My first round opponent was Neville Belinfante, this being a congress he plays rather than arbits. I have had success against him before, so definitely need to beware of complacency.

Neville Belinfante v RR after 10 ... Nxf6

After 10 moves of minor engagement culminating in an exchange of knights on f6 we reached the position shown left in which RR is behind in development. An aggressive white would continue with the advance f4, but Neville wishing to be more circumspect essayed Nf4. Right square, wrong piece. 11 Nf4 Qd6 Now the knight is pinned against mate, and Bxf6 loses a piece to Qxf4, forking bishop and mate, so Neville opted for
12 g3 Ne4, 13 Qg4 (13 Bh4 g5, 14 Qd3 f5, 15 f3 and white gains a pawn for the piece, 13 Nh3 Re1 may make black feel nervous)
13 ... Nxg5, 14 Qxg5 Qxd4, 15 Bd3 Bxf4, 16 gxf4.

Neville Belinfante v RR after 16 gxf4

RR is now a comfortable pawn ahead and can probably safely grab the b-pawn, though Bd7 and castles long may be more appealing to those of a nervous disposition. However RR had one of his brain storms and turned the game on its head with

16 ... Qd8, 17 Qxg7 Rf8, 18 Rad1 Qe7, 19 Qxh7 f5 with threats on the e-file and Bxh7 are surely both superior
19 ... Bd7, 20 f5 (too late) 0-0-0.

RR is a pawn down, but with a relatively safe king of his own and a white queen to harrass is in practice winning. Nevilles subsequent attempts to force the pace merely serve to hasten the end:

Neville Belinfante v RR after 20 ... 0-0-0

21 fxe6 Bxe6, 22 Bxe6 with visions of material exchanges to emphasis his pawn lead
22 ... Qg5+ winning the bishop, 23 Kh1 Bxf5 now find a queen move, 24 Rg1 Rxd1 0-1

RR v Stephane Pedder after 7 d4

Grabbing space in the centre is a common ploy, with a big centre in which the c, d, e and f pawns are advanced being some peoples ideal. RR has a somewhat off-centre approach to the game, so goes for a big off-centre with b to e pawns advanced (see diagram). Can he survive Stephane's attempts to undermine his structure? Unfortunately I seem to have lost the score of the game, so have reconstructed it from memory. I hope that what follows is a substantially correct reconstruction
7 ... e6, 8 Be2 d6, 9 Nc3 Nc6, 10 b5 Ne7
11 0-0 c6, 12 Qb3 c5, 13 dxc5 dxc5, 14 Rfd1 Qc7

RR v Stephane Pedder after 14 ... Qc7

I confess I'm beginning to enjoy this - must make sure I win it too!

15 Ne4 Nf5, 16 Rd3 Couldn't work out whether I wanted to play Nf6+, though Fritz says its better. However "playing by numbers" and doubling rooks on the d-file cannot be too bad can it?
16 ... h5 presumably to stop me kicking his one advanced piece with g4
17 Rfd1 Qb7, 18 Ng3 (Nfg5 releasing f3 for the bishop is stronger)
18 ... Nxg3, 19 hxg3 Qe7, 20 Nd2 Rb8 deciding that attempting to break out with a6 leads nowhere.
21 Ne4 Kh7, 22 Bf3 f6 (see diagram)
Stephane has shown an understandable reluctance to make this move; at this point it leads to the loss of the exchange.

RR v Stephane Pedder after 22 ... f6

Richard Desmedt v RR after 7 Qb3

The game has hardly started as we join it, but already some simple tactics are threatened as RR's b-pawn is vulnerable to a c-pawn advance. One way of stopping an opposition pawn move is to place a pawn of ones own on the relevant square, but I elected to tempt him to play the advance:
7 ... Nc6 8 c5 Now to see whether I'm correct that he'll regret it.
8 ... Bxf3 9 Qxf3 (Bxf3 Nxd4 10 Qd3 Nxf3+, 11 Qxf3 Bxc5 with a healthy advantage; 9 cxb6, 10 Bxe2 and white has lost a piece since Kxe2 runs into the fork Nxd4+)
9 ... Nxd4, 10 Qxb7 Nc2+, 11 Kf1

When playing Nc6 I had got as far as this in my calculations, but couldn't decide what might be the best continuation. Having reached the position over the board I still felt spoilt for choice: Qd5, Rb8, Nxa1 all seemed candidates, but I opted for
11 ... Bxc5, 12 Qc6+ Nd7, 13 Bb5 0-0, 14 Nc3 an annoying move to which I did not find the best continuation, rejecting both a6 and Nxa1 in favour of
14 ... Bb4, 15 Rb1 Nc5 and the dust was beginning to settle with RR having a pawn and some positional advantage. Over the next 40 or so moves we both struggled to find a coherent plan, so that the size of my advantage varied.

