Game 45 - Swale Club Championship 2016-17 - Round Eight

Swale Club Championship - Round Eight
Thursday 8 December 2016
White: K. Nevols (134) - Black: P. Blundell (120)

This was the last competitive game before the Christmas/New year break and I was keen to end the new year on a high.

1. e4 c5

A change from 1. .. e5 which he played against me last time (Game Eight) so it is into the Closed Sicilian once again.

2. Nc3 Nc6
3. f4 e6
4. Nf3 Nd4?!

A surprise early second move with the knight. Perhaps better to continue development with 4. ..d5, 4. .. Nf6 or 4. .. Nge7.

5. d3 Nxf3
6. Qxf3 d6

The problem with 4. .. Nd4 is that White now has some central control and development whereas Black's pieces are all on the back row. White could now consider 7. Be3 with d4 to follow. Instead I decide to tuck the king away.

7. Be2 Bd7
8. O-O Bc6

With the queen and rook on the f-file, Black's king in the centre, and Black's delay of Nf6, then the
next move suggests itself.

9. f5 e5

If 9. .. exf5 10. Qxf5 Qd7 11. Qf2 - Black is unable to castle and White is preparing Be3 and d4.



Now I considered 10. Nd5 Bxd5 11. exd5 but thought this just looked odd. I considered maybe Black could play 11. ... b5 to stop 12. c4 but then this walks into the brilliant 12. d4! and Black's centre is a struggle.

So instead I looked for better squares for the queen and king's bishop, and placing the queen on g3 holds up Black's kingside development.

10. Qg3 Nf6
11. Bf3 Rg8

Presumably to free the bishop. I too was thinking of freeing the other bishop and decided to move away from any Qb6 threats.

12. Kh1 Be7
13. a3 Kd7

Black concedes that he is unable to castle and so tries to improve the king safety. I think 13. .. g6 might have been an improvement. White's pieces are still a little disorganised.

But now that the Black king is committed, I can put together a plan. The kingside is not going anywhere and so I decide to open the game on the queenside.

14. Be3 b6
15. b4!

I want to create some open files and spaces around his king and try to exploit them with the rooks and bishops.

15. ...  Qc7
16. bxc5

I did not like 16. b5 Bb7 which shuts the game down and reduces my attacking possibilities. I can use the fact that a black rook is busy defending the g7 pawn to get a queenside offensive going.

16. ....   bxc5
17. Rfb1 Rab8
18. Rxb8 Qxb8
19. Rb1 Qc7

So I have got the open file and a clear edge - so what should I do next?



I did not consider 20. Nd5 but this wins material. If 20. .. Nxd5 21. exd5 then the bishop has to move.

If 21. ... Ba4?? then 22. f6! Bxf6 23. Qg4+ wins a piece.
If 21. ... Ba8 or Bb7 then 22. Qh3 Bf6 23. Qxh7 - pawn grabbing perhaps but they all count. Then maybe 23. ... Rb8 24. Rf1 preparing g4-g5. If Black then goes for some pawn grabbing with 24. .. Qa5 White has the flashy 25. Bh6 (25. ... gxh6 26. Qxf7+ Be7 27. f6) but after 25. .. c4! 26. Bxg7 Bxg7 27. Qxg7 Bxd5 there is still a lot of work to do.

Instead I decide to keep advancing on the queenside and the next move makes Nb5 an option.

20. a4 Qc8

At first I did not understand this but Black is reorganising his defences. The computer recommends 20. .. Kc8!? as an unusual way to defend the b7 square.

21. Qe1 Qa8
22. Rb3 Rb8
23. Qb1

Building up pressure again - I now had 14 minutes left for 12 moves - so ought to get a move on - while my opponent had 45 minutes. (Time was the usual 35 moves in 75 minutes and then 15 minutes each for the rest of the game).

23. ...  Rxb3
24. Qxb3

Now I expected 24. .. Ke8 when I was considering 25. Nb5 - although 25. g4 would be more aggressive and keeping the initiative.

24. ...... Qb7?!



I don't know whether this was a pawn sacrifice or an oversight, but now I could see how I could grab a pawn and take the queens off.

25, Qxf7 Qb2
26. Qb3 Qxb3
27. cxb3

And now here we are at the ending. We both have two bishops and a knight and I have seven pawns to his six. So how do we win from here?

Part one of my plan is now to advance on the kingside where I have three pawns against two, use the white squared bishop to keep an eye on the b3 and d3 pawns, and try to create a space to infiltrate and exploit the black defences.

27. ...   h6?

I think this is a mistake as it weakens the kingside where I am about to advance.

28. h4 Kc7

Another surprise - I had expected his king to go the other way, although here 28. ... Ke8 walks into 29. Nb5.

29. g4 Nh7
30. Bf2

Defending the h-pawn and preparing for the king's advance.

30. ....   Kb7
31. Kg2 Ka6
32. Be1

To shut the door on any ideas of Ka5 which would lose a piece to Nd5+.

32. ...   Nf8

Sitting still with 32. .... Bd8 might have been better but Black has a plan to re-route the knight over to the other side.



Now I picked up the bishop on e1 preparing to move it to d2 before realising that this loses the h-pawn. After hovering it in the air, I placed it on the f2 square instead. A wasted move when 33. Nd5 would have been a clear improvement.

33. Bf2 Nd7
34. Be1 Nb8

I was a bit lost what Black was planning now so just continued to advance. I could not help but think it was a mistake to have moved two pieces so far away from the area I was about to attack.

35. Kg3 Nd7
36. Bd2 Nb6
37. g5

And why not?

37. ...   hxg5
38. hxg5 Nd7

Now the next step of the plan - I have broken a way through, so I must now advance my pieces into that gap and try to roll up the Black defences. His king looks very lonely over on the a6 square.

39. Bh5 Kb7
40. Bf7 Kb8
41. Kg4 Bb7
42. Kh5 Nf8

I think this is the move Black was relying on. The knight and bishop provide good defence.



But now 43. f6! wins material. If 43. ... gxf6 44. g6 wins a piece and if 43. ..g6+ then simply 44. Bxg6 or 44. Kh6 Bd8 45. Kg7 Nd7 46. Be6.

43. Bc4?

I missed the chance, and do so again next move, and Black gets some breathing space.

43. ..... Kc8
44. Nd5? Bd8
45. a5

Without realising I had missed the chance, I could not see how I could break through, so decided to make some space on the other side.

45. ....   Bc6
46. b4 cxb4
47. Bxb4 Kd7

Now I am trying to find good squares for the pieces for the final breakthrough and have the idea of bring the knight to c4. But Black has had enough of sitting around and allows the king to infiltrate to exchange a set of pawns.

48. Ne3 Nh7
49. Kg6 Nxg5
50. Kxg7 Kc7??

Black's king wanders off again which allows me the chance to win a piece. Staying on d7 was the better option.

51. f6 Bxf6
52. Kxf6

Now I am a clear piece ahead and, with Ke7 to come, the d-pawn cannot be protected.



We were both now low on time and so Black decides to sacrifice his pieces for the pawns - a novel approached which very nearly worked.

52. ....   Nxe4?!
53. dxe4 Bxe4
54. Ke6 Kd8
55. Bxd6 Bc6
56. Bc5 e4
57. Bxa7 Bb7
58. a6 Bc8
59. Kd6 Ke8
60. Bb5+ Kf7
61. Bd4 Bxc6
62. Bxc6

And now, with less than five minutes, I stopped writing down the moves.

I soon picked up the e-pawn which left me with three pieces to checkmate Black, but I managed to make a mess of it - the king kept wriggling free. At one point I thought I had checkmate but again he got free.

I then decided to just use the two bishops and leave the knight to lose a tempo and block stalemates, and eventually found the right plan - forcing the king into the corner. I was three moves away from checkmating when Black's flag fell. I had 19 seconds left.

Far too close but a good win nonetheless. My sixth win in a row and 12th unbeaten.

Game 44 - County U-140 League - Sussex v Kent

Sussex v Kent - Board Eight
Saturday 3 December 2016
White: M. Stockham (124) - Black: K.Nevols (134)

My second match for Kent Under 140s was an away match in Horsham. After some traffic problems, and some difficulty in finding somewhere to park, I arrived at the venue with minutes to spare. A dash around the Horsham Christmas market had not found anything I could devour quickly, so I went straight for the biscuits in the kitchen.

1. d4 Nf6
2. c4 g6
3. Nc3 Bg7

The King's Indian Defence. I am still torn as to whether to commit myself to this opening or find something else.

4. Nf3 d6
5. Bg5 h6

I had recently re-read Andrew Martin's book on the King's Indian which advised an early h6 against a Bg5 - the plan being to deflect the Bishop away from the h6-c1 diagonal, and hence not being able to retreat back home, and allowing Black to play c6 and then Qb6 or Qa5.

6. Bh4 O-O
7. e4 c6

This is modest, however. Martins recommendation is 7. .. c5 to follow with Qa5, exploiting the fact that the bishop now cannot go to d2.

