Shrewsbury B matched the achievements of the club’s A and C teams as they started the new season with an away victory. They were up against a Newport B side who had done the double over them last year, winning both encounters 3-2, and who were also bolstered by the availability of Jonathan Newey on top board before he departs for University.
The first game to finish was a wild encounter on top board between Matt Best and Jonathan Newey. Having played in the Shropshire Junior academy together for several years, as well as both playing alongside each other for a Shrewsbury Juniors team for three seasons, the two know each other’s preferred openings rather well. In fact, the version of the Scandinavian that Jonathan, as Black, played is the same line Matt himself plays. Therefore, it was mildly surprising that Matt played the opening so impressively badly; firstly giving Jonathan ample compensation for his Pawn sacrifice, then giving him the Pawn back before ceding the exchange. At this stage, Matt’s King was wide open and he had a Bishop that was both trapped on its home square by his own Pawns and pinned on the Rook on a1 to ensure that there was absolutely no compensation for the exchange. It was at this stage that Matt found some resources, hitting some counterplay and so was well positioned to take advantage of an oversight from Jonathan that gave him – at least temporarily – a piece back. Although the extra piece was only a short-lived affair, Matt was able to grab several pawns and swap off Queens after fending off the threat of potentially losing a second piece. It left him with a won endgame, which he managed to convert without any further blunders.
After the all-teenager game finished, the next game to conclude was the board 5 encounter between Andrew Lewis, standing in for the unavailable Mark Smith, and Lewis Clarke, the highly-rated Junior who enjoyed an impressive season in Division 3 last year with Newport D. Early on, it appeared as though Lewis had an edge with a potentially dangerous looking attack. However, he didn’t have enough support for it, meaning Andrew was able to defend it comfortably enough, and he went on to win.
That meant the visitors were in the driving seat, but there was a lengthy wait for the conclusion of the remaining three games. Firstly, Norman O’Connor’s flag fell on board 4, where he faced Chris Paul. Although Norman appeared to have a superior position, his lack of time proved costly, halving the hosts’ deficit. However, Daniel Lockett’s win on board two against Stuart Ross sealed the points. Despite appearing to get into some trouble early on, Dan managed to end up a pawn up, although still with a tricky position. He managed to fend off the danger and simplify down into a won endgame, which he duly converted.
The icing was then put on the cake by Ivor Salter’s draw with Danny Griffiths on board three. Although Ivor had gained a slight advantage from the opening and slowly built up the pressure, Danny defended well to see off the threats and end the game, thus ensuring a fine start to the season for Matt Best’s side – a sharp contrast to the previous season, when it took until the fourth game to register any points at all.
Newport B 1½-3½ Shrewsbury B
- J. Newey 0-1 M. Best
- S. Ross 0-1 D. Lockett
- D. Griffiths ½-½ I. Salter
- C. Paul 1-0 N. O’Connor
- L. Clarke 0-1 A. Lewis