Fareham Day 2

THIS morning I lost as Black to a senior, John F Wheeler (169), this afternoon I won as White against a junior, Paul Northcott (160), and this evening I lost as Black to Charlie Nettleton (190).

Fareham

AM playing in the open section of Castle Chess's 16th Fareham weekend congress, which began last night in the Hampshire town's Lysses House Hotel, and continues over six rounds.
The time control is 36 moves in 90 minutes, followed by a 15-minute quickplay finish.
Spanton (170) - Marc Shaw (140)
Spanish Classical
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Bc5 4.c3 Qe7!?
Black's idea, as MS explained afterwards, is to strongpoint e5.
5.0-0 a6 6.Ba4 b5 7.Bc2
Strong players, including Emanuel Lasker, albeit in a simul, have generally preferred 7.Bb3.
7...Nf6 8.d4 Bb6 9.d5
Even better, according to Stockfish10 and Komodo10, is 9.a4.
9...Nd8?!
The knight has limited prospects on d8. The traditional Spanish knight manoeuvre 9...Na5 is probably better.
10.a4 bxa4 11.Rxa4 Nb7 12.b4 Nd6?!
Castling or 12...d6 looks sensible. One problem with the text is it weakens the strongpoint e5.
13.Qe2 Bb7?
Black will now have great difficulty defending his queenside. The engines suggest 13...Nb5, but much prefer White after, for example, 14.Bb2 d6 15.c4.
14.c4 c5 15.Bb2
Capturing the black c pawn with either the d5 or b4 pawn is also good.
15...cxb4 16.Rxb4 Nc8
Or 16...Bc5 17.Ra4 0-0 18.Nbd2, when Black cannot save the e5 pawn.
17.Ba3 d6
Also very good for White is 17...Bc5 18.Rxb7 Bxa3 19.Nxa3 Qxa3 20.Nxe5.
18.Ba4+ Nd7 19.Nc3 a5

How should White proceed?

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20.Rb2
I was tempted by 20.Rxb6!? Nxb6 21.Nb5, but the text is simpler and seems stronger.
20...Ba6 21.Rfb1 Bd8
If 21...Bc7, then 22.Bc6 Ra7 23.Bb5!, eg 23...0-0 24.c5 Nxc5 25.Bxc5 dxc5 26.Bxa6. And if 21...Rb8, then one good line given by Stockfish10 runs 22.Bxd7+ Qxd7 23.Nxe5!? dxe5 24.Qh5 Qc7 25.d6 Qxc4 26.Qxe5+ Kd7 27.Nd5 with a winning attack.
22.Bc6 Ra7 23.Nb5 Bxb5 24.Rxb5 0-0 25.Bxd7 Qxd7
Or 25...Rxd7 26.c5 dxc5 27.Rxc5 Nd6 28.Rc6 Bc7 29.Qa6 Rfd8 30.Rb7, when Black is completely tied down and cannot avoid massive material loss, eg 30...h6 31.h3 f6 32.Nh4 etc.
26.c5 dxc5
Not much better is the engines' 26...Bc7, eg 27.Nd2 f5 28.exf5 Rxf5 29.Ne4 with a huge attack.
27.Bxc5 Nd6 28.Nxe5 1-0
Black has only lost a pawn, but his position appears hopeless, eg 28...Qc7 29.Bxd6 Qxd6 30.Nc6 Ra8 31.e5 Qg6 32.Rb8 Bg5 33.Rxf8+ Rxf8 34.Rb7 a4 35.g3 a3 36.Ra7.

Long-Term Dragon Sac

PLAYED on board three (of 10) for Battersea 2 away to Cavendish 2 in division two of the London League last night.
Spanton (170) - Daniel Wright (187)
Sicilian Accelerated Dragon
1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 g6 3.Nf3 Bg7 4.d4 cxd4 5.Nxd4 Nc6 6.Nxc6!?
The normal move is 6.Be3.
6...bxc6 7.Bc4 d6 8.0-0
8.Qf3!? Nf6 9.e5 dxe5 10.Qxc6+ Bd7 is unclear.
8...Nf6 9.e5!? dxe5 10.Qxd8+ Kxd8 11.Re1
Not 11.Bxf7?? e6.
11...e6 12.Bg5 Kc7 13.Rad1 h6 14.Bh4
Stockfish10 and Komodo10 prefer 14.Bd2.
14...Nd5 15.Na4
15.Ne4?? loses a piece after 15...f5.
15...Nb6 16.Bb3 Nxa4 17.Bxa4 f6 18.Re3 Bb7
Stockfish10's choice. Komodo10 gives 18...g5 19.Bxc6!? Rb8 (if 19...Kxc6, then 20.Rc3+, when the black king cannot escape checks from the white king's rook) 20.Rc3 Rxb2 21.f3!? Kb8 22.Bf2 with compensation for a pawn.
19.f4 g5?
Apparently missing one of the points behind 19.f4, but White also has good compensation for a pawn after 19...exf4 20.Rxe6 Rhe8 21.Rde1 Rxe6 22.Rxe6 Kd7 23.Bb3, according to the engines.
20.fxg5
Better it seems is the engines' 20.Be1! as after 20...a5 21.Red3 Bc8 White can give Black doubled isolanis with 22.fxe5 fxe5.
20...hxg5 21.Be1 a5 22.Red3 Bc8 23.Rc3
Cavendish's Daire McMahon later suggested 23.Rd6 Ra6 24.R1d3?
I believe I was worried about 24...Bf8, when 25.Bxa5+ (only move) Rxa5 26.Rxc6+ Kb8 27.Rd8 Bc5+ 28.Rxc5 Rxd8 29.Rxa5 Bb7 slightly favours Black, according to the engines, despite White being a pawn up. The point seems to be that White's pieces are a little uncoordinated.
However, the engines give 24...e4 25.Bxa5+ Rxa5 26.Rxc6+ Kb8 27.Rb3+ Ka8 with a winning advantage for Black. If 25.Rd1, then f5 with a large advantage for Black, eg 26.c3 Be5 27.R6d2 Bxh2+.
23...Bb7 24.Rc5 Kb6 25.Bf2 Kc7 26.Be1 Kb6
With hindsight, Black should give back the pawn with 26...Bf8 27.Rxa5, when Komodo10 reckons the position is equal but Stockfish10 slightly prefers Black.

White to play and win

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27.Rd7!!
This wins in all lines.
27...Bf8
If 27...Kxc5, then 28.Bf2+ Kb4 (or 28...Kc4 29.Bb3+ Kb5 30.a4+ Ka6 31.Bc4#) 29.Rxb7+ Kxa4 (if 29...Kc4, then 30.Bb3# ) 30.Bc5, and mate follows.
Or 27...Rhd8 28.Bf2! (28.Rxg7 Kxc5 29.Rxb7 is also strong) Ka6 (28...Rxd7? 29.Rxc6#), eg 29.Bxc6 Rxd7 30.Bxd7 Bf8 31.Rc7 Rd8 32.a4.
28.Rc3 Bc5+
If 28...Bb4, then 29.Bf2+ Ka6 30.Bxc6! Bxc3 31.Bxb7+ Kb5 32.Bxa8.
29.Rxc5! Kxc5 30.Bf2+ Kb4 31.Rxb7+ Kxa4
31...Kc4 32.Bb3#.
32.Bc5 1-0
Cavendish 2 won the match 8-2.
My updated Battersea statistics for 2019-20
Event*..Colour...Grade...Opponent's Grade...Result
CLL..…...B....…..168...………169...……….....W
CLL...…..B...…...168...………196...…………..D
CLL...…..W...…..168...………176...…………..L
LL....……W...…..168...…....…175...………….D
CLL...…..B...…...168...………192...…………..D
CLL...…..W...…..168...………181...…………..L
LL...…….W...…..168...………168...…………..L
EC...…….B...…..168...………175...……….….L
CLL...…...B.........170...………172...…………..L
LL...…….W...…..170...………183...…………..D
LL............W........170...…........180......……......L
LL....…….B...…..170....……...182...………….W
CLL...…...B...…..170...………183...……….….D
LL...……..B...…..170...………162...…………..W
LL...…….W...…..170...………172...…………..W
LL...…….W...…..170...………152...…………..L
CLL...…...B.........170..............194...................L
LL...…….W...…..170...….…...187...………….W
Overall this season for Battersea I have scored +5=5-8 for a grading performance of 169.
In season 2018-19 I scored +12=12-13 for a grading performance of 169.
In season 2017-18 I scored +10=8-9 for a grading performance of 175.
*CLL: Central London League; LL: London League; EC: Eastman Cup.

Instructive Ending

PLAYED on board two (of six) for Hastings & St Leonards away to Rainham in the 140-average section of the Kent League last night.

