Under pressure

 One Wednesday evening in February, I was quite happily sitting at home, having just got back from work and had dinner, when I got an e-mail that read simply "Wallington vs. Petts Wood now!" Little did I know that it was the start of one of my most memorable escapades for my local club.

 As Wallington aren't entering a first team into any slowplay leagues, my only external games for the club this season are in the rapidplay division of the Croydon League. In our first match we had beaten Streatham convincingly (with limited help from me: I let Robin Haldane escape with a draw from a totally lost ending not once but twice) and only four boards meant our lack of depth was not an issue, so with only three clubs in the competition we unexpectedly found ourselves contending for a trophy.

 The third club is Petts Wood & Orpington, and we received a nasty surprise when they turned up at the Wallington URC to play us! (In fairness, I should clarify that it was an oversight on our side.) Our captain wasn't around, but someone had the presence of mind to cobble together the few members not there for an internal game and e-mail around for help. Luckily I live nearby, have a car and could fit in on the vacant second board without breaking rating tolerance. Great indeed was the relief when I walked through the door! To cap things off, I made the decisive contribution to us not only fulfilling the fixture but actually winning it with our patchwork team. I won both of my games against higher-rated opponents, but in very different ways.

 In the first round, I had white (and a ~5 minute handicap) against Laurence Ball, an occasional 4NCL teammate of mine. At the time he had a provisional rapid rating of 2227, but his standard rating of 2003 is more representative. He opted to avoid a theoretical struggle and allowed me a big advantage from the opening, but I lacked resolve when chances arose to finish the job, and lost the thread when my king came under attack in turn. However it was the clock that had the last laugh as the game descended into glorious chaos:

[Event "Croydon Rapidplay League"] [Site "?"] [Date "2023.02.22"] [Round "2.2"] [White "Young, Daniel J"] [Black "Ball, Laurence"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "B08"] [WhiteElo "1959"] [BlackElo "2003"] [PlyCount "79"] [EventDate "2023.??.??"] [EventType "rapid"] [SourceVersionDate "2023.02.22"] [WhiteTeam "Wallington"] [BlackTeam "Petts Wood & Orpington"] {Wallington weren't expecting to play a match on this evening, so I had to jump in my car and drive to our venue pretty much with my clock running! Luckily I live nearby and only lost 5-10 minutes, but that's a lot in a rapid game...} 1. e4 Nc6 {In my opinion the Nimzowitsch Defence is playable - ...Nc6 is useful in many positions, after all - but perhaps a little passive.} 2. Nf3 d6 {2... e5 is obviously best, but this is the most-played people because people choose the Nimzowitsch to run away from theory! 2... d5 may also be just about playable, but we'll look at that another day. The text leads to a sort of Pirc, which I could hardly object to.} 3. d4 Nf6 4. Nc3 g6 5. Be3 Bg7 6. Qd2 O-O {'Castling into it', as they say - it might be too much to say this is bad, but it gives White a clear plan and chances to play for a direct attack, both of which are disproportionately valuable at fast time limits.} 7. O-O-O Bg4 {The only downside to White's scheme is that Black has time to develop this bishop, which helps fight for the d4 square. For that reason White often prefers h2-h3 at an earlier stage.} 8. Be2 e5 9. d5 $2 { Straightforward but very naive. Of course it is nice to close the centre if allowed, since it allows White to pursue a kingside attack with fewer distractions, but Black doesn't need to let this happen for free - as I should be well aware from my King's Indian experience!