[Event "Friendly Match"]
[Site "cragg vale"]
[Date "2013.09.02"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Jaques, A."]
[Black "Leatherbarrow, A."]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B01"]
[Annotator "Andy Leatherbarrow"]
[PlyCount "64"]
[EventDate "2013.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "Burnley"]
[BlackTeam "Hebden Bridge"]
[TimeControl "300+10"]

{B01: Scandinavian Defence} 1. e4 d5 {and so to a scandinavian defence...} 2.
exd5 Qxd5 3. Nc3 Qa5 4. Bc4 {The Short system, an agressive responce with
interesting play} Nf6 5. d3 c6 {The alternative line involves Bg4 luring the
kingside pawns forwards.} 6. Bd2 Qc7 7. Nf3 {Other approaches 7.Qe2, 7. f4!?}
Nbd7 {best here would be Bg4 but wanted to play a more patient game, but it
was time consuming} 8. Qe2 Nb6 {also b5!? , or g6-Bg7 plans can be considered}
9. Bb3 e6 10. O-O Be7 {Black should quickly conclude development.} 11. Ne5 O-O
12. Rae1 Nbd5 {covering e6 and centralising the N} 13. Kh1 a5 {finally
queenside counter play just like the Alekhine you have to grab what you can}
14. a3 {Prevents intrusion on b4} b5 15. f4 Nxc3 16. Bxc3 Nd5 17. Bd2 Bd6 {I
thought ab out the b4 push but settled on this, as black had 20 mins left,
white 35 mins left at this point} 18. c4 {White threatens to win material:
c4xd5} Ne7 19. Rc1 Bxe5 20. fxe5 bxc4 21. dxc4 {White has the pair of bishops}
Ng6 {trying to gene rate so threats whilst finishing development, idea a4 and
Bb7 if allowed} 22. Bc3 c5 23. Bc2 Bb7 24. Rce1 a4 {black time 1 min, white 14
mins} 25. Qh5 Rfd8 (25... Bc6 26. Kg1 $16) 26. Re3 Qc6 27. Be4 {White
threatens to win material: Be4xc6} (27. Rf2 Qe8 $16) 27... Qd7 (27... Qa6 28.
Bxb7 Qxb7 29. Qg4 $11) 28. Bxb7 {Both clocks down to less than 10 secs getting
the white bishop off the board makes my game much easier} (28. Bb1 $142 $5 $16)
28... Qxb7 $11 29. Rh3 h6 30. Rhf3 Rd7 31. Qg4 Rad8 32. h4 $2 (32. Kg1 $142 $11
{and White can hope to live}) 32... Rd1 $4 {Maybe not the best move but only
2-3 secs and offered the draw which was taken} (32... Rd1 33. Rxf7 $1 {
Demolition of pawn structure} Qxf7 34. Rxd1 Rxd1+ 35. Qxd1 Qf2 36. Qxa4 Qxh4+
37. Kg1 Qe4 $11) (32... Rd4 $142 33. Bxd4 Rxd4 $19) 1/2-1/2

[Event "Friendly Match"]
[Site "Hebden Bridge"]
[Date "2013.09.02"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Sykes, N."]
[Black "Clarkson, A.A."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B09"]
[WhiteElo "1885"]
[BlackElo "1990"]
[Annotator "Clarkson,Andrew"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2013.09.02"]
[WhiteTeam "Hebden Bridge"]
[BlackTeam "Burnley"]

{B09: Pirc Defence: Austrian Attack} 1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6 4. f4 Bg7 5.
Nf3 O-O 6. Bd3 Na6 {I have played this variation with varying degrees of
success over the years. However, Nick was already on his own which surprised
me after the game as he follows a path trodden by others.} 7. O-O c5 8. d5 Nc7
9. Qe1 a6 10. a4 Rb8 11. a5 b5 12. axb6 Rxb6 13. Nd2 Nb5 {I believe this is
better than the move that is played in the following example, and I have used
it a couple of times in internet blitz games.} (13... Bd7 $6 {Black comes
unstuck with some poor moves here.} 14. Nc4 Rb4 $6 (14... Rb8) 15. Bd2 Rb8 16.