White has just captured a rook on c1 and offered a draw in Andrew Waters (154) - Spanton (170)

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Black has a very small edge thanks to having the better bishop, but the difference is well within chess's drawing margin.
19...f5 20.Kf1 Nf6 21.Ne5 Ne4 22.f3 Nd6 23.Ke2 Bxe5?
Unbalancing the position, but in White's favour. I should have settled for a draw, or at least kept manoeuvring, rather than give White a passed pawn and create unbalanced pawn-majorities with White having the only bishop.
24.dxe5 Nc4 25.f4
Stockfish10 and Komodo10 give 25.e6!? Kf8 26.Bg5!?, when 26...Nxb2 27.Ke3 h6 28.Bf6 Nc4+ 29.Kd4 seems promising for White, but is not clear.
25...Kf7
The engines slightly prefer 25...Na5!?, eg 26.Kd3 Nc6, when Black may well be holding.
26.Kd3 Ke6 27.Kd4 Nb6 28.b3 Nc8?!
Probably better is 28...Nd7 and if, as in the game, 29.Ba3, then 29...Nb8 is equal, according to the engines. However, they reckon 29.b4 gives White an edge, eg 29...Nb6 30.Kd3 a6 (or 30...Nd7 31.Be3 a6 32.a4) 31.Kd4. In all lines Black is in danger of ending up in zugzwang as the black king is tied to defending d5 and the black knight has limited manoeuvrability.
29.Ba3 Nb6 30.Bb4 Nd7 31.Bd6 Nb6 32.a4 Nc8 33.Ba3 b6 34.Bb4 a5 35.Ba3?
The engines reckon White has a large advantage after 35.Bd2, one sample line running 35...Ne7 36.Be3 Nc8 (with the bishop on e3, rather than a3 as in the game, the move 36...Nc6+ drops the b6 pawn) 37.Kc3 Kd7 38.Bf2 Ke6 39.b4 axb4+ 40.Kxb4 Kd7 41.Kb5 Kc7 42.Ka6 Kc6 43.e6 Kc7 44.Bd4 Kc6 45.Be5 Ne7 46.Bf6 Nc8 47.e7 Kd7 48.Kb7 Nxe7 49.Kxb6, when the white outside passed pawn should settle it. After the text, the game is equal.
35...Na7 36.Bd6
36.Bc1 Nc6+ 37.Kc3 gives Black time to protect b6 with the king, eg 37...Kd7 38.Be3 Kc7. White could try 39.e6, but 39...Kd6 40.Bxb6 Kxe6 41.Bc5 Kd7 42.b4 axb4+ 43.Bxb4 Kc7 seems fine for Black.
36...Nc6+ 37.Kc3 Kd7 38.g4?
This turns a drawn position into a losing one.
38...fxg4 39.hxg4 h5 40.gxh5 gxh5 41.f5 h4 42.Bf8 h3?
Simply winning is 42...Nxe5, eg 43.Bh6 h3 44.Bf4 Nf3 etc.
43.e6+ Kc7 44.Bh6 h2?
Now Black turns a draw into a loss.
44...Kd6 45.Bf4+ Ke7 46.Bg5+ Kd6 47.Bf4+ etc draws.
45.Bf4+ Kd8 46.Bxh2
The game finished:
46...Ke7 47.Bg3 Kf6 48.Bh4+ Kxf5 49.e7 Nxe7 50.Bxe7 Ke5 1-0
Rainham won the match 4-2.

The Power Of Two Minor Pieces

IT is well known that a bishop and knight are, other things being equal, superior to a rook and pawn, even though the value of both pairs is 6pts by the traditional counting method (Q-9, R-5, B-3, N-3, P-1).
But consider the following position, reached after a sequence such as 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bc5 5.Ng5 0-0

This position occurs 741 times in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database

In 141 games - almost a fifth of the total - White played either 6.Nxf7? or 6.Bxf7+?
Clearly the superiority of bishop and knight to rook and pawn, especially in the opening, is not so well-known as might be thought.
I believe the traditional counting method is largely to blame for this ignorance.
Database computer analysis by IM - now GM - Larry Kaufman shows the true average values are more like Q-9.75, R-5, B-3.25, N-3.25, P-1.
So giving up bishop (3.25) and knight (3.25) comes to 6.5pts.
But it is worse than this because the same computer analysis shows the bishop-pair to be worth 0.5pts, so in the example above White is giving up 7pts (B-3.25, N-3.25 and bishop-pair-0.5).
A rook is usually most powerful in endings where there are open files for it to operate on, whereas a knight is much more of a middlegame piece.
A search of my personal database reveals I have 30 times had an ending of bishop and knight versus rook, with various numbers of pawns on each side.
Some idea of the power of a rook in endgames can be gathered from the fact that in those 30 games, the player with bishop and knight won only 11 times, compared with 10 wins for the player with the rook (and nine draws).
Here is a recent correspondence example.

Black to make his 62nd move in Alexander Sherwood (2320) - Spanton (2260), 5th British Webserver team championship (division two) 2018

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Black has an extra pawn, and connected passers; White has a farside passed pawn.
62...Rb8
62...Rd8 is met by 63.Nc6, preventing ...d4.
63.Nb5 h4 64.Kf2 Kg5 65.Ke3 Re8+ 66.Kf2
White offered a draw.
66...Kf6 67.f4 g5 68.fxg5+ Kxg5 69.Nc7 Re5
69...Rd8?? 70.Ne6+.
70.Nb5 Kf4 71.a5 d4
There is no other way to make progress.
72.Nxd4 Rxa5 73.Bg6 Ra8 74.Bf7 Ke4

White to play and draw

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75.Bxc4!?
This shocks - assuming analysis engines can be shocked - Komodo10 and Stockfish10, whose evaluation changes from a small edge for Black to Black is winning.
But after …
75...Kxd4
… AS successfully claimed a draw, which indeed it is according to the Nalimov endgame tablebase (but I bet he would not have played 75.Bxc4!? over the board!).

The Power Of Two Checks

"NEVER miss a check - it might be mate" is attributed to Joseph 'Black Death' Blackburne.
Chess historian Edward Winter traces the aphorism back to a simultaneous display given by Blackburne in Birmingham in 1890.
What could be more powerful than giving check? Well, giving checkmate is certainly up there, and giving double-check is usually not bad either (but then both of these are also examples of giving check).
My database of my games has 26 examples of games containing a double-check.
Perhaps surprisingly, the double-checker only won 14 of the games, losing seven and drawing five. That is a score of 63.5%.
Here is the second-oldest example among my games.
Anthony D Brown (143) - Spanton (156)
Highbury (rapidplay) 1991
Evans' Gambit
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.0-0 Nf6 5.b4!?
Captain Evans first played his gambit in a similar way in 1836, except that in that game Black played 4...d6 rather than 4...Nf6.
5...d5?!
The move ...d5!? is an interesting try against 4.b4, but here it is almost certainly inferior to 5...Bxb4.
6.exd5 Nxb4 7.Nxe5 Nbxd5 8.d4 Bb6?
Harry Pillsbury played the better 8...Bd6?! in a loss to Emanuel Schiffers in 1896.
Stockfish10 and Komodo10 reckon Black keeps his disadvantage to a minimum with 8...Be7 or 8...Bb4.
9.Ba3 Be6 10.Re1 Nf4?
Better is 10...c6.
11.Bb5+?
11.Qf3 is strong, as is the consolidating 11.c3. In both cases the black king makes a miserable impression.
11...c6

How should White proceed?

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12.Nxc6?
Unclear is 12.Bxc6+!? bxc6 13.Qf3, but the engines' 13...Qd5!? (13...Nd5 14.c4) 14.Qxf4 Bxd4 15.c3 Bxe5 16.Qxe5 Qxe5 17.Rxe5 0-0-0 seems to be at least fine for Black.
Also far from clear is 12.Nc3!?
12...bxc6?
The engines' 12...Qd5! 13.Nxa7+ Kd8 looks good for Black.
13.Bxc6+ Nd7 14.Qf3 Rc8 15.Qxf4 Rxc6 16.d5 Rxc2 17.dxe6 Nf6?
Better is 17...Qf6, but Black still succumbs to a double-check, eg 18.exd7+ Kxd7 19.Qa4+ Qc6 20.Qg4+ Kc7 21.Nd2!?
18.Qa4+ Nd7
Now comes double-check and mate.
19.exd7#

My most-recent game featuring a double-check came against a junior in August.
Spanton (1881) - Boris Stoyanov (1592)
Northumbria Masters 2019
Scandinavian Tiviakov
1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Qxd5 3.Nc3 Qd6 4.d4 Nf6 5.Nf3 g6!?
Kramnik, Caruana, Nakamura and Tiviakov are among grandmasters who have tried this, but the main move is 5...a6.
6.Bc4 a6 7.Ne5!?
The engines reckon 7.Ng5 is even stronger.
7...e6 8.Bg5 Bg7 9.Qf3

Black to make his ninth move

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9...Nbd7
An improvement on 9...Nc6?? 10.Ne4 Qb4+ 11.c3 Nxe5 12.Nxf6+ Kf8 13.dxe5 Bxf6 1-0 in  Davide di Trapani (2090) - Sergio Garofalo (1826), Modena (Italy) Championship 2012.
10.Ne4 Qb4+?
The engines give 10...Qxd4 11.Bxf6 Nxe5 12.Qf4 0-0 13.0-0 Qxc4 14.Qxe5 Bh6 15.Rfd1 with a strong attack for White.
11.c3 Nxe5
The game has transposed to di Trapani - Garofalo.
12.Nxf6+ Kf8 13.dxe5 Qxc4
Marginally better than 13...Bxf6, but still hopeless.
14.0-0-0 Ke7
Now comes double-check …
15.Ng8+ 1-0
… and it would have been mate, after 15..Kf8 or 15...Ke8, by 16.Rd8#.

Doncaster Concluded

Black has just played 16....Bc5-b4? in Spanton (170) - George Ellames (153), Doncaster U171 Round 5

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17.Ng4?
I only saw Nxb5+ - N(either)d5+ is also very strong - after moving. I never got another chance to win material, and the game ended in a draw 28 moves later.
My final score of +2=1-2 was a tournament grading performance of 151.8.

