[Event "Calderdale League 1"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.15"]
[Round "9.1"]
[White "Allan, J."]
[Black "Suttie, N."]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "C71"]
[PlyCount "70"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]
[SourceDate "2016.03.01"]
[WhiteTeam "Hebden Bridge 'A'"]
[BlackTeam "Todmorden 'B'"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 d6 5. c4 Bg4 6. h3 Bh5 7. Nc3 Nf6 8. d3
Be7 9. Bg5 O-O 10. Bxc6 bxc6 11. Qe2 Rb8 12. b3 d5 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. O-O Bb4
15. Rac1 d4 16. Nb1 Qe7 17. g4 Bg6 18. Nh4 Kh8 19. Qf3 Rg8 20. a3 Bd6 21. c5
Bxc5 22. b4 Bd6 23. Rxc6 Rb6 24. Rfc1 Kg7 25. Nd2 Qd7 26. Rxb6 cxb6 27. Nc4 Rc8
28. Kg2 Qc6 29. Rc2 b5 30. Ne3 Qd7 31. Rxc8 Qxc8 32. Nd5 Qd8 33. Nf5+ Bxf5 34.
Qxf5 Be7 35. h4 Qd6 1/2-1/2

[Event "Calderdale League 1"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.12.02"]
[Round "9.2"]
[White "Shapland, D."]
[Black "Connor, M."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "B03"]
[Annotator "David Shapland"]
[PlyCount "74"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "Hebden Bridge 'A'"]
[BlackTeam "Todmorden 'B'"]

1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. d4 d6 4. c4 Nb6 5. exd6 cxd6 {Mick and I duelled in
this line last season. I felt like I was pressurising him the whole game
though in reality of course both of us missed some chances. At the end I'm
sure the endgame was winning for me but the team needed a draw to secure the
match and so I offered one and it was accepted. of course I expected to play
Mick on board 2 again this season and so I looked at the Voronhez variation
again feeling sure that he'd play into it if offered the chance. Here it is.
The alternative is 5... exd6 which I've also faced on multiple occasions.} 6.
Nc3 g6 7. Be3 Bg7 8. Rc1 O-O 9. b3 Nc6 10. d5 Ne5 11. Be2 f5 {This was all
played very quickly and thus far we have followed the moves played in last
season's game.} 12. f4 {Last season I played the less frequently played 12.Nh3
with the same idea to prevent the f4 advance. This game move is the mainline
and probably the most challenging move for Black to face.} Ng4 {If the knight
retreats to f7 or d7 then Black is going to get crushed. He has to try and
liberate his pieces even if it means making structural concessions.} 13. Bxg4
fxg4 14. Nge2 Bf5 (14... e5 {It looks like this is the main choice for Black
in this position.}) 15. O-O {This seems as good a point as any to stop and
assess the outcome of the opening phase. I think the current position
ilustrates perfectly why I like playing the Voronhez Variation. White has more
space, his pieces are well developed and there are some tempting squares
available for his knights on b5, g5 and especially e6. there are also some
structural weaknesses for White to pick at. The Black backward e-pawn and
advanced g-pawn are potentially vulnerable. Black is cramped for space. Whilst
he does at least have the bishop pair they are currently pointing into what is
pretty much empty space and his remaining knight on b6 is a dreadful piece.
Black really has to try and make some room for his pieces but it won't be easy.
