03-04-2023 Central League Cup Stirling v Badgers Brook

Stirling		v		Badgers Brook
Shubham Lakudkar Sam Coates William Spiers Steve Smith Dave Hewitt Nathanael Loch Sean Flanagan	2040 1843 1722 1621 1562 1513 1487	1 - 0 0 - 1 0 - 1 0 - 1 1 - 0 1 - 0 1 - 0	2007 1998 1841 1689 1666 1292 894	Andrew Newton Kenny McGeoch Andrew McHarg Steven McHarg John Smith Gordon Walker Peter Woollven
		4 - 3

Thanks to Dave for providing the game below, where he was Black against John Smith.

ChessBase

John Smith1666–Dave Hewitt15620–1C01Neil Giffen Cup, Stirling vs Badgers BrookStirling CC03.04.2023

1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.d3 f6 5.h3 e7 6.f3 0-0 7.0-0 bd7 8.e1 c5 9.c3 e8 10.f4 cxd4 11.cxd4 b4 12.c3 xc3 13.bxc3 e4 14.c2 f5 15.c4 df6 16.ab1 b6 17.e5 b7 18.d2 c8 19.f1 dxc4 20.xc4+ d5 21.xd5+ xd5 22.b3 h8 23.f3 g5 24.b5 c3 25.e3 xe3 26.xe3 ec8 27.xc3 xc3 28.f4 g6 29.d5 c8 30.d7 f6 31.xa7 h5 32.f3 c1+ 33.h2 h6 34.a8+ h7 35.d5 f6 36.d8 g5 37.g3 d2 38.g2 c2 0–1

Download PGN

Dave writes: I picked a good time to win my first game in a Stirling match in 11 attempts this season. Was lucky - was in proper trouble early on, then got back levellish before missing a win at move 26: I was getting short of time but thought there was something good, and rather than doubling Rs I should have played 26 ...Rc1+ followed by Nd2 and Nf1+, winning the Q. However I missed this, and John then played a whole series of good moves to be well on top again. I thought he probably shouldn't have grabbed the pawn with 31 Rxa7, but the computer likes this and he was winning all the way to move 37, when Qh8+ followed by the hard to spot 38 Ra3 wins. John's actual 37 g3 allows a forced mate for black - fortunate, as I was down inside my last minute for the final four or five moves, and clinging on.