Timely Intervention

Spanton (170) - Russell Goodfellow (147)
Doncaster U171 Round 4
Sicilian Kan
1.Nc3 e6 2.e4 c5 3.Nf3 a6 4.d4 cxd4 5.Nxd4 Qc7 6.Bd3 d6!?
Seven other moves are more popular than this in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database, but the text has been played by grandmasters.
7.0-0 Nf6 8.Be3 Nbd7 9.Qe2 Be7 10.Rac1!?
The rook is well-placed here if Black plays ...Nc5 and ...Nxd3, but why would he? I guess, being charitable, one could say Rac1 is prophylaxis against ...Nc5 etc. Normal is 10.f4.
10...h6!?
This may look strange, but the idea will quickly become apparent.
11.f4 Rg8!?
The analysis engines Stockfish10 and Komodo10 do not like this, but it is consistent.
12.Kh1 g5 13.f5 Ne5 14.fxe6 fxe6

How should White proceed?

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15.Nf3!
A retreat, but well-intentioned in that the black knight on e5 is Black's best-placed piece
15...Nf7?!
The engines give 15...Bd7 16.Nxe5 dxe5, but much prefer White.
16.Na4
The engines want White to sac a pawn with 16.e5!? dxe5 17.Nd2, the point presumably being the uncomfortable-looking black king.
16...b5 17.Nb6 Rb8 18.Nxc8 Qxc8 19.Bd4
19.c4 would have justified a rook being on c1.
19...e5 20.Bc3 Qg4 21.Rce1 Nh8 22.Ng1 Qxe2 23.Nxe2 Ng6 24.Ng3 Nh4 25.Nf5?
This allows an exchange that favours Black. The engines give 25.a4 bxa4 26.Be2 Rf8 27.Ra1 Bd8 28.Rxa4 with a large advantage for White.
25...Nxf5 26.Rxf5 Kd7 27.Ref1 Rgf8 28.a4 Ng4?
28...bxa4 29.Ra1 is only slightly better for White.
29.Rxf8 Bxf8 30.axb5 axb5 31.Bxb5+?!
This wins a pawn, but Black gets active counterplay. The engines give 31.h3 Ne3 32.Ra1.
31...Rxb5 32.Rxf8 Ne3 33.Rh8 Nd1!
If 33...Nxc2, then 34.Kg1 Nb4 35.Rh7+ Kc6 36.Rxh6 seems slightly better for White.
34.Kg1 Nxb2 35.Rh7+ Kc6 36.Rxh6 Na4 37.Bd2 g4?
Black's g pawn is doomed. Instead he should play 37...Nc5 or 37...Rb1+ 38.Kf2 Nc5.
38.Rg6 Rb2 39.Rxg4 Rxc2 40.Bh6 Re2 41.Kf1!?
The immediate 41.h4 looks stronger.
41...Nc3 42.Rg3 Rc2 43.Rg4 Re2 44.h4 Rxe4 45.Rxe4 Nxe4 46.Bg7
A bishop is normally better than a knight when there are rival pawn-majorities. But here that is offset by Black's king being considerably better than White's.
46...Kd5 47.Ke2 Ng3+ 48.Kf3 Nf5 49.Bf6 Ke6 50.Bg5 d5 51.g4 Nd6 52.Bc1 d4 53.h5 Kf6 54.g5+ Kf5 55.g6 Ne8 56.Bh6 Nf6 57.g7 e4+ 58.Kg3?!
The position has been dead-equal since move 45, according to the engines, and still is after this pawn-losing move. But RG had been playing on the 10-second increment since about move 40, and the text has the practical disadvantage of allowing Black to force a draw.
58...Nxh5+ 59.Kf2 Nf6?!
Trying to win, but 59...Nxg7 draws easily, even at 10-seconds a move.
60.Bc1 Ng8 61.Bb2
Black lost on time. in what is still an equal position, while playing …
61...Ke5 1-0

There'll Always Be An Englund

A WISE man said: "When all else in chess fails, try having fun."
Paul May (154) - Spanton (170)
Doncaster U171 Round 3
Englund Gambit
1.d4 e5!? 2.dxe5 Nc6 3.e3!?
It should not come as a surprise to learn the normal move is 3.Nf3.
3...Nxe5 4.c4 Nf6 5.Nh3?!
I cannot see the point of this. White usually plays 5.Nc3.
5...d5 6.Nf4 Bb4+ 7.Bd2 Bxd2+ 8.Qxd2 dxc4 9.Qxd8+ Kxd8
Black's king can no longer castle, but that does not seem a serious problem in this position. Meanwhile, White is a pawn down.
10.Na3 g5!?
Exploiting the knight's lack of good squares.
11.0-0-0+ Ke7 12.Nd5+ Nxd5 13.Rxd5 f6

What should White play?

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14.Nxc4?
Stockfish10 and Komodo10 agree best is 14.f4.
14...Be6 15.Rd4 c5 16.Re4 Bd5
White loses the exchange.
17.Rxe5+ fxe5 18.Nxe5 Bxa2 (0-1, 37 moves).

Sign Of Tiredness

POSITIONAL understanding does not disappear with tiredness, but tactical skills take a big knock.
This is a major reason why chess strength tends to deteriorate in old age - seniors tire more quickly and so make more tactical mistakes.

White to play and lose in Spanton (170) - Robert A Dean (150), Doncaster U171 Round 2

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12.Qd4??
My original intent had been 12.Bb4, which may be enough for a small edge (Stockfish10 reckons so, but Komodo10 rates the position as level). Then I thought: "Why not drive Black's knight back to f6 and follow up with  ...Bb4?"
The answer to my question is …
12...Nxd6 (0-1, 20 moves).

Doncaster

AM top seed in the U171 section of Doncaster Congress, which began this evening.
There are five rounds over three days, with a time control of 100 minutes plus a 10-second increment.

White to make his 31st move in John Cawston (155) - Spanton (170)

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31.Rxd5! exd5+ 32.Kxd5
Black is busted.
The game continued:
32...b5 33.axb5 axb5 34.Nd2!?
Even stronger is 34.Na5, but the text seems good enough.
34...Re8
Stockfish10 and Komodo10 for a while like 34...Kg7!?, but soon find 35.Ne4, eg 35...Ke8 36.h4 (there is no need to rush, but 36.Nc5 is also good)  Ke8 37.Nf6+ Kf8 38.Kc6 etc.
35.f3 Re5+ 36.Kc6 Re2 37.Ne4+ Ke5 38.d7 Rc2+ 39.Nc5 Rd2 40.Kc7 Rc2 41.b4 1-0

Compensation For The Exchnage

PLAYED on board four (of five), and was stand-in captain, in division one of the Central London League for Battersea 2 against title-chasing Rangers last night.
Carsten Pedersen (194) - Spanton (170)
Sicilian Closed
1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 g6 3.g3 Bg7 4.Bg2 Nc6 5.d3 d6 6.f4 e6 7.Nf3 Nge7 8.0-0 0-0 9.Be3 Nd4
The main move, although Bobby Fischer preferred 9...Rb8 when he had this position in 1956.
10.e5 Nef5 11.Bf2 Nxf3+ 12.Qxf3 Nd4 13.Qd1 dxe5 14.fxe5 Bxe5 15.Ne4 f5 16.Nxc5 Qd6
The game has been following the main line of the f4 Closed Sicilian, but here more common is 16...Qc7.
17.b4 Nb5?!
This would be good if grabbing the exchange were good, but since grabbing the exchange is bad, then better is 17...Nc6.
18.a4! Bxa1?
Better is 18...Nc7, but Stockfish10 and Komodo10 continue 19.d4 Bg7 20.c4 with a queenside initiative for White.
19.Qxa1 Nc7 20.Nxb7 Bxb7 21.Bxb7 Rab8 22.Bc5 Qd8

How should White proceed?

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23.Bc6!
White has a pawn and the bishop-pair for the exchange, which is just about material parity. But Black is weak on the dark squares and his rooks have limited scope, so White is much better, as he would be after other retreats by the light-square bishop.
I expected 23.Bxf8, when 23...Qxf8 24.Bf3 Rxb4 is only slightly better for White.
23...Rf7?!
It was probably better to oblige White to win back the exchange by 23...Na6 24.Bxf8. However after 24...Qb6+ 25.Rf2 Rxf8 26.b5 White is much better.
24.b5 Nd5?!
Still reasonable is ...Na6, when 25.Ba3 (Black is back in the game after 25.bxa6? Qc7) Qb6+ 26.Kh1 Nc7 is, if nothing else, better than the game.
25.Qe5
Attacking e6 and threatening Bd4 to exploit the dark squares.
25...Qc8 26.Re1 a6 27.c4
Also good is 27.bxa6 as 27...Qxc6? runs into 28.Qxb8+.
27...Nf6 28.Bd6 Ng4 29.Qc5 Rbb7 30.Bxb7 Qxb7 31.Qc6 axb5 32.Qxb7 Rxb7 33.axb5
White has won back the exchange and emerged a good pawn up, and with unstoppable queenside passers.
The game finished:
33...Kf7 34.h3 Nf6 35.Rb1 Ne8 36.Be5 Nc7 37.Bxc7 Rxc7 38.b6 Rc8 39.c5 Ke7 40.c6 Kd6 41.c7 Re8 42.Rc1 1-0
Rangers won the match 4-1
My updated Battersea statistics for 2019-20
Event*..Colour...Grade...Opponent's Grade...Result
CLL..…...B....…..168...………169...……….....W
CLL...…..B...…...168...………196...…………..D
CLL...…..W...…..168...………176...…………..L
LL....……W...…..168...…....…175...………….D
CLL...…..B...…...168...………192...…………..D
CLL...…..W...…..168...………181...…………..L
LL...…….W...…..168...………168...…………..L
EC...…….B...…..168...………175...……….….L
CLL...…...B.........170...………172...…………..L
LL...…….W...…..170...………183...…………..D
LL............W........170...…........180......……......L
LL....…….B...…..170....……...182...………….W
CLL...…...B...…..170...………183...……….….D
LL...……..B...…..170...………162...…………..W
LL...…….W...…..170...………172...…………..W
LL...…….W...…..170...………152...…………..L
CLL...…...B.........170..............194...................L
Overall this season for Battersea I have scored +4=5-8 for a grading performance of 165.
In season 2018-19 I scored +12=12-13 for a grading performance of 169.
In season 2017-18 I scored +10=8-9 for a grading performance of 175.
*CLL: Central London League; LL: London League; EC: Eastman Cup.

