Penrith A arrived at Maryport, to play last year’s league champions, with the same team that beat Windermere 3-1 to win the 2019-20 league title. Realizing the importance of this match, Maryport fielded their top 4 players.
Board 1 was first to finish when Robert and Roger reached a position that had no potential for either player so Robert accepted Roger’s draw offer.
Board 2 was also drawn when Jacob, behind on time, couldn’t find any way through Neil’s solid position.
Board 3 looked to be heading the same way when Holden, whose masterly manoeuvring, produced a clinical finish that Greg was powerless to prevent, brought home the spoils.
By my calculation, if we were to draw the match, we would still win the league but Eggert, on board 4 against Maryport captain, Gary Sharkey, was determined to finish the season with a win. For most of the game, Eggert had to defend against a ferocious attack by Gary. He was however a pawn ahead and after weathering the storm, he began to turn the tables and eventually was rewarded with a win.
The final score was 3-1 to Penrith A, the same score by which we beat Windermere two years ago. As the only undefeated team in the league, Penrith A are deserved champions and for the third time, will be engraved on the Walker Cup which will be proudly displayed in the Crown Hotel for a year.
The League table looks like this:
