Mission accomplished

Although I am posting about a happy experience, I must begin on a sombre note by marking the death of Keith Richardson, the Correspondence GM and Surrey U-180 player who I mentioned in the notes to this game only a few weeks ago. I can't say I knew him well, but I was always impressed by the fantastically big ideas in his games, correspondence and OTB - I am very fond of this one. Perhaps unsurprisingly, his time trouble was the stuff of legend in Surrey circles, but even so he scored very well in county chess, and he will be missed.

Last night I made a rare appearance for Wallington, in the team's final match of the season. It came at a good time, since I have this week off work and was looking to get in shape before the Easter weekend. Having won every match except the one I played in, and with Ashtead tripping up against a mid-table team, we found ourselves in the unexpected position of playing for the Ellam Trophy (division 3 of the Surrey League) and promotion at the first attempt. We were playing Crystal Palace 2 at home, and had a team fit for the occasion: 175-146, 169-139, 162-135, 152-129, 142-104, e140-105. I was on board one, Black against Francis Fields (146) - a bit of a surprise, since he hadn't played for them all season. I played him some years ago in a rapidplay at CCF, and was able to punish some eccentric play for a notable result at the time. This game took a different course but ended in the same way:
[Event "SCCA Ellam Trophy"] [Site "?"] [Date "2017.04.12"] [Round "7.1"] [White "Fields, Francis E"] [Black "Young, Daniel J"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "B50"] [WhiteElo "146"] [BlackElo "175"] [PlyCount "44"] [EventDate "2017.??.??"] [WhiteTeam "Crystal Palace 2"] [BlackTeam "Wallington"] {No thanks to me, the Wallington first team had enjoyed a fantastic season, and now only needed to win the last match of the season to take the title. I was drafted in to play on board one; our team was a little excessive, but I hoped it would be a useful training game for the battles over Easter. Time control: 30 moves in 1 hour + 20 minutes to completion.} 1. e4 {(1:00) First of all, I'd like to detour via a very instructive game that I saw a few days ago. It stuck in my mind because I'd prepared for someone else and was expecting an Exchange Slav, but even so there are obvious parallels with my game. Black is facing a much weaker player, but doesn't avoid simplification when it is the logical thing to do. Quoted comments are from the majestic third volume of "Botvinnik's Best Games, 1957-1970", a heavy and expensive hardback worth every penny.} (1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. cxd5 cxd5 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Bf4 Nc6 6. e3 Nh5 7. Bg3 Nxg3 8. hxg3 g6 9. Nc3 Bg7 10. Be2 e6 {"In the middlegame this set-up allows Black to open up the game by advancing his pawn to e5, but before completing his development this would be premature."} 11. O-O O-O 12. Rc1 Bd7 13. Na4 b6 14. b3 Re8 15. Nc3 Bf8 16. Nb1 Qb8 {"The queen is transferred to b7, to gain control of the a6 square. Otherwise Black cannot begin operating with his rooks on the c-file."} 17. Qd2 Qb7 18. Bb5 Rec8 19. Bxc6 {"White plays for simplification, hoping that in the endgame it will be easier for him to maintain the balance. The position is indeed simplified, but it is in the endgame that the two black bishops will be particularly effective."} Bxc6 20. Ne5 Bb5 21. Rxc8 Rxc8 22. Rc1 f6 23. Rxc8 Qxc8 24. Qc3 Qb7 {"Avoiding further simplification, but if Black wishes he can always exchange queens. For the moment he will continue to strengthen his position."} 25. Nd3 g5 26. a4 Be8 27. Nd2 Bd6 28. Nf3 Kf8 {"The black king is the first to come into play - a good omen for the coming endgame."} 29. Nb2 Ke7 30. Nd3 Kd8 31. Nb2 Qc7 {"The king has approached, and the exchange of queens has become timely. Subsequently the activity of the king of the queenside will be decisive."} 32. Qxc7+ Kxc7 33. Kf1 b5 {"Clearing the way for the approach of Black's king to the white pawns on the queenside. 