Qh4 Bb5 17. b3 Qc8 18. f5 Bxc4 19. Bxc4 Re8 20. Rf3 Nd7 21. Rh3 Nf8 22. Rf1 Nb5
23. Ne2 Nd4 24. Nxd4 Bxd4+ 25. Kh1 Bg7 26. Rhf3 Nd7 27. fxg6 fxg6 28. Rh3 {
Greet,A (2440)-Kakageldyev,A (2449) Beijing 2008 1-0 (70)}) 14. Na4 ({Now
Fritz and his friends might tell you that} 14. Nc4 {is better for White. But
after} Nxc3 15. Nxb6 Qxb6 16. bxc3 c4+ 17. Be3 Qc7 18. Be2 Nxe4 19. Bd4 Bxd4+
20. cxd4 c3 21. Bd3 Nd2 {a club player might not be so sure.}) 14... Rb8 15.
Nc4 ({White could try a little move like} 15. c3 Qc7) 15... e6 $11 16. dxe6
Bxe6 17. Bd2 {Too slow, but see that it was played in the previous example.
Black should have no difficulties now.} ({For an alternative.} 17. f5 $5 Bxc4
18. Bxc4 $11) 17... Bxc4 ({Fritz likes} 17... Nxe4 18. Ba5 (18. Bxe4 Bxc4)
18... Qe8) 18. Bxc4 Re8 ({Yep. Better is} 18... Nd4 19. e5 dxe5 20. Ba5 Qe8 21.
fxe5 Ng4 22. e6 Nxe6) 19. Bd3 $6 ({Nick could have tried} 19. e5 $5 dxe5 20.
fxe5 Qd4+ 21. Qf2 Qxc4 22. exf6 Re2 23. Qf4) 19... Nxe4 {missing a much better
move.} (19... c4 $1 20. Be2 (20. Bxc4 Rxe4 21. Be2 Nd4 22. Rf2 Nxc2) 20... Nd4
{and Black dominates.}) 20. Bxe4 d5 21. Nxc5 dxe4 22. Be3 (22. c3 Nc7 $1) 22...
Bxb2 {Black is not winning just yet.} ({Beyond me was} 22... Nd6 23. Rd1 Rxb2)
23. Rxa6 $6 ({I really expected} 23. Rd1 Qe7 (23... Nd6 24. f5 $15) 24. Rd7 Qf6
25. f5 $11) 23... Nd4 24. Qf2 Nf5 25. Kh1 {Trying to solve the problem on the
g1-a7 diagonal but it is not enough.} ({White can put up stiffer resistance
with} 25. Ra4 {covering d4 again.}) 25... Nxe3 26. Qxe3 Bd4 27. Qa3 Qc8 28. Nb3
Qc4 {Black has found the best path for his Queen and there is no salvation for
White.} 29. Rb1 ({Or} 29. Rd1 Qe2 30. Qc1 Bb2 31. Re1 Qxa6 32. Qxb2 e3) 29...
Qxc2 30. Qa2 Rec8 31. h3 Qxa2 32. Rxa2 Rb4 33. Nd2 ({Nothing can save White} 
33. Re2 Ba7) 33... Rxb1+ 34. Nxb1 Rc1+ {and Nick resigned.} 0-1

[Event "Friendly Match"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2013.09.02"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Tokeley, R."]