} (9. dxe5 $142 {might look insipid but is far more difficult for Black, shutting down all of his counterplay and condemning him to suffer in a slightly worse position.} dxe5 ( 9... Nxe5 $6 {allows a strong initiative after} 10. Nxe5 dxe5 11. Bxg4 Nxg4 12. Qe2 Qc8 13. Bc5 Re8 14. Nd5 $16 {, when the white pieces jump to life and Black will have to waste further time returning his knight to a sensible square.}) 10. h3 Bxf3 (10... Be6 $5 $146 {No-one has ever tried the arrogant move, refusing to make a concession - personally I'd prefer this to the lifeless main continuation, though after} 11. Bb5 $14 {Black has problems defending e5 whilst keeping his queenside intact.}) 11. Bxf3 Qxd2+ 12. Rxd2 Rfd8 13. Rhd1 Rxd2 14. Rxd2 $14 {Despite the simplification and the symmetrical pawn structure, Black has not quite equalised thanks to White's pair of bishops and will have to suffer passively. For example, the direct} Rd8 $2 {simply loses a pawn to} (14... a6 $142) 15. Rxd8+ Nxd8 16. Bxa7) 9... Nb8 $2 $146 {Now White gets everything he wants, and by this point already has a strategically winning position. Passive defence simply will not cut it in a position where White has a stable space advantage and obvious attacking chances.} (9... Bxf3 $142 {is the way to make sense of Black's play, clearing the way for} 10. Bxf3 Nd4 $11 {- a similar scenario often arises in the King's Indian (especially the Panno system in the Saemisch) and as a loose rule of thumb Black is doing fine if he can play this move safely. White is loathe to put up with the knight on such a fine outpost, but getting rid of it comes at the high, high cost of giving up the dark squares and opening the long diagonal for Black's bishop. It's true that White often collects a pawn in return, but the positional compensation usually more than makes up for it.} 11. Bxd4 exd4 12. Nb5 (12. Qxd4 $143 $2 {is even worse since} Ng4 13. Qd2 $2 { fails to} Bh6 {, vividly demonstrating what Black can achieve with an unopposed dark-squared bishop.}) 12... c5 13. dxc6 bxc6 14. Nxd4 Rb8 $44 { The computer suggests this is roughly level, but I would be terrified as White at any time control - comparing the bishops is simply embarrassing, and there are too many open lines to the king for comfort. Not, for instance,} 15. Nxc6 Qb6 16. Nxb8 $4 Nxe4 {when Black wins at once.}) 10. h3 Bxf3 11. Bxf3 $16 Nbd7 12. g4 a6 13. h4 {With a closed centre and Black a long way from generating any threats on the queenside, the slight loss of time in playing h2-h3-h4 doesn't matter.} b5 14. h5 $6 {Over the next few moves I repeatedly fail to land the killer blows. This isn't bad, but starting with the other pawn is more incisive. I laboured under the delusion that it was important to keep Bh6 in reserve, however White can get a huge attack without it and anyway does White really want to exchange off a bishop staring at a brick wall on e5?} (14. g5 $142 Ne8 (14... Nh5 {doesn't hold White up for long after} 15. Bxh5 gxh5 16. Ne2 Nb6 17. Bxb6 cxb6 18. Ng3 $18 {and h5 falls.}) 15. h5 Qe7 {Driving off the knight is good in itself, and here White can demonstrate a neat additional point of g4-g5:} 16. Bg4 $1 $18 {and Black is busted, since White prepares f2-f3 followed by Qh2, and if Black recaptures on g6 with the f-pawn then the bishop gets to nestle on e6.}) 14... b4 15. Ne2 Nc5 16. Ng3 Qd7 17. hxg6 $6 { So many tempting options, and I could only choose one! This wasn't the right approach though, since Black now gains some counterplay down the f-file. 18. g5 was again very strong.} fxg6 $8 18. Bh6 $4 {And this is a gross tactical oversight which I saw immediately after moving. After getting a huge opening advantage so easily, I was getting nervous.} Bxh6 19. Qxh6 Qg7 $2 {Safe and sound - but why not 19... Nxd5!, winning a pawn thanks to the hanging bishop on f3?} 20. Qe3 $11 Rf7 $6 {Black starts to get into trouble again with this move - the rook is clumsily placed on f7, and doubling on the f-file doesn't lead to anything since White has a convenient escape route for his bishop.