German Opposition

WE face Germany Women in this afternoon's final round.

Germany Women v England 3

Brigitte Burchardt (2142) v Richard Freeman (1987)
Annett Wagner-Michel (2078) v David Tucker (1898)
Mira Kierzek (1937) v Tim Spanton (1800)
Liubov Orlova (1990) v Robert Kane (1723)

The hotel where I and many other players are staying is a good 10-minute walk from Świdnica old town, and for several days I was walking to and fro along a busyish road, but then I discovered the option of a side-route through an attractive park 

European Senior Team (65+) Round Eight

Spanton (1800) - Stjepan Novak (1499)

English/Nimzo-Indian/Irregular Queen's Pawn

1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 a6!?

Tony Miles was famous for playing this type of thing.

3.d4

I was surprised to find 714 examples of this position in ChessBase's 2023 Mega database

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3...e6

Much more popular is 3...c5!?, which scores 55% in Mega23.

4.e4

For what it is worth, ChessBase classifies this as a Nimzo-Indian.

4...Bb4 5.Bd3 Ne4 6.e5

This was played by Emmanuel Lasker in a simul, and is good enough for an edge, according to Stockfish16 and Komodo14.1, but they prefer 6.cxd5 exd5 7.e5.

6...Ne4

The engines reckon 6...dxc4!? is better.

7.Bxe4 dxe4 8.f3?!

A good rule-of-thumb about this move, I believe, is that it should only be played if the follow-up fxe4 is a threat. Here it is not as, even if it were White to move again, 9.fxe4 could be met by 9...Qh4+.

8...Bxc3+ 9.bxc3 exf3?

This plays into White's hands. The engines reckon 9...c5 more-or-less equalises.

10.Nxf3 f6?

Black was already positionally lost, according to the engines, but this makes matters worse.

11.exf6 Qxf6 12.Ba3!?
Keeping the black king in the centre of the board is almost certainly stronger than harassing the queen with 12.Bg5.

12..Nc6 13.0-0 b5??

Oh dear.

The game finished:

14.Ne5 Qg5 15.Bc1 Qh4 16.Rf4 Qe7 17.Qh5+!? g6 18.Nxg6 Kd7? 19.Nxe7 1-0

FULL TEAM RESULT

England 3 v Mursko Središće
Richard Freeman (1987) 1-0 Stjepan Vadlja (1629)
David Tucker (1898) 0-1 Alojz Sobočanec (1762)
Tim Spanton (1800) 1-0 Stjepan Novak (1499)
Robert Kane (1723) 1-0 Zvonko Petanjek (1595)

.................................3-1.......................................

Croats

WE face a Croatian team today.

England 3 v Mursko Središće
Richard Freeman (1987) v Stjepan Vadlja (1629)
David Tucker (1898) v Alojz Sobočanec (1762)
Tim Spanton (1800) v Stjepan Novak (1499)
Robert Kane (1723) v Zvonko Petanjek (1595)

Świdnica was a duchy capital in the 1300s, but most of the old town's attractive architecture dates from later years, albeit often with modern alterations

European Senior Team (65+) Round Seven

Moshe Gal (Israel - 2106) - Spanton (England 3 - 1800)

New London

1.d4 d5 2.Bf4 e6 3.e3 Bd6 4.Bxd6

The mainline in ChessBase's 2023 Mega database runs 4.Bg3 Nf6 5.Nd2 0-0 6.Bd3 c5 7.c3 Nc6 8.Ngf3 b6 9.Ne5 Bb7 10.f4!? Ne7 11.Qf3!? Nf5 with equality, according to Komodo14.1, but with a slight edge for Black, according to Stockfish16.

4...cxd6!?

Much more popular in Mega23 is 4...Qxd6, after which 5.Qg4!? g6 does not do Black's remaining bishop any favours.

5.c4

5.Qg4!? is also possible here. The engines agree Black is fine after both 5...g6 and 5...Kf8!?, but are not so sure about 5...Nf6.

5...Nf6 6.Nc3 dxc4 7.Bxc4

How should Black continue?

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7...d5!?

This gives Black an equal share of the centre, but strong players have tended to prefer castling. The point, presumably, is that after ...

