This week saw three Hendon teams in action in the Middlesex League. On Tuesday, Hendon 4 achieved a very creditable 3–3 tie away against Hackney 2. On Thursday, Hendon 3 won 4–2 away against Kings Head 2. On Friday, Hendon 1 lost 4–2 at home to Muswell Hill 1.
Hendon 4 found themselves heavily out-rated on their trip to Hackney, but fine victories for debutant Saniru Lohan Atulugamage and for Adam Smylie, plus excellent draws for Antoine Clarke and Ronak Bansal, secured a 3–3 tie. Congratulations to captain Chris Rogal and the team!
| Hackney 2 | Hackney 2 | Hendon 4 | Hendon 4 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Robinson, Adam | 1912 | 0 - 1 | Atulugamage, Saniru Lohan | ~1826 | ||
| 2 | Procopie, Andrei | 1774 | 1 - 0 | Bansal, Rineesh | 1638 | ||
| 3 | Harrison, David V | 1636 | ½ - ½ | Clarke, Antoine | 1444 | ||
| 4 | Bullock, Lee | 1598 | 0 - 1 | Smylie, Adam | 1415 | ||
| 5 | Dobbins, Paul | 1578 | 1 - 0 | Fierstone, Saul | 1238 | ||
| 6 | Garfield, Harvey | 1515 | ½ - ½ | Bansal, Ronak | 1280 | ||
| 3 - 3 | |||||||
Hendon 3 travelled to the MindSports Centre, where Kings Head are still playing their home matches, for what looked like a very close match on paper. Our chances were boosted when Chris Rogal’s opponent failed to turn up on Board 4, and excellent wins by Tom and Stephen on the bottom two boards combined with draws for Aviraj and myself secured a splendid 4–2 victory. Congratulations to captain Sundip Tailor, stand-in captain Jack Booker and the team!
With that result, Hendon 3 edged closer to safety in Division 2, a full match point ahead of Hammersmith 2 with a match in hand.
| Kings Head 2 | Kings Head 2 | Hendon 3 | Hendon 3 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mackenzie, Colin | 1966 | ½ - ½ | Bhaduri, Aviraj | 1783 | ||
| 2 | Bourke, Alex | 1745 | 1 - 0 | Booker, Jack | 1782 | ||
| 3 | Jerram, Richard | 1725 | ½ - ½ | Medworth, Andrew | 1707 | ||
| 4 | DEFAULT | 0 - 1 | Rogal, Chris S | 1689 | |||
| 5 | Tomkin, Neil D | 1660 | 0 - 1 | Garcia, Tom | 1620 | ||
| 6 | Ainscow, Faye | 1548 | 0 - 1 | Pride, Stephen C | 1619 | ||
| 2 - 4 | |||||||
Our home club night this week was moved to Friday at the request of our home venue. Muswell Hill 1 are one of the strongest teams in the league (they would be top were it not for West London’s ongoing romp through the divisions) and they brought a strong team tonight. Youngsters Armaan and Lion scored fantastic wins (congratulations!), but the visitors won the other four boards.
This leaves Hendon 1’s Division 1 status hanging in the balance: the team is in the relegation places in Division 1, a full point short of safety, albeit with a match in hand over Metropolitan and Kings Head 1.
| Hendon 1 | Hendon 1 | Muswell Hill 1 | Muswell Hill 1 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lebedev, Lion | 2228 | 1 - 0 | Badacsonyi, Stanley | 2414 | ||
| 2 | Sanitt, Ethan | 2186 | 0 - 1 | Healey, Michael W | 2255 | ||
| 3 | Eedle, Eric F | 2121 | 0 - 1 | Pollack, Oscar | 2212 | ||
| 4 | Killick, Tristan | 1930 | 0 - 1 | Wilks, Simon | 2228 | ||
| 5 | Nilim, Armaan | 1854 | 1 - 0 | Burnton, Joshua | 1974 | ||
| 6 | Booker, Jack | 1782 | 0 - 1 | Bush, Jason | 1715 | ||
| 2 - 4 | |||||||
Many thanks to everyone who played and helped organise the matches this week!