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Mark Ruston v Jonathan Rogers
Sambuca
Sharks v Barbican 2, Four Nations Chess League 2009
(notes
by the winner)
1
e4 c5 2 Nc3 e6 3 g3 a6 4 a4 d5 5 exd5 exd5 6 Bg2 Nf6 7 d4 cxd4 8 Qxd4 Nc6
9 Qd1 Bb4 (White's opening has been dubious, especially the insertion of 4 a4. Black should perhaps have taken
better advantage of this by playing 9...Nb4, threatening 10...Bf5) 10 Nge2
0-0 11 0-0 Re8 12 Bg5 Bg4 13 f3?! (13 h3 Bxc3 14 hxg4 would have been quite reasonable for White) 13 ...Bf5 14 Nf4 d4! (I had decided to sacrifice the queen!) 15 Ncd5 Nxd5! 16 Bxd8 Ne3 17 Qc1 Raxd8 18 Rf2 (my next move is very difficult: I had wanted
to play 18...Nxc2 19 Rxc2 Re1 + 20 Qxe1 Bxe1 but then realised that here White can play 21 Rxc6) 18...Na5!! (now the threat is 19...Nxc2 followed by Nb3 and Black will pick up both White rooks!
It is astonishing to see how helpless White is against the oncoming ...Nb3) 19
Nh5 d3! (instantly decisive - this would also have been the response after 19 Bh3 Bxh3 20 Nxh3) 20 cxd3 Nb3 21 Qb1 Nxa1 22 Qa1 Rxd3 (and now there is no good defence to ...Rd1+) 0-1
Neil McDonald – Jon Manley
Essex v Kent SCCU Open Ch 2009, bd 1
Ruy
Lopez, Schliemann
1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 f5 4 Nc3 fxe4 5 Nxe4 d5 6 Ng3 Bg4 7 h3 Bxf3 8 Qxf3 Qd6 9 Nf5 Qe6 10 d3 (Black is fine after 10 Qg4 Kf7) 10...g6 11 Ne3 0–0–0 12 Bxc6 Qxc6 13
0–0 Nf6?! (Black has emerged well from the opening and 13...Bg7 followed by ...Ne7 and ...Rhf8 is a good plan here)
14 b3 Bg7 15 Bb2 (Black would like to play ...e4 and after dxe4 to recapture with the knight, but the white bishop
makes this difficult because it pins the knight on f6) 15...Rhe8 16 Rfe1 Kb8? (16...Qd7 was better
because 17 c4 d4 18 Nc2 g5 looks dangerous for White) 17 c4 Qd7 18 cxd5 Nxd5 19 Nc4 Nb4 20 Rad1 Nc6 21 Re4 Qd5 22 Qe2 (White piles pressure on e5 and threatens to increase it with f4) 22...Qb5 23
Re1 Rf8 24 f4 Nd4 25 Bxd4 exd4 26 Re7 Bh8 27 Ne5 Bxe5 28 fxe5 Rd7 29 Rxd7 Qxd7 30 e6 Qd6 31 e7 Re8 32 Qf2? (Neil said
afterwards that he had meant to play 32 Qf3! when the threat of Qf7 looks tricky for Black) 32...Kc8 33 Qe2 (Black has foolishly left himself with 10 seconds for his next three moves but even that can’t
really excuse his next move) 33...Kd7?? (33...h5 is level) 34 Qg4+ Kc6 35 Re6 1–0
Tom Barton -
David Brock
Ilford 2 v Upminster 2, Essex League Division 2, 2009
Sicilian: Accelerated Dragon
1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 d4 cxd4 4 Nxd4 g6 5 Be2 Bg7 6 c3 Nf6 7 Nxc6 bxc6 8 Nd2 d6 9 0–0 0–0 10 f4 e6 11 Kh1
d5 12 e5 Nd7 13 Nb3 c5 14 Be3 Qb6 15 Nxc5 Qxb2 (not 15...Nxc5?
