Forever Young

Let us now jump forward in time a few months, so that I am only behind as far as mid-January. I enjoy playing this trick now that I choose which games to blog, but on this occasion there really is nothing to discuss - the approach to, and start of, the new year was inevitably a rotten period at work, and my tiredness combined with a lack of belief after the Major Open had a stultifying impact on my chess. By early January I had reached the despair horizon - I played one of my worst games for years in the decisive Surrey League match between Epsom and Ashtead, lost alongside my team, and so the wait for promotion most likely goes on. To rub salt into the wounds I then had to go back to work until the small hours that night!

My first conclusion at the time was that it was impossible to combine evening league chess with 60+ hour working weeks, although since I've won every weeknight game I've played since perhaps there is more to it. I think a large part of what we call form is down to psychology, and - for all its flaws - this game marks the moment I not only snapped my anaemic streak but turned it totally into reverse.

This game was played in the second round of the Wallington club championship. I am again seeded third this year, but without 2300+ competition to worry about this time I have every chance, and started with a straightforward win against a 1300 in the opening round. Now I had black against Jen Sean Wong, a junior with a rating of 1689 who is certainly capable of playing better chess than that rating suggests. Even so, I dominated the first half of the game thanks to his baffling refusal to castle; it is the second half of the game that justifies the blogging time:

[Event "Wallington Club Championship"] [Site "?"] [Date "2023.01.18"] [Round "2.3"] [White "Wong, Jen Sean"] [Black "Young, Daniel J"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A16"] [WhiteElo "1689"] [BlackElo "1984"] [PlyCount "70"] [EventDate "2023.??.??"] {My opponent is a junior (attending my old school!) and capable of results that belie his lowly rating. Though he plays the English regularly, I didn't think he understood it very well and hoped that this combined with a psychological block against stronger players at the club would be enough to win me the game. Time control: 75 minutes for all moves + 10 seconds/move} 1. c4 {(1:15)} Nf6 {(1:15)} 2. Nf3 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. Bg2 O-O 5. Nc3 c5 {Now the normal move is, of course, 6. O-O, and after 6... Nc6 7. d4 I would have played 7... d6 transposing into a Fianchetto King's Indian (stay tuned for a 4NCL game being annotated soon!). But Wong decided to go in a different direction.} 6. e3 $6 {He said after the game that this was an attempt to dodge preparation, but to me it just looks like mixing systems up. In this structure the king's knight belongs on e2 to draw the fangs of ...Bg4, and his strategy of playing for d2-d4 proves to be inappropriate.} Nc6 7. b3 $6 d5 {Making contact with White's position is the best way to show up another weakening pawn move. Strangely, he never will get around to castling! Black now has the initiative.} 8. d4 $6 {It's hard to avoid repeating myself, but inviting a mass opening of the centre doesn't sit well with a king in the middle.} (8. cxd5 {was what I expected, when we get a sort of Four Knights Symmetrical English with reversed colours - but 6. e3?! has weakened White's light squares and Black is able to take advantage of it.} Nxd5 9. Bb2 {Now Black has a pleasant choice of winning the bishop pair or trapping White's king in the centre.} Ndb4 (9... b6 {, preparing ...Ba6, also looks strong, especially as the natural} 10. O-O $6 {runs into} Ba6 11. Re1 Ndb4 $19 {when White's ship is approaching the iceberg on d3}) 10. O-O Nd3 11. Rb1 Nxb2 12. Rxb2 Bf5 $17 { White is terribly weak on the light squares, the black 'King's Indian' bishop has a wonderful diagonal, and it's hard to see how White can rid himself of the backward pawn on d2.