Morphing The French XIV

PLAYING on board eight (of 10) for Battersea last night against Athenaeum in the London League, I had my 14th chance to try to meet the French in the style of Paul Morphy.
Spanton (170) - John S Walton (152)
French Exchange
1.d4 e6 2.e4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bd3 Be7
Second in popularity to 5...Bd6.
6.0-0 0-0 7.Nc3
Five moves are more popular in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database, led by 7.h3, which restricts the black light-square bishop.
7...Re8
Another less-popular move, but there seems nothing wrong with it.
8.Re1 Bg4 9.h3 Bh5 10.Bg5 Bg6?
Missing a tactic.

What did Black miss?

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11.Bxf6 gxf6
If 11...Bxf6, then 12.Rxe8+ Qxe8 13.Nxd5.
12.Nh4 Qd7 13.Qf3 Nc6 14.Nf5
14.Nxd5 is also good.
14...Nb4 15.Nxe7+
Stockfish10 and Komodo10 prefer 15.h4.
15...Rxe7 16.Rxe7 Qxe7 17.Bxg6
Here the engines prefer 17.a3 Nxd3 18.Nxd5 Qd6 19.cxd3 Kg7 20.Nf4.
17...hxg6 18.Nxd5 Nxd5 19.Qxd5 Qb4 20.Qb3!?
Returning the pawn in the hope of a small positional edge. The engines give 20.Rb1 Re8 21.c3 with a slight edge for White.
20...Qxd4 21.c3 Qb6 22.Rd1 Qxb3 23.axb3 Kf8
White is slightly better thanks to having his rook on an open file and having the possibility of creating a passed h pawn.
24.Kf1
The engines like 24.Rd7 Rc8 followed by gaining space with g4 or b4.
24...Ke7 25.Ke2 Rd8?
The pawn-ending is problematic for Black.
One line given by the engines runs 25...a5 26.h4 Ra6 with a position they reckon is equal.
26.Rxd8 Kxd8 27.Ke3 Ke7 28.h4 Kf8!?
This move looks silly at first glance, but it comes to be Komodo10's choice. The idea is that the white king will have great difficulty invading the queenside, so Black moves his king to the h file to combat White's potential passer.
29.g4 Kg7 30.Ke4 Kh6 31.b4 f5+!?
A good practical try.
32.gxf5 Kh5 33.c4 Kxh4 34.c5
Simpler is 34.fxg6, eg 34...fxg6 35.b5 Kg4 36.c5 g5 37.c6 bxc6 38.bxc6 a5 39.b3 Kh3 40.Kf5 g4 41.Kg5 g3 42.fxg3 Kxg3 43.Kf5 etc.
34...g5

How should White proceed?

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35.Kf3??
This turns a win into a loss.
I rejected the winning 35.Ke5 (35.b5 is also good) because of 35...Kg4, missing that 36.Kf6 leads to a winning queen-and-pawn ending, eg 36...a6 37.Ke7 Kxf5 38.Kd7 c6 39.Kc7 Kg4 40.Kxb7 Kf3 41.Kxa6 g4 42.b5 Kxf2 43.bxc6 g3 44.c7 g2 45.c8Q g1Q 46.Qf5+ Ke3 47.c6 etc.
35...f6
White loses because he will eventually be in zugzwang.
36.b5 c6 37.bxc6 bxc6 38.Ke4 Kg4 39.f3+ Kg3 40.b4 a6 41.Ke3 g4 42.fxg4 Kxg4 43.Ke4 Kg5 0-1
Battersea won the match 7-3.
My updated Battersea statistics for 2019-20
Event*..Colour...Grade...Opponent's Grade...Result
CLL..…...B....…..168...………169...……….....W
CLL...…..B...…...168...………196...…………..D
CLL...…..W...…..168...………176...…………..L
LL....……W...…..168...…....…175...………….D
CLL...…..B...…...168...………192...…………..D
CLL...…..W...…..168...………181...…………..L
LL...…….W...…..168...………168...…………..L
EC...…….B...…..168...………175...……….….L
CLL...…...B.........170...………172...…………..L
LL...…….W...…..170...………183...…………..D
LL............W........170...…........180......……......L
LL....…….B...…..170....……...182...………….W
CLL...…...B...…..170...………183...……….….D
LL...……..B...…..170...………162...…………..W
LL...…….W...…..170...………172...…………..W
LL...…….W...…..170...………152...…………..L
Overall this season for Battersea I have scored +4=5-7 for a grading performance of 167.
In season 2018-19 I scored +12=12-13 for a grading performance of 169.
In season 2017-18 I scored +10=8-9 for a grading performance of 175.
*CLL: Central London League; LL: London League; EC: Eastman Cup.

The Power Of Two Squares

HERE is a handy way to judge many king-and-pawn versus king endings.
If the pawn (I will call it a white pawn for convenience) is in its own half of the board, White wins if the white king can occupy any point two squares ahead of the pawn and either on its file on an adjacent file (assuming the black king is not able to simply capture the pawn).
That is quite a mouthful, but here is a simple example drawn from Amateur To IM - Proven Ideas And Training Methods by Jonathan Hawkins (Mongoose Press 2012).

White to play - win or draw?

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1.Kd2
1.Kf2 also wins.
1...Ke7 2.Ke3 Ke6 3.Ke4
The white king reaches a point two squares ahead of its pawn. We know from the rule above that 3.Kf4 and 3.Kd4 also win.
3...Kd6 4.Kf5 Ke7 5.Ke5 Kd7 6.Kf6 Kc6 7.e4 Kd7 8.e5 Ke8 9.Ke6
Not 9.e6?? Kf8 10.e7+ Ke8 11.Ke6 - stalemate.
9...Kd8 10.Kf7 1-0

But note that if it were Black to move in the above diagram, the same rule shows the position is drawn:
1...Ke7 2.Kd2 Ke6 3.Ke3 Ke5
The white king cannot occupy d4, e4 or f4, and so the position is drawn.

If the pawn is in the enemy half of the board, White wins if the white king can occupy any one of two sets of squares ahead of the pawn.

The white pawn has crossed the halfway line

With a white pawn on e5, for example, the two sets of winning squares for White are d7, e7 and f7 (two squares ahead of the pawn, just as if the pawn were in its own half the board) and d6, e6 and f6.
If the white king can get to any of those six squares, White wins.
Here is an example:

White to play and win

*****
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*****
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1.Kf6 Kf8
Black gets the opposition, but it does him no good as White takes the opposition away with his next move.
2.e6 Ke8 3.e7 Kd7 4.Kf7 1-0

If it were Black to move in the above diagram, Black would draw with 1...Kf7 or 1...Ke7.

EXCEPTIONS
It seems every rule in chess has its exceptions, and these pawn-and-king versus king endings are, well, no exception.
With a rook's pawn, there are just two key squares.
If the black king is in the vicinity, ie can reach the pawn before the pawn reaches the eighth rank, White only wins if the white king can get to the seventh or eighth rank on the adjacent knight's file.

Exceptional rook's pawns

So with an h pawn, the two winning squares are g7 and g8, and with an a pawn the two winning squares are b7 and b8.

Hampstead Concluded

MY Sunday-afternoon round-five game from Hampstead U2200.
Spanton (1840/170) - Niall Clarke (1646/154)
Jobava-Prié (aka Barry Attack)
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nc3 d5 3.Bf4 c6 4.e3 Bf5 5.f3
Alekhine preferred 5.Bd3 in a 1933 simul.
5...e6 6.g4 Bg6 7.h4 h6
NC in the postmortem said he had previously played 7...h5, which is marginally more popular in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database.
8.h5 Bh7 9.Bd3 Bxd3
The analysis engines Stockfish10 and Komodo10 prefer a move such as 9...Nbd7, and if 10.Bxh7, then 10...Nxh7, intending a later ...Ng5.
10.Qxd3 Bd6 11.Nge2