16 b4!) 16 Nxd7? (as a rule you should avoid swapping pieces if your
opponent has a passive position: 16 Na4 Qa3 17 Bb5 Rb8 18 Bc6 keeps Black tied down) 16...Bxd7 17 Bd4 Qa3 18 Rf3 (Tom goes for an ambitious kingside
attack but it is safer to contest the b-file with 18 Qb3 Qa5 19 Rab1) 18...Qa5 19 Qg1 Rfc8 20 g4 Qd8 21 g5 (another
idea is 21 Qg3 Rcb8 22 Rg1 Rb2 23 Bd3 Rxa2 24 f5) 21...a6 22 Rh3 Bb5 23 Qf2 Bxe2 24 Qxe2 Qf8 (David’s doing well - he can infiltrate down the b-file, whereas Tom’s kingside attack isn’t
really going anywhere) 25 Qf2 25...h6?? (sheer panic - Black should leave his h-pawn to its fate
and seek counterplay on the queenside by 25...Qa3 26 Qh4 Qb2 27 Qxh7+ Kf8 and Black is on top) 26 gxh6 Bxh6 27 Qh4 Kh7
28 Rg1 Rc4 29 Qf2 Qe7? 30 Be3 d4 31 Bxd4?! (31 Qg2 wins, e.g. 31...Rg8 32 Rxh6+! Kxh6 33 f5+ dxe3 34 f6) 31...Qb7+
32 Qg2 Qxg2+ 33 Rxg2 Kg7 34 Rg4 Rh8 35 Rgh4 (missing 35 f5! exf5 36 e6+ Rxd4 37 Rxd4 winning) 35...a5? 36 Kg2 Rcc8
37 Kf3 a4 38 Ke2? (time trouble - 38 Kg4 is strong) 38...g5? 39 Rg4
Kg6 40 Rhg3 Rb8 41 h4 Rb2+ 42 Kd3 and White won the ending 1–0
Ivan Sokolov - Lawrence Trent
Gibtelecom Masters Gibraltar (round 2), 2009
King’s Indian Defence
1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 g6 3 Nc3 Bg7 4 e4 d6 5 Nf3 0–0
6 Be2 e5 7 0–0 Nbd7 8 Qc2 Nh5 9 Rd1 Nf4 10 Bf1 c5 11 Bxf4 exf4 12 Nb5 cxd4 13 Nfxd4 Ne5 14 Qd2 (a new move from Ivan Sokolov, a world-class grandmaster whose victims include Garry Kasparov)
14...a6 15 Nc3 Qh4 (undaunted by his opponent's reputation,
Ilford’s Lawrence Trent fights for the initiative) 16 Nd5 f3 17 g3
Qxe4 18 h3 (this devious move threatens to trap Lawrence’s queen by Re1) 18...Bxh3! (a dynamic reply, sacrificing a piece for pawns and active play) 19 Ne7+ Kh8 20 Bxh3 Nxc4 21 Qc3 d5 22 b3 Nd6 23 Qe3 Rae8 (Black’s sacrifice has worked
- he has 3 pawns for the piece and White’s forces lack coordination) 24
Qxe4 Nxe4 25 Nxd5 Rd8 26 Nc2 (Sokolov returns material but Black remains very active) 26...Bxa1 27 Nxa1 Nf6! 28 Ne3 Rxd1+ 29 Nxd1 Rd8 30 Ne3 Rd2 (Black’s
f3 pawn pens in White’s king and bishop) 31 Nac2 Ne4 32 Bc8 Nxf2
(Lawrence should have kept his b-pawn: 32...b6 33 Bxa6 Nxf2 34 Bb7 Nh3+
35 Kh1 Ng5 36 a4 f5) 33 Bxb7 Nh3+ 34 Kh1 Nf2+ 35 Kg1 (35
Kh2 f5!) 35...Nh3+ 36 Kh1 Ng5 (Lawrence can take a draw with
Nf2+ but bravely tries to win) 37 b4 f5 38 a4 Rd6 39 a5 Ne4 40 b5 Nc5 41
bxa6 Nxa6 42 Bxf3 Nc5 43 Bd5 g5 44 Nb4
f4 45 gxf4 gxf4 46 Nc4 Rd8 47 Ne5 Kg7 48 Nec6 Re8 (Sokolov has fought his way back) 49 a6 Nxa6 50 Nxa6 Re1+
51 Kg2 Rd1 52 Be4 Re1 53 Bf5 Rc1 54 Nab4 Rc5 55 Bd7 Kf6 56 Kf3 Kg5 57
Nd4 Rc3+ 58 Kf2 Rc4 59 Nf3+ Kh6 60 Nd5 Rc2+ 61 Ke1 Ra2 62 Kf1 Ra5 63 Nxf4 Ra7 64 Bc6 Ra6 65 Bd5 Ra5 66 Kf2 Rxd5 67 Nxd5
(technically this position is lost for Black but in practice few humans have proved it, and Lawrence
eventually drew)
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