After my previous near-miss, I was not sure what to think of a second game against the 168-graded Trevor Jones. Sure, I got a big advantage with minimal effort, but he was able to wriggle free, and now I had black. Perhaps I was right on both counts - for sure, things were harder this time, but once again I won material. However, the ending that resulted was very tricky, and probably even with best play black cannot win. With only 5 minutes left for a whole game, best play is not going to happen! Yet, once again, I was presented with a golden opportunity that I passed up, and so Castles had to be content with a drawn match:
I don't play endings well, or know enough about them. But I think that this ending was always going to be a challenge for black, because it's so hard to create a passed pawn. But chances must be taken - 43... Bc3 is the kind of move that could change the result of the game and by extension the match. I was quite downcast afterwards; it is not often that I think my own performance decided the fate of my team, but this is one such occasion, and I didn't rise to it.
Luckily, my next games saw me start winning again - briefly. I'm at the London Chess Classic, in the English Junior Rapidplay.
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