} Re8 {I'm not convinced by this move though Mick played it quickly and
confidently. It looks like the idea is to push the e-pawn in a bid to create
some space for his pieces possibly hoping to simplify quickly in the hopes
that his weakling d-pawn will be exchanged off and that the White passed
d-pawn can be blockaded. It seesm like a pretty miserable option if it's the
best Black can do. Still, White has to refute this kind of idea and that isn't
always easy. The engine preferred...} (15... Nd7 16. Nd4 (16. Bd4 {... is the
only move that I can find in my Chessbase Online database when play the game
continued...} Nf6 17. Qd2 a6 18. Ng3 Qd7 {... and I guess that White should be
aiming to swap off the Black bishop on f5 and the queens before occupying e6
with a knight and then advancing on the queen's side.}) 16... Qa5 17. Ncb5 a6
18. Nxf5 gxf5 19. Nd4 {... and it suggests White has a comfortable advantage.
That's the all-seeing eye though. The reality is that, whilst optically
White's position looks really promising, there is still much to do and precise
and careful play will be needed to exploit the advantage.}) 16. Qd2 {This may
have been unnecessary but I felt like I had some time on my hands to improve
the position. Why not clear the back rank, connect the rooks and support the
bishop on e3. The engine wants to play 16.Bd4 at once and swap off the dark
squared bishops which also looks appealing.} Rc8 $6 {At the time I thought
this was an error and the engine agrees with me. It looks like it gives White
a free tempo to get the knight on c3 to the d4 square. Instincitvely I felt
that had to be desirable.} 17. Nb5 a6 {The best my engine can find for Black
is the unpalatable...} (17... a5 18. Qxa5 Nd7 19. Qd2 Nc5 20. Ng3 Qd7 21. Bd4 {
... when Black's position is starting to look untenable. The White knight on
b5 is a massive piece the queen's side pawn majority would appear to be
decisive here.}) 18. Nbd4 e6 {At least this is consistent with Mick's previous
play.} 19. Qb4 {This move might be over-elaborate though it certainly isn't
bad. I hadn't been able to see that there was a good way to simplify the
position and maintain a huge advantage after...} (19. Nxe6 Bxe6 20. dxe6 Rxe6
21. f5 $1 {This was the move I'd missed and it's terribly strong. If 21...
gxf5 then 22.Ng3 is winning for White.} Re8 22. Rce1 d5 {This pawn is so weak
that Black is better off giving it up in the hopes he can activate his pieces.}
23. c5 Nd7 24. Qxd5+ Kh8 25. Nf4 {... and it looks desperate for Black.}) 19...
Na8 {Justifying my move selection. Both players missed that, after...} (19...
Nd7 {... my intended continuation....} 20. Qxd6 $4 {... leads to disaster
immediately!} Bf8 {... and the queen is trapped.}) 20. Ng3 {The engine agrees
with my selection here although of course I also considered grabbing the
material with...} (20. Qxb7 Rc7 21. Qxa6 {... but I felt like I didn't need to
rush and that my position was good enough to maintain the positional pressure
and wait until Black was in a really parlous state before cashing in. Maybe
that was justifed as Black does get some counter-play now after...} exd5 22.
Bf2 Bd3 23. Rfe1 Rf7 {... though White is still much better.}) 20... Qd7 {
Optically, White's position looks totally overwhelming. This is often the way
in this line of the Alekhine but in my own experience, Black's game is
surprisingly resiliant and White has to play precisely to convert. I've still
got a lot to learn in this sense because although (until this game) I've never
lost against the Alekhine at a standard time limit, I've drawn a fair
percentage of games from position's of strength. It's one of those types of
positions I guess where it's easier to defend than it is to attack.} 21. Ngxf5
{This seemed like a simple way to keep the advantage. Naturally the engine
finds an even better way...} (21. dxe6 {This looks counter intuitive but there
is a tactic here...} Bxe6 22. f5 $1 {... and Black can't capture on f5 without
losing a pawn because one of White's knights will occupy f5 and maintain a
defence of the bishop on e3.} Bf7 23. Nc2 {White as a big advantage here with
lots of pressure.}) 21... exf5 22. Ne6 {Of course this was the point of my
play. Establishing an advanced knight outpost is one of the strategic themes
for White in this variation.} Bf6 {I had spent a long time workng out whether
my whole procedure was faulty on account of...} (22... Nc7 {which must be good
if it works because Black opposes the knight at once. I thought this was bad
for Black on account of...} 23. Qxb7 {... and the knight is pinned. White has
won a pawn. Of course the engine reveals that it isn't quite so simple
provided Black finds the accurate...} Qe7 $1 {Black has time for this and now
the the best White can hope for it would appear is a modest endgame advantage
after...} 24. c5 Nxd5 25. Qxe7 Rxe7 (25... Nxe7 $4 {Would be disastrous on
account of...} 26. cxd6) 26. cxd6 Rxc1 27. dxe7 Rxf1+ 28. Kxf1 Nxe7 {... and
the queen's side pawn majority gives White the advantage. Is it enough to win?
