CHESS.

Otago Witness, Issue 3832, 23 August 1927, Page 61

CHESS.

Conducted by

F. W. CLAYTON.

Solutions of problems, games, and analyse* litWiled for this column. Al) correspondence should tee addressed to the Chess Editor, Otago Witness Otic., Dunedin.

PROBLEM No. 86. By J. C. J. Wainwright. Black (Nine Pieces).

White (Seven Pieces). White to play and mate in two moves. IKtslqlp2p2 | 1 p 6 5 k Kt K | 3B4|blQ3PP|p4kt2|B. White to play and mate in two moves.

PROBLEM No. 87. By M. MOSCHINI. Black (Ten Pieces).

White (Thirteen Pieces). White to play and mate in two moves. |2P2Kt2|lkt p Kt p 3 | R 1 b kp3|bplkt4|lP2KPpl| QIPIP3|B2R3B.

SOLUTIONS OF PROBLEMS. No. 82.—K to Q B 5. No. 83.—R to' Q 2. Correct solutions of problems Nos. 82 and 83 received from Mr Le Petit, of Invercargill. Mr James Dewar, of North-East Valley, is successful in solving No. 81, but not so with No. 80, his try being defeated by B to Kt's 2. GAMES.

English Opening. White, Niemzowitsch ; Black, Alechin. 1. P to Q B 4 P to K 4 2. Kt to Q B 3 Kt to Q B 3 3. P to K Kt 3 B to B 4 4. B to Kt 2 P to Q 3 5. P to K 3 K Kt to K 2 ' 6. P to Q R 3 P to Q R 4 7. K Kt to K 2 Castles ■ «. P to Q 4 B to Kt 3 9. Castles B to Q 2 10. P to Kt 3 (a) Q to B sq 11. B to Kt 2 B to R 6 12. Q to Q 3 B takes B 13. K takes B (b) P takes P 14. P takes P Q to B 4 (c) 15. Q R to Q sq Q R to K sq 16. R to Q 2 Q to K Kt 4 17. K R to Q sq B to R 2 18. Kt to B 4 Kt to B 4 19. Kt to Kt 5 B to Kt sq 20. Kt to Q 5 R to K 3 21. B to B sq (n) Q to Kt 5 22. Kt to B 4 Kt to R 5, ch 23. K to R sq Kt to B 6 24. Kt takes R P takes Kt 25. R to Kt sq (E) R to B 4 26. R to K Kt 2 Kt takes R 27. B takes Kt R to B G 28. B to K 3 Kt to K 2 29. Kt to B 3 Kt to B 4 30. R to Kt sq Kt takes B 31. P takes Kt R to B 7 32. Q to K 4 (F) Q takes Q, ch 33. Kt takes Q R to K 7 (G) 34. Kt to Kt 5 R takes P 35. K to Kt 2 B to R 2 36. R to Q sq P to R 3 37. K to B 2 R to K 4 38. Kt to B 3 R to K 5 39. R to K sq Ch), B takes P, ch 40. Kt takes B R takes Kt 41. R takes P R to Q 7, ch 42. K to K sq (i) R takes P 43. R to K 7 R to Q Kt 7 44. R takes P R takes P 45. K to B 2 R takes R P 46. R takes P R to B 6 47. R to R 7 R takes B P 48. R takes P R to B 2 49. R to R 6 R to Q 2 ' and Black won (j)

(a) Black's last move was, obviously, with ♦he intention of playing 10... Q to B sq, followed by 11...8 to R 6. In anticipation of this, White should now have played 10. P to R 3, followed if 10... Q to B sq, by 11. K to R 2. (B) White's position has been much weakened by the exchange of his King's Bishop. He is now left with two weak points (K B 3 and K R 3), of which, as will be seen, his opponent takes masterly advantage. (c) A strong move, for if White exchanges Queens, he will have trouble in maintaining his pawn at Q 4, where it restricts the action of the hostile Knight and Bishop. (d) White declines to lose time by capturing the Bishop's pawn. If 21. Kt (Kt 5) takes B P, then 21. . .R to R 3, threatening 22... Q to Kt 5, with a dangerous attack. (E) White had no time to move his threatened Rook because of 25... Q to R 6, to which his only reply would have been 26. Q takes Kt. (f) The only move, as Black was threatening to win at once by 32. . .Q to B 6, ch, or 32. . . Q to R 6. (G) Black now wins a pawn, after which bls winning the game is only a question of time. (h) Black was threatening to win another pawn by 39... P to K 4. If,-instead of the text-move White had played 39. K to Kt 2, then 39... R to K 7, ch; 40. K moves, R to K 6, winning either the Queen’s Knight’s pawn or the Queen's pawn.

(1) Obviously, if 42. R to K 2, then 42. . . R takes R, ch, and Black would have won easily with his extra pawn. (j) White's game was hopeless, and he resigned in a few moves. An instructive game, well played by Alechin.

