Tuesday, 6th February, 2024
Just like buses, you don’t get RB2 reports for weeks, then you get two within a day. Today’s report focuses on The Mighty’s efforts to avoid relegation against a team who clearly are desperate to be promoted .
I say this because I played on board 3 last night, sporting a grade of 1635 and played an opponent graded 1860, a mere 225 pts difference and according to the grades in brackets after your current grade would increase by another 49 pts in the near future. A potential differential of 274 pts in the lower boards of Division 3 does not seem sporting to me and whilst I’ve no doubt all rules were adhered to I do not agree with the ethos of “win and at all costs”, certainly not in Div 3.
In this particular case you should know that Gambit field 7 teams in all divisions. Would it not have been more sporting to have promoted a player from one of the lower teams to fill the void created by an absentee rather than drafting in a regular Division 1 player? Enough said but as a club maybe we should consider league rule changes to ensure a more equitable playing field in the future.
To the match. In a rather subdued Citadel following the weekend’s Rapidplay exploits, the 1st team’s away match and the Matriarch’s convalescence and under subdued lighting (we don’t half get through light bulbs), we set forth.
To be fair, other than the disparity whined on about above, we were quite evenly matched and holding our own, so to speak. Needless to say I was the first to succumb. I hung on for 90 minutes but facing an opponent moving at Rapidplay speed, I was the first to make a Rapidplay blunder. 0-1.
Next up was Phil, deputising for Junior, who fell to a knight fork in an endgame, rapidly followed by Rob. I’m still not sure what happened in Rob’s game except he also came second. 0-3.
Now, with a score like that most captain’s would sigh and throw in the towel. This is not the case when you are led by The Grinder, Two Cushions, Captain Marvel. You choose the label. I sat next to the guru himself during his game and was amazed to see his newly found swashbuckling, killer aggression being displayed. Coaching juniors has clearly bought out the killer instinct in Captain Marvel. The aggression paid off. Having won a piece midway through the game which his opponent claimed not to have noticed, our man held his nerve, secured his win and avoided an embarrassing whitewash. 1-3.
Don’t despair fans. All is not lost. There is still time to turn this round.
In the Grinder, we have faith.
~ The Old Queen
Match Result