26...Rd6. Youre move Rc8 killed you. Rooks belong on open files.
Frustrating Loss- endgame?
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Ahh yes, Rd7 would have been better. However, white can still play Rc6. I added a variation in the image... how can black continue?
Anyone else? :p
Dec 15, 2010
0
#5
at move 50 just keep ur rook on the c-file, and king on f7. When he does king on 7th rank just check him till he retreats. draw
You spotted the main mistake, which was Rc8.
Note on 35: "Now white is up a pawn. Was there any way to prevent losing two pawns?"
Yeah, on move 30 going for 30...Rxh4 with 31...Ra4 was passive, it was better to protect the b pawn. 31...Ra4 was really bad, repeating the same mistake you played with Rc8. As a rule of thumb, in rook and pawn endgames, your number 1 priority is rook activity, #2 is king activity, and LAST is your pawns. Of course with no pawns you'd lose, but you should be willing to shed a pawn or two to stay active... in any case much worse than being down a pawn is having passive rooks.
44...Rd6 to keep attacking the c pawn, seems you will win it and the game will be an easy draw.
After 44.Re4 you may already be lost, not sure I would have seen 48.c7 was winning for sure, I think I would have gone for 48.Rc7. But I guess c7 was enough to win, I don't think you have a fortress (see below).
The end position is a classic though where your cover can be broken because of white's f pawn. You note in your final analysis the idea of the skewer along the 2nd rank, and this is a theme in this type of endgame. I don't see what prevents white from pushing to f6 and winning in this way, contrary to the draw Britneyfan is talking about.
The rook in front of the pawn on the 7th chains the enemy king to a very small set of squares. You can't advance past your 2nd rank (a check will let him queen) and you can't advance towards the pawn (the skewer trick). In this game being on the other side of your bishop's pawn with white's pawn as close as it was almost almost saved black.
In your variation on move 26 you ask how to continue, but you're already equal, losing the h pawn doesn't matter. Just play Rf4-c4 and you're fine. You may stay a pawn down for some moves, but black really is fine. It would be useful for you to play this out a few times on a board for yourself to see how things can turn out.
I recently lost this game against a 1500 OTB. I had the black pieces It was a more casual, un-rated game (G/25, 5 delay) so we didn't have as much time to think as usual, but losses like this annoy me. It seemed like I just ended up in an endgame in which his rooks were stronger than mine. Any advice?