[Black "Leonard, P."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D94"]
[WhiteElo "152"]
[BlackElo "152"]
[Annotator "Leonard,Pete"]
[PlyCount "52"]
[EventDate "2013.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "Burnley"]
[BlackTeam "Hebden Bridge"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 {So much for "Rob plays 1.d4 and 2.c4; you'll be able to play
a Grunfeld."} d5 3. c4 c6 4. Nc3 g6 {I'm on my own now. I didn't like the look
of 4...e6, blocking in my queen's bishop and wasting a move if I subsequently
play it to e5. Rob asked, after the game, whether I'd fancied} (4... dxc4 5. a4
{If 5.e3 or 5.e4, I can try to hold the pawn, with 5...b5, but I didn't like
surrendering the centre.} Qa5 6. Bd2 Qf5 7. e3 Be6 {looks ugly to me.}) 5. e3
Bg7 6. Bd3 O-O 7. O-O Nbd7 $6 {Blocking the queen's bishop anyway. I didn't
see the point of 7...Bg4, as 8.h3 more or less forces the exchange. I should
have tried} (7... dxc4 8. Bxc4 Nbd7 {with various possibilities, e.g. c6-c5,
or b7-b5 followed by Qb6 and c6-c5, or even e7-e5, which is possible if he
doesn't play h3 to prevent Ng4.}) 8. b3 Qc7 $6 {To support either a c5 or an
e5 advance, but 8...Re8 was better.} 9. Ba3 Re8 {See?} 10. cxd5 Nxd5 {I'm
happy to exchange knights, and certainly don't want to allow Nb5.} 11. Nxd5
cxd5 12. Qd2 {The immediate} (12. Rc1 Qa5 {allows my queen a good square on a5,
and I think I could have got away with grabbing the pawn after} 13. Bb2 Qxa2
14. Qc2 Qa5) 12... e5 {I thought I'd better play this while I had the chance.
It was over ambitious; Fritz 12 prefers} (12... Nb8 13. Rac1 Nc6 14. Rc5 Qd6 {
or even} (14... e5 15. Nxe5 Bf8 16. Rfc1 Bxc5 17. Rxc5 Qd6 {looks complicated!}
) 15. Rfc1 Bg4) 13. Rac1 Qd8 {So much for 8...Qc7, which has helped White. I
preferred this retreat to 13...Qb6 because a) it indirectly protects the d
pawn and b) I was starting to have thoughts towards the king's side.} 14. Bb5 {
I'd spent 15 minutes more than him, choosing not always the best moves in the
opening. He now had a long think here; I didn't appreciate till now what he
was on about. In fact, the simple} (14. dxe5 Nxe5 15. Nxe5 Bxe5 16. Bb5 {wins
a pawn:} Bd7 (16... Re6 17. Rfd1 {is worse.}) 17. Qxd5 Bxb5 18. Qxb5 Qd2 19.
Qxb7 Qxa2 (19... Rab8 20. Qxa7 Ra8 21. Qc5 Qxa2 22. Bb4 Qxb3) 20. Bc5 a5 21.
Qb5) 14... e4 15. Ne5 {He had an even longer think here; as it was obvious
what he intended, I had time to consider my reply.} Rxe5 {Quite unsound, but
it caused him yet more thought. As I may have been sacrificing the exchange at
e8, why not at e5, with the bonus of freeing that square for my knight and,
maybe later, bishop? I may have been inspired by the wild goings-on in Dave's
game, next to mine, or by the thought that Matthew is forever sacrificing
exchanges, so why shouldn't I? I focussed, during his long think, mainly on} (
15... Nxe5 16. Bxe8 Nf3+ {which doesn't work; I should have spent more time on}
(16... Nd3 17. Rxc8 Rxc8 18. Bb5 {which will cost me a pawn, but my position
doesn't look too bad.}) 17. gxf3 Bh3 18. Bxf7+ Kxf7 19. f4 Qd7 20. Qe2 Bxf1 21.
Kxf1 $16 {I could also have grabbed a pawn by}) (15... Bxe5 16. dxe5 Rxe5 {but
I didn't like the look of that long black diagonal, without my king's bishop.
I thought at the time I could play the "safe"}) (15... a6 {leading to a couple
of exchanges on d7. Just as well I didn't!} 16. Rxc8 Rxc8 17. Bxd7 f6 (17...
