But certainly not without plenty of spice!

Dan was last to finish by some distance and tells us he may have been winning towards the end. He was trying to finish the match in our favour when he agreed a draw with time running low..

Prior to that, John had a pretty dubious position for much of the game, with a knight and a couple of pawns against the bishop pair. But he did have a fortress of sorts and a huge time advantage, which caused his opponent to shed material and eventually lose on time. But because of some kerfuffle about a beeping phone, John later sportingly conceded a draw.

Alan also had plenty of fun and games. I think he was a rook up before he decided to win a second one, overlooking the minor detail that it was defended by a backward -looking bishop. (We've all done that!) His two rooks turned out to be unable to hold the enemy Queen and pawns but not before his opponent had tried something completely new, involving moving his King across two squares in one go. (No, it wasn't castling!)

The other three games were relatively uneventful. Nigel and I didn't ever look like having more than a draw, while Dave completed a very smooth (and extremely welcome) win. He, too, was on the receiving end of an illegal move as his opponent tried a killing Queen check when Her Majesty was pinned by Nigel's own Queen. It was all over soon after that.

So, plenty of strange things had happened before we notched up yet another draw. It's a good job the lowest teams in Division Three do not get relegated!