Who knows?}) 23. Rce1 $6 {This is the wrong rook. I can't remember why I
didn't put the king's rook on this square instead. Looking back at it now the
f-file really holds no prospects for it. This was a poor decision that
contributed to my demise though it isn't an outright mistake.} b5 $1 {Mick
siezes his opportunity to break out having spotted a devious tactic and I
didn't sense the danger here at all.} 24. cxb5 $4 {Completely missing the
point. Of course I should have played...} (24. Bf2 {This is the only way to
keep any advantage according to Fritz. Now after...} Nc7 25. Nxc7 Rxe1 26. Rxe1
Rxc7 27. Re6 $1 Be7 28. Bd4 {White maintains a strong grip on the game
although the engine assesses the advantage as minimal. There seems little
danger of White losing here though.}) 24... Bc3 {Of course this wouldn't have
worked if I'd played Rfe1 a couple of moves ago. This move turns the tables
completely for, aside from winning the exchange, Black also liberates his game
completely and takes the initiative to boot!} 25. Qa3 {Miserable, but what
else?} Bxe1 26. Rxe1 axb5 27. Qb2 {I figured that I had to try and take
possession and make use of the a1-h8 diagonal now that the enemey dark squared
bishop had gone.} Nc7 28. Nxc7 {Again, White had little choice but to exchange
off his prize knight. The d5 pawn can't be protected and the outpost can't be
maintained.} Rxc7 29. Qf6 Qe7 {Mick doesn't give me time to reorganise my
pieces.} 30. Qd4 Qf7 31. Rd1 Rce7 32. Bd2 Re4 33. Qd3 Qa7+ 34. Kf1 Qd4 {If
White doesn't allow simplification then he takes the chance that he may get
mated. I figured I was losing anyway...} 35. Qxb5 Rxf4+ 36. Bxf4 Qxd1+ 37. Kf2
Qe1# {Very well played by Mick who avenged himself for a heartbreaking defeat
at my hands in the final round of last year's Calderdale Congress when he was
completely winning but blundered in the end game. A disappointing game from my
perspective and a shame that I blotted an otherwise pretty decent game with a
single big mistake. Also my first defeat against Alekhine's Defence. I'm
determined to make it my last as well!} 0-1

[Event "Calderdale League 1"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.15"]
[Round "9.3"]
[White "Leonard, P."]
[Black "Huett, M."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B24"]
[WhiteElo "160"]
[BlackElo "142"]
[Annotator "Leonard,Pete"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "Hebden Bridge 'A'"]
[BlackTeam "Todmorden 'B'"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. g3 b6 {John Emms, in Attacking with 1.e4, says this (by
transposition) "...is unusual, but quite playable. White should continue as
normal..." Which I did! In the game Emms cites (Hort-Toran Albero, Palma de
Mallorca 1969), White plays Nh3, exchanges Black's fianchettoed KB with Bh6,
plays f2-f4, answered by f7-f5, and Ng5, of which he says "Black's slightly
weak king's side gave White the advantage." Analysing the game afterwards,
Matthew Parsons and Roger Baxter agreed that b7 is the wrong square for
Black's QB. In addition, Black usually aims for queen's side counter-play with
b7-b5, which the fianchetto inhibits.} 4. Bg2 Bb7 5. d3 g6 6. Be3 Bg7 7. Qd2
Nd4 $6 {Premature, unless he follows with 8...d5. Black should wait until
White has a knight on e2 or f3, in addition to the bishop on e3 (so White
can't play Nxd4, as cxd4 wins a piece).} 8. Nd1 $6 {Not in Fritz 14's "best 3
moves", probably because of the bishop unusually placed on b7.} d6 $6 (8... d5
{gives Black =/+. I (and Fritz) should probably have continued} 9. c3 Ne6 {
with the unpleasant prospect of 10...d4, saddling White with a weak backward d
pawn after 11.cxd4 Nxd4. Fritz suggests} 10. exd5 Bxd5 11. Nf3 $15 {My "fault"
in playing by rote with 8.Nd1; I should play by the position, not the book.})
9. c3 Nc6 {So he's wasted two tempi:} (9... Ne6 {would at least have kept the
possibility of d6-d5 alive (though taking two moves to achieve d7-d5). Fritz
suggests that White should pre-empt this, by} 10. d4 d5 11. e5 $11) 10. Ne2 {
Messrs Parsons and Baxter advocated an immediate} (10. h4 {Fritz isn't so sure,
giving any of 10...h5, 10...Nf6 and 10...Ne5 a score between -0.24 and -0.21.
