AustralianCorrespondence Chess

Quarterly

Australia Post No PPn 230594/00010Correspondence Chess League of Australia

Postal Address: GPO Box 2360, Sydney, NSW, 2001Website: www.ccla.net.au

May 2016Vol. 69 No. 2 pp 25-48Editor: Shaun Press2 Auburn St, Amaroo, ACT, 2914shaunpress@gmail.com

$4.00ISSN 819-7806

Technical difficulties have bedevilled the production of this issue, whichis why it is a little later than usual. The same technical difficulties haveprevented the publication of the current rating list (for the first time since Ihave been editor), although hopefully that will be remedied shortly. Missing deadlines of another kind is also a hot topic at the moment. Whilethe CCLA has a clear policy on the subject of withdrawals and timeforfeits, it has been enforced with varying degrees of severity. With theinflux of new players and the shift to server based chess, the time hascome to look at changing this policy and bring it up to date. As aprecursor to this action, Brian Jones has written an article on timemanagement, and I hope that everyone takes the time to read it.The CCLA Council met in April, and there were a few changes to therules on ratings. With more and more chess being played on the ICCFServer, and more players entering the world of CC via online chess,changes to how initial ratings are to be allocated were agreed upon. Thisis part of a push to bring CCLA ratings in line with ICCF ratings and toavoid the significant differences in the current rating scales.The council also begun looking at producing another survey of members.It has been a quite a number of years since the last one, and the councilfelt it was time to once again have a look at the CC landscape. CCLAVice President Stephen Priest has agreed to put this together, and it willprobably be distributed towards the end of the year.

26

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27

International News WCCC PreliminariesLGM Veronica Henri, SimonJenkinson and Dr Derek Roebuckhave commenced play in the WorldCorrespondence ChessChampionship Preliminaries(WCCC40PR). There are 13sections of 13 players each (169players in total) and each section isCategory III (average rating 2308).IM Gordon Dunlop has alreadyqualified for the WCCC40 Semi-Finals which will start on 30 June2016. LGM Veronica Henri looksset to qualify for the final of thenext Ladies World Championship(LWC11).21st Olympiad PreliminariesThe Australian team for the 21st

Olympiad Preliminaries has beenannounced:

Board 1 - GM Chris FenwickBoard 2 - IM Gordon DunlopBoard 3 - SIM Stephen KerrBoard 4 - IM John-Paul FenwickBoard 5 - SIM Tim RuntingBoard 6 - Barrie Mulligan

1st Reserve - Colin McKenzie2nd Reserve - LGM Veronica Henri

Captain – Brian JonesZone 4 ChampionshipPreliminariesThe 18th Africa Asia Zone (AAZ)Championship Preliminariesstarted in February with 119

entries including 39 Australians.The players were divided into 17sections of 7 with two players fromeach section to advance to theSemi Finals, to be joined by 13other players (with ratings over2250) who qualified directly.

Inter-Zone ChampionshipsEight Australian players have beennominated to represent Zone 4(Africa-Asia-Australia) in theupcoming Inter-ZoneChampionships.9th Veterans’ World CupThe first stage of the 9th VeteransWorld Cup will start on 1September 2016. ICCF invitesentries from players who are ageover 60 at that date. Players mayenter by Direct Entry (DE) orthrough their National Federation(send me an email with copy totreasurer@ccla.net.au). Entriesclose 1 August 2016. XV Jubilee AEACThe Spanish CorrespondenceChess Association has invited allplayers to enter its Jubilee Opentournament which will start on 30July 2016. Entries should besubmitted through their NationalFederation (email me) and theSpanish Federation has given usten free entries. Closing date is 15June 2016.Glen Shields MemorialMike Stubbs and Brian Pott have

28

commenced play in the GlenShields Memorial tournament. It isa 15-player Category D eventrequiring a score of 9.5/14 for aCorrespondence Chess Expert(CCE) title norm. See https://www.iccf.com/event?id=58045DE10A PreliminariesThe Direct Entry (DE10A)anniversary tournament received atotal of 891 entries which havebeen split into 81 groups of 11players. The preliminary groupsstarted in March and each winnerand runner-up will qualify for theSemi-final stage. The sponsor,ChessBase, will also give a prizeof a 25 Euro voucher to eachpreliminary group winner. Australia wins PATT/6With 43.5 points out of a possible72, and two unfinished games, theAustralian team can no longer becaught in the 6th Pacific Area TeamTournament. Congratulations towinning team members: IM John-Paul Fenwick, IM Clive Murden,IM Gordon Dunlop, SimonJenkinson, LGM Veronica Henriand Barrie Mulligan. CCLA 85th AnniversaryInvitational TournamentWith 9 games remaining AnthonyBalshaw of Wales is still leadingthe CCLA 85th Anniversarytournament with 7.5/12. IMGordon Dunlop and AustralianChampion Colin McKenzie bothfinished with 6 points. The up-to-

