Here I dont like Nc3 much, I dont play d4 openings as white and never play symmetrical d4 as black so im not really up with all the theory....but Nc3 seems to be a little odd. In d4 openings white tends to need the c pawn in action, more often than not playing c4 so blocking it in with the knight on move 3 probably isnt the best idea.
Quick check on the Gensunasumus online opening database shows that from this position
N.Nc3
29 games
25% white wins
23% draw
51% black wins
c4 probably would have been better in the position then you can play your Nc3 after the pawn has moved.
4. e3 Nc6
Im not a fan of e3 either 🙂 I like aggressive play, this tends to mean putting the pieces on the most active squares possible. Here Id play Bf4 or Bg5. After e3 you could have some trouble getting the dark square bishop into the game.
5. Bb5 a6
6. Bxc6+ bxc6
7. Ne5 Bd7
8. Nxd7 Qxd7
After Ne5 Bd7 the knight has tension on the bishop (ie the knight can take the bishop and the bishop cant take the knight). Its best not to trade your pieces that have tension on the opponents pieces unless you are gaining something, here the bishop isnt very active and certainly not a threat, the knight on the other hand is well posted. Id probably play 0-0 here, black for his part is going to play c5 at some point, doubled pawns arent as weak as they are often made out to be...pawn weaknesses should be pushed and if you have the chance to undouble them then its often a good idea to do just that.
9. a4 Bd6
a4 I cant work out...grabbing space on the queenside?
10. O-O O-O
I dont much like whites position here, a lot of the dislike stems from whites bishop on c1.
11. Re1 Rfe8
12. e4 e5
Re1 and e4 I do like, need to activate the bishop
13. dxe5 Bxe5
Here id play Bg5 bring the so far problem piece into the game and letting black worry about having his kingside pawns doubled. Here I guess black would play 13..Nxe4 14.Nxe4 exd4 15.Rxe4 if black then plays exd4 white just plays 16.Rxd4 and looks fine. White should avoid trying to be smart and grabbing the pawn with 16.Rxe1 Rxe1 17.Qxd4 since Bxh2+ picks up whites queen.
14. exd5 cxd5
Here exd5 is probably to be avoided as you will undouble blacks pawns for him. Maybe the simple Qd3 is playable just getting the queen off the back rank having the option of sliding it along the 3rd rank if needed ie to defend h2. Also with the queen off the back rank once the bishop moves the rooks will be connected which is always a good thing 🙂
15. Nxd5 Nxd5
Just an oversight. Again Bg5 was probably the best move, while this allows black to play Bxc3 at least white will manage to get all their pieces into the game.
16. g3 Rad8
17. Bf4 Bxf4
You should avoid creating weaknesses around your king which your last two moves did. Maybe c3 instead of g3 to try and blunt blacks bishop.
Again im not a fan of e3.....id only play this after getting the dark square bishop outside the pawn chain.
3. Nf3 d5
4. Nc3 Bg4
If you want to play Nc3 its best to play 1.e4 🙂
5. h3 Bxf3
6. gxf3 Qd6
You should always try to keep the pawns that will protect your king in good protecting order, this means not letting them get doubled. Qxf3 is much more natural than gxf3.
7. e4 dxe4
e4......gosh im not sure if I love this move or hate it 🙂 Its certainly aggressive in a way but maybe unsoundly so. Probably a move you could get away with playing real time chess but not so much correspondence chess. Intresting anyway 🙂
8. fxe4 Nxd4
Here you had to play d5, it displaces the black knight and saves the pawn. After the knight moves, probably Ne5 then white can capture the e pawn and not have to worry about the d pawn falling.
9. f3 Qg3+
f3....you should be careful about exposing your king to attack, it needs all the protection it can get. Basicly think of you king as a big fat pawn hugger, he loves those pawns, he needs them clooooosee.
10. Kd2 Qxf3
Black misses 0-0-0 here which just looks like a world of pain for white.
11. Qxf3 Nxf3+
12. Ke3 Ne1
13. Bb5+ Nd7
This is good, cha ching die Mr Knight. Black should have played c6 but then white would just play Bxc6 bxc6 and snap up the knight anyway.
14. Rxe1 O-O-O
Free knight, yummy.
15. a4 Nc5
a4 again....again not sure why, its not really good or bad, it just is.
16. Ke2 Rd4
Ke2 I like it, get that bishop active.
17. Be3 e5
Good move.
18. Rad1 Rxd1
Hm while the game move isnt bad id probably just take the rook here with Bxd4. If I was looking for a reason not to take the rook id say that after Bxd4 exd4 the white knight might be misplaced since it cant go to d5 because c6 would fork the bishop and knight.