}) (8. O-O $142 {would have been a better way to implement White's idea, but even so} Bf5 9. d4 dxc4 10. bxc4 Ne4 11. Nxe4 Bxe4 12. Bb2 Qb6 $15 {shows the dark side of both Nf3 rather than Ne2, and of protecting c4 with b2-b3. White will struggle to hold his pawn centre together. }) 8... cxd4 9. exd4 dxc4 10. bxc4 {(1:10)} Bg4 $6 {(1:05) Playing against the d-pawn, but Black can do better by more direct means.} (10... Be6 $142 $1 { is surprisingly difficult for White to deal with - I did hazily consider it, but this is a case of my distrust of clever moves letting me down.} 11. d5 $2 { The obvious try clearly loses, but what's surprising to me is that nothing else helps either.} (11. Qd3 {allows Black to improve the f6 knight with tempo, when c4 drops:} Ng4 12. Ne2 {(12. d5 Bf5 doesn't help)} Nge5 13. Nxe5 Nxe5 $19) (11. c5 {might be the best hope but} Bc4 $17 {finally punishes White's failure to castle while he had the chance.}) 11... Nxd5 {With both c3 knight and a1 rook unguarded, this stock King's Indian combination wins on the spot.} 12. Nxd5 Bxa1 13. O-O Bg7 $19) 11. Be3 $6 {Unnecessary overprotection, as Black wasn't yet threatening to take on d4 because of the hanging b7 pawn at the end. Instead, this was White's last chance to castle; now Black's initiative catches him in a vice-like grip.} Qa5 $6 {Again, not bad - White struggles to break the pin on c3 without hanging the d-pawn, so I gain a tempo to transfer my queen to the kingside with a further gain of time. However, this is the moment to begin decisive action with 11... e5, which I failed to calculate accurately.} (11... e5 $142 12. dxe5 (12. d5 {I correctly looked at} e4 13. dxc6 exf3 14. Bxf3 {, but despite playing it in the game I didn't consider} Qa5 {to ping the queen across to h5.} 15. O-O $1 {A small trap, but not enough to salvage the position.} Qh5 (15... Bxf3 $143 $4 16. Qxf3 Qxc3 17. cxb7 $18 { followed by Bxa7 is unfortunate}) 16. Kg2 bxc6 $19 {Material is level and the structure is symmetrical, but Black's piece activity is overwhelming, for example} 17. Bxg4 $2 {loses at once to} Nxg4 {hitting c3 and h2.}) 12... Qa5 { Here too I overlooked this idea, though my intended 12... Nxe5?! is also favourable for Black.} 13. O-O (13. exf6 Qxc3+ 14. Ke2 Rfe8 $5 $19 {Black can also win prosaically with 14... Qxc4+ followed by ...Bxf6, but what's the point of analysing with an engine if you can't have some fun with it? Now Black breaks through to the enemy king and White must give up his queen or be mated.} 15. fxg7 Rad8 16. Qa4 Rd2+ $1 17. Kf1 Qxa1+ 18. Ne1 Be2+ 19. Kg1 Qxe1+) 13... Nxe5 14. Nd5 Nxd5 15. cxd5 {Now Black can either win an exchange or the d-pawn; personally I would choose the latter.} Rad8 (15... Nxf3+ $144 16. Bxf3 Bxf3 17. Qxf3 Bxa1 18. Rxa1 Rad8 $19 {Naturally the computer has no qualms about the dark squares around Black's king.}) 16. d6 Qa6 $19 {The d-pawn drops and White has to put up with the pin against f3 forever.}) 12. Qd2 Qh5 13. Ng1 {When I showed this game to Peter Lalic afterwards he said he wouldn't even register such a move when already behind in development, and I was certainly happy to see it. But it's hard to say that the alternatives are any better.} ( 13. Ne5 $143 $2 {was my expectation, giving up a pawn to try and bail out, but Black doesn't have to be so obliging.} Nxe5 14. dxe5 Rfd8 {(rather than lazily taking on e5)} 15. Nd5 Nxd5 16. cxd5 Bxe5 17. Rc1 Bf3 18. O-O b6 $19 {White has indeed managed to evacuate his king, but at too high a price since the d-pawn is now doomed as well.}) (13. Nh4 {The evaluation of this move rests on a long, forcing tactical line, but it seems to favour Black:} e5 14. d5 Na5 15. h3 Nxc4 $1 16. hxg4 Nxg4 17. Qd1 Ncxe3 18. fxe3 e4 $1 {Having already sacrificed a piece, Black throws a pawn in too, opening the long diagonal and gaining time to break the pin against g4.