[Event "Unrated Standard: Challenge from john1960uk"]
[Site "SchemingMind.com"]
[Date "2009.06.23"]
[Round "-"]
[White "firsttech"]
[Black "john1960uk"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D61"]
[WhiteCountry "USA"]
[BlackCountry "ENG"]
[GameID "209841"]

{
john1960uk: Hi again Joel thank you for the offer of a challenge
}
1. d4
{
firsttech: Is there anything you would like to work on?
}
1... d5
{
john1960uk: Hi I haven't really chosen my openings yet I'm working to stop making really silly mistakes when playing OTB and to calculate more rather than point my pieces and hope! :o)My defence is quite weak? if I find myself defending my game often falls apart rapidly!
}
2. c4
{
firsttech: Have you tried the "Game Explorer" for guidance during the opening phase? Click on the little chess board with the red lines just above the "Submit" button. 
}
2... e6
{
john1960uk: I've tried and made good use of it :o)also access my own and online database resources and sometimes pick up ideas from interesting games collections trouble is the games I've won make me feel a bit of a fraud :o) they've followed theory or available games quite deeply then I've just thrown all my big guns at the opponents king and hoped for the best! :o)
}
3. Nf3
{
firsttech: I enjoy the opening phase of correspondence chess. I get out the books and look at databases. I try to gain a better understanding of the opening I’m about to play. 
}
3... c6
{
john1960uk: I enjoy that as well I have to be careful about getting to comfortable with it at the moment though. :o) my learnign needs are a bit more basic this gives me time to think and move pieces about on a board, real and the analysis board here I also try to have a normal OTB type 'think' about the position first.
}
4. Nc3 Nf6 5. Bg5 Be7 6. e3 O-O 7. Qc2 Nbd7 8. Rd1 Re8 9. Bd3 h6
{
john1960uk: I always feel cramped with black in QP games and feels like forever to develop (just impatient I guess :o))Any ideas? I've tried KID which was okish but lots of theory if you want to play otb, being a d4 player what reply do you least like to see? :o)
}
{
firsttech: One of the reasons I continue to play the Queen’s Gambit is because it can be a slow positional opening. Many players get frustrated or impatient and make an impulsive move that gives me an advantage. I have more trouble with players who move 1…Nf6 and play one of the Indian Openings like the Nimzo-Indian or King’s Indian Defenses. 
}
10. Bh4 dxc4
{
john1960uk: Thanks for that, the black gamescores in my database show quite a low percentage of wins for black in his 'traditional' type defence so might look at KID or nimzo'
}
11. Bxc4
{
firsttech: It might be fun to try the Nimzo or KID after we finish these games.
}
11... Nb6
{
john1960uk: it's a deal :o) I've never played a nimzo' so lets take me right out of my comfort zone :o)
}
12. Bb3
{
firsttech: One of the nice things about playing un-rated chess is that you can try new and risky things and not worry about your rating.
}
12... Nbd5
{
john1960uk: Haven't got a rating yet :o( I'm a bit worried that I've won some games because I can use a database and can info' search quite well rather than being able to play chess! :o) don't think an artificaly high rating will help me progress?
}
13. O-O
{
firsttech: Here are my thoughts on chess ratings. There are three basic types of chess: blitz, OTB, and CC. There are separate ratings for each type. You can have a great CC rating and a very low blitz rating. I hate playing blitz. Beginners can easily defeat me because I stop and analyze. CC chess is the opposite of blitz. I see a lot of players play CC chess the same way they play OTB. They don’t spend any time thinking about the opening; they just blindly follow a database or book. For the rest of the game, they spend 1-3 minutes of calculation before making a move. A good CC player gathers as much information as possible for the opening. Careful thought is taken for each opening move choice. For the rest of the game a good CC player will take what ever time is needed to analyze the position and calculate positions. The rating you will get may very well be higher than your OTB rating but it will reflect your CC playing ability.  Joel
}
13... Qa5
{
john1960uk: Those are very good points thank you and my hope is that my CC games if I play and us them wisely will improve my OTB play, I'm not sure that I'll ever be a blitz player either At the moment I spend quite a bit of time trying to work out my opponents move and my possible replys while waiting for their moves. As the game gets deeper this obviousley gets more difficult especially for me :o) I think it's time well spent though.
}
14. Ne5
{
firsttech: I think playing CC is one of the best ways to learn chess. I know it has helped me OTB. It mayeven  help me with blitz as well. 