34... Ba3 is threatened, and after 34. axb5 Bxb5+ 35. Ke1 Bb4+ 36. Kd1 Bf1 White would also have lost a pawn."} 34. Ne1 Ba3 35. Ned3 e5 {"!"} 36. Nd1 bxa4 37. bxa4 e4 38. N3b2 Bh5 {"A picturesque position - Black's bishops are attacking the helpless white knights, neither of which can now move."} 39. Ke1 Bb4+ 40. Kf1 Kb6 41. f3 {0-1; Cintron-Botvinnik, Munich Ol. 1958. Perhaps if I hadn't just played over this game I would have played differently at move 8... (See also the (in) famous 23rd game of the Botvinnik-Bronstein match.)}) 1... c5 {(1:00)} 2. Nf3 d6 3. c3 Nf6 4. e5 $6 {Fields played this instantly. I was out of book, but this season I've got better at reacting to such surprises - and giving up his centre whilst moving the knight again has little to recommend it.} dxe5 5. Nxe5 Nbd7 {5... g6?! (as I've played in a similar position; Healey-Young, 4NCL Rapid Oct. 2013) is less good because of 6. Bc4. So Black prevents such easy development by attacking the knight straight away.} 6. Bb5 $6 {Again played immediately, but the bishop is firing into thin air and Black soon adds the bishop pair to his trumps.} (6. f4 {Is the main move in the database, but this is an artificial way to hold the knight in place - White's dark-squared bishop has few prospects.} e6 7. Be2 Bd6 8. d4 O-O 9. O-O b6 $15 {Although the knight on e5 looks good, White is too passive to make anything of it - eventually this will boil down to an IQP position favourable for Black.}) (6. d4 {also favours Black:} e6 7. Be2 cxd4 8. Qxd4 {(8. cxd4 loses a pawn to ...Nxe5 and .. .Qa5+)} Bc5 9. Qa4 O-O $15 {White has the usual Alapin problem of sluggish development, but without a centre to make up for it.}) 6... a6 7. Bxd7+ {7. Qa4? loses to the simple 7... axb5, so there's nothing better.} (7. Nxd7 $143 $6 {Black may as well meet this ambitiously with} axb5 (7... Bxd7 8. Bxd7+ Qxd7 9. O-O e6 $15 {is also fine - White gets bad IQP again because of his slumbering queenside - but why not go for more?}) 8. Nxf8 (8. Nxf6+ gxf6 {is a good version of one of my pet structures.} 9. d4 Rg8 10. g3 Qd5 $17) 8... Qd3 $1 {, gumming White up in the style of Paulsen-Morphy.} 9. Qe2 Bf5 10. Ne6 fxe6 $17 {White's position is a disaster.}) 7... Nxd7 $15 8. d4 {Now I had to stop and think. The most logical way to exploit the two bishops is to simplify by taking on e5 and d1, also restoring my lead in development. But is it easy to trade queens on move 9 in a game you must win? Obviously not. In the end though, remembering the Botvinnik game above, I decided to play the position.} Nxe5 $1 9. dxe5 Qxd1+ 10. Kxd1 {(52) I also took into account that I've had good results in dry technical positions lately - how times change! But I didn't imagine that I would win in another 12 moves. Firstly Black takes control of the white king's most convenient square, c2, preparing to occupy the open d-file with gain of time.} Bf5 {(38)} 11. Bf4 Rd8+ {Perhaps 11... O-O-O+ was slightly more accurate - and certainly more elegant. But I wasn't sure where my king belonged, and with all four rooks still on the board I can't be too blasé about it.} 12. Ke2 $6 {See? Now I can block the d-file with tempo, and then double my rooks in peace whilst White scrambles to develop. 12. Nd2 was safer.} Bd3+ (12... g5 $5 {was another, perhaps better, way to play pointed out by Stockfish.} 13. Bxg5 Rg8 14. Bf4 (14. Be3 Rxg2 15. Bxc5 $2 {is a very bad idea since White's king is in danger -} Bg4+ 16. Kf1 Bf3 17. Na3 Rd2 $19 {with a crushing bind.}) 14... Rxg2 $17 {I didn't consider this, since I felt the rooks belonged on the d-file, but Black becomes very active.}) 13. Ke3 c4 14. Nd2 e6 15. Ne4 {(42) A strange oversight - I had naively expected 15. Nf3? Bc5+ 16. Nd4 O-O, when the pin on d4 places White in real danger. Now Black has to modestly complete his development before going any further.} Be7 {(20)} 16. Rhd1 (16. Bg5 $143 $2 {I was hoping that White would try to exchange off one of my bishops - then} Bxe4 17. Bxe7 Kxe7 18. Kxe4 Rd2 $19 {is a winning endgame.