8.Bd3

... the position is symmetrical, apart from White having the better bishop. The engines agree White is therefore slightly better.

8...Nc6 9.Rc1 0-0 10.Nf3 Bd7 11.Ne5 Nxe5 12.dxe5 Ne8

Possibly better is the engines' 12...Ne4!?, and if 13.Nxe4 dxe4 14.Bxe4 then 14...Qa5+ 15.Qd2 Qxe5. White can try 15.Rc3!?, when 15...Qxe5?! is probably good for White after both 16.Bxh7+ and 16.Bxb7. However Black has 15...Bb5 and 15...Rfd8, both with sufficient compensation for a pawn, according to Stockfish16, although Komodo14.1 disagrees.

13.h4!?

How should Black meet White's aggressive play?

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13...f5

The engines strongly dislike this, preferring 13...Rc8 (Stockfish16) or 13...f6 (Komodo14.1).

14.g4

The engines much prefer 14.Qb3 or14.Ne2!?

14...f4

Here they suggest 14...Bc6 or 14...d4!? with maybe an edge for Black.

15.Qc2

This looks natural, but withdrawing the bishop, for example to b1, is the engines' choice.

What should Black play?

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15...fxe3!

Seeking to open lines to the white king. If 15...g6 or 15...h6, the engines reckon 16.Qd2!? gives White an advantage.

16.Bxh7+?!

Black only has a slight edge after 16.fxe3 Qc7, according to the engines.

16...Kh8 17.fxe3 Qb6

How should White meet the threat to e3?

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18.Rh3

This comes to be Stockfish16's top choice, at least for a while, although Komodo14.1 prefers 18.Ke2. The latter can be met by 18...d4, so eventually both engines agree 18.Qd3!? is best, but also agree Black is winning after 18...Qxb2.

18...Bb5?

Black is winning after 18...d4 19.exd4 Qxd4, according to the engines. Certainly there is no doubt who has the more vulnerable king.

19.Nxb5 Qxb5 20.Bd3

The engines reckon this is an only-move.

20...Qb4+ 21.Qd2 Qxg4 22.Rh1?

White is winning after 22.Qe2!, according to the engines, thanks to 22...Qxh3? losing to 23.Qh5+ Kg8 24.Bh7+ Kh8 25.Bg6+ Kg8 26.Qh7#. Better is 22...Qxe2+ 23.Kxe2, but the engines reckon White is winning easily, mainly due, I believe, to the difficulty of getting the knight into play, eg 23...Rf7 24.Bg6 Rd7 can be met by 25.h5 Kg8 26.h6 gxh6 27.Rch1, when Black's exposed king and lack of piece-coordination is disastrous. So the engines suggest 22...Rf4!, eg 23.exf4 Qxh3, when Qh5+ no longer leads to mate, but they agree White has a large advantage.

22...Qg3+ 23.Kd1 Rf2?

The engines like 23...Qxe5.

White to play and win

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24.Be2

Missing the stunning 24.Qxf2! Qxf2 25.Rf1, when the threat of Rf8# forces Black to play 25...Qxf1. After 26.Bxf1 the engines reckon White is winning, again largely, I presume, because of the restriction of the knight, eg 26...g6 is met by 27.Bd3, when 27...Kh7 is hit by 28.h5, and 27...Kg7 runs into 28.Ke2 followed by Rg1.

24...Qxe5 25.h5 Nd6 26.h6 g5 27.Qc3!?

Wisely baling out into a pawn-down ending.

27...Qxc3 28.Rxc3 Ne4 29.Rc7

How should Black proceed?

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29...Rxe2?

Despite first appearances, this does not win a piece. Best, according to the engines, is 29...Raf8 with a large advantage, and if White should regain his missing pawn with 30.Rxb7 then 30...Rxe2! does work.

30.Kxe2 Ng3+ 31.Kf3 Nxh1 32.Kg2 Rf8 33.Kxh1 Rf6 34.Rxb7

The engines reckon White equalises with 34.Kg2 Rxh6 35.Re7!, eg 35...Kg8 36.Kg3 Kf8 37.Rxb7.

