4NCL online (week 2)
8th September 2020
Atticus A 1½-2½ Oxford 1
John Redmond 1-0 David Zakarian
John continued his fine form with a nice win in week 2. From a Symmetrical English, white was able to create pressure on the c-file to pick up a pawn. A nice tactic secured a second pawn, and after some simplification the game headed into an opposite-coloured bishop endgame, which despite their drawish reputation was nicely converted.
Nakul Nataraj 1-0 Steve Kee
Steve's game began as a Hyper-Accelerated Dragon, but soon transposed into the sharply theoretical Yugoslav Attack, where opposite side castling requires both players to tread a tightrope to avoid disaster. On this occasion it was white who prevailed as his kideside attack was first to break through.
David James ½-½ Kieran Smallbone
Dave's game was a closed Catalan, which after queens were traded by move 9 became a strategic arm-wrestle. Black was able to win a queenside pawn, and black had some play on the kingside, but ultimately neither side was able to prove an edge.
James Cole 1-0 Andrej Stancak
Andrej made his debut in the online format.
Games can be followed fortnightly on Tuesday evenings starting at 7.30pm at https://lichess.org. Simply search for the player’s online handle and navigate to the games tab. Fixtures, results and details of player account names can be found on the 4NCL website an hour before games begin.