Battersea’s season goes right to the wire as GM David Howell scores vital point for first team

Battersea 1’s charge for the London Chess League’s rumoured new second-place trophy is on a knife-edge after a close match last night.

GM David Howell turned out for the first team and scored a vital point against his GM opponent on top board as the match against Cavendish finished 4.5-4.5 with one crucial game adjourned.

Captain Midhun Unnikrishnan bagged the other win

Chris Beckett will now have to resume against Jeff Goldberg to decide the result of the match. So no pressure!

If Chris wins, Battersea 1 need to win their final match, a re-arranged fixture against King’s Head on June 12, to secure the runners-up spot.

It is rumoured that this year the league will award a second-placed trophy as Wood Green have now won top prize 15 years in a row.