}
14... Nd7
{
john1960uk: I've certainly found it instructive so far and these two games are really helping quite unusual to 'think out loud' in a game. 
}
15. Nc4
{
firsttech: I’ve decided I don’t want to exchange pieces yet in this game. 
}
15... Qd8
{
john1960uk: :o)you only did that because I said I find these positions cramped :o)
}
16. Bg3
{
firsttech: You definitely had the right plan for black by trying to get white to exchange a few pieces to open up the position.
}
16... b5
{
john1960uk: nearly made a bit of a characteristic blunder for me as well I intended to put my Q on c7 if you exchanged and was going to even though you didn't take my B on e7. here I'm trying to stick to the plan of freeing up the position, I had a couple of choices finally went for this one hopefully it's at least ok!
}
17. Nd6
{
firsttech: I think pushing any of the queen side pawn would be a good plan for you. 
}
17... Bxd6 18. Bxd6 N7f6
{
john1960uk: Getting some space though your Q looming down on me and B right inside my position certainly are giving me something to think about.
}
19. Bc5
{
firsttech: I'm hoping my bishop on c5 will restrict your queen side pawns.
}
19... a5
{
john1960uk: My queen side pawns are the focus of my own attention I'm not totally happy with any of the moves I want to make you have replies to them all that make my position uncomfortable! :o)
}
20. a3
{
firsttech: You're right, I'm not making this easy for you. But you are not making it easy for me either. This is turning out to be a very challenging game. I haven't come up with a good plan yet for this position. Joel
}
20... Ba6
{
john1960uk: I do know what you mean though I often struggle to come up with a good plan at certain stages of most games, perhaps I need to play more and maybe play through more M and GM games
}
21. Rfe1 Nxc3 22. Qxc3 Ne4
{
john1960uk: Planning to open things up a bit more........hopefully :o)
}
23. Qc2
{
firsttech: Good plan; good move.
}
23... Nxc5 24. dxc5
{
firsttech: I had a hard time deciding whether to take the pawn with the queen or the pawn. If I took with the queen, then my plan would have been to threaten your backwards c6 pawn. But I think you could easily protect it with your bishop and I could not see an easy way of creating a second weakness. So I choose to open the d file.
}
24... Qf6
{
john1960uk: I had a reply to both eventualities, you've chosen the one that makes me feel most uncomfortable! :o)quite difficult to decide which square to put my queen on and I think your rook is about to pay me a visit!:o)
}
25. Rd6 a4
{
john1960uk: I would have played this straight away if you had taken with your queen earlier. As it is I think the threat to your B helps me here prior to the defence of my c pawn.
}
26. Ba2
{
firsttech: The only drawback to 25…a4 that I can think of is that your queen-side pawns are now locked on white squares and your white-square bishop is stuck behind them. I’m not sure if I can take advantage of this or not.
}
26... Bb7
{
john1960uk: I hadn't even noticed that :o(

depending on your next move at least one variation I'm looking at puts all my pawns on white squares!! If we liquidate much further I could effectively end up a piece down! 
}
27. Bb1
{
firsttech: We have a very interesting position. Our material is equal. Most of your pawns are on white squares. I have control over the d file and have more space. I haven’t figured out a plan to capitalize on my advantages yet. My bishop is as ineffective yours. You could easily stay behind your defensive wall of pawns and wait for me to make a mistake.
}
27... g6
{
john1960uk: waiting for a mistake sounds good.....However I think I might end up making a mistake before you :o)
}
28. Red1 Rad8
{
john1960uk: I'm actualy struggling a bit here, (it feels like it is all of a sudden though I'm sure it isn't)everything feels very 'passive' for black.
}
29. Qc1
{
firsttech: We’ve entered a difficult middle game stage in our game. Neither one of us has a strong initiative. We both have strong defensive positions. All we can do is to try and make small incremental improvements in our positions. I moved my queen to c1 so I can move my bishop to a better position.  Joel
}
29... Rxd6
{
john1960uk: verrrry difficult :o) really wanted to improve my B quietly, all my Q- side pawns are a bit stymied at the moment though. this could help that situation after some exchanges and the centralising of your B. 
}
30. cxd6
{
firsttech: I debated as to whether to take with the pawn or the rook. Taking with the rook would have kept the position locked up and would likely end in a draw. Taking with the pawn gives me a passed pawn but frees up the position. 
}
30... Rd8
{
john1960uk: You still have a hold on the Q side and I have to blockade now, doesn't feel good for me :o)
}
31. Be4
{
firsttech: I trying to keep the pressure on you.
