also be accompanied by a guide or companion who will receive the same concession. For a first event we ask for payment in advance and we then make a refund at the event. You may pay in these ways:

Cheques payable to Braille Chess Association should be sent to Gill Smith, see the front of the Gazette for her address. Online or telephone payments may be made to:

Braille Chess Association, sort code 40 52 40, account number 00082456.

Credit/debit card payments may be made through the BCA website.

If you pay by direct payment then you should inform Gill when the payment has been made. Bookings accepted after the closing date are subject to a £10 late booking penalty for each person. Late bookings and entries are accepted at the discretion of the organiser. Bookings are confirmed when full payment has been received. Payments can only be refunded within the time limit set in the terms and conditions set by the hotels. Members are advised to take out holiday insurance to cover themselves.

When contacting Gill please let her know if you want a single, double or twin room and if you have a preference for a bath or a shower. And remember, if emailing Gill, copy in the tournament organiser.

Also say whether any of the following apply.

1 If you will be bringing a guide dog;

2 If you are on a special diet;

3 If you have mobility problems and would benefit from being located in a room near to a lift;

4 If you are a wheelchair user;

5 If you feel you would have any special difficulties in an emergency such as a fire evacuation;

6 Any other special requirements.

The BCA reserves the right to refuse or cancel any entry or to exclude any person from any event it runs.

All Under One Roof

A note from your Congress Support Officer, Mark Kirkham:

If you would like to participate in any of the following events, or indeed any that are not listed here, then why not make use of the congress support scheme? It's designed to help BCA members meet the costs of entering mainstream congresses such as travel and accommodation expenses, or just the entry fee itself. It's open to all members who have played in a BCA event over the past year who have not also received international funding. Anyone who was previously deterred by the bind of writing a report on the event, will be pleased to hear that this requirement has been removed as we felt it was somewhat formal. All we ask for now is a little feedback.

If you are considering entering one of the events listed below you may well find yourself in good company as some of them are popular with BCA members. In order to make a claim there are three simple steps:-

1. Contact the Congress Support Officer at least one week prior to the event. Retrospective claims will not normally be accepted. (See list of officers for Mark’s contact details.)

2. Send a receipt or proof of expenditure to the Treasurer on return from the congress. Claims can include entry fee, accommodation, travel and any other reasonable expenses. The Congress Support Scheme does not cover claims for insurance.

3. Provide feedback on the event to the Congress Support Officer. This does not need to be formal, and will be stored as an anonymous record for our database. It may benefit other BCA members thinking of attending the same event in the future.

Please note that, in the spirit of the Congress Support Scheme, failure to complete all of the above steps may mean that we cannot guarantee that your claim will be processed successfully, as the scheme is subject to available funds. (Contact details for the Congress Support Officer and the Treasurer are in the list of officers.)

Editor’s Note:

Members are reminded that Mark Kirkham is stepping down as Congress Support Officer in April. Anyone who is interested in taking over from Mark should contact him to find out more about the role.

List of All Under One Roof events by Guy Whitehouse:

This list should not be treated as definitive and is only as complete as I can make it whilst complying with gazette deadlines. The following events take place in hotels so the accommodation and tournament are at the same venue.

Castle Chess

These are organised by the Castle Chess directors, Tony and Barbara Corfe and Marc Shaw. The website www.castlechess.co.uk gives the email address enquiries@castlechess.co.uk. Castle Chess are well used to having visually impaired participants in their events. I have also found that other participants in Castle Chess events have got to know and befriended BCA players.

Please note that unless otherwise stated, all Castle Chess congresses are six-round Swiss events and you are allowed to take a half-point bye in any two of the first five rounds. The grading bands are an Open which also has an U175 Premier section, the Major for those under 155 with an Intermediate section for U135s, and a Minor section for those with a grade less than 115 with a Challengers section for U95s.

28th February – 1st March 2020, 16th Fareham Congress, Lysses House Hotel, Fareham.

This tournament is one of the most well-established events on Castle Chess’s programme and is popular with our members.

Other Events

2nd – 7th February 2020, Rothay Manor Chess Holiday, Rothay Manor Hotel, Ambleside

Five night residential chess holiday/course with tutor Winston Williams. Seminars, lectures, presentations, simultaneous display, tournament league play and rapid-play. For club level players and improving regular players looking to improve their chess knowledge and ability. Contact hotel on 015394 33605 to book your place.

Contact: Peter Sinclair Web: http://www.rothaymanor.co.uk

14th – 16th February 2020, Dyfed Congress, Fishguard Bay Hotel, Quay Road, Goodwick, Pembrokeshire

Five round Swiss with sections: FIDE Open and Major U1700 (ECF 134). Also a FIDE rated Blitz.

Contact: Tony Haigh Email: tony@brithdirmawr.co.uk Web: http://dyfed-chess.org

13th – 15th March 2020, 44th Blackpool Chess Conference, The Imperial Hotel Blackpool FY1 3HB

Five round Swiss with sections: Lancashire Open, Major U181, Intermediate U155, Minor U135, Standard U115.

Email Bill O’Rourke: blackpoolchessconference@virginmedia.com Web: http://www.blackpoolchess.org.uk

9th – 13th April 2020, 2nd 4NCL Easter FIDE Rated Congress, Holiday Inn, Kenilworth CV8 1ED

Nine round FIDE Open. Seven round sections: FIDE Rated U2050, FIDE Rated U1825 and ECF Under 120:

Contact: Mike Truran Web: http://www.4ncl.co.uk

10th – 13th April 2020, West of England Chess Union Congress, Royal Beacon Hotel, Exmouth, Devon

Seven rounds. Sections: West of England Open (FIDE registered qualifying event for British Championships), FIDE rated major U1950, ECF graded minor U130. These also incorporate the West of England Ladies’ Championship. Contact: Meyrick Shaw Email: wecu@hotmail.co.uk Web: http://www.wecucongress.com

30th April – 3rd May 2020, English Seniors Championships, Holiday Inn, Kenilworth CV8 1ED

Seven rounds. Two sections for players aged 50 or over and 65 or over. ECF graded and FIDE rated. Contact: Ed Goodwin Web: https://www.englishchess.org.uk/english-seniors-championships/

1st – 3rd May 2020, 2nd Cornwall Open Cornwall Congress, Falmouth Hotel, Falmouth.

The sections are the Championship (including players graded under 190), a Major (U-150) and a Minor (U-110). Contact Rebecca Gardiner Email: cornwallcongress@gmail.com

1st – 3rd May 2020, Durham County Chess Congress, Mercure Darlington, Kings Hotel, Darlington

Five rounds. Sections: Open, Major (ECF rating 170 and below), Minor (ECF rating 135 and below).