8. Bd3

Playing Be2 is more usual. On this square, the bishop blocks the queen from defending the d-pawn. Black could now consider 8. .. Nh5 beginning an initiative and following with g5 - but I did not like the idea of weakening the area in front of the king before being developed.



8. ....  Qb6

Now if White answered with 9. Qb3 I had planned to exchange queens.

9. Rb1 Bg4

If now 10. e5 dxe5 11. dxe5 Nfd7 and Black looks comfortable. 12. Bxe7 can be answered with 12. .. Re8 13. Bd6 Nxe5 (14. O-O Nxd3 15. Qxd3 Bf5 or 14. Be2 Bxc4).

10. d5 a5

White has decided to advance with the d-pawn instead of the e-pawn, and so it is time to develop the queenside.

11. h3 Bd7
12. O-O Na6
13. a3 Nc5

Throughout the last few moves I was concerned about a white pawn advance to e5 but thought I was fine after dxe5; Nxe5.

14. Bc2 Rfe8

Defending the e-pawn in preparation for moving the knight. White could now get a sizable initiative with 15. b4! if 15. .. axb4 16. axb4 Na6 17. e5 dxe5 18. Nxe5 and White has space and momentum.

15. Re1 Nh5?

Whenever I move the knight to h5 (or h4 when White) it is usually a mistaken and this is no exception. The plan is to move the knight to f4 but I really should have preceded this with g5.

16. e5! dxe5
17. Nxe5 Nf6??

Not only proving Black's 15th move was a waste of time, but also a blunder. Black should have played 17. .. Bxe5 18. Rxe5 and let a pawn go (18. .. Kf8? 19. d6!).



Now 18. b4 wins a piece! If 18. .. axb4 19. axb4 Na6 20. Bxf6 and if the bishop is retaken then simply Nxd7. It is hard to give Black any advice here as in all variations, not only is he a piece down but his centre collapses.

18. Na4??

Phew! He doesn't see it.

18. ....   Nxa4
19. Bxa4 Bf5
20. Rbc1 Red8

Back in the game - now it is my intention to make some ground in the centre.

21. Qe2?

Lifting a piece off the defence of the d-pawn which allows me to win it.

21. ...   g5

Should have played this a long time ago.

22. Bg3 Ne4
23. Bh2 cxd5

OK, so now I am a pawn up but the centre is still very fluid. There are lots of pieces hovering about.

24. g4 Bh7

Those two bishops look quite good side-by-side.

25. cxd5 Rxd5



Now White would be advised to play 26. Nc4, defending the d2 square and attacking the queen, with a possible follow up of Bc2. I am hoping that if I can exchange some pieces off, then my extra pawn could tell in the ending.

26. Qf3??

But White sacrifices a piece as he has seen a tactic.

26. ....   Bxe5
27. Bc3

A sudden ping of panic as I had not seen this move at all - however, this was followed by a ping of relief when I realised it did not lead to anything.

27. ....    Bxh2+
28. Kg2

Another surprise. I had expected 28. Kxh2 when I was torn between Qd6+ or Rd2.

28. ....    Rd2
29. Qxf7+ Kh8
30. Rf1 Bf4

Cutting the queen off from the defence of f2.

31. Rc2 Rxc2
32. Bxc2 Qc6



Now two pieces up I just wanted to finish the game. The only thing I had to be careful about was any perpetual check chances or the white rook advancing.

33. Bxe4 Qxe4+
34. f3 Qe2+
35. Rf2 Qe5
36. Qb3 b5
37. Qd1 Qd6
38. Qb3 b4
39. Re2 bxa3
40. bxa3 Rb8
41. Qf7 Be5
42. Kh1 Qd1+

White now resigned.

It was much later when I realised how close I had come to defeat. The b4 pawn move on move 18 I had not seen at all. White seemed to panic when a pawn down by playing very unsound piece sacrifice.

This was my fifth win in a row and extended my unbeaten run to eleven games.

Game 43 - club match. Rainham v Swale

Rainham v Swale - En Passant Cup - Board Three
Thursday 30 November 2016
White: K. Nevols (134) - Black: S. Pike (142)

My first visit to Medway Chess Club, a neat little building tucked away just behind Rainham train station.

1. e4 c5
2. Nc3

A Closed Sicilian. I think this is more in my style. The labyrinth of complications of the Open Sicilian are not for me and using this system I can build up and develop at my own pace.

2. ....  d6
3. f4 Nf6
4. Nf3 Nc6
5. Bb5

In this opening I have been varying the placement of my kings' bishop as I have not quite yet decided whether it is better to go to b5 and get exchanged or to sit on e2 and get in the way.

5. ....   Bd7
6. O-O a6
7. Bxc6

The move 7. Be2 is equal but I decided to remove the knight this time.

7. ....   Bxc6

This is the main problem - the bishop arrives on c6 - and White's king often ends up on h1.

8. d3

The possibility of an initiative based around d5 gives Black a tiny edge. On the other hand, he has development problems with his own king's bishop.

8. ....  e6

I sometimes find that a drawback of this opening is that it is difficult to form a plan until we know what Black will do with his King. Maybe an idea for White here is to exploit the small advantage in development with a quick 9. e5. Black might not want to open the f-file with 9. ... dxe5 10. fxe5 Nd7 and might just retreat with an immediate 9. .. Nd7.

Instead I prefer to just keep moving about and wait.

9. Qe1 Qb6



Now an interesting move would be 10. f5!? One line is 10... c4+ 11. Kh1 cxd3 12. cxd3 exf5 13. e5! or 12. ... e5 13. Qe2 with Be3 to follow.

If instead 10. f5 e5 then simply 11. Rb1 preparing either Be3 or Bg5. And if 10. f5 exf5 then not 11. exf5+ Be7 but 11. e5 with a better position.

I did think about the flashy 10. Nd5?! but then 10. .. Nxd5 11. exd5 Bxd5 just loses a pawn.

Instead no need for heroics - just tuck the king away.

10. Kh1 O-O-O

A surprise. I had expected 10. ... Be7 with kingside castling. Now that Black has chosen where to place the king, I can start thinking about a plan. A good point about this opening system is that it leaves open the option of attacking on either wing. Expanding on the queenside now seemed a good idea.

11. a4 Qc7
12. a5 h6

Presumably to guard against Ng5 although I wasn't thinking about that.

13. Be3

Black's best move now would be to counter in the centre with 13. .. d5! - the initiative I mentioned earlier. 14. exd5 exd5 would free up Black's position and give him ideas of a future Bd6 and Rhe8. Whereas if White wanted to keep the position closed with 14. e5 then Black could play 14. .. d4 15. exf6 gxf6! 16. Bc1 dxc3 17. Qxc3 Be7. The Bishop on c6 and the possibility of an attack down the g-file gives Black a clear advantage.

With all this in mind, the more modest 13. Bd2 might have been better.

13. ....  Be7

Opening lines with 14. b4!? might be interesting. However I wanted to get rid of that bishop on c6.

14. Na4 Bxa4

This capture is not forced - 14. ... Kb8 is quite adequate - but White is playing a piece of bluff. a white knight on b6 looks more scary than it actually is.

15. Rxa4 Ng4
16. Bg1

I didn't want to lose this bishop just yet. I am still thinking about how I can get a b4 move in.

16. ....    Rdg8?!

A surprise. Black clearly decides against any central play and decides on an offensive on the kingside. However he does not have the time for this. 16. .. d5 or just 16. .. Nf6 is better - and the game remains equal.



17. Qe2!

A multipurpose move - it protects the c4 square so I can play d4 - it defends the second rank - and it gives room to move the other rook out to join in a queenside offensive.

17. ....   Qd7
18. b3

The rook is in a good position so I did not want to move it back.

18. ....   f5

And now Black begins his attack. I had some thought and decided my pieces were well placed if the centre should come open.

19. d4

A much better move is 19. e5!

If 19. ... d5 then 20. h3 h5 21. Ng5 with advantage - Black's knight cannot retreat as the h-pawn will then fall.
If .. 19. .. dxe5 20. h3! e4 21. dxe4 Nf6 22. exf5 exf5 23. Rd1! and after the queen moves then 24. Qe6+ picks up the f-pawn.
And if something else, such as, 19. .. Kb8 then 20. h3 h5 21. exd6 Bxd6 22. Rc4! and Re1 keeps up the pressure.

I did not see any of this idea of trapping the knight with e5 and then h3 - my plan was always focused around d4 and clearing the centre.

19. ....   g5?

Black goes for it but the simple 19. .. Qb5 aiming to swap off the queens would have been better.

We now begin quite an odd sequence where 13 of the next 15 moves are captures.



20. dxc5 gxf4

If 20. .. dxc5 I had planned 21. exf5 exf5 22. Rd1. But I open the e-file anyway.

21. exf5 exf5
22. cxd6

Now if 22. .. Bxd6 then 23. Rd1. I was also thinking of how I could get the queen or rook to attack form the c-file. One problem I had to be aware of is the possibility of Black sticking his knight onto e3 blocking the bishop.

