04 May 2002
The East Glamorgan Chess Association’s 2001/2002 league season is now all but over. One or two postponed matches remain to be played and the results of a handful of outstanding adjourned or adjudicated games have yet to be added to totals before final positions in all four divisions can be decided.
The process of sending unfinished games for adjudication may seem as strange to outsiders as the ‘Miss’ rule in snooker or the Duckworth/Lewis rule in cricket and has, indeed, been a bone of contention amongst league members for many years.
In an ideal world, all games would be played unhurriedly to a conclusion in one session but this is not always possible due to clubs having to vacate their premises at a reasonable hour. The league rules do allow unfinished games to be adjourned until a later date but not all players have sufficient additional free time for this.
Another available option is to elect for a quickplay game in which all moves have to be completed on the night of a match within a prescribed time limit. This is opposed by many as playing at speed can severely lower the standard of play in a game which can consequently become something of a lottery.
All that remains, therefore, is the much maligned adjudication system. At the call of time after a match two opposing players will consider their respective positions. If they cannot agree a result in their game they will both send a claim - usually one player will consider that he is winning while the other will believe the game to be drawn - together with their score sheet, a copy of the current position on the board and a prescribed fee to the league’s adjudication secretary. The position will then be forwarded to, ideally, a higher graded player who will have no knowledge of the competitors or clubs involved and will make a decision as to which submission is correct. Players who disagree with this decision regarding their game may make an appeal accompanied by a further fee. All fees related to successful claims or appeals are refunded in due course.
So there you have it. To extend the game into a second session, to play quickly or to adjudicate are the options currently available to East Glamorgan chess league players. The debate will continue but readers now have some knowledge of what is involved when a game is mentioned in this column as having been sent for adjudication.
Barry Chess Club meets every Wednesday evening at 7:45 p.m. on the first floor of the Witchill Hotel, Barry Road while a variety of chess information including the latest club, league and cup match details can be obtained by visiting the club's web site at www.barrychessclub.org.uk.
04th. May, 2002, K. J. Gandy