Contact: Mick Riding To enter online – https://durhamchesscongress.co.uk

22nd – 25th May 2020, 3rd 4NCL Spring Bank Holiday Congress, Basingstoke Country Hotel, RG27 9JS

Seven rounds. Sections: FIDE Rated Open, FIDE Rated U2050, FIDE Rated U1825 and ECF Under 120:

Contact: Mike Truran Web: http://www.4ncl.co.uk

Call for Haaksbergen 2020

This year's Haaksbergen tournament will take place over the weekend of 25th - 26th April. Normally we allow a couple of days travel time either side of that because we've used the ferry from Harwich, but if anyone interested in going wants to make their own travel arrangements that's fine as long as they let me know.

I'd encourage people to give this tournament a try; you get to stay with host families, play some chess, enjoy some entertainment and go out for a meal on the Sunday evening with your host families. It's the most relaxed of the chess events that I've been on. Maybe some people who have been in the past might like to consider going again and renewing some old acquaintances?

The committee has agreed a £75 subsidy for those who wish to attend. Please get in touch with me immediately if you would like to go.

Guy Whitehouse

Words from the Whitehouse

Our last committee meeting was held on 12 October; consequently, I wasn’t able to get my customary report on committee proceedings into the November gazette. Although the meeting took place a while ago, there is still plenty worth reporting on.

We decided that junior development was important enough to make it a permanent committee post. I was asked to prepare a motion on this in time for the AGM in April.

Dan has several ideas on how to raise the association’s profile, particularly online. The aim is to reach out to various forums run by and for visually impaired people and also to look into retweeting announcements made by people in the mainstream chess world in the hope that they will then retweet our news. We also intend to get the association mentioned on the British Blind Sports website, and Dan has also speculated on the possibility of starting a BCA blog and using chess teaching material aimed at beginners to raise the association’s profile.

Our thoughts on outreach are not limited to the online world. We’re hoping to approach two charities that work with visually impaired children with the idea of having a presence at one of their events next year. Voldi has visited the RNC in Hereford and is trying to generate interest in New College, Worcester.

The need for new venues continues to feature on our agenda. We are looking at a hotel in Worcester and another in Milton Keynes. Although the Windermere chess theme break will be held at Windermere Manor in 2020, from 2021 onwards we anticipate moving this to another venue, possibly the Cliffden Hotel in Teignmouth.

We’ve noted the continued interest in the magnetic sets from Italy. I’ve been told that our current supplier of non-magnetic sets, Chess Baron, are looking at producing their own magnetic set. I’ll monitor developments on this. We did think that if the next lot of traditional design sets we order from Chess Baron were not up to scratch, we might have to consider making the magnetic set the main set we supply to members and recommend to others, though the expense this would involve would make us think long and hard before doing so.

Which leads me nicely on to financial issues: those of you who were at the autumn tournament will know that we presented Julia with a retirement gift as a thank you for the splendid work she has done for the association over the years; it was a moving occasion. During the summer and autumn Norman and Gill sifted through sixty applications to be our new fundraiser and then interviewed five shortlisted candidates. We’ve now appointed a new fundraiser, Linda Innes. I’m told that she once worked as a stand-up comedian!

We are going to have to discuss our ongoing activities and key aspects of our plan to move the association forward with Linda. One example of this is that we’ve speculated on employing a dedicated recruiter, at least on a short-term basis; we agreed at the October meeting we couldn’t act on this unilaterally and that we should wait till Linda has settled into her new role. Another example is our attendance at international events. We’ve been in the habit of sending more than one player to international individual events, not just the person who has earned the right to go because they won the BCA championship. This has made sense as it has increased our chances of a good showing which in turn generates excellent publicity for us; however, if it becomes difficult to raise funds, and, for example, if hotel prices continue to rise, we’ll have to consider how to deploy our resources.

The other thing which has continued to take up a lot of time is finalising a list of members who are prepared to allow their details to be included on a membership list. We’re doing a final push on this and anticipate sending out a membership list soon, with a proviso that the list does not contain the details of everyone who has joined.

The last thing I’ll mention this time is that the issue of whether the inclusion of the word “Braille” in our name gives the wrong impression to those who hear about the association for the first time can sometimes resurface in our discussions. There is no real enthusiasm for embarking on another full-blooded consultation as to whether we should change the association’s name (whatever was decided on that front we’d insist on keeping the initials BCA). For now, our preferred approach is to highlight “BCA” on all our publicity materials and direct attention to our strapline which we might change to become “bringing chess to the visually impaired”.

And finally… if you feel you can help the committee with aspects of its work, we’d be delighted to hear from you. An example of this has been Ednun Pourtahmasbi collating and placing orders for magnetic sets for our members. Thanks Ednun!

Guy Whitehouse.

Millennium Club, the BCA’s monthly lottery

To take part in this monthly draw it is just £12 per number per year. You may have as many numbers as you like at £12 each. Every month a lucky winner receives £35. If you wish to enter the draw, send a cheque made payable to "Braille Chess Association" to the treasurer or make an online or telephone payment to the BCA. Or, even better, you could set up a standing order then next year’s subs will not be forgotten.

Recent Millennium Club winners:November: Barbara Chambers, number 51.

December: Christine Andrews, number 9.

January: Graham Geraughty, number 13.

Gill Smith, Treasurer

Treasurer’s Report

We now have Linda Innes, our new fundraiser, onboard. She has plenty of experience in fundraising and is enthusiastic about our charity. I am looking forward to helping Linda draw up a fundraising strategy to make maximum use of our organisation’s resources and concentrate efforts where it is most needed.

Charity Job was the recruitment service who helped us to find Linda. Following on from her appointment we heard that our name would be put forward to a committee at Charity Job to be considered for a donation. We were successful and we received the wonderful gift of £4,200.

If you are shopping online please remember that at no cost to you there are fundraising initiatives available to raise funds for the BCA. Amazon Smile donates 0.5% of a purchase price and Give as you Live allows you to shop with many different retailers, including holiday firms and utilities companies, and a percentage of the total is given to the BCA.

I bought some BCA sweatshirts in November and sold several at our Autumn tournament. They are available at £10 each. I will be bringing them to BCA events, along with BCA polo shirts and drawstring bags.

Gill Smith, Treasurer

Membership Secretary’s Report

I am delighted to welcome three new visually impaired members to our association. Val Warner, from Wokingham, a friend of Jim Cuthbert has joined for one year. Roger Williams from Bristol, who played chess at school in Bristol when Stan Lovell was involved in the club there, and Malcolm Jones from Birmingham have both joined for five years. I very much look forward to meeting these members at BCA tournaments.