}
31... Qe5
{
john1960uk: and I'll try to defend as best I can :o)Have you found a plan yet? All I can come up with is to hold on until things open up a bit. John.
}
32. Bxc6
{
firsttech: My short term plan is to exchange some pawns and the bishops. Long term, I want to move my queen to c7, push my pawn to d7, and support the advance of my e pawn. 
}
32... Bxc6
{
john1960uk: The whole game I've been moaning about feeling cramped etc :o)now it's happening my rook is a bit tied down with your Q coming in. I'm going to try to get my Q into a position where you will at least have to consider her in your plans. hopefully via b2.
}
33. Qxc6
{
firsttech: Did you get a chance to read my note in our other game? I let Fritz analyze our drawn game last night. I set it up to flag moves if the position assessment shifted more than .5 pawns. Basically, I was looking for blunders. I’m proud to say that neither one of us made a bad move. Now comes the hard part, analyzing the game move by move. Hopefully, I’ll find time this weekend to do it. Joel
}
33... Qxb2
{
john1960uk: Hi that sounds good :o) I've just finished a run of nightshifts and I'm feeling a bit jet lagged :o) my daughters are round 'till Monday, so might not be as quick to reply as usual. Perhaps I'll get our game through Rybka for comparison? John
}
34. Qc7
{
firsttech: Definitely run the game through Rybka. I believe the after-game analysis provides the critical feedback necessary for improvement. 
}
34... Qf6
{
john1960uk: I've got a bad feeling about this my pieces have no activity your Q, R and passer are all moving in. I ran an analysis on our CK game using Rybka overnight, the comments didn't add much to ours to be honest, do you do anything else? maybe a deep position analysis at certain points? John.
}
35. f4
{
firsttech: I’ve had very little time lately for chess. I spent an hour going over our game last night. I think the answers we seek are beyond the horizon of chess engines. I’m hung up over your move 11.Bh7+. The move doesn’t “feel” right to me. I’ve been trying to come up with a better move. Fritz is giving me several slightly better move choices for move 11. For example, 11.a3 is at the top of the list of choices. I’m trying to decide if 11.a3 (or some other choice) is better 11.Bh7+ and why. The “why” is important for me. If I can understand the reasons behind the move then I have learned something. This game analysis is going to take me a while longer to finish. Are there any moves in the game that you have questioned? I might try your idea of a deep positional analysis of move 11 tonight. Joel 
}
35... Ra8
{
john1960uk: Time is precious sometimes isn't it,
to be honest 11.Bh7+ was Mickey Adams move :o)v Alberto David, 15.09.2008 I liked it as it was slightly offbeat and felt quite agresive compared to other moves in similar positions, Adams won his game, unfortunately I didn't have the skill to carry it through :o)
}
36. Qc5 Qf5 37. Qc6
{
firsttech: I wish I could swap queens and simplify things but I can’t get my king to my d6 pawn before you get your king there.
}
37... Rd8
{
john1960uk: I'm can't find anything here? All I can do is react to whatever move you make. I've tried to find some threats to give myself some counterplay, but you've got me tied up quite tightly! John.
}
38. Qc7
{
firsttech: Sorry about the constant pressure. I do have you in bind at the moment. Joel
}
38... Qf6
{
john1960uk: :o)That's the game I'd be enjoying the situation if our roles were reversed :o)I'm still looking for the best continuations for black and white here so it's good experience for me, I hope it's not too much of a drain on you at the momment? We've both got plenty of time on the clock if yo want to put this game on the back burner for a few days? all the best John.
}
39. e4
{
firsttech: Things are a little calmer this week. I give my games top priority; I've had to ignore the forum and a very good chess book lately. Joel
}
39... Rf8
{
john1960uk: I'm glad it's calming for you.
I'm feeling pushed into the corner now. I'm really fending off as best I can and waiting......hoping?? :-) for a mistake from white.....again not very likely I know :-)John.
