L-R Sai, Tetsuaki, Mahin, (Captain) Aidan, Tim, Tarun, and me. In the back are the parents of one of our players. A few of our teammates are missing from the group photo.
This past weekend, Tarun and I travelled to the UK to play in Weekend 4 of the 4NCL (Four Nations Chess League).
We woke up at around 4:30 in the morning, got ready, and our Dad drove us an hour to the airport to catch our flight to Birmingham. A very early start, but all part of the chess grind!
The event was hosted at the Peterborough Holiday Inn — a venue that holds some great memories for me!
Peterborough is kind of a lucky place. I won the British Women’s Rapid Championship here and also finished second in the Open event. So coming back brought a nice sense of nostalgia (and maybe a bit of good fortune too!).
Day 1: Facing Oxford 1
We were both representing Greater Woodpushers, and our Saturday matchup was against the strong team of Oxford 1.
In my game, I really like how the knight was placed on d3
After some intense games across the boards, the match ended in a 4-4 draw.
Once everyone finished, our team decided to head out for dinner. It was a lovely 30-minute walk, and the evening turned into a fun outing — good food, lots of laughs, and great team bonding.
Day two: The Audible Checks Encounter
On Sunday, we played against a team called The Audible Checks. Interesting name, right? They lived up to it — at times, you could hear them literally saying “check!” aloud during games when a check occurred on any board. Definitely added a quirky and memorable touch to the match atmosphere!
But we were the last ones to say “checkmate!” — our team clinched the win with a solid 5.5–2.5 victory.
All in all, it was a successful weekend for the team, and both Tarun and I enjoyed our games, the team spirit.