It is hoped that the Membership List will be sent out during the first quarter of the year to those members who have opted for their details to be included.

Address Changes:

Stephen Thacker has changed his email address

Deceased

Sadly, in November following a long illness, David Welch passed away after his condition deteriorated at his nursing home. David was an arbiter at a number of BCA Tournaments. He was very efficient and popular with our members. His humour and friendliness will be greatly missed.

Mark Hague

Correspondence Chess Director’s Report

The BCA Correspondence League 2020-21 has started with a moderate decrease in participants over the previous cycle.

45th BCA CORRESPONDENCE TOURNAMENT 2019-20

Premier - Group Leader Paul Benson

Crombie 1 - 0 Phillips, Caro-Kann, 39.

Scores: Alec Crombie 2.5-3, Ernie McElroy 2-2, Guy Whitehouse 1.5-2, George Phillips 1-3, Denis Warren 0-4.

Challengers - Group Leader Gary Wickett

Cuthbert 0 - 1 Gallacher, Irregular, 34.

Greatrex 1 - 0 Tew.

Gallacher 1 - 0 Greatrex, Ponziani, 16.

Scores: Voldi Gailans 4-5, Mike Hague 3.5-4, Eric Gallacher 3.5-5, Arthur Greatrex 1-3, Jim Cuthbert 1-4, Eleanor Tew 0-5.

BCA LEAGUE 2020-21

Division 1 - Group Leader Guy Whitehouse

Players: Alec Crombie, Voldi Gailans, Mark Hague, Ernie McElroy, all 0-0.

Division 2 - Group Leader Voldi Gailans

Players: Jim Cuthbert, Eric Gallacher, George Phillips, Denis Warren, all 0-0.

Division 3 - Group Leader George Phillips

Players: Mike Flood, Arthur Greatrex, Malcolm Jones, Eleanor Tew, Andrew Wood, all 0-0.

FRIENDLY LADDER TABLE

Congratulations to Paul Benson on leading the table and so becoming Champion when it closed for the year. As happens to all champions, their score is reduced to zero and the battle to fight to the top starts over again. Anyone wishing to play a friendly game on the Ladder should now contact myself, details as shown in list of Officers. Any friendly games played under correspondence conditions, such as by Braille, cassette, email, Skype, telephone, can qualify as a Friendly Ladder game. Please report such games and let your efforts be reflected in your accumulating score.

Warren 0 - 1 Flood, Sicilian, 30.

Flood 0 - 1 Benson, Sicilian, 31.

Final ladder scores as at 31st December 2019:

12 Paul Benson; 7 Jim Cuthbert; 6 Eleanor Tew; 5 Stan Lightowler; 4 Mark Hague, Dorothy Hodges, Stan Lovell, Denis Warren; 3 Ernie McElroy, Lea Ryan; 2 Lionel Bryant, Derek Couchman, Tony Elbourn, Mike Flood, Jason Pearce, Gill Smith, Bill Tatum; 1 Christopher Huby.

In closing, to those about to start a game: Break a peg!

Paul Benson

David Hodgkins Memorial Annual Best Game Prize

Stan Lovell, judge of the 2019 competition writes:

In addition to those games sent directly to me, I also looked at eligible games published in the Gazette and on the user group, as well as games played in the BCA email events. In all, I looked at around three dozen games.

When I was asked to judge the 2019 competition, I was told we were not looking for perfection but for outstanding or noteworthy circumstances, such as: a giant killing act.

Once I started playing through the games I very soon became fascinated and experienced great pleasure from the skills and various styles of play. My first task was to reduce around three dozen games to a manageable short list. This proved to be the hardest part of the process. Eventually, I managed to reduce the pile to about eight. After more examination I found myself concentrating on three games. A swashbuckling performance by Peter Gibbs, in which he slew the dragon in a manner that would have filled St. George with pride. Then there was a resourceful, edge of the seat, game by Bill Armstrong. Both of these games were played in the BCA email tournament. Finally, there was a measured performance by Paul Benson, played in the BCA British Championship, Torquay. All of these games had much to recommend them. Eventually, after yet another play through, I decided to award the 2019 David Hodgkins Memorial Best Game Prize to Paul Benson, for his second round victory over Colin Chambers in the BCA British Championship 2019.

Editor’s note:

Grateful thanks to Stan for playing through so many games before deciding on a winner. Stan has also provided some comments on the best game that he selected, but by coincidence, Paul sent in this very same game for publication with his own annotations. Therefore, I have added Stan’s comments to Paul’s in the relevant places in the article that follows this one. It’s not often we have a game with two sets of annotations!

Congratulations to all those who made Stan’s task so challenging and most especially of course to Paul. We plan to award the trophy to him at the AGM.

The 2020 David Hodgkins Memorial Annual Best Game competition is open! Members and associate members in the British Isles can enter over the board and correspondence games played in a BCA event or for a BCA team during the year. The aim is to consider games at all levels in the BCA, whatever the grade of the players.

Please be on the lookout for games to enter and send them to any committee member in the format of your choice. Eligible games that are published in the Gazette during 2020 will automatically be included in the competition.

Our long-standing associate member, Peter Gibbs, has kindly agreed to judge the 2020 event. Peter is so modest about his chess that many members might not be aware of the dizzy heights his grade reached. I hope he’ll forgive me for mentioning that in 1958, when grading formats were very different, Peter was ranked as high as joint 8th in all of Britain! (The top two players had a grade of 1b, the next five were 2a, Peter and four others were 2b.)

Good luck everyone!

A Game from the BCA Geoff Patching Memorial British Championship 2019

Editor’s note:

As you’ve read in the previous article, Paul Benson’s win against Colin Chambers in round 2 of last year’s BCA Championship in Torquay was selected by Stan Lovell as the Best Game of 2019. The main annotations were written by Paul, who at the time was unaware that this game would be chosen by Stan. Stan’s comments have been added, preceded by his name.

C. Chambers - P. Benson.

Nimzowitsch Defence, Kennedy Variation, B00.

1. e4

A surprise, not the usual opening move. Has there been specific preparation against my usual defence?

If so then a little side-stepping seems advisable.

1. ... Nc6

This probably places us both on whatever general knowledge each of us has on the Nimzowitsch Defence.

Stan: Paul knows Colin has a sound knowledge of openings. He leads the game off the beaten track from move 1. This system, developed by Aron Nimzowitsch, sometimes known as 'Nimzos other defence' I was intrigued to see Malola Prasath also employed this defence during the year.

2. d4 e5 3. d5 Instead 3. Nf3 transposes into the Scotch Game.

