On Wednesday (28/10/26), Derby F travelled to Belper E and came home with a 2–2 draw, but for me the evening began badly. My usual car park in the centre of Belper was closed, with a fun fair where the cars should have been. I had told the team it was the "easiest" place to park, and with most of them cutting it quite fine thanks to my "helpful" advice, I was a little concerned. Everyone made it to the boards, though, and the chess more than made up for it.
On board two, Nick finished early in his first serious over-the-board game. He was "pretty nervous", so it helped that Edward Brown chose the Italian, an opening Nick knows well. Edward played the quiet d3 and began slow manoeuvring with his light-squared bishop, which handed Nick the initiative. His knights won the central pawns with tempo, and he then played Nxd4 quickly, hoping to look as though he had blundered a piece. Edward did not bite and set up a queen and bishop battery instead, but that ran into a Bf5 skewer, defending against mate and winning a piece. Edward resigned. Nick had recognised that the position demanded tempo and initiative, and when we went through the game afterwards he showed a good grasp of the tactics.
On board three, Asher faced a powerful attack from Dean Davis. He defended stoutly, and once the dust settled he was a piece up and converted the win.
Angharad had a tougher night on board four. She had been "racing around all day" and was "struggling to find my brain". An early blunder cost her a knight, and she fell further behind against Stuart Hughes. She admitted she nearly gave up so she could go home and sleep, but she kept playing, and once the closed position opened up she clawed her way back to level material. The endgame was a step too far for a tired mind, but the fightback deserves real credit.
That left Alan on board one, the last to finish. Jenny Gartside kept up heavy pressure, especially on Alan's f2 square, but he held on, lost a pawn, won it back with a combination and reached a knight against bishop ending. With the clock running down he missed a crucial check in the scramble, an understandable slip that decided the game. The best line of the night came afterwards, when his grandson Asher told him: "Grandad, I warned you before the game not to make mistakes. Why did you not listen to me?" Alan said that about summed it up.
Boards 1-3 start their games
It was a good result and great experience for all four, which is exactly what the Chess Forge is for. All that remained was the journey back to Derby, which was a little challenging as the mist descended on the Derwent valley. Our next match is at home to Wirksworth Feathers on Tuesday 17 November.
| Belper E | 2 - 2 | Derby F | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gartside, Jenny | 1494 | 1 - 0 | Kennedy, Alan | 1613 |
| 2 | Brown, Edward | 1431 | 0 - 1 | Noonan, Nick | 0000 |
| 3 | Davis, Dean | 1279 | 0 - 1 | Wastie, Asher | 1361 |
| 4 | Hughes, Stuart | 1240 | 1 - 0 | Parkes, Angharad | 0930 |
(Match played on Wed 28 Oct 26)
Kevin 2/11/26