Wallace-Hodgson Match.

Otago Witness, Issue 2205, 4 June 1896, Page 40

Wallace-Hodgson Match.

Eighth ctame—(a) :— Rut Lopez. White. BUck. White. Black. (Hodgson.) (Wallace.) (Hodgson.) (Wallace.) IP-K4 P-K4 17 R-K3 R-Kt4 2 Kt-K B 3 Kt-Q B 3 18 P-Kt 4 R-Kt 4ch 3 B-Kt 5 Kt-B 36 19 K-R 1 Q-K B 5 4 0-0 Xt x P 20 R-K Xt 1 R-K R 4 6 P-Q 4 B-K 2 21 R-Kt 3 Q-R 3 6PxP P-Q 4-o 22 PR 3 B-R5(!) 7Px Pen 23 R-Kt 4 Bx P pass KtxQP 24Kt-Ql RxPch 8 BxKtchPxß-d 25 K-Kt2 R-R7ch 9 Kt-B3 0-0 26 KB 1 Q-R6 eh 10 P-Q Xt 3 B-Kts 27K-K2 Bxßch 11 f-Kt 2 R-Kt 1 28 Xx B R-K Ich 12 P-Q R 3-c B-B 3 29 X- B 4 Q-R 3 eh 13 R-K 1 Kt-B 5-/ 30 K-Kt 3 fi- Ra eh 14 Q-B1 (?) Xt x B 31 K-Kt 2 R-K 7ch 15 Qx Xt BxKKt 32 K-B I R(R6)-R7 16PxB Q-Q5 33 R-Kt3 RxP And Mr Hodgson resigned. (a) Thi.s appears to be one of the best games in the uiahi'h. (6) Mr JL.-0... ,; .nsiders this hardly &o kool is J p-q r 3, but LAsker c-onsidera it beat. (c) Thia leads to Black'a pawn B getting badly *oubled and nolated. 6 ktq b 4 seem* preferable W) Surely White ought now to win. («) Eailins to see thit Black could play IS kt-b 5. 12 Xt- vß4,t0 be followed by Q-Q 4if possible, seems best White should take every favourable chance of exchanging so a 9 to obtain the advantage of Black s weakness through doubl d and isolated pawns. It is evident that this is the point where White went wrong. (/) A happy thought which wins the game. But-Whit* would, probably have done ratkar

better by taking the kt than fey trying to rapport his own— for instance, 14 P x Xt, rxb ;16 Kt-K 4, and he would not be much wotae off than Black.

Ample time was taken, but strain of excitement is fatal to good play. It is not doing either player justice to accept those games as the best that they can do, and to say that it establishes Mr Wallace's position as the best player in the British colonies is ridiculous. Mr Wallace himself has never made any such claim, and can hardly be grateful for the enthusiasm of admirers who have ventured to make it for him. He may be the strongest player in the British colonies, but although he deserves credit for having won three matches against formidable opponents, the vast extent of the British colonies is not unlikely to have among its cbessists players who are quite his equals. Respecting the games in this as well as the other matches, it may be safely said that they are deficient in strong combinations and sound original conceptions. They are more of the character of outpo3t skirmishes than regular battles. The gain of a doubled pawn, as in tha present instance, is preferred to the development of force for a winning attack, and attempts to gain an advantage by inadequate resources are ofteH conspicuous. Such an oversight as that made by Mr Wallace whon he failed to see a onemove combination by which winning was assured can only be attributed to the strain of intense excitement.