Bxe5 18. Bxc8 Bxh2+ 19. Kxh2 Qxc8 20. Rc1 $18) 18. f4 fxe5 19. Bxc8 Qxc8 20.
dxe5 {and the d pawn will fall too:} Qe6 21. Rd1 Rd8 22. Qa5 Rd7 23. Bd6 Bf8
24. Qxd5 $18) 16. dxe5 {He was considering} (16. Bxd7 Rh5 (16... Rg5 $2 17.
Bxc8 Rxc8 18. Be7 {I hadn't appreciated how precarious my position was, much
of it due to that ill-considered 8...Qc7.}) 17. Bxc8 Rxc8 18. Qa5 $18 {Just as
well for me he didn't choose this line; my rook is right out of play and I'll
struggle to hold the position.}) 16... Nxe5 17. f4 $2 {He didn't need to rush
into this...} (17. Bb2 Qg5 18. Kh1 Be6 19. Rc7 {maintained his advantage.})
17... exf3 18. gxf3 Bh3 {I didn't appreciate that} (18... a6 19. Be2 {may
interfere with his defence:} (19. Bd3 Bh3 20. Rf2 d4 21. e4 (21. exd4 $2 Nxd3
22. Qxd3 Bxd4 $19) 21... Bf8 22. Bb2 (22. Bxf8 Nxd3 23. Ba3 Nxc1 24. Bxc1)
22... Bb4 23. Qe2 Bc3 {are all good for Black; I didn't see any of this,
including the nice moves to decoy White's queen's bishop and allow ...Qg5+ and
...Qxc1+.}) 19... Bh3 20. Rf2 Qg5+ 21. Kh1 d4 {is stronger than in the game:}
22. Bc5 (22. f4 Qh4 23. Kg1 Rd8 24. exd4 Ng4 25. Bxg4 Qxg4+ 26. Kh1 Bxd4 27.
Bc5 Bf6 $17) 22... Qh4 23. Bf1 dxe3 24. Qxe3 Bd7 {and there's still a lot to
play for.}) 19. Rf2 Qg5+ 20. Kh1 d4 {Nice idea, but far less effective than
with his bishop on e2, leaving the rook unguarded.} 21. f4 dxe3 {I seem to
have got away with a lot of unsound moves in this game! I should have played} (
21... Qf5 22. fxe5 Qe4+ 23. Rg2 dxe3 24. Qc2 Qxe5 $11) 22. fxg5 {He spent
almost all his remaining time before playing this. I did have time to see that,
after the better move} (22. Qxe3 Qh6 23. Rd2 Bg4 {I wasn't immediately lost,
but his pieces look much better placed than mine, especially the queen.}) 22...
exd2 23. Rxd2 Bf5 {Given his now desperate time shortage (3 minutes or less
for a dozen moves) I wanted to keep things fluid and give him more to think
about. 24...Be4+ and 25...Nf3+, for a start!} 24. Re2 {Better} (24. Be2 h6 25.
h4 Be4+ 26. Kg1) 24... Nf3 25. Be7 $2 {That's the trouble with being short of
time, you see one threat and miss another.} (25. Bc4 Nxg5 26. Bd5 {and his
bishops are beginning to earn their keep.}) 25... Nd4 26. Bf6 Nxb5 {and his
flag fell, but now he was actually losing. A strange game, somewhat out of
character for me. I'd better not look at Dave's game, another time! After all
that, I find that Wikipedia's index of chess openings calls this a Grunfeld 
(with 5.e3), so Nick was right in his prediction!} 0-1

[Event "Friendly Match"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2013.09.02"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Shapland, D."]