After the text Black has ...

34...Rxh6+ 35.Kg2 Rh7

...when the black king activates.

36.Rb8+

Note that 36.Rxh7+?? loses by a tempo after 36...Kxh7 37.b4 Kg7 38.b5 Kf7 39.a4 Ke7 40.a5 Kd6 41.b5 axb6 42.a6 Kc7 etc.

36...Kg7 37.b4?

Correct is 37.a4 Kf6 38.a5 with good drawing chances, eg 38...Rc7!? (best try, according to the engines) 39.b4 (39.a6? Rc6) a6 40.Rb6 Rc4 41.Rxa6 Rxb4, when White's passed a pawn seems to give enough counterplay.

37...Kf6 38.a4 Ke5?!

Almost certainly better is 38...Rh4.

39.b5?

39.a5 seems better, but still losing.

39...Kd6?

Winning is 39...Ke4.

40.a5 Rc7 41.a6 e5 42.Kf3 Rd7 43.b6 axb6 44.Rxb6+ Kc5 45.Rg6 e4+ 46.Ke2 Rc7 47.Kd2 g4!? 48.Ke2

Also drawing is 48.Rxg4.

The game finished:

48...g3 49.Kf1 Kc4 50.Rd6 Kd3 51.Rxd5+ Kxe3 52.Ra5 Kf3 53.Rf5+ Ke3 54.a5 Kf3 55.Rf5+ Kg4 56.Ra5 Rf7+ 57.Kf1 Ra7 ½–½

FULL TEAM RESULT
Israel v England 3

Nathan Birnboim (2357) 1-0 Richard Freeman (1987)
Malkiel Peretz (2158) = David Tucker (1898)
Moshe Gal (2106) = Tim Spanton (1800)
Abir Har-Even (1980) 1-0 Robert Kane (1723)

.....................................3-1................................

Peace In Their Time

WE face Israel in today's round seven.

Israel v England 3

Nathan Birnboim (2357) v Richard Freeman (1987)

Malkiel Peretz (2158) v David Tucker (1898)
Moshe Gal (2106) v Tim Spanton (1800)
Abir Har-Even (1980) v Robert Kane (1723)

ONE of the more memorable stories from when I worked on newspapers is the time the Washington Post rang ambassadors based in the American capital and asked them what they would most like for Christmas.

The Soviet ambassador called for nuclear disarmament, the French ambassador said he would like to see world peace, etc.

What makes the tale memorable is that the British ambassador asked for a bottle of port and some mince pies.

That is the gist of the story - I may have some of the details wrong - and I was reminded of it when discovering Świdnica has a Church of Peace.

I was going to give it a miss - it sounded too right-on for me - until I by chance learnt it dates back to the signing of the Treaty of Westphalia, which ended the 30 Years War in 1648.

This part of Silesia was under the rule of the Catholic Habsburgs, who were pressurised by Sweden, at the time one of the great powers of Europe, to allow the building of a Protestant church.

It went ahead, but with major restrictions on the construction process in the hope, apparently, that the church would not last long.

Similar restrictions, including a ban on using stone, were imposed on Orthodox churches in Habsburg-ruled Romania, which led to churches being built entirely of wood, as I found when I visited Transylvania last year.

The solution in Świdnica was to use wattle-and-daub, a process in which wooden strips are held together by a mix, typically containing mud, sand, cow dung and straw.

The Holy Trinity Church of Peace, to give the building its full title, can hold 7,500 worshippers and has been a Unesco world heritage site since 2001.

It is certainly impressive, although I feel the hype given to it locally is rather overdone - if gaudy ostentation is what one is looking for, it can be found in countless Catholic churches and cathedrals.

Anyway you can judge for yourself from the following photos.

Outside it looks like a large Tudor mansion

Main altar

Hochberg family box

Pulpit

I am guessing this is Martin Luther

I have no idea who this is but the amount of finery surrounding the portrait is almost designed to distract attention from her

A local bigwig and his wife?

