Though not as late as its predecessor, it's a relief to dispatch this half-season review. Isolated successes apart, it quickly became clear that 2015-16 would be consolidation at best, as I started work. My motivation flickered at times, but still burns; I have rescued this blog and am ready for a fresh assault in 2016-17. The half-season was all about stabilisation.
After a torrid time with White, I recovered here to a 175 performance (+6 =11 -4) and held steady as Black at 165 (+2 =6 -4). The colour imbalance, caused by fickle coins, was welcome but became stale. Openings were diverse, so don't tell me too much, but I did well against the Caro-Kann (+3 -1) whereas the Sicilian (=4 -1) remains problematic. As Black I was solid with the Sicilian and both flavours of the Slav, clocking mid-160s performances.
I played no weekenders, so I've delineated by evening and full-day (Colin Crouch, 4NCL, county) games this time. I dramatically returned to normal evening form, with a 183 performance (+5 =10 -1), and forgot my struggles with the armband (+2 =5). Unfortunately I dipped to a 160 showing in full-day games (+3 =7 -7) - maybe I jumped the gun by giving up so many weeknight commitments for this season...
I was outgraded in 22/33 games, though 13 of those were by fewer than 10 points. (I scored a telling +2 =8 -3.) With only 3 wins from those 22 games, my goal of getting some big wins wasn't really met, but I did record the landmark first win against a titled player. I'd also targeted a better hit rate against weaker opponents and did OK (+5 =4 -2), but bled too many draws. Game length finally offered the trend I always predict: my results tailed off as the move counter ticked up, from 187 for below 20 moves (+1 =3) to 152 for over 50 (+1 =1 -3). Almost half of the games were 20-29 moves long, for an obvious reason: I scored +3 =11 -2, which brings me onto the most complex part of my chess character.
Whether from volatile technique or - usually - cowardice, draws have long defined my play. The first half of the season was strangely bloody, with only 7/32 draws; normality has been restored, with 17/33. There were 25 draw offers, or 0.76/game (up from 0.38) - 8 of my 12 were accepted, and in turn I accepted 9 of 13. When I declined draws I scored +3 =1; when my opponents did they scored +2 =2. Predictably, almost all draws were offered by the lower-graded player: blessed the mind too small for doubt...
As before, I'm too late to predict my grade: I was unmoved at 167 (166 rapid) but the second half of the season was better than the first (171 vs 163). Sadly I ran out of steam towards the end - month by month, this half was 171, 180, 184, 172, 154, 113.
Looking ahead, I succeeded in stabilising after a bumpy start to the season, and played a few good games. With more time on weeknights, and less of a blogging queue, I hope to find more study time. I still aspire to qualify for the British Championship, having fallen just short in 2015-16, and will enter some tournaments. Beyond that, ours is not to know the future...
2016-17 started for me at the King's Place Rapidplay Open, where I didn't do very well: 1½/6 against a tough field. I still understood the positions, but I had forgotten everything I knew about tactics and time management. So I was a little nervous when I sat down at the board for the first round of the Major Open in Bournemouth a fortnight ago.
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