[Black "Edwards, C."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B79"]
[Annotator "Shapland,David"]
[PlyCount "73"]
[EventDate "2013.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "Hebden Bridge"]
[BlackTeam "Burnley"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 {Before the game started Clive mentioned that he hadn't
played a game of chess since last year's corresponding friendly! In that match
he'd dranw with Nick Sykes after playing 2...e6 and then going for a Taimanov
type structure with Nick adopting a classical approach playing Be2, Be3,
castling short and playing Nb3. By way of brief preparationI had looked at
this game as well as the games I had on my database played by the rest of the
Burnley squad. On that basis 2...d6 was a litle bit of a surprise but by no
means an unpleasant one.} 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 g6 {As I got up from
the board for a moment before Clive played this move Nick Sykes whispered to
me something like "It would be great if he played 5...g6!" I laughed and said
it had been quite a while since I'd faced my own pet with the White pieces. I
was efficiently knobbled by John Hall in a Leeds League match a cople of years
before. Since then I've enjoyed two spirited encounters with the Black pieces
against Andrew Clarkson but that has been in the Levenfish variation 6.f4. Not
that there is anything wrong with the Levenfish but these was no chance of me
playing that!} 6. Be3 Bg7 7. f3 O-O 8. Qd2 Nc6 9. Bc4 {The first of several
critical decisions in the Yugoslav Attack. White can also play 9.0-0-0!? which
is the original mainline and had a return to popularity for quite a while
recently. It's still critical but at present Black seems to be holding his own
in this variation and after the correct response 9...d5! the game takes a very
different turn to the play after this move.} Bd7 10. h4 {Another important
moment. Again White can play 10.0-0-0 and on this occasion this move is the
current trend. The idea is that if Black continues "normally" with 10...Rc8
then White will delay his king's side advance to consolidate his own monarch's
position with 11.Kb1 which is in effect a high-class waiting move. This line
appears to be effective enough for Black to want to deviate from the "normal"
development plan by deploying what's become known as the "Chinese Dragon"
which is identified by 10...Rb8!? Magnus Carlsen and Vassily Ivanchuk have
played this line with Black a few times and one of England's top players,
Gawain Jones, is also a leading exponent. I don't know the ideas with White
well enough to go in for this variation and so I plumped for the main
alternative in 10.h4 which tends to lead to extremely sharp play} Rc8 11. Bb3
Ne5 12. O-O-O Nc4 {Black can also play 12...h5!? which is called the Soltis
Variation and was famously put to good use by Garry Kasparov in his World
Championship match against Vishy Anand. If White is going to play 10.h4 then
he has to have a line ready to play against this system.} 13. Bxc4 Rxc4 14. g4
{This is not the most common variation and it certainly doesn't come with the
cache of the famous St George Attack where White sacrifices a pawn with 14.h5
Nxh5 15.g4 Nf6 and White plays all out for mate. However, this line is
slightly less well known and has some poison in it. The general point is that,
in the St George White often gives Black an avenue upon which to base his
counter play because a pawn has already been invested in the prosecution of
the attack. In some lines Black gives up a piece for two more pawns or an
exchange for a further pawn and the material equality is often maintained but
with some imbalances that are hard to assess. With 14.g4 White is saying to
his opponent: "I don't need to sacrifice a pawn for a good attack now. I'm
prepared to take an extra move to neutralise some of your ideas because I
don't believe you have enough to hurt me immediately and when my attack does
come it will be stronger"} Qa5 {This move only gets a very brief mention in my
(admittedly limited) book on the Dragon by Mikhail Golubev. Black can (and
usually does) also play} (14... Qc7 15. h5 Rc8 16. hxg6 fxg6 17. Kb1 b5 {with
what looks like a very dangerous attack on then half open c-file but the
reality is that White is doing perfectly well in these positions. It's
important when playing the White side of a Yugoslav Attack to keep cool
because Black will come at you and you have to find the best way to balance
defence with counter attack}) 15. Kb1 {Taking an extra move to consolidate the
position of the king is a sensible idea. It neutralises some specific tactical
ideas. For example, in some lines White threatens to play Nd5 and he doesn't
want Black to exchange queens on d2 with check. It's also useful to prevent
Black from being able to capture the c2 pawn with his rook and giving check in
other variations.} (15. Nb3 Qa6 16. Bh6 (16. e5 Ne8 {or even 16...Nxg4}) 16...
Rxc3 17. Bxg7 $1 {Not so good is} (17. bxc3 Qxa2 18. Bxg7 Kxg7 19. e5 dxe5 20.
g5 Bf5 $1 {threatening to play 21...Qa3+ 22.Kb1 Qxb3}) 17... Rxf3 18. Bxf8 Kxf8
19. g5 Ng4 20. h5 gxh5 21. Rxh5 {and White stands better from Short-Piket,
Wijk aan Zee 1990.}) 15... Rfc8 {Naturally!} 16. h5 {The only way for White to
preserve an edge. So, now, the question for Black is "What have you got?"} Bxg4
$6 {A thematic idea with the best of intentions but I'm not convinced it's
best here.} (16... Rxc3 {Was the move I had expected when success or failiure
are dependent on both player's ability to calculate accurately the following
labyrith of mayhem} 17. bxc3 $2 {and only now} (17. h6 $1 {No chance of me
spotting the deeply cunning reason for this move at the board I don't think.
