While wandering through The Database, I came across the following position, from Tetlekker - mabden, standard, FICS, 2013:
It had been reached through a nameless opening variation that had been Jerome-ized: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Na5 4.Bxf7+ (4.Nxe5 would be just fine, as well) Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6 6.d4 Bd6 7.Qg4+ Kf6.
A quick search showed three earlier games with the same position.
The first was RookLift - suckermc, blitz, FICS, 2001, which continued:
8.Qf5+ Ke7 9.Bg5+ Nf6 10.Ng4 Kf7 11.e5 Bb4+ 12.c3 g6 13.Nh6+ Kg7 14.exf6+ Kf8 15.f7 Qxg5 16.Qxg5 Kg7 17.cxb4 Nc4 18.Qe7 Kxh6 19.f8Q+ Rxf8 20.Qxf8+ Kg5 21.0-0 d6 22.Nc3 Nd2 23.Rfe1 Nf1 24.Ne4+ Kg4 25.h3+ Kh5 26.g4+ Kh4 27.Qh6 checkmate
The second, assiassi - morts, blitz, FICS, 2008, was a bit tidier:
8.Qf5+ Ke7 9.Bg5+ Nf6 10.Ng4 Bb4+ 11.c3 Bxc3+ 12.Nxc3 d5 13.Qe5+ Be6 14.Nxf6 gxf6 15.Qxf6+ Kd6 16.Qe5+ Black resigned
The third, UNPREDICTABLE - DJJDev, blitz, FICS, 2009, saw White adopt a different strategy, and bring home the point a move later:
8.Qh4+ Ke6 9.Qxd8 Be7 10.Qxc7 Nc6 11.d5+ Kf6 12.dxc6 bxc6 13.Nxd7+ Ke6 14.Qxc6+ Kf7 15.Ne5+ Kf8 16.Qxa8 Nf6 17.Qxc8+ Ne8 Black resigned
And then there was the finish of Tetlekker - mabden, itself:
8.Bg5 checkmate. (But, you saw that, right?)
Some moves for Black and or for White in an opening are "thematic" – the kind of moves that are played frequently, because they accomplish the tactical or strategic aims of that line.
Some are not.
eltemible - DJJDev
blitz, FICS, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Na5
That unnamed "line of play that everyone should know about".
4.Bxf7+
For the record, 4.Nxe5 is best.
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6 6.d4 Bd6
I don't have anything against the move ...Bf8-d6 in the abstract; I am sure that sometimes it is an ambitious move (I am thinking of the Four Knights Game), but as in the Jerome Gambit game HauntedKnight - sarahdaniel, blitz, FICS, 2011 that we looked at a short time ago, and as in the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit game HJBuck - fastglass, blitz, FICS, 2011, it is also a poor fit in this related line: Black does better with 6...d6. See "The Psychology of Error in Chess".
7.Qg4+
Simply the beginning of The End.
7...Ke7 8.Bg5+
Okay, it seems that The End has been postponed. It was expected to arrive with 8.Qxg7+ Ke6 9.Qf7 checkmate, but it still is not far away.
8... Nf6
The sad alternative was for Black's King to step aside and let his Queen be taken without even the recompense of recapture, as 8...Ke8 9.Bxd8 Kxd8 loses a Rook to 10.Qxg7. Painful.
9.Bxf6+ gxf6
As above, "best" was 9...Ke8 10.Bxd8 and again 10...Kxd8 would lose a Rook to 11.Nf7+.
It is no wonder that Black chose a faster exit.
10.Qg7+ Ke8 11.Qf7 checkmate
It is not as if DJJDev had not been warned. A year and a half ago he had played 6...Bd6, and his opponent, Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member UNPREDICTABLE, had also found 7.Qg4+, although after 7...Kf6 The End was again postponed – if for more moves, then also with more pain – 8.Qh4+ (or 8.Bg5#) 8...Ke6 9.Qxd8 Be7 10.Qxc7 Nc6 11.d5+ Kf6 12.dxc6 bxc6 13.Nxd7+ Ke6 14.Qxc6+ Kf7 15.Ne5+ Kf8 16.Qxa8 Nf6 17.Qxc8+ Ne8 Black resigned.
