[Event "Cambridgeshire v Bedfordshire"]
[Site "Newmarket"]
[Date "2023.12.03"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Hudson, Julian"]
[Black "Waller, Dan"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "A07"]
[WhiteElo "2065"]
[BlackElo "2098"]
[Annotator "Annotator, Julian Hudson"]
[PlyCount "103"]
[EventType "team"]
[SourceVersionDate "2022.04.18"]
[WhiteTeam "Bedfordshire"]
[BlackTeam "Cambridgeshire"]
1. Nf3 ({Many books treat} 1. e4 {as White's main opening move in the King's Indian Attack (KIA). There's a lot to be said for it but} d5 {spoils all the fun.}) 1... d5 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 Bg4 4. d3 e6 5. O-O Be7 6. Nbd2 O-O 7. h3 $11 {[Stockfish recommends this move. White generally puts the question to the Bishop. The battle has not yet begun. Both sides set out their forces in anticipation.]} Bh5 ({Waller chooses the best option.} 7... Bf5 {would be a mistake:} 8. e4 dxe4 9. Nh4 h6 10. Nxf5 exf5 11. dxe4 fxe4 12. Nxe4 Nxe4 13. Bxe4 Qxd1 14. Rxd1 c6 15. Bf3 Rd8 16. Rxd8+ Bxd8 17. Be3 Bb6 18. Rd1 Na6 19. Be2 Nc5 20. Bc4 Rf8 21. b4 Na4 22. Bb3 Bxe3 23. fxe3 Nb6 24. a4 Rc8 25. c4 g6 26. a5 $16 {0.64 Depth=36/53}) 8. c3 {[According to Stockfish this move is far from 'best' but there is so little in it, that it shows how 'easy' it can be set up one's army in the KIA. There are supposedly eight better moves than this. More than anything, I was thinking of opening a route to the Queen's side for my Queen.]} c5 ({This move, in this sort of position, where Black has developed the Queen's Bishop outside his pawn chain isn't metioned in any book I've come across.} 8... c6 {is standard, setting up fortifications on the light squares. However, since White has played an innocuous eighth move, Waller played what Stockfish tells us is the strongest move in this specific position. In the KIA, Black also has a relatively free rein.}) 9. Re1 Nc6 {[Black now has the upper hand, according to Stockfish. I felt that Black should be the one to instigate the conflict, so I wanted a quiet move that wouldn’t.]} 10. Qc2 ({I really didn't like this move.} 10. Qa4 {or}) (10. a4 {may have been a better way to 'wait' in preparation to 'react'. I think this strategy was 'over-cooked'.}) 10... e5 11. e4 {[ And so may the battle commence.]} Bxf3 ({This Bishop should aim for g6 to line itself up with my Queen on c2, and put pressure on e4. I’m not sure, but I think Waller may have had the idea that my King's Bishop would end up being a rather bad Bishop, what with how the centre locks itself up shortly. In our post game breakdown Waller indicated that he was a little worried of a g4 push that could propel a pawn storm towards black’s King's side.} 11... d4 {straight away would hold black’s slight advantage.}) 12. Nxf3 {[ I couldn’t be sure of the best way to recapture.]} d4 ({Best. I was imagining and calculating something like} 12... c4 {and perhaps} 13. Nd2 {would be better positioned against that, but I didn’t see any advantage that Black could get there. My Knight now pressures e5 and opens the diagonal for the Bishop on c1. These two pieces will now work together to fight for the dark squares initially. As it turns out, Stockfish informs me that 12...c4 is an awful move. Other moves are not very good either.}) 13. c4 {[I decided to lock the centre and look to advance on the King's side. Actually any move here for White is sufficient to keep the recently acquired edge over Black. This particular pawn formation is a Type III King's Indian Defence reversed central pawn lock. Black gets the space advantage, but in this instance White has sufficient space and a coordinated route through to the King's side.]} Ne8 {[This move surprised me, and indeed Stockfish doesn’t think too much of it. I imagined that perhaps Black was looking to push his f-pawn.]} 14. Qe2 ({Stockfish initially indicated that} 14. h4 {right away would have been more to the point. However, with greater depth many moves fit the bill.}) 14... a6 15. h4 {[As Black looks to gain on the Queen's side White expands on the King's side.]