Skype coaching session, 10 July 2016. Recordings of some previous coaching sessions can be found at: http://www.open-aurec.com/Skype/PaulBenson/PaulBenson.htm The following game was examined, the game 33 moves) is given with annotations and then again without annotations. Paul Benson. * * * Annotated game. Middlegame Study In The McCutcheon Variation (C12) Of The French Defence. | Note: Both players are rated about Elo 2100. || 1. d4 d5 2. Nc3 e6 3. e4 Nf6 4. Bg5 Bb4 | The McCutcheon Variation. Played occasionally by Grand Masters either for a surprise or to evade a possible prepared line from the opponent. At club level it is a good choice, offering an interesting test of strategic understanding with an ever-present threat of tactics just around the corner. Instead, 4. ... Be7, is less trickier for both players and, 4. ... dxe4, creates a semi-open central pawn structure where minor piece activity will be of importance. || 5. e5 h6 6. Be3 | An uncommon choice. Instead, 6. Bd2, is the main line and usually leads to a couple of exchanges of minor pieces. There is also, 6. exf6 hxg5 7. fxg7 Rg8, when the advanced white g-pawn will soon fall. In both cases chances are roughly equal with opportunities for both players to try and be creative with the pawn structure imbalance. || 6. ... Ne4 7. Qg4 Kf8 | The alternative, 7. ... g6, leads to a drastically different middlegame where white seeks to break through on the kingside while black tries to undermine the white central pawns. Again expect a good test of strategic understanding and tactical abilities in that variation. With the game choice of, Kf8, black makes the kingside less vulnerable but at the price of the h8 rook being blocked in for a while. Win something, lose something. || 8. a3 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Nxc3 | The point of, 6. Be3, is revealed. White is letting a pawn go in order to keep the dark square bishop on the board for the middlegame fight. Chances are considered roughly equal. || 10. Bd3 c5 11. dxc5 | Ouch, white has three pawn islands including doubled and isolated c-pawns and an isolated a-pawn. This pawn structure might look horribly weak but this is not the case. It is not easy for black to surround and win either the e5 or c5 pawns, and as long as this remains so, then white has a clamp on the black position. || 11. ... Nc6 12. Nf3 Qa5 | The black queen sets up an x-ray attack on the white king. The threat is, 13. ... Ne4+, followed by black winning the white c5 pawn. || 13. O-O Qa4 | Black seeks a trade of queens to rule out any kingside attack from white. This exchange of queens transforms the game into a middlegame of minor piece and rook activity. It will be for white to try and keep black under-developed for as long as possible. Any endgame will prove difficult for white to defend, those queenside pawn "weaknesses" mentioned earlier will eventually be shown to be very difficult to defend. || 14. Qxa4 Nxa4 | White has a lead in development but there are no weaknesses in the black position to attack. White must use piece activity to try to prevent black from completing development and then attempt to find some play with the only dynamic pawn break available. || 15. Rab1 | Designed to prevent the black c8 bishop from developing with, Bd7. Instead, 15. Bb5 Nc3 16. Bxc6 bxc6, gains white nothing. The black bishop could then develop with, Ba6, claiming some light squares and preparing a long term plan of all rooks to eventually be traded on the b-file. With the pawn structure as it stands at the moment, it is white who will suffer in an endgame. Strategic hint: Some of any future endgame problems for white can be relieved if white can somehow eliminate one of the doubled c-pawns. || 15. ... Ke7 16. Rb3 | Rather sneaky and proves that quiet looking positions can still contain some venom. The black a4 knight is unprotected and has no flight squares. The white threat is, 17. Bb5, when, 17. ... Na5 18. Bxa4 Nxb3 19. cxb3, and white would have two knights for a rook while also cleaning up the queenside pawn structure into the bargain. || 16. ... a6 | Preventing the material winning threat of, 17. Bb5, but creating a weak b6 square for future exploitation. Of course at the moment black has the a4 knight to cover a white piece entry on b6, but pieces cannot remain on one square for ever. Instead, 16. ... Na5 17. Rb5 Nc6 18. Rb3 Na5, with a possible early draw by three-fold repetition was an option. Wwhite might instead prefer to keep the fight going with, 16. ... Na5 17. Rb4 Nc3 18. Bd2 Ne4, when there is a safe pawn to be grabbed with, 19. Bxe4 dxe4 20. Rxe4, exposing an attack from the d2 bishop onto the black a5 knight but in the process white would lose much control of the light squares. Play could continue with, 20. ... Nc6 21. Rb1, and that theme of preventing the black c8 bishop from developing has re-emerged. In the game it is white to play and attempt to eliminate a future endgame weakness. || 17. c4 | White is aiming to eliminate one of the doubled pawns before black can complete development and steer the game into an ending where the white pawns will be targets. || 17. ... d4 | Black is fighting very hard for the initiative but this must be rather risky when so far behind in development. Instead, 17. ... dxc4 18. Bxc4 Na5 19. Rb4 Nxc4 20. Rxc4 Bd7, would have been a much easier position for black to handle. || 18. Nxd4 | Instead, 18. Bxd4 Nxd4 19. Nxd4 Nxc5, forking white pieces after which, 20. Rc3 Rd8, and black wins a piece as if the attacked white d4 knight moves then, black has, 21. ... Rxd3. || 18. ... Nxe5 