I'm proud of some of my chess games, (a few of them, justifiably so). The following game, however, a Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+), does not make that list. It was a pretty sorry contest, and afterwards I felt as low as pond scum – especially because I won it.
Perhaps it is time to focus on analysis and theory for a while, and leave the over-the-board (or over-the-internet) play alone.
perrypawnpusher - Macgregr
blitz FICS, 2010
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke7 6.c3 Ne6
Not a new move (I have 70 examples in my database) but the first time that I have seen it. Black has the typical piece-for-two-pawns advantage, as well as the typical problem of the uncastled King.
7.d4 Nf6 8.Bg5
You have to admit, pinning the King's Knight looks like a good idea – until you realize that it can simply be taken.
Dumb.
So why didn't my opponent and I see this immediately? Well, hats off to Macgregr, who saw it first...
8...d6
arcanglej - geppa, FICS, 2005 continued : 8...Nxg5 9.d5 Ngxe4 10.Kf1 d6 11.Nc4 c6 12.dxc6 bxc6 13.Qe2 Ba6 14.Nbd2 d5 15.Rd1 Kf7 16.Nxe4 Bxc4 White resigned
However, Maguey - snob, FICS, 2003 saw White escape: 8...h6 9.Bxf6+ Kxf6 10.Qf3+ Ke7 11.Qf7+ Kd6 12.c4 Nxd4 13.Qd5+ Ke7 14.Qxd4 d6 15.Ng6+ Kf7 16.Nf4 Be7 17.Qd5+ Kf8 18.Ng6+ Ke8 19.Nxh8 Bf6 20.Qf7 checkmate
9.Ng4
Ouch. Necessary was 9.Bxf6, of course.
9...Nxg5
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!
"Ozymandias", Percy Bysshe Shelley
10.Nxf6 gxf6 11.0-0 Bg7
Not a pretty sight for White. For Black, having the advantage of "the two Bishops" in this case means having two more Bishops than I do...
Still, I like my games to last more than a dozen moves, so I soldiered on.
12.Nd2 Bd7 13.f4 Nf7 14.e5
My only chance: Black's "centralized" King.
14...dxe5 15.fxe5 fxe5 16.dxe5 Bxe5
Aha! A lucky break for me. I can capture two pieces for a Rook – and only be down a Rook.
17.Rxf7+ Kxf7 18.Qh5+ Ke7
What is this? A touch of hope in the air?
Black could keep his lead with 18...Kg7, as after 19.Qxe5+ Qf6 20.Qxc7 White has only two pawns for his missing Rook.
19.Qxe5+ Be6
My mind was full of the possibilities of a draw through repetition of position. Could it be?
20.Qg7+
While I was pleased, after the game, to learn that Fritz 8 said this led to a draw, I was astonished to see its suggestion: 20.Re1 Qd7 21.Ne4 Raf8 22.Nc5 followed by White capturing Black's Bishop after 22...Qd6 23.Qg7+ Rf7 24.Qg5+ Rf6. White would still be threatening Qg7+, picking up a Rook.
analysis diagram
20...Bf7 21.Qe5+
This looked like the way to a draw (i.e. check, check, check...) but it was not. Whatever happened to the old adage Three pieces and an attack"? After the game Fritz 8 gave the right approach: 21.Re1+ Kd7 22.Qg4+ Kc6 23.Qa4+ Kb6 24.Qb4+ Kc6 25.Nf3 Re8 26.Qa4+ .
21...Be6
My opponent didn't mind repeating the position while he thought things over. If Black's King had retreated along the c8-h3 diagonal (...Ke7-d7-c8) he could have found safety, perhaps at b8.
22.Qg7+
Repeating the position; again missing 22.Re1
22...Kd6 23.Qd4+ Bd5
Well, if I didn't force a draw, perhaps I could annoy my opponent into submission.
24.Nc4+ Kc6
Wow! This is either an angry move or a careless move.