Who knows?}) 10... e5 11. O-O $2 {(still, Matthew and Roger wanted 11.h4)} Nge7
12. Bh6 {Matthew said that it was a mistake to exchange this bishop, once
Black had placed his pawns on Black squares. Emms says that "Be3-h6 is less
enticing when Black hasn't weakened his dark squares by moving the e7 pawn."
Matthew's point is that now Black's white-squared bishop becomes relatively
better than White's. Not in this game, it didn't!} O-O 13. Bxg7 Kxg7 14. f4 f5
{Matthew, Roger and Fritz all agree that Black should play 14...f6,
establishing a barrier that may be hard to break down.} 15. Ne3 Rb8 16. Rad1 {
Improving the position of this rook, as it seems to me that the d file may
open. In addition, I tend to attack prematurely. After I played this move, I
noticed that Black's c6 knight has no flight squares; perhaps I should have
played the immediate} (16. d4 {Fritz reckons this is precisely equal:} exd4 (
16... cxd4 17. cxd4 Ba6 18. d5 Bxe2 19. Qxe2 Nd4 {Black's knight has a nice
outpost; are White's pawns over-advanced?}) 17. cxd4 Ba6 18. dxc5 dxc5 19. Qc3+
Nd4 20. Rfe1 Bxe2 21. Rxe2 fxe4 22. Bxe4 {Again, I like Black's centrally
placed knight; I'm glad I didn't play 16.d4.}) 16... Qc7 17. d4 {Fritz prefers}
(17. fxe5 Nxe5 (17... dxe5 $2 18. exf5 {wins a pawn, as} gxf5 19. Nxf5+ Nxf5
20. Qg5+ Kh8 21. Rxf5 {looks good for White.}) 18. d4 Ng4 (18... cxd4 19. Nxd4
{also loses a pawn:} Bc8 20. exf5 Nxf5 21. Nexf5+ gxf5 22. Qg5+ $18) 19. Nxg4
fxg4 20. Nf4 Bc8 21. Rf2 $16) 17... Rbd8 $2 {Presumably thinking to prevent
any captures by my d pawn, but that isn't what I had in mind. Fritz prefers} (
17... exd4 18. cxd4 Ba6 19. dxc5 dxc5 20. exf5 Bxe2 21. Qxe2 Nd4 22. Qc4 b5 23.
Qc3 b4 24. f6+ Rxf6 25. Qc4 $11) 18. d5 Nb8 {Fritz would give up the piece, by
19...fxe4 or 19...Nd4.} 19. fxe5 fxe4 {In fact, least bad is} (19... dxe5 20.
d6 Qd7 21. dxe7 Qxe7 (21... Qxd2 22. exf8=B+ Kxf8 23. Rxd2 Rxd2 24. Rf2 {is
even worse for Black.}) 22. Qc1 $18) 20. Nf4 {Of course, I could just have
played 20.e6, but it's not often that you get to threaten a "family check"!
There was also the chance that he'd have gone for} Bc8 (20... Rxf4 21. gxf4 {
followed by 22.Bxe4, which looks very nice.}) 21. e6 Ba6 $6 {Trying
desperately to get out; he's effectively two pieces down. He made my mind up
for me: I'd been debating whether to clear my knights off the c1-h6 diagonal,
or to use the long diagonal.} 22. c4 b5 23. Bxe4 {I was somewhat spoilt for
choice, but reckoned that his only useful piece was his knight on e7.} b4 {If
he had played} (23... Nf5 {en route to d4, I intended} 24. Bxf5 {Even stronger
is} (24. Nh5+ Kh8 (24... gxh5 25. Nxf5+ Rxf5 26. Rxf5 {is hopeless for Black.})
25. Nxf5 gxf5 26. Qc3+ Kg8 27. Bxf5 Qe7 28. Rf4 Rxf5 29. Rxf5 b4 30. Rf7 {and
Fritz says it's mate in 17.}) 24... gxf5 {(Fritz actually doesn't recapture on
f5, tantamount to giving up)} 25. Nh5+ Kg8 26. Nxf5 {and now it's mate in 9.})
24. b3 {He can't cover b2; if he could, I've still got a1!} Rxf4 {Desperation.}
25. Rxf4 Rf8 $4 26. Qb2+ Kg8 27. Rxf8+ Kxf8 28. Qh8+ {It's mate in 3. My first
win of the league season, and a very satisfying one! Matthew did say, when
dissecting my play, that it was hard to criticise someone who'd won in 28
moves.} 1-0

[Event "Calderdale League 1"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.15"]
[Round "8"]
[White "Wright, A."]
