Pos Name From Gr Rd1 Rd2 Rd3 Rd4 Rd5 Rd6 Rd7 Rd8 Sco GA GP 1 Dana Hawrami Ilford 111 +19b +11w +2b +3w +6b +7w +4b +8w 8.0 76 126 2 Joe Bloomfield S. Walden 85 +22w +20b -1w +14b =4w +12b =6b +7w 6.0 69 94 3 Adam Jellett Southend 89 +21w +17b +13w -1b -12w +14b +10w +6b 6.0 67 92 4 Subin Sen Woodford 88 +24b +12w +8b -6w =2b +5w -1w +13b 5.5 72 91 5 James Neuhaus S. Walden 38 -8b fpb =10w +21b +20w -4b +14w +12b 5.5 61 75 6 Jonathan Fallman Loughton 85 hpb +9w +19b +4b -1w +10b =2w -3b 5.0 78 93 7 Ethan Finney Loughton 70 -10w +22b +17w +9w +8b -1b +13w -2b 5.0 72 85 8 Nathanael Lutton Basildon 78 +5w +10b -4w +20b -7w +15b +12w -1b 5.0 64 77 9 Richard Maynes Loughton 66 +15w -6b +21w -7b +17w -13b +20w +16b 5.0 61 73 10 Kimberly Hirst-Jones Leigh 55 +7b -8w =5b +11w +19b -6w -3w +15b 4.5 64 70 11 Hamish Hore Gt. Totham 58 +25w -1b +15w -10b -13w =16b +18w +20b 4.5 56 63 12 Charles Phillips Brentwood 56 +26w -4b +25w +13b +3b -2w -8b -5w 4.0 64 64 13 Roly Fischer-Vousden S. Walden 73 +18b +14w -3b -12w +11b +9w -7b -4w 4.0 63 63 14 Peter Maynes Loughton 41 +27w -13b +22w -2w +24b -3w -5b +23w 4.0 55 55 15 Peter Neuhaus S. Walden 39 -9b +28w -11b +24w +18b -8w +19b -10w 4.0 53 53 16 Melissa Hirst-Jones Leigh 49 hpb def +23b -18w +25b =11w +21b -9w 4.0 45 53 17 William Cheung Maldon 65 +23b -3w -7b +28w -9b -19w +26b +22w 4.0 52 52 18 Rachel Cheung Maldon 36 -13w +26b -20w +16b -15w +22b -11b +19w 4.0 51 51 19 Jamie Burgoyne Leigh 54 -1w +27b -6w +25b -10w +17b -15w -18b 3.0 56 44 20 David Pedro Loughton 58 +28b -2w +18b -8w -5b +21w -9b -11w 3.0 55 42 21 Sebastian Hore Gt. Totham 48 -3b +23w -9b -5w +28b -20b -16w +27w 3.0 49 36 22 Pradeeba Jegatheesvaran Ilford 44 -2b -7w -14b +27w +23b -18w +28w -17b 3.0 48 36 23 Liam Hough Leigh 30 -17w -21b -16w +26b -22w +24w +25b -14b 3.0 44 32 24 Charlie Wakeling Leigh 48 -4w -25b +26w -15b -14w -23b =27b +28w 2.5 40 21 25 Danny Wakeling Leigh 30 -11b +24w -12b -19w -16w +27b -23w -26b 2.0 44 19 26 Damon Burgoyne Leigh 30 -12b -18w -24b -23w -27w +28b -17w +25w 2.0 41 16 27 Chris Sheehan Leigh 30 -14b -19w -28b -22b +26b -25w =24w -21b 1.5 41 9 28 Lily Robins Leigh 30 -20w -15b +27w -17b -21w -26w -22b -24b 1.0 45 8 The players' grades in the above table are calculated entirely from Essex rapidplay tournaments played since 1/9/2000. The default grade was 30.Photographs
This may have been a first for a Junior tournament in that one of the competitors, Melissa Hirst-Jones, was absent from the venue for every round but still managed a creditable 3½/6 on games played by playing from her hospital bed by telephone. A fractured femur will keep Melissa out of action but in traction for another 6 weeks or so. Helpful members of the local chess-paying community, Mike Waldock and Graham Walker in particular, acted as move stewards at either end.
There was some wonderful chess played. Dana Hawrami fully justified his position as pre-tournament favourite as he won every game, mostly with plenty to spare. The most exciting game from the first day was Jonathan Fallman's remarkable win on time against Subin Sen. Subin had won the exchange and Jonathan was way behind on the clock, but with several black pieces striking at the f2 square, Subin thought long and hard about a defensive manoeuvre and eventually his flag fell. Jonathan had just two seconds (!) left.
Jonathan spent a long time at the board in round 5 against Dana, but here the difference in experience did tell and Dana won comfortably. Probably the two best games of the tournament again involved Jonathan. His draw against Joe Bloomfield was full of good chess and, with more time, Jonathan would surely have won as he invaded the black position with both rooks. In time trouble (again), Jonathan blundered a rook. Then a pawn race ensued and both players queened, to leave a Q & N v Q & P ending. With almost no time left, Jonathan managed to force the queens off and Joe's knight finally captured the pawn when it reached b7.
In the final round, Adam Jellett was Jonathan's opponent and it looked as though Jonathan would win this as he forced a pawn to c7 where it was supported by a bishop. All that was required was a rook check on the back rank and White would have a queen, but Jonathan chose the wrong square for his rook and Adam, fighting what looked like a losing battle, managed to block with his bishop. The rooks were exchanged, and the opposite coloured bishops' ending should have been drawn, but Adam breathed new life into the game by allowing the bishops to be exchanged. At this point the K & P ending might still have been better for white, but when Jonathan tried that little bit too hard with his f & g pawns, it gave Adam his only winning chance of the game and he seized it. Adam now had passed pawns on the a and h files, Jonathan on the f & g files. Adam's king could keep an eye on Jonathan's pawns from f6, but Jonathan's king was unable to be in two places at once. This was a marvellous game by both players: Essex is indeed fortunate to have such talent in its youngest age group.
Ethan Finney was another player to "emerge" in this event. His first tournament, he lost to Kimberley Hirst-Jones in round 1, but thereafter only to Dana Hawrami and Joe Bloomfield. His victims included Nathanael Lutton, who is enjoying some good form at the moment. James Neuhaus put in a "personal best" to score a splendid 5.5.