} 19. Nxe4 Qe5 20. O-O (20. Ke2 $2 { is too greedy:} Rac8 {comes with the venomous threat of 21... Qb2+, and if} 21. Qb3 Nf6 22. Nxf6+ Bxf6 $19 {too many of White's forces are hanging} 23. Nf3 Qxg3 24. Rag1 Rc3 25. Qa4 Bg5 $1) 20... Nxe3 21. Qd3 Nxf1 22. Rxf1 Qd4+ { Black has a rook and two pawns against two pieces - I think the engine's optimism is justified in the face of Black's queenside majority and with White's pieces stranded on the kingside. Therefore it's useful to force the exchange of queens to reduce counterplay.} 23. Qxd4 Bxd4+ 24. Kh2 Rac8 $17) 13... e5 $2 {Foreshadowing what is to come - we have seen this move again and again in the variations above, but I manage to find the moment it isn't very good for tactical reasons.} (13... Rfd8 $142 {For now I should have been content to use the extra time granted by White's last move to improve the position further. Now it's useless for him to meet ...e5 with d5 because the d-pawn will be pinned.} 14. h3 (14. Nge2 {As in the game, this is too slow:} e5 15. d5 Bh3 16. O-O Na5 {and White is unable to defend the c-pawn as well as his loose pieces:} 17. Qd3 Bxg2 18. Kxg2 e4 19. Nxe4 Nxe4 20. Qxe4 Bxa1 21. Rxa1 Qxe2) 14... Be6 {Even four moves after my first chance to play it, White still has no satisfactory answer to the simple attack on c4.} 15. d5 Ne5 16. Qe2 Qxe2+ 17. Ngxe2 Bf5 18. g4 Bd3 19. c5 Ba6 $17 {White's central pawns are not long for this world.}) 14. Nge2 $4 {More of a reprieve than I realised at the board. I understood that this is too slow and the outcome should now be decided, but not how annoying 14. d5 actually is. My queen is in even more trouble than I thought.} (14. d5 $142 Na5 {This is Stockfish's attempt to stir up trouble. It is similar to the 13. Nh4 variation above, and comparing the two lines is illuminating.} (14... Nd4 {was what I'd planned in advance, but Black will be forced to part with his queen for insufficient compensation after } 15. h3 Nf3+ (15... Bd7 {I'd seen that this loses to} 16. g4 Qh4 17. Bg5 { , so was well aware that the situation was precarious.} Nc2+ 18. Ke2 Nd4+ 19. Kf1) 16. Nxf3 Bxf3 17. g4 {This is what I missed.} Bxg2 18. gxh5 Bxh1 19. h6 Bh8 20. Ke2 $18 {Rook and bishop for queen isn't nearly enough here, as all of Black's pieces are passive and White's formerly loose centre is now dominating. }) 15. h3 Nxc4 {There's no turning back; if the bishop retreats then 16. g4 wins as above.} 16. hxg4 Qxh1 17. Bxh1 Nxd2 18. Bxd2 Nxg4 19. Bf3 Nf6 20. Rb1 $16 {So, once again Black has a rook and two pawns for two pieces. This time, however, the centre is blocked, White's pieces are actively posted and there is an extra pair of minor pieces on the board. This is closer to a queenless middlegame, in which two pieces tend to prevail over a rook by sheer weight of numbers.}) 14... exd4 {Simple chess: as White's king is still in the centre, Black consistently opens up as many lines as possible.} 15. Nxd4 {(52)} Nxd4 { (48)} 16. Bxd4 Rfe8+ 17. Kf1 {Finally giving up on castling once and for all.} (17. Be3 $144 {Blocking the e-file is more natural, and what I expected, but this can no longer help White:} Rad8 18. Qc1 Bh3 19. O-O Ng4 $19 {and Black's attack wins material.}) 17... Rad8 {White can live with his king on f1 for the time being, but playing two rooks down is another matter. My main idea now is to engineer ...Ne4, combining the pressure down the central files and long diagonal to win material on d4.} 18. h3 Bf3 {Therefore I chose this move to neutralise White's only good piece, though 18... Be6 was just as good and perhaps simpler.} 19. Qd3 {White has seen what's coming and tries to cling on as best as he can, but nothing can help now.