East Cheshire Chess Club

Macclesfield A 4.5 - ECA 1.5

2012-01-24T23:24:00.000-08:00

After the close match earlier in the season we were hoping for more excitement tonight but all we got was a gradual grind down against a strong Macc. team. At least we don't have to play them again this season!

1. D Risley (171) 0.5 - 0.5 J Reed

Playing against a Bogo-Indian John had the better of things and built up some useful Queenside pressure but Dave managed to exchange pieces for a draw.

2. D Lobo (153) 1 - 0 P Ramsey

In a topsy turvy game I started off better, then was losing and was finally easily winning. The problem was that we were in the allegro finish and my flag was about to fall. In a fluster I made a ridiculous move when I actually had a bit more time than I thought. Someone get me a digital clock for Christmas!

3. V Kumar (155) 0.5 - 0.5 D Newall

Dave played his favourite Colle / Birds system and gradually built up some Queenside pressure but Vijay managed to hold.

4. G Laurence (150) 0.5 - 0.5 D Broadbent

Dave played actively in the opening and had a very comfortable position but not enough to beat his solid opponent.

5. J-P Taylor (146) 1 - 0 P Bamford

Paul played a closed system against the Sicilian but his Kingside pawn pushes backfired as J-P ended up eating one of the Kingside pawns and winning the endgame.

6. P Cattermole (138) 1 - 0 S Howells

Sion played a positional gambit but didn't seem to have enough compensation for the pawn and was gradually ground down.

So not a very fun night for East Cheshire.

Next match is away to Altrincham on Feb 6th. Let's hope for some fireworks then!

EC C 3; Macc B 2

2012-01-14T06:11:00.000-08:00

The C Team visited Macclesfield B and won by 3 to 2 this week, despite being outgraded on every board (very substantially on the lower boards: their average grade - 144). Special thanks to Edwin who stepped in at the last minute and won against a tough opponent. See his comments below.
G Laurence (150) 0, P Bamford 1
PWR Caulkett (148) 0, S Howells 1,
JP Taylor (146) 1, B Tait 0,
R Pomeroy (137) 1, I Vaughan 0,
PJ Colville (137) 0, E Cooke 1.
Edwin writes:
"Playing White on Board 5 and drafted in at the last minute to play, this game got off to a stolid start. I pushed my pawns down the right hand side seeking to gain an advantage leaving my king perilously unprotected.
This attack was thwarted but Black was pushed back into a tight space and failed to spot my deft switch of attack to the left flank. Here I constructed a devilish plan to force back his queen confining his pieces further. Unfortunately my opponent, Archimedes, mixed his metaphors and pulled his finger out of the dam allowing my troops to pour forward washing away any chance he had of avoiding defeat!"
Ian writes:
" My game, of the 1. e4, e5 variety, although lost was interesting, with tactics and potential counterplay right up until the last handful of moves."

Whitewashed by the 3Cs scholars from Oldham

2012-01-07T05:06:00.000-08:00

3Cs visited on Wednesday 4 January 2012, and rather unsportingly have probably been practicing! Just as in the pound shop, there is no need to ask - it's 0-1.
Sion Howells v. Daniel Abbas
Andy Buckley v. Ahmed Abbas
Ian Vaughan v. Sam Hayman
Edwin Cooke v. Jack Mundy
Qasim Mohammed v. Robert McLean
Congratulations, 3Cs.

A dramatic win at Altrincham: the victor explains ....

2011-12-18T09:16:00.000-08:00

After a dramatic win away at Altrincham on 13th December '11, Edwin writes:
Finally after three matches I won my first game for East Cheshire and what a ripsnorter it turned out to be! Playing white and after a steady opening from both players, my gambit was to clear the diagonal so that I could capture his rook with my bishop. This involved a careful and extensive piece exchange disseminating the middle of the board to open up the channel. In response my opponent took my bishop with his queen allowing my queen to charge forward and reek havoc through his defenses. However once I was so far ahead, a little complacency crept in and I almost allowed myself to be mated after a careless move. In desperation to avoid check mate I lost both my rooks and ended up in an inferior position. Enter the end game, I had 3 pawns, 1 knight and 1 queen versus 5 pawns, 1 rook and 1 queen. After being perpetually checked and having pawns picked off, my opponent ran out of steam and I finally had a chance. I returned the salvo of constant checking bringing my knight into the game to assist the queen for the kill. A thoroughly enjoyable rollercoaster of a game. Victory at last!

C Team draws away vs Altrincham B

2011-12-15T12:22:00.000-08:00

Andy Buckley (Captain) writes:

Alan on board one played a Q I D, lost a piece early on and was ground down.

Paul's game led to an all pawn finish and a draw was accepted.

Bill won on board 3 with a strong finish despite being a knight down.

Andy lost after a poor middle game left him three pawns down.

Edwin made sacrifice after sacrifice for position and a good win.

Scoresheet reads:
1. Callum McNulty 1, Alan Stokes 0
2. Pete Arland 1/2, Paul Bamford 1/2
3. Stephen Ward 0, Bill Tait 1,
4. Tom Hague 1, Andy Buckley 0,
5. John Roff 0, Edwin Cooke 1.
Total 2.5 2.5 (Draw)

Denton B 3 ECA 3

2011-12-02T04:37:00.000-08:00

East Cheshire A earned its first point of the season on Wednesday night in a dynamic match against a relatively weak Denton team.

Dave T and I had a night to forget, losing with bad blunders, but Tudor and Keven had smooth wins to equalise the match for us.

1. K Ahmadi (155) 0.5-0.5 J Reed

John had to take on a stodgy Czech Benoni and managed to build an impressive pawn centre but his opponent created sufficient counterplay to draw the game.

2. D Boulden (146) 1-0 P Ramsey

I had a good opening and won a pawn but then got into time trouble. I played a combination that didn't work, panicked and allowed a mate in one! Not my finest hour.

3. D Holt (139) 0.5 - 0.5 D Newall

Dave N built up a winning attack but misplayed the execution of it and ended up a piece down for nothing. Fortunately Dave H offered a draw as he was about to lose on time.

4. P Boyd (123) 0-1 T Rickards

Tudor gradually outplayed his opponent in an even middlegame and built up a strong attack on his opponent's King which he finished in fine style.

5. D Taylor (114) 0-1 K Holton

Keven systematically turned the screw against his elderly opponent and eventually found a narrow path to victory.

6. D Cook (107) 1-0 D Taylor

David T won a pawn early on in a strange French Defence. However David's King's Rook was hemmed in the corner and, under some Queenside pressure, David blundered his other Rook.

We have a couple of months off now until 24th Jan when we are away to Macc. A.

C Team 2, Macclesfield B 3.

2011-11-27T10:07:00.000-08:00

An outgraded C Team (our average grade 111, theirs 134) lost 2-3 at home to Macclesfield B on 23 November 2011, but with an excellent win by Andy B and draws against strong opposition by Paul (fighting the opponent featured in Tudor's game vs Macc A (blog, passim)) and Sion.

The scoresheet and grades are:

B1 Paul Bamford (130) 1/2 G Laurence (150) 1/2

B2 Bill Tait (120) 0, R Pomeroy (137) 1,

B3 Sion Howells (110) 1/2, R Murphy (134)1/2,

B4 Andy Buckley (100) 1, A Brough (131) 0

B5 Ian Vaughan (93) 0, A Sime (117) 1.

(Nerd alert: the C Team's grades are almost an arithmetic progression.)

The return match away, on a Tuesday, will be postponed probably until early January 2012.

Tudor gives up his Queen

2011-11-17T02:41:00.000-08:00

Here is a recent win of Tudor's playing for our A team against Macclesfield A.

One thing for King's Indian players to note is that Tudor's move order allowed White to transpose to the Pirc (playing e4 without c4.) If you want to avoid this you should play 2. ... g6 so that you can reply to 3. Nc3 with d5.

Now over to Tudor.

The game involves a bishop sacrifice as only way to keep attack going. Then I found a nice queen sacrifice which was not just a variation of a known one.

The interesting thing for me was the very thematic way the game unfolded with black backing the Q side pawn storm against white’s superior centre. ICC analysis suggests white was always slightly ahead until 21 Ka3 (Kb1 leaves black having to find a win for his pressure and B sac. ).

During last few moves I was trying to get all my pieces coordinated into attack. I had noticed possibilities of Bf8 pinning White’s Queen but it did not quite work. Only then did I look for something better and noticed the very satisfying Queen sac (which seems a bit more obvious after the game.)

EC C 3, 3Cs 2

2011-11-12T03:00:00.000-08:00

This was only the second match for 3Cs in the Stockport League: this keen team deserve their place. Bill notes:

"It was a really friendly club with photos of every World Chess champion on the walls and an impressive cabinet full of silver trophies etc. Tea was on offer on arrival ( no John Willie Lees) and the team played against young but strong competetion.30 mins home - an easy run. Worth giving this young team a go but travel could be awkward on a really bad night (but would it be any worse than Buxton?)."

Ian (er, that would be me) miscalculated and never recovered. Mike won a hard fought French Defence. Andy won and Bill maintained a strong mid game advantage to seal the match.

Edwin writes:

"This was my second match for East Cheshire and roughly my tenth game of chess in the last twenty years. I am thoroughly enjoying the challenge! It has dawned on me that my openings need some serious work as in both matches I have conceded too much ground and played the middle game on the back foot, one piece down. I havemanaged to rally in each game during the middle game and seize the initiative, only to succumb to a foolish move giving away a match winning piece. Either that or I am kidding myself! (Must try harder D-)"

ECA 2 Chorlton A 4

2011-11-09T23:15:00.000-08:00

Aaaaagh Aaaaagh Aaaaagh

If our loss to Macclesfield A was frustrating then this defeat was a kick in the proverbials.

We managed to throw away 3 winning positions against a strong Chorlton team.

Keven's game was first to finish with Keven being ground down in a Reti / Catalan. David then won his game, winning a piece in the middlegame. This left the match at 1-1 and at least three of the remaining matches were winning for us.

Paul played a great modern defence and was the exchange and pawns up but allowed a swindle.

Sion was easily winning with a strong Kingside attack but in time trouble lost his Queen.

I had my best scalp ever, winning on the Black side of a mainline Sicilian Dragon. Once we had banged out all the theory Hope went wrong quite soon, allowing a piece to be trapped. In bad time trouble I managed to find the right plan to close out the game efficiently.

This left Tudor needing to win to draw the match. As he had Queen against Rook and Bishop this looked achievable. However when all the pawns were traded except for the Kingside ones it became rather technical. Tudor wanted to accept the draw offer but gamely agreed to continue for the sake of the team. I still maintain that he had winning chances but unfortunately Tudor lost.

So two defeats out of two. The good news is that we should have Dave Newall and John back for the next game - away to Denton B in three weeks.

1. Phil Ramsey 1-0 Hope Mkhumba (184)
2. Keven Holton 0-1 Philip Olbison (162)
3. Tudor Rickars 0-1 Alan Beresford (150)
4. David Taylor 1-0 Steve Fogg (150)
5. Paul Bamford 0-1 David Kierman (143)
6. Sion Howells 0-1 Khalid Khokhar (128)

C Team vs Ashton 26 October 2011

2011-10-27T13:23:00.000-07:00

Well okay, we lost our first match of the season, but congratulations to our points-gainers Sion (playing a 127 grader) and Qasim (playing a 77 grader). Special thanks to Alan for agreeing to play Ashton's P Armstrong (graded 174) on board one - we salute you.

Score was East Cheshire C 1 1/2: Ashton 3 1/2.

ECA 2.5 Macc A 3.5

2011-10-26T23:24:00.000-07:00

AAARG!!!!

We almost had the result of the (admittedly young) season last night with a narrow loss to a very strong Macclesfield A side.

With just my game remaining the score was 2.5 each. Sadly I had thrown away my advantage and had no time left to find a swindle so we lost. Here is the scorecard:

1. P Ramsey 0-1 A Soames (172)
2. K Holton 0-1 D Risley (171)
3. D Broadbent 0.5-0.5 V Kumar (155)
4. D Taylor 0-1 D Lobo (153)
5. T Rickards 1-0 G Laurence (150)
6. P Bamford 1-0 P Caulkett (148)

Their average grade was 158 against our 137!

