Newark 1 secured a hard-earned 3-2 victory away at Gambit 2 and have now won three of their six league games. The two league points gained enabled them to jump up the league table from 7th to 4th.
First to finish was Keith Aiton’s game against Stephen Hunter, a draw as neither side could gain an advantage. Richard Myers also drew when he could not convert a small advantage against his opponent’s Slav Defence.
The one decisive result on the night was Alex Combie’s win against Drag Sudar on the top board. Despite immense time pressure Alex managed to secure a win in a queen and pawn ending.
The game on board 2 between Graham Ladds and Onos Kofi-Ofuafor was a very interesting one. Although the Graham, playing for Newark, seemed to get the better of a lively opening in the Benko Gambit, Onos developed pressure against Graham’s queenside position to gain material. A mistake in the later stages cost the Onos victory and the game ended in a draw by the repetition of moves.
Newark secured victory when Martyn Wynn took a draw in a bishop and pawn ending against Nikolai Harrison. This was another good performance from Martyn that contributed to the club’s success.