24.10.2025 23:08

 

Date and Venue: October 17 – 19, 2025 – Manglburg, Grieskirchen

As usual, all teams began their season in Grieskirchen, Upper Austria – and this time, we were finally part of it again! Our international players had already arrived on Thursday, which gave us the chance to enjoy our first team dinner that same evening at Rox in PlusCity. Because one thing’s for sure: a team event is only half as much fun without good food and proper team bonding.

All games are available for replay on chess-results.com.

1. Round

Union Neuhofen/Krems 1 : SV – Drei Mühlen – Feffernitz 2 (5:1)

As mentioned in the preview, we knew that Feffernitz would be playing without some of their regulars. Nevertheless, we wanted to make a strong opening statement – and that still required a top performance from everyone.

1. GM Korobov Anton (2596) – IM Spalir Jernej (2365) (1:0) Anton, with the white pieces, faced IM Jernej Spalir. We were all curious to see what a player with a peak rating of 2723 would show us spectators. A declined Queen’s Gambit appeared on the board, in which Black never quite managed to equalize. The key moment came with 25.e4!, a thematic pawn sacrifice for activity – in this case, an investment for a clear advantage. A stylish debut win – congratulations!

2. FM Höfelsauer Thomas (2267) – IM Csonka Balazs (2472) (0,5:0,5) Balázs equalized easily, yet it was hard to create winning chances – Höfelsauer showed no sign of over-pressing either. A player of his class simply steered the game to safety, and a draw was agreed fairly quickly.

3. IM Carnicelli Valerio (2445) – Richter Leonard (2198) (1:0) The duel of debutants! We got a Rossolimo Sicilian. Valerio knew his chess, his theory, and his plans were spot-on. After Leonard declined a threefold repetition on move 31 and kept playing, that decision turned out to be wrong. Valerio regained the advantage and converted confidently.

4. CM Lauda Alexandr (2215) – WIM Schloffer Jasmin (2186) (0,5:0,5) Fresh off the European Team Championship, Jasmin was fighting a cold and fatigue. From move 14 onward it became obvious that Jasmin wasn’t feeling her best, and by move 21 Alexandr was clearly better. But her resilience paid off. With 31…Bh5, Jasmin finally created imbalances, and she eventually agreed to a repetition on move 40 in a position that was actually better for her.

5. CM Mostbauer Maximilian (2205) – Pacher Simon (2066) (1:0) The game was simply a joy to watch. From a quiet opening, Max created dynamic play and seized every chance ruthlessly. Brilliant win from our best!

6. Blasge Tobias (2059) – FM Mostbauer Florian (2359) (0:1) Tobias forced sharp play with an early pawn sacrifice. It took Florian until around move 25 to equalize – but once he felt comfortable, he struck immediately and finished the game within five moves.

A well-deserved 5 – 1 victory to kick off the season – exactly the start we were hoping for!

2. Round

SV „Das Kärnten“ St. Veit 2 – Union Neuhofen/Krems 1 (2:4)

St. Veit came close to full strength this weekend, so we knew we’d have to work hard for a good result!

1. IM Drnovsek Gal (2390) – GM Korobov Anton (2596) (0,5:0,5) Anton showed beautifully how to equalize with Black in the Nimzo-Indian Defense. Despite all his efforts, he couldn’t create more than equality, and the game ended peacefully.

2. IM Csonka Balazs (2472) – IM Schachinger Mario (2392) (1:0) Balázs had prepared deeply for Mario’s King’s Indian Defense. This game was a textbook example of prophylaxis, preparing your own attack, and then executing it flawlessly. A fine and instructive victory!

3. IM Bures Jaroslav (2380) – IM Carnicelli Valerio (2445) (0,5:0,5) From what I heard, Valerio had a very promising position but failed to convert it. Focusing on the positives: Valerio consistently manages to achieve strong positions against any opponent in this league.

4. WIM Schloffer Jasmin (2186) – GM Rogic Davor (2337) (0:1) Davor’s greater experience proved decisive. It's almost a running joke: Jasmin ended up with another bad bishop vs. good knight structure. Maybe one day she’ll write a book titled “A Bad Bishop Isn’t That Bad After All.”

5. FM Dietmayer-Kräutler Marco (2281) – CM Mostbauer Maximilian (2205) (0:1) Max again achieved a dynamic position very quickly, and his conversion was once more outstanding. Two out of two with great games!

6. FM Mostbauer Florian (2359) – WFM Katter Katharina (2114) (1:0) Katharina had a slight edge and kept pressing, but Florian started fighting back. Katharina then found herself in an inferior endgame, which Florian converted with precision.

After two rounds the summary reads: 4 team points, only one individual loss out of 12 games. That’s exactly how you want to start a new season – a brilliant team performance!

3. Round

Union Neuhofen/Krems 1 – SV Sparkasse Grieskirchen 1 (2:4)

Sunday brought the Upper Austrian derby – and Grieskirchen is among the strongest squads in the league. After our two earlier wins, excitement was guaranteed!

1. GM Korobov Anton (2596) – IM Leisch Lukas (2425) (0,5:0,5) A strategically fascinating game. Anton sacrificed a pawn (around move 25) to reach a favorable endgame despite being a pawn down. But Lukas defended excellently and built a fortress – a fine practical example of strategic defense.

2. GM Haba Petr (2395) – IM Csonka Balazs (2472) (0,5:0,5) Petr tightened the screws and started to press, but Balázs defended accurately and successfully to achieve the draw.

3. IM Carnicelli Valerio (2445) – IM Schwabeneder Florian (2428) (1:0) Florian came out of the opening slightly better but allowed Valerio to handle the transition perfectly, leaving Florian without chances. A beautiful win from Valerio, proving once again his tremendous potential. With 2½ out of 3, he’s our top scorer of the weekend – a fantastic debut!

4. FM Salvenmoser Stefan (2310) – WIM Schloffer Jasmin (2186) (1:0) Jasmin's Caro-Kann led to an unpleasant position which transformed into another bad-bishop-vs-good-knight endgame. Stefan patiently pressed and eventually converted it into a full point.

5. CM Mostbauer Maximilian (2205) – IM Belezky Alexander (2295) (0:1) Max was optimistic but one tactical oversight changed everything. He had calculated two key lines but unfortunately ignored the simplest one, leading to a difficult position that Alexander converted smoothly. Nevertheless, Max played wonderful, entertaining chess all weekend!

6. IM Singer Christoph (2267) – FM Mostbauer Florian (2359) (1-0) Florian tried to win a piece and succeeded, but his king was left exposed and couldn’t be saved. Still, I’m proud that Florian played for the win instead of playing it safe!

Conclusion

Unfortunately, our final match of the weekend ended in a 2–4 loss, but we can still be very proud of our performance – we faced strong opposition!

Some might joke that the real reason for the loss was me – the team captain (who replaced Markus Pöll, the captain for the first two victorious rounds). My debut as team captain didn't go quite as well! But looking at the effort and fighting spirit of all our players, there’s nothing to criticize. With 4 team points after the first weekend, we can be more than satisfied!

So let’s look forward with excitement to the next weekend in St. Valentin – and enjoy watching our first team in action!