Walled In

The following game, featuring a Semi-Italian Opening (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6) with a Jerome Gambit twist (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+), shows how much you can achieve with a basic "sac and attack" attitude.

Of particular interest is the positional role that the "Jerome pawns" play early on.

 Wall - Ydiens

blitz 15 0, FICS, 2010

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6

4.Bxf7+

Bill Wall is determined to have his attack, and wastes no time on "tempo moves" like 4.0-0 or 4.Nc3 or even 4.d3 which would give Black a chance to move his Bishop to where it could become a target at c5.

What surprised me when I looked up this position in the New Year's Database was how frequently 4.Bxf7+ had been played – there are 857 such games. Alas, White scored only 39% in them. (Of course, that could mean that Bill hasn't played enough 4.Bxf7+ games yet, so he hasnt' had much chance to boost the average.)

By contrast, there were only 157 games which went 4.0-0, 4.Nc3, or 4.d3 followed by 4...Bc5 5.Bxf7+. White scored 51% in them. (4.0-0 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ scored best at 85%).

4...Kxf7 5.0-0 Nf6

6.d4 

At this point, out of the blue, I remembered another Wall game, a proto-Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit: Wall - Vargas, San Antonio, 1979: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.d4 exd4 5.0-0 h6 6.Nh4 Nxe4 7.Qh5 g6 8.Bxf7+ Kxf7 9.Qxg6+ Ke7 10.Nf5 checkmate

analysis diagram





6...exd4 7.e5

Let's say you were going to play the Max Lange, but your opponent played ...h7-h6 instead of ...Bf8-c5, and you wanted to play e4-e5 without Black responding ...d7-d5 – hitting your Bishop – so you decide to sac your Bishop before he gets the chance...

Okay, okay, actually I don't know what's going on, but like a Supreme Court justice once said, "I don't know what 'good chess' is, but I know it when I see it!"

Or something like that.

7...Nd5 8.Nxd4 Nxd4 9.Qxd4 c6

Black has a piece for a pawn, but his practical difficulties give White some compensation: the unsheltered King and the poor state of Black's development.

10.c4 Ne7 11.c5 Nd5

The Knight has gotten a little exercise, but the "Jerome pawns" have been working, too. With Black so cramped, White doesn't feel a need to hurry.

12.Nc3 Nxc3 13.Qxc3 Be7

It seems a bit contrary to advise Black to not develop a piece, but attacking the advanced pawn at c5 with ...b7-b6, on this move or the next, was better.

14.f4 Re8 15.f5

15...Bg5

We've seen this kind of position before: the computer says that things are about even, but White's position is a lot more fun to play.

16.Qb3+ Kf8

Rybka prefers 16...d5 17.cxd6+ Kf8, although one glance is enough to know why Black avoided that line: the pawns!

17.f6

17...g6 18.Bxg5 hxg5 19.Qh3

The end is near. The pawns are still walling Black in.

19...d5 20.Qh8+ Kf7 21.e6+ Black resigned