Albany A versus the Geezers

Wednesday evening saw a meeting of two of the stronger teams in the Capital District Chess League; Albany A and the Schenectady Geezers.  Albany A won the match 3 - 1, but it was by no means an easy victory.  The first game to finish was Board 2 where Jon Leisner and Gordon Magat made a quick draw.  Mr. Magat proposed the peaceful splitting of the point and Mr. Leisner felt he had to accept because his position was not promising.

Leisner, Jon - Magat, Gordon [A03]
CDCL Match Alb A v Geezers Guilderland, NY, 25.04.2012

1.f4 d5 2.Nf3 g6 3.e3 Bg7 4.Be2 c5 5.d3!?

This move is not the main idea here for White.  Jon Leisner, however, likes to prepare a push of his e-pawn in this his favorite line with White, the Bird’s Opening.  Usually here White castles before committing to the d2-d3 and eventually the e3-e4 idea.  We have to go way back to a strong international tourney in the 1950s to find top flight players investigating this line:

(38389) Rossetto, Hector - Pilnik, Herman [A03]
Buenos Aires (2), 1955
1.f4 d5 2.Nf3 g6 3.e3 Bg7 4.Be2 c5 5.0–0 Nc6 6.d4 Nf6 7.c3 Bg4 8.Nbd2 0–0 9.Qe1 e6 10.Kh1 Ne7 11.Ne5 Bxe2 12.Qxe2 Ne8 13.b3 Rc8 14.Bb2 Nd6 15.dxc5 Rxc5 16.c4 dxc4 17.Ndxc4 Ne4 18.Rad1 Rd5 19.Kg1 b5 20.Rxd5 Nxd5 21.Nc6 Ndc3 22.Qc2 Qc7 23.Bxc3 Nxc3 24.N4e5 Nd5 25.Rc1 Nxe3 26.Qc5 Nd5 27.Nxa7 Qxc5+ 28.Rxc5 b4 29.g3 g5 30.Rc4 Ra8 31.Nac6 gxf4 32.gxf4 Bf8 33.Nd3 Rxa2 34.Ndxb4 Nxb4 35.Nxb4 Rb2 36.f5 Rxb3 37.Rg4+ Kh8 38.fxe6 f5 39.Rf4 Bxb4 40.Rxf5 Re3 41.Kg2 Rxe6 42.h4 Re4 43.h5 0–1

5..., Nc6 6.0–0 e5?!

Risky.

7.c3?!,..

The mighty Rybka suggests White gets some advantage here with 7 fxe5 Nxe5 8 Nxe5 Bxe5 9 d4.  That does not seem all that clear to me.  If Black does not capture with the c-pawn on d4 and plays 9..., Bg7 10 dxc5 Ne7; the game arrives at a messy position where White has an extra pawn, but holding it may not be so easy.  

7..., exf4 8.exf4 Nge7 9.Na3 0–0 10.Bd2 Nf5 ½–½

According to Deep Rybka Black has some small edge.  I think Gordon offered the draw here as a ploy to test Jon’s resolve.  Their previous two meetings had ended in Mr. Leisner’s favor.  Now he has a marginally worse position; would Leisner go all out for the third victory in a row?  Practical considerations and the needs of the team won out over Jon’s aggressive instincts.  To Gordon’s surprise Mr. Leisner accepted the draw.

I was worried.  In our first match, Albany A had drawn with the Capital Region team.  They are not thought of as contenders while Albany A is always in the battle for the League title.  The Geezers began this year with two match wins.  If this contest was drawn, the Geezers would have excellent chances to finish ahead of us in the standings.  Across the remaining boards the match-ups were close based on ratings and recent performances.  More draws were likely.  It appeared the decision could come down to a single critical game.  At this early point in the match the other games had not really developed enough to judge which of the remaining games would be it.

The next game to finish was on the fourth board; Michael Mockler - Glen Perry.  After some doubtful improvisation by both sides in the opening and early middle game, a massive trade off of material led to a Rook and pawn ending.  It was not a completely balanced position, but what was there was insufficient for either side to try for the win, and a second draw was recorded.

On the top board John Phillips self-destructed when he misjudged the transition from opening to middle game.  He had an exceptionally good run this year cumulating in his win of the Schenectady title.  After that much good chess and good luck, who could begrudge him a lapse and a bit of bad luck?    

Howard, Dean - Phillips, John [B07]
CDCL Match Albany A versus The Geezers, Guilderland, NY, 25.04.2012

1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 c6 4.Nf3 Bg4 5.Be2 e6

Mr. Phillips likes to play this different plan for the Pirc where Black does not necessarily put his Bishop on g7.  Locally we have come to expect that fianchetto development, but it is not the only way to go.  The position now becomes something out of the Old Indian Defense.  The idea behind the Old Indian is to hold off on deciding to fianchetto the Bishop looking for subtle transposition possibilities.