22.   ...  Bf6

Now 23. Ba7! wins!! It threatens Rc4+ Kd8; Bb6+. I saw it and rejected it because of 23.  .. b5 24. axb6 e.p. Ne3 - defending the c4 square and attacking g2. I completely overlooked that White then has 25. Qxa6 winning simply (24. .. Kd8 25. b7!). This is because my mind I still thought there was a black pawn on b5 whereas the en passant move had, of course, removed it.

23. Rxf4

Still, a pawn is a pawn. I am now two pawns up and have open lines to attack his king. Clearly winning.

23. ...  Bg5

I quickly check to see that the h2 point is safely protected and grab another pawn.

24. Nxg5 hxg5
25. Rxf5



Now Rf7, or Qc4+ then Qd4, are just two nice plans. Black goes for a swindle.

25. ...   Nxh2
26. Bxh2

If .. 26. .. Qxd6 then 27. Qc4+ Kb8 28. Qxg8+! If 26. ... Qh7 then just 27. Qe5.

26. ....  Rxh2+
27. Kxh2 Qh7+

This is the point of Black's swindle attempt - he hopes for 28. Kg3 Qh4+ forcing the White king into the middle of the board. A nice try but not forced.

28. Kg1 Rh8
29. Rf8+

Finishing off simply and Black resigned. My fourth consecutive victory and second against a higher graded player!

Rainham v Swale

David Barnes (167) 1/2-1/2 Keith Hyde (167)
Tom Stonehouse (160) 1/2-1/2 Trefor Owens (172)
Stephen Pike (142) 0-1 Keith Nevols (134)
Omar Ahmed (128) 0-1 Peter Blundell (120)
Robert Springett (120) 0-1 Tyrone Jefferies (116)
William Stock (106) 1-0 Andrew Gillard (113)

Rainham 4-2 Swale

Game 42 - club match. Swale v Tunbridge Wells

Swale vs Tunbridge Wells - En Passant Cup - Board Three
Thursday 24 November 2016
White: K. Nevols (134) - Black: H. Tassell (147)

1. e4 c6

The Caro-Kann Defence. In a previous game (Game 20) I had faced this defence and was well beaten. So I tried to find something to play against it and, being a lazy person, preferably something I could easily remember.

On a Chessbase DVD (which I had bought in a sale!) there was a video by the Dutch International Master, Robert Ris, which suggested playing 2. Ne2 - an interesting idea - and one particular line which led to a fascinating pawn sacrifice. So I thought I would give it a go.

2. Ne2

The principle is that Caro Kann players like to put a bishop on f5. From the g3 square, this can be attacked.

2. ....    d5
3. e5 Bf5

Other moves Black could consider are 3. ... c5 (to be answered with 4. d4) and 3.. d4 (where White could have some fun with 4. b4 or the more conservative 4. c3.

4. Ng3 Bg6
5. h4

The play against the bishop continues.

5. .....  h6

If 5. ... h5 then 6. Be2 and the h-pawn is looking uncomfortable.

6. h5 Bh7

To my surprise, I have got to the position of the pawn sacrifice. At our level, we tend to concentrate more on opening principles and ideas rather than specific lines. However, here I had the chance to carry out some preparation.



Inwardly I hummed and ha-ed as I pondered whether I should play the safer 7. d4 but then I thought I might not get the chance to play this again - and I never like 'what if?'s - so I thought let's give it a go.

7. e6!?

Here it is. Not many club players get the chance to play a positional pawn sacrifice at move seven. I hoped he had not seen it before and, judging by the way he now went into some thought, I think that was correct.

7. ....    fxe6

You can now see the point behind the move. Take a look at the bishop on f8. How it is going to get out? On one side, there are doubled pawns that have to be shifted before it can think of freedom, while on the other, if the g-pawn moves, it will be exchanged for White's h-pawn and his pawn on h6 is poor.

And of course while the bishop on f8 is blocked, the rook on h8 will also struggle to get out.

The other point to note is the opening of the h5-g6-f7-e8 diagonal. White must move fast to exploit this while Black must aim to castle queenside quickly to get the king out of the way.

8. d4

The natural follow up to 7. e6 which restricts the e5 pawn and prepares to bring the king's bishop to d3.

8. ....   Qd6

I took a look at 8. .. Nd7 preparing e5. One line could be 9. Bd3 Qa5+ 10. Nc3 e5 and castling very soon or White could play 9. f4 trying to keep the trap closed.

I also wondered about 8. .. e5!? - immediately returning the pawn with 9. dxe5 e6 to follow.

The idea of Qd6, and the next knight move, is to get castling, but Black does not have enough time.

9. Bd3 Bxd3

If 9. .. Na6 I intended 10. Bxh7 Rxh7 11. Qd3 Nf6 12. Qg6+.

10. Qxd3 Na6
11. Qg6+ Kd7



Now the plan was to get a White rook onto the e-file. The longer those pawns stay on e6 and e7, the more development problems Black will have.

12. O-O Nf6

If 12. ... e5 White can retrieve the pawn with 13. Qf5+.

13. Re1 c5
14. dxc5 Nxc5

Black has succeeded in removing the White pawn from d4 and might now be thinking of e5 at some stage, even if it gives the pawn back, but with the intention of e6 and developing the kingside. This would not be possible while White has the option of Nf5 and then taking on g7 instead. White's queen is superbly placed.

I now considered 15. b3 with the idea of bringing the bishop to a3. But after 15. ... Nce4 16. Ba3 the Black queen can simply move to a6 or f4. So I decided to bring the knight into the action while also covering the e4 square which both the Black knights were looking at.

15. Nc3 Rc8
16. Be3

Planning to come to d4 and then e5 - while also peering in the direction of the undefended pawn on a7. Black now can't play 16. .. d4 because of 17. Bxd4 (17. .. Qxd4 18. Red1 wins the queen).



16. ....  b6?

A mistake providing White with two free moves to continue the attack. The computer recommends 16. ... Qa6 tucking the queen away. If Black plays 16. .. e5 then White has a good choice of 17. Rad1 which is strong. (17. ... e6 18. Bxc5 Rxc5 19. Nge4) or 17. Nf5 (17. ... Qe6 18. Bxc5 Rxc5 19. Nd4).

Remember Black's bishop on f8 and rook on h8 which I mentioned earlier. Look what a miserable time they are having.

17. Nb5 Qb8
18. Nd4 Qd6

Now if White wanted a draw (for example, to win the match) then he could simply play 19. Nb5 and Black would obligingly repeat moves. But the gain in tempo meant that I had moved my knight from c3 to d4 where it is very happy, looking at b5, e6 and f5.

I gave some thought here to 19. c4 dxc4 20. Rad1 but then Black has the annoying 20. .. Nd3 turning the tables. So instead it is time for the last piece to join the fight.

19. Rad1

The computer now recommends 19. .. e5! and gives the position as equal if, after 20. Ndf5, he can find 20. .... Qb8!

This stops 21. Nxg7 because of Bxg7 22. Qxg7 Rcg8 23. Qf7 Rh7 trapping the queen. White could try the more aggressive 21. c4 with 21. .. Na5 22. cxd5 Nxb2 23. Rb1 Nc4. White could also consider 24. Qf7 but it is hard to see a breakthrough.

19. .....   Nce4

While Black is effectively playing two pieces down, then maybe it is a mistake to exchange.

20. Nxe4 Nxe4



Now a big think. Firstly, I looked at the piece sacrifice 21. Bf4? - 21. ... Qxf4 22. Qxe6+. I could not see anything against 22. .. Kd8 (23. Nc6+ Rxc6 24. Qxc6 Qxf2+) and overlooked the simple 23. Qxd5+ which will win the knight and have a winning attack.

A far better move for Black would be 22. .. Kc7 then 23. Nb5+ Kb8 24. Qd7 Rc5! (defending the d5 pawn). 25. Qxa7+ Kc8 26. Qa6+ (if 26. Qa8+ then Qb8) Kd7 27. Rxd5 Ke8! 28. Qa8+ Kf7.

However, I did not see the need to sacrifice a piece in a winning position where there were other moves available.

I considered 21. f3! which I think is probably the best - clearing the e-file and redeploying the bishop back to f2 and then on to g3.

Instead I went for my third option, to get that bishop to f4 by a more direct route.

21. g3 Nf6
22. Bf4 Qb4

Now having forced the queen off the centre files, how can I finish off the attack against the king? I saw two options - 23. Qf7! was the sensible option - but, rather foolhardily, I decided to gamble.

23. Rxe6

The reason I say this is a gamble is because I thought he might play 23. ... Qxe4!? Then 24. Rxe7+ Bxe7 25. Rxd4, and it is queen and pawn against rook and knight - the type of lop-sided positions I do not like.

23.  ....     Qxb2?



With this move I breathed a sigh of relief. This was my day after all. I saw how I could finish it off from here.

24. Qf5 Kd8
25. Nc6+ Rxc6
26. Rxc6 e6
27. Qxe6 Bc5

The bishop is free at last - just in time for the final whistle.