} b5 16. b3 Nd6 {[The Knight is quite centralised here and could help support an f5 push, bit looks too slow.]} 17. Bh3 $1 {[For some reason this was my favourite move of the game. Now that the Black Queen's Bishop has left the field my King's Bishop cuts a path right into the heart of Black’s position, unopposed.]} bxc4 18. bxc4 Rb8 19. Kg2 {[Clearing the rank for a possible Rook transfer.]} Rb7 {[After the game, Walker wasn't too sure about this move, but Stockfish recommends it.]} 20. h5 Qa5 {[Nor this either. The Black Queen begins to yo-yo as we shall see.]} 21. h6 {[This is the point behind my own thoughts.]} g6 {[This wedge leads me to think I could exploit Black’s back rank at some point.]} 22. Bg5 {[Swapping dark-squared Bishops would weaken Black’s King’s position.]} Qc7 {[Bouncing back.]} 23. Rab1 Rfb8 24. Qc2 {[My Queen also joins the dance. It will support the contestation of the open b-file.]} Bxg5 {[There it goes.]} 25. Nxg5 Qa5 {[Hello again.]} 26. Rxb7 Rxb7 27. Rb1 Nb4 {[A move I should have considered in more depth. It so happens that this begins the real skirmish. Will White just lose a-Pawn?]} 28. Qd1 {[Here the White Queen eyes a transfer over to the King's side where many tactical possibilities lie in the fog over there.]} Qd8 {[And so the black Queen finally returns to her throne to help her King.]} 29. Nf3 Nxa2 {[The a-pawn gets taken out of proceedings.]} 30. Rxb7 {[Eliminating another back-rank defender.]} Nxb7 {[I thought these Knights' were a little isolated. A cavalry that would take too long to return and save the day.]} 31. Qa4 ({I could have taken the juicy Pawn} 31. Nxe5 {but I had a compulsion to get in ‘behind’ enemy lines and followed it. The Knight is threatened, so no hurry recouping the material.}) 31... Nb4 {[Here the Knight defends a6 and between them the Knights' cover many inroads into Black’s position.]} 32. Nxe5 {[A good Pawn to win and the Knight is so active here.]} Qe7 {[She wants to chase away that pesky Knight.]} 33. f4 f6 34. Nf3 {[The Knight has been made to retreat but there is air into the King’s chamber.]} Kf8 {[The King hopes to find comfort in the Queen’s shadow. Time is starting to run short for both players.]} 35. Ne1 $6 {[Played far too quickly. I had about 4 minutes on my clock and panicked a little. I should have blunder checked.]} Nxd3 $6 36. Nxd3 Qxe4+ {[The first check of the game. Black has a hope that a couple of pawns will make a nice meal. Perhaps it may turn out to be poisoned.]} 37. Kh2 Qxd3 38. Qd7 {[The compulsion is now turned into reality. I saw that my King would survive a lone Queen attack.]} Qe2+ 39. Bg2 Qh5+ 40. Bh3 {[The King’s Bishop defends robustly.]} Qe2+ {[With just a minute or two left on the clock Waller feels, with a little luck, the game may end in a draw.]} 41. Bg2 Qh5+ 42. Kg1 Qd1+ {[Here I had to think. Will I allow an easy end to the time scramble now? I had a couple of extra minutes over Waller and cleared my mind. I decided that I had been patient with my Queen and now that She had arrived in the vicinity of Black’s King's position She deserved some action, so I made the decision to play on. I couldn’t calculate very much specifically but I knew that I could end the checks on the next move which would give me time to pick up the h7-Pawn and g6-Pawn whereupon I would defend my g-Pawn. Then we would have to reassess I guessed.]} 43. Bf1 {[Shutting the door.]} Qf3 44. Qg7+ {[Here’s hoping. My first check of the game. As it turns out my Queen will pick up a couple of pawns in return and then some.]} Ke8 45. Qh8+ Ke7 46. Qxh7+ {[Freeing my ‘wedge’. Can Harry be the difference at the death?]} Kd6 47. Qxg6 {[I win the pawn, protect my g-Pawn and cover possible checking squares.]} Qe3+ 48. Kh2 Nd8 {[The cavalry.]} 49. Qxf6+ Ne6 {[Too late.]} 50. Qe5+ {[Swaps the queen’s off and leaves Harry a clear run to elect a new Queen.]} Qxe5 51. fxe5+ Kxe5 52. h7 {[And the Knight isn’t coordinated to prevent a coronation. After the final skirmish it felt satisfying to play such an innocuous deciding move. Black resigned.]} 1-0