4NCL Weekend Three

PLAYED on board two (of six) for Wessex B against Ashfield 2 in division four yesterday afternoon.

Alex Combie (1783 ECF/1855 Fide) - Spanton (1916 ECF/1766 Fide)

Albin Conutergambit

1.d4 d5 2.c4 e5 3.dxe5 d4 4.Nf3 Nc6 5.g3

This is easily the most popular move in ChessBase's 2024 Mega database, but 5.a3 and, to a lesser extent, 5.Nbd2 are catching it up.

5...Nge7 6.Bg2 Ng6 7.Bg5!? Qd7!?

This looks awkward - artificial, even - but alternatives are not encouraging, eg 7...Be7 8.Bxe7 Qxe7!? 9.Nxd4.

How should White proceed?

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8.e6!?

The main move is 8.0-0.

8...fxe6 9.0-0 e5 10.e3?!

There is just one example of this in Mega24, but, for reasons that shall become clear later, the move was known to both of us.

10...h6 11.Bh4 dxe3!?

This seems an improvement on Combie (1852) - Milenko Walner (1779), 4NCL 2022, which saw 11...Bc5 12.exd4 Nxd4 13.Nxe5, with an even game, according to Stockfish16 and Komodo14.1 (½–½, 36 moves).

12.Qxd7+

The engines prefer giving up a pawn with 12.Qe2!?

12...Bxd7 13.fxe3 Bc5 14.Re1

Again they reckon the lesser evil is givong up a pawn, this time with 14.Nc3!?

14...0-0

Probably even stronger is 14...Nb4!?

15.Nfd2?!

Developing the queen's knight is almost certainly better.

15...Nxh4 16.gxh4 Be7 17.h5 Ng4 18.Nc3 Bxh5 19.Bxc6!?

The engines do not like this, but at least Black now gets weaknesses as well as having the bishop-pair and an extra pawn.

19...bxc6 20.Rf1 Bc5 21.Rxf8+ Rxf8 22.Re1 Rd8 23.Nde4 Bb4 24.Rf1 Rd3 25.Rf5 Bf7

How should White proceed?

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26.Nf2?

Better is 26.Rxe5, although Black can reply 26...Rxe3!? as 27.Nf6+ gxf6 28.Rxe3 is met by 28...Bc5.

26...Rxe3 27.Ng4 Rh3 28.Nxe5

28.Kg2 Be6.

28...Be6 29.Rf1 Bxc3 30.bxc3 Rxc3 31.Nxc6 Bxc4 32.Ne7+ Kh7

White is two pawns down and can only realistically hope to somehow conjure up a swindle

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33.Rf8 Bxa2 34.h4 a5 35.h5 Rc5 36.Ng6!? Rxh5 37.Nf4 Rg5+ 38.Kh2 a4 39.Ra8 Bb3 40.Nd3 c5 41.Kh3 c4 42.Nb2 c3 43.Nd3 c2 44.Nc1 Rg1 45.Nxb3 axb3 46.Rb8 c1=Q 47.Rxb3 Qf1+ 48.Kh4 g5+ 49.Kh5 Qf7#
Ashfield 2 won the match 3.5-2.5.