After a break last year we were extremely glad to restart the series of friendly matches at the Kings Arms Pentyrch, where we were treated to the usual warm welcome and excellent buffet.

All the games were hard fought. By the time we broke for refreshments, we had established a 3-1 lead with wins for Geoff, Aron and me. Aron had won the exchange against the Duffer but the well-anchored knight plus a pawn were looking like adequate compensation. Until the Duffer overlooked the fact that the pawn defending the knight was pinned! Meanwhile, Per had been coaxed into filling board 8 and, whenever I looked, it seemed to be a wild game - one which we all might enjoy if we can get hold of the score sheet. Per came second in the end but, after a performance like that, maybe he will fancy some outings in the league next season!

Soon after the restart Martin's opponent lost on time in a very double-edged position. The post-mortem seemed to indicate that Martin had an advantage anyway. And by now John had concluded that there was no way to force a win in the ending so he agreed a draw. This left two games which continued virtually until the deadline. Grant was a pawn down against Mike and the ending finally proved to be untenable. Our Mike, meanwhile, was slugging it out with Viv and when they were down to one minor piece and a couple of blockable pawns each, they called it a day.

So, it was a win by 5-3 and we have bragging rights until the next time, and trophy polishing duties! All the games had been challenging and an enjoyable afternoon had been had by all. (Notably the Duffer, who claimed to belong to the winning club!) Thanks again to Pentyrch for their excellent hospitality and, especially, to Gwawr for organising the match.