[Black "Bedford, R."]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "A27"]
[PlyCount "43"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]
[SourceDate "2016.03.07"]
[WhiteTeam "Hebden Bridge 'A'"]
[BlackTeam "Todmorden 'B'"]

1. Nf3 Nc6 2. c4 e5 3. Nc3 f5 4. d4 e4 5. Bg5 Nf6 6. Nd2 Be7 7. e3 O-O 8. Be2
a6 9. O-O d6 10. f3 exf3 11. Nxf3 h6 12. Bh4 Ne4 13. Bxe7 Qxe7 14. Nd5 Qf7 15.
Nd2 Nxd2 16. Qxd2 Be6 17. e4 Bxd5 18. Rxf5 Qe7 19. Rxf8+ Rxf8 20. exd5 Nxd4 21.
Bg4 Qe4 22. h3 1/2-1/2

[Event "Calderdale League 1"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.29"]
[Round "10.1"]
[White "Bak, A."]
[Black "Ursal, D."]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "E18"]
[WhiteElo "174"]
[BlackElo "181"]
[PlyCount "72"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "Hebden Bridge 'A'"]
[BlackTeam "Halifax 'A'"]

1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 d5 4. g3 b6 5. Bg2 Bb7 6. O-O Be7 7. Ne5 O-O 8. Nc3
Qc8 9. cxd5 Nxd5 10. e4 Nxc3 11. bxc3 Rd8 12. Qh5 g6 13. Qf3 f6 14. Ng4 f5 15.
Nh6+ Kg7 16. Qe2 Bf6 17. g4 Ba6 18. Qe3 Bxf1 19. e5 Be7 20. Bxa8 Bc4 21. gxf5
exf5 22. Bg2 Qe6 23. Bh3 c5 24. Qg3 Kh8 25. Be3 cxd4 26. cxd4 Nc6 27. Qf4 g5
28. Qxf5 Qxh6 29. Bg2 Nxd4 30. Qg4 Ne2+ 31. Kh1 Nf4 32. Rc1 Nxg2 33. Kxg2 Bd5+
34. Kg1 Qg6 35. Rc7 Bc5 36. Qxg5 Qb1+ 0-1

[Event "Calderdale League 1"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.29"]
[Round "10.2"]
[White "Allan, J."]
[Black "Williams, W."]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B11"]
[WhiteElo "171"]
[BlackElo "181"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "Hebden Bridge 'A'"]
[BlackTeam "Halifax 'A'"]

1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Nf3 Bg4 4. h3 Bxf3 5. Qxf3 Nf6 6. d3 e6 7. g3 Bb4 8. Bd2
d4 9. Nb1 Qb6 10. c3 dxc3 11. Nxc3 Nbd7 12. a3 Be7 13. d4 Qxd4 14. Be3 Qe5 15.
Bg2 Qh5 16. O-O Qxf3 17. Bxf3 Bc5 18. Bg5 Ne5 19. Be2 O-O-O 20. Kg2 h6 21. Bxf6
gxf6 22. Rfd1 Bd4 23. f4 Ng6 24. h4 Rd7 25. Rac1 Kd8 26. b4 Bxc3 27. Rxd7+ Kxd7
28. Rxc3 a6 29. a4 Kc7 30. b5 axb5 31. axb5 Ra8 32. bxc6 bxc6 33. Kf3 Ra2 34.
Ke3 Rb2 35. Bf3 Rb6 36. Ra3 Kd6 37. Ra7 Rb3+ 38. Kf2 Rb2+ 39. Ke3 Rb3+ 40. Kf2
1/2-1/2

[Event "Calderdale League 1"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2016.02.29"]
[Round "10.3"]
[White "Leonard, P."]
