A Game and Some News From the League

Lo, how the mighty have fallen!  Last night, Wednesday, May 2nd , Albany A had a bad result against the RPI team.  We, Albany A, lost 1 ½ - 2 ½.  The Engineers played well.  Their team, strengthened by the new first board, Jeffery La Comb, performed up to their full potential and then some.  The Albany team suffered from time trouble on a couple of boards.  That unfortunate habit has been a problem for us this year.  Time trouble is tough on the players, and it is doubly so for this old non-playing captain.  The players have the adrenalin-rush of time pressure and the focused energy of just moving the pieces to help with the tension.  Me, on the other hand, I have to sit or stand or pace, unable to even make a sound to cheer on the battlers.  When I was a player the few times I fell into time trouble it was nerve wracking.  Captaining a team when some are in time trouble is much worse.

Today’s game is a nice victory by Jeffery La Comb over the Albany Club Champion, and crucial to the result.  In a tactically difficult middle game position, Mr. Howard’s clock wound down.  When the crisis occurred he had under five minutes remaining.  It was just not enough time in which to see what had to be seen.  Mr. La Comb, with significantly more time available, saw more, played sharply keeping the pressure on, and was rewarded with a win when Dean misplayed a couple of crucial moves.  Mate followed in short order.    

Howard, Dean - La Comb, Jeffery [C02]
CDCL Match Albany A v RPI Guilderland, NY, 02.05.2012

1.e4 c5 2.c3 e6 3.d4 d5 4.e5 Nc6 5.Nf3 Nge7 6.Bd3 cxd4 7.cxd4,..

Transposing from the Sicilian to a variation of the Advanced French is not unusual in the line with 2 c3.  The natural plan for Black is creating pressure on the not quite secure White pawn on d4.  Here are a couple of games illustrating that idea:

(1176643) Chadaev, Nikolay (2486) - Chebotarev, Oleg (2514) [C02]
Russian Championship, Sochi (8), 10.05.2007
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Nge7 6.Bd3 cxd4 7.cxd4 Nf5 8.Bxf5 exf5 9.Nc3 Be6 10.0–0 Be7 11.Ne1 Qb6 12.Nc2 0–0 13.b3 Rac8 14.Na4 Qc7 15.Ba3 b5 16.Bxe7 Qxe7 17.Nb2 f4 18.Nd3 Qg5 19.a4 a6 20.axb5 axb5 21.Qd2 Bf5 22.Ra2 f6 23.e6 f3 24.Qxg5 fxg5 25.Ndb4 fxg2 26.Kxg2 Nxb4 27.Nxb4 Be4+ 28.f3 Rxf3 29.Rxf3 g4 30.Kg3 gxf3 31.Ra7 Re8 32.Nc6 h5 33.e7 h4+ 34.Kf2 Kf7 35.Rb7 ½–½

(521743) Minasian, Ara (2450) - Gaprindashvili, Valerian (2405) [C02]
6th Anibal Open, 6th Linares (7), 14.01.1999
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 c5 4.c3 Nc6 5.Nf3 Nge7 6.Bd3 cxd4 7.cxd4 Nf5 8.Bxf5 exf5 9.Nc3 Be6 10.h4 h6 11.Ne2 g6 12.Be3 Qb6 13.0–0 Be7 14.Qd2 Na5 15.b3 Bb4 16.Qd3 Nc6 17.a3 Be7 18.b4 Qd8 19.Qd2 Bxh4 20.Bxh6 Be7 21.Bg5 Bxg5 22.Nxg5 Kd7 23.f4 Qb6 24.Rab1 a6 25.Nf3 Qa7 26.Nc1 Ne7 27.Nd3 b6 28.a4 Rhc8 29.a5 Rc4 30.axb6 Qxb6 31.Nc5+ Ke8 32.Qe1 Kf8 33.Qh4 Ng8 34.Ng5 Ra7 35.Qh8 Qb8 36.Ncxe6+ fxe6 37.Nxe6+ Ke7 38.Ng5 [38.Nc5] 38...Kf8 39.Ne6+ Ke7 40.Ng5 Kf8 41.Nh7+ Kf7 42.e6+ Kxe6 43.Rfe1+ Kd7 44.Qg7+ Kc6 45.b5+ Kb6 46.bxa6+ Ka5 47.Rxb8 Rxg7 48.Ra1+ Ra4 49.Rxa4+ Kxa4 50.Rb7 1–0


7..., Bd7!?