} (19. g4 {loses to} Bxg2+ 20. Kxg2 Nxg4 $19 {, and}) (19. Bxf3 Qxf3 20. Kg1 Ne4 $19 {also results in immediate material loss}) 19... Bxg2+ 20. Kxg2 {(36)} Ne4 {(40)} 21. Nd5 {I have to admit that I'd overlooked this defence (another preview of what's about to unfold) but made my reply without hesitation. White doesn't have anything else; if 21. Nxe4 Rxd4 wins easily.} Rxd5 $1 22. cxd5 Qxd5 23. f3 {Here I was sure that almost everything had to win, but was trying to find the neatest way to do it, without self-pinning on the d-file, and came up with} Nc5 $2 {- a cringeworthy oversight, after which I am forced to win the game all over again. I avoid one self-pin, but create another!} (23... Bxd4 $142 {was fully playable, with a winning material advantage, as White cannot achieve anything on the d-file.} 24. Rae1 (24. fxe4 Rxe4 {Once the f-pawn is gone the white king has nowhere to hide - if} 25. Kh2 Bg1+ $19) (24. Rhd1 Ng5 {gives Black enough time to untangle himself, for if} 25. Qxd4 $2 Re2+ $19 {mates.}) 24... Qxa2+ 25. Re2 Nc5 $19 {A pretty move that finally clarifies the game - after} 26. Rxa2 Nxd3 27. Rd2 Ne1+ 28. Rxe1 Rxe1 29. Rxd4 {Black has a winning rook ending.}) (23... Nxg3 $142 {is another way to win, completely exposing white's dark squares.} 24. Kxg3 Bxd4 25. Rad1 Qg5+ 26. Kh2 Be5+ $19) 24. Qb5 {Wong played this instantly, after which I understandably felt a bit sheepish - loose pieces drop off! To have all that hard work undone in a moment was all too typical of my recent form. In the postmortem he over-optimistically commented that he was now winning; in fact the reverse is still true, but Black now has a much harder task to prove it.} Rc8 25. Bxg7 $2 {(16) Objectively losing, but practically the best try, as Black has to find two more good moves.} (25. Bxc5 {leads to a slower but more certain demise following} Bxa1 (25... Qd2+ $143 $4 {would now lose to} 26. Bf2 {, as my opponent mentioned afterwards - yet again I hadn't noticed this!}) 26. Rxa1 Rxc5 27. Qe2 b5 $19 {We reached this ending in the postmortem, which I assessed as probably winning for me - as well as the extra pawn, Black has the safer king. Stockfish agrees with this assessment.}) 25... Qd2+ {(27) I found the first one...} 26. Kf1 Kxg7 $4 {... but not the second. Now Black really is almost losing! I considered 26... Nd3?, but once I saw that 27. Bd4 defends I concluded I had to recapture. And yet there is another intermezzo threatening mate...} (26... Ne4 $142 $3 {This would almost have justified my 13th and 23rd moves! Now d4 is unavailable to the bishop and Black's rook is ready to join the attack too.} 27. Qb2 (27. fxe4 Rc2 $19 {is the point, but it requires some calculation, i.e. that after} 28. Qe8+ Kxg7 29. Qe5+ f6 30. Qe7+ Kh6 31. Qf8+ Kg5 32. h4+ Kg4 {White is out of checks. This is a bit of a moot point though since I didn't consider 26... Ne4!! at all!}) 27... Rc2 28. Qxc2 {The last try, but not enough.} Nxg3+ 29. Kg1 Qxc2 30. Bh6 Nxh1 31. Rc1 $1 Qf2+ 32. Kxh1 Qxf3+ 33. Kh2 Qf5 $19 {Black wards off the back-rank threat and has a decisive material advantage.}) 27. Qe2 Qc3 $2 {And this should be it! Of course I didn't want to trade queens, but White is presented with an obvious chance to untangle - and, amazingly, both sides overlook it. Maybe my opponent was hypnotised?} (27... Qxe2+ $142 {isn't much fun, but} 28. Kxe2 Re8+ 29. Kd2 Rd8+ 30. Ke3 Rd3+ 31. Kf2 Ra3 $16 {at least allows Black to pose some technical difficulties.}) 28. Rd1 $2 {Connect your rooks! After the simple 28. Kg2 Black would not have had enough compensation for the exchange. After the text move Black still has one last chance.} Re8 $1 {Without this deflection Black would be in deep trouble just the same. I suppose it's more likely that Wong hadn't seen it coming, as with time trouble approaching he finally cracks.