Many thanks are due to FM Ankush Khandelwal, now resident in Melbourne, Australia, for kindly agreeing to be our guest adjudicator and for providing comments. Games were as usual anonymised before they were sent down under!
Swindle
Ankush: “I have to give game G the Best Swindle” played by Nick London.
Game G:
NCA County Championship 15 June 2025
White: Nick London Black: Marcel Taylor
1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 Bf5 3.Bg2 e6 4.O-O c6 5.d4 Be7 6.c4 Nf6 7.cxd5 exd5 8.Nc3 h6 9.Nh4 Bh7
10.Bh3 O-O 11.Nf5 Re8 12.Bf4 Bf8 13.Na4 Bxf5 14.Bxf5 Nbd7 15.Qc2 Ne4 16.f3 Nd6 17.Bd3 Nb6 18.Rfe1 Qf6 19.Be5 Qg5 20.e4 Qh5 21.Qg2 Nxa4 22.Bc2 Nb6 23.Bf4 dxe4 24.fxe4 Qb5 25.e5 Ndc4 26.Bxh6 Qd5 27.Qh3 Qxd4+ 28.Be3 1-0
Ankush: “Did Black have a heart attack? Despite digging themselves into a hole, Black could still have found an imaginative defence to emerge with a slight advantage. Instead, they resigned! Not exactly the swindle I was expecting, but enough to take home the flowers.”
Best Game Coordinator John Swain’s comment: “Marcel allowed himself to be bamboozled by this apparent swindle. He had no need to resign because 28. …Qxe3+ 29.Rxe3 Bc5 allows his King to escape and wins the R, with all to play for.”
Game H:
NCA Division 1 18 February 2026
White: Jake Hughes (Newark I) Black Phil Morgan (Ashfield I)
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Qxd4 a6 5.Be3 Nc6 6.Qd2 Nf6 7.Nc3 e6 8.h3 Be7
9.Bd3 0-0 10.g4 Nd7 11.g5 Nde5 12.Nxe5 Nxe5 13.Be2 b5 14.f4 Nc4 15.Bxc4 bxc4 16.h4 Bb7 17.h5 d5 18.h6 g6 19.Qd4 f6 20.0-0-0 dxe4 21.Qxc4 Qc8 22.Qxc8 Bxc8 23.Rh2 Rd8
24.Rxd8+ Bxd8 25.Rd2 Be7 26.Nxe4 fxg5 27.fxg5 e5 28. Rd5 Bf5 29.Rxe5 Kf7 30.Nc3 Rc8
31.a3 Bxa3 32.Bd4 Be7 33.Be3 Bb4 34.Ne4 Be7 35.c3 Rc4 36.Bd4 Bxe4 37.Rxe4 Bxg5+
38.Kc2 Bxh6 39.b4 Rc6 40.Kd3 Bg7 41.Rf4+ Bf6 42 Rxf6+ Rxf6 43.Bxf6 Kxf6 44.c4 Ke6 45.Ke4 Kd6 46.c5+ Kc6 47.Ke5 g5 48 Kf5 h6 49.Ke4 g4 50.Kf4 h5 51.Kg3 a5 52.bxa5 Kxc5 53.Kh4 Kb5 54.Kg3 Kxa5 55.Kh4 Kb4 56.Kg3 Kc3 57.Kh4 Kd4 58.Kg3 Ke4 59.Kg2 Ke3 60.Kh2 h4 61.Kg2 Ke2 62.Kh2 Kf2 63.Kh1 Kf1 64.Kh2 g3+ 0-1
Ankush: “This was more a case of White collapsing on their own sword in an equal position rather than Black actively swindling.”