1986-02-15 - Easton, Alex 0-1 Mordue, Tyson
A King's Indian, Simagin Variation, featuring 9 g3 to prevent ...Nf4. In a break that reprises Bennett-Mordue above Tyson breaks on the Queenside to create the chance to take that g3 Pawn. The result is a huge Knight outpost on f4 with attacking chances and White quickly cracks.
[Event "BRISTOL LEAGUE CONGRESS"] [Site "?"] [Date "1986.02.15"] [Round "2"] [White "Easton, Alex"] [Black "Mordue, Tyson"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "E91"] [Annotator "Mordue,Tyson"] [PlyCount "70"] {Original notes by myself with some comments by Graham Burgess in BCT issue 56, April 1986.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 O-O 6. Nf3 Bg4 7. Be3 e5 8. d5 {"A recent [1985] league game Beaumont-Mordue went 8 0-0 Nc6? (8.. .Nfd7 transposes to normal lines; 8...exd4 9 Nxd4 Bxe2 10 Qxe2 Nc6 11 Rad1 is given by Krnic and Cvetkovic: slight advantage to White in either case. *... Nh5 is interesting but untried as far as I know.) 9 d5 Ne7 10 c5 and White had a crushing position." GKB. The line given by Krnic and Cvetkovic was actually played in the game Rabar-Poschauko, Helsinki Olympiad 1952. After 11.. .Qe7 12 f3 Rac8 13 Qf2 Qe5? White found the strong 14 c5! d5 15 Bd4 Qh4 16 exd5 and won a Pawn. 1-0 in 49 moves. The line from Beaumont-Mordue which went 8 0-0 Nc6 9 d5 Ne7 10 c5 featured 17 times on the database and, according to the stats, 10...Ne8 was the only decent frequent rejoinder, scoring 50% over six games.} Nh5 {"8...c5 9 Nd2 Bxe2 10 Qxe2 Nh5 11 g3 Na6 12 a3 Nc7 13 b4 Nf4 14 Qf1 b6 15 Nb3 Nh5 16 Qe2 gave White a small advantage in Suetin-Kremenietsky, Moscow Championship 1982. Tyson's move aims for immediate Kingside action." GKB. Suetin-Kremenietsky was drawn in 52 rather turgid moves.} 9. g3 {"The idea of Black's opening system is to post a Knight on f4 and secure it with ...g6-g5. He can also attempt to post the other Knight on c5 and play...a7-a5 to hold up b2-b4 by White. A game Beaumont-Mordue (again!), Bristol League 1985 continued 9 h3 Bd7 10 0-0 Nf4 11 Bxf4 exf4 12 Rc1 a5 13 Ne1 Na6 14 a3? Re8 15 Nd4 Nc5. White's position was already awful and Black now won a Pawn and the game in 36 moves. Easton's move is a radical attempt to stop Black's plan before it starts, but it does leave light-square weaknesses and in certain positions ...Nf4 is a useful tactical device." GKB. The latter point about the ...Nf4 tactic has already featured in Suetin-Kremenietsky in an earlier note.} Qe7 {"If 9...Nd7 then 10 h3 gains the two Bishops under favourable conditions. It is important to note that because White has not yet castled he still has the option of h2-h3. A correspondence game Hueber-Mordue 1985 had gone 7 0-0 e5 8 d5 Nh5 9 g3!? Nd7 10 Be3 Qe7 11 Ng5!? Bxe2 12 Qxe2 a5 13 b3? Nf4! 14 gxf4 exf4 15 Bxf4 Bxc3 and Black had the advantage." GKB & TM. The only game on the database featuring 9 g3 was Henley-Taulbut, Student's Olympiad, Mexico 1982 which continued 9...a5 10 h3 Bd7 11 Nd2 Nf6 12 g4 with a nice position for White, 1-0 in 32 moves. Yes, the Henley here is future Grandmaster Roy W whom I defeated at Cardiff in January 1983.} 10. Nd2 {"10 h3 seems much better as Black will lose time: 10...Bd7 11 Nh2 (or 11 Nd2) 11...Nf6 12 h4 and White has the choice between play with c4-c5 on the Queenside and playing for mate on the Kingside." GKB.} Bxe2 11. Qxe2 Nd7 12. O-O a6 {"Black wants to play ...f7-f5 and recapture e4xf5 with ... g6xf5, but he cannot do so while the Knight on h5 is attacked by the Queen on e2. Black intends to defend the Knight from long range with ...Qe8 but the immediate attempt 12...Qe8 is met by 13 Nb5 so Black takes time out to prevent Nb5. It is possible to prepare ...b7-b5 at a later date."} 13. Rac1 { "Preparing the traditional Queenside Pawn push. Not immediately 13 b4? Nf4 etc. It is typical of Alex's style to avoid giving his opponents any tactical opportunity." GKB & TM. Deep Rybka calls it a draw after 13 b4 Nf4 14 Qd1 Nh3+ 15 Kg2 Nf4+ 16 Kg1 Nh3+. It also prefers 13 Rae1 but that doesn't help White get started on the Queenside.} Qe8 14. f3 {"Now White is preparing to meet 14...f5 15 Bf2 f4 with 16 g4. A more radical alternative is 14 f4 but after 14...exf4 15 gxf4 f5 Black has a good game and White's Rac1 is irrelevant." Deep Rybka really doesn't like this line giving Black a plus between 0.84 and 1. Of course White has fractured his Pawn structure here and the f4 is a static target.