3. ... Nce7 4. Nf3 d6

Much more popular here is 4. ... Ng6 but Black is in the process of inventing a system at the board.

5. c4 h6

Black is planning hybridising the King's Indian and Dutch Defences. The forthcoming black plan seems new to theory, follow it at your own risk.

6. Nc3 g5

The more regular black plan of pawn g6 with Bg7 leaves Black vulnerable to the white plan of Be3, Qd2, Bh6, trading bishops.

Stan: A provocative Pawn push. Paul seems determined to get Colin out of his comfort zone!

7. Be3 Bg7 8. g3 Preventing the manoeuvre Ng6 - Nf4.

8. ... f5 The black kingside plan is achieved, a fighting pawn f5 is levered in.

Stan: The challenge to White's centre begins.

9. exf5 Bxf5 10. Bd3 Qd7 11. Qc2 Nf6 12. Bxf5

Keeping the tension with 12. O-O-O or the less ambitious 12. O-O waiting for Black to commit were worthy of consideration.

12. ... Qxf5

Black is not afraid of reducing material, there is some pawn imbalance in the position, and when the time is right, the white centre can be challenged to make further imbalance.

13. Qxf5 Nxf5

Stan: These exchanges appear to be helpful to Black, as with the Queens and light squared Bishops back in the box Black can castle Kingside without the King being exposed.

14. Nd2

White is seeking to establish a knight on e4, such a piece would be difficult for Black to dislodge.

14. ... O-O

Black is not interested in 14. ... Nxe3, the symmetric pawn structure would offer very little to play against.

15. O-O Kh7

Black is already thinking in terms of an endgame, the king is a move closer to the centre.

16. Nde4 Nxe4 17. Nxe4 Nd4

Establishing control over a few light squares in the white defences, nothing particularly dangerous yet, but White must now be alert to forks.

18. Nd2

White covers the possible black threat of Nf3+, but in doing so takes pressure off the black d6 pawn. White could instead try 18. g4 intending, Kg2 followed by Rac1, to avoid any black, Nc2, forks, then pawn f3 to cement the white knight on e4, leaving Black with the problem of how to break up this formation.

18. ... c6 Trying to create imbalance across the width of the board.

Stan: Another challenge to the White centre!

19. dxc6

White gives Black 3 pawn islands, but pawns are only weak if they can be attacked, the white forces are a long way from coordinating against any particular point in the black position. In return Black will gain a mobile centre/queenside pawn majority, chances for both sides then.

19. ... bxc6 20. Rad1 Rab8

A prod at the white queenside, not a spite attack for the sake of it, Black is hoping for the natural response.

21. b3

And White obliges. When a unit moves it gains control of a new set of squares, but the set of squares previously controlled might become available to an opposing unit.

21. ... Ne2+ 22. Kg2 Nc3

Both a-pawns are en prise but they are protected by tactics. Whichever minor piece dares to take the opposing a-pawn will be chased away by a rook which can then capture and achieve a 7th rank invasion.

23. Rde1 e4

A move designed to put White under a little pressure. Instead after 23. ... Nxa2 24. Ra1 Nc3 25. Rxa7, White is given the luxury of a 7th rank rook for zero compensation to Black. However, now that the h8 - a1 diagonal has been opened for the g7 bishop it is possible for Black to snatch with Nxa2 as the a1 square is controlled by the black g7 bishop.

24. a4 White moves the target a-pawn to safety but now the only defence to the b3 pawn is the white d2 knight.

24. ... a5

And in return the Black targeted a7 pawn moves with the gain that the white b3 pawn is now immobilised by a black pawn, expect the black b8 rook to seek new duties soon.

25. f3 White is going to fully-open the f-file, intending to trade both pair of rooks if Black permits.

25. ... Rfe8

No simplifications yet, Black will avoid exchanges providing that backing off does not hand White a significant plus. Every black piece is slightly better than every white piece but it is nowhere near enough to be a decisive advantage, more shuffling is required by Black and then try to exploit the white responses.

26. Bf2 d5 27. fxe4

Perhaps White should first flick in 27. cxd5 cxd5 before capturing with fxe4. Yes, the game continuation is going to inflict 4 pawn islands on Black, not a particularly pleasing outcome in itself, but if the 3 black isolated pawns do not come under combined white attacks they will be fine. So why the suggested elimination of a pair of c-pawns? The answer will come much later, it will be nothing to do with the pawns themselves, but everything to do with the restrictions encountered by a completely closed c-file.

27. ... dxe4 Stan: Although Black's Pawns are scattered, he is in control of the situation.

28. Be3

Having retro-shuffled to f2 to isolate the black e-pawn, the f2 bishop again shuffles, this time to open up the f-file for the f1 rook.

28. ... Kg6 White must not be permitted to invade with Rf7.

29. Bg1

The only piece White can sensibly move is the e3 bishop, in contrast all the black units have some flexibility. Every black piece now seems considerably better than every white piece, but as before, this is not yet a decisive advantage. It does however now force White to be careful on every move. This will chew up time on the clock, not to mention the psychological impact of having to find moves which do not upset a difficult position.

29. ... Rbd8

A useful tempo-attack on the unprotected white d2 knight, White will not have time for Bb6 which would force Black into a humiliating strategic retreat of Ra8.

30. Be3 c5

Increasing the clamp on the white b3 pawn. If White ever wishes to make something with the queenside pawn majority, then the b-pawn must be sacrificed, but this will give Black a protected passed b4 pawn, surely not a good trade? The black c5 pawn will be safe as long as the white e3 bishop needs to defend the d2 knight, which indicates what White is going to play next.

Stan: Can it be that this innocuous looking move is actually the winning move? The c Pawn cannot be captured as the Bishop is protecting the Knight, the d4 square is now inviting occupation by the g7 Bishop.

31. Nb1

The worst white piece challenges the best black piece and due to the hanging black c5 pawn, the black reply is forced.

31. ... Nxb1 32. Rxb1 Bd4

Since the black g7 bishop has no real attacking prospects, it comes to the defence of the c5 pawn.

Stan: Black now has control of the centre.

33. Rbe1

Instead 33. Bd2 Ra8 and only then 34. Rbe1 would force Black to think hard on how to make progress. If Black goes for Rab8 White should ignore opening lines on the queenside and reply Rb1, leaving Black having to yet again retreat, Ra8 after which White returns with, Re1, Black has got nowhere fast.

33. ... Bxe3 If Black is to make progress then a rook entry up the d-file is the only sensible route.

34. Rxe3 Rd2+

Black must resist 34. ... Rd3 35. Rxd3 exd3 36. Rd1, when the black d3 pawn is very weak.

