End of Season

A bit of a "slow lane" or "back seat" for chess recently, with things like work and illness clawing at my time.

However, I had steady results ( in fact 50% ) during the season as a backup for a league team, plus some enjoyable games at the club as well.


I've continued with tactics at Chess Tempo and found the below problem interesting, not particularly for the solution which, for me, was quite straightforward given my predilection for the type of mate threat involved, but rather for a nice pattern that appeared in the continuation.

Black to Play after 39...Rxa5

In both the engine-continuation (ChessTempo's solution isn't always the actual game continuation. but rather the 'best' one via an engine ) and the actual game, the same pattern turned up.

Here's the two positions, first from the actual game, 

From the game after 43. Rd5

and now from the engine continuation.

Engine continuation after 44. Rf5

Both have the same idea : Black cannot take the Rook in either case, since it will allow White to draw (in the engine line )  or win ( in the human line, since the white king has threats against both Rook and Knight).

Although the Rook protects the f-pawn in one diagram, its the fact that the d-pawn will control the c8-square that adds spice to the position.

In the actual game, the result was a draw ( although not because Black took the Rook ! ) most likely due to White's determined and active play.

A good motif to remember.

Solution if required