Junior Games A fine attacking game from junior Jack Yang then aged only 8 against a much higher graded opponent: [Event "Wirral 50th Anniversary"] [Site "Chester"] [Date "2014.09.13"] [Round "?"] [White "Jack Yang"] [Black "Brian Crompton"] [Result "1-0"] [ECO "C42"] [PlyCount "43"] [EventDate "2014.??.??"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. Bc4 h6 5. h3 Be7 6. d3 Nbd7 7. Be3 a6 8. Bb3 O-O 9. Qd2 Kh7 10. g4 Ng8 11. h4 Ndf6 12. g5 Ng4 13. gxh6 Nxe3 14. Qxe3 Nxh6 15. O-O-O Bg4 16. Rdg1 c6 17. Ng5+ Kh8 18. Bxf7 Nxf7 19. Rxg4 Nxg5 20. hxg5+ Kg8 21. g6 Bf6 22. Rh8+ {Black resigned as it will be followed by 22…Kxh8, 23. Qh3+, Bh4 24. Rxh4+, Qxh4 25. Qxh4+, Kg8 26Qh7++} 1-0 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization. Next Daniel Savidge, then graded 81, beats someone with double his grade; annotations courtesy of the unfortunate loser: [Event "Chester 7 v Penyffordd 2 - Wirral League"] [Date "11/01/2013"] [White "Charles Higgie"] [Black "Daniel Savidge"] [Result "0-1"] [WhiteElo "ECF162"] [BlackElo "ECF81"] [TimeControl "35 in 1h 15m"]{So here it is, I lose to someone who was rated exactly half my rating! He is a rapidly improving 12 year old. He also attends the school that I attended, so in a way it was nice to see another chess star from King’s School, Chester!} 1. e4 {I start with the usual} c5 {He replies with my favourite defence} 2. Nf3 {I continue with the main line} g6 {And he responds with a fianchetto – the accelerated Dragon (Classes as Sicilian (B27),Hungarian variation by some authorities).}3. d4 {So I continue in the approved manner.} cxd4 {He takes. For the first time in the game, I had a think. I did consider taking with the queen,threatening his rook on h8, but after 4. Qxd4 Nf6 5. e5 Nc6 I didn’t think that white had any advantage. A check on the Opening Databases after the game seemed to back me up.} 4. Nxd4 {So I took with the knight.} Bg7 {Hecontinues with the logical development.} 5. c4 {and I take a grip on thecentre, the Maroczy Bind strategy.} Nc6 {He continues to develop} 6. Be3 {I have to protect the knight on d4}Nf6 {He develops with tempo, hitting my e pawn} 7. Nc3 {So I develop and protect it.} O-O {He castles} 8. Be2 {I develop. I want to play Qd2, butI don’t want him hitting my Be3 with Ng4.} d6 9. Qd2 {I’m not too bothered with Ng4 10. Bxg4 Bxg4 as I get rid of my ‘bad’ bishop – the one on white squares, which is rather blocked by my pawns. } Re8 {One idea of this move is that if white continues with the plan of f3, 0-0-0 and Bh6, black is not forced to exchange black squared bishops and can just drop the Bg7 back to h8.} 10. f3 {I reinforce my centre. 0-0 may be better} Bd7 {he continues to develop. This position has been seen before.} 11. O-O-O {But this move is probably over-optimistic. 0-0 is the usual move played in this position, and a slow positional grind in the centre and queen’s side.But the question is – how does black avoid the standard attack that white is planning, with g4, h4-h5, take on g6 to open up the h file, and, as Bobby Fischer said ‘sac, sac, mate’.} Ne5 {A good, move, preparing Rc8 and/or Qc7 piling up on my c pawn.} 12. f4 {So I decide not to let the knight stay there.} Neg4 {He hits my bishop.} 13. Bg1 {So I retreat, planning to continue with h3, his knight retreats to h6 and then I play g4 threatening g5. What on earth can he do about it? I was thinking that he must now move his king, Bd7 or Re8 to make a space for a knight to retreat to and was trying to work out which move was best for him, when he shattered my composure with….stop now and work out black’s best move.