} 21. Rdg1 {Threatening to win out of hand with 22. Nf5 - a motif that will haunt Black for much of the game.} Kh8 22. g5 Nfd7 23. Bg4 {Now Black can start to regret exchanging off his queen's bishop so lightly.} Raf8 24. f3 a5 25. Rh6 { Turning the screws even tighter and preparing to double rooks on the half-open file.} a4 $2 {With both of Black's rooks diverted to the kingside, it's easy to forget he has any sort of attack, and this should be far too slow to divert me from crashing through on the h-file. But Ball has timed this well in one way - by now we were both extremely short of time, and over the next few moves the first sight of ghosts on the queenside causes me to totally lose control.} (25... Qg8 $142 {As ridiculous as Stockfish's suggested defence looks, Black appears to be clinging to life after} 26. Nf5 $5 {(26. Rgh1 Rg7 covers everything)} Rb8 (26... gxf5 $143 $2 {The knight is untouchable because of} 27. Bxf5 {and h7 collapses, for instance} Rxf5 (27... a4 28. Bxh7 $1 Rxh7 29. g6 $18 {is the main threat}) 28. exf5 Rxf5 29. g6 $18 {followed by 30. g7+.}) 27. Kb1 a4 28. Nh4 Rg7 29. Rh1 b3 30. cxb3 axb3 31. a3 Nf8 $14 {- it would be a challenge to play this as Black with a straight face, but everything is defended for now...}) 26. Rgh1 b3 27. axb3 axb3 28. cxb3 $2 {Suicidal play in a position where Black had no threats to speak of - it sounds stupid but I overlooked Black's reply!} (28. Be6 $142 {wins forcibly after} Re7 (28... Nxe6 29. dxe6 Rxf3 30. Qe1 {and Black is defenceless against} Nc5 31. Rxh7+ $1 Qxh7 32. Rxh7+ Kxh7 33. e7 $18 {when White wins back one of the rooks in view of} Re8 34. Qh1+) (28... Rxf3 29. Qg1 $18 {forces Black to give up material to stop the threat of 30. Rxh7+ mating.}) 29. Nf5 $1 gxf5 30. exf5 {, with the pretty point that} bxc2 31. Rg6 $18 {traps the queen!}) 28... Rb8 29. Be6 { From here on out the game was played on mutual increment... and it shows.} Rxb3 $2 {Believe it or not this should lose, since it forces White to improve his queen's position. Passive defence with 29... Nf8 is suggested by the engine.} 30. Qe2 $2 {Based on a 'brilliant' queen sacrifice that doesn't work and is totally unnecessary. But this was creativity out of desperation - in the cold light of analysis Black should never get anywhere with only a rook and a knight in the attack (just look at his poor queen!) but it never feels that way at the time...} (30. Qg1 $142 {The best way to halt Black's attack is simply to break through first, which this odd-looking retreat accomplishes. I was too frightened of} Nd3+ {, which is a dead end after} 31. Kc2 Rxb2+ 32. Kc3 (32. Kxd3 $4 {would admittedly lead to disaster:} Rxf3+ 33. Kc4 Nb6+ $19 { wins the white queen}) 32... Nf8 33. Nf5 {Once again this move is decisive, because Black is forced to accept the sacrifice.} gxf5 (33... Qg8 $144 34. Ne7 Qg7 35. Nxg6+ Nxg6 36. Rxh7+ Qxh7 37. Bxf7 $18 {wins the house}) 34. Bxf7 Qxf7 35. Rxh7+ $1 {This demands accurate calculation of the following forced sequence, but wins outright after} Nxh7 36. g6 Qe8 37. Rxh7+ Kg8 38. Qg5 $1 { , the killing shot - now there is no defence against} Ra2 {(or any)} 39. Rh8+ { , forcibly promoting the g-pawn:} Kxh8 40. Qh6+ Kg8 41. Qh7+ Kf8 42. g7+ Ke7 43. g8=Q+ Kd8 44. Qxe8+ Kxe8 45. Kxd3 $18 {It wouldn't be realistic to find this on increment, but that doesn't make the lines any less entertaining.}) 30... Nd3+ 31. Kc2 $4 {The game continuation is a rather good advertisement for my idea, but in the real world it's a long way from working - this move ought to lose, and White should prefer 31. Kd1.} Rxb2+ 32. Kxd3 Rxe2 $2 { Here too the devil is too far into the detail to figure out in a time scramble, but starting with 32... Nc5+ kills my idea completely.