Grandmasters on form in British championship

AFTER six rounds of the British Chess Championship in Plymouth, Jonathan Mestel and Julian Hodgson share the lead with 5 points each. The first week of the tournament has gone very much to form. Of the grandmasters, only Mark Hebden has conceded a draw, which explains why he is sharing third place, half a point behind the leaders. Also on 41 2 points are Andrew Webster, James Howell, John Emms, Jonathan Levitt and Dharshan Kumaran, writes William Hartston.

The second week promises an exciting contest between Mestel and Hodgson, to see who can knock over more International Masters. In the sixth round on Saturday, Mestel drew with Hebden, enabling Julian Hodgson to join him in the lead with a devastating miniature against Andrew Martin, one of the stronger masters in the tournament.

Here are the full moves of the game:

White: Hodgson Black: Martin 1 d4 Nf6 11 0-0-0 b5 2 Bg5 d5 12 Bb3 Ba6 3 Bxf6 gxf6 13 g4 f4 4 c4 c6 14 Ng5 Nf8 5 e3 e6 15 Nce4 h6 6 Nc3 f5 16 Nxf7 Kxf7 7 Nf3 Bg7 17 d5 Be5 8 Qc2 Nd7 18 dxe6+ Kg7 9 h3 dxc4 19 Qc5 Bc8 10 Bxc4 Qc7 20 Rd7+ 1-0