Cute, even if long forgotten

Landscapes also have their place, albeit less prominently displayed than the people who ruled over them

Bell, possibly from a later-built bell tower rather than the church itself

Last Supper

Baptismal font in the church foyer

Świdnica's coat of arms is a reminder that for centuries it was better known under its German name of Schweidnitz

Side-on view of the exterior

Handsome gravestones have been rearranged to decorate the outside

The church was allowed a bell tower, again under pressure from Sweden, in 1708

European Senior Team (65+) Round Six

Spanton (England 3 - 1800) - Zbiginiew Daleczko (Lower Silesia 2 - 1672)

Sicilian Accelerated Dragon

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 g6 5.Nc3 Bg7 6.Nxc6!? bxc6 7.Bc4 e6!?

For 7...Qa5!?, which is Komodo14.1's top choice, at least for a while, see my round-three game. Stockfish16 likes 7...Qc7!?, which Komodo14.1 also likes, and 7...d6, which is the most popular move in ChessBase's 2023 Mega database. The text is second-most popular.

8.0-0 d5?!

Consistent, but almost certainly bad. The mainline in Mega23 runs 8...Ne7 9.Bg5?! 0-0?! 10.Qd6, but it leaves a lot to be desired. The engines reckon Black is at least equal after 9...h6 or 9...d5, but they also reckon 9.Qd6 is a major improvement for White, which only goes to show there is a lot to be discovered in the 6.Nxc6!? variation.

9.exd5 cxd5

How should White proceed?

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10.Nxd5!

Black is at least slightly better, according to the engines, after other moves, eg commonest in Mega23 is 10.Bb5+, but 10...Bd7 is simple and good.

After 10.Nxd5!, how should Black respond?

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10...Rb8

Black more-or-less has to accept the loss of a pawn as 10...exd5 11.Bxd5 Rb8? 12.Bxf7+ Ke7 13.Re1+ Be6 14.Qf3 (14.Bg5+ is one of several other winning moves) is catastrophic. An improvement is 11...Be6, but then 12.Bc6+ Kf8 (or 12...Ke7!? 13.Be3!) 13.Bxa8 Qxa8 14.Qd6+  is strong. Best, according to the engines, is 10...Bb7, but they reckon White is winning after both 11.Re1 and 11.Nb4.

11.Re1 Kf8

Again the engines reckon ...Bb7 is better.

12.Ne3

Even stronger seems to be 12.b3!? I tried to make it work but missed that after 12...Bxa1 13.Ba3+ Kg7 White has 14.Qxa1+, when White has a pawn, the bishop-pair and a continuing attack for the exchange.

12...Qc7

Black cannot win the pawn back as after 12...Qxd1 13.Rxd1 Bxb2? comes 14.Rb1 Be5 15.Rxb8+ Bxb8 16.Rd8+ etc.

13.Rb1 Bc3??

Played with a (misplaced) flourish. Black should probably just get on with development, but has no compensation for being a pawn down and facing a 3-1 queenside pawn-majority.

14.bxc3 Rxb1 15.Ba3+ 1-0

FULL TEAM RESULT

England 3 v Lower Silesia 2
Richard Freeman (1987) 1-0 Ryszard Grossmann (1904)
David Tucker (1898) = Andrzej Stadnicki (1648)
Tim Spanton (1800) 1-0 Zbigniew Daleczko (1672)
Robert Kane (1723) = Władysław Daleczko (1519)

................................3-1............................................

Local Opposition

TODAY in round six we face a Polish regional team.

England 3 v Lower Silesia 2
Richard Freeman (1987) v Ryszard Grossmann (1904)
David Tucker (1898) v Andrzej Stadnicki (1648)
Tim Spanton (1800) v Zbigniew Daleczko (1672)
Robert Kane (1723) v Władysław Daleczko (1519)

Like many central European cities, Świdnica has a mister, in Masrket Square, that sprays water over passersby when the temperature rises

European Senior Team (65+) Round Five

Lee Davis (Wales Cymru - 1892) - Spanton (England 3 - 1800)

Catalan

1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 e6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Be7 5.c4 0-0 6.0-0 Nbd7

This is usually the start of a closed treatment of the Catalan. The mainline in ChessBase's 2023 Mega database is an open treatment, ie 6...dxc4 7.Qc2 a6 8.a4 Bd7 9.Qxc4 Bc6 10.Bg5 Bd5 11.Qc2 Be4 12.Qc1 h6 13.Bxf6 Bxf6 with maybe a slight edge for White, according to Stockfish16 and Komodo14.1.

