Your Move

In game terms, I had been in a 'repeating-moves position'  a few moves previously, and had decided I didn't want to risk a draw (at move 20), so had exchanged a Rook on the d-file instead.


After some thought, I played 23. Na5, resulting in the below...

After 23. Na5....

I calculated that Qxa5 was terminal for Black ( and for that matter fairly obvious being trivial to work through ).

I also calculated a few moves on the various 23...Bxe5 lines, and noted that Rd6 looked interesting , although I didn't go so many moves down that path.

Overall, I thought it gave Black 'food for thought' and a more imbalanced game afterwards, ie moving away from the draw.


What would be your move as Black ?




Completely unrelated, but I always liked the song linked to below, especially after "discussing it" on a local train between Darlington and Newcastle sometime in the 70s. 

Hey, I was a student, that's what you did !

Probably why it came into my head when trying to come up with a title for the post. !

Missed tactics plus ( and a chess mystery )

A previous post showed a tactic missed in a TL game. 

While working through a number of tactics exercises, I thought the below had a similar theme, but probably more obvious....

White to play

Highlight for Solution [  15. Nf5 ! If Black takes the Knight, his Queen is lost, if not, the game is lost . Equally, 15. Nxc6 and if Qxg4 16. Ne7 mate !  From Alekhine - Muñoz*, Sabadell , 1945 . ]


*However, this just reveals how fascinating a game chess is, or perhaps more accurately, how incredibly intriguing people, their history, and motives are !

This entire game "could"  be  a fabrication by Alekhine, albeit based on his own analysis of the play arising from the earlier moves of a consultation game that occurred in 1941 !

The losing player would appear not to be Muñoz ( based on good deductions ), but cannot be identified at this point.

See the always interesting Edward Winter in Chess History for the full information. 

The Holmesian in me also likes his reference "There is also the dog that failed to bark in the night argument" although that actually comes via Leonard Barden's notes that Winter quotes.

Regardless of the intrigue, it is still a neat puzzle, with more than one solution...

Chess : A State of Mind by William Hartston

I found this via an interesting blog  called mccreadyandchess, that was new to me : mainly chess, but a few other things thrown in as too. 

Here you go, a documentary on chess from 1986, created by Bill Hartston, once the "go-to" commentator and observer for the British media, when they were fascinated by the goings-on in the chess world, but needing an informed guide through it.

I have to say Tal looks very creepy (those eyebrows, that look ! ), and Spassky performs an amazing vocal imitation of a squeaky Karpov, and that it reminded me that lots of men in the 80s wore jumpers under their suits or jackets !

Fischer's is the least " American-sounding" American voice I have heard for a long time, but I recall having that thought before about American voices from the 40s, 50s and 60s. 

Enjoy, I certainly did !

Chess : A State of Mind by William Hartston

Updated Tactics posts

I've used these few posts as a reminder on missed tactics, in that I can view the post and work out or remember the combination.

Now updated, by adding the solution

Missed tactics 4 

A good Combination  

Missed Tactic 3  

Missed Tactic 2 


Missed Tactic 

A blitz swindle

An ongoing discussion : is blitz chess really " chess"  ?

In the end that depends what you believe "chess" is, and why you play blitz chess.

It has its place, and taken for that it is useful/fun/relaxing/etc, in its way..


Here's a recent position : white to play, more than enough time left for both sides...

White to play
.

Subjectively, as White I have lost, as I have two pieces en prise, and few prospects.


If this was a proper "chess"  game, I would either resign immediately, or play a few moves just to see how Black would tie this up.

However, it is blitz, and the chess part of my mind tells me that " If that Black Knight wasn't on d7, then Qf8 is mate , or if my knight was on f5, and the Ng8 was gone, then Qd7 is mate" so luck and psychology could play a large part here.

I reason that Black could think that he has won the knight(h4) and/or the rook(b1) easily, so may well be inclined to be focusing on either of those ( most likely the higher-valued Rook ) rather than white's remote mate threats.

Nf5 is not a move likely to succeed, since the pawn will snap it up and there are still two pieces en prise. So, how to remove the guarding knight ? 

It seems obvious that d5 is the only move to play.

Not much threatened directly, but if Black is one who reacts to an immediate threat, maybe he will capture, and exd is more likely than cxd ( since that allows Qxb5 ), or it may even be dismissed as a distraction to the real meat of the hanging Rook or Knight  ?

If the e-pawn captures then Nf5 is possible.

So, I play d5....

The response is an expected material gain : Bishop takes Rook !  

I play the pawn capture, dxe . Black immediately responds Ne5, and loses to Qf8 mate !

Yes, its a swindle, but I feel very happy to have won, and by such a " devious"  method, plus  I have exercised my tactical brain a little, spotting two possible mates, and being rewarded, courtesy of a greedy attitude, with one of them !

An example of how an amateur mind works ? human psychology ? or just blitz chess ?

Missed tactics 4

From a recent Team League game...

White has a great opportunity presented to him, after Rd1 chases the Queen away...do you see it ?

White to play ...

The mate threat on h7 is very powerful, and though it draws your eye, the tactical target, and sacrificial bait , is elsewhere...

Unfortunately, White missed the clues, and played Nce4, to exchange pieces,and lose the advantage.

Highlight for solution [ The target is e5.  1. Rxe5  Nxe5 and if Nx35, then Qh7#. Instead, if the queen moves, then Nxf6 removes the guard.  A nice combination !   ]