Here is the seventh training game from Sacrifice Theory. The Bishop mentioned in "Jerome Gambit: Sacrifice Theory"
Readers are familiar with White attacking by advancing his f-pawn, i.e. f2-f4-f5-f6. In the following game, White shows that he can also advance his h-pawn, with strong play to follow.
NN - NN
Training Game #7
2024
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6
A position as old as Jerome - Brownson, Iowa, 1878 (1 - 0, 28).
7.Qd5+ Kf8 8.Qxc5+ d6 9.Qe3 Nf6
This standard position appears in 663 games in The Database. White scores 61%, this despite the fact that Stockfish 16.1 (34 ply) evaluates Black as being about 1 1/2 pawns better.
10.d3
This move is slightly better than 10.O-O, seen in Vazquez, A - Carrington, W, Mexico, 2nd match 1876 (1-0, 34) and NN - NN, #5 Training Game, Sacrifice Theory. The Bishop, Rysbova 2024 (1-0, 27).
10...Kf7
Castling and placing your Rook on the e-file takes two moves; so does castling-by-hand with ...Kf7 and ...Re8. Oddly, the second seems to take longer - but that may be due to the fact that sometimes it is only accomplished half way.
11.Nc3 Rf8
Ryobova, in her book Gambit, gives this move a "?" although it is not clear why. Stockfish 16.1 evaluates it as only .1 of a pawn worse than its first choice.
12.h4
Further aggression by the Jerome Gambiteer, as in Training Game #6.
12...Bd7
Black is unimpressed, and continues with his development.
13.h5 Ne5
Slightly better was 13...Ne7 as in Training Game #6.
14. h6
Attacking the enemy Queen with the wrong Knight. Instead, after 14...Neg4, the stay-at-home Knight will still protect the pawn at h7.
15.Qg3 g5
Blocking the path from White's Bishop to h6, where Black would like to retreat his Knight, without having to deal with an exchange on h6, which would break up the pawns on his Kingside.
This is well motivated, but creates further problems. It turns out that after the alternative, 15...Nh6, White can play 16.Bxh6 gxh6 17.Rxh6 when 17...Rh8 can be met with 18.O-O-O, and White would have an edge.
Therefore, Black might have tried 15...Rg8 (similarly played in the previous Training Game).
16.f3 Qf6
Retreating the advanced Knight is no solution, as there will be too much pressure on f6: 16...Nf6 17.Bxg5 Rg8 18.d4 Nc4 19.Qf4 Rg6 20.e5 Nxe5 21.dxe5 dxe5 22.Qxe5 when White will be a pawn up, with a safer King.
17.fxg4 Kg6
It looks like Black's major piece pressure down the f-file has countered the threats to his King, i.e. 18.Rh5 Qf1+ or 18.Qh3 Qf2+.
Perhaps, but there is elswhere to play.
18.Nd5 Qd8 19.Rh5
Just now.
19...c6 20.Rxg5+
Black would prefer not to give up his Queen with 20...Qxg5, but now the King hunt is on.
21.Rg7+ Ke6 22.Nf4+
For completness sake I can mention 22.g5 cxd5 23.Qh3+ Ng4 24.Qxg4+ Ke5 25.Qg3+ Ke6 26.Qh3+ Ke5 27.d4+ Kxd4 28.Qc3+ Kxe4 29.Qd3+ Ke5 30.Qe2+ Kd4 31.Be3+ Ke5 32.Bg1+ Kf5 33.g4+ Kf4 34.Bh2# , but the text is psychologically sound as it requires Black to surrender more material.
22...Rxf4 23.Qxf4 Qf6
An exchange of Queens would not help, but Black has nothing else left.
24.Qf5+ Qxf5 25.gxf5+ Kf6 26.Bg5 checkmate
