Post date: May 28, 2015 12:51:07 PM
Stafford 'done the double' last night in the County Cup Finals. The Hickman Cup was decided somewhat quicker, but much less satisfactorily than the Jackson, with a no-show from Lichfield.
The Jackson Cup went right to the wire and made up for the lack of entertainment in the Hickman. Denis and David had both secured early draws on boards 2 & 4, while Peter had grabbed a full point on 5. Kazik couldn't hold off a strong opponent and finally had to resign his game on top board. Because of the 'board count' rule, Ken then found himself needing to press for a win.
As the final, and deciding game moved into something of a time scramble, the Alsager player made an illegal move (into check). The clocks were duly stopped and up stepped Mr Arbiter with his "Have an extra 2 minutes on your clock" routine. This increase in remaining time (from almost zero) was just enough for Ken to find a few more moves, finally queening a pawn to win the game.
In the other match being played, Newcastle beat Walsall Kipping by 3.5 - 1.5 in the Withnall Trophy Final.