28. Rc8 mate

I was very pleased with this win, in 28 moves, against a higher graded player by the use of a positional pawn sacrifice. My third win in a row, and nine unbeaten.


Swale v Tunbridge Wells

Keith Hyde (167) 0-1 Robert Jacobs (172)
Trefor Owens (172) 1-0 Russell Goodfellow (160)
Keith Nevols (134) 1-0 Hugh Tassell (147)
Ian Lappin (125) 1/2-1/2 Stephen Bond (119)
Tyrone Jefferies (116) 1/2-1/2 Richard Woodfield (117)
Andrew Gillard (113) 1-0 Peter Orchard (90)

Swale 4-2 Tunbridge Wells

Game 41 - club match. Tunbridge Wells v Swale

Tunbridge Wells v Swale - Intro League - Board One
Sunday 20 November 2016
White: K. Nevols (134) - Black: L. Cartwright (91)

A Sunday trip to lovely Tunbridge Wells. This game was played at the Bridge Club which had a very impressive room of card tables and facilities. We were tucked in upstairs.

1. e4 g6
2. d4 Bg7
3. Nf3 d6

By delaying Nf6, Black allows me to change this into a King's Indian.

4. c4 e5?!

Now 5. d5 would move towards the Petrosian King's Indian but, by playing e5 before castling, White allows me to exchange into an early advantage.

5. dxe5 dxe5
6. Qxd8+ Kxd8
7. Bg5+

Now I expected 7. .. f6 8. Be3  and then Nc3 or 7. ... Ne7 8. Nc3 and then Rd1, Be2 and castles with a development advantage while Black sorts out where to put his King.

7. ....   Nf6!?



But this surprised me. Does it not just give away a pawn? I looked at 8. Nxe5 h6 9. Bxf6 Bxf6 10. Nd3 and the position is equal.

Better might be  9. Nxf7+ Ke8 then 10. Nxh8 hxg5 11. Nxg6 (where White is the exchange and three pawns up - although it is difficult to rescue the knight on g5 - 11.  .. Ng8! 12. Nc3 Kf7) or 10. Bxf6 Bxf6 (not Kxf7 11. Bxg7 Kxg7 and White is two pawns up) 11. Nxh8 Bxb2 12. Nxg6 Bxa1 and White has two pawns for a piece.

Or 8. Nxe5 Ke8 9. Nc3 Nxe4 10. Nxe4 Bf5 11. Nf6+ Bxf6 12. Bxf6 Rg8. Material is equal but White is ahead with development and Black's king in the centre.

In the end I chose a simple development over tactics.

8. Nc3

Now 8. ... h6 is mandatory. 9. Bh4 g5 10. Bg3 Nfd7 11. Rd1 and White has an edge. But I might have played 9. Rd1+ and then Be3.

8. ....  Nc6??

This just gives away a piece. I scrutinised the board to see if there were any opening taps or tactics I was missing. I could not see any and so went to pick up the pinned piece.

9. Nd5

Hard to give Black advice here. The computer recommends 9. ... Bg4 in an attempt to muddy the waters.

9. ...  Re8

Now which piece? 10. Nxf6 Bxf6 11. Bxf6+ Kd7 12. O-O-O looked fine but I decided to be greedy noticing the knight on f6 now forked the rook and the h7 pawn.

10. Bxf6+ Bxf6
11. Nxf6 Rh8
12. O-O-O+ Ke7
13. Nd5+ Kd6



The game is now a simple win as I pick up a rook and a pawn.

14. Nb6+ Ke7
15. Nxa8 Bg4
16. Nxc7 Bxf3
17. Nd5+ Ke6
18. gxf3 Nd4

So I am a rook, a bishop and a pawn up. There is nothing further to say in this game - except that I find a nice way to checkmate.

19. Bh3+ Kd6
20. Rd3 Kc5
21. b3 Rd8
22. Kb2 b6
23. b4+ Kxc4
24. Rc3+ Kb5
25. Bf1+ Resigns



After 25. ... Ka4 then 26. Ra3 is checkmate.

Tunbridge Wells v Swale

Keith Nevols (134) 1-0 Lewis Cartwright (91)
Andrew Gillard (113) 1-0 Efe Shimwell (80)
Ted Vidyartmi (55) 0-1 Sam Cartwright (51)
Owen Underdown (55) 0-1 Madhav Suraj (51)

Tunbridge Wells 2-2 Swale

Game 40 - Swale Club Championship 2016-17 - Round Seven

Swale Club Championship - Round Seven
Thursday 17 November 2016
White: T. Jefferies (116) - Black: K. Nevols (134)

A tough opponent - we had two games last year, the first of which I was fortunate to win (Game 13)and in the second I was well beaten (Game 26). I prepared myself for a gruelling battle - as it turned out to be. My strategy was not to enter a tactical conflict but to try to play slowly and positionally, see if I could get small advantages, and play on those in the ending.

1. e4 d5

Last year I had played the more aggressive 1. .. e5. This time, I am not taking chances and setting up my shell.

2. exd5 Qxd5
3. Nc3 Qa5
4. d4 Nf6
5. Be2

White chooses a quieter plan to the usual Bc4. His aim is to place the bishop on the long diagonal to exploit the forthcoming bishop move.

5. ....   Bf5
6. Bf3



6. .....  c6

Here the computer prefers 6. .. Nc6!? The pawn to c6 is a main feature of this defence system - it solidifies the diagonal, gives the queen a route to drop back and defends the d5 square - so 6. ... Nc6 was never considered. The idea behind Nc6 is to prevent Bd2 and come to the b4 square to hit the c2 point.

After 7. Bxc6 bxc6 8. Nf3 Nd5 9. Bd2 then Black has 9. .. Nb4 10. Rc1 Nxa2 11. Ra1 Nxc3 12. Bxc3 Qd5! so 8. Bd2 Qb6 9. Bc1 Rd8!

Maybe I will give the Nc6 manoeuvre a go some time.

7. Nge2 e6

Another possibility, and idea to remember in future, is 7. .. Na6!? here, with the same idea of coming to b4. 8. Ng3 Nb4! 9. Nxf5 Qxf5 and the c2 pawn cannot be defended. (10. O-O Nxc2 11. Be4 Nxe4 12. Qxc2 Ng3!!).

8. O-O Bd6

As White has castled before I have moved the queens bishop, then playing Bb4 would have limited use - so instead I decide to prevent Bf4.

9. Ng3 Bg6
10. Re1 O-O

The king is nicely tucked away and the position is equal.

11. Nce4 Be7
12. c3

A sensible move defending the d4 point and moving off the bishop diagonal - but it surprised me. Sometimes the pawn comes to c4 - a more aggressive post but slightly weakening the pawn on d4 to which Black could consider pressure down the d-file with Rd8 etc.

12. ....  Nbd7
13. Bf4

White has a keen eye on the d6 square.

13. ....   Nd5



14. Bd6 Bxd6
15. Nxd6 Qc7

I was content with the exchange of the black squared bishops. Now I just need to expel the knight, and I can think of plans to bring the rooks in and move some pawns forward.

16. Bxd5?!

This surprised me. Retreating the knight to c4 or e4 may have been better. White exchanges his bishop and this gives my own white squared bishop added strength. Admittedly, with my pawns on white squares, this is only a small edge but I thought White might keep his bishop, which is well placed, and consider ideas based around c4 and d5.

I now briefly considered 16. .. Qxd6 - solely because it looked clever - but decided the bishop had to go and that I could try for some queenside initiative against the different pawn structure.

16. ....   cxd5
17. Nb5 Qb6

Now against 18. Qb3 I intended 18. .. a6 19. Na3 and then perhaps 19. .. Rac8. Instead White wants to keep the queens on.

18. Qe2 a6
19. Na3 Rac8



The plan! First, double up the rooks on the c-file. Second, move the queen somewhere useful. Third, advance with b5, a5, b4, and see what happens. There is not much White can do. The queen has to defend the b2 pawn, Black's centre is quite solid, and the knights have little scope.

20. Rac1 Rc6
21. Qd2 Rfc8
22. h4 h6
23. h5 Bh7

I did not mind his pawn coming to h5 - as it is just something else for White to defend.

24. Qe2 Nf6

At this point I was feeling very comfortable and thought, as long as I did not blunder, I had at least  a draw in hand.

25. Nb1 Bxb1

White was pleased to see this move. The point of it is that although the bishop was controlling a number of squares, it was doing little else and is limited by my pawns in the centre. Meanwhile that knight could redeploy to d2, then f3 and finally e5 where it could prove to be a nuisance. Hence I decided to exchange it while I could.

26. Rxb1 Qc7

Preparing b5 and also thinking about attacking the h-pawn.



27. Qf3 Qa5
28. Ra1 Qa4
29. Qd1 Qxd1

After some thought, I decided to get the queens off. Like the bishop, I decided it had served its purpose and the absence of queens reduces any White chances of counter attacks or defences.

30. Raxd1

At this point, White offered a draw. The position is roughly equal but I thought Black had a very small edge. He has an initiative on the queenside and White has a weak pawn on h5. On the other hand, it is not easy for Black to break through - but deciding that, so long as I concentrated, then I could not lose, so I declined the offer.

