1984-11-25 - Butt, C 0-1 Mordue, Tyson
The third of three Queen sacrifice games in Issue 8. In a game of Queenside pressure versus Kingside attack Tyson is already well-placed when he is allowed an immediate win. His only previous Queen sac had been declined (!) but this one led straight to mate.
[Event "TORQUAY OPEN"] [Site "?"] [Date "1984.11.25"] [Round "?"] [White "Butt, C"] [Black "Mordue, Tyson"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A15"] [Annotator "Mordue,Tyson"] [PlyCount "72"] {The third of three Queen sacs in Issue 8. CJ Butt was a promising junior and a contemporary of IM Gary Lane at Torbay League club Paignton Palace.} 1. b3 e5 2. Bb2 d6 3. e3 Nf6 4. Nf3 g6 5. Be2 Bg7 6. O-O O-O 7. c4 Re8 8. d4 e4 9. Nfd2 Qe7 10. Nc3 h5 {"All this is standard [and can be played in many different move orders]. Black not only prepares a Kingside attack but 10...h5 prepares .. .Bc8-f5 with out meeting an inconvenient g2-g4."} 11. Rc1 Bf5 {"Also possible is 11...Bg4." True but f5 is the usual square in this set-up which can also be played by White against the French or Sicilian Defences. Then it would be labeled a King's Indian Attack so in this game the opening was given as a King's Indian Attack Reversed.} 12. b4 Nbd7 {All seemingly standard so far except in my database the moves Ra1-c1 and ...Qd8-e7 seem to have been omitted. As later the Rook goes to b1 and the Queen to c7 perhaps we could regard them both as small mistakes or errors of timing. However, I've definitely had this position more than once so I'm not going to criticise either side.} 13. c5 Nf8 {Yet again a standard move for the system but Deep Rybka suggests instead 13... d5.} 14. Nc4 $5 {Deep Rybka prefers 14 Qb3 or 14 cxd6 cxd6 15 Qb3. If White is going to put a Rook on c1 then surely it is consistent to open this file as soon as possible. I don't disagree with this move, but I definitely do with the next one!} d5 15. Nd2 $2 {"An inept move losing two tempi. 15 Ne5 should have been played and 15 Na5 was also playable." Little to add except that 15 Ne5 c5 followed by ...N8f7 leads to a loss of tempi on both sides but the swap of Knights on d7 probably helps Black more than it does White. Perhaps one should say that in a closed position like this the loss of two tempi shouldn't mean much but I certainly felt encouraged!} c6 {Not completely necessary, although Deep Rybka has it as its second suggestion, but I find myself concerned by a possible c5-c6 by White in these sorts of positions. Here it's definitely no good because of ...Qe7xb4, but I feel happier having ruled out the move c5-c6 and given d5 solid protection.} 16. b5 N8h7 17. bxc6 bxc6 18. Qa4 Qc7 19. Nb3 {On the way to a5 where it could have already been standing! Deep Rybka's suggestions are 19 h3 but this is just an invitation for Black to sacrifice on h3, and 19 Rfd1 which as a Rook move seems pointless but it does allow Bf1 and Bg2 if White is forced to play g2-g3. Obviously the Pawn on g3 would be a target for h5-h4xg3 but it's not as bad as h2-h3.} Ng4 20. Bxg4 { "White tries hard to avoid any weakening moves on the Kingside." After 20 g3 Ng5 the light squares do look tempting to Black pieces. Deep Rybka agrees with Butt's choice but the absence of the light-squared Bishop comes back to haunt White.} hxg4 {"Now Black has options down the h-file."} 21. Ne2 Ng5 22. Na5 Bd7 {An interesting moment for both sides. Deep Rybka wants to put White pieces other than the Queen on a5. A move ago it suggested 21 Qa5 to which I would have replied 21...Qe7 looking forward to an incursion on the Kingside after ... Nf3+. This move it suggested 22 Bc3 with Ba5 in mind but I can't say that's particularly frightening either. Where's the Knight on b3 going now? Black's last move seems passive although the defence of c6 is clearly important. However, I'm about to come up with a subtle idea on the Queenside that will have a huge impact on White's Kingside. Watch that space!