Nerves of Tin

I still play the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) in online blitz games and I still sometimes get a case of "nerves" when I do.

Good thing I still win...

perrypawnpusher - GabrielChime
blitz 12 0, FICS 2009
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6

7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Ng6
An unusual move – I have less than a half-dozen game examples in my database. That's the fun of defending against the Jerome Gambit, however: there are so many ways to give back a piece or two.

9.Qd5+ Ke7 10.Qxc5+ d6 11.Qe3
An alternative was 11.Qc3.

We have a typical Jerome Gambit position, where White has two pawns to make use of against Black's extra piece.
11...Bd7 12.0-0
Also equal (according to Fritz 8) is 12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Nc6 14.0-0 Kf8 15.e5 dxe5 16.dxe5 Qe7 17.e6 Be8. I'm never quite sure when to play with the pawns and when to develop.
12...Qf8 13.e5 Kd8
An interesting position! Black's King is temporarily lodged in the middle of his back rank, and his two Rooks are very much parked in the garage. Yet White's lag in development does not (yet) make that situation dangerous. My next move – preferring to open the center instead of reinforcing it with 14.d4 – is a strategic error.

14.exd6
Ask Rybka a simple question and sometimes it will give you a complicated answer. Set this position on "blundercheck" at 5 minutes a move, and Rybka comes up with a line leading to a draw by repetition: 14.d4 Qf5 15.c4 Nh6 16.Nc3 Re8 17.h3 Kc8 18.Bd2 Kb8 19.Rac1 Qh5 20.Qd3 Bf5 21.Qe3 Bd7 22.Qd3 Bf5 23.Qe3 Bd7 24.Qd3 Bf5 25.Qe3 Bd7 26.Qd3 Bf5 27.Qe3 Bd7 28.Qd3 Bf5 29.Qe3...
14...Qxd6 15.Nc3 Nf6 16.d3 Re8 17.Qf2
Sitting here, White's Queen is liable to be harassed by a future ...Ng4. The usual "imbalance" of adventurous connected pawns has disappeared. Black is clearly better.

17...Rf8
Black could have brought some serious heat with 17...Ng4 18.Qd2 Qd4+ 19.Kh1 Bc6. The text move is okay – it's just not best.
18.Be3 b6
Again, 18...Ng4 instead seems the way to go. I was glad to see GabrielChime open up the possible future home of his King.

19.Rae1 Nd5 20.Nxd5 Qxd5 21.Bd2
Trying to get something going.
21...Qxa2
Black feels comfortable enough to grab a pawn, and I was actually glad that he did, as it decentralized his strongest piece. Unfortunately, my response is not best: I should have played 22.Qd4.

22.Bc3 Qd5
Here or on the next move, Black wins the day with ...Rxf4.
23.Bxg7 Re8
I have been handed an even game by my generous opponent. Such is blitz – such is the Jerome Gambit.
24.Rxe8+ Kxe8 25.f5 Ne7
The position is more complicated than it seems at first glance, and Rybka's post mortem analysis leads the game into an oddly balanced endgame where White has a Rook and a pawn for a Knight and a Bishop: 26.c4 Qxd3 27.Re1 Kf7 28.Qh4 Nxf5 29.Qxh7 Rg8 30.Bh6+ Kf6 31.Qxg8 Nxh6 32.Qd8+ Kg6 33.Qxc7 Qd4+ 34.Kh1 Ng4 35.h3 Nf2+ 36.Kh2 Nxh3 37.Qe5 Qxe5+ 38.Rxe5 Nf2 39.Re7 Ng4+ 40.Kg3 Nf6. Needless to say, none of this occurred to me.
26.f6
Play 'em like you got 'em is often good advice for the Jerome Gambiteer, although in this case the advancing f-pawn is nothing special. Unless Black believes it is...
The computer suggests that it is time for the second player to return the extra piece and transition into an even ending: 26...Nf5 27.c4 Qxd3 28.g4 Kf7 29.gxf5 Re8 30.Qh4 Bxf5 31.Qh5+ Bg6 32.Qd5+ Qxd5 33.cxd5 Re2. Perhaps this is chess how it should be played, rather than how I play it.
26...Ng6
Now Black gives his extra piece back (a time-honored defensive move) – only to discover that the resulting position has another piece soon-to-hang.
27.f7+ Kd8 28.f8Q+ Nxf8 29.Qxf8+ Black resigns

After 29...Be8 White will play 30.Rf5 planning to attack the pinned Bishop a second time with 31.Re5. Black can counter this with 30...Qd6 (threatening to exchange Queens) but then White can sidestep with 31.Qg8 with plans to put his Rook on f8, again winning the Bishop. The problem for Black after 29...Be8 30.Rf5 Qd6 31.Qg8 is that there is no way for his Queen to protect the Bishop without coming to grief: 31...Qd7 32.Rd6; 31...Qe7 32.Bf6; or 31...Qe6 32.Qxe6.