[Black "Somerset, W."]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[ECO "B26"]
[WhiteElo "160"]
[BlackElo "181"]
[Annotator "Leonard,Pete"]
[PlyCount "85"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "Hebden Bridge 'A'"]
[BlackTeam "Halifax 'A'"]

1. e4 c5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. g3 g6 4. Bg2 Bg7 5. d3 d6 6. Be3 Rb8 7. Qd2 b5 8. Nge2 {
Played at some speed by us both. Later, I thought that this move may have been
a mistake, but it actually conforms to John Emms' Attacking With 1.e5. It is a
move or two later that I go astray.} b4 9. Nd1 Nd4 10. f4 $6 {Mixing my plans;
if I'm going to do this, I should play it at move 8 and follow with Nf3. Emms
and Bill point out that 10.Nc1 is the move, after which his knight can be
chased away with c3, and his KB exchanged (he must develop his KN at some
point).} Bg4 11. Bxd4 {Fritz 14 prefers} (11. Nxd4 cxd4 {which preserves the
bishop; I didn't like being forced to retreat.} 12. Bf2 Qb6 13. b3 Bxd1 {else
the knight is heading for useful outposts on a4 or c4} 14. Qxd1 Nf6 {is equal.
Too late now for}) (11. Nc1 Nf3+ 12. Bxf3 Bxf3 13. O-O Bxd1 14. Rxd1 Bxb2 $17)
11... cxd4 12. O-O Qc7 13. h3 {Maybe he'll exchange, though I didn't think he
would. Those pawns on b4 and d4 are seriously hindering my knights; Fritz
prefers removing one, by} (13. a3 bxa3 14. Rxa3 $11 {which also has the merit
of removing my rook from the long diagonal and, potentially, putting pressure
on his a pawn.}) 13... Bd7 14. c4 {Fritz concurs; I preferred this to 14.c3 as
it leaves him no option of delaying any exchanges. If I could block the
queen's side, I'd quite like my prospects on the king's side.} bxc3 {
Interesting! Fritz prefers any of 14...e5, 14...h5 or 14...Nf6. I'm sure that
most humans would have chosen Bill's move.} 15. bxc3 Qa5 {The first of many
pins.} 16. Rf2 {Breaking the first pin, at least in the threat to play 17.
Nxd4. Fritz prefers the more obvious} (16. Rc1 Rc8 17. Rc2 Qc5 18. Rf2 dxc3 19.
Ndxc3 e5 {though again I suspect that a lot of humans wouldn't choose to block
the bishops diagonal like this. It does prevent 20.d4.}) 16... dxc3 17. Ndxc3
Nh6 18. Rc1 {Breaking one pin.} O-O 19. d4 Rfc8 20. g4 {Glad to see that Fritz
agrees with me. I did wonder whether he'd be tempted to sac on g4, but why
should he? He has the advantage, but it lies on the queen's side; it wouldn't
make sense to open up files against his king.} Kh8 21. Qd3 {Breaking the other
pin, but only for a moment. Fritz prefers 21.Rc2, also preventing 21...Rb2.
While my c3 knight was pinned, I'd avoided placing anything on c2 or d1, but
now 21...Ba4 can just be exchanged.} Qa3 22. Rd1 {Breaking another pin, but
better was} (22. Rc2 Rb1+ 23. Rf1 Rxf1+ 24. Kxf1 $11) 22... Rb2 23. e5 {I
thought I really should do something with all those pawns on the fourth rank,
but which to move? Fritz doesn't think this is too bad, and it does reduce his
KB's scope.} dxe5 {Fritz prefers} (23... f5 24. exf6 exf6 (24... Bxf6 $2 25. g5
$16) 25. Rd2 Rbb8 $15) 24. dxe5 Be6 25. Bd5 {I did wonder whether I should let
the a pawn go and focus on attacking his king. However, Fritz rates my move
only marginally worse than 25.Be4 or 25.Qg3.} Bxd5 26. Nxd5 {I did consider} (
26. Qxd5 {but didn't like giving up two knights for a rook; surely I had no
chance of compensation after} Rxc3 {Better is} (26... Rc2 27. Qb3 Qxb3 28. axb3
R2xc3 29. Nxc3 Rxc3 30. Rd8+ Ng8 31. Ra2 {though Black's advantage has
vanished again.}) 27. Nxc3 Qxc3 {In fact, Fritz rates this as absolutely equal;
e.g.} 28. Rxb2 Qxb2 29. g5 Ng8 30. Qxf7 Qb6+ 31. Kh1 Qe3 32. Rd8 {and Black
must take perpetual check.}) 26... Qxd3 {I wonder why he didn't simply play 26.