Finding an example of this move is not so easy.  Here is the only one I could find with reasonably strong players involved:

(411368) Salmensuu, Olli (2230) - Dos Santos, Emmanuel [C02]
World Championship, U18, Guarapuava (3), 1995
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.c3 e6 4.d4 d5 5.e5 cxd4 6.cxd4 Nge7 7.Bd3 Bd7 8.Nc3 a6 9.Be3 g6 10.h4 h5 11.a3 Nf5 12.Bg5 Be7 13.Bxf5 gxf5 14.b4 f6 15.exf6 Bxf6 16.0–0 Bxg5 17.Nxg5 Qf6 18.Ne2 f4 19.Qd2 0–0 20.Rac1 Kh8 21.Rfe1 Rae8 22.Qd3 Re7 23.Qf3 Be8 24.Rcd1 Rg7 25.g3 e5 26.dxe5 Nxe5 27.Qxf4 Qd6 28.Rxd5 Rxf4 29.Rxd6 Nf3+ 30.Nxf3 Rxf3 31.Nd4 Rf8 32.Rd8 Rgg8 33.Re7 Bg6 34.Rd6 1–0

So, is Black’s last move terrible?  No, the more committal 7..., Nf5; allows White to trade off a Bishop for a Knight, and in the typical closed center French this not thought as a bad thing for White.  Of course, White is left with the less good of his two Bishops and Black has the Bishop pair.  Many games in the Advanced French are battles about Black trying to open up lines for the Bishops and White maintaining his center bind and space advantage.  The text move defers that decision while advancing Q-side development.

8.0–0!?,..

White goes his own way also.  The theme here is the security of the d4-pawn, if master-play guides us.  To that end, the natural move is 8 Nc3, preparing Nc3-e2 as an alternative if and when Black puts a Knight on f5.

8..., Nb4!?

More improvisation.

9.Nc3!?,..

And answered by improvisation.  A logical approach is; 9 Be2 Rc8 10 Nc3 Nf5 11 a3 Nc6 13 Be3, and both sides have developed reasonably, and White has no appreciable advantage, but he is not worse either.  Giving up the light squared Bishop does no immediate harm to White’s chances, but it is a longer term concern.  Earlier I said trading this Bishop for a Knight on f5 was possible.  In that case the Black pawn structure is to some extent weakened.  Agreeing to this trade on e3 does not have that added benefit.

An idea GM Har-Zvi brought up often in his lessons was about decisions regarding Bishops; which color to retain, which color to trade off and when to do so.  If I remember correctly, his thesis was how this decision was handled told the observer much about the eventual outcome of a game.  This contest now has the outlines of a typical Advanced French; if the game opens up the Black Bishops may carry the day, and if White maintains the blocked center, his Knights can be a match for the Bishops.

9..., Nxd3 10.Qxd3 a6 11.Ng5!?,..

This move is strategically risky.  White’s plan is to advance the f-pawn per the standard canon: in the French, f2-f4-f5 goes with e3-e4-e5.  White, no doubt is already considering the advance of the g-pawn to oust the Black Knight from f5 when it gets there.  All this is very much normal play in the French; White must attack on the K-side and Black on the other side..  Mr. La Comb however has early in his career learned that most valuable lesson about defending with the French; K-side castling can usefully be delayed or foregone for Black.  Why put your King in the obvious target area?  Without a Black King to threaten, the natural White K-side attack begins to look questionable.  If it breaks through, lines open for the Black Rooks on the White King, and maybe the Bishop pair will find things to do.

