One Final Game from Last Thursday

Many of the games, if not most, written about in these posts are those by the folks I call “contenders”; Class A players, Experts, the occasional Master, or up and coming scholastic stars. Statistically the middle of the array of all ratings is about 1500. Today’s tidbit is by folks just around that mid-point.

Consolation Swiss
Date: 3/25/2010
White; Connors, D
Black: Capitummino, J

David Connors has had good results this year. He has taken half and full points from much higher rated opponents in both the Saratoga and Schenectady Championships. Jeff Capitummino, who has just retuned to the chess wars, picked up a couple of good points in the Schenectady Preliminaries and held the scholastic star, Chen Qu, to a draw earlier in the Consolation Swiss. I was looking forward to this encounter. Connors was favored based on rating, but the energy Jeff showed in the game with Qu gave some indication of a possible sudden jump in standard for him.

1. Nf3 Nf6
2. g3 e6
3. Bg2 d5
4. O-O Bd6
5. d3 O-O
6. Nbd2 b6!?
White has chosen the King’s Indian Attack. It is essentially nothing more or less than playing the King’s Indian Defense as White.
The standard move here is 6..., c5; although there are few examples in my databases of this position, and those found are all wins for White.

These sort of positions were popular in my youth a half-century ago in the US. In the dead symmetrical King’s Indian Attack I recall Larry Evans famously writing after White’s move 5 d3, and Black’s answer 5..., d5; Black’s game was in its last throes. Something of an overstatement.

Because 6..., c5; has not worked out well for Black, it is not such a bad idea to make this choice here.

7. e4 dxe4
8. dxe4 e5
9. Re1 Re8
10. Nc4 Qe7
11. Nxd6 cxd6
12. Nh4 ….
David has his eye correctly on f5. It is a good post from which to threaten d6 with the Knight. That being so, Black has a quandary; if the Bc8 goes to another diagonal f5 can be safe square for the Knight. He is also needs to find some good way to develop his Q-side as well as make provision to defend d6. There are so many soft points to cover for Black that the position is quite challenging. I suspect it is possible for Black to find the narrow path to a comfortable position. If he can do so, the White Bg2 is no great shakes.

To find the workable plan Black must know an idea from the King’s Indian Defense; that an backward pawn on the d-file can be defended either with pieces directly, or indirectly by letting White grab the pawn while making threats elsewhere. This notion was most brilliantly illustrated in a KID game played in the Zurich Inter-zonal, 1953, between Averbakh and Gilgoric in round four. Absent such knowledge it is difficult to imagine coming up with the idea. Here play might go; 12..., Bg5; 13 Qd3, Nd7; 14 h3, Be6; 15 Rd1, Nc5; 16 Qe2, Qb7; (A move that many players would shrink from following the general rule that it is dangerous to voluntarily put a Queen on the same line as an opposing Bishop.) 17 Nf5, Bxf5; 18 exf5, d5; 19 c4, Rad8; 20 Bg5, e5. The game favors White, but Black has made things very difficult and has chances.

12.…. Rd8
13. f4 …..
Better is 13 Bg5.

13.… Bb7
Bolder is 13..., Bg4; not fearing White’s trying to surround the Bishop as long as the White Knight is on h4 and the Black Queen is watching it. The advances f4-f5, h2-h3, and g3-g4 will loosen the White King’s defenses offering Black opportunity for a counter-stroke.

14. Nf5 Qc7
15. c3 Nc6
16. Qe2 Re8?!
The point of this move escapes me. An improvement would be 16..., Ne7; looking to trade off the intruding White Knight.

17. fxe5?! ….
More logical and better is 17 Rd1, focusing on the natural target, d6. Connors has a plan, and even if it is not the best it tests the opponent.

17.… dxe5?
Black fails the test. He had to play 17..., Nxd5; obtaining a strong post for the Knight. If Jeff had remembered the rule; Knights need outposts especially to fight Bishops, he might have found this resource. Now David finishes the game quickly. If 17..., Nd5; had been played; 18 Bg5, Qc5+; and the game quickly becomes equal. There several threats in Black’s hands; the Ne5 moves away discovering an attack on the Bg5, perpetual checks by the Queen going to c5 to work with the Knight aimed at f2. White just may have to take the strongly posted Ne5 with his dark squared Bishop, after which Black has the better Bishop on the board. This error allows Connors’ plan to work very effectively.

18. Bg5 Re6
Just about everything is bad for Black now, he only gets to choose among the evils.

19. Rf1 h6?
Giving up I guess. A more stubborn fight can be made with 19..., Ne7; then 20 Nh6+, Kf8; 21 Bxf5, Rxf6; 22 Rxf6, gxf6; 23 Rf1, Qc5+; 24 Kh1, Kg7; 25 Qh5, Rf8; 26 Ng4, is certainly lost for Black. Playing that would have challenged White to find some decent ideas and avoid errors such as 21 Rf2, thinking to double on the f-file before beginning action on f6, which is met by 21..., a5. After 21..., a5; in the side line, Black has chances to craft a defense even though he may give up a pawn. The text leads to the collapse of the Black K-side.

20. Nxh6+ gxh6
21. Bxf6 Rxf6?
Tossing in the Exchange to boot. Some resistance is possible with 21..., Ne7; rushing reinforcements to the wall. The position is still lost, but why not make things difficult?

Play could go 21..., Ne7; 22 Qh5, Ng6; 23 Qxh6, Qc5+; 24 Kh1, Qf8; and with the extra two pawns White has should win, but there many moves to be played. It is no crime to make someone whose rating is not too far up the ladder to play out even such an ending, at least until it is certain he knows how to win it.

22. Rxf6 Ne7
23. Rxh6 Resigns.
Jeff did not make the sternest resistance, nevertheless, David played with active ideas in mind, and that will win more games than not. A nice job by Mr. Connors.