The Frome Congress finished on Sunday evening with the following prizewinners (all points out of 5).
Open: 1st David Buckley (Bath) 4½. 2nd= Tim Kett (Cardiff), Matthew Payne (Bath) & Jane Richmond – 4. Although there were no Grandmasters involved this year in this section it was all the more competitive for it, with a record entry of 42.
Major Section (U-165): 1st= Brendon O’Gorman; James Forster (Southbourne); Tim Woodward (Trowbridge) & Lynda Roberts (Thornbury), all 4 pts.
Intermediate (U-140): 1st= Robin Morris-Weston (Reading) & Hugo Fowler (Glastonbury) both 4½.
Minor (U-110): 1st= Alastair Drummond (Bristol) & Bill Read (Witney ) both 4½. 3rd= Georgina Headlong (Swindon), Robert Skeen (Churchill Academy) & Alan Fraser (Beckenham).
The Frome event is now able to award more than one Qualifying Place for the British Championship to be held in Bournemouth in the summer, and places were awarded to David Onley (Combined Services); Scott Crockart (Didcot) & George Crockart (Bristol). This may be the first time in chess history that a father and son have both qualified in this way at the same event.
Going in to the final round of the Open, Kett was the clear leader on a perfect 4 points, followed by Buckley in clear 2nd place a half point behind. Kett had White and only needed to draw to be certain of 1st place, but his opponent had other ideas.
White: T. Kett (198). Black: D. Buckley. (212)
French Defence [C11]
1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4 c5 6.Nf3 Nc6 7.Be3 The Boleslavsky Variation. 7…Be7 8.Qd2 0–0 9.dxc5 Bxc5 10.Bxc5 Nxc5 11.0–0–0 By castling on the opposite side to Black, White is choosing to live dangerously. 11…Qa5 12.Kb1 Bd7 13.Bd3 Rac8 14.f5 exf5 15.Nxd5 Qxd2 16.Rxd2 Rfe8 17.Re1 Be6 18.Nf4 Nxd3 19.cxd3 If 19.Rxd3 Nb4 attacking both a- & c-pawns; or 19.Nxd3 Bd5. 19…Nb4 20.Nxe6 fxe6 21.a3 Nd5 22.Rc1 Rxc1+ 23.Kxc1 Rc8+ 24.Kb1 Kf7 25.Ng5+ Ke7 26.Nxh7 White may feel the need to attack Black’s 3-2 kingside pawn majority, but this merely reduces it to 2–1 – an even more potent threat. 26…Rh8 27.Ng5 Rxh2 28.Nf3 Rh6 29.Rc2 Kd7 30.Nd4 Rh1+ 31.Ka2 Rd1 32.Nb3 b6 Not 32…Rxd3?? 33.Nc5+. 33.Nd4 Rxd3 34.Nc6 Nc3+ 35.Kb3 Kxc6 36.Kc4 Rd5 37.bxc3 Rxe5 continuing to hack down White’s pawns 38.Rd2 Rd5 39.Re2 e5 40.g4 f4 White has run out of all meaningful counterplay. 0–1
In last week’s position, White won after 1.Nd7+! and if 1…Ka8 2.Rc5 threatening Ra5 mate, or if Black takes the knight there’s Rc8 mate. If 1…RxN 2. RxR and White is the exchange and 2 pawns up, easily enough to win in the longer run.
In this top class game from last year, Black seems to be well set for an attack, but White spots a flaw in the position. White to play and force immediate resignation.
Find White's winning move.