Here is a game from the old days when Russian chess was the best in the world.  Simagin became a favorite of mine when I read an appreciation of his play by Mark Dvoretsky in an essay about attacking with opposite colored Bishops.  In his career Simagin won several games in that situation.  He clearly had an exceptional feel for that particular imbalance.  This game does not feature the opposite color Bishop imbalance.  It does show Simagin’s ability to defend a difficult position.  Averbakh, then one of the perennial contestants in the world title events, launches what should have been a winning sacrificial attack.  Simagin finds the resources to fight on even at a disadvantage.  He eventually turns the tables and takes the full point.  For our discussion here, the opening play in this game illustrates some ideas central to this line for Black.    

(34367) Averbakh, Yuri L - Simagin, Vladimir [B07]
Moscow Championship (13), 1952

1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 c6 4.Nf3 Bg4 5.Be2 e6 6.Bg5 Be7 7.Nd2 Bxe2 8.Qxe2 Nxe4 9.Bxe7 Nxc3 10.Qg4 Kxe7 11.bxc3 Kf8 12.Rb1 Qc7 13.Qg3 Na6 14.0–0 Rd8 15.f4 d5 16.Qh3 g6 17.g4 Kg7 18.f5 exf5 19.gxf5 f6 20.Nf3 b6 21.Ng5 Rde8 22.Ne6+ Rxe6 23.fxe6 Re8 24.Rxf6 Kxf6 25.Rf1+ Ke7 26.Rf7+ Kd8 27.Qxh7 Rxe6 28.Rxc7 Nxc7 29.Qf7 Kc8 30.Kf2 Kb7 31.Kf3 a5 32.Kg4 a4 33.a3 Re2 34.Kg3 Rxc2 35.Qxg6 Rxc3+ 36.Kf2 Rxa3 37.h4 Ra1 38.Qc2 a3 39.Kg3 Nb5 40.Qd2 a2 41.Kh2 Rh1+ 42.Kxh1 a1Q+ 43.Kg2 Qxd4 0–1

Returning to our game:

6.0–0 d5

Black has taken on a difficult task.  He grants White center dominance and must find ways to fight against it.  The text may well be the best way to do this.

7.exd5,..

Not the only way to play this position.  Possibly better is 7 h3, if then 7..., dxe4?! 8 hxg4 exf3 9 Bxf3, secures the Bishop pair for a slight dislocation of the White pawn formation.  An alternative is; 7..., Bxf3 8 Bxf3 Be7 9 Bf4, leaving White comfortably placed.  The text allows the position to slide towards equality.

7..., cxd5 8.Re1 Nc6 9.h3 Bh5 10.Bg5 Be7

The game has evolved to resemble Queen’s Pawn Game where White does not have the natural move c2-c4 available.  Without c2-c4 it is hard for White find an active way to treat the position.  That may be what provokes the next move.

11.g4!?,..

Risky.  More controlled is; 11 Ne5 Bxe2 12 Nxe2 0-0; and so forth, leading to equality.  If you are trying to win a chess game, there are times when risks must be taken to unbalance the game.  That seems to be the motivation here.

11..., Bg6 12.Bb5 Rc8 13.Ne5 a6?!

Black decides to take his owns risks.  Just castling is a reasonable continuation.  If 13..., 0-0 14 Bxc6 bxc6; is entirely satisfactory for Black.  It turns out that the a-pawn is more exposed on a6 than it would have been if it had stayed at home.

14.Bxc6+ bxc6 15.Qe2 Qb6 16.Na4 Qb5 17.b3 Ne4?!

Once again castling is a normal move.  Black must have concluded the game was nearly ripe for some large scale simplification, and then having his King centralized is no bad thing.  It is logical reasoning, but the position on the board is fairly complex in that there are ideas that are connected.  A prominent one is; if the Black King will be at e7, then trading Queens is probably a good thing for Black.  It is not particularly appealing to have an un-castled King with the Queens on.

Trading Queens on this move is probably best.  After; 17..., Qxe2 18 Rxe2 Nd7 19 Bxe7 Nxe5 20 Rxe5 Kxe7 c3, and the Rooks plus minor piece ending will be nerve-wracking to play, but White’s Knight does have a secure outpost waiting on c5 that permits considerable pressure on e6.  A solid active outpost for the Knight offsets the slight theoretical advantage the Bishop has.    

18.Bxe7 Kxe7?!