30. ....  Kf8

The point if this move was to defend the e-file in case it opened with f4-f5. Also, long term, to get the king to the f6 square - not possible at the moment due to the rook's pin down the e-file.

31. f3

Another surprise. I had expected 31. f4. This limits the knight and prepares a king advance.

31. ....   b5

So it is now time to get on with it.

32. a3 Rc4
33. Kf2 a5
34. Re2



34. ..... Nd7?!

On the way to the a4 square. However, 34. ... b4 is better. 35. cxb4 axb4 36. axb4 Rxb4 37. Red2 Rcb8 38. Rb1 and then Black can choose between 38. .. Ke7 or 38. .. Rb3. Black's inaccuracy frees the white knight.

35. Nf1

Now, no longer necessary to defend the h-pawn, White has got time to bring the knight across to the defence of the queenside.

35. ....   R4c6
36. Nd2 Ke7
37. g4 Kf6

The delay in playing b4 has allowed White to improve his defences. Now White could play Nb3 and disrupt the Black initiative.

38. Kg3 b4



At last, but maybe too late. The white knight is better placed on d2 than it was on g3, and Black's knight is just looking on. However Black is helped by the fact that White's king has moved further away.

39. axb4 axb4
40. Nb1

I was thinking about 40. cxb4 Rc2 but then realised that this does not threaten Rxb2 because of the tactic Ne4+. So probably 40. cxb4 Rb6. The text presumably intends to reply to 40. ... bxc3 with 41. Nxc3.

40. ....  Rb8

Now 41. cxb4 Rxb4 42. Nc3 is possible. Black could then try 42. ... Rcb6 43. Rdd2 and perhaps 43. ... Nb8 to relocate the knight to an aggressive position.

41. Rd3 Rcb6
42. cxb4 Rxb4
43. R3d2 Nb6



A good punch. After all the moving about, I could now see that the b-pawn was heading my way.

44. Na3 Na4
45. f4

I had to keep an eye out for any plans with Kh4, g5 and h6. Hence my rejection of 45. .. Rb3+ here.

45. ....   Rxb2

Booty gathered. Now a pawn up - the next task was to win the game.

I studied to see if exchanging all the rooks and leaving a knight ending would help. Black is better placed and the target would be the white pawn on d4 as well as the advanced pawns on the kingside. I was not sure if it was clearly won.

46. g5+? Ke7?

46. ... Kf5???? of course walks into 47. Re5 mate but I really cannot explain how I missed 46. .. hxg5. You spend so much effort winning a pawn on one side of the board that you miss one which is gifted to you on the other side.

Now best for White would be 47. gxh6 - splitting Black's pawns would give some counterplay chances in the ending.

But by now the game was into its fourth hour, everyone else had gone home, the room was empty, and we were both tired. With this in mind, it was perhaps inevitable that one of us would blunder and, fortunately for me, it was White who did so first.

47. Nc2?? Nc3
48. Re3 Ne4+



With the loss of the exchange, White decided to resign.

I was very pleased with this victory which at the time I thought was my best game so far this season. It was also my seventh unbeaten game in a row and, with five wins, one draw and one loss, put me at the top of the chess club tournament board.

Game 39 - club match. Maidstone v Swale

Maidstone vs Swale - Fuller Cup - Board One
Thursday 9 November 2016
White: K. Nevols (134) - Black: B. Beavis (148)

A rematch - our last encounter had resulted in a massive defeat (Game 18) and so I resolved to play calmly and solid. This time I had the white pieces.

1. e4 e6
2. Qe2

This is an off-beat response to the French. It is completely harmless for Black but avoids all the multitude of French variations. The idea is that if Black now plays 2. ... d5, as French Defence players usually do, then after 3. exd5 Black has to retake with the queen instead of the usual e-pawn.

Some games with this line move into a closed Sicilian and this is what happens here.

2. ...   c5
3. Nc3 d6
4. Nf3 Nc6
5. d3 Nf6
6. g3

Black could now consider lines involving 6. .. e5 7. Bg2 Bg4 8. h3 Nd4 9. Qd1 or 7. ... Nd4 but I think White is safe.

6. ..... Be7
7. Bg2 O-O
8. O-O Qc7

So far so good. Development continuing easily. I now had to consider where to put the queen's bishop. I figured that Black might be aiming to play d5 to open some lines for the bishops. I thought of 9. Be3 but after 9. ... Ng4 could not decide between 10. Bd2 or 10. Bf4.



Instead I decided to provoke Black to play e5 so I would not have to worry about a d5 break and then see if I could play on the kingside as well as considering the option of Bxf6 Bxf6; Nd5.

9. Bf4 e5
10. Bg5 Be6

OK, that's the end of any Nd5 ideas. Now I wanted to get the pawn to the f4 square to add pressure on the centre and start a kingside advance - so where should I put my knight? The d2 square gets in the way of the queen and bishop while on h4 there is the possibility of hopping into f5 - so over it went.

Playing the white knight to h4 is often dubious - and I think it is here.

The computer prefers 11. Qd2 to pre-empt Black's Nd4 move. It also considers 11. a4 and 11. Bxf6 as worthy of consideration.

11. Nh4?!

The time control was 35 moves in 75 minutes each and then 15 more minutes for the rest of the game. At this stage I had 52 minutes left for 24 moves while my opponent had 59.

11. ...   Nd4
12. Qd2 h6



Now here I had an almighty think - and began getting into time trouble. I could not decide between Bxf6 or Be3.

If 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Nf3 then Black has 14. .. Qa5 with some pressure after 15. Nxd4 cxd4 16. Nb1 Qxd2 17. Nxd2 Rfc8 or 14. ... Nxf3 15. Bxf3 Bg5. And if 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Ne2 then 14. .. Bg5 is good for Black.

But the variation I considered was 13. Bxf6 Bxf6 14. Nd5 with either 14. ... Qd8 15. Nxf6 Qxf6 16. c3 or 14. ... Bxd5 15. exd5 which after 15. .. Bg5 16. Qd1 Bxh4 and Qe7 looks ugly.

Then I had a look at 13. Be3 and how could I play against 13. .. Ng4.

On principle I decided to keep the bishops on - which rather made the whole exercise a waste of time and effort.

13. Be3

Now Black could consider 13. ... g5 14. Nf3 Bg4 with pressure. (15. Bxd4 cxd4 16. Nd5 Nxd5 17. exd5 Rac8).

13. ....    Ng4
14. Nf3

I now had 25 minutes left for 21 moves. The time limit was the usual 35 moves in 75 minutes and then 15 minutes for the rest of the game.

14. ....    Nxe3
15. fxe3 Nc6

I think 15. ... Nxf3 16. Bxf3 would have been fine for White, easing some of the pressure - although I would keep an eye on any Bg5 ideas. Some plans based around d4 would have been considered.

With the knight's retreat, I breathed a sigh of relief and now saw I could get some initiative in the centre.

16. Nd5 Qd7

If 16. ... Bxd5 17. exd5 Nb4 then 18. e4 secures the centre and gives me time for ideas around c3 and d4 with perhaps Rac1 in there somewhere.

17. Nxe7+ Nxe7



Now 18. b4!? is interesting - exploiting the decision to retake on e7 with the knight. If 18. .. cxb4 19. Qxb4 Rfc8 20. c4, or 19. .... Nc6 20. Qb5 and White is having fun again.

Black is better at the moment due to his better placed pieces. White's bishop on g2 is miserable and Black could think about ideas of a pawn break with either d5 or f5.

I gave thought here to 18. Nh4 hoping to provoke 18. .. Ng6 when I could play 19. Nf5. However, 18. .. g5 is simple enough.

Instead I decided to try to open the centre to give some space to my pieces.

18. d4! Bc4

I was not displeased to see this, as it forces me to free the f1 square where I might be able to move the bishop and either swap or gain some activity.

An interesting exchange sacrifice would be 19. dxc5!? Bxf1 20. Rxf1. White would get two pawns for the exchange. There are some good variations here - but nothing conclusive - and, being very short of time, I would not have gone for it even if I had seen it.

19. Rf2 Qc7?

A mistake from Black - 19. ... exd4 would have been better. Now White should have played 20. dxe5 dxe5 21. Qc3 winning a pawn.

20. b3?

..... But I did not see it and just wanted the bishop out of there.

20. ....   Be6
21. Qc3 exd4
22. exd4 Rac8
23. Rd1

Planning to meet 23. cxd4 with 24. Qxd4 and Black has a weak pawn on d6. Now I had 12 minutes left for 12 moves.

23.  ...  c4
24. Qe3

An idea is 24. d5 but I do not want to open the black squared diagonal towards my king.

24. ...   Qb6



25. Nd2

Seven minutes left for ten moves.

25. ......  cxb3
26. cxb3

I was worried about 26. .. Rc2 but then 27. Nc4 wins the exchange.