} f5 15. Bf2 Bh6 $1 {"Played instantly. There is no reason not to occupy the c1-h6 diagonal. It always pays to unpin as soon as possible and White should now do this with 16 Rc2." For some reason Deep Rybka considered 15...Bh8 here. To repeat a quote I made about a similar occurrence: "I thought computers had grown out of this sort of thing!"} 16. b4 {The alternative 16 Rae1 is also possible but Alex was determined to execute his plan of Queenside play.} Ndf6 17. c5 fxe4 18. fxe4 {"If 18.Ncxe4 Nxe4 19. fxe4 Qa4! is awkward for White."} Qd7 19. Be3 {"White tries to break the pin and simplify but he loses time and weakens more squares. The best way to stop . ..Qh3 followed by ...Ng4 was 19 Kg2 when the strong-looking 19...Qg4 can be answered by 20 Qxg4 Nxg4 21 Rad1 (not 21 Rc2 Rxf2+ 22 Rxf2 Ne3+ winning a piece) when White appears to be surviving. Black can instead try 19...Nf4+!? 20 gxf4 Nh5 when the option of taking on f4 in four different ways gives Black lots of play e.g. 21 Bg3 exf4 22 Bh4 f3+ 23 Rxf3 Rxf3 24 Kxf3 Rf8+ 25 Kg2 Nf4+. " In the first line Deep Rybka says that Black is better by about 0.36 after 21...Nf6. However, the second line, inspired by Tal's ...Nf4 sacrifice in his 6th match-game with Botvinnik in 1960, is probably not that good. The engine first gives the simple 21 Kh1, and after 21 Bg3 exf4 it suggests 22 c6 bxc6 23 dxc6 Qxc6 24 Nd5 with an advantage to White. Worth exploring though.} Bxe3+ 20. Qxe3 Qh3 21. Qe2 {"The only defence to 21...Qxh2+ and 22...Ng4+. Now Black takes the opportunity to open the game on a new front." There is the alternative 21 Rf3 to which I'm pleased to see the engine recommends the same reply as in the game.} a5 22. a3 {The engine suggests 22 bxa5 but not many players would be happy splintering their Pawns in this way.} axb4 23. axb4 Ra3 24. cxd6 cxd6 25. Nc4 $2 {"The Rook invasion on a3 recalls my game from last year's League Congress against another Horfield player, John Bennett, when the move 25...a3! weakened a whole complex of squares right across the board to g3. In this game the job is done more directly. White should have played 25 N2b1 when 25...Rb3 keeps up the pressure." 25 N2b1 is okay although after 25... Rb3 Deep Rybka takes a while to decide that 26 b5 is the move. It still declares a small advantage for White but after 26...Rc8 I'm inclined to disagree. The engine has slight preferences for 25 Qg2 and 25 Rf3.} Nxg3 $1 26. Qf3 {"Obviously 26 hxg3 Qxg3+ and 27...Rxc3."} Ne2+ $5 {"Occupying the very square White has just vacated! A rare but usually devastating occurrence. " For another good example of this motif see the game Binks-Garrett, Downend & Fishponds Club Championship 1984. However, I was playing out a calculated line with the intention of getting the dominating square f4 for my other Knight and I missed, as did all the other commentators, the alternative 26... Rxc3! 27.Rxc3 (if 27 Qxc3 Ne2+ wins the Queen) 27...Qxf1+! 28.Qxf1 Nxf1 29.Rc1 (if 29 Kxf1 Nxe4+ nets a Rook) 29...b5 which wins a piece! Yet again credit to Deep Rybka.} 27. Qxe2 Rxc3 28. Nxd6 {Deep Rybka prefers 28 Rxc3 Qxc3 29 Nxd6 but after 29...Qd4+ 30 Kg2 Qxb4 Black is a Pawn up with a lovely position. In the game White doesn't lose material but Black gets his Knight to f4 without swapping the other pair of Rooks and evaluates this as +2 to Black, which is what I judged this position to be. A wide-open White King, an extra piece in the attack and Alex in bad time-trouble to boot, not to mention still suffering from the shock of 25...Nxg3!} Rxc1 29. Rxc1 Nh5 {"Not 29...Ng4 30 Rc8! Rxc8 31 Nxc8 Nxh2 32 Qxh2 Qxc8 33 Qxe5 with a draw. The main result of the combination has been the elimination of White's g3 Pawn which leaves his King exposed and allows Black use of f4. One threat is ...Rf8-f4-g4+." Partly a reiteration of the previous note but adding a couple of extra practical observations. In the given line Black keeps a small plus with 31... Nf6 instead of 31...Nxh2, and the Queen ending may be drawn but White stands better.} 30. Rf1 Nf4 {The more Deep Rybka looks the less it likes White's position, the evaluation rising to nearly +4 for Black. In fact Alex cracks immediately.} 31. Qf3 $4 {"White was in bad time-trouble and overlooked Black's next which would also have been strong against the best move of 31 Qd2. " Indeed 31 Qd2 Qd7 also wins the Knight because 32 Nc4 Nh3+ 33 Kg2 Qg4+ 34 Kh1 Rxf1 is mate.} Qd7 $1 {Attacking moves that are retreats are always difficult to see.} 32. Nc4 Nh3+ 33. Kh1 Rxf3 34. Rxf3 Qg4 35. Nxe5 {If 33 Rg3 Qxe4+ is mate in two moves.} Qg1# 0-1
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