I had a nice King's Indian against Soames. He had no threats at all in the middlegame whereas I had a Kingside pawn storm so I turned down his draw offer. Sadly at one point I pushed the wrong pawn and lost a pawn for not enough compensation. I managed to create some threats in the late middlegame but his time advantage was too great and he found a way to exchange into a winning endgame. An enjoyable game though.

Keven was gradually ground down by Risley who had long-term Queenside pressure on Keven's pawns.

Dave B had a great opening against Kumar and was a pawn up at one stage. He exchanged off into a good endgame but Kumar managed to draw.

David T lost the exchange to Lobo and then won it back but was ground down in the ending.

Tudor has a great King's Indian as his opponent castled Queenside and Tudor flung his pawns forwards. Laurence had little counterplay and Tudor's attach was irresistible.

Paul had a great opening against Caulkett and was far ahead in development. Next time I looked Paul was defending an endgame 2 pawns down but he managed to win it!

A great performance. We will play weaker teams in future and field stronger teams so if we can keep this level up we will be fine.

Next match in two weeks at home to Chorlton.

C Team finishes on a high note, but ...

2011-04-22T03:03:00.000-07:00

For their last match this season the C Team played hosts to Chorlton B and conceded only half a point to win 4.5 to 0.5. Unfortunately the visitors had been unable to muster a full team and defaulted on Board 5. In addition, their Boards 3 and 4 arrived very late and were each 20 to 30 minutes down at the outset even after a clock start of 7.50 p.m. However, no Chorlton player lost on time, and all enjoyed a friendly match (with the exception of Andy W), which is the main thing. Special thanks to Andy W for playing a cool game of musical chairs.
The scorecard reads:
1. Paul Bamford 0.5 0.5 Howard Hughes
2. Bill Tait 1 0 John Haines
3. Mike Cunnane 1 0 Philippe Noel
4. Andy Buckley 1 0 Chris Hallsworth
5. (Andy Walker present) 1 0 default.

Wilmslow A 2 ECA 4

2011-03-29T05:30:00.000-07:00

Last night Wilmslow A had their chance to avenge the defeat they suffered against us last week. Happily for us they didn't take it and we collected another valuable 2 match points.

1. S Shepherd (158) 0.5-0.5 J Reed

John managed to play another Queen's Gambit Exchange and, shock horror, did not win! Steve forgot to follow the script and created some kingside counterplay, forcing John to exchange Queens and force the draw.

2. C Guffogg (126) 0.5-0.5 G Ball

Chris proved that his draw last week was no fluke with another cut and thrust game taking on Graham's Dutch Defence.

3. R Warhurst (122) 0-1 P Ramsey

I continued to ride my luck with another unconvincing victory. I played the opening and early middlegame rather smoothly, trying the Catalan again and winning a queenside pawn. Then in time trouble I played a horrendous move which gave Robin two ways to win a piece. Fortunately he spotted neither of them and I then ground out the endgame.

4. M Palmer (114) 0-1 D Newall

Dave seemed to get the better of things quite rapidly with his Dutch Leningrad and then Mike blundered a piece to bring things to a rapid conclusion.

5. T Flynn (109) 0-1 K Holton

Tony merrily flung his pawns forwards without bothering to castle and Keven eventually made him pay for his bravado.

6. C Jackson (108) 1-0 D Broadbent

Dave once again wheeled out his Cambridge Springs Defence but Chris played well, won a pawn and then unleashed an unstoppable attack.

So 2 more match points and 4 more game points for ECA. Now we just need to win against Denton B and Macc A!

ECA 4.5 Wilmslow A 1.5

2011-03-24T06:11:00.000-07:00

ECA discovered that winning feeling again last night with a comfortable win over Division II strugglers Wilmslow A. Here is what happened:

1. John Reed 1-0 Steven Shepherd (158)

Playing against the English John got a great position out of the opening and never let go, eventually winning the exchange and a pawn. A great win against their strongest player.

2. Graham Ball 0.5-0.5 Chris Guffogg (126)

Knowing that he was playing a weaker opponent and taking on his own favourite French Defence Graham must have thought he would have an easy night but Chris more than held his own in an exciting game and in the end Graham was happy to take the draw.

3. Phil Ramsey 1-0 Robin Warhurst (122)

My swindling skills have improved this season - I have now won at least three games that should have been drawn. Robin played the solid Torre Attack but I managed to get a good endgame only to throw away my advantage in time trouble (as usual.) Robin was better in the knight endgame but then miscalculated and let me queen a pawn.

4. Dave Newall 0-1 Colin Mills (120)

Dave played his favourite Bird's opening and had a very long think on move 4. This cost him dearly later as he ended up in desperate time trouble and allowed a snap checkmate.

5. Dave Broadbent 1-0 David Booth (111)

Dave has had a lot of success with his Cambridge Springs System recently but David played all the right moves and didn't succumb until the endgame.

6. Keven Holton 1-0 Tony Flynn (109)

Keven played his new Bird's Opening which ended up looking more like an Advance French Defence. Keven had a lot of space and eventually swept Tony away with a Kingside attack.

Wilmslow will get their chance for rematch on Monday night. See you at the Ship Inn?

The Stockport Jinx strikes again

2011-03-18T00:02:00.000-07:00

East Cheshire have lost every match against a Stockport team that I have been involved with and last night the run continued against a weakened Stockport C. Dave B got us off to a good start with a quick win as Black and then Dave N won to keep us in the lead but things went downhill after that. Here is what happened:

Andy Coe (148) 1-0 John Reed

Andy played a strange kind of Queenside Scandinavian Defence and John built a very strong position. However the wily Coe got a sniff at John's King and duly built a winning attack. Ouch.

Peter King (146) 1-0 Graham Ball

Peter played the Catalan and gradually built up an overwhelming position.

Mark McNulty (144) 0.5-0.5 Phil Ramsey

In a Classical King's Indian I never found a way to build an advantage and in the end was glad to take a draw a pawn down in the endgame.

Vic Rushworth (139) 0-1 Dave Newall

Playing his favourite Accelerated Dragon Dave won a pawn with a clever tactic and then won Vic's queen.

David Preen (131) 1-0 Keven Holton

Keven inadvertently invented a new gambit, losing a pawn on move four. He had insufficient compensation and eventually had to give up his bishop to avoid a back rank mate.

Ray Bradney (80) 0-1 Dave Broadbent

Ray fell into an opening trap against Dave's Cambridge Springs Defence and lost in 12 moves. Well played Dave!

We out-rated Stockport on every board so a disappointing result. Maybe we will do better against Wilmslow next Wednesday?

Another QGD, another win for John

2011-03-01T23:37:00.000-08:00

John is doing his best to persuade us all to play the Queen's Gambit Declined, Exchange Variation. The game below, with notes by John, explains why.

C Team avoids whitewash - just

2011-02-25T11:14:00.000-08:00

The C Team hosted the dedicated under 18s of Ashton Community Chess Club on 23 February 2011, and only Mike's win on board 2 saved a whitewash. Well done Mike. In a year or two it may well be the A Team whom Ashton visit.
East Cheshire C 1, Ashton 4.

C Team beats Stockport D

2011-02-18T14:27:00.000-08:00

In a close contest the C Team scored a near win against Stockport D last night (Thursday 17 February 2011). The scorecard (below) involved only integers this time ...

Stockport D.....................East Cheshire C
1....D. Preen........0...1......B. Tait
2....J. Kelly..........0...1......G. Clarke
3....M. Jackson...1....0.....M. Cunnane
4....I. Anderson ..1....0.....I. Vaughan
5....A. Prime.........0...1.....A. Buckley
TOTALS.............2....3

Three wins and a near miss

2011-02-16T04:28:00.000-08:00

East Cheshire A kept their promotion drive on track with a 3.5 - 2.5 victory at Altrincham.

Graham lost a game he could have won and Dave N won a game he should have lost so in the end the luck cancelled out and our strength showed.

1. John Reed 1-0 Y Kolodiy (160)

Is the Queen's Gambit Exchange Variation a forced win for White? John thinks so and here is more evidence. John bashed out his first 15 moves in about 5 minutes and ultimately had to apologise for knowing the opening so well. Kolodiy played actively but got ground down.

2. Graham Ball 0-1 K Lockett (159)

Graham appeared to have a slightly dodgy opening (too many pawn moves on the Kingside maybe?) but played actively and created some nasty threats. He appeared to be winning but then allowed Karl a mating attack.

3. Phil Ramsey 1-0 N Lowe (148)

I played a Reti / Catalan hybrid and Nick seemed rather unsure what to do against it. After 20 moves Nick had used nearly all his time and he then collapsed in the middlegame complications.

4. Dave Newall 1-0 R Clucas (UG)

Dave played his favourite Accelerated Dragon and got a very nice position from the opening with pressure on White's queenside pawns. However he then blundered a piece but still managed to win by pushing his central passed pawns.

5. Alan Stokes 0-1 T Tomkins (131)

Alan played a very patient English opening but finally lost his Queen and the game.

6. Dave Broadbent 0.5-0.5 D Hughes (130)

Dave played the French Defence and quickly assumed the initiative with a kingside attack. However David defended well and eventually managed to block off the whole board!

Thanks everyone for making the long trip to Altrincham.

ECA has a few weeks off now until we play Stockport C on March 17th.

C Team gains 2 from stronger Wilmslow B

2011-02-13T02:16:00.000-08:00

On 9th February 2011, the C Team gained 2 points from Wilmslow B, even though outgraded on every board. The points came from Geoff's win, and two draws from the Andys B and W. An interesting match.

Defeated but not disgraced

2011-02-10T04:22:00.001-08:00

Last night ECA played Holmes Chapel at home in the semi finals of the Charnley Cup. As expected we were heavily out graded but we went down fighting, losing 4-2 in the end.

1. Graham Ball 0-1 P Bennett (190)

Graham was gradually ground down as he took on Patrick's Pirc defence. In a typical Pirc game Graham set up a big pawn centre and Patrick systematically dismantled it.

2. Phil Ramsey 0-1 J Turner (182)

The problem with the Sicilian defence is that you often come up against someone's pet anti-Sicilian system which they have been playing for twenty years! So it was last night as John played an obscure system I had not encountered before and I fell into an opening trap which left me virtually lost after ten moves or so. Back to the books for me.

In the unlikely event that anyone is interested in this trap a similar game can be found here. I unwittingly followed it for 13 moves before playing the inferior 14. ... b5 and doing even worse than the Black player in that game.

3. Dave Newall 0.5-0.5 M Hancock (181)

Playing against another Pirc Defence Dave played solidly and had his draw offer accepted in the middle game.

4. Dave Broadbent 0-1 I Bates (170)

Ian played the Tarrasch against Dave's French Defence and a wild game ensued where Dave had an extra pawn but had his King stuck in the centre. Ian played accurately in the end to finish Dave off.

5. David Taylor 0.5 - 0.5 A Raeburn (157)

Playing his favourite Reti David played solidly, swapped off the pieces and got the draw.

6. Keven Holton 1-0 M Roberts (139)

Keven gave the Sicilian a try and it seemed to work - leaving him three pawns up in the middlegame. Keven duly converted the full point.

So as expected we struggled on the top boards and did better at the bottom. Sadly even if Dave B had won we would have lost the match due to their wins being on higher boards but still it was a good performance.

Now who fancies a trip to Altrincham next week?

C Team draws at Mac. B, 31 January 2011: a match of two halves.