26. ...  Bg4
27. Bf3 Bxf3

My white bishop, which had done nothing all game, is exchanged for his very busy and active bishop. That was a very good bargain.

28. Nxf3 Qb4

I began to feel more comfortable and my only worry was the clock. If I could make the time control without blundering, I thought I could keep a drawn position.

29. Rc1 Rc6
30. Rxc6

Forced. I could not wait for the other rook to come to c8. Three minutes left for five moves.

30.  ....  bxc6

Probably better than 30. ... Nxc6 31. d5.

31. Rc2 Qb6
32. Qc3 Rc8

With just under two minutes to go, my priority was to get to move 35.

33. Qd3 Ng6
34. Kg2

So as not to worry about plans about Ne5 exploiting the diagonal pin to the king.

34. ....   Qa5
35. Qd2 Qb6



Made it! As Black moved the queen back to b6, he offered the draw to which I accepted.

On the face of it, not a very exciting game where both sides played very carefully and solidly - but Black had the edge throughout in activity although nothing conclusive.

In the final position, White might have a slight advantage and could play 36. Rc4 next but after a tiring game, I was happy to accept a draw with a higher graded player who had comprehensively beaten me last time.

Maidstone v Swale

Barrington Beavis (148) 1/2-1/2 Keith Nevols (134)
Peter Dirmauskas (99) 1-0 Tyrone Jefferies (116)
Nigel Osina (98) 1/2-1/2 Andrew Gillard (113)
Rebecca Rutter 0-1 Anthony Fletcher (74)

Maidstone 2-2 Swale

Game 38 - Swale Club Championship 2016-17 - Round Six

Swale Club Championship - Round Six
Thursday 3 November 2016
White: K. Nevols (134) - Black: I. Lappin (125)

My opponent was someone you could not prepare for - he has a wide range of opening set-ups and tactics. I had a very difficult game last year and prepared myself for another tough battle.

1. e4 d5

Now here's a funny thing. I face the opening I have made into my own defence!

2. exd5 Qxd5
3. Nc3 Qe6+

Unusual. I play Qa5, while Qd6, Qe5+ and Qd8 are all sometimes seen. Now 4. Be2 could be met by the annoying 4. .. Qg6. Perhaps 4. Nge2 is best. All the same, I decide to let the queens go early.

4. Qe2 Qxe2+
5. Bxe2 Bf5

Already time for the thinking cap. White should now play 6. Nd5 and after 6. .. Kd8 7. Ne3 Bg6 8. Nf3 is developing nicely.

6. d3

But this is not so good for the simple reason that it holds up the kingside development.

6. ...  c6
7. Nf3 h6
8. Nd4 Bh7

Now I have in mind whether I can play any tactics on the queenside with moves around Bf3 and Nb5.

9. Bf3 Nd7



White should now either castle or play Be3 keeping an edge. Instead here comes the first blunder of the game. I still had in mind plans around Nb5 and decided to develop my bishop towards the c7 square - and completely overlooking a fork.

10. Bf4?? e5

Simple when you see it - highly annoying when you don't. Grumbling silently, I tried to see how I could get something for the piece. I considered 11. Ncb5? cxb5 12. Nxb5 but 12. .. Kd8 or better 12. .. Rc8 keeps Black well ahead.

I looked at castling and, after pawn takes something, then Re1+ but there's nothing there - simply Be7.

Finally I thought I might tempt him into a mistake and get two pawns for the piece.

11. Nxc6

If now 11. .. bxc6 12. bxc6 Rc8 13. Bxd7+ Kxd7 14. Be3 (14. Bxe5?? Re8 with f6 to follow) and I would have two pawns for the piece with a beady eye on the a7 pawn and a Black king in the centre with an undeveloped kingside. I would have to throw the kitchen sink to get a swindle out of that.

Black chooses the other capture.

11. ...  exf4
12. Na5

My original plan was 12. .. Rb8 and something takes on b7. However if 13. Nxb7 then 13. .. Ne5 is good (14. Bd5 Nf6) and if 13. Bxb7 then 13. .. Bb4! So after 12. .. Rb8 White has to castle queenside and Black can then continue developing with 13. .. Be7 and Ngf6 - the pawn on b7 is still poisonous.

12. ...  Bb4

My first piece of luck - he does not find 12. .. Rb8 and the second pawn goes.

13. Nxb7 Rb8
14. O-O-O

OK, now the b2 point is defended and I can get a rook onto the e-file.

14. ...   g5!?

I did not expect this. The point is to threaten 15. .. g4 and remove a square from the bishop - but I think 14. .. Ngf6 is better.

15. Nb5

I have my eye on the c7 square for a check and also thinking of c3 and Re1 check.

15. ...   Ngf6

Black shows no fear!! But I win the exchange.

16. Nc7+ Kf8
17. Na6 Rxb7
18. Bxb7 Bd6



OK, I say to myself, I am back in the game. I have a rook and two pawns versus a knight and bishop. But his pieces are very active and he can bring the rook into the game with Kg7. My first task must be to get those pieces stuck on the left hand side back into the centre - starting with the knight which is dominated by the bishop.

19. a3 Bf5
20. Nb4 Nc5
21. Bc6 Be6
22. Bb5 Kg7
23. Bc4 Ng4



Black has played the last few moves very well - his four minor pieces are becoming very active while I am keen to ease the pressure by swapping off a bishop.

Now I gave some thought to 24. Bxe6 Nxf2 25. Bc4 Nxh1 26. Rxh1 which results in an ending in which I am a pawn up. But better for Black would be the simple 24. ... Nxe6.

I also considered 24. f3? Nf2 25. Bxe6 but then again simply 25. .. Nxe6 and my rooks remain forked.

I instead decided I had to grovel and defend the f-pawn. However 24. Bxe6 is a better move.

24. Rdf1 Rc8

A good square for the rook but allowing me to exchange a bishop. The computer likes 24. .. f3 forcing 25. g3.

25. Bxe6 fxe6
26. h3

Another sigh of relief at being able to get the knight away. I now expected 26. .. Ne5 (which threatens Bxb4 and Nxd3) after which I would play 27. Kd2.

An interesting move for Black would be 26. .. f3!? with 27. gxf3 Ne5 which gives a wonderful square on f4 for a Black knight or bishop.

26.   ...  a5

But this keeps up the pressure. Moving the knight allows Nxd3 (or even Nxf2 and then Nd3) whereas 27. hxg4 axb4 28. axb4 Nd3+ 29. Kd2 Nxb4 and Black has won a pawn.

27. Kd2 Na4?

At last Black makes a mistake. 27. .. Nxf2 28. Rxf2 axb4 29. axb4 Na4 keeps Black's advantage and ties White down to a difficult defence. But now I could see a way I might get put a defence together.

28. hxg4 axb4
29. b3 Nc3
30. a4

Now I must remember the possibility of running with that a-pawn.

30. ....   Bc5

Tying down the rook on f1. So I have a big think and cobble together some kind of counterplay. I need to release the rooks and decide the f2 pawn is better defended from f3 so I could think about a plan involving g3 - but self-trapping the rook on f3 is quite brave.



31. Rh3 Bb6
32. Rf3 e5
33. Re1

However, now 33. ... h5! rolls up the kingside. The forced line goes 34. Rxe5 Kf6 35. Rf5+ Kg6 36. Re5 hxg4 37. Re6+ Kf7 38. Rxb6 and then Black might spot 38. ...   Nc1+!! 39. Kc1 Na3 40. c4 bxc3 41. Rxf4+ gxf4. Still, a tough one to play.

33. .....   Kf6

But nothing wrong with playing simple defence.

34. g3 h5

Playing 34. ... Bd4 is also simple and strong.

Throughout these moves I had to keep my rook on the back rank as I was concerned about the manoeuvre Nb1+ and Nc3.

35. gxf4



Now Black should play 35. .. exf4 and then 36. gxh5 Kf5! with the threat of g4, forcing 37. Rh3 Bxf2. With the two passed pawns and the bishop coming to e3, White could consider resigning.

35.  ....   hxg4?

Glory be!! A mistake.

36. fxe5+

Black had overlooked that this was double check - and that he would have no time to take the rook.

36. ....    Kg7
37. Rf5 Bd8

Now 38. Rg1 is best to pick up the pawns but I was still worried about the knight so instead I thought I get play by advancing the pawn.

38. e6 Bf6

Now Black threatens Nxa4 and Bc3+.

39. Ra5

With the idea of defending against this threat and infiltrating to the seventh rank.

39. ...   Rd8
40. Ra7+ Kg6
41. Rd7 Re8
42. d4



I was full of confidence now and thought if I could get a pawn to d5 then the win is there. But Black could now play 42. ... Kf5! 43. d5 Ne4+ and suddenly it is still in balance. 42. a5 might have been better.

42. ....   Bg7
43. Kd3

Another reason why I wanted to play d4 was to get some room for the King. Black should now return the bishop to f6 - 43. .. Bf6 - to cover the e7 square. Then he could consider playing Kf5. After 43. .. Bf6 44. d5 Kf5 White has a choice of 45. a5 or 45. e7 - I would probably have preferred the former.