35. Rf2

Perhaps the counter-intuitive 35. Kg1 would have been easier to play, how can Black increase the pressure on White? The black king cannot cross the f-file and the e8 rook is tied down to defending the important passed e4 pawn.

35. ... Rxf2+ And the black king is now free to enter the centre.

36. Kxf2 Kf5 37. h3 h5

Keeping options of either pawn h4 or pawn g4 as appropriate. Black has found a plan of entry which demands a certain square be doubly-covered, White cannot easily prevent this invasion without making a serious concession elsewhere.

38. Re2

The white rook vacates the e3 square for the white king but now the black rook can take either the d-file or the f-file.

38. ... Rd8 39. Re3

Defending simply allows the black king a decisive entry, the general idea is 39. Rb2 Rd3 40. Kg2 Ke5 41. Kf2 Kd4 42. Kg2 Kc3 43. Rb1 Kc2, and the white queenside falls apart.

39. ... Rd2+ 40. Re2

Instead 40. Ke1 Rb2 and the black king shuffles to d4 when White has too many 3rd rank pawn weaknesses to think about an activation plan of Rc3 - Rc1 - Rd1 - Rd5.

40. ... Rd3

With only minutes remaining Black is wary of entering into a king and pawn ending. They have an annoying habit of being definitive, misjudge the outcome at the point of entry and there is no reversal. As it happens a rook trade would assist White, that black e4 pawn might appear to be "Passed", but it is in reality "Isolated", the best Black has by trading rooks on e2 is a draw.

41. Re3

Again, White challenges the invading black rook which can either trade into a pawn ending or back off. On the previous move a rook trade would leave the white king on e2, here it could end up on e3, is there any difference? Instead, going passive permits the black king to enter the queenside, a couple of ideas run:

(A). If 41. Rb2 Ke5 42. Kg2 Kd4 43. Rb1 Kc3 44. Re1 e3 45. Kf3 Kxb3 46. Rxe3 Rxe3+ 47. Kxe3 Kxc4, an easy black win.

(B). Or if 41. Rb2 Ke5 42. Kg2 Kd4 43. Rb1 Kc3 44. Rf1 Kxb3 45. Rf5 Kxc4 46. Rxg5 Kd4 47. Rxh5 c4 48. Rh8 c3 49. Rc8 Rd2+ 50. Kf1 c2 51. Ke1 Rd1+ 52. Ke2 c1=Q, costs White the rook, the white passed kingside pawns will be too slow, Black wins.

41. ... Rd7

Black, still suspicious of pawn endings and worrying whether the time-control has been made, makes a hasty retreat, aiming for a different and more secure point of entry. Fine, but this gives White some chances to flail around. Instead, trading rooks is a simple win, some winning ideas run:

(A). If 41. ... Rxe3 42. Kxe3 Ke5 43. Ke2 Kd4 44. Kd2 e3+ 45. Ke2 Ke4 46. Ke1 Kd3 47. Kd1 e2+ 48. Ke1 Ke3 49. g4 h4 50. b4 axb4 51. a5 b3 52. a6 b2 53. a7 b1=Q+ mate.

(B). Or if 41. ... Rxe3 42. Kxe3 Ke5 43. Ke2 Kd4 44. Kd2 e3+ 45. Ke2 Ke4 46. b4 cxb4 47. c5 b3 48. c6 b2 49. c7 b1=Q 50. c8=Q Qb2+ 51. Ke1 Qd2+ 52. Kf1 Qf2+ mate.

42. Ke2 Ke5 43. Rc3

Back on move 27 White chose fxe4 and Black replied dxe4, giving Black 4 pawn islands. There was however a white option of first 27. cxd5 cxd5 and only then 28. fxe4 dxe4 resulting in a fully-open c-file. If those c-pawns had been traded off White would now inflict considerable annoyance with Rc8 preparing flicking sideways to hit any of the black pawns from the rear.

43. ... g4

Black is fighting for total control of the f3 square, all part of a plan envisaged when declining to trade rooks on e3.

44. h4

Opening up the kingside does not help White. If 44. hxg4 hxg4 Black will quickly achieve Rh2+, a white king retreat allows the black king to advance, a white king advance allows black Rg2 to win the g3 pawn.

44. ... Rf7 Black plans Rf3 with Kd4 kicking the white rook off the white 3rd rank, the g3 and b3 pawns will probably both fall.

45. Re3

White can activate the rook and make Black work harder. The mainline begins 45. Rc1 Rf3 46. Rd1 Rxg3 47. Rd5+ Kf4 48. Rxh5, when the analytical-tree starts expanding dramatically. Should White wipe out the black queenside pawns or play Rh8 and attack the black king from the rear? Both white plans seem slow but at least there is a chance of Black going wrong.

45. ... Kd4 Denying the white rook access to the c3 square.

46. Kd2 Rf3 White resigns, 0-1

Stan: I hope you will have enjoyed playing through this game as much as I did!

11th BCA Email Tournament

Philip Doyle and Eamonn Casey write:

Our 11th Email Tournament has reached its conclusion. The final results are in, and the picture is complete.

Our numbers are increasing, and this has been a record entry. We had an initial entry of 24, later reduced to 22 with two defections from Division 5.

Apart from a few early problems in Division 1, the tournament ran very smoothly, and this is due in large degree to the co-operation of all the players. We may have to consider increasing the number of divisions in future tournaments, as some players, particularly in the lower divisions found it difficult to keep four games running at the same time. Nonetheless, the event finished with three weeks to spare.

According to the grading, the entries in Division 1 were the strongest to date, but in the end, it came down to the head to head between those two old adversaries, Peter Gibbs and Rod Macdonald, and on this occasion, Peter was the slightly fortuitous victor, or so he tells me. Division 2 was the most tightly contested, with Colin Chambers coming out on top. In Division 3 one of our new boys, Mark Kirkham, prevailed, and in Division 4, yet another new entrant, Mike Flood, succeeded in achieving a clean sweep of victories. Unfortunately, Division 5 was reduced down to two entries, because of the two late withdrawals, and they played out a draw. Once again, we wish to thank all those who took part, and to encourage others to have a go next March.