2011-02-02T23:28:00.000-08:00

This was the C Team's first visit to Macclesfield's new venue. Unfortunately the Captain (who is that person?) had forgotten to tell everyone that the Club now meets at the Liberal Club on Boden Street, which accounted for boards 1 and 2 finishing later on in the evening, with Geoff and Paul having arrived by the scenic route.
The match was one of two halves not only chronologically, but also scoreologically, with Ian, Andy and Roy accumulating 2.5 points between them before Paul and Geoff had hardly sat down. Paul and Geoff were left to it, in the knowledge we could not lose. Needless to say, Macclesfield were set on not conceding any more points, and achieved the draw, late into the night, with at least one of those games going to the wire with only minutes on each clock. Thanks to Geoff for doing the score card.
Scores:
Board
1 P. Bamford 0 1 J.P. Taylor (139)
2 G. Clarke 0 1 R. Murphy (126)
3 I. Vaughan 1 0 P. Jones (50)
4 A Buckley 1 0 E. Nathan (50)
5 R Burrows 0.5 0.5 A Howe (50)
Totals 2.5 2.5

How to hunt a King

2011-01-18T23:31:00.000-08:00

John had a nice win recently in our first team match against Bramhall. Using his favourite Schliemann Defense he sacrificed the exchange to force his opponents King into the centre of the board.

See how it happened:

ECA whitewashes again

2011-01-13T04:20:00.000-08:00

Last night ECA beat Bramhall 6-0 but this was hardly a fair reflection of the games.

Bramhall are without their two strongest players this season and were not able to field a full team so we started the match at 1-0.

Here is how it developed:

1. John Reed 1-0 Peter Thursfield (134)

John played his favourite Schliemann Ruy Lopez and Peter was clearly uncertain how to handle it. Peter castled Queenside and was attacked mercilessly, ending up with his King in the centre of the board.

2. Phil Ramsey 1-0 Nick Flaherty (125)

Playing my new English opening I achieved a small advantage from the opening but didn't find a winning plan. However when we reached a Bishop vs Knight ending I decided to play on as a Bishop is normally stronger than a Knight when there are pawns on both sides of the board. I managed to create some pressure and then my opponent, flustered because he thought he was lost, missed a simple draw.

In the above position with Black to move Kc7 gives a simple draw as after Kxd5 Kd7 Black has the opposition and I will not be able to get to his pawns.

However he played d4?? and after Kxd4 Kc7, Ke5 his pawns were toast.

3. Dave Newell 1-0 Keith Hodgson (108)

In a Colle System vs. Dutch Keith held his own until the endgame where Dave finally won some pawns and the game.

4. Keven Holton 1-0 Hartley Oldham (101)

Keven took on the Sicilian again and didn't seem to get much out of the opening. However, knowing that Hartley is a time trouble addict, Keven kept the position complicated and then launched a winning attack in his opponent's time trouble.

5. Dave Broadbent 1-0 Geoff Smith (71)

In a Queen's Gambit Declined Geoff forgot to develop his pieces and allowed Dave to build up an imposing position which he duly converted.

6. David Taylor 1-0 default

So ECA back on track. Next up is Holmes Chapel at home in the Charnley Cup semi final - Feb 9th.

C Team draws at Ashton, 5th January 2011

2011-01-09T06:10:00.000-08:00

On 5th January the C Team played Ashton Community Chess Club, the first visit by any East Cheshire Team. Ashton CCC is a community resource set up for u18s and before the match we saw a room full of keen students of the game intently watching a lesson /demonstration. This Club may well progress to higher divisions in the League in future years.
The results were
East Cheshire C Ashton CCC
Board
1 Geoff Clarke 0 1 Phil Armstrong
2 Mike Cunnane 0.5 0.5 Tim Chatos
3 Ian Vaughan 1 0 Daniel Bowden
4 Andy Buckley 1 0 Edmund Jones
5 Andy Walker 0 1 Jack Latham
TOTAL 2.5 2.5
Geoff discovered his opponent was graded at 166. Geoff decided to play actively, as he put it to enjoy the game more despite the almost inevitable result.
Ian's game quickly resulted in a centre with tactical possibilities and with the centre pawns gone. A blunder by black enabled a bishop check with a discovered attack on the queen that proved decisive.
Andy W writes:
" I tried really hard not to be put off by the tender age of my opponent .. or his higher ranking (90 to my 75). but unfortunately, my undefeated run so far this season seemed doomed from the outset. Post match analysis revealed that I could have captured his queen on move 12 and then, although being a bishop up from move 16 on and when under pressure, I gave him the positional advantage when in reality I could have played into a winning position. So I resigned on move 20 to avoid the inevitable checkmate. My consolation? He would probably have played badly too if he'd been at work all day ... or maybe not. Bah!"
Mike's game was the last to finish when at 9.15 he accepted a draw. Mike writes: ' I played the black side of a French Defence in which my oponent played an early Nd2, which is the first time I've encountered this. I then played Be7 and later had chances to win a pawn, but did not as it allowed better rook placement for white. The game petered out into a draw.'
The consensus was that Mike may have been slightly behind in an even game, and had made a good call.

Gambit Bamford claims another victim

2010-12-19T00:25:00.000-08:00

Our B team narrowly lost to Stockport C on Thursday night but Paul at least had some fun with his game.

Playing yet another gambit Paul managed to win in 11 moves!

Here is how it happened with Paul's comments:

A victory for persistence

2010-12-09T13:53:00.001-08:00

East Cheshire got thumped but at least I won my game, a game that was drawn throughout really against an evenly matched opponent. Make of it what you will, an interesting game to play

1. d4 e6 2. e4 d5 3. e5 c5 4. c3 Nc6 5. Nf3 Qb6 6. Be2 cxd4 7. cxd4 Bb4+

(usually play 7. ... Nh6, this is alright too)

8. Nc3 Nge7 9. a3 Bxc3+ 10. bxc3 Bd7

FEN/PGN

White to move

Initially its all about that c pawn

11. OO Rc8 12. Bd2 Na5 13. Rb1 Qc7 14. Qc2 b6 15. Rfc1 Nc4

16. Bxc4 Qxc4 17. Rb4 Qc7 18. c4?

FEN/PGN

White to move

Sometimes my cautious chess gets the better of me, 18. .... a5 probably wins a pawn immediately but white gets somer counterplay against my pawns so I keep it solid

18. ... dxc 19. Rxc4 Qxc4 20. Qxc4 Rxc4 21. Rxc4 Nd5 22. Ng5

Thought this might come, looking for Ne5 then Nd6, its a bit of a nuisance if it gets there

22. ... f5 23. exf gxf 24. Ne4 Ke7 25. Nc3 Nxc3 26. Rxc3 Rc8

27. f3 Rxc3 28. Bxc3 Kd6 29. Kf2 Kd5 30. Ke3 a5 31. Kd3 Bb5+

However you look at it this is with correct play a drawn ending but the clock will come into play, my plan is to use the dual threat of penetrating with the king on either the king or queen side. My active Bishop and king can drive a path for that pawn if the defence is not accurate.

32. Kd2 f5 33. g3 Kc4 34 Bb2 Bc6 35. f4 b5 36. Bc3 b4

Time control an extra 15 minutes each, my opponent ends up with a total of 17, I have got 58, these are good odds

37. axb4 axb4 (think ... a4 here is actually best, not sure though, maybe the pawn is better on the b file giving the king the option of running down the a file)

38. Bb2 Kb3 39. Kc1 Kc4 40. Kd2 Be4 41. Kc1 Kd3 42. Kd1 Bf3+

43. Kc1 Ke2 44. Kcc2 Bd5

FEN/PGN

White to move

I think this position is still drawn, yes I can win the h pawn but if his king simply follows me accross what then.

45. h3? Kf3 White Resigns

Ouch! (ECA vs Stockport C)

2010-12-08T22:49:00.001-08:00

Ooof that hurt!

ECA can crashing back down to earth with a painful defeat to Stockport C. Stockport's captain had observed our lofty league position and decided to do the other teams in the league a favour by fielding his strongest team. Although grading-wise we were about equal most of us just weren't at our best last night. Here is the damage:

1. Graham Ball 1-0 J Mason (153)

Graham defended the Advance French and played solidly, reaching an opposite bishops endgame where he was slightly better. Our resident endgame wizard then steadily outplayed his opponent to take the full point.

2. Phil Ramsey 0-1 A Coe (148)

Oh dear. This was one of those games where I couldn't find a good plan, dithered for a few moves and missed most of my opponent's threats. Trying the English opening I didn't get anything special from the opening and then allowed a sudden attack against my King. Hopefully my brain will work better next Wednesday!

3. Dave Newall 0.5-0.5 P King (146)

Dave gave his good old Dutch Leningrad another outing. However his opponent seemed to know how to meet it (it is rumoured that Stockport has a database of all our openings!) Dave sacrificed a couple of exchanges for in order to get two very powerful Bishops but then offered a draw after his opponent defended well.

4. Keven Holton 0-1 L Smith (146)

Keven had the chance to play against his favourite opening - the Modern Defence. However after castling Queenside his opponents attack came first and Keven was left about 4 pawns down.

5. Dave Broadbent 0-1 V Rushworth (139)

Another Black, another French for Dave. However his opponent played well and Dave ended up with a thoroughly miserable position, resigning shortly after the time control.

6. David Taylor 0-1 D Preen (131)

David, playing his favourite Reti, seemed to get a pleasant enough position from the opening but then went astray and ended up a piece for a pawn down. His opponent made hard work of winning but eventually forced David's resignation.

The B team play Stockport C next week. Good luck!

Frozen but victorious in Chorlton also

2010-12-03T16:41:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday East Cheshire C ventured out in the snow to visit Chorlton B and won 3.5 to 1.5. Andy Walker captained. The scores were
Alan Stokes 1 0 Evan Wood
Bill Tait 1 0 Howard Hughes
Mike Cunnane 1/2 1/2 E Patten
Andy Buckley 0 1 P Noel
Andy Walker 1 0 M Fullerton

Alan was playing the white side of a Queen's gambit accepted. It was even until the middle of the game; he later managed a winning king side attack with an exchange sacrifice.
Bill achieved a precarious advantage and managed to promote a centre pawn for a timely win. The drive home was difficult, said Bill.
Andy W says, "Many thanks gents - a convincing win in less than ideal conditions!"

Frozen but Victorious in Denton

2010-12-01T23:24:00.000-08:00

Last night ECA braved the snow and the cold to take on Denton at their venue in Guide Bridge. Unfortunately the playing venue was little warmer than outside as the heating had only just gone on. Therefore we were all hoping for some "fire on board" to warm things up. Here is what happened:

1. Graham Ball 0-1 Dave Toole

Graham was outplayed by the in-form Toole who clearly has been playing the Black side of the Sicilian Najdorf longer than Graham has been taking it on.

2. Phil Ramsey 1-0 John Lysons

John played his favourite Smith-Morra gambit against my Sicilian. However I didn't fancy defending for two hours so I declined it and played for a solid position. John didn't come up with any ways to trouble me and I gradually built up a Queenside attack and then won the endgame.

3. Dave Newell 0.5-0.5 Kamran Ahmadi

Playing his favourite Dutch Reversed Dave managed to trap his opponents Knight. A quick win then? Maybe not as his opponent wriggled and squirmed like an eel. Dave was eventually easily winning but had only seconds left on his clock. Dave then lost on time but Kamran only had his King left which meant the result was a draw due to insufficient mating material.

4. Keven Holton 0-1 Dave Holt

Keven achieved a solid position in the Scandinavian Defence but went astray in time trouble.

5. David Taylor 1-0 Stan Bradley

David played his normal Reti but both players seemed reluctant to advance past the halfway line! Stan spent rather too long thinking and eventually froze while in time trouble, allowing his flag to fall. David was winning anyway apparently.

6. Alan Stokes 1-0 Dave Cook

Playing the Sicilian Alan stirred up complications that were too much for Dave to handle and Alan quickly won a piece and then the game.

So a 3.5 - 2.5 victory for ECA! That is 6 out of 6 for ECA!

2010-11-25T04:08:00.000-08:00

She is in Dubai so I will have to do this. Here is last nights game against DB, another tight one hinging on small decisions.