7.Qc2 c6 8.Nbd2 b6 9.e4 dxe4

This is the most popular move in Mega23 but the engines prefer 9...dxc4!?

10.Nxe4 Bb7 11.Rd1 Nxe4 12.Qxe4 Nf6

A better way to take advantage of the position of the white queen may be 12...Qc8!?

13.Qc2 Qc7 14.Bf4 Bd6 15.Be5

How should Black proceed?

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15...Bxe5

This is most popular in Mega23, albeit from a small sample size, but the engines suggest 15...c5!?, although they accept 16.Bxf6 gxf6 17.d5 is at least slightly better for White.

16.dxe5 Nd7

The engines suggest 16...Ng4, which does not appear in Mega23, although they reckon 17.Qe4 puts White well on top.

17.Ng5 g6 18.f4

White has a positionally won game, according to the engines

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18...h6?

This spends a tempo on sending the knight on a route it wants to take anyway.

19.Ne4

This threatens 20.Rxd7! But even stronger may be 19.Nxe6!?

19...Kg7 20.Rd6 c5?

There is not time for this.

21.Rad1 Rad8 22.Qd3 Bc6 23.Nf6

Black must lose a piece

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23...Bxg2 24.Kxg2 Nxe5 25.fxe5 Rxd6 26.Qxd6 Qb7+ 27.Kf2 Qa6? 28.Qd3

Plenty good enough, but 28.Qxf8+! wins instantly.

28...Qxa2 29.Qc3 a5 30.Ne4 a4 31.Nd6 Rd8? 32.Nf5+ 1-0

FULL TEAM RESULT

Wales Cymru v England 3
Rudy van Kemenade (1934) = Richard Freeman (1987)
Charles Higgie (1924) = David Tucker (1898)
Lee Davis (1892) 1-0 Tim Spanton (1800)
Anthony Hughes (1850) 0-1 Robert Kane (1723)

.......................................2-2.................................

Border War

DRAWN against a Welsh team today.

Wales Cymru v England 3
Rudy van Kemenade (1934) v Richard Freeman (1987)
Charles Higgie (1924) v David Tucker (1898)
Lee Davis (1892) v Tim Spanton (1800)
Anthony Hughes (1850) v Robert Kane (1723)

This stone lion on a doorway dates from a tenement built in 1551 by Świdnica Mayor Erasmus Freund, who put a likeness of his wife above the creature*

The lion is part of a pair, whose bodies unite to form a single head

On the opposite side of the doorway is another pair of lions, with a likeness of Freund above

These bulls on a building on the outskirts of the old town are a more dramatic example of the same sculptural technique

*Information from the 2020 book Detale Zabytków Świdnicy.

European Senior Team (65+) Round Four

Spanton (England 3 - 1800) - John Mortensen (SK2023 - 2038)

Board Three

Sicilian Bb5(+)

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 g6 4.c3 Bg7 5.d4 cxd4 6.cxd4 Qb6?!

This is the main move in ChessBase's 2023 Mega database - it occurs 225 times in 469 games - but may be a mistake. Stockfish16 and Komodo14.1 suggest 6...Nf6.

7.Nc3!?

White can duck out of the complications with 7.Bxc6, but the text is almost certainly stronger.

7...a6!?

The main move in Mega23 is 7...Nxd4, but 8.Nd5 Nxf3+ 9.Qxf3 gives White huge compensation for a pawn, as in my recent game at the Amateur Chess Organization's world amateur championship in Kos.

After 7...a6!? how should White proceed?

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8.Nd5?!

The engines strongly dislike this move. True it drives the black queen back to d8, but White will then have to spend a tempo moving the light-square bishop, after which Black will be able to grab a share of the centre by hitting the knight. The engines prefer 8.Be2 or 8.Ba4.

8...Qd8 9.Be2 e6 10.Nc3

White's loss of time can be gauged from the fact that in eight of the 10 games to reach this position in Mega23 it is White to move.

