Billy was an outstanding representative for England and for Warwick School. He finished on 4.5/9, which is a very creditable result considering the strength of the opposition who represented the best that Europe had to offer. A number of his competitors were already titled players.

In round 5 for example, he played against a FIDE Master from the host nation and gave him a real fright in a valiant effort, having held a significant advantage at one point in the game. Despite some topsy-turvy moments, he also produced plenty of brilliant moments and superb whole games.

Billy has a reputation as a deadly tactician with raptor-like instincts, so it was really impressive to see him outplay and grind down opponents strategically and positionally. A sign, we believe, of an increasingly mature and well-rounded player.

Each one of Billy's nine games lasted 3-4 hours on average, so it was an extremely gruelling schedule for anyone, let alone an eleven-year-old. He not only prepared assiduously for each game and analysed carefully afterwards, but was also a major source of inspiration to his eight-year-old England teammate (a girl who is a fellow member of the Coventry Chess Academy). She was making her debut for England, and we are very proud of Billy for all he did to help his clubmate with her own preparation and post-game analysis, which made a big difference for her.