Position after 11.Nge2

*****
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*****
*****
*****
11...Qc7
Baadur Jobava (2716) - Iván Salgado López (2605), EU Championship (Yerevan) 2014, saw 11...Bxf4 12.exf4!? Nbd7 13.Qe3!? (1-0, 62 moves).
12.0-0-0 Nbd7 13.Bxd6 Qxd6 14.e4 dxe4 15.Nxe4N Nxe4 16.fxe4 0-0-0 17.Rhf1 Rhf8
The engines prefer 17...f6!?, which I am fairly sure NC suggested in the postmortem.
18.Kb1 Kb8 19.e5 Qb4?!
Probably better is 19...Qe7 as then 20.Qh7 can be met by 20...Qg5 or 20...f6.
20.Qh7 Nb6
Possible is 20...Rg8!? as 21.Rxf7?! is met by 21...Nxe5!
21.c3
The engines prefer 21.a3, the point being that the black queen cannot stay on the b file as 21...Qb5 is simply answered by 22.Nc3.
21...Qb5 22.Qd3 Nc4?!
Probably better is 22...Qxd3+ 23.Rxd3 c5, although the engines like White.
23.b3 Na3+?
Unpleasant, but less bad than the text, is 23...Nb6 24.Qxb5 (24.c4!?) cxb5.
24.Kb2 Qa5
Black offered a draw.
The engines prefer the text, even though the knight will be imprisoned, over 24...Qxd3 25.Rxd3 Nb5 26.Rdf3, which indeed looks grim for Black.
25.c4 b5 26.Qc3 b4 27.Qf3 Qc7 28.Qe4 Rfe8 29.Nc1 c5
29...a5 30.Nd3 with Nc5 to come is also very good for White.
30.dxc5 Rxd1 31.Rxd1 Rd8
Black may have planned 31...Qxc5, but both 32.Nd3 and 32.Rd7 win.
32.Rd6 Rxd6 33.cxd6 Qd8
If 33...Qc5, then 34.Nd3.
34.Nd3 Qa5 35.Qc6
The game finished:
35...Nc2!? 36.Kxc2 Qxa2+ 37.Nb2 Qa5 38.c5 Qd8 39.Nd3 a5 40.Qb6+ Qxb6 41.cxb6 Kc8 42.Nc5 1-0

Fiery Dragon

My Sunday-morning round-four game from Hampstead U2200.
Shahjahon Saidmurodov (1915/191) - Spanton (1840/170)
Sicilian Accelerated Dragon
1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 g6 3.Nf3 Bg7 4.h4!?
This has been tried by grandmasters.
4...Nf6 5.d4!?
Playing on the flank and opening the centre is somewhat unusual, but the analysis engines Stockfish10 and Komodo10 are not unduly bothered.
5...cxd4 6.Nxd4 Nc6
More circumspect is 6...d6, which has been played by grandmaster Yunguo Wan.
7.Nxc6 bxc6 8.e5 Nd5!?
The engines prefer 8...Ng8 to this pawn-sac.
9.Nxd5 cxd5 10.Qxd5 Rb8 11.Bd2?!
The engines suggest 11.Qc5 0-0 12.h5, with a slight edge for White according to Stockfish10, but Komodo10 reckons Black has full compensation for the pawn.

How should Black proceed?

*****
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11...Qc7?
I rejected 11...Rxb2 because of 12.Ba5, missing 12...Bb7, when Black is better.
12.Bc3 Bb7 13.Qd4 0-0 14.h5 Qc6?!
The engines give 14...d6 15.hxg6 hxg6 16.Qxa7 dxe5, but with advantage - a winning one, according to Stockfish10 - for White.
15.hxg6 fxg6 16.Bc4+ e6 17.f3 Rf5 18.f4?
18.0-0-0 is strong as 18...Bxe5? 19.Qxd7 Qxd7 20.Rxd7 Bd5 21.Bxe5 Rxe5 22.Rdxh7 wins for White.
18...Qe4+?!
I rejected 18...Qxg2 because of 19.0-0-0, but the engines point out 19...Qg4, when Black has good counterplay.
19.Qxe4 Bxe4 20.0-0
Castling long is also good.
20...Bxc2 21.Rac1 Be4 22.Rcd1 Bc6?
White now gets a winning initiative with his kingside pawns.
Correct is 22...Rf7, when White is better but the game is far from over.
23.g4 Rff8 24.f5 gxf5 25.gxf5 Bb5?
Better is 25...Kh8, but 26.fxe6 leaves White on top.
26.Bxb5 Rxb5 27.f6 Bh6 28.Rxd7 (1-0, 41 moves).

?? Or !! Or Something In-Between?

MY round-three game from the weekend's Hampstead U2200.
Spanton (1840/170) - Julia Volovich (1662/164)
Jobava-Prié (aka Barry Attack)
 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nc3 d5 3.Bf4 e6 4.e3
The most-popular alternative is the thematic 4.Nb5!?
4...c6!?
This has been played by Russian grandmaster Valentina Gunina, but seems slow.
5.Bd3 Bd6 6.Nf3 0-0
A critical test of White's set-up is surely 6...Bxf4, but that does not mean the text is necessarily inferior.
7.Ne5
All three games in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database saw 7.0-0.
7...Qc7 8.Qf3 h6?!
This gives White a target for a quick kingside attack.
9.g4 Nfd7!?
The choice of the analysis engines Stockfish10 and Komodo10, but it leaves Black's kingside looking awfully bare.
10.Qg3
The engines reckon 10.g5!? is even stronger, their mainline running 10...hxg5 11.Rg1 Nxe5 12.dxe5 Bxe5 13.Bxe5 Qxe5 14.Qh5 f5 15.0-0-0 with a huge attack for two pawns.
10...Bxe5

I recaptured on e5 with the d pawn. How would you annotate the move?

*****
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*****
11.dxe5!
I played the text without seeing Black's bishop-trapping reply, so in a way the move, or at least my playing it, deserves double-question marks. But the engines reckon it is White's best move in the position, which is why I have given it an exclamation mark.
11...g5 12.0-0-0?!
The best follow-up seems to be 12.Qh3, when 12...gxf4? loses to 13.Qxh6 f5 14.Qg6+ Kh8 15.Qh5+ Kg8 16.gxf5 etc. So Black has to try 12...Nxe5, but the engines continue 13.Bxe5 Qxe5 14.Qxh6 (14.Qh5!? also has its points) Qg7 15.Qh5 Nd7 16.h4 Nf6 17.Qxg5 Qxg5 18.hxg5 Nxg4 19.Ke2 with advantage for White.
12...gxf4 13.Qxf4?
White had to play 13.exf4, when the engines give 13...Kg7 14.Rhg1 with a position hard to assess - Stockfish10 has White winning, but Komodo10 reckons the position is equal if Black finds 14...Rh8!? (Stockfish10 strongly disagrees).
13...Qxe5 14.Qxh6 Qg7 15.Qh4 b5 16.Ne2 Nc5 17.Ng3 Nbd7 18.Nh5 Nxd3+ 19.Rxd3 Qg6 20.f4 Nc5?
This loses control of the f6 square, and so allows White to draw. Black is winning after, for example, 20...f6.
21.f5 Nxd3+ 22.cxd3 exf5 23.Nf6+ Kg7 24.gxf5 Bxf5 25.Nh5+ Kg8
Black offered a draw.
26.Nf6+ Kg7 27.Nh5+ Kg8 ½–½

Is This A Record?

WHITE made six consecutive moves with the same piece in the opening in my round-two game from the weekend's Hampstead U2200.
Six moves on the trot with the same piece in an ending is probably not all that remarkable, although I cannot think of an example off the top of my head.
But six moves in the opening (I am taking the opening as continuing until one player has castled and cleared the back rank of minor pieces and the queen) is another matter.
Unfortunately I have been unable to find anything relevant on the internet.
Stephen Berkley (1391/121) - Spanton (1840/170)
Albin Countergambit
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 d4 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.g3
Still the main line, although 5.a3 is fast catching up despite not doing as well percentage-wise, at least in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database.
5...Nge7 6.Bg2 Ng6 7.0-0 Ngxe5 8.Nxe5 Nxe5 9.b3 Be7
So far the game has followed what could easily be considered the modern mainline, but here the most-popular move is 9...Bc5.

White to start a knight tour

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10.Nd2
The first of six consecutive moves with this piece. Much more popular is 10.Bb2.
10...c5 11.Nf3
Komodo10's top choice.
11...Nc6 12.Ne1
The second choice, marginally behind 12.e3, of Komodo10 and Stockfish10.
12...0-0 13.Nd3
A great blockading square for the knight, so not surprisingly this is also the engines' pick.
13...Bd7 14.Nf4
Heading for d5. Stockfish10 is not keen on this move, but Komodo10 raises no objections.
14...Rc8 15.Nd5 b6
I partly played this, rather than, for example, 15...Bd6, in the hope White would reply 16.Nxe7+, making it seven consecutive moves with the same piece.
16.e3 Re8 17.exd4 Nxd4 18.Be3 Nf5 19.Bf4 Bd6 20.Bxd6 Nxd6 21.Re1 Nf5 22.Qd2 Nd4 23.Rxe8+ Qxe8 24.Qg5
I had not anticipated this, but luckily there is an answer.
24...Kf8 25.Qh4 Bf5
The engines' 25...Qe5 centralises the queen and gives Black a small edge.
26.Rd1 h6 27.Ne3 Bg6 28.Rd2 Nf5 29.Qf4 Nxe3 30.Qd6+?!
30.fxe3 is fine for White, according to the engines.
30...Kg8 31.Re2 Qd8 32.Qxd8+ Rxd8 33.fxe3
Black has a small edge, but White has good drawing chances and it may well be the game should be drawn with correct play.
But not 33.Rxe3? Rd1+ 34.Bf1 Ra1.
33...Bh5 34.Rf2?!
The rook needs to stay on White's second rank, but it should not obstruct the white king.
34...Rd1+ 35.Rf1 Rd3 36.e4 f6?
36...Bg6 is obviously strong.
37.e5!
The very move ...f6 was aimed at preventing!
37...Kf7
The engines prefer 37...Be2 38.Rf5 Rd1+ 39.Kf2 Bg4 40.Rf4 Rd2+ 41.Kg1 Be6 42.exf6 Rxa2 with roughly even chances.
38.Bd5+ Ke7 39.exf6+ gxf6 40.Re1+ Kd8 41.Re6 Rd1+ 42.Kf2 Rd2+ 43.Kg1 Rxa2?!
I probably should have settled for a draw by repetition, but was influenced by how I had been slightly better and was playing someone much-lower rated.
44.Rxf6 Bd1 45.Rxh6 Bxb3 46.g4 Re2?
Black cannot stop White's kingside pawns, so should go for 46...Rc2 47.g5 Bxc4 48.Bxc4 Rxc4 49.Kf2 Rg4 50.h4 Ke7 with an even position, according to the engines.
47.g5
Black is lost. The game finished:
47...Bc2 48.h4 Re7 49.h5 Rg7 50.g6 a5 51.Bf7 Ke7 52.Rh8 a4 53.Rb8 a3 54.Rxb6 a2 55.Ra6 Bb1 56.h6 Rxf7 57.Ra7+ Ke8 58.gxf7+ Kf8 59.Rxa2 Kxf7 60.Ra5 Kg6 61.Rxc5 Kxh6 62.Re5 Kg6 63.c5 Kf6 64.Re3 Bf5 65.c6 Be6 66.c7 Bd7 67.Kf2 Kf7 68.Ke1 1-0