} (32... Nc5+ $142 { is the fly in the ointment, destroying White's bind over the kingside:} 33. Ke3 Rxe2+ 34. Kxe2 Re7 {and with ...Nc5 included} 35. Nf5 {now falls short in the face of} gxf5 36. exf5 Qxg5 37. Rg6 Nxe6 $19 {, and the attack fizzles out.}) 33. Kxe2 $17 {So White has a rook and bishop for queen and pawn, but all of his pieces are participating in the attack. Even so, Black should be able to defend by returning material. However, at this speed the initiative is everything and Ball was not able to defend.} Re7 $2 (33... Nf8 $142 $1 { This move again! Larsen's rule says that with a knight on f8 you can never be mated, and apparently Stockfish took it to heart. By forcing White to win the exchange, Black regains his control over the light squares, and} 34. Bxf7 Qxf7 35. R6h4 $17 {favours the queen because the rooks are clumsily placed, the white king is in the open and h7 is safely covered by Black's knight.}) 34. Nf5 {I didn't calculate this - there wasn't time - but I played it without hesitation since there is clearly nothing else, and in fact White should no longer be losing.} gxf5 35. exf5 Rxe6 $4 {Now it is Black's turn to panic in the face of threats to his king, and this time the punishment is much more severe.} (35... Qxg5 $142 {would be winning if not for the miraculous resource} 36. Rg6 {(which I hadn't seen!) threatening mate on g8 if the queen moves - compare this with 32... Nc5+ above. Still, Black can get at least a draw with} Qxg6 37. fxg6 Nf8 38. Bf5 Kg8 39. gxh7+ Nxh7 $11 {. The backward extra pawn on c7 may not be very valuable, but in any case Black can enjoy playing for two results.}) 36. dxe6 (36. Rxh7+ $144 {With time to think I might have played this instead, since it forces Black into a lost pawn ending.} Qxh7 37. Rxh7+ Kxh7 38. dxe6 {The only way to stop the e-pawn walking straight through is} Nf6 {, but} 39. gxf6 Kg8 40. f7+ Kf8 41. f6 $18 {stalemates the black king, which will eventually doom all of his pawns.} d5 42. Ke3 c5 43. Kd3 c4+ (43... d4 $6 {loses quickly to} 44. Ke4 d3 45. Kf5 d2 46. Kg6 d1=Q 47. e7#) 44. Kc3 e4 45. fxe4 dxe4 46. Kxc4 e3 47. Kd3 e2 48. e7+ {The last detail.} Kxf7 49. Kxe2) 36... Nf8 37. g6 Qf6 {White now wins attractively, but the position was hopeless in any case.} 38. Rxh7+ Nxh7 39. Rxh7+ Kg8 40. e7 {, and the pawn cannot be stopped. An up and down game to say the least, which reflects poorly on my ability to control such an advantageous position, but it was priceless given that we'd cobbled our team together at no notice: it left us 3-1 up after the first leg.} 1-0

To our own astonishment, quite against ratings, we had every chance of winning the match after the first round, although our erstwhile top board had to head for home and I shuffled back up to board one. Still, that meant a double white! I now played against Luke Hartley (with an even more unrepresentative rapid rating of 1457, a cool 580 points below his standard one!) and was allowed to deploy some preparation in a sharp gambit line of the Reti. This sort of thing could have been tailor-made for rapid chess, and to continue the theme of all my games at this time he eventually collapsed under sustained pressure:

[Event "Croydon Rapidplay League"] [Site "?"] [Date "2023.02.22"] [Round "2.1"] [White "Young, Daniel J"] [Black "Hartley, Luke"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "A11"] [WhiteElo "1959"] [BlackElo "2037"] [PlyCount "91"] [EventDate "2023.??.??"] [EventType "rapid"] [SourceVersionDate "2023.02.22"] [WhiteTeam "Wallington"] [BlackTeam "Petts Wood & Orpington"] {With our team reshuffled for the second round, I moved up to board one - so I got another white! Just for variety's sake I decided to leave the king's pawn at home this time.} 1. Nf3 d5 2. c4 c6 3. g3 Nf6 4. Bg2 dxc4 {This is the most principled move, but not the most practical one at this time control. And unfortunately for Hartley I had been looking at it as preparation for a game two days earlier!