MAGNIFICENT MACC SURGE CLEAR

Mighty Macc C powered clear of their rivals last night after a hard-fought win at home to Northenden. All the pre-match talk was of the newly revised gradings. Readers of this Blog will not be too surprised to learn that Man with Hat’s grading has fallen off the edge, through the floor and ended up in the bowels of the earth’s crust. Meanwhile the eager Northenden team were sat down and ready to roll at 7pm. First to finish was Marc against Andrew. Would Marc be tired from his efforts the previous day at the Stockport Rapidplay? Nope, Marc played a beautiful game forcing all of Andrew’s pieces onto a corner of the back 2 ranks before playing cat and mouse and winning. Next to finish was MWH and the game had opened up nicely for me after the ladies were exchanged in the middle of the board. A winning endgame was apparent and I wasn’t going to let Anthony back. MWH has a rep for using up every second on his clock but tonight he still had 20 minutes. Add to this Anthony’s 1 hour and it was a rare opportunity to chill, relax and escape to the bar. As I sat down with Anthony, the Northenden team one by one joined us. A nice touch and it certainly brought a smile to the face of Zoe the landlady. Young Liam, elevated to top board for Northenden must have been pleased with a solid half against a higher graded player in Francis. Dad Des failed to match his son’s endeavours though losing out to Tom’s runaway pawn. The only loss to the Macc Lads being Tony’s defeat to Neil. A piece down early doors, Tony tried to use his compensatory pawns to engineer a passed pawn but it was not enough to stop a confident Mr Oddie. On returning home, MWH told his tale of glory, of bravery and a lion’s heart. Mrs Hat put down her croquet and turned instead to another 2,088 hours of recorded Gotham box sets showing an appalling nonchalance towards her other half’s heroics. A big thank you for Northenden for a thoroughly enjoyable night and we look forward to the return match in March.

STATE OF PLAY IN THE CLUB TOURNAMENTS

The qualifying rounds for the semifinals in the club's internal tournaments finish at the end of this month. Club Championship: In group A Phil Colville has already qualified. There is one game to play (Carl v Denzil). Whoever wins this will qualify with Phil. A draw will mean that Denzil goes through to the semifinal. In group B there are four games left to play. Nobody is certain of qualification - any two of James, Joachim, John-Paul and Dave could go on to the semifinals. Pomeroy Cup: In group A Francis and Tony Lane have qualified. In group B there are two games left to play. Nobody is certain of qualification - any two of Tom, Ant and John could go on to the semi-finals.

BRILLIANT MACC CHARGE UP THE TABLE

Macclesfield C shot up to second place last night after a thrilling win at the home of neighbours East Cheshire. The Macc lads made the short trip across the county to the East Cheshire Club. Going down those steps and then entering the room feels life you’ve entered the playing arena at Anfield or the Crucible perhaps ( raised eyebrows from Mrs Hat)! The Macc Lads were searching for their first win of the season and Tom on board 5 held onto a ½ against David H in a King & pawn ending, something that he had spectacularly failed to do last time out. A big up for Tom and a battling half point for the team. Well played Tom! Marc on Board 3 was playing Nick someone who has battered Man with Hat twice already this year. Nick was in a much more benevolent mood this time, failing to spot a tactic then dropping a piece before hanging a King + Queen fork. 1½:½ and a well- deserved win for Marc who has been practising hard of late. John A had been told by Francis that he could be in line for the Vic Knox prize (thanks Francis)! Perhaps the weight of expectation was too busy but no, with the fat lady waiting in the wings, Steve McC makes a dreadful blunder and John A makes it a personal 6/6. Its now 2½: ½ and our Tony on board 1 offers a draw that was taken the second time of asking. Opposite coloured squared bishops are notoriously hard to convert but post- match analysis appeared to suggest that Tony may have missed a trick. However, a draw was enough to win the match 3-2 after Man with Hat lost again (well played Paul)! The beauty of being captain is that I can still bask in the glory of my selections should my teammates dig me out. Tom had already gone by the time I left 3 happy smiling cohorts outside the club. This was a good win, we were out-graded on boards 1-4 but we now end the year in joint second place and hot on the heels of pre-season favourites Worsley. A winless streak has now been replaced by optimism, joy, happiness and Christmas cheer. Well played East Cheshire and Seasons greetings from MWH and the long suffering Mrs Hat. God bless us, every one!