Last Wednesday saw Horsham 1 take on Haywards Heath 1 in the final match of our ultimately disappointing season. Mick Harris got us off to a good start by crushing his opponent on bottom board, and Ian Comley also scored a good win on the board above him. The top two boards were tougher fights, with Gavin Lock drawing against Feliks Kwiatkowski in a complex Modern Benoni, while Anthony Higgs had some good fortune in beating Jeffrey Boardman, who seemed to miss a win at one point.
My game was unfinished on the night. Although I had the better of things early on, I let my advantage slip and my opponent gained some attacking chances on the kingside. As time trouble loomed for both players, I overlooked that my opponent could play a temporary queen sacrifice, and my position appeared to be busted. However, I managed to find a reply that my opponent had overlooked, and although he still had a win against it, he failed to do so, instead taking play into a a balanced endgame. There were still further adventures to come, however, as first my opponent gave me a good chance, which I rejected due to some incorrect calculation on my part, then he had the initiative, but I was able to hold things together until the time control.
We were unable to agree a result then and there, and so took the position away for further consideration. Initially, my opponent wanted to claim a win, but further analysis convinced him otherwise, so we agreed a draw. This made the match 4-1 in our favour.
I give the game below with some notes.