I am playing as Black.

This is a game that i couldn't help but lose.  My opponent seemed to force me back not allowing me to develop.

Did he play really well or was i really bad?

Was there a key bad move?  Or was it a combination!!

I thought it was fairly even until i made a Bishop sac.  Then as the game developed - i didn't!

Any thoughts on the game are most welcome.

Thanks,

Chris.

I would have to look more but when you took their c pawn I was wondering why and when you sacked your bishop I was wondering 

why you didnt take their horse then push your g pawn 

to cover your horse...those were my initial thoughts if that helps. 

You left your opponent build a strong center unopposed, which is a recipe for trouble... I would start by looking as moves such as 11...c5 (or 9...c5 as was suggested earlier) to see if they improve your position or not.

After you sacrifice the bishop, it's quite difficult to play.

Sometimes you can't see the wood for the trees!  I was convinced that i was going to lose the Bishop or the Knight and neglected to look further than Qxf3, pushing the g pawn seems so obvious now... Doh!

However, putting the Knight there in the first place seems to be a mistake, ...Nd5 being a better choice.

Thanks for the tips so far........

Chris.

I really enjoyed this game! Everything seemed to be in the right place following the opening. Apart from the questionable bishop sacrifice, a pivotal part of the game from my point of view was the sequence from 14...g6. This allowed my bishop to gain an unopposed strong position that was ultimately crucial to the mating attack once I'd managed to get the queen (and knight) off the 7th rank. Maybe you were concerned that I might also try a bishop sacrifice . Or was it a hiding hole for your errant knight?

Great game, I think we're both learning a lot from this. Thanks for posting it, and thanks to everyone who is helping us to understand it!

Simon