11..., Nf5 12.f4 Be7 13.g4 Bxg5!?

Things now get interesting quickly.  The White attack is becoming dangerous, and the Black decision not to castle short, while strategically sound has tactical risks attached; there is pressure on f7 and the Black King is some moves away from being ready to castle long.  Alternatives here for Black are; a) 13..., Nh4; which may be best.  Then 14 Qg3 Bxg5 15 fxg5 Ng6 16 h4 Qb6 17 Qf2 Rf8 18 b3, with a tough fight looming in a Bishops of opposite color middle game.  Don’t mistake that situation as having a high likelihood of a drawn outcome.  Sacrificial attacks in such situations are particularly potent for either side.  The opponent has a hard time defending squares attacked by the other Bishop.  And b) 13..., Nh6; when a murky tactically loaded position comes about after; 14 h3 Rc8 15 Nxh7 Bb4; threatening to capture on c3 followed by .., Bb4.  This way Black has compensation.  If White tries 16 Rf3, to defuse the .., Bb4; threat, Black can play; 16..., Qh4! 17 Ng5 Nxg4; when Black has made a lot of progress.  White is facing serious danger to his King.

With the complications outlined above, it is understandable decision to capture the White Knight on g5.  The text offers White chances to go wrong.          

14.gxf5?,..

Which he promptly does so.  Deciding which piece to capture is by no means an easy choice.  Taking off the Nf5 reduces potential pressure on d4, a laudable accomplishment, but it is primarily defensive in intent.  Instead, capturing the Bg5 opens the f-file.  That would be an asset for continuing the thematic K-side attack by White.  Play could go; 14 fxg5 Nh4 15 Qg3 Ng6 16 h4, when the pressure on the Black K-side continues.  Unanswered is the question; does Black have the resources to fend off the problems?  Neither Deep Rybka nor I can find a decisive breakthrough for White here.  It would have been a brave decision for White to play as recommended if he reached the same conclusion.  Sometimes chess players have operate by the principle of exclusion; if one line calculated does not lead to some measurable  advantage, the choice then becomes one of a positional nature.  Doing a useful thing, reducing pressure on d4 makes sense; continuing the attack lacking a breakthrough idea is a gamble.    

14..., Be7 15.Qg3 Qb6

Black is unafraid of allowing White to take as many of the Black K-side pawns as he wants.  Open files bearing on the White King are serious compensation.

16.Be3,..

Turnabout is fair play.  White offers the b-pawn, and willingly more if Black wants them, to open Q-side files anticipating the Black King will castle long.  Black declines for many of the same reasons that motivated White to do so earlier.

17..., 0–0–0 17.fxe6 fxe6 18.f5 Rdf8 19.Rac1 Kb8

Black sees clearly that 20 f6?, is no real threat because; 20..., gxf6 21 exf6+, is met by 21..., Bd6 22 Qxd6+ Qxd6 23 Bf4 Rhg8+ 24 Kh1 Qxf4 25 Rxf4 Rg6 26 Rcf1 Kc7; and Black is slightly ahead.  Principally, this is ture because it’s hard to find anyway to improve the position of the Nc3, and the Black King will be much more active than White’s for some time to come.  Both players have been performing at a pretty sophisticated level.  

20.fxe6?!,..

Subtly wrong perhaps.  Rybka suggests; 20 a3, offering up the b-pawn to make f5-f6 a workable threat.  The game has arrived at a critical point.  We chess players often think of critical moments in a game as when some ferocious attack is about break over a position.  Sometimes the critical moment is when both sides have mobilized, strong and weak points have been established, but the tension is not overwhelming.  Now decisions have to be made about the long term direction to pursue.  In some ways it is easier to decide things in the face of immediate threat.  Here threats there are for sure, however, nothing that needs immediate attention.  The choices are about the general direction the game will take for the next several moves.