Francis Best v RR after 17 Rf3

Seventeen moves into the game and Francis has a clear lead, with a rook coming to join four other pieces molesting my king. But a successful completion of the attack is not automatic, at least not for those who inhabit my levels of play, so I am concerned rather than despondent.
17 ... Nf8. Revealing a queen attack against d4. Interestingly the knight was destined to become an important piece.
18 Qf2 N6d7, 19 Bxe7 Qxe7, 20 Bc2 Rad8, 21 g4 Nxe5 (lacking the nerve to kich the knight with f6 - at the time it seemed too weakening, though my silicon friend says otherwise.)
22 dxe5 a6, 23 Rd3 Rxd3, 24 Bxd3 Rd8, 25 Bc2 a5 Not my proudest moment as I had not loked at Qb6 for white. Fortunately it does not do too much damage, and Francis was seduced into making a weakish move of his own:
26 c5 Rd5, 27 b4 Qd8, 28 Qf3 axb4, 29 axb4 Rd4
30 g5 Rxb4, 31 Bxg6 Qa5 (right)

Francis Best v RR after 31 ... Qa5

RR v Alan Paling after 11 ... Kh7

12 b4 f5, 13 Qc1 f4 ( ... g5, 14 Bxg5 hxg5, 15 Nxg5+ with Nxe6 and a major piece fork to follow. With the f-pawn advance in the game, the f-file will remain closed for a while longer.)
14 Rb1 Nd4, 15 Nxd4 cxd4, 16 a4 Qd7, 17 b5 Rad8 Concerned about his d-pawn, and that defending it with Nc8 would cut off the a-rook.
18 f3 being concerned about the exchange sac on that square -
18 Qa3 f3, 19 Bxf3 Rxf3, 20 gxf3 and my king is somewhat exposed. Whether I should be worried is another thing entirely.
18 ... g5, 19 Qa3 Nc8, 20 Ba5 b6, 21 Bb4 Rf7 (right)

The weather had claimed or original fixture at Holmes Chapel Rooks a fortnight ago, but today conditions overhead and underfoot were benign, so we made the trip up the A34 and A50 to take on the Blackburn's and their henchmen.

Malcolm Roberts v RR after 9 ... Bh5

Old foe Malcolm Roberts was my immediate opponent, and after 9 moves we had reached the position left in which a couple of wasted pawn moves by RR blunted the effect of his developed pieces.
10 Ne4 Bd6 A feeble effort asking for much liquidation. Nxe2+ was surely required.
11 Nxd6+ Qxd6, 12 Bxf4 Qxf4, 13 Ne5 Bxe2, 14 Qxe2

RR has precisely nothing for his play so far whereas Malcolm is castled, fully developed, has a well placed knight and rooks free to join in without concern about defensive duties. Instead of sensibly castling or playing Nd7 for a grinding major piece middle and endgame - RR's style - he finds the horrific
14 ... Na6, 15 Nxc6 Already RR's ambition is limited to the small possibility of scrambling a draw as he has no compensation whatsoever for the pawn.
15 ... 0-0, 16 Rfe1 Rfe8 Objectively removing the knights is better, as whites is clearly better than blacks, but RR prefers to keep the material on until (hopefully) he can see a way forward.
17 Ne5 Nc7, 18 Qe4 Qxe4, 19 Rxe4

Malcolm Roberts v RR after 19 Rxe4

Even bad plans are in short supply here (diagram right). Maybe f6 and Kf7 and just try to sit on the position and hope that somehow Malcolm's advantage dissipates. However I decided that even trying to hold the white pawns back would give Malcolm more to think about, and hence more chance of going wrong, so
19 ... b5, 20 a3 Nd5, 21 Rae1 g5 (Nb6 and Na4 merely takes the knight out of the game as the b2 pawn is easy for white to defend, Nb6 and Nc4, fares worse since after exchanging knights white continues with d5.)
22 Nd3 Kg7, 23 f4