1. d4 e6 2. c4 Nf6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. a3 Bxc3 5. bxc3 b6 6. Bf4

FEN/PGN

White to move

(The game Explorer on chess.com gives ....6 .... OO here, but only one game and a white win so Bf4 seems largely untested, cant be bad)

6 .... Bb7 7. e3 d5 (maybe 7 .... d6 is more solid)

8. Nf3 OO 9. Qc2 Nbd7 10. Bd3 ( probably 10. cxd5 first is more accurate)

10. ... dxc 11. Bxc4 Be4 12. Bd3 Bxd3 13. Qxd3

FEN/PGN

White to move

My thoughts on this positionin the game :-

1. Its pretty level

2. Dont get check mated on h7

3. Best winning chance is the c and d files

4. a Knight for bishop exchange would be useful

13 ..... h6 14. OO Nh5 15. Bg3 Nxg3 16. hxg3 (think I would have played fxg3 here)

16. .... Nf6 17. c4 c5 18. Rfd1 cxd 19. exd Rac8. Reasonably happy now as have achieved 1-4 above

20. a4 Qc7 21. Ne5 Rfd8 22. Qf3 (stopping my planned Nd7)

22. ...... Nh7 23. Qe3 f6 24. Nf3 ( and the game swings slightly my way, I had wondered if Ng6 might happen but its hard to see what it might do from there)

24. ..... Qxc4

FEN/PGN

White to move

I am a pawn up but all the heavy artillery is still on, dificult win if it stays on, if the artillery comes off then the end game is won, so was not too unhappy when DB started offering exchanges

25. Rdc1 Qd5 26. Rxc8 Rxc8 27. Rc1 Rxc1 28. Qxc1 Qd7 29. Qc4 Nf8

30. Nd2 Qd5 31. Qc3 Kf7 32. f3 Ke7 33. Kf2 Nd7 34. Qb4+ Qd6

35. Qc3 e5 36. Nb3 a5

DB had less than a minute left at the time control, I think time has been significant in both our games

37. dxe fxe. (this broke up my pawns a bit but I felt it was important to keep Dave's horse off d4)

38. Ke2 Nc5 39. Nxa5? bxa5 40. Qxa5 Qa6+ 41. Qxa6 Nxa6 42. Kd3 Kd6

43. Ke4 g6 44. f4 Nc5+ 45. Kf3 exf 46. gxf Nxa4 47. g4 Nc5

White Resigns

ECB close to revenge

2010-11-24T23:09:00.000-08:00

Last night the second leg of the ECA vs ECB dual was played. This time it was closer and ECB were only one win away from drawing the match. Here is how it went:

1. John Reed 1-0 Keven Holton

Keven bravely allowed John to play his favourite Queen's Gambit Exchange opening and had little to do except sit back and wait for John to break through which he eventually did.

2. Graham Ball 1-0 Dave Broadbent

Playing the Nimzo-Indian defence Graham picked up a pawn in the late middlegame and duly won the endgame.

3. Phil Ramsey 1-0 David Taylor

I avoided David's home preparation by playing the English opening - a first for me. I built up a strong position and when David only had a few seconds for his last four moves he unwittingly exchanged into a lost endgame.

4. Alan Stokes 0-1 Tudor Rickards

In another Nimzo Indian Alan won a pawn early on and built up a winning position but lost his way in the allegro finish.

5. Paul Bamford 0-1 Geoff Clarke

Once again Paul whipped out his favourite Danish Gambit but Geoff defended carefully and finally exchanged into an equal ending. Paul declined a draw offer and then resigned when he felt the game was drifting away from him.

6. Bill Tait 1-0 Ian Vaughan

We unveiled Bill as our secret weapon on board 6 and he delivered the goods by winning a couple of pawns and then a piece in a Caro Cann.

So another win for ECA but we have Denton B away next Wednesday - yikes!

C Team vs Marple B, 18th November 2010

2010-11-20T04:53:00.000-08:00

A pair of drawers? On Thursday the C Team played away at Marple, and narrowly avoided being whitewashed by virtue of two draws achieved by Geoff and Andy W. But ... "We'll be back." (Well , not literally - the return match will be at ours.) Thanks for a good match, Marple, enjoyed by all.
Those scores:
East Cheshire C (Away)................Marple B (Home)
Geoff Clarke ...............1/2.... 1/2 Jeff Barlow
Mike Cunnane ............0........ 1 .. Trefor Thomas
Ian Vaughan ............. 0......... 1.. Roy Phillips
Andy Walker ............1/2..... 1/2 .Barrie Edwards
Roy Burrows ............. 0 ........1 ..Neil Dainty
TOTAL....................... 1 ........ 4

2010-11-18T03:05:00.000-08:00

Dave Broadbent V Graham Ball
1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 c5 4. Nf3 Nc6 5. Bd3 Qb6 6. OO (6. cxd is probably best)
6 ....... cxd 7. Nbd2

I have forgotten how to insert a board but here is the crux of the matter, White has sacrificed a pawn for some play, not much play yet in practise so far its played 3 won 3 for Graham so it must have something

7 ..... Bd7 (7. .....Nge7 or 7. .......f6 according to the chess.com database)
8 Nb3 f6?
9. Re1 (I think getting the Queen to e2 and the Rook to d1 is more accurate in the main line but
after 8.... f6 simply Nbxd4 equalises at least)
9. ...... OOO
10. a4 fxe 11. Nxe5 Nxe5 12. Rxe5 Bd6 13. Rh5 Nf6 14. Bg5 Nxh5 15. Bxd8 Qxd8 16. Qxh5 Qf6 17. Bb5 Rf8 18. BxB KxB 19. Qe2 Kc8 20. f3 Qh6
21. g3 Qf6? ( 21....Qe3+ leaves Black with a clear advantage)
22. Kg2 e5 23. Rf1 h5 24. Qb5 Qf7 25. Qd3 g5?! (maybe 25....h4)
26. a5 h4 27. a6 b6 28 Qb5 e4 ?! (better moves available)
29. Nxd4 h3? (time trouble swings the game White's way)
30. Kg1 (must not just take the h pawn)
30. .......Bc5
31. Qe6+ Qc7? ( 31 .... Kb8 maybe better)
32. Qa8 + Qb8
33. Qxd5 exf
34. C3?! ( 34. Qe6+ needs looking at)
34. .........Qc7
35. Qxg5 Qd7
36. Qd2 Qd5 37. Kf2 Re8 38. Re1 Rxe1 39. Kxe1 Qe4+ 40. Kf2 Qb1 41. Kxf3 Qf1+
42. Qf2 Qd3+ 43. Kg4 Qg6+ 44. Kxh3 Qh7+ 45. Kg2 Qe4+ 46. Qf3 Qb1 47. Qf5+ 1-0

ECA shows its class

2010-11-17T23:15:00.000-08:00

On a dark frigid night in East Cheshire a momentous event occurred. Two East Cheshire teams met in the league for the first time in living memory. The A team needed to continue their promotion drive while the B team needed to stay clear of the relegation zone. Here is how the games went:

1. John Reed 0.5-0.5 Keven Holton

John played the sharp Schliemann gambit in the Ruy Lopez. Keven played solidly however and kept his extra pawn into the endgame. He then made a generous draw offer which John couldn't really refuse.

2. Graham Ball 1-0 Dave Broadbent

Graham sacrificed a pawn for development in the Advance French but Dave played carefully and was soon a pawn up with an attack. However in time trouble he gave Graham too much counterplay and Graham mopped up a few loose pawns.

3. Phil Ramsey 1-0 David Taylor

This game was predictably a Reti vs Kings Indian. However David broke a chess rule by pushing a pawn where he was being attacked and soon lost a pawn. I held on to my extra pawn and won the endgame.

4. Dave Newell 1-0 Tudor Rickards

Tudor played the Kings Indian but ended up with a very passive position and Dave's Queenside pressure soon brought home the bacon.

5. Alan Stokes 1-0 Geoff Clarke

Geoff sacrificed a piece for an attack but Alan managed to survive and win the endgame.

6. Paul Bamford 1-0 Bill Tait

Paul 'Gambit' Bamford found another gambit system against the Caro Cann. Bill unwisely accepted and ended up far behind in development. Bill was unable to fend off the ensuing attack.

So a comfortable 5.5 - 0.5 win for the A team. However many of the games were closely fought, particularly on the top four boards, and the result could have been very different.

ECB get their chance for revenge next Wednesday in the return fixture.

Bramhall put up a fight

2010-11-15T23:26:00.000-08:00

ECA continued their good start to the season last night with another win, this time over Bramhall.

Bramhall, one of the weaker teams in the division, were heavily outgraded but they made us fight for the points and we eventually won 4.5 - 1.5.

Here is how it unfolded:

1. John Reed 1-0 Peter Thursfield (134)

Playing his favourite system against the Nimzo Indian Defence John soon won a piece and then the game with a raging attack.

2. Graham Ball 1-0 Nicholas Flaherty (125)

On the Black side of a Torre attack Graham tempted his opponent to over-extend himself and then mopped up a piece.

3. Phil Ramsey 0.5-0.5 Keith Hodgson (108)

I was expecting an easy game against a lower rated player but he played a solid Philidor's Defence - an opening I have very little experience of playing. I built up a good position but threw away my advantage in the time scramble and had to fight for the draw in a rook endgame.

4. Dave Broadbent 0-1 Hartley Oldham (101)

It is hard to beat low-rated players who keep making good moves! On the Black side of an Old Benoni Dave had a slightly cramped position and then loosened his kingside too much allowing his opponent a stinging attack.

5. Keven Holton 1-0 Duncan Chandley (86)

Keven played the Exchange Ruy Lopez and soon won a couple of pawns with some accurate moves.

6. David Taylor 1-0 Geoff Smith (71)

Playing a sort of Queen's Indian Defense David soon had a more active position and then used his pressure to win a pawn and then the endgame. David has continued his good form from last season. Let's hope he has a bad night on Wednesday when he plays me!

Next up our own East Cheshire B this Wednesday.

C Team vs Stockport D, 10th November 2010

2010-11-12T01:54:00.000-08:00

A rare defeat.
East Cheshire C - 2: Stockport D - 3. The scores were:
Geoff Clarke.....0...1....David Preen
Mike Cunnane 1...0...Marc Jackson
Ian Vaughan.....0...1...John Kelly
Andy Walker....1....0...Ian Anderson
Roy Burrows....0....1...Ray Bradney
Ian and Geoff took early baths: Ian won an exchange but blundered away a middle game advantage and a solid position. Mike was worse off for much of his game but played a good end game. Andy (playing stronger than his grade this season) attributed his win to a tactical exchange begun by giving away a bishop.
We were outgraded on every board, so a respectable score and congratulations to Mike and Andy.

East Cheshire Ship Shape at Wilmslow

2010-11-08T23:53:00.000-08:00

East Cheshire marched into the semi-finals of the Charnley Cup with a 5-1 victory at Wilmslow. We were able to field almost our strongest line-up and Wilmslow were unable to keep up with the pace. Here is how things worked out:

1. C Guffogg (126) 1-0 John Reed

London System vs Chigorin? Didn't see much of this one as it ended early when John blundered in a solid position.

2. R Warhurst (122) 0-1 Graham Ball

If Robin had done his homework he would have known not to play the French Defence against a world expert in that opening! Graham won a piece in the early middle game and the game was soon over.

3. M Palmer (114) 0-1 Phil Ramsey

Playing the London system against my King's Indian Defence my opponent decided to sacrifice a piece early on for some fun against my king rather than be ground down! Unfortunately for him he then accidentally sacrificed another piece and I managed to finish the game with a nice piece storm against his king.

4. A Flynn (109) 0-1 Dave Newell

Dave's trusty Bird's opening came good with a Kingside pawn storm that swept away all before it.

5. C Jackson (108) 0-1 David Taylor

On the Black side of a symmetrical English David built up an active position and then unleashed a fearsome combination to win a pawn and the exchange. Game of the night I think.

6. M Garvin (84) 0-1 Tudor Rickards

Playing the Queen's Gambit Tudor soon won a pawn and then easily ground out the win in the endgame.

On to the semi-finals where we will probably meet Holmes Chapel! That match may be a teeny bit harder...

East Cheshire C vs Macclesfield B, Wednesday 27 November 2010

2010-10-28T13:13:00.000-07:00

A win for the C Team - 3 1/2 to 1 1/2.

