South Norwood 1 v Kingston 2, Surrey League division 2 match played at West Thornton Community Centre on 16 January 2025
This was the board 1 game in a crucial Surrey division 2 match between South Norwood and Kingston. The loser of the match was likely to face the threat of relegation, so we were mightily relieved to emerge as 5.5-1.5 winners. This proved a fascinating game and was the last one to be concluded. Marcus made all the early running and put IM John Hawksworth, who recently returned to chess after a long absence, under severe pressure, both positionally and in terms of time. But John held his nerve, Marcus missed a tactical coup, and the game turned around, with John eventually running out the winner while playing on the 10-second increment.
