Board Three
Sicilian Accelerated Dragon
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 g6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 Bg7 6.Nxc6!?
More popular are 6.Be3, 6.Nb3 and even 6.Nde2!?, all of which score at least 50% in ChessBase's 2023 Mega database. The text scores just 37%, but has some interesting points.
6...bxc6 7.Bc4
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| How should Black respond to White's unusual line? |
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7...d6
This is the commonest continuation in Mega23, but also reasonably popular are 7...e6 and 7...Nf6!? Stockfish16 and Komodo14.1 like the text, along with 7...Qc7 and 7...Qa5.
8.0-0 e6?!
This does not sit well with having played ...d6. The engines suggest 8...Nf6 or 8...Qc7.
9.Bf4! d5?
Better is 9...e5, although the engines reckon White has the upper hand after 10.Be3.
10.exd5 Bxc3!?
This appears to be a novelty, and is an improvement on Aleksandr Shimanov (2581) - Qi B Chen (2485), Chess.com Blitz 2022, which saw 10...exd5? 11.Nxd5! (this is also the answer to 10...cxd5?) cxd5, when 12.Bxd5 gives a winning advantage (Shimanov played 12.Qxd5, which is probably not so good, but won anyway).
11.bxc3
Even stronger seems to be the engines' 11.dxe6!?
11...cxd5 12.Bb5+ Bd7 13.Bxd7+
Stockfish16 gives 13.Re1!?, the idea being 13...Bxb5 can be met by 14.Qd4, when 14...f6?! 15.Rxe6+ looks catastrophic, and 14...Nf6 15.Bg5 is not nice either.
13...Qxd7 14.Qd4?
This 'obvious' move lets Black off the hook. The engines reckon White has the upper hand after 14.c4, the idea being to meet 14...dxc4? with 15.Qf3.
14...f6 15.Rfe1 Kf7!?
The engines agree this is best.
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| How should White proceed? |
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16.Bg3?!
16.Bg3?!
Probably best is 16.c4 (I looked at it, and at 16.Rab1, also with the same planned follow-up.) Both moves can be met by 16...e5, when 17.Rxe5! fxe5 18.Bxe5 is very interesting, but Black has 18...Nf6! 19.Bxf6 Rhe8. The engines reckon in both cases the game is roughly equal, but I was unsure (and 16...e5 is not forced). However, another possibility, 16.Bg5?!, certainly can be successfully met by 16...e5.
16...Ne7 17.Rab1 Nf5 18.Qd3 Nxg3!?
There was no rush to play this capture. The knight is probably at least as good as the bishop.
19.hxg3 Rhc8 20.Qa6 Rc7
Not 20...Rxc3? 21.Rb7 Rc7 22.Rxc7 Qxc7 23.Qxe6+! etc.
21.Re3 Rac8 22.Rbe1 Rc6
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| JW offered a draw - should I have accepted? |
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Black has the upper hand (Komodo14.1) or is at least slightly better (Stockfish16), but I carried on. I think with most things in life I am a glass-half-full man, but not with draws at chess.
23.Qa4 Qc7?!
The best way to break the pin is probably 23...Rd6 - White's pawn weaknesses are not going away. If then, as in the game, 24.Qh4, Black has the simple 24...Kg7.
24.Qh4 Rh8
Marginally better may be 24...h5, although 25.g4 is unpleasant.
25.Rf3 e5 26.Rd1 Qd6
The engines suggest giving up a pawn with 26...Kg7!? 27.Rxd5, or to play 26...e4 followed by ...Qe5.
27.Rfd3 Rc5 28.Qa4 a5 29.c4 d4 30.c3 Qc6 31.Qb3 a4 32.Qa3 Rxc4 33.cxd4 exd4?!
Possibly better is 33...e4, although JW in the postmortem said he thought the passed d pawn would be very powerful.
34.Rxd4 Re8 35.Rd6!?
This seems better than 35.Rd7, when Black has 35...Kg8.
35...Qe4 36.Rd7+ Re7 37.Rd8?!
The engines give White the upper hand after 37.Qd6, eg 37...Rc2 38.Rb1! Rc7 39.Qxc7 Qxb1+ 40.Kh2 Qb4 41.Rxe7+ Qxe7 42.Qc4+ and 43.Qxa4.
37...Rc2?!
Black would be fine, according to the engines, after, for example, 37...Qe6.
38.R1d7! Qe2 39.Rxe7+ Qxe7 40.Qd3
Missing a win of a pawn with 41.Qxa4!, and if 41...Rc1+ then 42.Rd1.
40...Rc7 41.Qd5+ Qe6??
Black holds after 41...Kg7.
42.Rf8+ 1-0
FULL TEAM RESULT (England 2 had white on odd boards)John M Quinn (2077) ½–½ Peter Varley (FM 2174)
Geoffrey M James (2082) 0-1 John Fletcher (2002)
Tim Spanton (1850) 1-0 John Waterfield (1905)
Stewart Reuben (1912) 1-0 Anthony Hughes (1838)
England 2 won 2.5-1.5.
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