The scores were:-

Board.........ECC............................Macc B

1.............Alan Stokes......0......1..Richard Murphy

2............Paul Bamford.....1......0..Alan Sime

3............Mike Cunnane..1/2..1/2..Brian Woodhall

4............Ian Vaughan......1......0.. Angie Howe

5............Roy Burrows.....1......0..Peter Rawlins

Roy surprised both his opponent and himself by achieving a smothered mate. Ian's game involved a pawn battle in the centre which led to a decisive advantage. Both Roy and Ian finished early enough to play several friendly games against their opponents.

Mike as black played a QGA which went well, but after the middle game his opponent had plenty of counterplay and Mike's offer of a draw was accepted.

Paul's game begun with 1e4 e6. Paul played a King's Indian and it seems won a two pawn advantage early in the game.

Alan was on the black side of a Ruy Lopez which started 3...a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O b5 6.Bb3 Bc5 7.c3 d6 8.d4 exd 9.cxd Bb6. Alan says he should have played 8. .... Bb6 to stop his opponent recapturing with the c pawn on d4. He says he got into trouble after not noticing his opponent had left a knight en prise. Again, Alan arguably made best use of the time on the clock, gathering many spectators for the last half-hour.

We will look forward to the return match.

ECA Marches On

2010-10-14T04:38:00.000-07:00

Another match, another victory for ECA!

I was expecting a tough match against Altrincham but it turns out that their captain only remembered about the match the night before and so had to cobble a team together at the last minute.

Their weakness showed as we stomped over them 6.0!

Here is how we stacked up:

1. John R (169) 1 - 0 D. Merryfield (142)

2. Phil R (155) 1 - 0 D. Hughes (130)

3. Dave N (154) 1 - 0 K Linke (124)

4. Keven H (142) 1 - 0 C McNulty (121)

5. Tudor (137) 1 - 0 C McCoy (93)

6. Paul B (132) 1 - 0 S Ward (86)

John as Black had to grind down a stodgy Colle System but eventually managed to loosen up his opponent's King and win a pawn.

I was on the White side of a solid Ruy Lopez and won first a pawn and then a piece as my opponent misplayed his position.

Dave's opponent will not win any awards for subtlety as he attempted a version of Scholar's mate against the Sicilian. Fortunately Dave saw the threat and refuted his opponent's ridiculous opening!

Keven's success with 1. e4 continued as he quickly won material with his closed system against the Sicilian Defence. I'm glad that the London system has been abandoned for now!

Tudor's game started (if I am not mistaken) 1.e4 d5 2. Qe2 ?!! I'm not sure what his opponent had been smoking but Tudor had no problem getting a full point out of this one.

Paul played the ultra-aggresive Danish Gambit and seemed to be more material up every time I looked at his game. Nice work but not every game in Division II will be as easy.

Well played and next up is Urmston in the cup at home on Wed 27th Oct.

The C Team vs Urmston, 5th October 2010

2010-10-10T22:14:00.000-07:00

The C Team won 3-2. Moreover, everyone enjoyed the match. The scores were:
Urmston (Home) East Cheshire C (Away)
J Royle 0 1 Alan Stokes
T Plunkett 0 1 Geoff Clarke
J Bradley 1 0 Bill Tait
C Maudsley 1/2 1/2 Andy Walker
G Randall 1/2 1/2 Roy Burrows
Total 2 3

Roy (acting Captain) set up an unanswerable threat and accepted the draw offered by his much higher-graded opponent.
Andy also drew his game against strong opposition. He was on the back foot for the first 15 moves, but then managed to bring in a knight that both reinforced his defence and threatened the opponent's queen. This turned the game around and it went to the wire, but with insufficient material for a mate in the time remaining.
With the match at 2-2, the result hinged on Alan's game, a slow cerebral battle which Alan won on time, before the time control was reached.

October East Cheshire Rapidplay

2010-10-06T23:43:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday 6th October East Cheshire held their first early season club rapidplay.

Fourteen members turned out and after 6 rounds Phil Ramsey was the winner with 6/6. Paul Bamford won the 135 and under grading prize with 3.5.

John only lost his game to me after accidentally dropping his Queen where I could take it! Otherwise things might have been very different.

Here are all the scores:

1st - P Ramsey - 6

2nd - J Reed - 4.5

3rd - T Rickards - 4

4th = - D Newell - 3.5

P Bamford

6th = - D Broadbent - 3

M Cunnane

K Holton

A Stokes

D Taylor

11th - I Vaughan - 2

12th - G Clarke - 1.5

13th = - R Burrows - 1

B Tait

East Cheshire A vs Macclesfield A

2010-09-29T23:41:00.000-07:00

Our first match of the season was against potential title contenders Macclesfield.

Thankfully we were able to field a strong team and beat them 4.5 - 1.5!

Here are the details:

1. John Reed 0 - 1 A Soames

John had a great position on the Black side of an Albin Counter Gambit and had Soames on the ropes but then blundered. Bad luck.

2. Phil Ramsey 1- 0 P Cattermole

I was in my normal time trouble but started to get a nice position at about move 30. Cattermole started to think a lot and lost on time just as he made his 36th move! A harsh way for him to lose but I decided to claim the win for the sake of the team (and my grade!) The final position was better for me anyway.

3. Dave Newell 0.5 - 0.5 G Laurence

A solid draw from Dave on the Black side of a Dutch Leningrad. Great to see Dave back in the team again.

4. Keven Holton 1 - 0 V Kumar

A victorious return to 1.e4 for Keven. In an open Sicilian his opponent blundered a pawn early on and Keven pressed home his advantage mercilessly.

5. Dave Broadbent 1 - 0 D Lobo

On the Black side of an advance French Dave won a pawn early on but then had to offer a draw as his opponent had some threats. However his opponent needed a win for the sake of the team and played on - bad idea!

6. Alan Stokes 1 - 0 M Jouannet

Find a name for this opening: 1. d4 c5 2. Nf3 f5! The Benoni - Dutch? Whatever the name, Alan did a good job of exposing its flaws!

Well done guys! Next up Altrincham at home in two weeks.

Keith Arkell Visits East Cheshire

2010-05-14T23:41:00.000-07:00

East Cheshire member Sean Hewitt recently organised a simultaneous display by Grandmaster Keith Arkell at our normal club venue. For the measly sum of £10 we could pit our wits against chess professional and Grandmaster Keith.

In the end 14 contenders turned up including myself. Keith dispatched 12 of us, with 1 draw and 1 defeat.

Keith played in his normal solid style and raced around the boards, often leaving us needing one of our "passes" just to finish thinking. Less than 3 hours and a few endgame lessons later it was all over.

Keith was in good humour tonight and the night was fun and instructive.

Below are a couple of photos and a position from my game.

Keith, with White to play, won a pawn. Can you see how?

Phil

East Cheshire member plays Nigel Short

2010-04-20T23:19:00.000-07:00

Nigel Short recently gave a simultaneous exhibition in Manchester as part of a visit to the North West. Our own David Broadbent was there and by all accounts made Nigel work pretty hard, finally falling in a good Knight vs. bad Bishop endgame.

Here it is with David's comments:

Nigel Short vs David Broadbent

Ashton Under Lyme

20th March 2010

1. d4 d5

2. c4 e6

3. Nc3 Nf6

4. cd ed

5. Bg5 Be7

6. e3 c6

7. Bd3 Nbd7

8. Ne2 0-0

Short is preparing centre / kingside attack.

9. Qc2 Re8

10. 0-0 g6

All standard book until my 10. ... g6. The book move is Nf8 but I decided it was good tactics to block Short's Bishop and Queen and move out of book (I had a plan!)

11. Rae1 Nh5

12. Bxe7 Rxe7

13. Qd2 f5

Attempting to block a centre attack. Short now switches to the Queenside.

14. b4 Nhf6

15. f3 Qe8

16. Nc1 Kg7

17. Nb3 Rb8

Determined not to move my Queenside pawns.

18. a4 Nf8

19. a5 Bd7

20 Bc2 Qf7?

Ne6 is possibly best.

21. Nc5 Qe8

Two moves wasted. I expected Short to play e4.

22. Nd3 Ne6

23. Ne5 Nd8

24. Na4 Nf7

25. f4 Ne4

26. Bxe4 dxe4

27. Nc5 Nxe5

28. fxe5 Be6

29. g4 Rf7

Short switches to the Kingside.

30. gf gf

Short obviously has an advantage but ais running out of attacking pieces. I can still defend easily.

31. Kh1 Kh8

32. Rf4 Rd8

33. Rg1 Qe7

34. Qg2 Bc8

Looking to cover a6 / b7 in the ending.

35. Qg5 Re8

36. h4 Rg7

37. Qxe7 Rxg1+

38. Kxg1 Rxe7

39. Kh2 Kg7

40 Rf2 h6?!

h5 is maybe better? Or b6 to free the bishop?

41. Rg2+ Kh7

42. h5 Re8

43. Rg6 Rg8

44. Rxg8 Kxg8

45. Kg3 Kf7

46. Kf4 Ke7

47. Na4 Be6

48. Nc3 a6?

What else? (How about Bc4 to stop the Knight manoever? -Ed.)

49. Ne2 Kf7

50. Ng3 1-0

Instructive endgame. Short probably knew how he could win 15 moves ago. Still, 50 moves was not bad.

Attacking with the Modern Defense

2010-03-02T23:37:00.000-08:00

Keven has been in fine form recently and is about the only East Cheshire player who does not have a negative score this season! Here is one of his recent wins in Division II. Notes by Keven.

P Coleville .v. K.R.Holton

B1 ECB .v. Macclesfield B

24th February

Opening – Modern Defence

e4 g6

d4 Bg7

Nf3 d6

Bg5 Nc6 (Bg5 shades of John Reed !! c5 is the alternative line to Nc6)

Bb5 a6

Be2 Bg4 (Fritz favours his Be2 but it looks passive)

c3 Nf6

Nbd2 e5

d5 Nce7 ( Souped up KID according to Nigel Davies)

h3 Bd7

0-0 h6

Be3 g5

Nh2 Ng6

Ng4 Nf4 ( Many Davies Modern’s go like this )

Nxf6 Qxf6 (Fritz concurs but I quite liked Bxf6 so the Q can take back on d7 after Bg4 and the g-file is less cluttered)

Bg4 h5!

Bxd7+ Kxd7

f3 Rag8

c4 Bh6 ( Fritz prefers Nc4 for White here)

Qa4+ Kc8

c5 g4!!

Bxf4 Qxf4 (Fritz prefers e/f4 for Black here)

c6 gxh3

cxb7+ Kxb7

Qb4+ Kc8

Rf2 Rxg2+

Rxg2 hxg2

Nc4 Qxf3

Nxd6+ c/d6 ( Calm under fire as the B thwarts Rc1+ with chances)

Qc4+ Kd8 ( Important to avoid immediate checks from the Queen)

Qc6 Be3+ ( White has one minute left I have five)

Kh2 Qf4+

Kh3 Qg4+

Resigns as he cannot prevent Kh2 g1=Q+ and Rxg1 Qxg1+ and then R g8+++

0-1

Taming a GM

2010-02-15T23:27:00.000-08:00

Playing in the Stockport Chess League we don't meet many Grandmasters but new member Sean Hewitt did once hold seasoned GM Mark Hebden to a draw. Sean describes how he did it:

[Date "2008.11.24"]

[White "Hebden, Mark [246]"]

[Black "Hewitt, Sean [161]"]

[Result "1/2-1/2"]

1. d4 Nf6

2. Nf3 g6

3. Nc3 d5

4. Bf4 Bg7

5. Qd2 Ne4

6. Nxe4 dxe4

7. Ne5 Nd7

8.O-O-O O-O

9. Nxd7 Qxd7

10. Bh6 Rd8

11. Bxg7 Kxg7

12. e3

Knowing that I was playing Mark I had done some prep and seen that he had had this position before and I was quite compfortable playing into it as I have no real weaknesses. However, I had decided that being meek for the whole game would get me nowhere.

