DYNAMIC DAVID DOES IT AGAIN IN SEASONAL SUMMER SHOWDOWN
Tom Maiden reports on our summer online arena.
CLUB treasurer David Edwards fended off a 16-strong field at the club’s summer online arena last month, retaining the title he had narrowly won at Christmas. At that meet, only two points had separated the top three positions, but with 21 points this time (five clear of second), it was an authoritative finish for Edwards, who had also arranged the tournament.
“There is a growing suspicion that I only organise these events because I think I’ll win them!” said Edwards. “In reality I needed several large dollops of luck to pip some very good players to the post, but I was chuffed to hold on to my crown.”
Indeed, despite the convincing margin of his victory come the end, it was not all plain sailing for Edwards in a contest that saw several others tussle for the crown throughout – a contrast to the Christmas meet, when the treasurer had quickly claimed the lead and never let go.
The format was unchanged from Christmas: a time control of five minutes and five second increment per game, with players playing as many games as they could over a fixed two hour span. Wins were worth two points, draws one, and losses nil apiece. Points however were doubled with after two wins in a row, resetting with each loss. Ties were broken by win-rates, then rating. Players were paired by closeness in the standings from among those in the lobby waiting to play, and it was possible to face the same opponent more than once (though not consecutively).
A win against top seed Patrick Fitch in his first game was the perfect start to David’s title defence. However, drawing by threefold repetition in his next game against B team captain and initial leader Richard Vernon put an early dent in both of their momentums. This allowed Shane Greenwood (the first player to achieve that coveted three-win streak) to leapfrog to the top of the standings, only to be stalled immediately with a loss to Edwards. Freddie Bennett and A-team captain Dan Lockett, with win streaks of their own, were able to tie Greenwood for first come the half-way point.
Fortune nevertheless smiled on Edwards as the contest entered the second hour. Despite several players beginning double-point streaks, none but Edwards could maintain them, with defeats (including by Edwards himself, and upsets such as those given to Lockett and Fitch by C-team captain Dafydd “Ben” Howells) and draws ending runs just as they could begin. Having sustained a consistent performance, and with his rivals lost in the reeds, Edwards finally grabbed the gold with 45 minutes remaining and was never in danger of letting it go (even when his streak was eventually broken in a rematch loss to Fitch). Greenwood and Fitch, who had finished just outside the medals at Christmas, both scored 16 points when the night was done. A greater win rate than his opponent however saw Greenwood eke out the tie-break to claim second however.
Former club secretary Mark Smith enjoyed a strong performance across the night (losing only one game, to Freddie Bennett) and was only narrowly adrift of the podium by two points, with 14. Bennett himself – third at the Christmas meet – looked to finish one position higher, even into the closing stages. An upset by Tom Maiden in the last few minutes, however, meant that the teen had to settle for fifth place with 13 points. Given the popularity and success of these events, another arena is likely later in the year. The final standings, and all 60 games, can be viewed at: https://lichess.org/tournament/oT2ZwYUf.