With Alex having decided to leave the Club, and Petru still quite unwell, it was a much depleted 'A' team that travelled to Alsager on Tuesday evening. Alsager fielded a very strong team, outrating us by around 400 points, and it was unsurprising that we came off second best. Kas lost on board 2 very early on and it was an uphill struggle after that. Draws from Steve H and Ray on boards 3 and 4 made it 2-1 but we had some hope on board 1, where Gerald went into an endgame with the advantage of a Rook against a Bishop. However, his opponent isn't a FIDE Master and ex-Welsh Champion for nothing, and he held on for a draw, giving the hosts a 2.5 - 1.5 win. Considering the strength of the opposition, and the team that we had to field, it was a very creditable team performance. Click here for the full match score card - https://ecflms.org.uk/lms/node/190118.