Fortunately (for me) Black makes the last mistake - and forgot he had moved the bishop.

43. ....   Kf5??
44. Rxg7

Black now resigned.

A dramatic and exhausting game where I was forever just trying to survive after my blunder on move 10. Until Black's 35th move, I was behind and even then nothing was clear. Yet again a game I probably did not deserve to win - but then I would argue that, with the fight I put up, I perhaps did not deserve to lose either.

Game 37 - County U-140 League - Kent vs Essex

Kent vs Essex - Board Six
Saturday 29 October 2016
White: K.Nevols (134) - Black: C.Siddo (134)

This was my first appearance for the Kent Under-140 county team. The game took place at the Mick Jagger Centre in Dartford. Next door were a group of children doing some sort of Halloween dance practice which meant all sorts of music came thumping through the walls.

I was initially concerned about this but actually found it relaxing. Jigging one's feet to 'Op, op, oppa Gangnam Style' while concentrating is quite therapeutic. Maybe disco chess is a creation waiting to happen.

The time limit is much more generous than I was used to. 35 moves in 105 minutes each and then half an hour for the rest of the game - so the whole game would be no more than four and half hours.

1. e4 d6
2. d4 Nf6

The Pirc Defence. Not an opening I know well yet I often seem to face.

3. Nc3 c6
4. Nf3 Bg4
5. h3 Bh5

The idea behind the early h3 was to deflect the bishop off the diagonal - and the move is often useful after castling anyway.

6. Be2 h6!?

If Black is playing the Pirc then he usually wants to put his bishop on the g7 square. I thought this move looked a bit loosening.

Now 7. e5 could deserve some consideration. A possible line being 7. .. dxe5 8. dxe5 Qxd1+ 9. Nxd1 Nd5 10. c4 or 10. Ne3 getting some initiative. However I am a cautious player and like to ensure the king is safe before I open the centre.

7. O-O e6

Perhaps the result of his last move. Black needs to put the kings' bishop somewhere and while g6 and Bg7 are still, in the long run possible, he decides it would be quicker to go to e7. The problem is that it gives this rather odd trio of pawns in his centre.



I now had a long thought of about twenty minutes. I have an advantage in development and wanted to see if I could make an early attack while Black still has some way to go. I considered 8. e5 dxe5 9. dxe5 Qxd1+ 10. Rxd1 but after 10. .. Nd7 or Nd5 could not see anything.

Black could at some stage play d5 to secure his centre and open the diagonal for the bishop. So I decided to preempt that and play the active move to try to open lines towards his uncastled king.

8. d5!

Now if 8. .. exd5 9. exd5 Nxd5 10. Nxd5 cxd5 11. Qxd5 (or a different order of exchanges but with the same result) then White has Re1 coming and Black has a weak pawn on d6 blocking in his bishop.

If Black continues development with 8. .. Nbd7 then 9. dxe6 fxe6 seemed to be OK.

Instead Black decides to close the centre.

8. ...  e5
9. Nd2

Playing 9. Be3 might have been better. With my pawns on white squares it made sense to exchange the white squared bishop.

9. ...  Bg6

I now rejected 10. f4 because after 10. .. exf4 11. Rxf4 I did not like the position of the rook nor the weak squares around the king. The computer now recommends 10. Bd3 but I do not like 10. .. cxd5 11. exd5 Bxd3 12. cxd3 although White now has the e4 square for his knight and Black is still behind in development.

Instead I decided to secure the centre and move the knight round to the e3 square.

10. Bf3 Be7
11. Re1 O-O
12. Nc4?

A bad mistake. If I wanted to play the knight to the e3 square then Nf1 would have been a better route. I now allow Black a sharp initiative.

12. .  ....b5

Of course.

13. Nd2

Playing 13. Ne3 as per the original plan now results in 13. ... b4 winning a pawn.

13. ...  b4
14. Nb1 cxd5
15. exd5 Qc7



And now things are looking a lot more gloomy. I have a pawn stuck alone on d5, most of my pieces stuck back on the first two ranks, while Black's bishop on g6 has come to life, his pawn on b4 does a good job of restricting White's queenside and he has pressure coming down the c-file. The tide is clearly in Black's favour.

I felt 16. c3 a5 did not get anywhere and so I decide to move forwards again to block the bishop diagonal.

16. Ne4 Nxe4

Developing with 16. .. Nbd7 might have been better.

17. Bxe4 f5
18. Bf3 Na6

Black brings his knight the other way but I think this is slightly inaccurate. 18. ...a5 would have kept the pressure on with Na6 behind the a-pawn or Nbd7. As played, I now get the chance to exchange off the restrictive pawn on b4.

19. a3 bxa3
20. Nxa3

Now I was a little more content. The knight on a3 defends the c2 point well, Black has an isolated a-pawn and my pieces are beginning to find some activity. However the d-pawn was still concerning me, as was Black's central pawns.

20. ...   Qb7

The computer does not like this move which it states gives away Black's advantage. It prefers an idea of playing f4 and then Be8. To me, this move was to stop White moving the queen's bishop.

21. Rb1

This is to allow the queen's bishop to move. However 21. Nc4! is better, seizing the initiative, with the intention being to come to a5 and then possibly c6.

Black could now play 21. .. Nb4 to threaten e4 winning a pawn. Then 22. c4 e4 23. Be2 f4 and Black is on the march again. The knight is quite OK on the b4 square and will await the opportunity to jump it d3. (24. Nc2 e3!). Fortunately Black's knight chooses a less secure square.

21. .      Nc5
22. b4 Na4
23. Rb3 Nb6



The knight's journey has resulted in the threat to the d-pawn forcing the next move. On the plus side, my rook had been forced to move to a square where it could consider moving across to the kingside.

24. c4

At the board I was now concerned about 24. .. Be8 with the intention of Ba4. However White can get back on the attack with 25. c5! But I cannot guarantee I would have seen this move.

24. . ..   e4
25. Bh5

I played this because of my concern noted earlier. I did not want the black bishop to reach the a4 square and so decided to swap it off to ease some pressure on the centre and see if I could make anything of those white squares in front of his king.

25. . ....  Bxh5

To my surprise, my opponent offered a draw. I say I was surprised because I had spent the last hour under the cosh trying to grovel out of the mistake made earlier with Nc4 and my mind had been set on survival. The computer rates the position now as '0' - dead level.

But I turned it down! Why? Did I think I was better? No, I certainly did not. Black still has the potential for operations on the queenside. The answer is that I was not ready yet to go home. I wanted to play on and see what happened.

26. Qxh5 Rf6

To defend against the threat of Bxh6. I now gave a lot of thought to 27. Rg3 renewing the threat to h6. If then 27. .. Kh8 then 28. Bb2 is strong. Black can counter attack with 27. ... Rf7 28. Bxh6 Rc8! 29. Rc1 f4 30. Rg6 Nxd5.

I could not see anything definite after this move and decided on the other way to attack.

27. Bb2 Rf7
28. f3

This is the best move but as soon as I played it I was regretting it. It makes perfect sense to open up the centre and bring the other rook into the attack but after 28. .. exf3 29. Qxf3 my hopes of an attack have gone again and I have too many pieces stuck over on the left hand side.

At the time, I thought I should be moving the knight into the middle with beautiful squares for it to sit on - such as c6, e6 and possibly f5 - so the d4 square is where it must go.

28. ...   Nd7

Black re-routes the knight. Now the threat is Nc5 with the wonderful square d3 in sight. And Nf6 might also be a useful defensive move. The best way to meet this threat is with 29. Bd4 when Black might then consider 29. .. Bf6.

29. Nb5?

Mistake! Black can now counter attack against the c-pawn with 29. .. Rc8 30. Rc1 Nb6 31. Na3 Bg5 32. Rc2 Qa6 and White is all of a jumble once again.

29. ....  a6?

Fortunately Black makes a mistake in return forcing the White knight to go where it was intending to go anyway.

30. Nd4

A lovely square for a knight and I was feeling happier with the world. How is Black going to defend the pawn on f5? I expected 30. . exf3 when I had to choose between 31. Nxf3 Nf6 (of 31. .. Nb6), 31. Qxf3 Ne5 or 31. gxf3 which just looked ugly.

30. ...  Ne5

Not no. Black too gains an impressive knight in the centre. I decided to exchange my c-pawn for his e-pawn.



31. fxe4 Nxc4?!

With a second draw offer - but giving up a pawn. Better would have been 31. .. fxe4 32. Rxe4 Nxc4 and maybe then offering a draw. (33. Nf5 Nxb2 34. Rxb2 Bf6 and then defending the d-pawn - if White is in the mood for some fun, he could try 33. Nf5 Nxb2 34. Qxf7+!? Kxf7 35. Rxe7+ Qxe7 36. Nxe7 Kxe7 37. Rxb2 with a rook and four pawns ending. 37. .. Rb8 38. Re2+! Kd7 39. Re4 should hold the draw).

I decided to decline this second draw offer - again not because I could see a win, but because I wanted to see if I could make anything of the extra pawn.

