[FICSGamesDBGameNo “302801727”]
1. e4 g5
2. Nf3 Bh6
Most openings, especially for novices should focus on “controlling” (i.e. threatening so as to prohibit your enemy from moving onto squares) the board, normally from the centre (since this maximises pieces’ ability to move). Here you’ve started by being focused on columns G and H and only “control” F4 and and H4. Your bishop is ‘locked’ behind the pawn, having only one direction of travel – back to where it came from. It’s not ideal – try to open focussing on getting onto and controlling the four central squares – D4, D5, E4 and E5.
3. Bc4 Nc6
Cell f7 is fatally weak for Black as the board opens because only the King can retaliate if it’s attacked. If it’s attacked as by more than one piece at a time , particularly one with the ability to move diagonally (bishop or especially the queen) then it can make for a very quick game because the King can’t retaliate else he’d be taken – an illegal move since it’s suicide.
4. Nxg5 Bxg5
You were surprised at this move – it basically gave me (a) a distraction from the imminent danger heading towards f7 (b) If threat ignored, would have been able to take either or both of your rook on next move. (c) if taken (as you did) you waste a move you could otherwise use to block my queen who is waiting to try and get to threaten f7 and force mate. (Which is exactly why she now moves to h5…
5. Qh5 e6
From H5, you might have been keen to save your Bishop and in doing so may have moved it back to row 6 or advanced it down to row 4. This would have been an error and if you had done that you’d have faced checkmate with Qxf7++.
Instead you played very well – protecting your bishop, opening up your Queen into play and avoiding check by blocking the white diagonal attack from the bishop who sitting on c4 had been threatening that fatal f7 all along. Really the best move I’ve seen you make ever.
6. O-O Nd4
Not needing to do anything in a hurry I decided to make sure my King was safely tucked behind a row of pawns and make my Rook more readily available by castling. Your move of Nd4 could have caused a problem for me in many ways. If you’d have next moved to c2, you’d have won the exchange for either of my rooks. I chose to ignore the threat briefly but chose to do so very reluctantly indeed.
7. f4 Qf6
In response to a threat to your bishop, which if you’d have used to attack my incoming pawn with, you’d have lost because my Rook on f1 would have taken it. another very strong move you secure your position – defending your bishop by adding another level of attack from the Queen.
8. fxg5 Ne2
Only problem with your last move was that it left your Queen exposed to a double attack – because the pawn was able to take your bishop and would still defended by my Queen, you wouldn’t have wished to sacrifice your Queen. You wouldn’t be able to stay where you were because there’d now be a threat from the Rook on f1 to your Queen – your most valuable piece aside from your King.
9. Bxe2 Qd4
You respond calmly by putting me into check and forcing a move from me. Unfortunately, you’d failed to notice that my bishop was in position to take your undefended Knight. Before you put pieces so close to all of mine, you ought to try and make sure they have a good defence structure future up – backup, if you like so that if there is an exchange at least you’d stand a good chance of winning it. That said, your next move to Attack my King with your Queen was brilliantly simple but effective – forcing me to either lose a Rook in exchange for your Queen or move the poorly defended King.
10. Kh1 b5
Your moving the pawn now shocked me and shows that you hadn’t realised that f7 is still under threat from two pieces and that an attack is now imminent since all obstacles have been removed. I see you wanted to get your Bishop out but You ought to have used your Queen to take my undefended pawn – start winning back some of your lost ground. If you’d have seen the treat there were other things you could have done to avoid mate, such as moving the King to e7 so that he could escape if need down to d6 or advancing a pawn down to d6 or d5 (preferably 5)
11. Qxf7 Kd8
The long anticipated attack comes. Because nothing was done to avoid it, it’s all over in another move. You only have one legal move. Fatal f7 does it again! If it’s ever threatened even once, make sure you don’t let it be threatened twice. If it’s threatened twice and there’s nothing other than the King to repel the attack – you’re in trouble!
12. Qf8 1-0 {Black checkmated}
[FICSGamesDBGameNo “302807469”]
1. e4 c5
This is an much better start. Your first move was the famous Sicilian Defence and is very commonly used at all levels – being used in 1/6 Grandmaster Games! If you learn to use it properly it’s a very successful, strong opening for Black.
2. d4 e6
Instead of reinforcing the pawn you just deployed to c5, you chose to open up the centre of your pawn rank. If you leave pieces undefended they’ll likely soon become a burdensome target you’ll need to reinforce when threatened at a later time – probably not of your choosing!
3. Nf3 Qa5
Extremely ambitious! You put me into check on your third move! Great move if it had been then followed up by some back-up. Before you try to put people into check ask this: Am I forcing my opponent to move somewhere unfavourable? If I’m not, will my opponent’s retort be favourable to me? If not, is there a chance that my opponent’s retort will strengthen his position? If yes, don’t do it!
