Rd. 2 started with Keith Arkell down among the pack, after his draw against John Wheeler, and due to face Stephen Appleby. Steve knew this in advance and collared me to ensure that when Keith came in, a little late as per usual, I would be present to take a commemorative snap. This was duly done (see below). Several new faces appeared, those who’d taken a Friday evening bye.
However, several byes were taken in the afternoon, mainly by the Cornish players involved, plus Jack Rudd, as Cornwall were due to play Somerset at Exminster, a couple of miles outside Exeter. This displayed an admirable loyalty to both their county team and the Congress, but did little for their form, as all three, Saqui, Sellwood and Constable, all lost, in a heavy defeat.
| Bd | SOMERSET | Grd | CORNWALL | Grd | ||
| 1 | Jack Rudd | 215 | 1 | 0 | Jeremy Menadue | 187 |
| 2 | Ben P Edgell | 200 | 1 | 0 | James Hooker | 178 |
| 3 | Patryk Krzyzanowski | 199 | 0 | 1 | Robin Kneebone | 177 |
| 4 | Stephen AJ Whatley | 195 | 1 | 0 | David Saqui | 175 |
| 5 | James Byrne | 178 | 1 | 0 | Gary Trudeau | 160 |
| 6 | Andrew F Footner | 174 | 1 | 0 | Colin Sellwood | 155 |
| 7 | Andrew M Gregory | 165 | 1 | 0 | Richard Stephens | 147 |
| 8 | Darren Freeman | 165 | 1 | 0 | John Wilman | 141 |
| 9 | Barry Morris | 163 | 1 | 0 | Adam Hussain | 130 |
| 10 | Chris S Purry | 154 | ½ | ½ | David R Jenkins | 119 |
| 11 | Roger D Knight | 153 | 1 | 0 | John Constable | 119 |
| 12 | Lander Bedialauneta | U/G | 1 | 0 | Barry Childs | 112 |
| 13 | Mark R Baker | 151 | 0 | 1 | Jason Henderson | UG |
| 14 | Neville N Senior | 151 | 1 | 0 | Hugh Brown | 94 |
| 15 | Adrian W Champion | 134 | 1 | 0 | Gabriel Rusalowitz | UG |
| 16 | Chris TJ McKinley | 129 | 1 | 0 | Chris Hussain | UG |
| 13½ | 2½ |
One thing began to emerge during the day was the burgeoning strength of the Exeter University players. There were two University teams of 4 in for the Team Prize, and there were other players not included. Since the demise of the University Chess Club some decades ago, after an illustrious history, the number of notable players emerging from the campus to participate in local matches and tournaments, have been few and far between. Past efforts by Exmouth and Exeter club members to revive things on site have met with little positive response. These days, however, players are coming out of the University in significant numbers. Some are joining the local City Club to augment their teams, but there are surely enough to form their own University teams to particiapte in DCCA and Exeter & Dist. Leagues. It just needs a good student organiser to get a grip on things.
A special moment in the chess career of Stephen Appleby, though ultimately it didn't end well for him.
Rd. 2: Rudd vs Littlejohns & Regis vs the Russian Andrei Rozanov
Rd. 2 - Bd. 1 in the Major - Devon elder, Ivor Annetts vs Exeter School pupil, Leif Hafstad.