12. ... Qa4

13. Kb1 Be6

14. b3 Qa3

15. c4 c6

16. Be2 b5

17. Qb2 Qxb2+

18. Kxb2 bxc4

Although there are still 4 rooks on the board, I decided it was time to activate my king as I figured it couldn't get into trouble.

19. Bxc4 Kf6

20. Bxe6 Kxe6

21. Rc1 Rac8

22. Rc5 Rd5

23. Rhc1 Rxc5

24. Rxc5 Kd6

25. Kc3 f5

26. Ra5 Rc7

27. Kc4 Rb7

28. h4 e6

I figured this to be pretty level now. I'd be happy if I didn't have to move!

29. b4 h6

30. a4 g5

Classical he attacks on one wing, I attack on the other. If I can make my kingside majority count...

31. hxg5 hxg5

32. f3 exf3

33. gxf3 Rg7

34. e4

This puzzled me as it gives me a passed pawn. But then I saw his plan. If I push the passed pawn after we swap he plays e5+ followed by Rxa7+ and the rook on g7 bites the dust.

34. ... fxe4

35. fxe4 e5

But this clever pawn sacrifice stops all the GMs tricks! After the game, Mark told me that he had missed this move - GMs are human too. (35... g4 36. e5+ and the rook is lost after Rxa7+)

36. Rxe5 g4

37. Rh5 g3

38. Rh6+ Kd7

39. Rh1 g2

40. Rg1 Kd6

41. Kd3 Rg3+

42. Ke2 a6

43. a5 Ke6

44. Kf2 Rd3

45. Rxg2 Rxd4

46. Rg6+ Kd7

47. Ke3 Rxb4

48. Kf4 Rb5

49.e5 Rxa5

And now I have the draw. This position is drawn even if I don't have any pawns. I just have to make sure they don't get in the way, and that I don't do anything stupid. If you don't know how to draw this ending a pawn down, learn it. It will make you many draws!

Many moves later...

81. e6

Moving the pawn admits defeat, and accepts that white cannot win. The white king now has no shield from checks from the black rook.

81. ... Rb1

82. Rg8+ Ke7

83. Rg7+ Ke8

84. Rg5 Rf1+

85. Ke5 Re1+

86. Kf6 Rf1+

87. Rf5 Re1

88. Rf4 Re2

89. Rf1 Re3

90. Rd1 Re2

91. Kf5 Rf2+

92. Ke5 Re2+

93. Kd6 Re3

94. Rd5 Re1 1/2-1/2

Surviving a storm

2010-01-30T23:45:00.000-08:00

The East Cheshire B team recently had a great result against Macclesfield A, securing a draw against a higher-rated team. David Taylor's win was a key part of that result and he has sent us the game with his comments:

White: Marc Jouannet (Macclesfield, 127) Black: David Taylor (130)

Opening: d4 d5 "unusual lines".

1. d4 Nf6

2. Nc3 d5

3. Bf4 e6

4. Qd2 Be7 (I thought about Bd6, but it turns out that the black squares will be crucial)

5. 0-0-0 0-0

6. f3 (uh oh! He's planning a K-side pawn storm! All his moves have been reflex actions, he's done this before...)

Nbd7

7. g4 (here we go!) Nb6 (I better make room for the K-side knight, and Nc4 could be useful later)

8. e4 (damn! now he can take on c4)

8. ... c5 (Counterattack on the Q-side must be essential; have I got time?)

9. e5 fNd7 (now my king is looking lonely)

10. h4 (as expected; note that Bxh4 11. Qh2 looks terminal)

cxd4

11. Nb5

11. a6 ( decided I don't mind 12. Nd6 because BxN 13. exB f6 looks good for black; then he can't take on d4 because of e5)

12. Nxd4 Nc4 (I must try and control those black squares on d2 and e3!)

13. Bxc4 dxc4

14. Nh3 (Rated poorly by Fritz, it worried me because my e6 is looking at possibly 2 knights planning to take and fork Q and R, after 15. Ng5. I could defend via Nc5, but I want to control d2 and e3 from a Nd5... so....)

14. ... Nb6 (& defend e6 with my bishop)

15. Bg5 Nd5 (I got there! Now I'm thinking of ....c3!)

16. Qe2? (at last, he's blundered!)

16. ... c3!

17. b3?? (Fritz scores this position as -12. You can see why: his Q-side black squares have been abandonned)

Qa5? (Bxg5+ is better, but Qa5 is still winning)

18. a4? (Fritz score now at -22 ... he had to play Rd3 when if I take on g5, he must play Kd1)

18. Qc5 (Fritz still reckons Bxg5+ should be played first)

19. Bxe7 Qxe7

and black resigned. He can't stop mate after the impending .....Qa3+

Lessons learned: Don't open the h-file whatever you do, if you have castled 0-0 and he has castled 0-0-0.

Counterattack a.s.a.p. when your king is being stormed.

Stay positive when the missiles are pouring in!

A castled king can be securely trapped by a pawn on the 3rd (or 6th) rank.

Killing the King's Indian

2010-01-29T23:59:00.000-08:00

Last summer our number 1 board John Reed showed us his system against that pesky King's Indian. Just to prove that he practises what he preaches here is a recent crush against a strong opponent. Comments by John.

John Reed - Hubert Pierrard (1982)

1. d4 Nf6

2. c4 g6

3. Nc3 Bg7

4. e4 d6

5. Bg5 (of course)

5. ... Nbd7

6. f4 h6

7. Bh4 c6 (slow but allows Qb6 or Qa5 . The problem for White in Bg5 is always the black squares on the Q side and centre))

8. Nf3 0 -0

9. e5 de5

10. fe5 Ng4 ( not bad Nh5 may be better)

11. e6 !? (introducing huge complications. Blacks pawns are a mess. Is his Knight good or bad on g4?)

11. ... Nb6. (better to take fe6. Then not 12 Bd3 because of e5! better 12 Qe2 ! e5 ! 13. 0-0-0-! . very hard to find this over the board )

12. ef7 Rf7

13. Qd2 (keep the Knight out )

13. ... Qd6 ( with the idea of Qe6 +, better Qd7 as Q now vulnerable )

14. 0-0-0 ! Qb4 (better Qf4 but Black is now worse )

15. h3 (go away ) Nf6 ( disaster. only way to keep game alive was to give this up)

17. Ne5 Na4 (desperation)

18. Nf7 (why not?) Bf5

18. Na4 Qa4

19. b3 Qa3+

20. Qb2 Qa5 ( he had to swap but its terrible now)

21. Be1 (guards the dark squares ) Qc7

22. Ne5 ( a whole rook up ) h5

23. Bd3 ( finally get the bishop out) Ne4

24. g4 (oh dear) Bh6+

25. Kb1 1-0

So another King's Indian bites the dust thanks to John's unusual system. Just be prepared to play sharply if you want to get the best out of it!

Double Discovered Check

2010-01-13T23:51:00.001-08:00

Well finally I have a chess game worth blogging about! Here are the highlights of my game against Lysons of Denton last night.

1. White has just played 12. Bb2. Can you see a shot that I missed?

I played 12. ... a6 but 12. ... Ne5 would have ruined his kingside pawns.

2. White has just played 21. a4? What did I play?

21. ... Ne5! wins a pawn, as does 21. ... Nxc5!

3. We then reached the following position with Black to move. What should the plan be?

The problem is that if Black swaps queenside pawns and the Queens the position will probably be drawn. Therefore I decided to use my extra kingside pawn to storm his king.

26. ... b4 would have been good but I began the storm with 26. ... e5.

4. I then got the below position with Black to move. It is useful to know some of the cast iron rules of chess. One is that in double discovered check you have to move your king. Knowing this rule allowed me to bash out the winning move in time trouble. What was it?

33. ... Rxg3+ wins the house.

Another victim of the system

2009-08-14T23:32:00.000-07:00

While most of East Cheshire Chess Club have been sunning themselves in various parts of Europe our top player John Reed has been honing his opening system (which he kindly shared with us in a number of recent lectures) in France.

Here is another Queen's Gambit Declined steamroller with notes by John:

My opponent is an up and coming Azerbaijani junior who plays in France rated about 2000 ELO. The opening is simliar to the Queen's Gambit exchange. Note the standard metod of nullifying his early kingside attack. I prat around a bit on moves 21 to 23 but then it is amazing how quick the game collapses after g4 and Rg1. I don't think g4 is a great computer move but deserves a ! for unsettling the game at a crucial point.

JR - R Kasimanali

1.d4 d5

2. c4 e6

3. Nc3 Be7 (avoids many openings)

4 Bf4 Nf6

5. e3 0-0

6. cxd exd

7. Bd3 c6

8. Qc2 a5

9. N1e2 Na6

10. a3 Nc7 (this is a modern way of deploying the Queen's Knight)

11. 0-0 Ne6

12. Bg3 h6

13. f3 Nh5

14. Bf2 Bd6

15. e4 (probably too soon)

15. ... Nhf4

16. e5 Nxd3

17. Qxd3 Be7

18. f4 f5 (Black Knight on e6 now crucial piece)

19. h3 b6

20. Kh1 Ba6

21. Qf3 Ra7 Black has nice position.

22. Rc1(prevaricating) Rd7

23. Rfe1 Rc7

24. g4 Kh7

25. Rg1 g6 starting to lose the thread

26. Rg2 b5

27. gxf gxf? better Rf5 ( I will attack the king, you try to win on Qside!)

28. Rcg1 (it's going)

28. ... b4 (too late)

29. Rg6 Rf7

30. Qh5 ouch Bf8

31. Re6 bxc3

32. Qg6 1 - 0

Let's hope for some similar crushes in the Stockport league this season!

Dutch Treat

2009-05-03T11:57:00.001-07:00

This is Graham's last game of the season against Stockport. I think Graham would admit he was not particularly motivated about this game, not much to play for really, this was until his opponent chuckled when Graham played his opening move 1.....f5. To be fair to his opponent this was not a chuckle at the move but more circumstance. Grahams opponent had prepared 1. Nf3 on the basis he might get White against Dave Newell's Dutch. Apparently Stockport chess club keep a database and Dave is on it, seems to me this is taking chess a mite too seriously. So having not got Dave he abandoned the Nf3 preparation, played 1. c4 then got the Dutch anyway, bit of a bugger life sometimes.

Anyway on with the game.

1. c4 f5
2. Nc3 d6 (supporting e5, anf if White plays d4 then we are back into main line Dutch Leningrad)
3. g3 e5
4. d3 Nf6
5. Bg2 g6
6. Nf3 c6
7. O-O Bg7
8. Rab1 O-O
9. b4 Nh5
10. Qb3 f4

So the opening has gone OK, its not too far off a Leningrad structure, not sure if the pawn on e5 is strong or exposed but it turned out OK.

11. c5+ d5
12. e4 fxe3

Is the Ne4 then Nd6 manouvre good or not?

13. fxe3 Kh8
14. e4 half a question mark maybe
14. ... d4
15. Na4 Qe8
16. Bd2 Be6
17. Qa3 cheap trick or best available?
17. ... Na6
18. Ng5 Rxf1 I think this is best although other tries are available, the Queen is probably best if it can remain on e8 for the time being, lots of options from there
19. Bxf1 Bg8
20. Be2 Nf6
Wonder if immediate h6 is better, not much in it maybe, don't believe White will want to exchange the White squared bishop for the knight, probably needs it to defend those white squares around the King if necesary

21. Bd1 h6
22. Nf3 g5
23. Nb2 Nc7
24. Bb3? Nb5
25. Qa4 (a long way from being in the game)
25. ... Qh5
26. Kg2 (Graham clearly up here, Nxe5 is an interesting try)
26. ... Rf8 (26. ...Nf4 worth a look)
A new experience for Graham this season, bit of time trouble having been treading very carefully over the past few moves
27. Rf1 Ng4
28. h3 Ne3+
29. Bxe3 dxe3
30. g4 Qg6

31. Bd1 Nd4
32. Re1? Nxf3
Graham with not much time analized one sequence of moves giving him a position of safety and probably a win, 32.... Nxf3 is OK, but there is a winner.

