Derby B Battle Hard Despite Defeat to Belper
The Derby B team had a challenging evening on Tuesday (9/12/25), losing at home to a strong Belper side whose higher ratings showed across the boards. Despite the final scoreline, Derby reached reasonably playable positions in all games. As has happened on other occasions this season, however, a few missed tactical moments allowed Belper to seize winning advantages, leading to middlegame losses on the lower three boards.
On board one, Justin faced particularly tough opposition and battled on determinedly into a rook-and-pawn ending. Although his opponent eventually found the winning continuation and promoted the pawn, it was a resilient performance against a much higher-rated player.
David Smith 16/12/25
| Derby B | 0 - 4 | Belper A | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Smith, Justin | 1814 | 0 - 1 | Tilston, Jamie D | 2068 |
| 2 | Smith, David | 1848 | 0 - 1 | Gilmore, Simon N | 1969 |
| 3 | Burrows, Paul | 1599 | 0 - 1 | Alldread, Luke S | 1891 |
| 4 | Hussain, Shah | 1678 | 0 - 1 | Townsend, Andy | 1847 |