I didn't look at the whole game, but it looked to me like you played more or less fine in the early middle game and just misevaluated the position at move 18. Black has just created a serious weakness, but given sufficient time will move his knight to b6 and c5, so you should not give him time. The immediate ne2 is very awkward for black to deal with. You still have time on 19 for ne2, but with qb2 you have officially farted around for two long and black is doing just fine. 20. ne1 is completely inexplicable to me, because the knight has nowhere useful to go -- you seem to have this mindset that you are losing, so you just shuffled your men around to no effect. When black has a weakness, you need to zero in on it.
Minority attack gone wrong: but why?
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Sep 24, 2018
0
#3
Thank you DeirdreSky and ArtNJ. You are both saying the same thing: play with more energy at move 18 to summarise and create some threats on c6 to put Black on the defensive. :-)
Sep 24, 2018
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#4
Of course there are details that black can improve also. Avoiding the Qc7-d8 fandango is maybe the most eye catching. I haven't played uk club chess in the northern leagues for sometime, but remember the rate of play getting ever faster. If black had a let you create the backward c6, or implemented the b5 idea a little more accurately by not playing be6, so could play bb7 when necessary. .Then, not sure you would have had much time to settle down and enjoy your tiny advantages. Have to admit am more biased to black's cause.
Sep 30, 2018
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#5
I agree with ArtNJ and DeirdreSky; the major mistake was in planning from move 18. They both explain the better plan(s) well. Other things to point out; I think you lash out with the knight for pawns trade at move 43. You mention that the computer thinks it's equal; but the chess.com analysis moves from -1.3 to -2.5 on that move. You could instead take Nxd7, get rid of one of his bishops and set up a defensive position with the light squares to manoeuvre your pieces (The bishop pair can be strong both in the middlegame and endgame, as is evident from the 'supposed' checkmate when the bishops take away a lot of squares). Overall, I think you may need to find a book or some sort of resource on middlegame strategy (minority attacks, open files, bishop pairs, outposts etc.) and slowly go through it. I looked at the Magnus training app and it had some strategy training although I am not a big fan of the app. You are definitely on the right track if you continue to work on middlegame, endgame and tactics (calculation).
Sep 30, 2018
0
#6
Hey Myron,
Good to hear from you! Yes, I agree that ArtNJ and Deirdre Sky's comments were pretty useful. A good book on middle game strategy might be a good idea. Perhaps a children's book on middle game stragety would be a good idea. Those tend to be made super simple and *quick* and easy to follow through even for an adult. The key is quick. With 5 children, I can't get too tied down to deep texts... In response to Two Move's comment, the time control in Cheshire is 75 min with a 10s increment. It sounds like a long time, but I find that I calculate veeerrrryyy slowly. Something that I'm trying to change by working tactics puzzles and by playing lots of correspondence games.
Thanks again
David
The minority attack did not go wrong, you created a weakness of c6, which had to be attacked. The minority attack creates the weakness, how you react to that is different
Oct 2, 2018
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#8
The 75mins with increment is very rapid compared to the days when I was very active, Attempted to play in Leeds league briefly. Found people were expert at playing unusual openings that got you to burn time, then rapid wood shifting in the increment. It's a highly competive game, but not in the way I like.
Nowdays would definitely play 4....Nxd5, it just stops white getting the structure they want.
Oct 6, 2018
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#9
Two move, I was born in Leeds and grew up in York, and I know a strong chess players who plays in Leeds, likes short time controls, odd openings and moves to burn his opponent’s clock.
Not quite my style, I play slowly and the only reason that I go out of book is that I don’t know the book in the first place. If you were to play 4... n*d5, then I would have played 5e4 and felt happy with my e4d4 centre with gain of tempo. However, you’re a much stronger player than me, so I am probably wrong to feel that way. I see that you are a fellow Team England player like me. Thanks for your input.
Not quite my style, I play slowly and the only reason that I go out of book is that I don’t know the book in the first place. If you were to play 4... n*d5, then I would have played 5e4 and felt happy with my e4d4 centre with gain of tempo. However, you’re a much stronger player than me, so I am probably wrong to feel that way. I see that you are a fellow Team England player like me. Thanks for your input.
After h6 try Bxf6? 8 Bxf6 Bxf6 9 Nf3 c3 10 O-O Be6, your up a tempo or so and your kingside is still intact.
Oct 10, 2018
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#11
4....Nxp 5e4 NxN 6pxN c5 is indeed the main-line and called the semi-tarrasch. (Not that opening names mean anything just in case felt like looking it up). White does get the centre and attacking chances but black can usually exchange a few peices to simplify the position. The centre can be a target for black, and queen-side pawn majority a factor, especially if the simplfying continues.
This means that white has got to do something or could be worse.
Oct 10, 2018
0
#12
This is why I chose to play the London system and avoid these types of games. I’m not good on either side. Both are very technical.
https://www.chess.com/blog/DavidEricAshby/at-least-i-didnt-lose-to-a-14-year-old-this-time
Any insights welcome :-).