Rating gap? No problem! Stukkenjagers deliver a 7.5-2.5 Masterclass

We had a difficult match ahead of us this weekend against the strong Apeldoorn 1. A win or even a draw would have helped our team immensely in the goal of securing our place in the Meesterklasse next year. What happened next was unprecedented: not only did we secure the match point, but we also did so in a dominant fashion, scoring 7.5-2.5. This wasn’t just a win; it was history in the making. A 7.5-2.5 victory stands as the largest margin Stukkenjagers have ever achieved in six seasons of Meesterklasse play. Some might call it a once-in-a-decade event, a fluke against the odds. Yet, as we’ll see, this triumph was no accident; every full point and hard-fought draw was earned through determination, preparation, and sheer resilience. This match wasn’t just about defying expectations; it was a statement. Stukkenjagers didn’t return to the Meesterklasse by luck, and there’s no better way to prove we belong here than by toppling giants.

Celebrating the victory

Luuk opened with his signature 4. Ba4 in the Moscow variation, and he got a tiny edge after the opening. Considering the match situation, he offered a draw not much later, which was immediately refused. After some complications, Black got the initiative, but the draw was always within reach and was eventually achieved.

Stefan decided to play a near-perfect game in this magical day. After the opening, he already got tricky with the very inventive 11. d4!? pawn sacrifice, grabbing the initiative. After the very painful move 15. Qh5 it became quite clear that black had some problems and had to give up castling rights. Shortly after that, black’s position became losing from really bad. The beautiful 26. Nd8 hit the nail on the coffin, leading to checkmate.

Sjoerd was slightly surprised in the opening with the enterprising move …5. b5. However, he reacted quite well, and it was on black to continue to find accurate moves. Black made 2 mistakes in a row, starting with the dubious …13 Nf4 after which white crushed black, short and clean, winning a whole piece after 19. Rxf7. The game barely lasted 23 moves; it was over before it could be started.

Remco decided to dive into uncharted waters early on with the funky 5…h5. The game was played next to me, and white’s f3 response already felt puzzling because white is planning to give up the dark-squared bishop and weakening dark squares before that felt weird. Indeed, black got a very fine Sveshnikov as a result after the opening. After some mutual inaccuracies, white had one moment to get a significant advantage with 33.Kc2, which would have made his king safe, but instead he decided to go for an irrelevant pawn on the side, losing crucial time. Indeed, the opposite color bishop got to work and put white into a checkmate net with white’s pieces looking from afar.

My game could have been smoother as I surprised my opponent with a poisonous sideline, and after my opponent reacted suboptimally, I reached a borderline winning endgame with 1 hour advantage on the clock. Unfortunately, I did not have to guts to sacrifice the exchange with 15. cxd4 and that was a crucial mistake, giving chances to black. Fortunately, my opponent was very low on time, and I baited him into playing 19…f5 to which I had the tricky c5 reply. Even that was not great, even though I won the exchange, black’s bishops stand strong. The position remained complicated and sharp, but I finally managed to push through with 28. e6, after which black had a very tough choice under time pressure, eventually leading to his collapse.

I was quite worried about Joppe after the opening as white surprised him in a Scotch with an early h4, and the position looked dangerous. Indeed, the position was close to winning at multiple points for white, but fortunately, he did not capitalize on those opportunities. Finally, on move 24, black managed to castle long (better later than never). Shortly after that, white made the rather questionable 28. Qxh7?? where the queen got trapped immediately, a slightly puzzling mistake but certainly a welcome one.

And so, against all odds, Stukkenjagers delivered a miracle, a resounding 7.5-2.5 victory over one of the league’s strongest teams, securing our place in the Meesterklasse for another year. This wasn’t just luck; this was proof. Proof that we fight for every point, proof that we rise to the occasion, and proof that we earn our place among the best. Who could doubt us now?