See below for the results since the previous gazette and the final placings in each division

Division 1:

Prasath lost to Armstrong

MacDonald lost to Gibbs

Burnell lost to Gibbs

Final Scores: Gibbs 4/4, MacDonald 3/4, Armstrong 1.5/4, Prasath 1/4, Burnell 0.5/4

Division 2:

McElroy drew with Lovell

Lovell drew with Casey

Final Scores: Chambers 3/4, Doyle 2.5/4, Casey, Lovell and McElroy 1.5/ 4

Division 3:

Gailans beat Smith

Gailans drew with Kirkham

Smith lost to Thacker

Elbourn lost to Kirkham

Thacker lost to Elbourn

Smith lost to Elbourn

Elbourn Lost to Gailans

Final Scores: Kirkham 3.5/4, Gailans 3/4, Elbourn 2/4, Thacker 1.5/4, Smith 0/4

Division 4:

Warren lost to Pourtahmasbi

Lawton beat Pourtahmasbi

Final Scores: Flood 4/4, Lawton, Warren and Pourtahmasbi 2/4, Borg 0/4

Division 5:

Jodhan drew with Graham

Final Scores: Graham and Jodhan 0.5/1

Here is a game from Division 1, with comments by Bill Armstrong.

Malola Prasath v Bill Armstrong

Eamonn Casey, joint organiser of the email tournament, noted this as an interesting game so I thought in the gazette a few notes might be worth adding.

I am becoming a fan of email chess when chess engines are excluded. But after scoring only half a point from three games in the previous tournament I thought a fresh approach was needed. I returned to an opening that served me very well in my first BCA tournament in 1983, Alekhine’s defence.

1. e4 Nf6 Peter Gibbs (the tournament winner) complimented me on a very cunning choice of opening but then demolished my position in less than 20 moves. Malola meanwhile was taking me into a line I had never played against.

2. e5 Nd5

3. c4 Nb6

4. c5 Nd5

5. Bc4 e6

6. d4 b6 Black must undermine White’s central dominance

7. Bxd5 exd5

8. cxb6 axb6

Here Malola sent 9 Kc3 which is illegal but surely a slip of a typing finger. I corrected it to 9. Nc3.

Play continued.

9..... c6 10. f4 d6

How has the opening gone? My only developed piece has disappeared and White seems to have a great space advantage. Compensation lies in the Rook on an open a-file and Black’s queen’s bishop giving him hope for greater control of the light squares.

11. Be3 dxe5

12. fxe5 Bb4

13. Nf3 Ba6 Black needs to prevent White from castling, bringing the Rook to f1 and launching attacks towards the undefended Black king. With Queen, Knight, Bishop, and a pawn on e5 all looking very menacing the defence has to be inventive to avoid disasters.

14. Qc2 h6 A white piece settled on g5 would be unwelcome.

15. Qf5 Qc8 An exchange of queens should take the sting from White’s attack.

16. Qh5 Bd3

17. g4 Bg6 Bringing the bishop from a6 to protect f7 was somewhat unorthodox but useful.

18. Qh3 h5

19. Rg1 Rh7 Another unusual move that turns out to be effective

20. Nh4 hxg4

21. Qxg4 Qxg4

22. Rxg4 Be4

23. Kf2 Here I sent Malola 23..... Bxc3 with the continuation 24. bxc3 then Ra6 and after 25. Bd2 Nd7.

Malola spotted that Ra6 was a slip and I intended to write 24. .... Ra3 to force Bd2. He generously took what was the obvious intention rather than the literal move. He was repaying my earlier gesture very handsomely.

Now we enter an ending where White has a lack of targets for the dark squared bishop and too many pieces committed to defensive duties. But can Black exploit this?

26. Ng2 Rxh2 27. Rxg7 Rxg2+ 28. Rxg2 Bxg2 29. Kxg2 b5 preventing White from playing c4 and creating a route for the black Knight to become active.

30. Kf2 Nb6 31. Ke2 Na4 32. Kd3 b4 33. Rh1 Nxc3 34. Rh8+ Kd7

35. Bc1 Rxa2 36. Rf8 Rf2 37. Rb8 Nb5 A move that Malola had overlooked in his analysis.

38. Be3 Rf3 39. Kd2 b3 (against 39. Ke2 Rh3 keeps Black’s advantage)

Over the board in a time scramble White could try 40. Bg5 b2 41. e6+ fxe6 42. Rb7+ Kd6?? 43. Be7 mate but in correspondence it’s more likely to go 40. Bg5 Rf2+ 41. Kc1 b2+ 42. Kb1 Nc3 mate

40. Bg1 b2 and if Kc2 Black plays Rb3 leading to rapid mates. White resigned. Black won but it was far from easy and the tempo I could have lost on move 24 was potentially game-changing. My thanks to Malola for not leaving me annoyed at my own carelessness and at the old fashioned notation system where you counted the ranks from your side of the board and White’s a3 was on Black’s 6th rank! Perhaps I was reliving 1983.

Bill Armstrong.

2019 Hans and Stefi Cohn Memorial International Autumn Tournament

Irene Elbourn writes:

The 2019 Hans and Stefi Cohn Memorial International Autumn Tournament was held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Solihull during the weekend of 15th -17th November.

My own journey to the hotel was uneventful, unlike some competitors who had trouble with their train journeys. Indeed, one person alighted from his train too soon, but fortunately was assisted to the next train which deposited him at the correct stop. Our Irish friends ran into difficulties but fortunately arrived in time for dinner.

After signing in Tony and myself were taken to our room by a receptionist, who showed us round and imparted the information that the wherewithal to make tea and coffee were under the kettle in little drawers. When making the first cup of coffee we found that there was a fridge under the kettle – a brief examination showed that there were no goodies stored therein.

Our first difficulty was to find the towels! After scouting around the bedroom and bathroom for them, the telephone soon connected us to reception, and a helpful member of staff advised that they would probably be found in a cupboard beneath the wash basin. When the space under the wash basin proved to be empty, we set about hunting in earnest. Eventually, after parading around the bathroom with arms up in the air (which would have looked most peculiar, were there any onlookers) we found them nestling on a shelf high above the bath!

As was to be expected the first battle was dinner. The first course was soon ordered, but then there was a delay before its arrival. After it had been consumed there was another delay before ordering the main course. Eventually my three companions were enjoying excellent meals, whilst my concern that I would not be present for “start White’s clock” was increasing by the minute. Eventually the attention of a member of staff was attracted and belatedly I tucked in as quickly as possible.

On our way to the chess room, Julie Leonard introduced Olly, her husband, whom we’d not met before.

Following speeches of welcome and the usual “housekeeping” announcements, Gerry reported that the funeral of David Welch would be taking place in Liverpool on Friday 6th December. Then the draw was confirmed, followed by the usual exhortation “Make sure mobiles are switched off otherwise an offender could be disqualified”. Whites’ clocks were started and the Autumn International tournament was under way.

Following an excellent hearty breakfast on Saturday morning the players gathered at 9.30 eager to set about their next opponent. Whilst play continued Julie quietly spoke to each person asking if they wanted to order sandwiches to be delivered in the bar after 1 pm.