} 29. Qd2 $4 {Now this topsy-turvy struggle is finally concluded. In fairness, this isn't quite as crass an oversight as it looks - to judge by White's distraught reaction to my 31st move, he thought he would have a perpetual.} (29. Qf2 $142 {avoids immediate disaster, but} Qc4+ 30. Kg1 Re2 {leads to Black capturing the a-pawn, which is enough to pay the price of a queen trade.} 31. Qd4+ Qxd4+ 32. Rxd4 Rxa2 33. Rd1 a5 34. Rh2 Ra3 $11 {With connected outside passed pawns, Black is at least OK and I would certainly have been playing to win here.}) 29... Qxf3+ 30. Kg1 {(9)} Re2 {(21)} 31. Qd4+ f6 {This was the correct moment to resign, but White was still raging (literally) against the dying of the light and carries on to the bitter end.} 32. Rh2 Qxg3+ 33. Kf1 Rxh2 34. Rd2 Rh1+ 35. Ke2 {(5)} Re1# {(20) And so the white king finally perishes in the centre, where it spent so much of the game. Looking back, this was a deeply flawed game, and in truth I needed a lot of luck not to be on the wrong side of a massive upset. But after such a long drought I desperately needed to win somehow, and I found it telling that I did it in the way that comes most naturally to me: being principled at any price made me take unnecessary risks, but having so much more energy in my play is worth the increased danger of mistakes because it sets my opponents more problems.} 0-1

There is a lot in common between this game and round two of the Major Open, and indeed my overall conclusion is the same. In both games I launched a sacrificial attack not because it was the right practical choice against a much lower-rated player but because I thought it was on principle the right thing to do. Both times I got into trouble through unsteady handling of complications, and was even lost at points, but on each occasion after doing all the hard work they blundered into a loss at the very last moment.

Presumably White thought he was saving a tempo for more useful moves by delaying castling, but the threats started coming sooner than he expected and he was never able to get round to it. Getting a huge advantage in the early middlegame and then somehow failing to put it away has always been one of my calling cards, although on this occasion I didn't have to try very hard. Still, reading the runes in positions like this is one of my strengths, and I think I have to aim for positions where I can put it to use, even if I find them hard to play when I'm not on my best form. That then is my final conclusion from the Major Open and its aftermath: perhaps it is easier to hide in quiet positions, and it's useful to be more versatile in the openings, but it makes life too easy for my opponents and in the end it really is better to fail while daring greatly than be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat. Roosevelt was right: there is no effort without error or shortcoming. I am going to lose games playing like this, but by setting problems I can hopefully win more than I lose.

For all the triumphalism over finally winning a game, it would be better for my results if I wasn't flirting with disaster every time I played like this! I only made three particularly bad moves in this game (13... e5?, 23... Nc5? and 26... Kxg7??) but if you live by the sword you die by the sword and the price of a mistake in such a game is high. The first was caused by a failure of calculation, the second by a simple hallucination, and the third by a combination of both. What has made me so wary of embracing the conclusion of the previous paragraph is that it follows I have to improve in these areas, which is a difficult and time-consuming challenge. But so be it.

Finally reconciled to the simple truth that my old wisdom, know thyself, was right all along, I carried the philosophy into my very next game, which turned out to be my first win in an SCCU county match for six years to the day! That's where we will drop in next time.