}
40. e5
{
firsttech: I took the afternoon off from work, took a nap, and worked on chess. What a great day! Here is how I see the position. White is pushing the d pawn toward d8. There is no way white can queen the pawn if black successfully blockades the d pawn. Black must keep control of the d8 square first by moving his queen there. White can not afford to trade queens because it would remove the pressure from black. Black will shift his queen to the queen side and move his rook to d8. Black can push his b4 pawn forward and sacrifice it at some point. This will open the path for black’s a pawn. Black can move this pawn forward and force white to capture it. When white captures the a pawn, black can capture the d pawn. This will leave white with a long term plan of advancing the b pawn and/or attacking black’s king side pawns with his king. Great game! Joel
}
40... Qd8
{
john1960uk: Wow! what a great analysis! I have been looking for the opportunity to push my Q side pawns also saw an alternative for your 39.e4 in the form of 39.Rb1 giving me both sides of the board to worry about :-)I was expecting g3 before e5 here and was veeeery tempted to play 40...Qxf4 to try and 'breakout' OTB I think I would have played it! shifting some 'wood' about here though makes me think it would have been a blunder. As you assessed I had Qd8 planned after g3 and e5 from white,so that's the way I'm going now.All power to those afternoons off!! :-)I start another block of 6 12hr nightshifts tonight :-( John.
}
41. Qc5
{
firsttech: In this position, it’s critical for you to have d8 under complete control. If you tried to capture a pawn with the queen, you would have lost control of d8. I would have moved my pawn to d7 and you wouldn’t be able to stop it from queening. Joel
}
41... Qd7
{
john1960uk: Trying to keep that control and defend b5 at the same time :-)
}
42. Rc1
{
firsttech: I have to keep control of the c file.
}
42... Rb8
{
john1960uk: and I have to keep afloat :-)
}
43. Kf2
{
firsttech: Blockading my d pawn with your queen on d7 changes the dynamics of the position a little. I had envisioned moving the pawn to d7 and you blockading on d8. So now I think it is important to bring my king into the action as another attacking piece.  Great endgame! Joel
}
43... Kg7
{
john1960uk: Not so much as to get him into the action as to take him off the back rank.It is an interesting stage of the game, I do feel that one tiny slip and I'm deadmeat! :o) John. 
}
44. Ke3
{
firsttech: Endgames can be tricky. I think you need to think differently in the endgame. In the middle game, the focus is on calculating variations. A technique I’m learning for endgames is to visualize in steps where you would like your pieces to be. I’ve looked at our position and imagined if we traded queens on c7. That would place my now blockaded d pawn on c7. Black’s rook would move to c8 to blockade the c pawn. There are two problems with my new visualized position. One problem is how to free and promote my blockaded pawn. The other problem is black’s a-b pawns. The b pawn could be sacrificed to free the a pawn. My rook would be tied to the defense of the c pawn. The only other piece available is the king. So my king needs to be closer to the blockaded pawn and the a-b pawns. So I decided to move my king to e3. Now I look at the position to see if there are any risks with my move choice. Joel
}
44... Qb7
{
john1960uk: that is an interesting technique, any references / authors etc? I fear it is something similar to the way I play OTB middle games when I should be calculating :-)sometimes works for me though I have a tendency to get so 'excited' by the potential / possibilities of my projected position that I miss something really silly and short range from my opponent. I have trouble calculating / visualising endgames to any great depth at the moment, more practice I think :-)John.  
}
45. Qc7
{
firsttech: I posted an example of endgame visualization on the team forum. I figured out how to post the diagrams I needed to describe the technique. Check it out. I’ve been using it with some success in our endgame. What I find is that it seems to work best as guide; I’m still surprised how the position keeps changing in ways I didn’t foresee. It is easier than calculating forward from the current position. Joel
}
45... Qd5
{
john1960uk: I think I've found a drawing option here, I am a little jet lagged from the end of my nightshifts though :-) Your post looks great! I'll work through it after a nights sleep :-) all the best John.
}
46. d7
{
firsttech: I think 45…Qd5!! is a brilliant move! I never considered it because it looks like your throwing your rook away. I think you’re right about the draw by repetition; I don’t dare take the rook. Joel
}
46... Rf8
{
john1960uk: I was pleased with Qd5 and the potential draw. However, there are at least a couple of ways for you to refute it, without any way to force it the move doesn't work properly, maybe it slows the forward motion of your K a bit? I'm struggling again :-) to find a good move, I've tried lots of things including a stab at the technique you posted on the forum, absolutely brilliant post by the way,worked through it this morning, and tried it, I'll definitely be practicing with it in my endgames. John.
}
47. Qd6
{
firsttech: If we were playing OTB and you moved 45…Qd5, with a little bit of acting you might have enticed me to take the bait. I’m sending you a PM so that I can give you a possible visualized position to think about. Joel
}
47... Qxd6
{
john1960uk: Sorry about the late reply, well, later anyway :-) my turn to be snowed under at work! :-( Thank you for the PM, it was very interesting, I've tried to play through a number of scenarios, and I really think this is a white win. However, I have to play on here, and would in a 'normal' game, OTB or CC, as I'm not sure I fully understand the position, so I'm still on the look out for possibilities :-) John.