33. Bxf3 Rxf3
34. Kxf3 Qf6+
35. Kxe3 Qf4+
36. Ke2 Qh2+
37. Kd1 Qxb2
38. Re2 Qa1+
39. Kd2 Qxa2

Well I think with correct play this is eventually a win for Black but its not easy against the clock and although a few more moves were played a draw was eventually agreed. Graham's challenge for next year is to turn a few of these very good draws into wins!

A Tudor Triumph

2009-04-22T22:55:00.000-07:00

Just to cheer up the B team after being denied their match last night here is Tudor showing us all how to swindle again Denton last month. Notes by Tudor.

T Rickards 1 J Lysons 0

1. e4 ...e5
2. Nf3 ...d6
3. Bc4 ...Be7
4. O-O ...Nf6
5. Re1 ...0-0
6. c3 ...a6
7. d4 ...e x d
8. c x d ...Nc6?! (don't like this now, must find a better move)

9. h3 ...b5
10. Bb3 ...Bb7
11. Nc3 ...h6 (shows B is running out of decent moves)
12. e5! ..dxe
13. dxe ...QxQd1
14. RxQd1 (black in some trouble).
...Nh7
15. R1d7 (wish I was White)
...Bd8

Instructive. White completely in charge but needs to find best plan. I suspect gradual strangulation. Black has to, well, just hang in there

16. Bf4 ...Bc8
17. Rd2 ...Be6!? (I like it. What else? )
18. Nd5?! ( Looks strong. Ducks the obvious 18 B x B with severe B p weaknesses to avoid (doubtful) F file counterplay? )
18. ...Na5
19. Rc1? Loses. In pursuit of a win down the c file stuffs himself. Ra1d1retains probable win

19 ...c6! (thank you, white)
Nothing to do. Black forces material gain.
20. Nb4 ...B x Bb3 and wins comfortably. White quickly finds a few more moves to lose more quickly before the endgame.

Lesson: ...Nf6 is rarely played in Philidor's defense. Game shows one reason why. If offered a simplification to a v good endgame, take it.

Keven the Najdorf Killer!

2009-03-31T23:03:00.000-07:00

K.R.Holton v. D Toole
East Cheshire B .v. Denton
Board 2
25th March/2009

1. e4 (I had a panic attack about his battle tested Kings Indian v. my new Reti!)

1. ... c5 (I hope he doesn’t know the Sicilian as well!)
2. Nf3 (Martian logic says if you play something you don’t know make sure you really don’t know it – hence the open Sicilian!)

2. ... d6
3. d4 c/d
4. Nx d4 Nf6
5. Nc3 a6
6. Be3 e5 (Hmm he does !?...)
7. Nb3 Be6 (Mum I want to go home now!)

8. Be2 Be7
9. 0—0 Nbd7
10. f4 Qc7
11. f5 Bc4 I didn’t like f/e5 and I felt a King-side assault was my best chance
12. Bxc4 Qxc4
13. Nd2 Qc6 Fritz gives Black 0.34 at this stage but I’m still punching.

14. Qf3 Rc8 I was surprised by this expecting Nc5 keeping 0-0-0 in reserve
15. g4 ! h5 ! After the game my opponent graciously told me g4 “was an “awful move”
16. h3 h/g
17. h/g Rh4 Looks good to me, a really Tudor type slugfest. I need a good cuts man !

18. g5 Nh5?? I had thought for 20 minutes cogitating his Ng4 where after Qg3 he had Nxe3 and then after the sequence Qxh4 Nxf1 Rxf1 I was loose but with K side pressure. I think the move played loses a piece to a pawn.

19. Bf2 ! Bxg5
20. Bxh4 Bxh4 ? The Martian mind scrambler I keep down my inside leg ( no not from one of those films Jackie Smith’s house husband watches !) has done the trick he had to play Bxd2 to have any worthwhile counter play.

21. Qxh5 Qb6 +
22. Kg2 Qe3 Oh No! -- he’s up to something, why did I cheapskate with ‘Pound Shop’ batteries in the mind scrambler………….. Pleased I played g2 to hold f2 though.

23. Qxh4 Rxc3 ?! Phew mind scrambler still working what is this? I had expected Qxd2 when Rf2 held well and allowed me to attack with Qh8+. Hasn’t he given me enough material?

24. b/c Qxd2+ No perpetual here Sunny Jim !
25. Rf2 Qxc3
26. Rd1 Nf6
27. Rxd6 Ke7 Otherwise Qh8+ and mate with Qd8
28. Rf-d2 g5 A desperate shot but Nxe4 forking both rooks and the queen is not on.
29. Qxg5 His flag had fallen to deprive me of mate in two………..
I politely said I wanted to avoid his KI so played e4 “off the cuff” and didn’t know it. “It showed “ he added rather sagely…………….

Having a Ball with the French

2009-03-29T06:05:00.000-07:00

White: McKenna Black: Graham Ball

I think Graham expected to lose this one, he had fluked a half early in the season but maybe that actually worked in his favour.

1. e4 e6
2. d4 d5
3. Nc3 Nf6
4 e5 Nfd7
5. f4 c5
6. Nf3 Nc6
7. Be3 a6
Graham likes the 7.....a6 line for no better reason than he has forgotten about the Nb5 Nd6 manouver on more than one occasion. Its also true that with a bit of cooperation from White it can produce some interesting Q side ideas. I prefer 7......cxd4

8. Qd2 b5
9. dxc Bxc5
10. Bxc5 Nxc5
11. Qf2 Qb6
12. Bd3
Not sure about this one, Graham likes to get the bits off against a better player and surely White wants to keep the light squared bishop

12. ... Nxd3ch
13. cxd3 Qxf2 ch
14. Kxf2 Bd7
15. Rhc1

After 15 minutes thought. Graham gets nervous when good players start to think, mostly because he admits he can never figure out whats to think about, too much quickplay chess!

15. ... Ke7
16. Ne2 Rhc8
17. a3 h6

Can't help but think one side or the other needs to be on b4 here but haven't sat down and analysed it.

18. h4 Ra7
19. Rc5 Rac7
20. R1c1 Kd8
21. g4 Ne7
22. RxR RxR
23. RxR KxR
24. Ng3 g6

25. h5
(25. Nd4 better maybe)
25. ... Kc6

JPM has around 15 minutes left but takes 10 of them over the next mone, GB now very nervous. now I think b4 or Nd4 probably best but JPM maybe feels he should find a winning move

26. Ng5

26. ... gxh

After sitting there for 10 minutes. GB would not have taken that Knight even if it were possible.

27. Nxf7 hxg
28. Nxh6 b4

Hard for JPM to win this now even with the extra pawn coming

29. axb Kb5
30. Nxg4 Kxb4

31. Ne3?

Dont like this move, think GB has an edge now

31. ... Kb3
32. Nd1?

Not convinced by this either (time trouble moves.)

32. ... Kc2
33. Ke2 Bb5
34. Ne3 Kxb2

35 f5?

Swapping off alright for GB, the Bishop ought to become strong.

35. ... exf
36. Ngxf5 Nexf5

Time control, now on a first look I would have thought black winning but have not yet found a winning line , the problem is the a pawn is queening on the wrong colour so if white gets his king in front of it even after losing the knight to stop the d pawn it's drawn.

37. Nxf5 Kc3
38. Nd6 Bxd3ch
39. Ke3 d4ch
40. Kf4 Bc2
41. e6 Ba4
42. Ke5 d3
43. Ne4ch Kc2
44. Kd6 d2
45. Nxd2 Kxd2
46. Kc5 Kc3 draw

Queen's Gambit Steamroller

2009-03-25T23:54:00.001-07:00

John Reed recently sent me one of his best wins, played in the Pornic Open in France where he won the veteran prize. In John's words "it just shows the power of the Queens Gambit Exchange variation, the best opening there is." That may be true but how often do your opponents let you play it?

Here is the game with a few notes by me:

John Reed vs. T Giraud (1900)

1. d4 d5
2. c4 e6
3. Nc3 Nf6
4. cd5 ed5

The starting position of the Queen's Gambit Exchange Version. White has the half open c-file and an extra central pawn with prospects of a central pawn storm later. What does Black have? I'm not sure really! Perhaps John could explain one day? Nigel Short seems happy to play the Black pieces here anyway.

5. Bg5 Be7
6. Qc2 c6
7. e3 Bg4
8. Bd3 Nbd7
9. f3 Bh5
10. N(1)e2 Bg6
11. O-O Bd3
12. Qd3 h6
13. Bh4 O-O
14. Rad1 Re8

The opening is over. White is ready to start pushing pawns. Black adopts a wait-and-see approach which doesn't work very well!

15. Kh1 Nf8
16. Bf2 Ng6
17. e4 Bf8
18. e5 Nd7
19. f4 Bb4
20. f5 Nf8
21. Qg3 Qg5
22. Qh3 Be7
23. Rd3

Ooops! Black's queen is in danger of being trapped and most of his pieces are mere spectators.

23. ... h5
24. f6 Bf6
25. ef6 Qf6
26. Rf3 1-0
What a crush! A great reason to play 1. d4, except that most of the time you will find yourself in a Nimzo, or a King's Indian, or a Slav...

Black to play and lose

2009-03-10T00:20:00.000-07:00

Here is how Tudor won his game last Thursday night. This was the decisive game which won us the match against Holmes Chapel.

Notes by Tudor.

Tudor Rickards v. M Roberts (127).

Here is the position after 30. cxd:

Various tactics left white with not a lot more than a slightly easier position to play in time trouble.

Black decides to simplify. But this left one winning resouce I had been hoping might come into play.

30. ... Q xd4 (I expected R xd4)

So what would you play to give yourself the chance of a quick swindle?

31. Qe2 (to appear to threaten a6, although Rd1 looks better ...)
31. ... Qd6 (Oh, yes, thank you black)
32. Qc4 and wins. Cheap but some credit for trying for the endgame with good B versus poor Kt, and the basic combo working with one pair of rooks off, and Qs still on.

International star reduced to 14 move draw by East Cheshire

2009-03-06T14:27:00.000-08:00

Having already beaten Chorlton (twice) and High Peak this season East Cheshire is now ready to mix in international circles. So on Thursday night our number one board John Reed took on Welsh star Jon Blackburn who represented his country in Dresden last year. Jon has a FIDE rating of almost 2200 but our John held him to a 14 move draw by repetition. Notes by John below.

J Reed v J Blackburn (some huge grade)

1. d4 e6 2.c4 b6 3.Nc3 Bb4 I hate playing this . Played it on the internet and I know what's coming.

4. e4 Bb7 5 Bd3 Nf6 6 f3 Nh5 (!?)

Huge think now. Decided that out of Be3, Ne2 I preferred 7.Nh3 Qh5 8 Nf2 (but what about g3 !!) Nc6 9. g3(!) no time to protect d4 .... Ng3 (else he is swamped if he retreats) 10 hg3 Qg3 11 Be3 (white winning now) f5 ( I now concocted elaborate drawing plan overlooking Rh3 winning)

12. Ke2 f4 13 Rg1 Qh2 14 Rh1 Qg3 15 etc

A hot game in the Chorlton chill

2009-02-14T00:24:00.000-08:00

Tuesday night saw East Cheshire A team playing fellow strugglers Chorlton. If there was a prize for worst playing venue in the Stockport league then Chorlton would almost certainly win it. It seems like there are no brooms or paint brushes in Manchester these days. And the landlords were obviously saving energy costs by only turning the heating on 10 minutes before the match started!

Despite the less than salubrious surrounding we managed to win the match 4-2, no thanks to my miserable defeat on board 4.

On board 5 Tudor gave Mr Sainsbury another lesson in the inherent problems with the Pirc defense! Actually the opening was not the cause of the defeat and in a totally unclear position it could have been anyone's game.

So here is the game with notes by Tudor unless otherwise stated.

Rickards v Sainsbury

Feb 11^th 2009

E Cheshire v Chorlton

I have a feeling this game will be trashed by Fritz. Who cares what a slice of silicon can do?

