March saw the first round of the knockout league cup played. The cup is played at a faster time control with two games between players. At club level, this tends to favour players with an aggressive style who can also make quick decisions. This clearly doesn’t describe Woodbridge, who, after drawing local rivals Saxmundham A, were promptly knocked out 6.5 to 1.5.
This defeat was sweetened the following week when Saxmundham A lost to Stowmarket in the league, confirming Woodbridge’s promotion to Division 1 next season. Having only won Division 3 in 2018 and spent just one season in Division 2, before covid suspended competitive chess, this is a meteoric rise and something for the club to be very proud of.
The end of the month saw the penultimate match in the U1800 cup against Manningtree. Making his debut appearance for the club, Dominic spectacularly won in under an hour and this was followed by two more wins and a draw – leaving Woodbridge three points ahead with a match to play. This makes it extremely likely that Woodbridge will add the U1800 Cup to their Division 2 silverware.
Woodbridge Chess Club meets for fun and competitive games at 7pm, on Wednesdays, in the Cherry Tree Inn. We are keen to welcome new players and help them improve.
Taken from John Price (1540) vs Dan Such (1529), Woodbridge vs Manningtree, U1800 Cup, 30th March 2022. John’s just slipped up – how did Dan take advantage for a Woodbridge win?