The point here is that after the natural} Bh8 18. bxc3 Bxg4 19. Nb3 $1 Qb5 20.
e5 $1 {and it now emerges that Black has some back rank issues which may cause
him problems if he's not careful} Nd5 (20... dxe5 21. fxg4 e6 22. c4 {and
White is winning}) 21. fxg4 {with roughly equal play and a wild position})
17... Bxg4 $1 {because White now has to continue with} 18. hxg6 {and not} (18.
fxg4 $2 {when Black gets the position he would have liked to obtain after
sacrificing his rook} Nxe4 19. Qd3 Nxc3+ 20. Kc1 Nxa2+ 21. Kb1 Nc3+ 22. Kc1
Nxd1 {and Black is winning}) 18... Bxf3 19. gxf7+ Kf8 {and Black is better
here. He's going to win back the exchange after which it is clear that White's
king is much less secure than Black's}) 17. fxg4 {I didn't think too long
about this move. On principle it felt like Black was asking a lot and there
was no chance of calculating everything in the position so sometimes you have
to recognise the danger, anticipate the immediate challenges and just accept
the complications} Rxc3 {For what it's worth (and in fairness it's worth a
fair deal in a position as complicated as this one) Fritz assesses this
position as equal} 18. hxg6 $1 {This is actually the only move. If White is
too greedy he will get squished. For example, as we saw above, not} (18. bxc3
$2 Nxe4 {and Black is winning}) 18... fxg6 {Logical and natural. But wrong.
No-one could blame Clive from capturing this way. In so many Dragon lines it
is suicide to capture on g6 with the h-pawn because the resultant open h-file
is only ever an asset for White and with the f-pawn capture Black also affords
his king a breathing hole on f7. In this instance the f-pawn recapture was
wrong simply because it creates a weakness on e6 that White's knight can
exploit immediately. It's worth mentioning two other possibilities that needed
to be calculated with some precision} (18... Nxe4 $2 {looks tempting but after}
19. gxf7+ $1 {White is doing well} Kxf7 (19... Kf8 20. Qe1 Ra3 21. Rxh7 Qxe1
22. Rxe1 Rxe3 23. Rxe3 Nd2+ 24. Kc1 Bxd4 25. Re6) 20. Qe2 {Ice cold!} Qe5 21.
Rh5 Rxe3 22. Qxe3 Nc3+ 23. Qxc3 Rxc3 24. Rxe5 dxe5 25. bxc3 exd4 26. cxd4 {
Both winning for White}) (18... hxg6 {Best, and now there is a long forcing
sequence which leads to a draw} 19. Bh6 Nxe4 20. Qe1 Qe5 21. Bxg7 Kxg7 22. bxc3
Nxc3+ 23. Kb2 Qa5 24. Ra1 Qb4+ 25. Nb3 Na4+ 26. Kc1 Qa3+ 27. Kd1 Nc3+ 28. Kd2
Qb4 29. Kc1 Qa3+ {No, I had not calculated all this at the board! These of
course are engine assessments but it's nice to be re-assured that what one
played wasn't total tripe even if it was impossible to see everything.}) 19.
Ne6 $2 {This seemed to make total sense to me but it turns out Black can win
after this move. The best line for White doesn't even involve taking advantage
of the fresh "hole" on e6. After} (19. Nb3 Nxe4 20. Qh2 Rxb3 21. cxb3 h5 {
White has the exchange for two pawns but, more importantly, the Black king
position looks very shaky indeed and in this position the h5 advance is
necessary but weakening.}) 19... Nxe4 20. Qh2 {This was what I'd had planned a
few moves ago. I just didn't believe that Black could defend himself with h5
in this position and I guess that Clive didn't think he could either. In fact,
as we'l see in a moment, h5 is not only playable. It wins! According to Fritz
White does best to play} (20. Qe1 {though after the excellent response} Qe5 $1
{Black still appears to be well on top of proceedings.} 21. Bd4 Qxe6 22. bxc3
Bxd4 23. cxd4 Qxg4 {and three pawns for the exchange should be more than
enough as White's attack is no existant. Black has the initiative here.}) 20...
