Chess Tournament

All the action from the state chess finals qualifier

Both our Open Secondary and Middle school chess teams competed in the qualifying round for the State Chess Finals at Penleigh and Essendon Grammar School.

The Middle Years team consisting of Herbert Goodsir,  Maxwell Larobina, Rafael Pintos-Lopez, Alex Qu, Angus Boyd and Lewis Tan played excellent games in all rounds.

The chess team arrived at Penleigh-Essendon Grammar School for the Northern Star chess tournament and were all pumped to play at the first in-person tournament for over a year. For some of us, it was a new experience, and very daunting especially when the timer was ticking down. There were plenty of riveting matches that were played, with unique openings and sneaky strategies that were applause-worthy. One of our most experienced players, Lewis Tan, walked away at 5 wins to 2 losses at the end of the day, destroying some of his competition. Rafael Pintos-Lopez is a cult follower of the Double Fianchetto opening, which he used to baffle many of his opponents. Overall it was a bloody good day and certainly a milestone for the Northcote High chess club.

Another highlight of the tournament was an epic game where Herbert Goodsir faced down a gallant challenger and forced a magnificent victory with only 3 pieces. Rafael Pintos-Lopez also punched the air after applying his pawn defensive technique ( the fence) to destroy his opponent. 

Senior Chess captain Lewis Tan (world Pokemon champion – competing in Washington DC in 2019) won 5 of seven matches and was equal third in the tournament.

All players competed in great spirits and thoroughly enjoyed the experience at the luxurious surrounds of Penleigh Grammar.

Alex Qu

Yr 9 Chess Reporter