} 23. Bc3 Re6 {"Black prepares to put his Bishop on the more effective a6-f1 diagonal." The d7 square was just a stop on the route to a6 but it certainly looked like a passive move! Now it is possible for White to try to stop the Bishop getting to a6 but that will involve Na5-b3. How many tempi do you want to lose with a single piece? By the same token Black is losing tempi as well, but the Black rook on a8 can be shifted across before ...Bd7-c8-a6 so the Kingside build-up can continue unabated, and what is White doing?} 24. Rb1 Bc8 25. Nf4 Rf6 {An unwieldly-looking square but White now has to be concerned about ...Rxf4 sacrifices amongst other things. Anyway I had no alternative because c6 needed defending.} 26. Rb2 Bh6 27. g3 $2 {"White is worried about the threat of ... Ng5-f3+ followed by ...Bxf4 and the transfer of the Queen to threaten mate on g2. However, Black is not yet in a position to execute this idea, although there is little that White can do to prevent it in the long run." Up to this point Deep Rybka had said that the game was roughly equal. After the text the pendulum definitely swings in Black's favour. The defender should not make weakening Pawn moves in front of their King unless absolutely necessary. That time had not yet come. Instead of compromising the light squares even more the engine suggests 27 Rfb1 (and also 27 Ra1 for some obscure reason!) followed by 28 Qd1 to add influence to the light squares in the absence of the appropriate Bishop. White might even get some counterplay with Rb8 although the potential pin on the c8 Bishop is easily negated by ...Kg8-g7, a move that is on Black's mind anyway because he wants to switch the a8 Rook to the open h-file.} Nf3+ 28. Kg2 Bxf4 {Liquidating a major defensive unit and clearing the h-file. This does leave opposite-coloured Bishops on the board but in the middle-game this factor favours the attacker.} 29. exf4 Ba6 {Taking control of f1 and ensuring the White King doesn't run away. According to Deep Rybka Black's plus is now at over 1.7 and even if White left the f1 Rook en prise there's a case not not taking it because the Bishop is a much stronger piece. In fact it's probably more useful than most of the White army!} 30. Rh1 Kg7 {"With no escape route to the f-file Black threatens to finish off the White King by coming down the h-file. White tries to counter this by controlling the h-file himself." With this looming threat Deep Rybka improves its evaluation for Black to over 2.5. It's already reduced to playing 31 Nxc6 giving away a piece to stop the Black Queen running over to the Kingside. That's probably because it had already seen the finish to the game, which Butt certainly hadn't, and was desperate.} 31. h4 gxh3+ 32. Rxh3 Qd7 33. Rb1 $2 {Completely oblivious to the threat. Butt had to play 33 Rh1 after which I suggested 33...Qg4 winning the f4 Pawn. Deep Rybka points out that the immediate 33...Rxf4 is quite playable while 33...Rh8 is an alternative. The combination of both moves is enough to win the game after 33.Rh1 Rh8 34.Rbb1 Rxf4 35.Rxh8 Kxh8 36.Rh1+ Rh4! 37.Rxh4+ Nxh4+ 38.gxh4 Qg4+ followed 39...Bf1 and 40...Qg2 mate. I hadn't yet seen that particular line although I knew there were possibilities of getting the Bishop to f3 via e2, but my main hope was that my opponent simply hadn't seen the immediate threat.} Qxh3+ $3 {"Simple but attractive nevertheless." This was the first Queen sacrifice I'd played that couldn't be refused. Two years earlier I'd had a poor position in a Bristol League game where I offered my Queen for unclear compensation by simply leaving it en prise when it was attacked. My confused opponent thought for fifteen minutes, got short of time, declined the sac and got routed. The text is much simpler, can only be refused by resigning, and leads straight to mate.} 34. Kxh3 Rh8+ 35. Kg4 Bc8+ {"Missing 35...Nh2+ 36 Kg5 Rh5 [or f5!] mate but it seems correct that Black's so-called bad Bishop delivers the mate after its other hard work."} 36. f5 g5 $1 {"After five minutes of looking at the position White resigned."} 0-1
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