I was given a bye on Saturday morning, so took up an offer by Peter Gibbs to have a game. I appreciated having an opportunity to play a far more superior player than myself (to put it mildly). I enjoyed pitting my wits against him, which inspired me to end the tournament by getting a draw against Richard Harrington.

During the luncheon break Moira Whittle was active in selling raffle tickets, enjoying a chat with everyone and advising us about the delivery of raffle prizes.

Before the draw commenced, Norman Wragg (as Chairman) made a speech, in which he reminded us that the tournament was being held in memory of Hans and Stefi Cohn. Hans had led the way in the early days of the BCA and was himself a notable international chess player. He always worked hard – greatly assisted by Stefi – encouraging visually impaired people to play over-the-board chess. Norman then thanked Julia Scott for the hard work she has carried out for over twenty years raising funds for the BCA, before presenting her with an orchid with the flower stems arranged in an arch from which a star was hanging, the Willow Tree sculpture, called “Thank You” (which is a figurine of a girl holding three pink peonies in a posture suggesting an offer of gratitude), together with a greetings card with a photo of chess pieces. When Julia and her husband, Roy, left for the evening they did so to grateful applause from all those present.

On this occasion, the raffle raised £177. There was an impressive array of prizes which were soon distributed to all parts of the room.

This was followed by music and singing, the music being provided by Tanvi, Gary, Antoine and Julie, and many members enjoyed a sing-song, the highlight of which was a Celtic trio of Eamonn, Michael and Olly.

After third day of mental gymnastics, the tournament reached a successful conclusion. The Open was won by Paul Benson with 5 out of 5. The Challengers competition was hotly contested with three players scoring 3.5: Voldi Gailans, Gary Wickett and Tony Elbourn. After applying the tie-break Voldi was awarded the trophy. All of the final scores and prize winners are listed at the end of this report. Mike Flood is deserving of a special mention for winning a grading prize in his first BCA over the board tournament!

Those who stayed overnight on Sunday were treated to an evening of music featuring Michael Delaney on harmonica accompanied by the BCA band and Eamonn Casey on lead vocals.

I am sure that all those who took part in the tournament would agree that thanks and congratulations should be recorded to the organiser, Voldi Gailans, and thanks for the smooth running of the event are due to the arbiters Matthew Carr and Gerry Walsh with the steward, Richard Murphy.

Let us all look forward to the weekend of the Annual Meeting next April, which will be held at Derby.

OPEN Final standings

1st 5/5Paul Benson

2nd 3.5Tristram Cole

=3rd 3Bill Armstrong and Efe Shimwell

2.5Michael Delaney, Ernie McElroy, Norman Wragg, Stan Lovell, Colin Chambers, Phil Gordon and Eamonn Casey (Stan and Colin shared Grading Prize A; Phil and Eamonn shared Grading Prize B.)

2Dan Rugman

1George Phillips

0Mark Hague

CHALLENGERS Final standings

=1st3.5Voldi Gailans, Gary Wickett and Tony Elbourn (the trophy was won by Voldi on tie-break)

3Jim Cuthbert, Mike Flood, Gill Smith and Tony Lawton (Gill and Tony shared Grading Prize A; Mike won Grading Prize B.)

2.5John Osborne

2Lea Ryan

1.5Ed Pourtahmasbi and Irene Elbourn

0.5Richard Harrington

Letter from Julia and Roy Scott

Norman and all at BCA,

I just wanted to say a big thank you for the lovely orchid and figurine. We collect figurines but this one is special and it will always remind us of the lovely people and friends we have met at BCA. Saturday was an emotional, but a very pleasurable day. It was particularly touching when we finally left the room. Due to the emotions I could not thank everybody as I would have liked. I apologise but I am sure you appreciate the circumstances. As I did say I didn’t want to retire and would have liked to work on until I was 101! But it is obvious that this is the right time to retire.

Over the years I have met and enjoyed so many people at BCA and I could not thank everyone individually but I would like to pass on a special thanks to Gill for all the help she has given. She certainly works very hard for BCA. Similarly, I would like to thank you, Norman. I look on you as a friend, not just a “boss”. We must always keep in touch.

All my love and best wishes for the future.

Julia (and Roy)

The Dresden Trap

Editor’s note: Thank you to Hugo Roman for sending in this article!

The second Tarrasch Trap in the Steinitz Variation is sometimes referred to as the Dresden Trap. Tarrasch published analysis of it in 1891, but 18 months later Georg Marco fell into it in Tarrasch versus Marco, Dresden 1892. Tarrasch spent just five minutes thinking for the entire game.

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 d6 This is the Steinitz Variation of the Ruy Lopez.

4. d4 Bd7 Black breaks the pin to meet the threat of 5.d5.

5. Nc3 Nf6 6. 0-0 Be7 7. Re1 Laying a subtle trap. Castling seems natural for Black but it loses a pawn. Instead, 7...exd4 is better, an example of giving up the centre, when it is needed.

7... 0-0? 8. Bxc6 Bxc6 9. dxe5 dxe5 10. Qxd8 Raxd8 11. Nxe5

Black's best move here is probably 11...Bd7, although White would remain a pawn ahead.

11... Bxe4?! 12. Nxe4 Nxe4 White can go astray too, 13.Rxe4?? would be a horrible blunder as Black would checkmate with 13...Rd1+ 14. Re1 Rxe1#. White blocks that possibility with his next move, making the threat real against the black knight on e4.

13. Nd3 f5 The black knight cannot move because of the pin against the bishop on e7.

14. f3 Bc5+?! Better is 14...Bh4 15. g3 Nxg3 16. hxg3 Bxg3 where Black get two pawns for the knight.

15. Nxc5 Nxc5 16. Bg5 Rd5 17. Be7 Re8 18. c4 1–0 White wins at least the exchange, so Marco resigned.

A Five Minute Game

Editor’s note: Once again, thanks are due to Hugo Roman for sending in this article!

A century ago, one could play a game in which it was not permitted to use in excess of five minutes more than your opponent’s thinking time at any point during the game. These were called Five Minute games. This seems to me the perfect way of curing players that suffer always from time trouble e.g. me!

Edward Lasker, a distant relative of former World Champion, Emanuel Lasker, famously beat Sir George Thomas in this Five Minute game.

