The build-up to the Alexander Cup semi-final away to Coulsdon was not propitious for Kingston. Two players reported sick, though one managed to suppress his ailments for an evening and play. Young Zain Patel was also sick, but his illness worked to our advantage. He was too ill to fulfil a singing engagement, so was able to replace the player who really was too ill to make it to Coulsdon. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away.

A trip to Coulsdon is never easy and this was no different. Kingston captain Peter Andrews breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the Coulsdon teamsheet as they were missing a few strong players, but they still gave us plenty to think about on the night, and we were relieved to run out 6.5-1.5 winners.

Disappointingly, Wallington were unable to fulfil this Surrey division 4 fixture, so Kingston 3 claimed the match by default. Under the rules of the Surrey League, this means that Wallington lose on all boards, giving Kingston a 6-0 victory – a fillip in the team’s bid to win promotion.

It had been only a fortnight since our tightly fought home draw v Epsom 2, and less than two months since Kingston 1 were defeated by Epsom 1, with three of our side for this latest match and four of theirs also present on that occasion. But to plagiarise the comedian Eric Morecambe for elite chess, we may have been playing the same people, but not necessarily in the same order.

For a moment we dared to dream. After two victories on the opening weekend, including a remarkable 6-2 victory over GM-laden Cheddleton, we had started to believe our own publicity. Might we actually be able to win the competition? Unfortunately, the answer was a resounding no.