Malcolm Roberts v RR after 23 f4

23 ... Rec8 (23 ... Nxf4, 24 Nxf4 gxf4, 25 Rxf4 f6 has something to commend it, but on deciding not to remove the f-pawn RR needs to guard against f5)
24 fxg5 hxg5, 25 Nc5 Kh6 (Kg6 saner, with Rg4 now being met by Rh8)
26 Rf1 Rg8 Deathwish. We all like to have excuses for such atrocities, and mine is that the first game had just finished and not to our advantage. No, its not much of an excuse is it?
27 Rxf7 Rg6, 28 Rxe6 Rxe6, 29 Nxe6 Re8, 30 Nc5 Small mercies
30 Rf5 Rxe6, 31 Rxd5 a6, 32 Re5 and black's rook is a bystander

30 ... Nf4, 31 Rxa7 Re1+, 32 Kf2 Re2+, 33 Kf3 Rxb2
34 h4 Nxg2, 35 hxg5+ Kh5, 36 Rh7+ Ke6, 37 Rh1

Malcolm Roberts v RR after 37 Rh1

Should I resign? The diagram right shows that my knight and pawn have no moves, the rook is tied to its defence, and the king cannot take the g-pawn as Rg1 would then win the knight. But we are trailing ½ - 1½, and Nic on board four is down the exchange to a pawn. The team needs me to play on and find something. Anything.
37 ... Rc2, 38 Ne4 Ra2, 39 Nd6 Rb2
with visions of
40 Nxb5 Rxb5, 41 Kxg2 Rb2+, 42 Kf3 Rc2 leading to a rook endgame in which white has two isolated pawns as the c and one other pawn must drop.
40 Rg1 Nh4+, 41 Kg3 Kxg5, 42 Ne4+ Kf5, 43 Nd6+ Ke6
44 Ne4 Nf5+, 45 Kf4 Ne7, 46 Nc5+ Kd5, 47 Rg7 Nc6
48 Rd7+ Kc4, 49 Rc7 Kd5, 50 Ke3

Malcolm Roberts v RR after 50 Ke3

(Left) It looks as if the white king is headed for d3 to keep me out of c4. Meanwhile my king is rather short of squares, so
50 ... Na5, 51 Kd3 Nc4 harrass the a-pawn
52 a3 simplification
52 ... Rd2 With one bound he was free!

Julian Kirk O'Grady v RR after 6 ... c5

We join the game in the asymmetrical position right after a mere 6 moves. What do you do if your opponent sets up a pawn centre? Attack it.
7 e4 A standard shove. Although the e-pawn is now attacked thrice but defended only twice it cannot be won, merely exchanged:
7 ... dxe4, 8 Ng5 and now black's pawn pinned on the long diagonal is under overwhelming attack.
8 ... Be7, 9 Ngxe4 Qd7 black has to defend against Nxf6+ followed by Bxb7 and Bxa8. Nc6 is black's main alternative at this point.
10 Nc4 deciding that attacks starting Nxf6+ and then bringing the other knight queen and queen's bishop onto the kingside was rather more show than substance. RR opts for an early release of pressure, though Nc6 and 0-0 are better designed to prolong tension and the game:
10 ... Nxe4, 11 dxe4 0-0, 12 Qxd7 Nxd7
13 Rd1 Rad8, 14 Bf4 Nf6, 15 Bc7 (diagram left)

Julian Kirk O'Grady v RR after 15 Bc7

Offering a pawn to get his rook to the seventh through the line
15 ... Rxd1+, 16 Rxd1 Bxe4, 17 Bxe4 Nxe4, 18 Rd7
Being unable to judge how much compensation white now has for the pawn, RR declined to go down this line, though with the help of unpressurised post match contemplation it would appear that black's material advantage is worth the loss of time required to unwrap his position.

15 ... Rd4, 16 Rxd4 cxd4, 17 Bd6 Bxd6
RR considered but rejected the superior Rc8. Happy to follow the potential line
17 ... Rc8, 18 Bxe7 Rxc4, 19 Bxf6 gxf6 with solid support for the d-pawn, but at the time not so sure about lines starting 18 Nxb6, though in the cold light of day it is difficult to trace the source of discomfort.

18 Nxd6 Bc6, 19 e5 Bxg2, 20 Kxg2 Ng4
21 Rd1 Nxe5, 22 Rxd4 Rd8, 23 Nb5 ½-½

I had taken a good look around the other boards before playing Rd8 as this seemed to all but force a draw. Pete had already lost on five, Nic was down two pawns for a piece and John seemed in danger of being pushed off the board by his opponents advancing pawns. Only Alex, who had an isolated d-pawn to target seemed to be bringing home the bacon. Despite the match position I chose Rd8 as other moves seemed to concede an edge in the coming endgame with little prospect of forming a plan giving myself winning chances. Julian and I left the playing room to discuss our game briefly.