}) 16... O-O $17 {To be honest, up to this point I'd underestimated my position. Although I had two bishops and the open file, I wasn't sure if my attempts to catch his king in the centre hadn't actually helped him. In truth though, the d-file is the main factor in the position, and after White's next move I was finally satisfied.} 17. b4 $6 {A strange choice. Perhaps Fields was trying to avoid a fixed b-pawn, but now he loses any faint hope of counterplay and the c3 pawn becomes a serious weakness. On the other hand, it's hard to suggest a good move.} (17. f3 Rd5 18. Nf2 $4 {was the manouevre I feared, but this loses immediately to} Bc5+ $19) (17. b3 {is the Stockfish try, aiming for counterplay, but it's insufficient.} b5 18. a4 bxa4 (18... cxb3 $5 {is a curious idea, albeit hardly necessary in such a good position:} 19. Rxd3 bxa4 20. Rxa4 b2 21. Nd2 g5 $15 {recovers the piece with a useful passed pawn on b2, since} 22. Bg3 $2 Bc5+ 23. Ke2 Rxd3 24. Kxd3 Rd8+ 25. Kc2 Rxd2+ $19 {wins.}) 19. Rxa4 (19. bxc4 {keeps the rooks connected, but White has to give up the d-file and this costs him a pawn.} Bxc4 20. Rxd8 Rxd8 21. Rxa4 Rd3+ 22. Ke2 Rxc3+ $17) 19... g5 $1 {This sudden blow wins by force, cashing in on the loose rook at d1.} 20. Bxg5 (20. Nxg5 cxb3 21. Rxd3 b2 $19 {coronates the b-pawn}) (20. Bg3 Bxe4 21. Rxd8 Rxd8 22. Kxe4 cxb3 $19 {is equally hopeless.}) 20... Bxe4 21. Rxd8 Bxg5+ 22. Kxe4 Rxd8 23. Rxc4 Rd2 $19 {Black's extra piece should beat the pawns.}) (17. Rd2 {This also seemed feasible at the time, but as usual Black gets in first.} Rd5 18. Rad1 f5 $1 {If the knight retreats then ...g5 wins, but} 19. exf6 gxf6 {leaves him with no defence against} 20. b3 f5 21. Ng5 e5 $19) 17... Rd5 18. Bg3 Rfd8 {Now 19... Bxe4 is threatened. White's reply makes things easier, but Black is winning in the long run anyway.} 19. Nd2 $4 (19. Rdc1 $4 {All I could think of was to get off the d-file. I assumed this would be winning for Black, but I didn't realise quite how drastically - now White's king finds itself in a mating net.} Bxe4 20. Kxe4 Rd3 21. a3 (21. f4 {loses quickly to} Bxb4 $1 {, for if} 22. cxb4 R8d4#) 21... R8d5 22. f3 {and Black wins suddenly with} f5+ $1 {- forcing White to open the f8-h6 diagonal -} 23. exf6 gxf6 24. Bb8 {Otherwise ...f5+ followed by ...h6 and ...Bd6 is mate, but now} Bf8 {threatens another mate with ...Bh6 and ...f5#, which can only be stopped by} 25. Kf4 Bh6+ 26. Kg3 Bxc1 $19) (19. Nd6 $142 {is the relatively best chance, but} Bxd6 20. exd6 e5 $17 {is the simplest way to win.}) 19... Bc2 20. f4 {(16)} Bxd1 {(12)} 21. Rxd1 Rd3+ 22. Ke2 Rxc3 {I also considered the flashy 22... Bxb4 23. cxb4 c3, but there's no need to show off and evidently my decision was right, since Fields resigned here. This was our first win of the night, and we eventually managed a 6-0 win, allowing us to take back our voluntary relegation at the first attempt.} 0-1 A fruitful night all in all, for me and for Wallington - not without some adventures, we won 6-0 and took the crown. Daylight robbery really, since Ashtead were clearly a stronger team and when we played Kingston we were outgraded on every board, but we took all the chances we squandered last season. Perhaps we will be able to struggle on for another season, back in the Beaumont Cup this time.

Having only played one (bad) game since early March, I felt a bit like an astronaut taking my first tentative steps in this game. Although my time management was predictably poor, I was satisfied on the whole: I solved my opening problems correctly, and then fell back on my main weapon at the moment - technique of all things! - to get the job done in only 22 moves. I thought that my bishops were the main factor in the position, but it turned out to be my rooks since White played too passively. The most important decision was 8... Nxe5 - it seemed the most logical thing to do, but I would have preferred a complicated game both for training and practical purposes.

Anyway, my team was happy and I gained some confidence ready for this weekend. I'm playing in CCF's Easter Open (even if the top sections merge it's just short of the British Championship qualifying threshold, if you're looking for something to do...) and then at least of the rapidplays there or at Richmond. In short - I'll be back soon.