Black takes the draw with 24...Kd7 25.Ne5+ Kc8 26.Qg4+ Kb8 27.Nd7+ Kc8 28.Nf6+ Kb8 29.Nd7+ etc.
25.Ne5+
This is sufficient, although 25.Na5+ was even stronger.
25...Kd6
Black realizes to his dismay that 25...Kb5 leads to mate: 26.a4+ Ka6 27.Qd3+ Bc4 28.Qxc4+ b5 29.Qxb5.
26.Nf7+ Kd7
Now the full shock has set in: instead, 26...Kc6 would have saved the Bishop.
27.Nxd8 Raxd8 28.Qxd5+ Kc8
Breathless, I realized that I had a winning advantage. What to do with it before time ran out??
29.Qe6+ Kb8 30.Re1 a6 31.g3 Rhf8 32.Rf1 Rfe8 33.Qf7 h6 34.Qf6 h5 35.Qf5 Rh8
Three quick conclusions: my opponent wasn't going to help me by exchanging pieces, he was going to let me do the thinking while he hunkered down, and chasing the h-pawn didn't seem to get me anywhere.
36.Re1 Rdf8 37.Qd7 Rfg8 38.Re7 Rc8 39.Rh7 Rhe8
Nothing accomplished so far. My opponent was content to let me run out of time first. That might or might not happen – but surely I could convert a Q vs R advantage...
40.Qd2 Rcd8 41.Rd7 Rc8 42.Qf2 Rh8 43.Rd5 Rhf8 44.Rf5 Rh8 45.Qc5 h4 46.Rh5 hxg3 47.hxg3 Rhg8 48.Kg2 Rcd8
I managed to create a passed pawn (although winning the h-pawn would have given me two connected passed pawns) which was something accomplished.
49.Rh7 Rc8 50.b4
Ah, here's an idea... at long last.
50...Rge8 51.a4 Re2+ 52.Kh3 Ree8 53.b5
53...a5
A final bit of luck for me. Instead, after 53...axb5 54.axb5 b6 Black's King is still safe, and I would probably have had to go pack to the plan of advancing the g-pawn.
54.b6 cxb6 55.Qxb6 Red8 56.Qxb7 checkmate
What a mess of a game, even if my opponent was rated a few points above me.
perrypawnpusher - Macgregr
blitz FICS, 2010
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke7 6.c3 Ne6
Not a new move (I have 70 examples in my database) but the first time that I have seen it. Black has the typical piece-for-two-pawns advantage, as well as the typical problem of the uncastled King.
7.d4 Nf6 8.Bg5
You have to admit, pinning the King's Knight looks like a good idea – until you realize that it can simply be taken.
Dumb.
8...d6
arcanglej - geppa, FICS, 2005 continued : 8...Nxg5 9.d5 Ngxe4 10.Kf1 d6 11.Nc4 c6 12.dxc6 bxc6 13.Qe2 Ba6 14.Nbd2 d5 15.Rd1 Kf7 16.Nxe4 Bxc4 White resigned
However, Maguey - snob, FICS, 2003 saw White escape: 8...h6 9.Bxf6+ Kxf6 10.Qf3+ Ke7 11.Qf7+ Kd6 12.c4 Nxd4 13.Qd5+ Ke7 14.Qxd4 d6 15.Ng6+ Kf7 16.Nf4 Be7 17.Qd5+ Kf8 18.Ng6+ Ke8 19.Nxh8 Bf6 20.Qf7 checkmate
9.Ng4
Ouch. Necessary was 9.Bxf6, of course.
9...Nxg5
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!
"Ozymandias", Percy Bysshe Shelley
10.Nxf6 gxf6 11.0-0 Bg7
Not a pretty sight for White. For Black, having the advantage of "the two Bishops" in this case means having two more Bishops than I do...
Still, I like my games to last more than a dozen moves, so I soldiered on.
12.Nd2 Bd7 13.f4 Nf7 14.e5
My only chance: Black's "centralized" King.