Smooth Start

HERE is my round-one game from Saturday.
Spanton (1840/170) - Ethan B Li (1522/141)
79th Hampstead U2200
Pirc Defence
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nc3 g6 3.e4 d6 4.Nf3 Bg7 5.Be2 0-0 6.0-0 Nbd7
By no means Black's most-popular choice, but it has been played by Emanuel Lasker, Pirc, Simagin, Robatsch, Tigran V Petrosian, Nunn, Svidler and many other strong players.
7.e5 Ne8
Some masters have played 7...dxe5 8.dxe5 Ng4, but it looks problematic after 9.e6!?
8.Bf4 e6?!
The mainline move seems to be 8...c6, when Stockfish10 and Komodo10 like the obscure 9.Qc1!?
9.Qd2 d5 10.Rfe1 f6
This is the engines' choice.
On 10...c5, the engines give 11.dxc5 Nxc5 12.Qe3 with a large advantage for White.
11.exf6 Ndxf6
Probably best - it keeps c7 well-defended and gives e6 a defender. However, Black's position gives the impression of a French Defence gone wrong.
12.Ng5 Nd6 13.Rad1 b6 14.Bb5

How should Black proceed?

*****
*****
*****
*****
*****
14...Qe7?
14...Nxb5 15.Nxb5 h6! 16.Nf3 Ne4 17.Qe3 Bd7 is good for White, but Black is still in the game as 18.Nxc7? g5 19.Nxa8 gxf4 and ...Qxa8 favours Black.
15.Bc6 Rb8 16.Nxd5 Nxd5 17.Bxd5 Kh8
17...Rf6 can be met by 18.Nxe6 Bxe6 19.Rxe6 Rxe6 20.Re1.
18.Nxe6 Bxe6 19.Bxe6 Qd8 20.c3 Nf5 21.Bg5 Bf6 22.Bxf6+ Qxf6 23.Bxf5 Qxf5 24.Re5
Black is two pawns down and with the more-exposed king (1-0, 48 moves).

79th Hampstead (day two)

FACED two more juniors today, losing to a 1915/191 this morning and beating a 1646/154 this afternoon.
My final score of +2=1-2 saw me lose 23.4 Fide elo, and was an ECF grading performance of 156.
Now to get down to some annotating ...

79th Hampstead (continued)

IN round two this afternoon I lost to a senior (1391/121), and this evening in round three I drew with a junior (1662/164).
Both were interesting games, and I am looking forward to annotating them, but I am much too tired to do that now (and anyway I have to annotate round-one first).
This afternoon's game featured my opponent moving the same piece on six consecutive moves while the game was still in the opening.
I am wondering if that could be a record, but have been unable to find anything relevant on the internet.

Weekend Warrior

AM playing in Adam Raoof's 79th Hampstead weekend congress, which has a format of three sections of five rounds over two days.
The time control is an hour with a 30-second increment, which allows the games to be Fide-rated as standardplay as long as players are U2200.
In the top section, which accordingly is U2200, I am seeded ninth of 32 players, and this morning beat a junior (Fide 1522/ECF 141).

Morphing The French XIII

PLAYED in division one of the Central London League on board five (of five) for Battersea 2 against Pimlico Bishops last night.
The game gave me my 13th chance to try to play against the French in the style of Paul Morphy.
Spanton (170) - Robert Stern (172)
French Exchange
1.d4 e6 2.e4 d5 3.exd5 exd5 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bd3 c5 6.0-0
Stockfish10 and Komodo10 like 6.c3, but I did not believe that is the type of move Morphy would play if getting on with development were possible.
6.dxc5!? Bxc5 produces a very different type of game.
6...c4 7.Re1+ Be7 8.Bf1 0-0 9.b3
Kasparov played 9.Bg5 in a win over Korchnoi at Tilburg (Netherlands) 1991.
9...cxb3 10.axb3 Nc6 11.Nbd2
The main move is 11.Ne5 but the text has also been tried by a few 2400+ players.

How should Black proceed?

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11...h6
I did not understand the point of this, but RS explained after the game that his idea is to give his light-square bishop a retreat square on h7 in the event of it going to f5 and being attacked by Nh4.
However the immediate 11...Bf5 features in three games in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database by players rated 2431-2575. The point is that 12.Nh4?! runs into 12...Bg4, when the d4 pawn is hanging.
If 13.f3?, Black has 13...Be6, when both d4 and the knight at h4 are in danger.
If 13.Nhf3 (13.Ndf3?? loses to 13...Ne4, when the vulnerability of the knight at h4 is again apparent) then simply 13...Nxd4 is good.
That leaves 13.Be2 Bxe2 14.Qxe2 Re8 (14...Nxd4?! 15.Qxe7 Nxc2 gives an unclear position, but not 15...Re8?? 16.Qxd8), and now the engines agree the best White has is 15.Qd1 Nxd4 16.Bb2 Qb6 17.Bxd4 Qxd4 18.Rxe7 Rxe7 19.Nf5 Qe5 20.Nxe7+ Qxe7, when Black emerges a pawn up.
12.Bb2 Bf5
The arguably somewhat inconsistent 12...Bg4 was played in Lars Oskar Hauge (2431) - Gupta Prithu (2219), Rilton Cup (Stockholm) 2016. That game continued 13.h3 Bh5 14.Bd3 Bd6 15.c4 with a roughly level position (but 1-0, 30 moves).
13.Ne5 Re8
13...Nb4 14.Rc1 Na2 16.Ra1 Nb4 15.Ra1 Nb4 would be an invitation to an early draw. However 14...Rc8 would keep the game going.
14.Nxc6!?
This unisolates the d5 pawn but isolates the a pawn and creates a new weakness at c6. It also means White's backward c pawn is no longer on a half-open file.
14...bxc6 15.Nf3 Ne4
The engines give 15...a5!?, preventing a White piece going to a6.
16.Ne5 Qc7
Possible is 16...Bd6!? as 17.Nxc6? (the position is difficult to assess - one line given by the engines runs 17.Ra6 Bc8!? 18.Rxc6!? Bb7 19.Rxd6 Nxd6, when White has a pawn and the bishop-pair for the exchange) Bxh2+! 18.Kxh2 Qh4+ 19.Kg1 Qxf2+ gives what the engines reckon is a winning attack for Black.
17.Ra6 c5?
The engines give 17...Qb7, when they reckon 18.Nxc6 Bg5 19.Ne5 Nd2 20.Ra5 Nxf1 provides good compensation for the pawn.
18.Qf3 Be6
Best, according to the engines, is 18...Bh4 19.g3 cxd4 20.Bxd4 Bf6 21.Rxf6 gxf6 22.Nxf7 Qxf7 23.Qxf5, when, for the exchange, White has a pawn, the bishop-pair and an attack.
19.Rxe6! Ng5
19...fxe6 20.Qf7+ Kh8 21.dxc5 wins for White, as does 20...Kh7 21.Qg6+ Kg8 22.Qxe6+ Kh8 23.Rxe4! (other moves are also good) dxe4 24.Ng6+ Kh7 25.Qf5 etc.
20.Qh5 fxe6 21.h4 Ne4
Not 21...Nh7?? 22.Qf7+ Kh8 23.Ng6#.
22.Qf7+ Kh7
If 22...Kh8 then 23.dxc5 quickly wins.
23.f3
Even stronger is giving up a second exchange by 23.Rxe4! dxe4, and then 24.Qg6+, but I was not confident enough about this.
23...cxd4
I expected the engines' choice 23...Bd6, when I intended keeping the attack going by 24.Qg6+ Kg8 25.fxe4. The engines continue 25...Bxe5 26.dxe5 d4 27.Bc4, when White has two bishops for a rook, and an ongoing attack.
24.Qg6+ Kg8 25.Qxe6+ Kh8 26.Nf7+ Kh7 27.Qf5+??
I was so used to calculating lines with black pawns on g7 and h6 that I forgot they could move!
Both 27.Qxd5 Nc5 28.Bxd4 Bxh4 29.Rxe8 Rxe8 30.Nd6 and 27.Rxe4 dxe4 28.Qxe4+ g6 29.Bd3 Rg8 30.h5 win for White.
27...g6 28.Qxd5 Nf6
This looks strong but Black had to find 28...Nc3! 29.Rxe7 (White has a pawn for the exchange, but no bishop-pair, after 29.Bxc3?! dxc3, and his pieces are uncoordinated) 29...Qxe7 30.Qxd4 Qe3+ 31.Qxe3 Rxe3, when he emerges with two rooks for two bishops and two pawns, and is much better, according to the engines.

