Shrewsbury A Top of Online League at Christmas After Derby Triumph

Shrewsbury A clinched a second Shropshire Online Chess League first division win in a row with a tense victory over arch-rivals Telepost A – and will top the table at Christmas.

Captain Francis Best was the hero, winning the deciding game on top board against former Shrewsbury player Steve Rooney to secure a 2.5-1.5 triumph. All three remaining games had finished as draws in a closely fought match.

It also meant two derby wins for Shrewsbury over Telepost A in the space of 10 days following the 3-2 over-the-board victory on December 13.

Shrewsbury have gone top of the online league table with two wins from three matches, despite remarkably having a negative “goal difference”. They have played more matches than all the other teams, but it still marks a remarkable turnaround in fortunes from last season when the As drew just one and lost 11 of their 12 games.

The result leaves reigning Shropshire online champions Telepost anchored to the foot of the table with two defeats from two matches.

Telepost strengthened their team by bringing in Rooney on top board and the experienced Keith Tabner on bottom board in place of Dennis Bonner and Martin Ayres, while Shrewsbury A were unchanged from their win over Oswestry B.

Shrewsbury’s two black boards were over relatively quickly. Stephen Priestley and Tabner drew by repetition after just 17 moves on board four, before Peter Kitchen and Matthew Clark agreed to a truce after 23 moves in a level position in the French Tarrasch.

Dan Lockett continued the sequence of draws by sharing the spoils after 30 moves with Rob Nield on board three.

Rooney had sacrificed a pawn in the opening, the Stafford Gambit, an offbeat version of the Petroff Defence, but Best enjoyed the better position with a strong pawn centre, as well as the extra pawn. Although Rooney did his best to drum up counterplay on the kingside, he was soon pushed back and eventually felt compelled to give up the exchange to challenge the centre.

This left him in a lost endgame that Best confidently converted into victory on move 45, sealing the match in the process. The game can be played through here.

Full scores:

Telepost A 1.5-2.5 Shrewsbury A

1. Steve Rooney 0-1 Francis Best (w)

2. Matthew Clark 0.5-0.5 Peter Kitchen (b)

3. Rob Nield 0.5-0.5 Dan Lockett (w)

4. Keith Tabner 0.5-0.5 Stephen Priestley (b)

A very Merry Christmas to all our club members, their loved ones and the wider chess-playing community!