This is the final moment for the trade of Queens.  Making that decision now requires a very difficult judgment call.  Black would have to conclude his position was so compromised that this risky line is his best choice; 18..., Qxe2 19 Rxe2 Kxe7 20 f3 Ng4 21 Kg2 f6 22 Nc5 fxe5 23 Rxe5 Nf7 24 Rze6+ Kf8.  White will double on the e-file and eventually on the 7th rank.  Regardless of the extra piece Black has in hand, the situation looks bad for him.  The White pieces are hugely active while Black’s pieces are poorly placed.  Even with unlimited time, calculating all the ins and outs of this line of play is a daunting task.  Under the constraints of a ticking clock, the practical decision is to defer the Queen trade and simply recapture on e7.

19.c4!,..

It is not so easy to trade Queens after this move.  The Queen and Rook battery on the e-file limit choices for Black; he can’t casually evict the Knight from e5 with .., f7-f6; because of the attack on e6 uncovered when the Knight moves.

19..., Qa5

Black recognizes the situation is becoming critical.  If 19..., dxc4; White obtains the better game after; 20 Nxg6+ hxg6 21 Qxe4 cxb3 22 Nc5, when the threatened sacrifice of the Knight on e6 leads to mate or a loss of material.  

20.Rac1?,..

Missing a chance to solidify the advantage, White seems to play by general principle instead of concrete calculation.  For some reason he wants to prevent 20..., Nc3?, a not particularly good move for Black because 21 Qd2, pins and wins the Knight.  Solid is; 20 f3 Nd6 21 c5 Nb5 22 Qe3, and the pawns at a6 and c6 are potential targets if White can figure out a way to attack them.

20..., Qd2?

An instructive error.  Earlier it was mentioned that the White Queen and Rook battery on the e-file make the move .., f7-f6; a doubtful try for Black.  Assuming that judgment holds true forever and always is what GM Jacob Aagaard labeled Forced Thinking.  By forcing our previous assumptions onto a position we often miss opportunities.  Chess positions grow out of the opening moves as more pieces come into play.  They then mature during maneuvers, and at some point, modify and transition with exchanges and further maneuvers.  At each step in the process from opening to middle game to ending, human players use a mix of calculation, intuition and assumptions to gauge what is worth precise calculation and what can be dismissed from consideration.  This probably the only way human beings can play chess for there is not unlimited time available.  Aagaard’s prescription is to routinely check and double check your assumptions as the position matures.  What was rightly put aside for good reason a move or two ago may now be just the shot that wins at this point.

Here Black can play; 20..., f6; and the threats on the e-file are adequately met after 21 Nxg6+ hxg6 22 f3 Ng5; and 23 f4? Nxh6+; wins for Black.  White can proceed more cautiously with 22 Kg2, and then 22..., Qd8 23 f3 Ng5 24 f4 Nxh3 25 Qxe6+ Kf8; brings about a tough position where Black is under some pressure, but he does have counter-chances.  After the game move, White has several paths to a solid advantage.  

21.Nb6,..

Arguably, 21 Qxd2, then 22 Re2, followed by 23 Nb6, is better than the text.

21..., Rcf8

Mr. Phillips works very hard at the chess board.  It is not often he gets into positions such as this one where everything is bad, and it is a matter of choosing the least bad move.  Here, tossing the Exchange over the side might have offered some hope; 21..., Qxd4!? 22 Nxc8+ Rxc8; but then 23 Nxg6+ hxg6 24 Red1 Qe5 25 cxd5 exd5 26 Qxa6, and White’s material advantage along with the very active placement of his pieces should win.  Black can however justifiably play some more moves to make White demonstrate the win.

22.cxd5 Qxe2 23.Rxe2 cxd5

Different but no better is 23..., exd5 24 Rxc6 Rd8 25 f3, and the discovered double check threat nets a piece.

24.Rc7+,..

At this point I think John realized things had gone very badly indeed.  This one of the few times this year I saw him totally discouraged.

24..., Ke8

Giving up the Exchange with 24..., Kf6 25 Ned7+ Kg5 26 Nxf8, would have strung out the game for a few more moves without changing the outcome.

25.Nc6 Rfg8 26.Rc8# 1–0

The finish was a pretty mating sequence.  And so, this year’s Albany Champion defeated this year’s Champion of the Schenectady Club.

My worries were not over by any means.  The game Henner - Le Cours on board three had not reached a point where either side was clearly much worse.  Any result was possible.  Peter Henner had a very slight edge on the clock, five minutes more than his opponent.  Fortunately for the Albany team, Mr. Henner created enough difficulties over the next half-dozen moves to extend his time bulge.  As the game moved towards the 40th move, Mr. Le Cours had fewer and fewer minutes to use.  At the end he was under two minutes on the clock and could not hold his position together against Henner and the clock.

Not long before the witching hour of midnight, Alan resigned and the Albany A team recorded their first match win of the season.  It tightened up the battle for the League title setting the stage for a flurry of activity next week.  Albany A plays RPI next Wednesday and Schenectady A next Thursday, certainly the most critical of our remaining matches.  My next post will be about the Henner - Le Cours game I think.

More soon.