Alechin's Defence. White, Sir George Thomas ; Black, Alechin. 1. P to K 4 Kt to K B 3 2. P to Q 3 (a) P to B 4 3. P to K B 4 Kt to B 3 4. Kt to K B 3 P to K Kt 3 5. B to K 2 (B) B to Kt 2 6. Q Kt to Q 2 (c) P to Q 4 7. Castles Castles 8. K to R sq P to Kt 3 9. P takes P Q takes P 10. Q to K sq B to Kt 2 11. Kt to B 4 Kt to Q 5 12. Kt to K 3 Q to B 3 13. B to Q sq Kt to Q 4 14. K Kt takes Kt P takes Kt 15. Kt takes Kt Q takes Kt 16. B to B 3 Q to Q 2 17. B takes B- Q takes B (n) 18. P to B 4 P takes P e.p. 19. P takes P Q R to B sq 20. B to Kt 2 (E) K R to Q sq 21. R to B 3 B to B 3 22. P to Q 4 Q to Q 4 23. Q to K 3 Q to Q Kt 4 24. Q to Q 2 R to Q 4 25. P to K R 3 P to K 3 26. R to K sq (F) Q to R 5 27. R to R sq P to Q Kt 4 28. Q to Q sq R to B 5 29. Q to Kt 3 R to Q 3 30. K to R 2 R to R 3 31. R (B 3) to Bsq Bto K 2 32. K to R sq (G) R (B 5) to B 3 33. R (B sq) to K sq B to R 5 34. R to K B sq Q to B 5 35. Q takes Q R takes Q 36. P to R 3 B to K 2 37. K R to QKt sq B to Q 3 38. P to Kt 3 K to B sq 39. K to Kt 2 K to K 2 40. K to B 2 K to Q 2 41. K to K 2 K to B 3 42. R to R 2 R (B o) to R o 43. R(K ;ii) to QRsq Kto Q 4 44. K to Q 3 R <R ?•) to R 4 I 45. B to B sq P to Q R 3 I 46. B to Kt 2 P to R 4 ; 47. P to R 4 P to B 3 ' 48. B to B sq p to K 4 49. B P takes P P takes P 50. B to Kt 2 P takes P_ 51. P takes P P to Kt 5 (h) 52. P takes P (i) R takes R 53. P takes R R takes B Resigns (J)

(a) This method of playing against Ale- , chin's Defence may be quite good, but seems rather slow. The simplest and best continuation is probably 2. P to K 5, followed, after 2. ..Kt to Q 4, by 3. B to B 4, Kt to Kt 3 ; 4. B to Kt 3, and White has slightly the better development, Black s Knight being rather badly posted at Q Kt 3. (b) Better would have been 5. Kt to u 3, reserving the option of developing the King’s Bishop at Kt 2. (c) Not good, and the cause of subsequent embarrassment. The natural post for the Queen’s Knight was Q. B 3. . (d) The outcome of the manoeuvres is that White is at a disadvantage because of his opponent’s open Queen’s Bishop s file which causes a weakness on White s Queen s side. The clever way in which the Russian master proceeds to exploit this weakness is deserving of careful study. . , . •*. (e) The superiority of Black s position is now manifest, every one of his pieces being well disposed for attack, while White is reduced to a strictly defensive role which he has to maintain for the rest of the game. (f) P to Q R 4, instead of the text-move, although not without its drawbacks, might have given White a fightfng chance. (g) White can do nothing but mark time, while his opponent prepares at leisure for the final onslaught. niack (H) The finishing stroke for which Black, during the last few moves, has been methodiC(ail)yTh^P l l o r s i es g ’a piece, but White’s game Wa ( S j) U A te very e finely played game by Alechin and one which shows that he is as great a master of steady end-game play as of brilliant combinative attack.

CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP OF NEW ZEALAND.

Negotiations are now proceeding . between Canterbury and Wellington Chess Clubs regarding the unfinished games of their recently-played telegraphic match. If agreement can be reached by exchanging views, and analysis where necessary, it°will not be necessary to call in the services of the Otago members ot the New Zealand Adjudication Board. A win for the Wellington Club by a sate margin seems assured. The negotiations between the Auckland and Otago Chess Clubs were successful (savs the Wellington Post), the two captains having no difficulty in coming to an agreement about the unfinished games. The final tally was: Otago, 11 wins: Auckland. 9 wins. The score at the first I'2 boards, which counts for the club championship of New Zealand, pas. Otago. 7; Auckland, 5. The second draw for the club championship of New Zealand is Auckland v. Wellington and Otago v Canterbury. These two matehes are scheduled to commence on Saturday next. They can be played simultaneously, as the use of the Cook Strait cable is not required. It is expected that both matches will be stubbornly contested.