CHESS BY VICTOR STRUGO

Two of our top national players, Daniel Cawdery and Calvin Klaasen, seem always to produce exciting games when they face one another. They clashed at the SACCC in Newlands in May and again in the 7th round of last month’s SA Closed in Goodwood.

A number of exciting games were played at both events and I will feature a few of them in coming weeks. First up, here is the second Cawdery-klaasen aforementioned encounter. It features an old-fashioned variation of the Spanish opening.

IM D Cawdery (2417) – FM CJ Klaasen

(2212) Ruy Lopez, Morphy Defence: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5.

O-O b5 6. Bb3 Bb7 7. d4 exd4 8. e5 Ne4 9. Bd5 Nc5 10. Nxd4 Nxd4 11. Bxb7 (11. Qxd4 Bxd5 12. Qxd5 Be7 is equal. This capture is better for White as his opponent’s Knight is misplaced) 11... Nxb7 12. Qxd4 Be7? (What was a natural move in the previous note turns out in this position to be a serious error, due to White’s strong response. I forget which old master said that a Knight on K3 is always stronger than on Queen 3, but he was right: the fianchettoed horse needed to reach e6 via c5, pronto) 13. Qg4! g6 (This creates a horrible weakness. The ugly 13... Kf8 was preferable because Black isn’t going to castle in any case) 14. Bh6 d5 (Bad positions breed bad moves. Being passive won’t help but opening lines around a King caught in the centre is never good) 15. exd6 Nxd6 16. Qd4 Rg8 17. Qd5 (OK, but the more natural 17. Nc3 Nf5 18. Qe4 was stronger) 17... Rb8 18. Bf4 g5 19. Bg3 Rg6 20. Nc3 Qd7 21. Rad1 Kf8 22. f4 g4? (Just as Black seems to wriggling back towards equality, he errs fatally. Instead, 22... gxf4 23. Rxf4 Qe6 offered stubborn resistance) 23. f5 Rh6 24. Ne4 (This Knight move would be even stronger after 24. Qd2 Rh5 25. f6 Bd8) 24... Kg8 25. Bf4 Rh5 26. Ng3 and as 26... Rxf5 27. Nxf5 Qxf5 28. Qxf5 Nxf5 29. Bxc7 would be painful torture, Black resigned.