My guess is Mr. Howard chose the text reasoning that having a protected passed pawn on e5 can not be a bad thing for White.  Protected passed pawns are certainly an important asset, if they can advance.  If that advance is not possible they become “a pebble in your shoe”, annoying but not decisive.

Dean had once more arrived at a critical moment fully armed with ideas and chances lacking only that vital resource; time on the clock to work out the details.  His clock showed a bit more than ten minutes at this point.

20..., Qxe6 21.Qg2 Bc6 22.Ne2?,..

Now with less than five minutes remaining, Mr. Howard thinks about transferring the Knight to g3 to shore up defenses on the g-file. This move however relieves pressure on d5 and opens b5 for the Black Bishop.

Trying to eliminate the Black dark squared Bishop makes more sense.  Better 22 Bg5, if then 22..., Bb4 23 a3 Bxc3 24 Rxf3 Bb5 25 Rff3, and while enough material remains on the board that opposite color Bishop based attacks can’t be ruled out, White has held the balance so far.  The problem is lacking time to double check for tactical surprises means you have to go on instinct and intuition.  Sometimes that is enough and sometimes not.

22..., g5 23.Rxf8+ Bxf8 24.Rf1 Bg7?!

Mr. La Comb was doing well up to here.  Concerned about the possibility of the White Rook landing on f6, he prevents that and offers the g-pawn.  This is an interesting idea.  It is probably not quite correct.  If 25 Qxg5 Rg8 26 Ng3, the relocation of the Knight shores up the defenses of the White King just in time.  The activity of the White Queen may force a trade of the Ladies after which the extra protected passed pawn swings the balance to White.  Better for Black is; 24..., Be7 25 Ng3 Bb5 26 Rf2 Bd3; activating his worse Bishop and keeping the tension high in the position.

25.Bxg5?!,..

Not quite so good as capturing with the Queen.  The Bg5 is not as anchored as the Ng3 would have been, and it is more easily attacked if pinned than a Ng3 by the h-pawn.  White has a pawn, and now is playing “Blitz” chess.  Black, by way of contrast, has about 40 minutes on his clock, time enough to think about finding good moves that are tough to meet.  That is the formula for exploiting an opponent’s time problem.  A key ingredient is maintaining your own cool while doing so.  Mr. La Comb does an admirable job not getting reckless as Mr. Howard struggles to stay ahead of the clock.

25..., Bb5 26.Rc1 Bxe2 27.Qxe2 Rg8!?

Not quite winning is; 27..., Qg3 28 Qg2 Rg8 29 h4 Bf8 30 Rf1 Be7 31 Rf2 Qe6 32 Qf3 h6 33 Qf7, when the activity of the White Rook that eventually lands on the 7th gives him chances in the ending.  The line would have been very testing for Howard to meet in his time pressure.  The text does ratchet up the level of difficulty for White.  How should he react to the threat to the Bg5?  White is ahead in this position, the extra pawn can’t be forgotten, but he has only about one minute left to finish the game.

28.Kh1 Qf5 29.Bh4?,..

Unrelenting pressure pays off, and White makes an almost inevitable error.  Here he would have done well to play 29 Rg1, then if 29..., h6? 30 Bf6!, and the potential pinner becomes the pinned and White is winning.  Black’s best seems to be; 29..., Bh6 30 Bxh6 Rxg1+ 31 Kxg1 Qg6+ 32 Qg2 Qb1+; looking for refuge in the end game with Queens.  That is a very hard end game to play even with lots of time on the clock.

29..., Bh6?

A sign perhaps that Dean’s time problems have had a bad effect on Jeffery’s judgment.  The best move is; 29..., Qf4; hitting the Bishop and the Rook.  It is just what Queens do very well; attacking two or more things at the same time.  It could be he worried about 29..., Qf4 30 Bg3,.. but 30..., Qxc1+ 31 Kg2 Rc8 32 e6+ Ka7 33 e7 Re8; is winning for Black.

30.Rf1?,..