} 5. O-O Nbd7 {Black's most reliable defence, aiming to delay White's recapture of the pawn without compromising his own position. For alternatives see Young-Barlow, Surrey League 2022.} 6. Na3 Nb6 7. Qc2 Be6 8. Ng5 {A difficult choice. 8. Ne5 is an equally popular alternative but, as noted in the Barlow game, I feel 8... h5 is a satisfactory reply. The text is the trickiest move with various ways for Black to go wrong, but I knew only too well that he can force a draw if he knows the theory. With Wallington sitting on a 3-1 lead that seemed a tempting proposition, but I'd been looking at the little-played 8. b3!? a few days earlier in case of a must-win game.} Qd7 {Once again, principled but risky! This forces me to make a proper gambit of it, but I can look forward to good positional compensation and in practice Black has rarely accepted the challenge; the usual move is the counter-attacking 8... Bg4.} (8... Bg4 {I had bad memories of this move from a league game at the start of the season, which followed the book continuation} 9. Nxc4 Bxe2 10. Ne5 Bh5 11. Re1 {Now the specious 11... e6? would lose dramatically to 12. Bf3! Bg6 13. Bxc6+! (see the Barlow game mentioned above for the full line) but alas my opponent remembered the correct way to play as Black.} h6 12. Ne4 e6 13. Nxf6+ gxf6 {I had been aware that White is not worse in this position, but I wrongly imagined it was because he has full compensation for the sacrificed pawn. Now I realised that it isn't quite so: White is sufficiently active to be able to force a perpetual check, but he doesn't have a choice in the matter since if both sides play normal moves Black will simply be a pawn up with a solid position. I'd forgotten my earlier blogged analysis, where I gave 14. Nxc6 leading to a repetition, but found a draw of my own over the board:} 14. Bxc6+ bxc6 15. Qxc6+ Ke7 {and there's nothing better than} 16. Qb7+ Ke8 17. Qc6+ Ke7 18. Qb7+ Ke8 19. Qc6+ {½-½, Young-Bayly, Surrey League 2022. Epsom contrived to lose this match by the odd point (even with three IMs!) so my opening failure did not feel good, and it was for the return fixture that I made the effort to look at 8. b3!? in depth. Though I didn't play it in the main game, I did make use of the positional ideas.}) 9. Nxe6 {I was now on my own. White more often plays 9. b3 straight away, but I like bishops! I also get rid of a knight that had no other purpose in life. The downside of this move order is that e2 comes under attack, but I proposed to solve this problem by ignoring it.} Qxe6 10. b3 {(10. e4 is also a valid move order)} cxb3 $6 {This gives me a chance to prove that the trade on e6 had another plus for me: Black's queen gets in the way there. Taking on e2 is the way to challenge this move order.} (10... Qxe2 $142 11. Nxc4 (11. bxc4 $5 $146 {is also worth considering, relying on the two bishops as compensation. The engine suggests both captures are playable, though it's unsurprising this hasn't been played with the unfortunate knight remaining on a3. It offers the following possible line as approximately level -} e5 12. Bb2 Bxa3 13. Bxa3 e4 14. c5 Nc4 15. Bb4 Ne5 $44 {- if anything even slightly in White's favour, though I'd be wary of giving Black such a grip on the light squares in the centre (particularly d3).}) 11... Rd8 12. Na5 {A knight on a5 can be a real pain against the b7-c6 pawn chain in various Slav structures - this has been known as long ago as the classic game Capablanca-Lilienthal, Moscow 1935. Here White is able to force a crisis on c6 before Black can complete his development, echoing my earlier game against Bayly - and just as in that game I don't think there is anything more than equality for White.} Rd7 13. Nxb7 Rxb7 14. Bxc6+ Rd7 {A possible draw pointed out by the oracle is} 15. Bxd7+ ( 15. Bb2 e6 16. Rac1 Bd6 $44 {has been played in a few games. After} 17. Bxf6 gxf6 18. a4 {White will come out with a rook and pawn for two pieces, but with some compensation in view of his queenside majority and the split black kingside.