White to play and win

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29.Ng5+!
Not 29.Qxd4?? Bc5.
29...hxg5
29...Kh8 30.Qf7 hxg5 - there is nothing better - transposes.
30.Qf7+ Kh8 31.Bxd4 Qd6 32.c3 Rf8 33.Qxg6 Rae8 34.Qh6+
34.Bd3 also quickly mates.
34...Kg8 35.Bc4+ Rf7
If 35...Nd5 then 36.Qg7#.
36.Qg6+ Kh8 37.Bxf7 Qg3 38.Qh6#
The match was drawn 2.5-2.5.
My updated Battersea statistics for 2019-20
Event*..Colour...Grade...Opponent's Grade...Result
CLL..…...B....…..168...………169...……….....W
CLL...…..B...…...168...………196...…………..D
CLL...…..W...…..168...………176...…………..L
LL....……W...…..168...…....…175...………….D
CLL...…..B...…...168...………192...…………..D
CLL...…..W...…..168...………181...…………..L
LL...…….W...…..168...………168...…………..L
EC...…….B...…..168...………175...……….….L
CLL...…...B.........170...………172...…………..L
LL...…….W...…..170...………183...…………..D
LL............W........170...…........180......……......L
LL....…….B...…..170....……...182...………….W
CLL...…...B...…..170...………183...……….….D
LL...……..B...…..170...………162...…………..W
LL...…….W...…..170...………172...…………..W
Overall this season for Battersea I have scored +4=5-6 for a grading performance of 171.
In season 2018-19 I scored +12=12-13 for a grading performance of 169.
In season 2017-18 I scored +10=8-9 for a grading performance of 175.
*CLL: Central London League; LL: London League; EC: Eastman Cup.

Unusual Closed Sicilian

PLAYED on board five (of 10) in the London League's second division for Battersea 2 against Hackney 2 last night.
Paul Conway (162) - Spanton (170)
Sicilian Closed
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 g6 3.d3!?
White is playing a Closed Sicilian but without the move Nc3. The idea is that in many lines of the Closed, Black drops a knight into d4. If White captures it, the reply ...cxd4 is usually good for Black. So instead White at some point withdraws his queen's knight to d1 or e2, plays c3 to evict the black knight and later redevelops the queen's knight (if Black has not exchanged it). All this takes time, so players started experimenting with 2.g3 (rather than 2.Nc3). But many found 2...d5 an annoying answer. Hence the idea of first playing 2.Nf3, as if going for an Open or Bb5(+) Sicilian. The drawback is that the white king's knight blocks the white f pawn, which often advances to f4 in the Closed.
3...Bg7 4.g3 Nc6
Still possible, but not popular, is ...d5!?
5.Bg2 d6 6.0-0
This position could also arise from a King's Indian Attack in which Black has not played ...d5, and so White has not been obliged to play Nbd2. Ironically, some KIA players regard this as a superior version of their opening because the queen's knight still has the option of developing at c3.
6...e5
Carlsen and Kasparov have gone for this Botvinnik/Nimzowitsch pawn-formation. Other popular moves are 6...Nf6 and 6...e6.
7.c3
This is the most-popular move, but Carlsen has played 7.Nc3.
7...Nge7
Black now definitely has a Botvinnik set-up. The other main development of the king's knight, 7...Nf6, is how Nimzowitsch often played in this type of position. I was tempted to play it to put pressure on the e4 pawn, which White will need to protect if he wants to blast open the black centre with d4. But the e4 pawn is easily protected by Re1, and a knight on f6 blocks the action of the black fianchettoed bishop.
8.Re1
This position is often reached with White to move as it can arise from a KIA against the French in which Black plays 1...e6 before later pushing the e pawn a second time.
8...0-0 9.Nbd2 d5!?
Going for a Maroczy Bind. In playing this I was fairly sure my main analysis engines. Stockfish10 and Komodo10, would not approve, and I was right. They much prefer the mainline move, 9...h6, which they reckon is at least equal for Black.
10.Qc2
I was expecting 10.exd5 Nxd5 11.Nc4, when Black has to decide between 11...f6, which is a normal type of move in a Maroczy Bind, but here does the black fianchettoed bishop no favours, and 11...Re8. In both cases the engines prefer White.

How should Black proceed?

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10...d4!?
This appears to be new in this exact position, although the game transposes to known lines. Gaining space like this invites the lever f4, but that is more effective when White has a rook on f1. Here I felt White is not well-placed to take advantage of Black's multiple pawn moves (six already), so the gain of space is justified. The engines agree (with the move, at least, I cannot vouch for the explanation).
11.a4 h6
Preparing ...Be6 by keeping a white knight out of g5, and also denying the white dark-square bishop a development square on the kingside. However, the engines prefer the immediate 11...Be6!?, and if 12.Ng5, then 12...Bc8 with ...h6 to come.
11...a5 was played in Raymond Kearsley (1648) - Alex van Galen (1400), Guernsey Holiday 2002, which continued 12.Nc4 Be6 13.Na3?! f5? 14.Ng5 with a strong game for White (1-0, 33 moves).
12.Rb1?!
A handy rule-of-thumb from Cecil Purdy, the first world correspondence champion, is that you should never place a rook behind an unmoved pawn, even if you intend to move the pawn fairly quickly (doubtless he meant to exclude from this advice the move 0-0, which usually places the king's rook behind a pawn on f2). Even without the rule, the text is doubtful as White is unlikely to be in position to move the b pawn anytime soon.
12...Be6 13.Nb3
Not 13.b4? dxc3 14.Qxc3 cxb4.
More normal is 13.Nc4 but the knight can be evicted by ...a6 and ...b5.
13...b6 14.Rd1 Qd7 15.c4?
Closing the centre when you have less space is rarely a good idea when you have no easily arranged pawn-breaks. Here the move is also bad on tactical grounds.
15...Nb4 16.Qe2 Qxa4 17.Nfd2
Not 17.Nbd2? Nxd3.
17...Qd7 18.Ra1 a5 19.Nb1?
White's pieces are short of squares on the queenside, and this does not help. The engines suggest 19.Nf3 a4 20.Nbd2 Nec6, when one line continues 21.Ne1 Na5 22.Ra3 b5 with a large advantage for Black.
19...a4 20.N3d2 Nc2 21.Ra2 Nc6
White cannot avoid losing an exchange.
22.Na3 N6b4 23.Nxc2 Nxa2 24.Na3 Qe8 25.Nb5 Ra5
Not 25...Bd7? 26.Nc7.
26.Nc7 Qd7 27.Nxe6 Qxe6 28.Nb1 b5 29.Na3 b4 30.Bd2
The engines do not like the 'obvious' 30.Nb5, conitnuing 30...a3 eg 31.bxa3 Nc3 32.Nxc3 dxc3 33.axb4 cxb4, when Black has the exchange and two very striong connected passed pawns.
30...Ra6 31.Nb1 Rb8 32.h4 a3 33.bxa3 bxa3 34.Qe1 Rb2 35.Kh2 h5 36.Bh3 Qb6 37.Bd7
White has managed to get his king's bishop into a position where it can possibly help on the queenside, but the black passed pawn is too strong.
37...Nb4
Threatening ...a2.
38.Bxb4 cxb4 39.Nd2 Bh6 40.Nf3 Ra5 41.Ng5 Qf6 42.Nh3 Qb6 43.Ra1
If White repeated with 43.Ng5, I intended 43...Bxg5 44.hxg5 Qd8, winning a second pawn to go with the exchange.
43...b3 44.Kg2 Rc2 45.Ng5 Bxg5 46.hxg5 b2 0-1
The match is tied 4.5-4.5 with one game, in which the Battersea 2 player has a promising position, adjourned.
My updated Battersea statistics for 2019-20
Event*..Colour...Grade...Opponent's Grade...Result
CLL..…...B....…..168...………169...……….....W
CLL...…..B...…...168...………196...…………..D
CLL...…..W...…..168...………176...…………..L
LL....……W...…..168...…....…175...………….D
CLL...…..B...…...168...………192...…………..D
CLL...…..W...…..168...………181...…………..L
LL...…….W...…..168...………168...…………..L
EC...…….B...…..168...………175...……….….L
CLL...…...B.........170...………172...…………..L
LL...…….W...…..170...………183...…………..D
LL............W........170...…........180......……......L
LL....…….B...…..170....……...182...………….W
CLL...…...B...…..170...………183...……….….D
LL...……..B...…..170...………162...…………..W
Overall this season for Battersea I have scored +3=5-6 for a grading performance of 167.
In season 2018-19 I scored +12=12-13 for a grading performance of 169.
In season 2017-18 I scored +10=8-9 for a grading performance of 175.
*CLL: Central London League; LL: London League; EC: Eastman Cup.