19. Be2 | Creating the bishop versus knight stand off formation between the white e2 bishop and the black e5 knight. || 19. ... Nxc5 | Risky. Instead, 19. ... Kd7, intending, Kc7, to protect the black b7 pawn which allows the c8 bishop to develop might have been simpler. Now white has a neat tactic which sets black a little test to answer. || 20. Nf5+ | The white knight check has discovered an attack from the white e3 bishop onto the black c5 knight. Black might have eliminated the restricting white c5 pawn, but if it is replaced by a white bishop on the c5 square then no real gain has been achieved. Perhaps the black attempt for the initiative on move 17 with the advance, pawn d4, was misjudged? Black to play and play correctly here or the difficulties will increase. || 20. ... exf5 | This leads to problems which black never manages to solve. Instead, 20. ... Kf6, was worth a try. After, 21. Bxc5 Kxf5, the black pawn structure is cleaner but more importantly, the black king will not be exposed to an attack up the central files. || 21. Bxc5+ | Matters have deteriorated considerably since the exchange of queens back on move 14. White has king safety, a lead in development of a piece and a rook, but most importantly the previously blocked centre has just been blown wide open exposing the black king. || 21. ... Ke6 | Instead, 21. ... Kf6 22. Bd4 Rd8 23. Ba1 f4 24. g3 g5 25. Bf3, and white threatens, 26. Re1, increasing the pressure on the pinned black e5 knight. || 22. Re1 Rd8 | Preventing the white dark square bishop from pinning the black e5 knight with, Bd4. || 23. f4 Ng6 | Instead, 23. ... Nc6 24. Bf3+, and black is in serious trouble. If then, 24. ... Kf6 25. Bxc6 bxc6 26. Be7+, black loses the d8 rook. Or if, 24. ... Kd7 25. Bb6, covering the c7 flight square so that after, 25. ... Rf8 26. Rd3+ Nd4 27. Rxd4+, is mate. || 24. Rb6+ | A strange twist has just taken place. When the central d-file and e-file opened up it would have been reasonable to assume any mating nets would involve the white rooks using those files. However with this white rook advance to the b6 square the potential mating net is now with the white rooks using the 6th and 7th ranks. || 24. ... Kd7 25. Bh5 | White has a threat of mate in two moves. The idea is to remove the defender of the e7 square with, 26. Bxg6, when, 26. ... fxg6 27. Re7+, will be mate. || 25. ... Kc7 | So the immediate mating attack has not been successful. However white still has a strong grip on the position and black is still two pieces behind in development. Over the past year or so there have been many games examined where the theme of: "Initiative Over Material" has been the mantra. This strongly implies that material gain is a temptation to be resisted. Not always so. Sometimes the initiative begins to dissipate as an opponent then begins to unravel their position. In such circumstances it is perfectly acceptable to gain some material. Think of it as a delayed reward for all the previous hard work. || 26. Bxg6 fxg6 27. Rxg6 | When the black king ran away to the c7 square it set itself up for a dark square skewer with a potential, Bb6+. Black can avoid this and also save the kingside pawns but this is the least of black's worries. It is the lack of queenside development which now counts against black. || 27. ... Rd7 | The opposite bishops dramatically favour white. Black has no means to challenge on the dark squares other then by giving up an exchange, and even this will prove to be inadequate to save the game. When there are only a pair of rooks each with opposite colour bishops on the board, then whoever has the attack is much better, that player is effectively a piece up. || 28. Bb6+ Kb8 | The black king has been chased into a tomb from which it cannot escape. White now only needs to bring the e1 rook into the attack and black will be reduced to shuffling aimlessly. || 29. Re8 a5 | Instead trying for a perpetual check fails, 29. ... Rd1+ 30. Kf2 Rd2+ 31. Kg3 Rd3+ 32. Kh4, and the white king is safe. Black must then find a means to prevent the white plan of, Rc7, and, Rexc8+ mate. If black tries, 32. ... Rb3, then, 33. c5, and the planned mate cannot be stopped. || 30. c5 Ra6 | White now has several ways to convert to a win. The only possible escape for black is to try to find a way to eliminate both the white b6 bishop and supporting c5 pawn,which would allow the king to step onto the black 2nd rank. White is never going to allow black this luxury. || 31. Rge6 | White plans, 32. Rg8, which will be followed with, 33. Ree8, with the threat of mate with, Rxc8+. This can only be prevented by black giving up an exchange with, Rc7, before white has doubled on the 8th rank. White would take the rook with, Bxc7+, and then the white rooks could take their time to wipe out most of the black kingside pawns. || 31. ... Rf7 32. Rd6 | Creating a neat tactical threat to bring about a quick conclusion to the game. || 32. ... Ra8 | Black had no sensible moves. || 33. Rxc8+ Black resigns, 1-0 | If, 33. ... Kxc8 34. Rd8+, is mate. || * * * ## Unannotated game. Middlegame Study In The McCutcheon Variation (C12) Of The French Defence. | Note: Both players are rated about Elo 2100. || 1. d4 d5 2. Nc3 e6 3. e4 Nf6 4. Bg5 Bb4 5. e5 h6 6. Be3 Ne4 7. Qg4 Kf8 8. a3 Bxc3+ 9. bxc3 Nxc3 10. Bd3 c5 11. dxc5 Nc6 12. Nf3 Qa5 13. O-O Qa4 14. Qxa4 Nxa4 15. Rab1 Ke7 16. Rb3 a6 17. c4 d4 18. Nxd4 Nxe5 19. Be2 Nxc5 20. Nf5+ exf5 21. Bxc5+ Ke6 22. Re1 Rd8 23. f4 Ng6 24. Rb6+ Kd7 25. Bh5 Kc7 26. Bxg6 fxg6 27. Rxg6 Rd7 28. Bb6+ Kb8 29. Re8 a5 30. c5 Ra6 31. Rge6 Rf7 32. Rd6 Ra8 33. Rxc8+ Black resigns, 1-0 * * *