Lichess4545 League Round 7: Close to the Finish Line!

Last time we checked in, we had three teams duking it out at the top of the standings, practically nose to nose. But after the second-to-last round, it seems like we have a clear frontrunner itching to claim the league crown. How did we get there?

Pawn Fiction Hits a Setback

One of the top contenders for the title, Pawn Fiction had their hands full with Don't Mean A Thing, If It Ain't Got That Ding, who have their own medal aspirations. It was a back and forth match-up that saw both teams trade blows. Eventually, the score was 3-3 when board 7 players met, with @Hildingr (with white, representing PF) taking on @UN1137.

It was a game where PF had a chance to take the upper hand after 29...R8f6?? White had a chance to gain a huge advantage but missed their tactical shot. Can you find it?

g4 would have trapped the rook and thus won some precious material. But as fate would have it, the game went on, and white fumbled the equal endgame, dropping a crucial point. In the end, Pawn Fiction managed to salvage a 4-4 tie in the final game of the round. However, their dreams of winning the title took a major blow.

Taking the Pole Position

With Pawn Fiction slowing their roll, it was a huge chance for one of the other two teams to step up and take a pole position heading into the final week. Lord of the Dings met Leaked prep gambit and while the match started off on an even keel with a 2-2 score, things were about to take a decisive turn.

Game 5 was pivotal, @introvertedbot was holding the white pieces for LPG but was not able to fend off the in-form @Matt365 who notched their 5th individual game win (out of 6) this season.

https://lichess.org/LtP93Voa

LotD quickly built off that momentum and controlled the rest of the contest. In the end, they came out with 5,5 – 2,5 triumph.

Now, this win is absolutely massive because it puts Lord of the Dings in great position entering the final round. With 13 match points and very strong tie-breaks (39 game wins), they are very hard to topple now. They are taking on Do I have to attend the press conference? in the final round. It would take a monumental collapse on their part to lose control and not win the league.

But hey, stranger things have happened in our league before.

One More Centurion Joins the Club

As is becoming our tradition, we would like to welcome another member of “100 games club” into the fold. It is @lepertoe this time and they are with us since Season 22. They also own a medal! From Season 22, where their team Hoosier Daddy and the Temple of Doom came in second. They are also closing in on 100 games in LoneWolf, so they are truly a veteran. And they like to take their time!

Across the LW and 4545 seasons, they ended up on the podium for “Tetrarch of Time” award 5 times! What is the Tetrarch of Time award you ask? It is the recognition given to the player who spends the most clock time across the season. So, if you ever come across lepertoe in a game, don't expect them to blitz through their moves.

With that, we conclude this short and sweet Ledger edition! See you next time, when we crown the League champions.

Lichess4545 is an online chess league for people who like playing long time control games online. Players are assigned to teams and play one game per week with a 45+45 time control. For more information visit our league home page.

LoneWolf is a side league of the Lichess4545 league. It is an 11-round Swiss tournament where players play one game per week with a 30+30 time control. For more information about the LoneWolf tournament visit the LoneWolf homepage.

This Ledger post is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-SA).

This week's contributor: @Tranzoo
Title image created by Midjourney