1. d4 e6 2. Nf3 f5 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bg5 Be7 5. Bxf6 Bxf6 6. e4 fxe4? 7. Nxe4 b6 8. Ne5 (risky) 0-0 9. Bd3 Bb7

10. Qh5!? Qe7?? Black could have won a pawn with 10...Bxe5! 11. Qxe5 Nc6 or 11. dxe5 Rf5.

11. Qxh7+!! Kxh7 12. Nxf6+ Kh6 If 12...Kh8 13. Ng6#.

13. Neg4+ Kg5 14. h4+ Force mate more rapidly with 14. f4+ Kxf4 15. g3+ Kg5 16. h4# or 15...Kf3 16. 0-0#.

14... Kf4 15. g3+ Kf3 16. Be2+ Either 16. 0-0 or 16. Kf1, with the threat 17. Nh2# is quicker.

16... Kg2 17. Rh2+ Kg1 18. Kd2# 1-0 An alternative mating move was 18. 0-0-0#, and 17. 0-0-0 would also mate in one with 18. Rdg1# regardless of Black's response.

Planned Changes to the ECF Grading System

During the course of 2020, the ECF will be preparing to publish the grading list monthly instead of twice a year. It is hoped that monthly grading lists will be in operation by the end of the year. At the same time, the format of the grades will change from the current three digit model to a four digit ELO style system.

For further details please see the ECF website.

Puzzles Selected by Chris

November Puzzle

Abdurahmanovic

FEN: 5QKB/2P5/8/3k4/8/1R4N1/8/8

White:king g8, queen f8, rook b3, bishop h8, knight g3, pawn c7Black: king d5

White to play and mate in two.

Solution: 1. Ne4 A: 1 … Ke6 2. Qf7#B: 1 … Kc4 2. Qf7#C: 1 … Kc6 2. Qd6#D: 1 … Kxe4 2. Qf3#

February Puzzle

Serafimovic 2018

FEN: 1N1b1r2/3R1PB1/4k1P1/4N2R/8/1n2n3/6b1/4QK1

White king g1, queen f1, rooks d7 & h5, bishop g7, knights b8 & e5, pawns g6 & f7

Black king e6, rook f8, bishops d8 & g2, knights b3 and e3

White to play and mate in two. The solution will appear in the May issue.

Chris Ross

Personalia

Owen Phillips has sent in some games for the gazette and wishes all of his BCA friends a Happy New Year! As this issue is already quite full, I have had to hold the games back for the May gazette. Thank you Owen!

The Royal Beacon Seniors at the Royal Beacon Hotel, Exmouth, 4th to 8th November 2019 attracted 48 players with grades ranging from 21 to 187! The BCA was well represented at this five round event. Scores were as follows: Paul Benson 2.5; Roger Waters and George Phillips 2; Phil Gordon 1.5.

Please let me know if you have any news for the next issue.

Julie Leonard

David Welch 1945 - 2019

Many thanks to Peter Purland, who has kindly given permission for us to print the eulogy that he read at David’s funeral on the 6th of December:

David was born in Chesterfield on October 30th 1945, a good date! He was educated at Chesterfield Grammar School where he both played and organised chess which his father had taught him. After a successful career at school he moved on to Queen’s College Cambridge to study Physics. There he played for Queen’s at chess and, believe it or not, was a cox in the college eight. After four years at Cambridge he qualified with an MA and got a job at Liverpool College as junior physics teacher in the Upper School (current Year 9 and above). He started in September 1968 which was also when I started. I taught History and Sport, especially rugby and swimming, in the Lower School (Years 5-8) so at first we did not see a lot of each other. I had played chess at University and agreed to start some teams in the Lower School in 1969. I remember meeting Dave at “The Tram”, the staff pub, and we both mentioned that we would be able to drive the minibus after half term. It was then we found out we were both born on the same day – but in different countries. David was living in a College Flat in Croxteth Road and when Ann and I got engaged I was lucky enough to get the flat above Dave’s. Dave remained the owner of his flat until his death.

After a couple of years running school chess during which time Dave took over the Liverpool Junior Congress which had up to then been run by John Beech. Always a very large congress, in the year of the Fischer Spassky match he managed to top 2000 players which was the largest junior event in the world outside the Soviet Union. Players remember every nook and cranny of Paddington Comprehensive being filled with chess players. In a short time, David became a BCF Judge. He persuaded me to start doing adult congresses and I followed him down the path of International Arbiter and BCF Senior Arbiter. I remember Stewart Reuben saying that there would never be any law disputes when Liverpool College were playing! I am afraid I do not remember the exact dates when David moved up the arbiting ladder but he did become Chief Arbiter of the British Championships and also Chief Arbiter of the BCF (later ECF).

Dave became very involved with the scouts although by now in his 40s, and gave some marvellous experiences to very many young “Lerpoolians”. The respect with which he was held can be judged by the large number of ex 18th Picton scouts here.. For many years he was Group Scout Leader at successful camps both week and weekend. We also took school holidays, often to WWI and II battlefields. Dave did the finance and was very cheesed off when the Euro arrived as it made things far too easy!

Socially, we also started taking holidays together and travelled to Ethiopia, Libya, Jordan, Guatemala, Honduras, Crimea, Lithuania, Finland, Estonia, up the Hurtigruten, Romania, Bulgaria, Czech Republic and many other places. His interest in all these places was immense as was his background knowledge. I am convinced that once he had read or heard facts they were forever imprinted in his brain.

David retired due to ill health in 2000 but this did not stop him travelling or running chess events. He did go to Azerbaijan for the Olympiad and also took up hill walking in the Pennines with some chess friends. Both of us had been involved in chess at Gibraltar from the start of the tournament and visited over 65 times. Sadly, it was in Gibraltar in August 2017 that Dave suffered a severe stroke. He survived it but was left totally paralysed down the right side. He went into Arundel Park Care Home where his many friends visited him. Gradually his health deteriorated and on 7th November he was rushed to Royal Liverpool and passed away peacefully on Saturday 9th November.

He will be remembered as a true gentleman, polite, caring, hard-working and with an excellent brain. His contribution to English Chess has been immense and he will be sorely missed.

Gerry Walsh adds:

As an arbiter, David Welch always treated BCA members who took part in mainstream tournaments with consideration and respect. Therefore, he already had many friends in our association when he first joined us as an arbiter in 2012, at our 80th Anniversary tournament in Harrogate. His efficient and pleasant manner gained him still more friends among us and ensured that he was invited back to control many more BCA events!

David’s funeral took place on the 6th of December and was very well attended. The congregation of about 200 was probably equally divided between his school colleagues and his chess friends, including BCA members Matthew Carr, David Clayton and myself. The service began with the singing of the school hymn, and clearly his friends had not forgotten how to deliver such lovely Latin verses. Pete Purland’s eulogy reinforced our belief that Dave was a special friend to all he met and he will be missed by everyone.

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