Happy Birthday

WHILE playing in the 4NCL over the weekend at Maidenhead, Berks, I browsed the Chess & Bridge bookstall.
Events with bookstalls are much rarer than they used to be, but I still enjoy seeing what is new.
On this occasion I came away with something (relatively) old: American Grandmaster - Four Decades Of Chess Adventures by Joel Benjamin.
The book, whose title is presumably meant to remind prospective readers that Benjamin is a US-born grandmaster, not a Johnny-come-lately foreign transfer, was published by Everyman Press in 2007.
My copy is a 2008 reprint, reduced in price from £14.99 to £7.50, and, from what I have read so far, contains just the right mix of career history, anecdotes and annotated games.
I am regarding it as a birthday present to myself, today being my 63rd birthday.

A red, white and blue American Grandmaster

Here is one of the book's earlier games. Notes in italics are by Benjamin.
Jay Whitehead (2325) - Benjamin (2475)
US Championship (Greenville, Pennsylvania) 1983
Benko Gambit
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5 4.Nd2!?
One of those anti-Benko systems that enjoyed its 15 minutes of fame.
The move has since been played by Kramnik, Akopian, Dreev and other strong GMs.
4...d6 5.e4 bxc4 6.Bxc4 g6 7.b3 Bg7 8.Bb2 0-0 9.Ngf3 e5!?
There is only one earlier game in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database, and that saw 9...Nbd7, which became the main line. Benjamin's choice was later played by Ivanchuk.
10.dxe6 fxe6 11.e5?!
This doesn't really make sense because Black can pin. 11.0-0 Nc6 is roughly equal.
11...Nh5
11...Ng4 12.h3 Nh6 13.Qc2 d5 gives Black a comfortable edge.
Stockfish10 and Komodo10 agree with Benjamin's analysis, although White went to win when the moves were played in Baris Esen (2571) - Johnatan Bakalchuk (2272), EU Championship 2015.
12.Qc2 d5 13.Bd3 Nd7 14.g3 Bb7 15.0-0 Rc8 16.Rac1

How should Black proceed?

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16...Nf4!?
Benjamin gives this !!?, saying: I can only marvel at the optimism of my past self. Black will only get a pawn for a piece, but White's position is tricky to play.
The tournament bulletin awards the move ?! (I have sort of split the difference), recommending 16...Qe7.
17.gxf4 Rxf4 18.Rfe1 Qf8
An exclamation mark is given to White's 18th move by the bulletin; to Black's 18th move by Benjamin.
19.Qd1 Bh6 20.h3
White has no time to reposition his bishop: 20.Bf1 d4 21.Bg2 Rg4 22.h3 Rxg2+ and wins [eg 23.Kxg2 Bxd2 24.Qxd2 Qxf3+ and mates].
20...Rf7?!
With the bishop uncovered, White still can't reorganise.
The engines much prefer 20...Qe7, eg 21.Bf1 (the move Benjamin's choice is aimed at preventing) Rcf8 22.Bg2 d4 with an unclear position that the engines reckon narrowly favours White.
21.Qe2?!
Better, it seems, is the engines' 21.Rc2, eg 21...Bxd2 22.Nxd2 Rxf2, when Black has a second pawn for his piece, but 23.Qg4 gives White the upper hand. Black can perhaps improve with 21...Qe7, but the engines' 22.Nh2 looks good, eg 22...Rcf8 23.Ndf3, and the white king seems to have adequate defences.
21...Qe7 22.Rc2
[Robert] Byrne pointed out an interesting regrouping: 22.Nf1!? Rcf8 23.N1h2, since if now 23...Bxc1 24.Bxc1 White gains control of squares on the kingside.
The engines reckon the above line is problematic for White if Black, instead of grabbing the exchange, plays 23...Rf4.
22...Rcf8 23.Nh2??
Whitehead finally loses his patience. After 23.Rf1 Black's attack is still held at bay.
The engines agree 23.Rf1 is much better than the text, but reckon Black is at least equal after 23...d4 or 23...Rf4.
23...Rxf2 24.Qxf2 Rxf2 25.Kxf2 Qh4+
The white pieces have no footholds. It's just a matter if time before Black picks one off.
26.Ke2 Qxh3 27.Nhf3 d4 28.Rf1
Not 28.Be4? Bxe4 29.Nxe4 d3+.
28...Qg4 29.Nc4 Bf4 30.Rf2 Bg3 31.Rf1 Bxe5 32.Ncd2 Bf4 33.Rg1 Qh5 34.Be4?
But 34.Ne4 Kg7 would win in due time.
34...Bxe4 35.Nxe4 d3+ 0-1

The Power Of Two Pawns

MOST readers of this blog, I suspect, know two connected passed pawns on the sixth rank beat a rook if no other pieces can intervene.
It is a handy rule to bear in mind as it comes into play more frequently than might be thought.
If you are not sure of the rule, here is a fun way to test it, using an empty chessboard, two white pawns and a black rook.

It will be White to move

White goes first, and may place the pawns anywhere on their sixth rank.
You can then place your rook anywhere on the board.
White wins if either pawn can be promoted to a queen without being immediately captured. Black wins by capturing both pawns.
As long as White places the pawns next to each other, for example as in the diagram below, White wins wherever the rook is placed.

White wins

But note that the pawns must be connected.

Black to place the rook and win

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In the above diagram Black wins by placing the rook anywhere sensible on Black's first or second rank, for example on the a7 square.
Placing the rook behind one of the pawns loses as White simply advances the other pawn. Black also loses if the rook is placed on the same rank as the pawns.

Yesterday Once More

MY game from the 4NCL yesterday.
John T Fletcher (2002/188) - Spanton (1840/170)
Division 4, Board 1, The Full Ponty v Wessex C
Veresov
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nc3 d5 3.Bg5 Nbd7
Easily the most-popular reply to the Veresov. It scores a much-higher percentage in ChessBase's 2020 Mega database than the second-most popular move, 3...e6.
4.Nf3 h6 5.Bh4
Gavriil Veresov preferred 5.Bf4 in a game in the 1955 Belarusian championship, but switched to the text nine years later in Moscow.
5...e6 6.e3 c5 7.Bb5!?
This is strange, although it has been successfully played by a 2410, and the analysis engine Stockfish10 flickers between the text and 7.Be2.
7...a6 8.Bxd7+ Bxd7 9.Ne5
Presumably White's idea is he has given up the bishop-pair but has a well-posted knight at e5.
9...Be7 10.0-0 Rc8 11.a4N 0-0 12.Qd3 Nh5!?
A good rule-of-thumb has it that when you have a bad bishop (in this case my shut-in light-square bishop), you should not exchange your good bishop. I knew the rule but felt it was desirable to exchange a pair of minors to dissipate any kingside attack White might be hoping to build up.
Perhaps a better way of doing this is 12...Ng4!?, when White is more-or-less obliged to let the queens come off too by13.Bxe7 Nxe5 14.Bxd8 Nxd3.
13.Bxe7 Qxe7 14.Ne2 Nf6 15.c3 Bc6 16.Ng3 Qe8 17.Qd1 cxd4!?
This is always a double-edged move in this type of position as the half-open e file might prove more valuable for White than the half-open c file does for Black.
18.exd4 Nd7 19.Nxc6
I thought a better try is 19.f4, although Stockfish10 and Komodo10 give 19...g6!? with what they at first call equality, but quickly switch to preferring White. I was leaning towards 19...Nxe5, when 20.fxe5 looks promising for White, eg 20...f6?! 21.exf6 Rxf6 22.Rxf6 gxf6 23.Nh5 with a decidedly draughty black king.
19...Rxc6 20.Re1 Nb6 21.Qg4 Qd8 22.h4
White's attack may look menacing, but it is surprisingly easily dealt with. Meanwhile, White has queenside weaknesses to worry about.
If 22.Nh5, then 22...Qg5 23.Qxg5 hxg5 is at least equal for Black, according to the engines.
22...f5 23.Qf4 g5 24.hxg5 hxg5 25.Qf3
The black king may look draughty here, but White cannot get at it. Meanwhile Black's kingside space advantage means the white king is in danger from an attack down the h file.
25...Rf7 26.a5!?
The engines quite like the text, which somewhat baffles me, but they prefer 26.Nh5, when they reckon 26...Qf8 27.Qg3 Qh6 28.Nf4 is equal.
26...Nc4 27.Re2

How should Black proceed?

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27...Qf6
27...Rh7 was possible, but I did not like the reply 28.Nxf5!?, when the engines continue 28...exf5 (not 28...Rf7?? 29.Nh6+) 29.Rae1 Qd7 30.Re8+ Kf7 31.R8e7+ Qxe7 32.Rxe7+ Kxe7 33.Qxf5 with a position difficult to assess (Stockfish10 reckons it is equal; Komodo10 slightly prefers Black).
28.Rae1 Rh7
Perhaps I should have satisfied myself with grabbing a pawn by 28...Nxa5, but I thought I had bigger fish to fry, and anyway the a5 pawn is not going away.
29.b4?
On 29.b3 I was planning 29...Qh6 (29...Nxa5 is much stronger), missing that White has 30.Qh5! (but not 30.bxc4?? Qh2+ 31.Kf1 Qh1+ 32.Nxh1 Rxh1#). The engines give 29.Rxe6! Rxe6 30.Qxd5 Rhe7 31.Qxc4 with a slight edge to Black.
29...Qh6
The threat is 30...Qh2+ 31.Kf1 Qh1+ 32.Nxh1 Rxh1#.
30.Re5
White is lost whatever he plays. I expected something like 30.Rc2, but had seen 30...f4 wins a piece. The text offers an exchange to break the attack, but Black can do better.
30...Qh2+ 31.Kf1 Nd2+ 0-1
My two wins over the weekend saw me gain 20 Fide elo.
The Full Ponty won this match 4-2.