Theoretically White was still better before this move was played.  However it allows a quick end to the game by way of a pretty combination.  White retains the advantage with 30 Rg1, but time is needed to make the moves regardless of the position.  Lacking time, now or soon, White appears doomed to falter; he had about 48 seconds now.

30..., Be3!

Neatly done!  If the Rook takes the Queen, it is mate at g1, and if the Queen takes the Bishop, the Black Queen captures on f1 with mate to follow.

31.Bg3 Rxg3 32.hxg3 Qh3+ 0–1

Quite a nice finish.  La Comb kept his wits about himself during most of Howard’s time pressure.  When he slipped up it was only after the time trouble had progressed to an absolutely critical stage.  I have watched the four local time pressure “stars”; Taylor, Michelman, Sells and Howard do amazing things with virtually no time remaining on their clocks.  But, we shouldn’t forget there are times the clock beats even the guys that are really good at handling blitz play.  Taking all things into account, the “stars” I am sure would have liked a few more minutes on the clock many times.

More news from last week:

Thursday the Albany team continued a flurry of activity playing the always crucial match with the Schenectady A team at Schenectady.  After falling behind 1 - 2, the Albany board 3, Peter Henner rescued a result by defeating John Barnes in a time influenced ending.  As with the Illinois - Ohio State football rivalry, a CDCL season can be saved for Albany, or Schenectady, by a good outing against the historic rival.  So it was Thursday.  While we will not challenge for the title this year, we did hold our major rival to a draw.  That is something, not a lot, but something to cheer the team until next year.

In the early going Glen Perry obtained a promising position against Dilip Aaron on board 4.  Mr. Perry maintained his advantage and won the game.  Thereafter the situation for Albany got worse on boards 1 and 2.  Playing quickly Patrick Chi obtained a good position against Dean Howard, but had to carry the game into a Knight versus Bishop and pawns ending.  This time the Bishop just could not hold, and Patrick with the Knight won.  In a complicated affair on board 2, Gordon Magat seemed to have a reasonable position at first sight.  In an ordinary looking position, however, his Queen just could not find a comfortable post.  Mr. Magat tried mightily to repair that defect but was unable to do so.  The Queen problem led to tactics that Philip Sells exploited in excellent style scoring a vital point.

The defeats on boards 1 and 2 were recorded in quick succession, the ol’ Cap’n turned his hopes to board 4.  A little earlier, before everything went bad on the top two boards, Mr. Henner had asked me if a draw was acceptable in his game.  He thought he could get that result fairly easily.  At the time, with a possible win on board 4 and things unclear on the top boards, I agreed a draw would be good for our team.  Now I had to tell Peter a win was needed.  It was said with a  sinking feeling.  On board 3 both players were now into time difficulties, Peter had been angling for a point split, and a change of direction from holding a draw to going for a win is always difficult.  Making that sort of change with little time to weigh up the possibilities is very risky.  Sharp play ensued and Mr. Henner found a way to win in a tricky ending with several pieces on the board. and I for one, am grateful for Peter Henner’s terrific effort.

This victory tied the match 2 -2, taking the first match points against the thus far undefeated Schenectady team.  This was a good result for the Albany team that has struggled this year.  The League standings are:

Team Match Points Game Points
1 Schenectady A                     3 ½ 11 with 1 to play
2 RPI                                   2 ½ 12 done
3 Albany A                           2 8 ½ with 1 to play
4 The Geezers                       2 7 ½ with 2 to play
5 Capital Region                    1 ½ 6 done
6 Uncle Sam                           ½               5 with 2 to play

The Schenectady Geezers with two matches to play have the possibility of overhauling Schenectady A.  Their head-to-head meeting is still to be played.  That contest could well decide the final standings at the top of the table.  A win for the Geezers leaves them in reach of their first League title.  A drawn result, or a win for Schenectady A makes Schenectady A Champion this year.  The competitive situation will make that match even more tense than it is usually.  I am not certain of the date of the Geezers - Schenectady match.  I believe it will take place in the next couple of weeks.

More soon.