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Swamp 5 How Violent Is Your Chess? Home
Alex Bourke

I hate closed positions. Why doesn't he take up flower arranging, I think. Faced with a boring French or Caro-Kann, I'll choose a line that blows the position open early, thus removing the closed player from his safe, bookish draw that he sees every couple of weeks, and landing him in a violent, open game, the type he hates, the type that I relish. Level the odds by getting a position that neither player knows, impose my style on the position, lots of blood and guts, just what closed openings players detest.

London League Division 1 13th January 2000
	Alex Bourke, Kings Head
	D Varley, Streatham
French Defence

1. e4, e6
Yawn, what is this? I could have stayed at home, painted a wall and watched it dry if I'd known he was going to do this. I came out for CHESS, excitement, entrails on the board. Now I feel like I've gone to see a Bruce Willis movie and ended up with a Teletubbies video. No way man! Let's bust it open.
2. c4! ...
   The only way to stop the tedium of a French defence. Now 2. ..., d5; 3. cd and, well, the rest is secret, but there are little known lines that are a lot of fun if you can find an old enough book and the point is, Black doesn't have a clue.
2. ..., c5
   The best cop out, going into a Sicilian. But that's fine, I love the Maroczy bind, at least now someone is going to win.
3. Nf3, Nc6
4. d4, cd
5. Nxd4, Qa5+
   This is new. 6. Nc3, Bb4; 7. N4b5 didn't look to give any advantage. So I though why not try 6. Bd2, Qb6; 7. Nb3 or 6. ..., Bb4 and it looks like d6 will be a problem for Black. But, doh, I completely overlooked
6. Bd2, Qe5
   At first sight this deserves a ! because Black wins a pawn. But if this is new theory, maybe the verdict should be left open in view of what follows.
   There are heaps of Sicilian lines where White sacs a pawn for a raging attack, I'm obliged to pray this will be one of them.
7. Bc3, Qxe4+
8. Be2, Nxd4
   Clobbering one knight before I can get in Nb5
9. Bxd4, Qxg2
10. Bf3, Qg5
   Let's look at the evidence. Black is already two pawns up. But he has nothing active. White has the two most gigantic bishops ever seen, easy development, and ready made targets at b7, g7, c7 and d6. A mild mannered French has been transformed into seething, blood curdling monster of a gambit where White sacs pawns for a huge development lead. White needs to throw more wood on the fire, get the other bits moving too.
11. Nc3, ...
   heading for b5 or e4
11. ..., Bb4
   Thanks a lot! Maybe Ne7-c6 is better, I don't know, Black is drowning in the swamp. Bb4 is hanging if White plays Qb3, though for the moment I have to watch for ... Qf4 forking my bishops. An exchange on c3 would open the b-file for a R. Normal positional rules don't apply here, a doubled pawn for White is of no consequence if it opens lines. Switch off your normal plan making and, er, let the force guide you in. White must mate black or the two pawns deficit will lose. Attack is all that matters. So what is the most aggressive move?
12. Kf1! ...
   Remember the usual rules don't apply. Mobilisation of the remaining white men is everything. Bring 'em up and roll 'em forwards. Now the QR and QN can join the attack.
12. ..., f6
13. Rg1, Qf4
   Well would you have plumped for 13. ..., Qh6; 14. Nb5 ?
14. Rxg7, ...
   There's no hurry, Black can hardly move, and a R on the seventh is always handy. When building an attack we don't analyse to a win, just keep piling on the pieces and a combination will eventually appear.
14. ..., Ne7
15. Qd3, ...
   hitting h7 and preparing Re1, whilst staying in touch with both bishops and d6.
15. ..., e5
   Worth a try, but can you guess White's response? Black's rooks and QB are not invited to the party, so White can afford to be generous in order to open lines. Black obviously didn't reckon with
16. Re1!, Bxc3
   Since 16. ..., e5xd4 gets murdered to death after 17. Nd5, Qd6; 18. Bh5+.
17. Bxc3, Kf8
   Now, how violent is your chess? White only needs two pieces, a Q and something else, to deliver mate, so everything else is expendable to remove defenders around the Black king whilst he still has the rest of his army back in the barracks. Also Black is running short of time so it's good to give him plenty to think about.
18. Rxe7! ...
   In for a penny, in for a pound. 18. Rxh7 might allow a Black check at c4. Don't give him any counterplay.
18. ..., Kxe7
   Now White wants to play Bb4+ and Qd6, but avoid Black's check at c4. Sometimes a subtle little move is necessary before continuing the attack. Can you see it?
19. Bd2! Qxh2
   Now Black's Queen is out of the game and White has time to close in.
20. Bb4+, Kf7
21. Qd6, Re8
   Black is completely tied up. Can you find another quiet move that keeps the attack going?
22. Ke2! ...
   Now Rh1 will be moider.
23. ..., Qh4
   Going for c4 again, but Black has lost valuable tempi and the White Q is now at d6, allowing
24. Bd5+, Kg7
25. Rg1+, Kh8
   What's the coolest move on the board?
26. Qe7!! Qh5+
27. Ke1, e4
   There's nowt better as ... RxQ allows Rg8 mate.
28. Qg7 mate.