..Rxa2, which is the only move Fritz scores less than zero.} 27. Rxd3 Rd8 {
Amazing! White is now slightly better, due, I suspect to Black's poorly placed
minor pieces. Fritz prefers} (27... Rcc2 28. Rb3 Rxb3 (28... Rxe2 $4 29. Rxb2
$18) 29. axb3 Rd2 30. Nb4 (30. Nxe7 $2 Bf8 {followed by 31... Bc5.}) 30... f6
$11 {Black's bishop will soon prove its worth.}) 28. Nec3 Rxf2 29. Kxf2 e6 {
This doesn't win anything, but maybe his bishop will be stronger with the
rooks off.} 30. Nb4 Rxd3 {However, Fritz thinks he should have avoided the
exchange, with 30...Rc8.} 31. Nxd3 f6 32. Nc5 {I could see how this forced the
exchange of his bishop, for the, I hoped, temporary sacrifice of a pawn. A
pity I didn't look a bit further: e5 is secure for the moment, so} (32. Nb5
fxe5 33. Nxa7 exf4 (33... e4 34. Ne5 g5 35. Nac6 gxf4 36. a4 $18) 34. Nc6 g5
35. Nc5 Nf7 36. Nxe6 Bc3 37. Kf3 $18 {I needn't have been so scared of his
bishop, after all!}) 32... fxe5 33. Nxe6 exf4 34. Nxg7 {Again, if I'd not been
obsessed by his bishop, I could have played} (34. Nb5 a6 35. Nbc7 a5 36. Nxf4
$11) 34... Kxg7 {Fritz's score is negative again; White's advantage didn't
last long!} 35. g5 Nf7 36. h4 Ne5 {His turn to lose his way; Fritz prefers 36..
.h6 and I think he'll keep his extra pawn.} 37. Ne2 f3 38. Nd4 h6 39. Nxf3 Nxf3
40. Kxf3 hxg5 41. hxg5 Kf7 42. Kf4 Ke6 43. Ke4 {I offered a draw, which he
accepted. I subsequently wondered whether, with the benefit of the opposition,
I could have out-manoeuvred him. Fortunately, 43...a5 44.a4 Kd6 45.Kd4 Ke6 (45.
Kc6? is indeed losing, so I should probably have played on) 45. Kc5 Kf5 and we
queen, one after the other. A fair result; I was, by and large, pleased with
my defence, after messing up the opening.} 1/2-1/2

[Event "Calderdale League 1"]
[Site "Owen's Defence"]
[Date "2016.02.29"]
[Round "10.4"]
[White "Sykes, N."]
[Black "Velosa, C."]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B00"]
[Annotator "Nick Sykes"]
[PlyCount "89"]
[EventDate "2016.??.??"]
[WhiteTeam "Hebden Bridge 'A'"]
[BlackTeam "Halifax 'A'"]

1. e4 {After this move Carlos muttered something along the lines of 'what
shall I play'.........Well I have only ever known him play 1...b6 (I'm sure he
may have other lines in his repertiore). I have 8 games with him playing 1...
b6 as Black v 1.e4 on my database. So 1...b6 was no surprise.} b6 $6 {When I
played Carlos 2 yrs ago he played the same opening and there was some debate
on the HB blog about the merits of this opening. I firmly believe it is not
very good at all. If you must play this sort of offbeat line you must know it
VERY well! Also I beleive, at times players play these offbeat lines with the
express hope that there opponents will be unfamiliar in how to respond and not
play the best moves. My point is if White plays the best moves in this type of
offbeat opening I think Black has a difficult game} 2. d4 Bb7 3. Bd3 e6 4. Nc3
{I must be honest. On the train home I knew there was a possibility I would
play Carlos and spent some time looking at how to play against this opening
with White} (4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Qe2 c5 6. c3 Qc7 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5 Ne5 9. Nxe5 Qxe5
10. f4 Qc7 {was seen in Nick Sykes - Carlos Velosa, HB A v Halifax A, 24.03.