}) 15... Kxd7 {(not 15... Nbxd7?? 16. Qc8#, nor 15... Nfxd7? 16. a4 a5 17. b4! and Black has problems preventing that same mate)} (15... Nfxd7 $2 16. a4 a5 17. b4 e6 18. bxa5 Nc4 19. Bb2 $16) 16. Qf5+ e6 17. Qa5 Bd6 18. Qxa7+ Bc7 19. Bb2 Ra8 20. Qb7 Rb8 21. Qa7 Ra8 22. Qb7 $11 {So it turns out that 10. b3 was just a bluff after all. Well, there is still 10. e4 or 8. b3 to try...}) 11. axb3 {So what does White have for his pawn? Two bishops and a lead in development for starters, but this isn't a gambit in the style of the romantic era. Instead White is relying on the open files on the queenside - his knight will soon come to c4 and ideally Black will be forced to exchange it, when I recapture with the pawn, open the b-file and create a huge central pawn mass. This was the basic plan I'd formulated when looking at 8. b3 a few days earlier, and whilst Black has defensive resources the game is an excellent demonstration of White's chances.} g6 $6 {Very natural, but those lost tempi are adding up...} (11... Qxe2 $143 $6 {It's too late for this pawn grab now, as the queen is out of it on e2 and Black has problems defending his queenside. } 12. Nc4 Nbd5 (12... Nxc4 $2 13. bxc4 {and Black can't complete his development in time to save his queenside, for instance} e6 {(perhaps 13... Qe6 is a relatively better try)} 14. Qb3 Be7 15. Qxb7 $18 {and everything falls.}) 13. Bb2 Nb4 14. Qc3 e6 {So far so good for Black, but now the threats start.} 15. Nb6 Rb8 16. Qe5 $1 {(White's initiative is more important than preserving the queens)} Qxe5 17. Bxe5 Rd8 18. Rxa7 $14 {Black is temporarily a pawn up, however even with the queens off the board his lack of development continues to cause him problems.}) (11... Qc8 $142 $1 {is how Stockfish defends the position though. Now Black can leave his knight on b6 when it's challenged by Nc4, as the a-pawn won't be pinned, and he also prepares ...e6 to solidify the centre. I think White would still enjoy good compensation here, but in the game my advantageous could have reached serious proportions.}) 12. Bb2 $6 {This may not be necessary yet. It is better to start with 12. Nc4, at a moment when Black can't easily avoid the strategically unfavourable trade.} ( 12. Nc4 $142 {If the knight retreats, or the queen scuttles back to c8, then Na5 comes with the usual threats against b7 and c6. So the engine acquiesces to } Nxc4 13. bxc4 Bg7 14. d4 O-O 15. e4 $14 {, when White is a tempo up on the game. It's not yet clear if the bishop belongs on b2, since the most dangerous plans involve e4-e5.}) 12... Bg7 13. e4 O-O 14. d4 {Even if White doesn't achieve the knight exchange on c4, building an unblemished and unopposed pawn centre gives automatic compensation. At root, this is just what the King's Gambit and the Evans Gambit are trying to achieve, albeit by rather more direct means!} Rfd8 15. Nc4 Nxc4 $6 {By now the reader should know that this is just what White is hoping for, allowing me to strengthen my pawn centre and pressure Black's b-pawn along the newly opened file.} (15... Ne8 $142 {Now that the a8 rook is defended, Black should leave the knight in its place. Still, I think White has enough play after} 16. Ne5 Nd7 17. Nd3 Nb6 18. Nc5 Qc8 19. Rfd1 $44 {; in addition to the factors already discussed, White can try building towards b3-b4-b5 to soften up the queenside pawns.}) 16. bxc4 Ne8 17. d5 $6 {The wrong push, since the pawns can get blockaded from from d6.} (17. e5 $142 {keeps Black tied up, as he fails to free himself with} f6 $6 (17... Nc7 { A waiting policy is wiser, but White too can take his time:} 18. h4 $14 { and Black is being squeezed all over the board}) 18. d5 {, and he can't capture on d5 because of the pin against g8, so the queenside is splintered.