10...d5 11.e5 Nge7 12.0-0 Nf5 13.Be3

The engines do not like this, claiming White has an edge after 13.g4!? Nh4 14.Nxh4 Qxh4 f4.

13...0-0

How would you assess the position now both sides have castled?

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It looks like a French Defence, except Black has fianchettoed the king's bishop. The black light-square bishop is bad and White has more space in the centre, but White's centre is under pressure. The engines reckon the position is equal.

14.Qd2 Nxe3!? 15.fxe3 f6 16.exf6 Bxf6 17.Rad1

Reinforcing d4 to make it possible to push White's e pawn.

17...Bg7!?

This is the engines' top choice.

18.e4!?

This allows Black to open lines in the centre, which is normally what the player with the bishop-pair wants, but here the issue is complicated by White's lead in development as the player behind in development normally wants to keep lines closed.

18...Qd6?!

It is not clear that opening lines with 18...dxe4 is best, but the text lets White keep lines closed with tempo and gain space into the bargain.

19.e5 Qe7 20.Na4 Bd7!?

The engines prefer this to 20...b5 21.Nb6 Rb8 22.Nxc8 Rbxc8, which they reckon leaves White with the upper hand.

21.Nc5 Rab8?!

Possibly better is 21...Be8, but probably best is 21...Bxe5!?, the point being 22.Nxd7? runs into 22...Bf4, so Black should play 22...Nxe5, although the position is unclear. Stockfish16 gives 23.Rfe1 Nc4 and either 24.Qc3 or 24.Bxc4 dxc4 25.Qc3, in both cases claiming equality. Komodo14.1 suggests 23.Nxb7 Ba4 24.b3 Qxb7 25.Qe3!?, claiming a slight edge for White.

22.Rc1 Nd8 23.Bd3 Rc8 24.Rc2 Bb5!?

Black swops off his bad bishop, while contracting doubled b pawns (and giving up the bishop-pair, but the closed centre hinders the effective deployment of bishops, at least in the short and medium term).

25.Bxb5 axb5 26.Rfc1 Nc6 27.b4 Nd8 28.Rc3 Rc6

The engines are not keen on this, claiming Black is at least equal after 23...Nf7.

29.R1c2 Nf7 30.Qe2 b6?!

Probably better is the engines' 30...Ng5 31.Nxg5 Qxg5.

Can White win a pawn?

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Yes. I rejected 31.Qxb5 because of 31...Rfc8, missing White has 32.Na4.

31.Nd3?

Now Black gets the c4 square.

31...Rc4 32.a3?!

Probably better is 32.Nb2!?, the point being 32...Rxb4?! is met by 34.a3 Rc4 35.Nxc4 bxc4, when the engines reckon Black does not have enough for the exchange. Black can meet 32.Nb2!? with 32...Rxc3 for what the engines assess as equality, but they prefer sacrificing the exchange in another way with 32...Qxb4!? 33.Nxc4 bxc4, when they reckon, if anyone is better, it is Black.

32...Rfc8 33.Qe1 Qc7 34.Rxc4 bxc4

Black has gained a protected passed pawn, as in the last note, but without sacrificing the exchange

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35.Nf4 Qe7 36.Ne2 Ng5 37.Nxg5?!

Probably better is 37.Nd2, but the engines still reckon Black has at least a slight edge.

37...Qxg5 38.Nc3?!

The knight may look like a good blockader, but it is unstable, d4 is weak and the white king is exposed, so the engines' 38.Qg3 is probably better

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38...Bh6 39.Re2 Qf4 40.Qd1 Rf8 41.a4 Qf5 42.Nb5

This allows a pretty finish, but the engines reckon White is the equivalent of being more than a rook down anyway.

42...Be3+! 0-1

FULL TEAM RESULT
England 3 v SK2023
Richard Freeman (1987) 0-1 Jens Kølbæk (2148)
David Tucker (1898) 0-1 Jørgen Jørgensen (2107)
Tim Spanton (1800) 0-1 John Mortensen (2038)
Robert Kane (1723) 0-1 Steffen Cordes (1950)

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