2014 and White has a large advantage and missed winning chances before
blundering a losing}) 4... Bb4 {I was expecting...} (4... Nf6 {then I would
still play} 5. Nge2 {then there is} c5 (5... d5 6. e5 Nfd7 7. Nf4 Be7 (7... c5
$2 8. Nxe6 fxe6 9. Qh5+) 8. Qg4 {and White has a lovely position where Black
is going to have to grovel to stay afloat}) 6. d5 exd5 7. exd5 Nxd5 8. Nxd5
Bxd5 9. Nf4 {when White has a large initiative for the pawn}) 5. Nge2 d5 6. O-O
(6. exd5 Qxd5 7. Nf4 {is also strong}) 6... c5 $2 {This really took me by
surprise. This is simply bad. After this move Black has a difficult position.
Darwin Ursal suggested...} (6... dxe4 {which is probabaly Black's best but
White still has a nice position}) 7. dxc5 Bxc5 (7... bxc5 8. exd5 exd5 9. Bb5+
Kf8 $16) 8. exd5 e5 $6 {After...} (8... exd5 {... both...} 9. Ng3 {and} (9.
Bb5+ Kf8 {are still much better for White})) 9. Ng3 {Not a tough move to spot,
opening up the e-file and the diagonal for the queen and also the knight is
eyeing the e4 and f5 squares. HIARCS already assesses this position as over +2.
00 for White!} Nf6 10. Bg5 {Simply putting my pieces on the best squares} O-O (
10... Nbd7 {is a bit better but White is still much, much better after} 11. Bb5
Kf8 12. Bxd7 Qxd7 13. Bxf6 gxf6 14. Qf3 $18) 11. Nge4 Nbd7 12. Qf3 {Maybe even
better is...} (12. Nxf6+ Nxf6 13. Ne4 Re8 14. Bxf6 gxf6 15. Qh5) 12... Be7 13.
Qh3 (13. d6 {is the best move and was spotted by Matthew Parsons and Andy Bak.
However the move played is not bad either}) 13... Nxe4 {This loses at least a
piece} (13... h6 {was suggested by Andy Bak as Black's best and would indeed
mean White's path to an advantage is not as easy to find} 14. d6 hxg5 15. Nxg5
g6 16. Qh6 e4 (16... Bxd6 $2 17. Bc4 $1) 17. Ncxe4 Bxe4 18. dxe7 Qxe7 19. Rae1
$1 {is completely winning}) 14. Bxe7 {A bit more accurate is...} (14. Bxe4 h6
15. Bxe7 Qxe7 16. d6 Qxd6 17. Rfd1 Qb8 18. Bxb7 Qxb7 19. Rxd7) 14... Qxe7 15.
Bxe4 Nf6 16. d6 Qxd6 17. Bxb7 {Black could have easily resigned here but
Carlos battled on for quite a bit longer. But as long as I kept my
concentration the result was never in doubt} Rab8 18. Ne4 Qe7 19. Nxf6+ Qxf6
20. Be4 g6 21. Qf3 Qe7 22. Rad1 Kg7 23. Bd5 Rfd8 24. Bb3 f6 25. Rxd8 Rxd8 26.
Rd1 Qb4 27. c3 Rxd1+ 28. Qxd1 Qf4 29. g3 Qf5 30. Ba4 Qe4 31. Bb3 Qf5 32. Bc2
Qg5 33. Kg2 (33. h4 $1 {wins at once} Qh5 34. Qd7+ Kh6 35. Bd1 {and White will
have to give away his queen to prevent mate after} Qf5 36. Qe8 Kg7 37. Qe7+ Kg8
38. Bb3+ Kh8 39. Qf8#) 33... f5 34. Qd7+ Kh6 35. Qd3 (35. Qd6) 35... Qe7 36.
Qe3+ Kg7 37. h4 Qb7+ 38. Kh2 Qe7 39. Kg2 Qb7+ 40. Kg1 Qe7 41. Qg5 {The fact
HIARCS says Black's best move is ...Qxg5 tells you all you need to know} Qd6
42. h5 {I seriously looked at...} (42. Bxf5 {but after} Qd2 {I missed that
it's mate after} 43. Qe7+ Kh6 44. g4 gxf5 45. Qf6#) 42... Qd7 43. h6+ Kf7 44.
Bb3+ Ke8 45. Qf6 {Here Black can't realistically prevent the exchange of
queens so Carlos resigned} 1-0