Rxe3 $2 {This natural move, grabbing a piece, turns out to be the crtitical
inaccuracy in the game. Here is where this h5 advance comes into play} (20...
h5 $1 {This is the critical move to refute White's play. It's so counter
intuitive to voluntarily break up the last vestiges of protection in front of
the king but Black puts up enough hurdles to slow White's counter attack and
re-ignite his own stalled initiative} 21. Nxg7 Rxc2 $1 {Forcing White to give
up his queen for the two rooks} 22. Qxc2 Rxc2 23. Kxc2 Kxg7 24. gxh5 Qxa2 {and
it's clear that the White king is too exposed and his pawn deficit is too
significant. A tough line for Black to find though as it breaks all the
conventions for this variation}) 21. Qxh7+ {I felt I was winning the game at
this point. It turns out I was but didn't capitalise as I should have.} Kf7 22.
Nxg7 Nf6 {There is nothing better. This move look like a killer because White
can't move the queen and defend the knight. However, the Black knight can be
pinned.} 23. Rhf1 Re2 {Clive sticks to his guns and goes for the White king.
As so often is the case with the Dragon, the game is decided by the odd tempo
here and there. Whose attack is quickest and whose king is the most vulnerable.
Sterner resistance cold have been offered via a more defensive posture with
the stabilising} (23... Qe5 {though after} 24. Nh5+ Ke8 25. Qxg6+ Kd8 26. Nxf6
exf6 27. Rxf6 {White is still winning due to the terribly weak position of the
Black king.}) 24. Nh5+ Ke8 25. Qxg6+ {Why I didn't see the prosaic} (25. Nxf6+
exf6 26. Rxf6 {is beyond me. It's so straighforward it should have been obvious
}) 25... Kd8 26. Nxf6 Rcxc2 $5 {Here's the point! Black throws the dice one
more time, giving up the piece and aiming for a mating attack, or even a draw
by perpetual check.} 27. Qxc2 {I spent ages on this move because I was sure
there had to be a way of finishing Black off. Try as I might i couldn't see it.
Eventually I decided to change the nature of the game completely and see if I
could psyc Clive out. His was short on time and probably not at all prepared
for what now happens.} (27. Qe8+ {Was the way to win} Kc7 28. Nd5+ Qxd5 29.
Rxd5 Rxb2+ {I analysed this far but for some reason thought that Black could
get a draw by perpetual on the second rank. The complications had obviously
fried my brain cells because after the game Pete Leonard demonstrated that
this is not the case as} 30. Kc1 Rxa2 31. Kd1 {is just winning.}) 27... Rxc2
28. Kxc2 {What else is there to say about this game. I threw Clive a
curve-ball and, with only a little time left on his clock he misplayed a
complicated endgame. I'm sure that, if he'd had longer he'd have held a draw.}
exf6 29. Kb1 {I didn't want the queen getting to a2} Qe5 30. Ka1 Qe6 31. Rfe1
Qxg4 32. Rxd6+ Kc7 33. Rxf6 b6 $2 {Instead a6 was better, giving the Black
king a hidey-hole on a7. Now White has a simple winning plan which White can
still avoid but it's not easy} 34. Rc1+ Kd8 $2 {Kb7 was the best chance to
escape. Now it's pretty much all over.} 35. Rf7 $1 {The back rank mate threats
are very hard to meet} Qg5 36. Rh1 Qg8 $2 {A final mistake. All over} 37. Rxa7
{A very tough and interesting encounter in my favorite opening. Uncompromising
play from Clive who might need another year off to get over the nerves from
this game!} 1-0

