Ugly, Ugly team4545 Game

So I've started playing in the ICC team4545 league, and I just played my first game, and I did not play it well. Here it is. It transposed into an Old Indian defense (which I know nothing about) and I was much worse right out of the opening. I played this game after spending two days at my best friend's wedding, and I had the worst hang over I've had in a year at least. I have to say, it didn't hurt my ability to calculate all that much, but it made me very impatient which definitely showed during the course of the game. Chess is not a physical game, but a deficiency in your physical condition can show up in so many ways in your play. I just didn't have the mindset to play slowly.

Caissapriest (1778)
GambitBandit (2118)
ICC 27.07.2008

1. d4 d6 2. c4

This was my first mistake. There are drawbacks to all white's responses now, and so 2. Nf3 is better, preventing e5. This is not a system I have ever taken seriously, but it scores very well for black in the database. Trading pawns and queens is optically appealing at first glance, but with the queens gone and both sides undeveloped black's loss of castling privileges just doesn't matter all that much.

...e5 3. e4
3. Nf3 e4 4. Ng5 Nf6 5. Nc3 Qe7 6. Qc2 Nc6 7. e3 Bf5 8. h4 h6 9. Nh3 g5 10. Nd5 Qd8 11. Bd2 Bg7 12. O-O-O Qd7 13. Be2 Nxd5 14. cxd5 Nxd4 15. exd4 e3 16. Bd3 Bxd3 17. Qxd3 exd2+ 18. Qxd2 O-O-O 19. hxg5 Qf5 20. Qc2 Qxd5 21. gxh6 Bxh6+ 22. Kb1 Qxg2 23. Qf5+ Kb8 24. Qxf7 Qe4+ 25. Ka1 Rdf8 26. Qd7 Rd8 27. Qb5 Bg7 28. Rhe1 Qf3 29. Ng5 Qxf2 30. Rf1 Qg2 31. Nf7 Rdf8 32. Nxh8 Rxh8 33. Rg1 Qf3 34. Rdf1 a6 35. Qg5 Bf8 36. Rh1
1-0 Lautier,J (2672)-Glek,I (2575)/Corsica 2005/EXT 2006

3... exd4 4. Qxd4 Nc6 5. Qd1


5. Qd2 g6 6. b3 Bg7 7. Bb2 Nf6 8. Nc3 is also an option


5... Nf6 6. Nc3 Be6
6... g6 this move right away is what I expected, and I think it gives white more trouble.

7. b3
7. Nf3 g6 8. h3 Bg7 9. Be3 O-O 10. Be2 Nd7 11. O-O Nb6 12 Nd5 Bxb2 13. Bg5 f6 14. Bh6 Marin is somewhat better in this position.

Bxa1 15. Bxf8 Kxf8 16. Qxa1 Kf7 17. Nd2 Nd7 18. f4 Ne7 19. Nf3 Bxd5 20. cxd5 c6 21. dxc6 bxc6 22. Bc4+ d5 23. Bb3 Nc5 24. e5 f5 25. Ng5+ Kg8 26. e6 Qb6 27. Kh2 Rf8 28. Nf7 Rxf7 29. exf7+ Kxf7 30. Qe5 Ne4 31. Bc2 Nd2 32. Re1 Nf3+

1/2-1/2 Sokolov,I (2630)-Marin,M (2525)/Debrecen 1992/EU-chT

7... g6 8. Bb2 Bg7

9. Bd3
9. Nf3 is a mistake, allowing Nxe4 10. Nxe4 Bxb2 with a huge advantage for black.

9. Qc2 came into consideration as well, but as I was way behind in development I wanted to get the kingside pieces out quickly. I didn't think I'd move the bishop to any place other than d3 anyway, though as it turns out Be2 might have been better in some lines ...O-O 10. O-O-O Nb4 11. Qe2

is all right for black, though it is a little more combative and might have been better.

9... O-O 10. Nge2
10. Nf3 is probably a better move, but I rejected it because I was planning to gain space with f3 or f4 (depending on the situation), and I felt that developing the knight here would
hinder those plans uneccesarily. ...Ng4 11. Qd2 Nce5 12. Nxe5 Bh6 13. Qc2 Nxe5
is about equal


10... Ne5
10... Ng4 is better for him 11. O-O Qh4 12. h3 Nge5 sees all black's pieces very active and white reduced to a slow unwinding

11. Bc2
11. f4 Nxd3+ 12. Qxd3 Nd7 came into consideration, but I wanted to
retain the bishop in connection with playing f5.

11... c6?!
This is slow, and d5 will be hard to play in any case. 11... Nfd7 12. h4 Ng4 13. Qd2 h5 14. Nf4 Bh6 15. O-O-O is pretty much equal

12. O-O after screwing up the opening badly, I've managed to equalize.

...g5?! I assume he was trying to prevent f4, and in fact I shouldn't have played it.


13. f4?? a very bad move. This was me lashing out, because I had grown very tired of my cramped position and awkward piece placement. A little more patience and I might have had real winning chances.13. Qd2 was the other thing I thought of and would have been an improvement. ...Ne8 14.Rad1 Ng6 15. Na4 Bxb2 16. Nxb2 sees white with a slight edge according to Fritz 10


13... Neg4
13... gxf4 14. Nxf4 Nfg4 15. Qd2 Qb6+ 16. Kh1 is similar to the game continuation

14. Qc1
14. e5 is the only move ...dxe5 15. Qxd8 Rfxd8 16. fxe5 Nh5 leaves black better, but white is not in as much trouble as in the game.

14... Qb6+!
I had totally missed this move when I played f4.


15. Kh1 Nf2+ 16. Rxf2 Qxf2 17. f5 Bd7 18. Qxg5 Kh8 19. Bd3?

This is very bad. 19. Rd1 Rg8 20. Qf4 Qxf4 21. Nxf4 Ne8 22. Na4 and black is not a whole lot better, though white has no winning chances against strong play.

19... Rg8 20. Rb1
Now the bishop and rook aren't hanging, but he plays an accurate move and any swindling chances I have vanish. 20. Nd1 Nxe4 21. Bxg7+ (21. Qxg7+ Rxg7 22. Bxg7+ Kxg7 23. Nxf2 Nxf2+ 24. Kg1 Nxd3 is even worse) 21... Rxg7 22. Nxf2 Nxf2+ 23. Kg1 Nh3+ is brutal for white

20... h6 21. Qd2 Ng4 22. Nd1 Qh4 23.h3 Ne5 24. Ne3 Bf6 Fritz gives him about a two pawn advantage, and I agree with it.

25. Bxe5 Bxe5 26. Ng4?? This was simply an oversight played quickly in frustration, though
I was cooked in any case.

Rxg4
Not a good game from me at all. I got confused in an unfamiliar opening and ended up in a position reminicent of a Maroczy bind, an opening I play very poorly. Hopefully my next 4545 league game will be better. 0-1