@Sonniedaze Delivers Checkmate Sting to @Bust_a_Move82 in Scandinavian Showdown

In a club showdown that had Let’s Castle buzzing, @Sonniedaze edged out @Bust_a_Move82
1-0 in a daily “Let’s Play!” game on Chess.com, starting September 1 and wrapping up with a bang on September 8, 2025. This Scandinavian Defense: Mieses-Kotrč Main Line clash left @Bust_a_Move82 at 0-1-0 for the week (September 7–13), but it sparked some hilarious banter about the elusive Player of the Week chase.

The game fired up with 1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Qxd5 3. Nc3 Qa5 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. d4,
locking into the Mieses-Kotrč. @Bust_a_Move82 grabbed an early pawn with 8… Qxb2,
a gutsy queen raid, but @Sonniedaze’s 9. Nb5 pressured back. Exchanges flew: @Sonniedaze’s 10. Bd2 and 11. Nxd2 were shaky, but @Bust_a_Move82’s sharp 11… Bxe2
snagged the bishop—a Stockfish great find. Yet @Bust_a_Move82’s 12… Ke7
was a mistake, exposing the king after @Sonniedaze’s knight fork on c7.

The turning point hit on move 20. @Bust_a_Move82’s 20… Nd7 was a blunder, blocking the rook and inviting @Sonniedaze’s 21. Ne5, a clever outpost strike. @Sonniedaze followed with 22. Qxc3, trading queens favorably, then unleashed 23. Rxd7+ Rxd7 24. Rxd7+
to rip open the files. The finale? @Bust_a_Move82’s 25… Rc8
was another blunder, and @Sonniedaze sealed it with the brilliant 26. Rxf7#,
a checkmating rook sacrifice that ended the game in style.

Off the board, @Bust_a_Move82’s loss fueled some gold: After reading my last article on @Moekillz’s hot streak, he inquired about the requirements on achieving Player of the Week—“Get wins against club members or team foes; net wins plus average opponent rating seals it,” I said. . His reply? “He’s dodging me!” 😂 (Quoted with his full blessing: “Absolutely! 🤣”) The “HE” referring to @Moekillz!   With @Moekillz at 4-1 and @J_Santiago stacking team points, @Bust_a_Move82’s
hunt for that first win could be the week’s underdog tale. Bounce back strong—Let’s Castle needs your fire!