Declining the Morra should be punishable!
Great Counter to Sicilian Defense
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Aug 30, 2025
0
#44
Only one player is having fun in this game.
Hint... it ain't Black.
Aug 31, 2025
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#45
Here, my opponent fell into one of the Morra's key traps, and for some reason played on after move 10, having lost his Queen, hoping I'd hang a piece.
Aug 31, 2025
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#46
This Morra game should come with an age restriction.
You have been warned...
xl123 wrote:
I have very little experience with chess and i have not yet put this into practice, so could some experts give some comment for my own version of counter-sicilian defence opening. c5 (enter black's move here) 3. c3. I am aware that this is usually considered as a bad move because it blocks your bknight. However, i think this is not a particularly bad idea as it probably will not stay there for long. After this i plan on playing d4 and when black takes it using its c5 pawn, I plan on taking it with the c3 pawn.Please be relevant, helpful & nice!
This is just the alapin variation
19 days ago
0
#52
SwimmerBill wrote:
OldPatzerMike wrote:
A fun try is the Kopec System. Developed by IM Danny Kopec, it shows up in only 52 games in the lichess master level database. White has won 48%, Black has won 15%, and the rest were draws. Svidler, Aronian, and Rapport have used it with success, and Kopec beat Ivanov (rated 2678 at the time) twice with it.
The idea is that White will play c3 and Bc2. The LSB, which has become known as the Kopec Bishop, can be effective on the b1-h7 diagonal, the a2-g8 diagonal, or the a4-e8 diagonal, depending on how the game develops.
I'm a d4 player but would definitely try this against the Sicilian for its entertainment value if I ever decide to get wild and crazy and play 1. e4.
Mike- That's the only line I've never played and never faced. I'm OK with trying to convert a Sicilian into a Ruy Lopez like game. Seems to me the following is critical: which side would you rather play below? - Bill
Hi Bill. Please excuse the long delay in responding to your post, but I was out of commission for quite a while and just today ran across your post. The final position after 10...gxf5 is highly unbalanced but about equal. I like White's structure and therefore his long term possibilities. On the other hand, Black has a lot more space and a semi-open g file, and the f-pawn is coming to f4. His attacking chances look promising. Overall, I'd rather play Black's position.
As White I would have deviated on move 7 and played 7. Ba4. The time taken by moving the B 3 times is offset by the fact that Black has made 3 pawn moves to White's 2. After 7. Ba4, the pin on the N at c6 allows White to follow with 8. d4. I like the resulting position a lot more than the one after 7. d3, which looks too passive.
Black's Sicilian dismantled in the Morra.
Black played seemingly reasonable moves. But not against the SMG.