} e5 {I really hadn’t considered this move, as it leaves his d pawn backwards on a semi-open d file with my queen and rook lined up on the d file. However it is an excellent move!Tactical considerations outweigh the strategic weaknesses it makes. One problem I have to watch for is a horrible pin on the c1-h6 diagonal, for instance,14. fxe5? Bh6! wins white’s queen. So I can’t take on e5, and if next move he plays exf5, I can’t take back with the queen for the same reason. I considered Nd4-b5 Nf3, and Nb3, but eventually came to the conclusion that the knight belonged on c2, so that after he takes on f4 his knight can’t come to e3.} 14. Nc2 exf4 {So he takes.} 15. Qxd6 {As I said before, I can’t take back on f4 without losing my queen.} Bh6 {He protects f4, threatening f3! with a discovered check.} 16. Kb1 {So I move my king out of firing range.} Re6 {He hits my queen} 17. Qd4 {I retreat, not to d2 of course,where it can be hit with f3, nor to d3 where it can be hit by Ne5. I wanted to maintain the pressure on the d file.} Ne5 {He centralises his knight}18. Nd5 {I advance mine} Nxd5 {He takes. now I am probably best taking back with a pawn, but I wanted to take with the queen to free the d4 square for either my knight or bishop.} 19. Qxd5 {So I took this way.} Qc7 {I think it was round about here that he offered a draw. I should have taken it! I didn’t think that I had any advantage, but I didn’t want to lose rating points, and I thought it would be an educational experience for both of us to play on.} 20. c5 {I played this to free up my c4 square for my bishop, but this may well have been a mistake.} Bc6 {He hits my queen.I have only one safe square if I want to save it and my pawn on e4.} 21.Qd4 {and this is it!} Bg7 {Now he is threatening discovered attacks on my queen. I realise that I am worse now.} 22. Qb4 {I play this, and ask if he still wants a draw. He declines and plays} a5 {This. I am losing my e4 pawn, and then he will have nasty threats to g2.} 23. Qd2 {Maybe I can still do something on the d file or take on f4 at some time?} Bxe4{He takes.} 24. Bb5 {I discover a queen protection to g2} Bh6 {He protects f4 and there may be discovered attacks at some stage (after he protects his bishop)} 25. h4 {Maybe I can still do something on the king side} Ng4{So now my Nc2 is pinned, he is threatening to play Ne3 with attacks on c2 and g2, which explains my next move.} 26. Ka1 {Out of pin} f3 {The discovered attack, as feared} 27. Qc3 {Queen moves} fxg2 {Second pawn goes} 28. Rh3{The only square.} Bxc2 {This is probably a mistake. He picked up his bishop,then put it down again on e4 and then finally picked it up again, and exchanged.}29. Qxc2 {So i take back} Rd8 {He contests the d file} 30. Rhd3 {My rook comes over, and I think ‘at last I have all my pieces on reasonable squares.I may be 2 pawns down, but I have greater influence on the d file. I maybe getting back into this game’} Rxd3 {He takes.} 31. Qxd3 {I take back and think how he cannot contest my control of the d file.} Ne3 {King comes in attacking the rook.} 32. Rc1 {I protect the pawn on c5} Nc2+ {He plays this, which I thought was a blunder. Of course, taking with the rook allows a back rank mate with Re1. But if I take with the queen, surely I get two minor pieces for a rook?} 33. Qxc2 {So I take} Bxc1 {He takes} 34. Qxc1 {I take. now I thought ‘Probably best for him is Qe7, threatening Re1 and the pawn on h4. I defend with Bf2. I have chances now, 2 bishops v rook and 2 pawns is not too bad.’ Find his best move now. } Qg3 {yes! Threatening Re1 and the pawn on h4 and this time there is no sensible defence. White resigns. Many thanks for reading this.} 0-1 You must activate JavaScript to enhance chess game visualization.