} Qd7 19. dxc6 bxc6 20. Ra6 Rab8 21. Ba3 Rb6 22. Qa4 Rxa6 23. Qxa6 $16 {In addition to Black's loose pawns, White's activity is overbearing, and the bishop pair becomes a bigger asset as the game opens up. Black is in trouble.}) 17... cxd5 18. cxd5 Qd7 $6 19. Bxg7 $6 {Exchanges help the side with less space! Instead 19. e5 would have taken advantage of Black failing to blockade from d6 whilst he had the chance.} Kxg7 $6 {And here it was better to take with the knight, so that if I do play e4-e5 then the knight can resurface on f5.} 20. Qb2+ Kg8 21. Rfb1 {Exchanging a pair of pieces and creating gaps in my pawn centre means the last few moves haven't gone well for me. Even so, I was justifiably happy with my position. Black remains cramped and has to passively defend his queenside pawns, and whilst my bishop may not look great now it has greater potential than the knight once my central pawns clear off the diagonal.} Rdb8 22. Qd4 a6 $6 {If I had to suggest why Black lost this game, I think it was because he too readily submitted to my narrative and played the role of the supplicant defender. 22... a5 was a more active defence, not just because passed pawns must be pushed but because it allows one of his rooks to enter the game via a6.} 23. e5 Nc7 $6 (23... b5 $143 $2 24. d6 $18 { wins the exchange (} Ra7 25. Bc6 {) - this is why he should have pushed the a-pawn two squares on move 22. Even now Stockfish prefers to play 23... a5.}) 24. h4 {Gaining a little space, and inducing} h5 {, which weakens g6. Now} 25. Qd3 {sidesteps an attack by the knight from b5, and menaces Be4 and/or e5-e6 to rock the tower around Black's king. Hartley responds to these threats in radical fashion.} Qf5 $5 {An admission of poverty, as Alekhine would have put it: Black is willing to have his kingside structure crumpled and allow me a passed pawn in the centre, all to get the queens off.} (25... Kg7 $144 { Personally I am much too proud at the chessboard to admit to anything, and was expecting him to defend g6 with the king. Even here though Black remains badly tied up after something like} 26. Re1 Rf8 27. Rad1 Rae8 28. Qd4 Kh7 $16 { - even in the absence of clear threats, it is obvious how badly Black is tied down by the central pawns.}) 26. Qxf5 {I could also have considered preserving the queens with 26. Qe3, followed by Rb4-f4, but I judged the simple approach to be good enough.} gxf5 27. d6 exd6 28. exd6 Nb5 $2 {Entirely understandably, Black chooses to block the b-file and save his b-pawn, but the priority should be to restrict the d-pawn. The point is that the b8 rook currently has two jobs, covering d8 and b7, and risks being overloaded.} (28... Ne6 $142 { accepts the inevitable and gives the pawn back immediately, whilst freeing the b8 rook from defensive duties. After} 29. Bxb7 Ra7 30. Bc6 Rc8 31. Rb6 Rd8 32. Ba4 f4 $16 {Black is able to dissolve one of his weak pawns; life is still unpleasant for him with all of his remaining pawns being isolated, but it is helpful for Black for the queenside to disappear because the knight can struggle with the bishop more evenly on a smaller battlefield.}) 29. Rd1 $6 ( 29. d7 $142 {A variation giving form to the note to Black's previous move is} Kf8 30. Rb2 Ke7 31. Re2+ Kxd7 (31... Kd8 32. Bxb7 $1 {and even with the king on the promotion square the b8 rook can still be overloaded!}) 32. Rd1+ Kc7 33. Re7+ Kb6 34. Rxf7 $18 {, and Black's pawns get knocked over like bowling pins once the white rooks join in.}) 29... Nc3 30. Rd3 Ne4 31. f3 $2 {Playing cheaply for 31... Nxg3? 32. Kf2, but this only forces the knight back where it belongs - the vicinity of d8. Activating my a1 rook would have won quite easily.} (31. Ra5 $142 $18 {The f5 pawn is lost, and then the knight is unstable. A counterattack against the d-pawn fails to} Rd8 (31... b5 32. Rd5 { and now the knight is caught on the long diagonal instead}) 32. Rxf5 Nxd6 33. Rfd5) 31... Nf6 32. Bh3 Rd8 33. Bxf5 $14 {My impatience has got the better of me - I have got my pawn back, but released the pressure on Black and allowed him to activate his pieces. The queenside pawns are a potential source of counterplay for him.