BRITBASE - British Chess Game Archive
Event: Great Britain-Netherlands Match • 9+2 games/part-games plus 11 stubs • last edited:
Tuesday April 28, 2026 6:27 PM
Venue: Spa Lounge, Harrogate • Date: 2-3 December 1967 • Download PGN
1967 Great Britain Match vs Netherlands, Spa Lounge, Harrogate, 2-3 December
| Bd | Great Britain | Rd 1 | Rd 2 | Netherlands |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1b | Jonathan Penrose | ½-½ | 1-0 | Hans Ree |
| 2w | Cenek Kottnauer | ½-½ | ½-½ | Hans Bouwmeester |
| 3b | William R Hartston | ½-½ | 0-1 | Kick Langeweg |
| 4w | Peter H Clarke | ½-½ | 0-1 | Frans Kuijpers |
| 5b | Peter N Lee | 0-1 | ½-½ | Lodewijk Prins |
| 6w | Raymond D Keene | ½-½ | 1-0 | Theo van Scheltinga |
| 7b | Michael J Basman | 0-1 | 1-0 | Johan Teunis Barendregt |
| 8w | Michael J Haygarth | ½-½ | ½-½ | Eddie C Scholl |
| 9b | Andrew J Whiteley | 1-0 | 1-0 | Dirk Daniel (Dick) van Geet |
| 10w | Adrian S Hollis | ½-½ | 1-0 | Nicolaas Cortlever |
| 2-3 December 1967 | 4½-5½ | 6½-3½ | Round scores | |
| Harrogate | 11-9 | Match score | ||
| Rowena M Bruce | ½-½ | 0-1 | Corry Vreeken | |
Openings played in stub games (as listed in BCM, January 1968, ppn 1-2)
| Board No. | White | Result | Black | Opening |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.1 | Ree | ½-½ | Penrose | King's Indian Defence |
| 1.2 | Kottnauer | ½-½ | Bouwmeester | Queen's Indian Defence |
| 1.3 | Langeweg | ½-½ | Hartston | King's Indian Defence |
| 1.8 | Haygarth | ½-½ | Scholl | Grünfeld Defence |
| 1.9 | Van Geet | 0-1 | Whiteley | 1 b3 |
| 1.11 | Vreeken | ½-½ | Bruce | Scandinavian 1 e4 d5 |
| 2.2 | Bouwmeester | ½-½ | Kottnauer | Sicilian |
| 2.5 | Lee | ½-½ | Prins | Philidor Defence |
| 2.8 | Scholl | ½-½ | Whiteley | Ruy Lopez |
| 2.9 | Whiteley | 1-0 | Van Geet | QP game |
| 2.11 | Bruce | 0-1 | Vreeken | King's Indian Defence |
BCM, January 1968, ppn 1-3
The Anglo-Dutch Match
By P. H. CLARKE
The tenth in the present series of matches between the Royal Netherlands Chess Federation, and the B.C.F. was held at the Spa Lounge, Harrogate, on December 2nd and 3rd, 1967 and ended in a win for the home side by 11-9. Thus "The Seven Provinces,'' the trophy given in 1958 by the shipbuilding firm of "de Schelde" of Vlissingen, is once more in "enemy" hands, though the Netherlands have the consolation of knowing that they still lead in matches —by 6-4.
Round 1
The final outcome of this round was a disappointment to us, since for much of the time we were expecting to emerge as narrow leaders ourselves. The balance was hardly disturbed on the top four boards and Board 8, but over the remainder the play looked to be running mostly in our favour. Only Basman was in dire trouble and, owing to time-pressure, never had much chance of survival. The games on Boards 5 and 9 took fluctuating courses. Prins attacked vigorously on the King's side, yet at the moment when Lee, pressed by the clock, overlooked a sacrificial threat the correct defence would have left the result in doubt— probably given Black the advantage, in fact, van Geet employed one of his notorious openings (1 P—Q Kt 3) and worked up a pawn assault on the black King. Whiteley, however, got through his difficulties and, having acquired four pawns for a piece, was eventually able to exploit his material superiority. Meanwhile, both Keene and Hollis were building up powerful positions. The enduring initiative that Keene obtained by an early pawn sacrifice reduced van Scheltinga to extreme defence. Nevertheless, he somehow found an answer to all White's attempts to break through and wriggled out into a drawn Rook ending a pawn down.
The worst blow of all was Hollis's failure to win. [see the game viewer/download]
Round 2
An interesting day's play—only the games on Boards 2 and 8 were largely uneventful—brought a very fine result for England. Our two best wins, a tactical exhibition by Penrose and a model of strategy from Keene, will be featured in the "Games Department."
The other games were not so one-sided, and in most cases success went to the player who took his chances at the right time. The exception was the draw on Board 5, where an elementary opening trap, which should have cost Black a pawn and the game, went unobserved by both sides.
Whiteley again had rather the worse of the early exchanges, but van Geet overpressed in the middle-game and found himself losing material. The fate of the match was settled by the victories achieved by Basman and Hollis. On Board 7 it seemed that Black's passed King's Rook's pawn might swing the game to him, but Barendregt neglected the safety of his King and paid the penalty.
Hartston had meanwhile gone down to defeat. He did not find a convincing way of handling the attack against a modern Scheveningen, a system which he plays himself, and had too many weaknesses to withstand Langeweg's counterplay.
My game was the last to finish. After a long fight to neutralize White's opening initiative I reached an equal minor-piece ending. This then went quite well for me until I perpetrated an ill-judged exchange on the 56th move, and it was all over.
Mevr. Vreeken-Bouman won her encounter with Mrs. Bruce by exploiting a weak pawn in the endgame. She thus maintained her splendid record—75 per cent—in these matches, in which she has beaten all our best players.
This hard earned win over the Netherlands—probably the absence of Donner just tipped the scale—continues the good work begun in the Clare Benedict Tournament at Leysin. There is now an excellent balance between experience and youth in the team, and I feel that under the guidance of Harry Golombek, Chairman of the Selectors, and the strong captaincy of Hugh Alexander we could be moving into a period of improved results.
The event was sponsored by the industrial firm of British Belting and Asbestos, and the new B.C.F. President, Dr. C. G. Addingley, is to be thanked for arranging this. The conditions of play, accommodation, etc., surpassed those at the previous matches in England, and one of our visitors was kind enough to say the organization was better than at Vlissingen. Anyway, all those concerned with the arrangements can be sure that the players hope to return to Harrogate in 1969.
Anglo-Dutch Matches: Index
These matches between England/Great Britain and the Netherlands/Holland were held at irregular intervals from 1912 to 1977.
| 1912 | 1914 | 1937 | 1938 | 1939 | 1947 | 1948 | 1949 | 1952 | 1958 | 1959 | 1960 | 1961 | 1962 |
| 1963 | 1964 | 1965 | 1966 | 1967 | 1968 | 1969 | 1970 | 1971 | 1972 | 1973 | 1974 | 1975 | 1977 |
File Updated
| Date | Notes |
|---|---|
| 28 April 2026 | First upload. Nine games, two part-games plus 11 stubs, scores, report. |