32. Nxf5 Nxb2
33. Nxe7+?!

I figured that removing his bishop would weaken his defence - the problem is it also weakens my attack. That knight was doing very well on f5.

33. ...   Qxe7
34. Rxb2 Rf4

Black now whips up some strong pressure on the centre.

35. Qe2 Qe5
36. Rb3 Qd4+

White should now play 37. Kh2 tucking the king away. Then perhaps 37. .. Rf2 38. Qe3 Qxe3 39. Rexe3 Rb8 and a draw is the most likely result.



37. Qe3?

And White blunders - from a pawn up to a pawn down.

37. ...   Rxe4

I simply did not see this move. The d-pawn is doomed and I am now fighting for the draw.

38. Qxd4 Rxd4

In a state of shock, I picked up my rook from the e1 square and placed it on to e6 - for some reason, I had thought after Black plays Rxd5 I could then play Rxd6. Without letting go, I immediately saw my mistake, and lifted the rook back up again with the intention of putting it back - but I had forgotten where I had picked it up from.

I hovered, waving the rook in the air, and finally saw how I might be able to draw - by placing both rooks on the seventh rank with the plan of harassing his king.

39. Re7 Rxd5
40. Rc3

The intention is 40. Rcc7. Black now gave a lot of thought ... 

40. ....    Rb8

 .... and offered the draw a third time. This time I gladly accepted to end an eventful game.



Black still has the advantage, and could not lose, so perhaps should have played on. 41. Rcc7 Rg5! 42. Ra7 Rxb4 43. Rxa6 Rb1+ 44. Kf2 Rb2+ will pick up the g-pawn after 45. Rxd6 Rgxg2. You could not say that Black has a win but it would have been hard work for White to hold.

My run of three wins had come to an end - but my roller coaster unbeaten run was continuing.

Game 36 - club match. Swale vs Medway

Swale vs Medway - Fuller Cup - Board One
Thursday 27 October 2016
White: P. Foster (126) - Black: K. Nevols (134)

First match of the season.

1. e4 d5
2. exd5 Qxd5
3. Nc3 Qa5
4. d4 Nf6

The main line for the Qa5 Scandinavian.

5. Bd2

Normally here I play 5. .. c6 but I decided to try something different. Sometimes 5. .. c6 leads to 6. Ne4 Qc7 7. Nxf6 exf6 which is OK but does not secure the d5 square like the opening usually does with pawns on c6 and e6. I asked myself, do I really need to play this so early?

5. ....   Bf5

So instead I continued with development. My intention now after 6. Ne4 was to play 6. ... Qb6 and then 7. Nxf6 Qxf6. Next could be 8. Nf3 e6 9. Bg5 Qg6 or 8. Nf3 Qb6 9. Bc3 e6. The queen moves waste time but Black could stay solid. I might try this out some time.

6. Nf3

Instead White keeps the option of the discovered attack.

6. ....  c6

I decided I had tempted fate too much and that I would note the above for a later study. If 6. .. e4 7. Ne4 Qb6 8. Nxf6+ gxf6 9. Bc3 the computer recommends 9. .. Nc6 with castling queen side.

7. Bc4 e6
8. O-O Bb4
9. a3 Bxc3
10. Bxc3 Qc7



Now we are back into a familiar position. White has the edge with 11. Ne5 and the two bishops.

11. Re1

Some time ago I looked at lines where White plays d5 before Black has castled and thus the e-pawn is pinned. But I've got to castle some time.

11. .   O-O
12. Nh4 Bg4?!

Playing 12. .. Bg6 might be better. After the text, White now has the option of 13. f3 Bh5 14. g4 Bg6 15. Nxg6 hxg6 16. Qd2! with the possibility of Bb4 or Ba5 working up an initiative while Black's queen's knight is still not yet developed.

13. Be2

Instead White undevelops the bishop which gives up some of his advantage.

13. ...   Bxe2
14. Qxe2 Nbd7

Now the position is completely equal.

15. Nf3 Nd5
16. Bd2 h6

I was a bit worried about Ng5 and everything piling up on the e6-point so decide to pre-empt this.

17. c4

Black often encourages this move because now the d4 pawn is undefended and can be attacked by a pile-up of rooks on the d-file followed by a c5 move.

17. ....  N5f6
18. Bc3 Rad8
19. Rad1 Rfe8

Securing the centre and considering operations elsewhere. White could consider playing 20. Ne5 - nothing is immediately threatened but the knight looks good there.



20. h3 Qb6

Glancing towards the queenside - however I wonder if 20. .. Qf4 is worth a thought to activate and possibly exchange the queen. 21. Bd2 Qf5 22. Nh4 Qc2 23. Bb4 Qxe2 24. Rxe2 Nb6 is one line.

21. Qd2 Qb3

Noticing the loose c-pawn and deciding to be annoying. Now if 22. Qd3 then I quite liked 22. .. Nc5.

22. Qe2 Nf8

Clearing the d-file and planning to come to g6. Although if White now plays 23. Ne5 Black does not have much better than putting either knight back on the d7 square.

At this stage, I was struggling to see now I could get an advantage.

23. Nd2

But this surprised me. White has consistently avoided playing Ne5 and now decides to rotate the knight round to the e4 square expelling the queen at the same time. However I decide to take the opportunity to either exchange queens or move the queen over to the kingside.

23. .... Qc2

If now 24. Nf3 then 24. .. Qxe2 25. Rxe2 Ng6. White will have to play 26. g3 and I could try 26.... Rd7. Then if 27. Ne5 Nxe5 28. Rxe5 Red8. Still equal but thinking of plans around a c5 move or Nh7-g5.

24. Rc1

White avoids the exchange and allows me to place the queen in a more active position.

24. ...   Qf5
25. Nf3 Ng6



I now went off to get a drink and came back for a serious ponder. I immediately saw White could not play 26. g4 and tried to think how I could build up an attack against the king. Could I play Nf4? Would h5-h4 be any good? Can I somehow get the rooks over? Is Kh8 with Rg8 and g5-g4 as daft as it looks?

White's best here is the solid 26. Qe3. If 26. .. Nf4 (with the threat of Nd3) then 27. Nh4 would be a mistake (27. .. Qg5 28. Qg3 Qxg3 29. fxg3 Nd3 or 28. g3 Nxh3+ 29. Kg2 Qxe3. 28. Nf3?? is an early nighter with 28. ... Qg2 mate). So after 26. ... Nf4 then the belated 27. Ne5 is the better option - defending the d3 square. Black may well then play 27. .. Ng6 and offer the draw.

While I was satisfied that I would be unlikely to lose from here, I was still struggling to see how I could get the advantage and unbalance things. My thoughts were interrupted when he played the move I had already ruled out.

26. g4?

Simply loses a pawn.

26. ...   Nxg4

Now White would be well advised to say 'oops' and play 27. Qe4 to exchange the queens. Black would then have to prove he could win with the extra pawn.

27. hxg4?

Instead another pawn goes - and although my knight has gone, I could see how I could get it back.

27. ...  Qxg4+
28. Kh1 Nf4

This is what White has overlooked. Black threatens the queen and also Qg2 mate. If 29. Rg1 then simply Qh3+ picking up the queen next go. To defend against the threat, White has to let the knight go and become reconciled to the fact that he is two pawns down.

29. Qf1 Qxf3+
30. Kh2

I now tried hard to see if I could finish the game immediately - and simply did not see 30 .. Nd3 forking the rooks which may well have forced resignation. (If 31. Re3 then 31. ... Qf4+. Had White played 30. Kg1 then the Nd3 option would not have been possible due to 31. Re3 Qg4+ 32. Rg3).

30.  ... Qh5+?!

However I am two pawns up and now my thoughts are to consolidate that lead by exchanging pieces. I also had to beware of a possible attack by his pieces along the open g- and h-files. I settled down for what I thought would be a lengthy process to get over the line.

31. Kg3 Qg5+
32. Kf3 Ng6

Withdrawing the knight to safety and adding to the defence. I could see he was intending to run his king over to the queenside.

33. Ke2 e5!



Opening lines while his king is in the centre. 34. exd5 Nxd5 threatens a killer discovered check while 34. .. Rxd5 is even better with 35. Bxe5 Rd2+ 36. Kf3 Nh4+ 37. Ke4 f5 mate.

34. Kd1 exd4

Now three pawns up.

35. Rxe8+ Rxe8
36. Bd2

Obviously 36. Bxd4 walks into 36. .. Qg4+.

36. . ..Qf5

Although White's king is now safe, Black is three pawns up and White decided to resign.

I was quite pleased with this win - my rather dull defence placed me in no danger, always with a draw in hand, and providing White with a temptation he was not able to refuse.

Swale v Medway

Keith Nevols (134) 1-0 Paul Foster (126)
Ian Lappin (125) 1-0 Alan Evans (87)
Karl Lewis 1-0 (90) 1-0 Isaac Oluwole (87)
Ted Vidyartmi (60) 0-1 Barry Hampton (83)

Swale 3-1 Medway