Fool's Mate

This is just the last 40 moves. You can see more moves, or the whole game.

The current state of play is:

• Jonathan: While on that theme: Brompton Road (and I wish it were open still becuase my 10 minute walk to South Ken would be unneccesary) (move #5)
• Doug: Ah, a peach. Shepherd's Bush. Look to your laurels, Simes - and your Trefoils. (move #6)
• Kev: Wood Green (move #7)
• Jonathan: A peach? Well in that case, Dollis Hill (move #8)
• Yoz: Ha! Mill Hill East, just round the corner! This'll be fun to watch... (move #9)
• Saggy: Pinner, just to be difficult. (move #10)
• Steve: Well then if that's how you want to play, Dollis Hill (move #11)
• Kev: Away to Woodford. (move #12)
• Jonathan: Getting tetchy, aren't we Kev? Dollis Hill. (move #13)
• Rob: Allowing for the Triple Thrust response, it has to be Dollis Hill. (move #14)
• Eristophanes: Dollis Hill. Oh God, not again..... (move #15)
• Simon: Dollis Hill, due to adverse weather conditions. (move #16)
• Kev: [thinks for a good five minutes, takes some measurement, throws some dice] You evil swines. It's got to be Dollis Hill again. (move #17)
• Steve: Hmmm... Snow on the line, Still at Dollis Hill (move #18)
• Eristophanes: Dollis Hill and getting wilder. (move #19)
• Jonathan: Playing a subtle combination of Hanson blocks and lateral shunts (the Jonathan combination): Dollis Hill (move #20)
• Alasdair: (Playing a logical combination of Splinkin's Avoidance and Charles' Defence): Dollis Hill. (move #21)
• Simon: Hmm. Splinkin's Avoidance, you say? There can be only one reply to that - Dollis Hill. (move #22)
• Steve: Mornington Crescent !!!

  ---

  (move #23)
• Steve: (Winner's Comments) : Too many Dollis Hills, players really should learn to control themselves Otherwise an excellent game (move #24)
• Eristophanes: I enjoyed too, and I agree with you about the supernumary Dollis Hills (move #25)
• Kev: A surprising number of them were unavoidable, though, if you map it out. (move #26)
• Simon: I disagree - as Splinkin's Avoidance and Charles' Defence had both clearly been invoked, a return to Dollis Hill reduced the effectiveness of that defence while still providing a third-degree block (cf. Wilson/Chomondley-Harris, 1974). A move to MC at that point is not only illegal, it's positively immoral. (move #27)
• Simon: That is, I disagree with Steve, rather than Kev, who entered that comment while I was entering mine. (move #28)
• Jonathan: Quite agree there. How Steve can claim to have both broken out of a self-reverse around that most difficult station, Dollis Hill, before swinging boldly across six diagonals and up the Northern line, avoiding a salvo of Hanson Blocks AND a triangulation I don't know. (move #29)
• Jonathan: In fact, he has even managed to straddle an ODD number of stations in the process. Never has a move been more clearly impossible, and almost worthy of yellow caution for deliberate misuse of self-reverse situations (move #30)
• Jonathan: I refer the stewards to Vol.2 Ch.5 Rules 2-34b(ii) (move #31)
• Steve: No, no no I'm sure you'll find that the move is quite legal, besides I never used a self reverse, that would have taken me completely up the wrong line. I know the move I used is one of the lesser known moves but really so many of you missed the significance of the 2 ghost stations played earlier in the game, the first effectively removed any triangulation problems for the rest of the game while the second prevented any invocation of Splinkin's or Charles and various others. I could therefore use an modified shunting movement to quite easily arrive at MC. (move #32)
• Jonathan: Rubbish. The odd straddle is impossible. (move #33)
• Simon: I think there is a limit beyond which "Modified shunting movements" become "misuses of wrinkles in the fabric of space-time". As the ghost stations had already been played, this form of modified shunting is clearly in breach of the rules. As for the odd straddle, well, I can't believe you tried that at all. (move #34)
• Eristophanes: Is there anyway that a WWW page can be constructed so that players cautions can be made more accessible? It was only by chance that I found this possible administration of a Yellow Caution to Steve. Also, have the stewards come to their decision yet? It may affect play in later matches on this server. (move #35)
• Jonathan: The point is, does the move stand? Can we have a referee's verdict please? Bear in mind the odd shunt. (move #36)
• Steve: It wasn't an odd straddle, that is a recognised move and if I had used it I would have quite clearly been in breach of the rules. The move I used was a straddle not a shunt and therefore the move is as I have said before quite legal. (move #37)
• Jonathan: Maybe YOU recognize it as something else but to the rest of us that is OBVIOUSLY an odd-straddle, in that you have _straddled_ an _odd_ number of stations. (move #38)
• Referee: I have studied this case carefully and have decided upon the following sentences. Steve, 1 Yellow Caution for his illegal move, plus 10 hours revision of the rulebook, concentrating on the clauses devoted to straddling and triangualtion. Jonathan, 1 and a half Brown Cautions for unsportsmanlike behaviour and inappropriate use of underlining when commenting on a match in which he was involved. Any comments on this decision can be registered at IMCIS HQ at 212-234 Mornington Crescent, London. (move #39)
• katsumi : (move #40)
• mitsumi: (move #41)
• hyundai: (move #42)
• origami: (move #43)
• Matthew (Bath): Ah, that was fun. Thanks to whoever started that. (move #44)

You can look at the next game (Most-Significant Station Wild Game), go back to the previous game (Early days, at Leamington Road), or review the list of all games. You can also view the previous page.

This game is closed for further play, what with this being an archive and all.

Last updated 05-October-2005 by Dunx (dunx@dunx.org)