Chess: Celebrating the end of the season
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Your support makes all the difference.IVAN MOROVIC of Chile won the Lark Grandmaster Tournament in Las Palmas, and Wood Green of North London won the Leigh Interests National Club Championship in Birmingham. By all accounts the latter event was much more fun.
It was part of the British Chess Federation's end of season celebrations with the finals of its domestic team competitions and its Player of the Year award.
Nigel Short was snubbed by the voters for that title (comprising British Chess Federation members, Executive committee and journalists) finishing a poor second to Michael Adams. You can't flout Fide and get away with it at the BCF.
Kent won the County Championship on tie-split after scoring 8-8 against Essex. The Club Championship was equally close, though Wood Green had started as clear favourites against Bristol & Clifton. The match was finally decided by a single victory, when Mark Levitt beat David Collier. With the other five games drawn, Bristol can consider themselves unlucky, for Collier had looked like winning for much of the game.
Black's attempt to counter-attack with 13 . . . Na5? backfired and cost him a pawn when he realised that 14. Bd5] Nxd5 15. Nxd5 would leave White threatening Nc7 (followed by Bxa5) as well as Bxh6. Losing the pawn, however, opened the h-file for Black, and he used it imaginatively.
If White had appreciated the danger, he might have declined the piece sacrifice with the safe 21. h3, but his real mistake came later. After Black had patiently moved his men into strong positions, White lost valuable time with 25. Ncd1? (25. Qd2 should beat off the attack and win). The final attack was forceful, ending in mate.
White: D Collier
Black: M Levitt
1 d4 d6 17 N2c3 Kh7 2 c4 Nf6 18 Bxg7 Kxg7 3 Nc3 e5 19 f4 Rh8 4 d5 g6 20 f5 Qh4 5 e4 Bg7 21 fxe6 Qxh2+ 6 Bd3 c6 22 Kf2 fxe6 7 Nge2 a6 23 Ne3 Nc6 8 0-0 0-0 24 Ke1 Nd4 9 Bg5 h6 25 Ncd1 Qg3+ 10 Bd2 b5 26 Rf2 Rbc8 11 dxc6 bxc4 27 Nc3 Rh1+ 12 Bxc4 Nxc6 28 Nf1 R8h8 13 Qc1 Na5 29 Ne2 Rxf1+ 14 Bd5 Rb8 30 Kxf1 Rh1+ 15 Bxh6 Nxd5 31 Ng1 Qd3+ 16 Nxd5 Be6 32 Re2 Qxe2
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