History repeats itself

Hello from the start of 2018! For the second time in three years I find myself beginning January's blogging with a game played in November - as I type this, I have just noticed it was 18th November on both occasions. As we shall see, that coincidence is only fitting.

After our prolonged stay in Telford we now find ourselves in an upstairs room at the Willesden Working Men's Club - home to the local chess club, Middlesex county matches and the 1970s. (The digital clocks were the only giveaway.) I was there to play for Surrey, in a fixture that has often decided the SCCU Championship in recent years. Indeed the two sides contested three ECF finals in a row from 2011, and it's usually a very powerful match. This time however, we were facing the standard trouble with away matches, and Middlesex had to contend with Simon Williams running a blitz tournament and taking most of their big hitters.

It all had a bit of a stars-barred feel about it, and I was on board 8 with black against Andrew Gilfillan, who himself is only 185. After making a pig's ear of a Grand Prix Attack, I was allowed to dig myself out only to stumble in a good ending. And if that sounds familiar...

A short draw it may have been, but I think this was still an interesting game with plenty of instructive moments. In the last year or so I've become able to cope with unprepared openings, but 6... Nxb5?! blotted the copybook, ignoring the obvious flaws for the doubtful promise of jam tomorrow. Then White went running off after my a-pawn at the cost of the initiative, turning the tables completely. Finally I missed the ...Qc5-d4 idea at the end and so failed yet again to control counterplay in the endgame - overall I think I should be happier at sharing the point, so goodness knows how my opponent must feel about it all!

Quite why this game should follow the one against Gautam Jain a year ago so closely, I don't know. Maybe it is just a coincidence, but I have just finished playing at the London Junior Open where (as I'll relate eventually) for the second year in a row I was far more enterprising than at any other tournament - so maybe not?

Next up was an unusual challenge, at least of late - the second round of Wallington's club championship called for me to play a 120. You can never know in advance which games will make you work hard though!