GM Danny Gormally showed the difference in class between grandmasters and club players with a mighty performance in a simultaneous display at the club on Tuesday, winning all 21 games he played.
After beating Ali Hill, the player who might have been expected to be his most challenging opponent, early on, our GM visitor was prepared in many cases to let his superior technique do the work rather than going for flashy quick victories.
Some of our players showed some early promise in their games.
Malcolm Dancy, previously a winner in a simul against GM David Howell, built up a good opening position before Danny got behind his defences after the queens came off.
Emil Todorow (pictured on the right below) held a slight advantage well into the middle game but suffered from being the last to finish and having to play the moves at the same tempo as his professional opponent.
And he's gone. POWERFUL performance by @elgransenor1 who wins all 20!!!! pic.twitter.com/uhnrdi8IYR
— Battersea Chess Club ♞♜♛♚ (@BatterseaChess) June 5, 2018
And our rapidly improving juniors Dennis Dupuis and Boris Stoyanov both gave the GM a run for his money before eventually succumbing.
After the simul, Danny stayed around to play some blitz chess against some of our first team players, with equally good results.
Here is one of the more interesting games of the evening, where Danny beats Club Secretary Leon Watson, who held a promising position for much of the game, with a late flourish.