1 e4 d6;
2 d4 Nf6;
3 Nc3 g6;
4 f3 (classical system I found out afterwards. Crude and tactical).
4 ..Bg7;
5 Be3 (not popular. More common is Be2. Go on Fritz. Hit me). (actually this is the main line! - Phil)
5 …O-O;
6 Qd2 Re8; (let’s preserve the bishop, if 7 Bh6);
7 O-O-O c6; ( pawn push game coming up. Thought briefly of 8 Kb1 to avoid nasties on the a file and sacs plus Bh6 to win queen. Decided to press on);
8 g4 (opponent thought of 8.. Bxg4, 9..Nxg4 with those threats to my king 10 Bh6. I didn’t think much. Piece for 2ps, But I do have to give up nice bishop for knight)
8 ..Qc7 ; (Seemed a bit slow in hindsight. But it might force me to make that move Kb1);
9 h4 (sacs still about same as last move) 9 …b5 ; (time to think. Continue K side push, or move Kt. Decided K side push, stick Kt(c3) on b1 not on e2 so I could have play on the a2-g8 diagonal for my bishop. Almost certainly meant losing the a pawn and nasties down the h8-a1 diagonal. So
10 h5 critical position.

10 …e5!? ; (didn’t expect it. Expected 10 …b5 when would have played 11 Nb1 and if 11 ..Qa5, h5xg6 with complex game but a nice open h file).

11 hxg6 …fxg6;

12 Qh2 (not totally crude as it has ties down the black Kt to defence 12 …b4

13 Nb1 13 ..Be6;

14 b3 (?! Or ? Had rough plan of c4, and looked at ..exd4, Red4) …14 …a5 (back to pushing)

15 a4 ? (why didn’t I stick to my earlier idea of c4?) 15 … pxp a3 (e.p.) ;

16 Nx a3 …16 ..a4 ;

Now I thought the tactics were turning against me.
THIS IS THE MOST COMPLEX SITUATION REACHED SO FAR. MAYBE I COULD FIND A HOLDING MOVE. OK FRITZ. DO YOUR WORSE. position is incalculable. I now was seriously worried and needed to find a way of dealing with a4 x b3. Worse, I was running out of Lucazade. I thought the best option is to continue to create threats maybe as the attacking moves are a kind of defence which black may have to attend to.

17 Nc4 axb;
18 d x e b x c?; (had worried more about 18 …R a1+ 1; 18 b2 + is also good ) (chesslab.com gives the variation 18. ... Ra1+ 19. Kd2 Ra2 20. Bd3 dxe5 21. Kc3 bxc2 22. Bxc2 Nbd7 with a 2 pawn advantage to Black - Phil.)
19 R x d6 (was considering this anyway, and black’s 18^th makes it more attractive)
…19 R a1+;

20 K x c2 Ra2 +;

21 Nb2 (One point of 17 Nc4, I was worried about losing Q along the 2^nd rank)

Now black launches into attractive series of sacs which probably entranced him. Simpler moves must give him more, and probably there’s a direct win. Now it simplifies to a slight plus for white
21 … R x Kt (!?);

22 K x Kt and now …Q x R (now I see what he’s up to, entire sequence is maybe !?)

23 e x Q d6 23 Kt x g4 (disc +);

24 K- c2 Kt x Q h2;

25 R x Kt h2 B-e5;

26 R – d2 (lucky me)

After a lot of careful trap-avoiding I force win on ca move 56 through strong connected passed pawns in centre. In this ending I needed to avoid swapping pieces as much as possible.

Mate in 31!

2009-02-04T22:37:00.000-08:00

My run continues. One day soon my bubble will burst but for now I am enjoying the ride. Here is my game from last night...

A Soames (153) vs P Ramsey
Macc. Reds v East Cheshire B

1. d4 Nf6
2. c4 g6
3. g3 Bg7
4. Bg2 O-O
5. Nf3 d6
6. Nc3 Nbd7
7. O-O e5
8. e4 c6
9. Rb1

The above position has been reached over 300 times in master play. However my next move was played in none of them! I guess this means it is either bad or obscure. I thought it was a natural move, allowing Nh5 and f5 with the Knight being protected by the Queen after exf and gxf.

9. ... Qe8
10. Re1 Nh5
11. dxe dxe
12. Be3?

Seeing as Black is obviously planning f5 possibly followed by f4 it seems wrong to let him gain a tempo on the bishop when he follows this plan.

12. ... f5
13. b4 f4
14. Bc1 fxg

I wanted to open the f file for my rook and make sure my knight on h5 could always go to f4 if he pushed g4.

15. hxg Ndf6

Finally allowing my white bishop to enter the game.

16. Ba3 Bg4
17. Qb3 Nd7

Simply attacking the knight on f3.

18. Re3!?

This allows me to activate my dark bishop but his rook will be well placed on d3.

18. ... Bh6
19. Rd3 Be6
20. b5

This uncovers an attack on my rook on f8. After Rf7 I would struggle to double up my queen and rook on the f file. My opponent had used up a lot of time by this point and seemed to be feeling the pressure so I decided to complicate things!

20. ... Qf7!?

The pawn on c4 cannot be defended as Nd2 allows me to take on f2.

21. Rxd7 ?!

I think it was better to take on f8. After 21. ... Rxf8 Black will win the c4 pawn and has some pressure but things are still unclear.

21. ... Bxd7
22. Bxf8 Rxf8
23. c5 Be6
24. Qc2 Qf6
25 bxc bxc
26. Rb7 Bg4!?

This is probably the best move but I hadn't really considered the response Nh2.

27. Ne1?

Thankfully he played something worse! After 27. Nh2 Be6 28. Rxa7 Nxg3! 29. fxg Be3+ 30. Kh1 Qg5 Black should win but would I have found this in time trouble?

27. ... Nxg3!

Finally this knight has its say!

28. fxg3 Be3+
29. Kh2

Black appears to have nothing immediate. Can you spot the killer move?

29. ... g5!

29. ... Qg5 is equally strong. The check on the h file will be terminal.

30. Bf3 Qh6+
31. Kg2 Qh3++

A nice game and a nice win for East Cheshire B against a strong team.

David Taylor's game on Wednesday 14th Jan 2009

2009-01-18T09:21:00.000-08:00

Hi all!

I thought I would try out the new Blogspot set up by Phil, and post one of my own games for your comments.

So, here goes .............! It is a Reti Accepted, and the comments stem from me or from Fritz8.

David Taylor (104) v Evan Wood (110, Chorlton) on 14-01-2009

1. Nf3 d5
2. c4 dc
3. e4 e6
4. Bxc4 Nf6
5. Nc3 Be7
6. O-O O-O
7. d4 c6
8. a3 He was obviously thinking about b5, and I initially planned to play Ba2
8. b5 (Fritz: Nbd7 better to develop the Q-side.)
It now occurred to me that his K-side was vulnerable to attack along c2 - h7, so:
9. Bd3 a5 He has no minor piece out on the Q-side - in fact he never gets a chance!
10. Qc2 Ne8 He anticipated e5 clearing the diagonal, so plans a pre-emptive f5.
11. e5 f5
12. exf6 Nxf6
13. Ne4 g6 This caused him grief later, so h6 is probably preferable.
14. Bh6 Re8

Here I worried about ....Ng4 so I played:

15. h3 But Fritz prefers the more aggressive Neg5
15. Nxe4
16. Bxe4 Bf8 Here Fritz suggests Bf6 is better for black
17. Be3 Here Fritz considers Bg5 is best; I wanted to overprotect d4.
17. Be7

Here I was considering Bxg6 but couldn't be certain it was going to succeed so I played:

18. Ne5 However, Fritz asserts Bxg6 at once will win. Do you all agree?

18. Ra6 Rf8 would be more sensible - I wasn't seriously going after the c6 pawn.
19. Bxg6 At last I plucked up courage to go for it!
19. Bf6 He cannot accept the sacrifice with hxg6?
20. Bxh7+ Kh8 And now he goes the wrong way! His Q is lost.
21. Nf7+ Kg7
22. Qg6+ Kf8
23. Nxd8 and he resigned with less then 1 minute remaining on his clock!

SO the point of the posting is to ask, what is the optimal timing of Bxg6?

The March of the g Pawn

2009-01-15T22:55:00.000-08:00

East Cheshire A team recorded their first win of the season on Wednesday night! Chorlton outgraded us on paper but wins by David Taylor and I saw us to a 3.5 - 2.5 victory. Whether we can still avoid relegation is another matter.

After 3 games with Black it was nice to be White for a change. My opponent played the opening carelessly and I managed to punish him, ultimately pushing my g pawn all the way to the 8th rank in the middle game!

P Ramsey vs A Sainsbury (135)

1. e4 d6
2. d4 Nf6
3. Nc3 g6
4. f4 Bg7
5. Nf3 c6
6. Bd3 O-O
7. O-O b5

According to the chess.com games database White wins 65% of the games which have this position so I guess the odds were in my favour.

8. Kh1

A useful waiting move, getting my King safe and waiting to see where he will put his pieces.

8. ... Bb7?

I think this is wrong as the weakening of the e6 squares proves to be painful for Black.

9. e5 Ne8
10. e6!? fxe
11. Ng5 Bc8

A sad retreat to the back rank for the Bishop.

12. Qe2

12. ... Nf6!

A wise decision to return the pawn. On 12. ... Nc7 I would have the possibility of Nxh7 followed by Qh5+.

13. Nxe6 Bxe6
14. Qxe6+ Kh8
15. Re1 Re8?

This looks too passive. We discussed after the game that 15. ... b4 looked better.

16. f5 gxf
17. Qxf5 Nbd7
18. g4!

Not giving Black any breathing space. Of course this opens up my King but Black has no time to exploit the open diagonal.

18. ... Nf8
19. g5 e6
20. Qh3 Ng8
21. Rf1

With the threat of Rxf8.

21. ... h6?

Maybe Qd7 was better.

22. gxh Bxd4
23. Qg4 Bxc3
24. bxc3 Qd7
25. Rg1 Nf6

Can you spot how White wins a piece here?

26. Qg7+ Qxg7
27. hxg7+

The pawns makes its vital contribution before dying.

27. ... Kg8
28. gxf8=Q+ Kxf8

White is a piece up and the attack continues.

29. Bh6+ Ke7
30. Rg7+ Kd8
31. Bg5 1-0

After 31. ... Rf8 32. Bxf6 Rxf6 33. Rg8+ wins a rook.

One of those rare games where you have all the fun and your poor opponent doesn't get out of his own half!

Win by bamboozling your opponent

2009-01-09T12:04:00.000-08:00

Here is my win for East Cheshire B vs. Macclesfield Reds.

When the game was adjourned material was equal but I dragged poor Ray over to our place as in the sealed position I could make a passed pawn and he couldn't.

After about another 20 moves we reached the following position:

My rook is tied to the defense of my pawn on a5 but I decided to give it up as I thought my kingside pawns would be more dangerous than his queenside ones.

1. Re3!
2. Rxa5 Rg3
3. Rb5 Rxg2+
4. Ke1 g4 ?!

This is probably wrong but it certainly surprised Ray and sent him into a bit of a spin!

5. Rf5+ Kg6
6. Rxf4 gxh3
7. Kf1 Rxb2

8. Rxb4 now loses to Rb1+ followed by h2.

8. Kg1 h2+
9. Kh1 Rxb3
10. a5?

10. Rxh4 looks better to me.

10. Kg5

11. Rf2??

I think White is lost after this. He should stay on the 4th rank to either swipe my b pawn or get behind it. He can then advance his a pawn forcing me to give up the b pawn.

11. Ra3
12. Rb2 b3
13. Kxh2 Ra2
14. 0-1

I was just getting into the rhythm of the game's 4th time scramble when he resigned.

An interesting endgame. I think after 4. ... g4 it should have been a draw. It would be interesting to see if it is a Black win after 4. ... Rg3 with the idea of getting 3 connected passed pawns. Anyone with Fritz want to see what it thinks?

Feel free to point out any errors in my analysis!

Phil.