4. Bd2 Nf6
Here, in my response to your check I’m able to simultaneously put your Queen under threat and have opened up my position by giving my bishop two directions of advancing travel – threatening a large part of the board – controlling a large swathe of the board from a5 to d2 to h6, potentially. You must have lost concentration because rather than realising I could take your Queen and getting her out of there Quickly you left her there to make a minor move in bringing out your King’s Knight…
5. Bxa5 Bd6
Oops – there goes your Queen! Defend her and watch out for her better next time – never make a move without checking she / your King aren’t in either currently threatened or likely to be in the near future.
Your Bishop coming out into the centre to control large parts of the board is a good move – much better than when you last brought a bishop out and left him behind the pawn, on the side of the board with only a retreat feasible.
6. c3 Nxe4
Here I’m strengthening up my diagonal pawn line by creating a ‘stairs’ – this is a strong defensive structure and increases the likelihood of winning any exhcnages. It also ‘controls’ / threatens many of the black squares on the left hand side of the board (a3, b4, c5). You rightly attacked with your Knight my only unprotected pawn and won the exchange there.
7. Bd3 b5
Your Knight is threatening so I need to get it to move I threaten it immediately. What I can’t let happen is you suceed in strengthening a potential attack on f2 by moving your bishop to cover the Knight – this would lose me either my Queen or my Rook and would leave me in Check – catastrophe.
Here again you have a Knight which is threatened but doesn’t get moved / protected and so is soon to be no more. You could instead have moved to b6 rather than b5 and threatened my bishop – I wouldn’t have been able to get out of it as I’ve blocked myself in and you’d have taken it one way or another.
8. Bxe4 Nc6
Adios Knight. In future, may the Great Twinnster watch over you better in future.
Now you threaten my Bishop with your other Knight and successfully protect your Rook from imminent death.
9. Bxc6 O-O
I take your gambit and take the Knight. You ought to take my Bishop and save your Rook but instead you Castle – possibly my fault for suggesting it a move or two ago – may have just been for the novelty but afraid it didn’t help much on this occasion. Normally best to do it asap as part of your opening positional manoeuvring.
10. Bxa8 Re8
Sadly, that’s the end of road for your Rook and you move your other one – a little pointlessly (as far as I can tell) to the back. of your closed rank – it can’t get out anyway. I’d have personally moved your Bishop out to a6 so that you threaten the bishop (and force it to move out of harm’s way) with the Rook. This maximises the Rook’s range.
11. Ng5 Bf4
I’m back on attacking that f7 square – your removal of the castle from f8 allows me to do this potentially. You put in a good threat from your Bishop.
12. dxc5 Ba6
Now in response to losing a mere pawn you move the Bishop out and threaten my bishop but for some reason you do this when you could have instead taken my Knight with your Bishop with Bf4xg6.Not ideal timing.
13. Qxd7 Rf8
Now that I’ve cleared a path and you’ve taken away the defence, I can take out the pawn and start putting my Queen dangerously close to your valuable rear end. As it were…
You respond by saving your Rook – reversing your last move.
Since you had to move it or lose it anyway (and the game) you could have taken my Bishop over in a8 since you cleared the way by moving your Bishop in the last move with your Rook.
14. Bb7 Bxg5
I decide to threaten your Bishop. You could have done a swap for them and that would have made me get my Queen out of the way but you did equally well to finally take that Knight with your Bishop.
15. Bd8 b4
This was an error on my part. If you’d have taken my bishop on d8 with Rf8xd8, I couldn’t have taken it back without losing my Queen because it’s defended by your Bishop. Instead you leave the Bishop where it is, threatened but unmoved.
16. Bxg5 f6
So long Bishop. If you’re threatened, move it or lose it…
I liked your next move as you again went back onto the attack with a heavily defended pawn attacking my bishop which would potentially have caused me pain.
17. Qxe6 Kh8
Rather than move my Bishop I unwisely (perhaps) put you back into check without really having anything to back it up. You move the King to safety avoiding an exchange of Rook for Queen.
18. Bxa6 fxg5
Not being in a hurry, I get around to exchanging bishops with you.
19. Qe7 Rg8
Now I threaten mate with your Rook under attack. You cooly move him back, defended by the King – this is the downfall in my attempt to checkmate you – I am under-resourced for final kill and need more pieces.
20. Na3 bxa3
At this point, I’m playing. You’d tweeted that you were sad to lose your Queen and wanted to check once more so I devise a way to get your Queen to be promoted (as a demonstration), also showing how to castle on the Queen’s side and to let you put me in check a few times. This obviously has the effect of lengthening the game but it was a bit more challenging and fun.
The endgame was a bit tedious as I really didn’t have the forces in place to make it happen quickly. That said, we got there eventually! One of the problems is that the King is actually quite strong and dangerous – it’s very easy to lose pieces if they’re left too close to the King – I nearly lose my Queen for hurrying.
21. O-O-O axb2
22. Kd2 b1=Q
23. Bc4 Qb2
24. Kd3 g6
25. Qf6 Rg7
26. Qf8 Rg8
27. Bxg8 Qb8
28. Qxb8 a6
29. Qf8 h5
30. Kc4 g4
31. Qf7 g3
32. Qh7 1-0 {Black checkmated}
PT, goes to eat Duck with SE!
– SW