2007 John Holmes Memorial

Round 1

The 2007 John Holmes Memorial tournament commenced with an entry of 10 players on Thursday 25th October.

Top seed and Club Champion Scott Stewart played a Bird's Opening against Rob Loveband who countered with the aggressive From's Gambit (1.f4 e5?!). In a wild game, White sacrificed a piece on f7 quite early and gained a vicious attack. Black's King was caught in the centre and White rapidly broke through to score an impressive win.

Tim Commons met Patrick Cook in an unusual French Winawer. After casually shedding a pawn in the opening, Black put his thinking cap on, regained the pawn and then outplayed White to win comfortably.

Michael Schreenan took on Kevin Perrin in an Open Sicilian. A feisty game with chances for both sides well into the middle game stage, Black eventually won the exchange and then smoothly converted the Rook versus Bishop plus pawns ending into the full point.

Jamie Brotheridge faced John Abson in a Ruy Lopez. A typical attacking build up by White overwhelmed Black, who dropped his Queen on move 14 and resigned after 19 moves.

Round 2

Round 2 saw the traditional showdown between Patrick Cook and Jamie Brotheridge. White gained a very strong position from a Catalan Opening but failed to make the most of it. After drifting in the middle game, White proceeded to throw away even a draw in the endgame and was mated by the merciless J.B.

Rob Loveband faced Clint Stewart in an open Sicilian. A very even game for much of the play until Black launched a dangerous attack. He became overextended in the face of excellent defence by White and lost a piece and the game soon after.

John Abson versus Michael Schreenan featured the ancient Giuco Piano Opening (1.e4e5 2.Nf3Nc6 3.Bc4). White found himself in trouble right from the start, shedding 2 pawns for no compensation. Black seemed to be heading for a good win, but then made a catastrophic blunder, dropping his Queen, and resigned on the spot.

Kevin Perrin took on club champion Scott Stewart. As expected, a Dutch Leningrad quickly appeared on the board as a prelude to a tough positional struggle. The game ended suddenly when Black struck with a quick tactical blow that won a piece.

Round 3

Rob Loveband met Patrick Cook who defended with his usual French Defence. Black won a pawn in the opening, but once again drifted aimlessly in the middlegame allowing White to seize the initiative which he rapidly converted into a win.

Scott Stewart faced the hyper-aggressive Jamie Brotheridge. A King's Indian Attack via a Sicilian, Black sacrificed a piece for a strong attack against the White King very early, and soon won in brilliant fashion.

Tim Commons took on Kevin Perrin in an open Sicilian. Black gained a strong position and picked up a pawn in the early middlegame. White was able to regain the pawn but at the cost of a weaker position. Black converted his advantage into a win avioding all the zaps and traps White could throw at him.

Clint Stewart played John Abson. Unsurprisingly, it was a Bird's opening (1.f4). Black dropped a piece for a pawn in the opening, and when his King became stranded and exposed in the centre, he didn't survive for long.

Michael Schreenan met Swyzer Bell in a Scandinavian Defence. Both players treated the game as if it was Blitz and finished with more time than when they started!! White won a piece in the middlegame and had no trouble hauling in the full point thereafter.

Round 4

Tournament leader Jamie Brotheridge faced Clint Stewart. A Dutch Defence, White gave up the Bishop pair for the Knight pair in a tough positional encounter, and later gave a piece for 3 pawns. Black was unable to hold the pawns and, consequently, was unable to hold the game.

Kevin Perrin met Rob Loveband in a Reti/Catalan positional fight. White appeared to be slowly gaining the ascendancy, but then misplayed a promising combination, dropping a piece for 2 pawns. A subsequent desperate exchange sacrifice failed to rectify the situation and Black took the full point. Rob remains undefeated by Kevin in tournament play.

Patrick Cook faced Michael Schreenan and again adopted the Catalan Opening. After picking up a pawn in the opening, White carefully set about converting his edge into the full point, avoiding some pitfalls along the way.

John Abson took on Tim Commons and played the Evans Gambit!, a rare guest at the club in recent years. White was unable to cash in the surprise value and shed more material in pursuit of a speculative attack. Black calmly gobbled up the offerings and took the point when Whites attack vanished.

Swyzer Bell played Scott Stewart. A Dutch Defence, White was quickly crushed after he lost a piece in the opening.

Emphasising the cut-throat nature of this competition we are through four rounds without a single draw.

Round 5

Clint Stewart met Kevin Perrin and played Bird's Opening. A typical Dutch Leningrad with colours reversed was reached and an even positional struggle ensued. White gained space, and patient pressure eventually enabled White to break through and win a lengthy game.

Rob Loveband faced tournament leader Jamie Brotheridge. A topical Semi-Slav resulted in sharp opening play. Black invested 2 pawns in a complex middle game and kept Whites king dangerously exposed in the centre. The complexities proved too much for White to handle and he lost on time! despite the 30 second increment.

Tim Commons took on Michael Schreenan who defended with the Petroff. Black dropped a piece early and White subsequently picked up a couple of extra pawns as well before sweeping the board for a convincing win.

Scott Stewart faced Patrick Cook in a battle of the champions and played the English, at one time Patrick's favourite. Black was in an aggressive mood after his earlier failures and a sharp, tactical melee ensued. White calmly resisted the pressure and picked up a decisive material advantage before winning without difficulty.

Swyzer Bell gained a free point when John Abson failed to appear.

Round 6

This was the strangest round of chess at the club for many years.

Clint Stewart versus his brother Scott Stewart was played via the internet due to Clint's departure interstate. Details are unknown, but black won.

Michael Schreenan played Rob Loveband in the only game played on the night. An open Sicilian, White resisted Black's pressure for quite some time before succumbing.

Patrick Cook versus John Abson was played at the Public Library over a week earlier (with the wrong colours!). A Pirc Defence via the Alekhine, Patrick won without much difficulty.

Tournament leader Jamie Brotheridge won by forfeit against Tim Cummons, as did Swyzer Bell from Kevin Perrin.

Round 7

John Abson versus Rob Loveband was a Caro-Kann Defence and was a surprisingly tough struggle into the late middle game, despite Black picking up a pawn. An oversight resulted in White dropping a piece and then a rook as well to hand Black the full point.

Swyzer Bell took on Patrick Cook and adopted a policy of avoiding theoretical lines and swapping material at every opportunity. This approach kept the game even for some time until White missed a simple combination that netted Black a rook. The win was easy from there.

The game of the night was Jamie Brotheridge versus Kevin Perrin. Black turned up late to find his clock had been ticking for 45 minutes. The game was a Slav Defence and White launched his typically fierce attack against the Black King. He picked up a pawn and appeared headed for victory. Black didn't panic and conjured up some interesting counterplay that gradually turned the tables. After declining a draw offer, Black went on to win a great game in the perfect example of refined technique triumphing over exaggerated aggression.

Tim Commons gained a free point at the expense of Clint Stewart as did Scott Stewart from Michael Schreenan. Thus, the club champion Scott was able to catch Jamie to tie for first place with 6/7.

Amazingly, there were no draws in this event. No need for the 'Sofia' rules at Ballarat Chess Club!!