} b5 34. d7 Kf8 $2 {Envisaging the game continuation, trading the a- and d-pawns, but this should have lost a piece! 34... a5 was essential.} 35. Rd6 Ke7 36. Raxa6 $2 (36. Rb6 $142 $1 {leaves Black in zugzwang! The problem is the loose knight, and that whilst both pairs of rooks are on the board the d-pawn is poisoned.} Nxd7 (36... Rdb8 37. Re1+ Kf8 38. Rxf6 {is White's main threat}) (36... Ng8 37. Kg2 $22 {leaves the knight unable to return to play}) (36... Nd5 37. Re1+ Kf8 38. Rh6 {harvests an important pawn.}) 37. Rb7 {Black is unable to escape the pin:} Rab8 38. Ra7 Ra8 39. Re1+ Kf6 40. Rxa8 Rxa8 41. Bxd7 $18) 36... Rxa6 37. Rxa6 Nxd7 {I still have the better chances here, but with my pawns all on the same side, the win has become more problematic. However, Black was running very short of time, so for now I decided to quietly improve my pieces.} 38. Kf2 Nf6 39. Ra7+ Kf8 40. Rb7 Rd5 41. g4 hxg4 42. fxg4 Rc5 43. Kf3 {My rook has reached the seventh rank and slipped behind Black's b-pawn, my king is inching up the board and now I have a passed pawn. The position is still within the drawing margin but White is making progress, and it isn't comfortable to watch as Black with the clock running.} Nd5 $6 (43... Rc3+ $142 44. Kf4 Rc4+ 45. Kg5 Ne4+ {and White is not able to advance any further - if} 46. Bxe4 Rxe4 47. Rxb5 Kg7 $11 {Black's king controls the promotion squares and the extra pawn is a rook's pawn, so he will be able to hold.}) 44. h5 b4 $4 {I could tell that my opponent was hypnotised by the h-pawn, and with only seconds left he lashes out with this pawn push, which merely condemns him to losing the pawn whilst allowing me to box out his king.} (44... Rc3+ $142 $8 45. Ke4 Nf6+ 46. Ke5 Rc6 $14 {and again White is stopped in his tracks.}) 45. h6 Nf6 46. Rxb4 {Black lost on time here, but by now his position was hopeless - 47. Rb8+ comes next, after which his king is forced back into the centre and the h-pawn will have its say. Though it wasn't perfect, I was satisfied with this game, in which I made effective use of some recycled preparation and kept making my opponent solve problems. Ultimately the pressure was too much in view of the time limit. The second leg was tied 2-2, so Wallington won 5-3 overall.} 1-0

I had not felt as good about winning a match for a long time. It's not often that my contribution is pivotal in a good way, as Epsom tend to go big when winning and KJCA would have a lot more points if my 4NCL victories this season could be moved to the right matches! Petts Wood crushed us in the return match, played last week at the time of writing (I scored ½/2 in a rematch with Ball) so even winning the last of our four matches may not be enough, but we shall see.

I've already discussed at length in recent posts how people are more likely to err when they are forced to solve problems throughout the game, and that more correct but restrained play may not get the job done. That mantra applies all the more at this speed, and this is the unifying thread that ties together these two seemingly very different games. I would only add that, whilst objectively I was generally doing better against Ball than against Hartley, I felt a lot more comfortable playing the second game - there was no counterplay to worry about. Well, no surprises there I suppose; you don't have to write a blog for a decade to realise that if you can create threats all game without your opponent being able to muster anything in return your results will probably be quite good!

February was a busy month, and from here it was straight on to a county match the same weekend. The last few posts might have tricked the reader into believing I am a decent player, so it's high time to inject a little balance and look at one that got away.