Shrewsbury A are top of the charts at Christmas – in Shropshire Rapidplay League at least.
Francis Best’s side won two out of three fixtures at the latest evening of rapidplay league matches at Telepost on Monday night, writes Peter Kitchen.
The results took Shrewsbury to the top of the division one table on game points scored ahead of Telepost A and Newport A. But the A’s are not involved in the next two rapidplay league nights and will be overhauled by other teams with games in hand.
Nathanael Paul was the top performer on the night with 2/3 on top board, including extracting an unlikely win over Steve Tarr in a rook and pawn ending that appeared drawn. It was a crucial win as it was the decisive game in the narrow victory over Maddocks B.
The remainder of the squad also enjoyed a solid night’s work as Shrewsbury took their league record to 50 per cent, with three wins and three draws from their six rapidplay fixtures this season.
Shrewsbury made one change to their squad from the first rapidplay evening last month, with Peter Kitchen coming into the side on board two and Ivor Salter dropping out.
The evening started well with a 3-1 win over a Telford A side that is enjoying a superb season in the second tier of the main over-the-board league.
Paul defeated Toby Neal on top board and Best won against David Hollands on board three. Kitchen uncorked a lethal discovered double check to win a piece and a pawn against Richard Szwajkun, successfully finishing off the game with 25 seconds to spare on his clock. Dan Lockett lost to Roger Brown on bottom board.
This was followed by a narrow 2.5-1.5 victory over Maddocks B. Kitchen was held to an early share of the spoils by draw specialist Munroe Morrison (who drew all three of his games on the night). But Paul squeezed a win out of his ending on top board with king, rook and e-pawn versus king and rook.
When Best was unable to press home an advantage against Gary White and had to settle for a draw on board three, it looked like the match would finish all square as Lockett was a piece down against Simon Maydew on bottom board.
But Lockett drummed up an attack and with threats in the air, the position was repeated and the players agreed a draw that saw Shrewsbury home 2.5-1.5.
But the A’s were no match for a full-strength Telepost A team in the final round. Lockett drew with David Hodge on bottom board, but Paul was defeated by Nigel Ferrington on top board and Best was left to rue opening the centre too quickly en route to defeat against Matthew Clark.
Kitchen faced Phil Zabrocki on board two in a repeat of a final round Shrewsbury Town Championship fixture in August 2018 that has undoubtedly left its mark on the Telepost man.
Kitchen had won that game in just 18 moves on the white side of a French Defence with the thanks of some home preparation – and this was the first time the two players had contested the same opening since.
The Shrewsbury man uncorked another opening surprise to leave his opponent grumbling under his breath – but this time a level middlegame was reached before Zabrocki found a nice tactic as the clocks ran down to win a pawn. Kitchen eventually lost on time in a losing position, with Zabrocki having 39 seconds to spare.
The A’s must now wait until April 3 to return to rapidplay league action, once again at Telepost. They will sit out the next two rounds at Maddocks in January and March.
Results (Shrewsbury colours in brackets):
Telford A 1-3 Shrewsbury A
1.Toby Neal 0-1 Nathanael Paul (w)
2.Richard Szwajkun 0-1 Peter Kitchen (b)
3.David Hollands 0-1 Francis Best (w)
4.Roger Brown 1-0 Dan Lockett (b)
Maddocks B 1.5-2.5 Shrewsbury A
1.Steve Tarr 0-1 Nathanael Paul (w)
2.Munroe Morrison 0.5-0.5 Peter Kitchen (b)
3.Gary White 0.5-0.5 Francis Best (w)
4.Simon Maydew 0.5-0.5 Dan Lockett (b)
Shrewsbury A 0.5-0.5 Telepost A
1.Nathanael Paul (b) 0-1 Nigel Ferrington
2.Peter Kitchen (w) 0-1 Phil Zabrocki
3.Francis Best (b) 0-1 Matthew Clark
4.Dan Lockett (w) 0.5-0.5 David Hodge