14...dxe5 15.fxe5 fxe5 16.dxe5 Bxe5
Aha! A lucky break for me. I can capture two pieces for a Rook – and only be down a Rook.
17.Rxf7+ Kxf7 18.Qh5+ Ke7
What is this? A touch of hope in the air?
Black could keep his lead with 18...Kg7, as after 19.Qxe5+ Qf6 20.Qxc7 White has only two pawns for his missing Rook.
19.Qxe5+ Be6
My mind was full of the possibilities of a draw through repetition of position. Could it be?
20.Qg7+
While I was pleased, after the game, to learn that Fritz 8 said this led to a draw, I was astonished to see its suggestion: 20.Re1 Qd7 21.Ne4 Raf8 22.Nc5 followed by White capturing Black's Bishop after 22...Qd6 23.Qg7+ Rf7 24.Qg5+ Rf6. White would still be threatening Qg7+, picking up a Rook.
analysis diagram
20...Bf7 21.Qe5+
This looked like the way to a draw (i.e. check, check, check...) but it was not. Whatever happened to the old adage Three pieces and an attack"? After the game Fritz 8 gave the right approach: 21.Re1+ Kd7 22.Qg4+ Kc6 23.Qa4+ Kb6 24.Qb4+ Kc6 25.Nf3 Re8 26.Qa4+ .
21...Be6
My opponent didn't mind repeating the position while he thought things over. If Black's King had retreated along the c8-h3 diagonal (...Ke7-d7-c8) he could have found safety, perhaps at b8.
22.Qg7+
Repeating the position; again missing 22.Re1
22...Kd6 23.Qd4+ Bd5
Well, if I didn't force a draw, perhaps I could annoy my opponent into submission.
24.Nc4+ Kc6
Wow! This is either an angry move or a careless move.
Black takes the draw with 24...Kd7 25.Ne5+ Kc8 26.Qg4+ Kb8 27.Nd7+ Kc8 28.Nf6+ Kb8 29.Nd7+ etc.
25.Ne5+
This is sufficient, although 25.Na5+ was even stronger.
25...Kd6
Black realizes to his dismay that 25...Kb5 leads to mate: 26.a4+ Ka6 27.Qd3+ Bc4 28.Qxc4+ b5 29.Qxb5.
26.Nf7+ Kd7
Now the full shock has set in: instead, 26...Kc6 would have saved the Bishop.
27.Nxd8 Raxd8 28.Qxd5+ Kc8
Breathless, I realized that I had a winning advantage. What to do with it before time ran out??
29.Qe6+ Kb8 30.Re1 a6 31.g3 Rhf8 32.Rf1 Rfe8 33.Qf7 h6 34.Qf6 h5 35.Qf5 Rh8
Three quick conclusions: my opponent wasn't going to help me by exchanging pieces, he was going to let me do the thinking while he hunkered down, and chasing the h-pawn didn't seem to get me anywhere.
36.Re1 Rdf8 37.Qd7 Rfg8 38.Re7 Rc8 39.Rh7 Rhe8
Nothing accomplished so far. My opponent was content to let me run out of time first. That might or might not happen – but surely I could convert a Q vs R advantage...
40.Qd2 Rcd8 41.Rd7 Rc8 42.Qf2 Rh8 43.Rd5 Rhf8 44.Rf5 Rh8 45.Qc5 h4 46.Rh5 hxg3 47.hxg3 Rhg8 48.Kg2 Rcd8
I managed to create a passed pawn (although winning the h-pawn would have given me two connected passed pawns) which was something accomplished.
49.Rh7 Rc8 50.b4
Ah, here's an idea... at long last.
50...Rge8 51.a4 Re2+ 52.Kh3 Ree8 53.b5
53...a5
A final bit of luck for me. Instead, after 53...axb5 54.axb5 b6 Black's King is still safe, and I would probably have had to go pack to the plan of advancing the g-pawn.
54.b6 cxb6 55.Qxb6 Red8 56.Qxb7 checkmate
What a mess of a game, even if my opponent was rated a few points above me.