}
48. exd6
{
firsttech: I don't have to think about this move. 
}
48... Rd8
{
john1960uk: That's true, if you hadn't made that move I would have suddenly become faaaaar more optimstic. :-)John
}
49. Rc7
{
firsttech: This move is forced as well. Are you going to try for the b pawn advance now or later?
}
49... b4
{
john1960uk: :-) no time like the present,I think delaying it just gives you more time to co-ordinate your forces. This feels like the only way to make things at all difficult for you. John.
}
50. axb4
{
firsttech: It seems best to push b4 now. I think you will end up capturing both of the d pawns and I'll end up pushing the b pawn. Joel
}
50... a3
{
john1960uk: I think you are right, I also need to look at my K side pawns maybe g5 at some point, I'm also looking at Kf6 but haven't decided which to go with first when / if my K side push comes. John.
}
51. Ra7
{
firsttech: I have to be able to take the a pawn.
}
51... a2
{
john1960uk: And I need your rook off the 7th rank
}
52. Rxa2
{
firsttech: I guess it’s time to say goodbye to my advanced d pawn.
}
52... Rxd7
{
john1960uk: Now your rook is nicely placed, active and able to get behind passed pawns. Your King is more active than mine as well. All of which will prove significant I'm sure.
}
53. Rb2
{
firsttech: I debated between 53.Rb2 and 53.Ra6. I decided that my rook belonged behind my passed pawn. 
}
53... Rxd6
{
john1960uk: I feel that may have helped me? ;-)not in any major way I can see yet, but my rook is released from blockading duties on d7 and I feel I've got time to bring my King out via f6?
}
54. b5
{
firsttech: One of the reasons for not trying to hang on to the d6 pawn was that I thought it give you time to bring your king closer to the action. I hope I'm right! I think your rook will have to go back to blackading duties soon. Still a very exciting endgame! Joel
}
54... Kf6
{
john1960uk: yes I don't think my rook will be free for long :-)the choice for me here was to position my rook to defend against your pawn push or start to bring my K out. I chose the later as I think I've got time for the rook moves next.
}
55. b6
{
firsttech: It's kind of like watching a race in super-slow motion. Will my pawn make it to the finish line before your king joins the battle? Joel
}
55... Rd8
{
john1960uk: :-)it's like a 'car crash' scenario for me............. As you say everything's happening in slow motion, but can I do anything to minimise the impact! :-)I will have to do more endgame study, beyond R&K v K etc :-)
}
56. b7
{
firsttech: Almost there! One nice thing about CC is that you do get to play more endgames. I'm starting to see how decisions I make in the middle game effect the endgame. Joel
}
56... Rb8
{
john1960uk: The only move I think :-) 
}
57. Kd4
{
firsttech: I agree about your move choice; you had to blockade my pawn. I’m uncertain about your next move choice. You could move the king or one of your pawns. Joel
}
57... Kf5
{
john1960uk: Trouble is I'm not sure myself, h5 and even e6+ looked ok as well?? I've settled on this move with no real objective reason, other than centralising my king?
}
58. g3
{
firsttech: With endgames, moves are often chosen by principles instead of calculation. Centering your king is a good principle. Linking my pawns with g3 is another good principle. The trouble is that often you are forced to choose between two principles. Joel
}
58... g5
{
john1960uk: Choices, choices!? :-)I have spent a bit of time doing material searches, looking at positions and shifting wood about on our endgame, and I feel that very soon I'll be exchanging my rook for your new queen. At that point the position (white a rook up or at best 2p v R + p) you are clearly winning? :-)
}
59. fxg5
{
firsttech: It does look like “choices” are running out for you in this endgame. I don’t see how you can stop my king from marching c5-b6-a7. I think you will be forced to trade your rook for my advanced pawn. Would you like to continue or start another game? This is going to be a fun game to analyze. Joel
}
{
john1960uk: That should have been d4!!! it's been a long tireing day at work! ;-) John.
}
{
Game Over: I think we should start afresh :-) well played sir! :-) It'll probably be a few days before I get a chance to analyse but it will be interesting. I still need to work on something against e4, I've just finished a game using the Grunfeld that I really enjoyed. Not sure if I should play a few more or use this opertunity to see how I feel in main line KI or Nimzo indian set ups? What would you like to work on? All the best,John.
}
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