En Passant - Swale vs Folkestone
Thursday 27 February 2020
White: Keith Nevols (157) - Black: Martin Cutmore (161)
Silician Defence
1. e4 c5
2. Nc3 a6!?
An interesting sideline, an early precaution against Bb5.
3. f4 e6
4. Nf3 d5
5. d3 dxe4?!
A slight inaccuracy, opening the centre before development.
6. Nxe4 Nf6
7. Be2?
White is too cautious in return - 7. Nxf6+ Qxf6 8. g3 with Bg2 and maybe Ne5 gives an edge. I am just not used to finachetto-ing the bishop in this line and usually play with the bishop on e2.
7. ..... Nc6
8. O-O Be7
9. Qe1
A move I am familiar with and waiting the usual question - where will Black put his King?
9. .....Nd4
10. Bd1 O-O
11. Ne5
Now that Black has answered that question, I can proceed with an initiative.
11. .......Nf5
12. g4
This is the sort of move that gives you a buzz when you play it, but the engine states it is not the best. It prefers 12. c3. I think I simply overlooked that my knight on e5 is defending the d3 pawn backwards. 12. a4 is another idea to hold up any Black ideas of counterplay.
12. ... Nxe4
13. dxe4 Qd4+
14. Qf2
The two players look to be peacefully minded, as neither would have much of an early attack without the queens.
14. .......Qxf2+
15. Rxf2 Nd6
16. Bf3 f6
17. Nd3
Black has pushed away any thoughts White may have of getting an early attack and we now enter the middlegame. I think Black has a slight edge as the knight on d6 has all sorts of possibilities. On the other hand, the white bishop is well placed on f3 - I just need to find something to do with the other bishop.
17. ...... Nb5
18. Be3
Of course not 18. c3?? - not only does 18. ... c4 give Black a foothold on the d3 square but he can follow up with Bc5.
18. ......c4
19. Nc5
19. a4! ties up the queenside nicely. 19. ... Nc7 20. Nc1 and coming round to e2, or 19. .. cxd3 20. axb5 and White can exert pressure in the to left hand corner.
19. ......e5
20. f5
I wanted to keep the pawns together - after 20. fxe5 fxe5 the bishop on f3 does not seem to have much of a future whereas some squares open up for Black.
I also wanted to examine the possibility of closing the kingside for the moment while seeing if I could do anything on the queenside.
20. .......Nd4
20. .. c3 is an annoying little move. White can choose between 21. b3 Nd4 or 21. bxc3 Nxc3.
I was not too bothered about the exchange of the d4 knight for the f3 bishop.
21. Na4 b5
22. Nb6 Rb8
Now was the time for a big think and, as is often the case after a big think, the wrong move was made.
I was examining the possibilities after 23. Nd5, which would have been a good square for the knight, but made the strategic error of swapping off a bishop which was not doing anything.
23. Nxc8? Rbxc8
24. Kg2 Rfd8
Black now takes over with a strong initiative.
25. Rd1 c3!
26. b3 Kf7
And now a classic blunder. I tried to examine the possibility of Bxd4 and Be2 coming to d3, then decided the bishop might be quite good on d3 and picked it up. As my bishop lifted into the air, my heart sunk as I immediately saw that the c2 pawn will be en prise. However, it was too late. Only one possible move.
27. Be2???
White should play 27. Bxd4 Rxd4 28. Rxd4 exd4 and then 29. Be2.
27. ....... Nxc2
Now the game is lost.
28. Bb6 Rxd1
29. Bxd1 Nd4
29. .... Ne1+ 30. Kf1 c2 and White can resign.
30. Bc2 b4
30. .... Nxc2 31. Rxc2 b4 was better. One last throw of the dice.
31. Bxd4 exd4
32. Rf3 Bd6
33. h3 Re8
34. Kf1 a5
35. Ke2 Be5
And Black offered a draw which I jumped at. My king will get to d3 so it is question of whether Black can get through with the kingside and use his extra pawn.
The late night, the long journey home, and the fact that the half point won the match, may have persuaded my opponent to be charitable. Nevertheless. a fortunate escape.
Swale v Folkestone
Keith Nevols (157) 1/2-1/2 Martin Cutmore (161)
David Page (144) 0-1 Kevin Smyth (161)
Rob Woolacott (141) 0-1 Alec Nicol (143)
Dennis Simpson (135) 1-0 Andrew Haycock (106)
Tyrone Jefferies (114) 0-1 David Erwee (95)
Andrew Gillard (109) 1-0 Robert Twigg (90)
Swale 2.5-3.5 Folkestone
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