19. Rxd1 Be7
20. Rd5 b6
From here till the end looks mwaaammy and woo (great and good) 🙂
Wow... this is fast becoming an attractive feature here on RHP. And I like the way you comment on these games, Bedlam. It is like having an OTB post mortem, really. This time I'll really be following the game and comments. I'm sure I still have a lot to learn. My compliments for a job well done!
Recent games I didn't win. I'll be happy to be your student 🙂
Also I just registered on Playchess and I might even subscribe. It would be nice having an one on one session on MSN if you have it Bedlam.
Well my id there is "Naked Jammy Tart" so just come and prod me sometime, I totally love analysis so always welcome to run over games/openings/endings etc 🙂 Playchess is a real time chess server, you can chat on the analysis tables so its like having MSN on a chessboard.......makes the transfer of ideas much quicker 🙂
d6 is certainly playable here but its not a move I like, id much prefer getting the bishop out. The merits for d6 is that its solid, the down side is that it will cramp your position.
3. Bc4 Nf6
4. Nc3 g6
g6 is quite dodgy for the reasons seen in the game, better was Bg4 pinning the white knight to the queen. After that as black id follow up with Be7, Nc6 and 0-0. At least its soild if not much fun 🙂
5. Ng5 Bh6
Ng5 argh. Blacks in a bit of trouble now...I think the only way to get out of this in one piece is d5 sacrificing a pawn white has a few options here, we will look at the two captures probably best is 6. exd5 after which black plays h6 to kick the pesky g5 knight away after 7.Nf3 black could try e5 which looks good fun so white would probably play 7.Nge4 and as black id probably be thinking about Bg7 0-0 and then c6 depending on what white did. On move 6 white can play Bxd5, this doesnt look as good as exd5 for a few reasons, firstly the pawn cramped blacks position and secondly whites knight can take the bishop which he probably should. 6.Bxd5 Nxd5 with this the black queen opens up on the uncovered knight on g5. Looking at it I guess white has little choice but to take in the center with 7.Nxd5 here it looks like black has two choices c6 or taking the knight both look like they get some comlications. After 7..c6 8.Qf3 threatening mate on f2 so 8..f5 is the only move, then white can play the tricky 9.Qg3 cxd5 10.Qxe5+ Qe7 11.Qxh8 Qxg5...messy not sure whos better in this position but it looks fun. 7..Qxg5 taking the knight, also looks messy after 8.Nxc7+ Kd8 9.Nxa1 Qxg2 10.Rf1 Bh3....looking at the position I much prefer black here. Whites only defence is Qe2 protecting the rook on f2 then instead of just grabbing on f1 straight away black can try Nc6 threatening Nd4 which would just end white on the spot, always give your opponents the chance to go wrong 🙂 This is probably why its just so much wiser for white to take with the pawn on move 6
6. Nxf7 Bg4
Dont much like Bg4. Just Qe7 moving the queen out of the way of the knight seems much safer.
7. f3 d5
d5......black is daring white to take the queen......
8. Nxd8 Kxd8
And he/she does.......😲
9. Nxd5 Rf8
Instead of Rf8 the simple resign would have been ok 🙂 The game is lost beyond saving here so analysis of it wont help much.
Nothing wrong with Be7 but id put it on c5.....seems more aggressive
8. Bb5+ Bd7
9. Bc4 b5
Gosh! b5...kinky. White probably needs clean underwear, you're certainly not letting yourself get pushed around in this games.
10. Bd5 c6
11. Bb3 Qd6
Qd6 might be slightly inaccurate, Id much prefer continuing with development either 0-0 or Na6 aiming for Nc5. Moving the queen twice without gaining something isnt a good policy.
12. Nbd2 O-O
13. O-O Na6
14. Bc2 b4
b4 well its clear you've set out with a much more active approach in this game, trouble with b4 here is it allows Nc4 hitting the queen and the e5 pawn. After the queen moves the pawn will be toast.
15. Qe2 c5
16. Nc4 Qe6
After Nc4 the best move is Bb5 pinning the knight to whites queen so after Nxd6 Bxe2 looks pretty good for black.
17. Ncxe5 bxc3
bxc3 is a mistake....white can then play Bb3 hitting the queen. The trouble is that the black queen is tied down to the defence of the bishop on d7 after 18.Bb3 Qd6 19.Rd1 is just game over.
18. bxc3 Bf6
Maybe Be8 here, its not a nice move but keeps black alive.
19. Bb3 Qd6
20. Rad1 Bg4
Probably best moving the queen. The rest of the game is a downhill slope. I will point out that when you are behind in material you should avoid trading, since the simpler the game gets the easier it is for the winning side to win, keep the pieces on the board keep the game complex, keep them fighting. In this game you started off very well indeed, just seemed to lose it a little as the game went on.
Bedlam's Tutorial offered
13 Nov '06 19:58
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