date cross-table can be seen at:https://www.iccf.com/event?id=48387Australian Masters andCandidate MastersWith 17 and 12 unfinished gamesrespectively, the placings in the2015 Australian Masters(https://www.iccf.com/event?id=53334) and 2015 AustralianCandidate Masters(https://www.iccf.com/event?id=53335) are unclear. The fieldsfor the 2016 Australian Mastersand 2016 Australian CandidateMasters will be published shortly.Friendly MatchesAll CCLA members are eligible toplay Friendly Matches forAustralia. We compete againstteams from all over the world andthere is no cost. Matches areplayed on the ICCF webserver andwe sometimes field Australia Bteams under the name of the CCLAKangaroos. If you want to play inour friendly match teams, thenplease contact Brian Jones atbrianjoneschess@outlook.comICCF Ratings (2016-2)The list of 100 Australian playerswith fixed ICCF ratings (minimumof 30 games) as at 1 April 2016can be found at the end of thismagazine.

Australian News

Australian ChampionshipAfter a close finish, the 2014

29

Australian Championship was wonby Colin McKenzie with a score of8.5/11. Seehttps://www.iccf.com/event?id=43563. Some 12 games areremaining in the 2015 AustralianChampionship and the standingsare unclear. Seehttps://www.iccf.com/event?id=52299Australian ReservesPeter Maylott scored 7.5/9 to winthe 2014 Australian Reserves. The2015 Australian Reserves A isunfinished (4 games remaining) butthe Reserves B was won by PeterBrackenridge with 10/10.Australian SeniorsThe 2015 Australian SeniorsChampionship was won by BrianJones who scored 5/6 to finish halfa point ahead of Brian Thew andMax Kershaw.CCLA Major Tournaments 2016The 2016 AustralianChampionship and supportingevents started on 1 May 2016.Eleven players rated above 2000are playing in the 39th AustralianChampionship. Seven players ratedbelow 2000 are playing a doubleround robin Australian Reserves.There are also Senior and Juniorevents as well as NSW andQueensland State Championships. Australian Interstate TeamWith a score of 9/11, WesternAustralia is the winner of the 2015Australian Interstate TeamsChampionship. The 2016 events

will get underway shortly withseven teams of six players each.BICYCLE eventsWe have started 54 rated 6/1BICYCLE events over the past twoand a half years - see separatereport. For 2016, we will keep therating limit to under 2000 (playerswho do not normally use engines)and quicken the time control to 10moves in 30 days.FAST eventsThese are new 4/2 events with arating limit of under 2000 and afast time control of 10 daysfollowed by 1 move every 3 days. CCLA 6/1 and CCLA 4/2 eventsDuring 2016 we will restart CCLA6/1 and CCLA 4/2 events on theICCF webserver. These will beopen events (no rating restrictions)with similar time controls as in theBICYCLE and FAST eventsabove.Entry fees for CCLA eventsExcept for the Major Tournaments,all BICYCLE, FAST, CCLA 6/1,CCLA 4/2 and CHESS 960 eventswill be free from 2016 onwards.Send entries tobrianjoneschess@outlook.com ormail to GPO Box 2360 SydneyNSW 2001.

Brian JonesCCLA International Secretarybrianjoneschess@outlook.com 15 May 2016

30

Time Management on the ICCFWebserver

Recently, more and moreAustralian players are losing gameson time due to bad webserverpractices, poor sportsmanship andbasic misunderstandings of theICCF rules. So in this article I willrecommend good webserverpractice and make a few commentson time management.

Login to the webserver regularlyand do not play by emailWhen you first log in to thewebserver you see the contact pagewith your photo, email, date ofbirth and other details. Update thisinformation regularly as it will helpme, as your ICCF delegate, toorganise events such as theinterstate championship. Next youshould check the options at thebottom of the screen. I recommendthat you tick the first three options- to use drag and drop to entermoves (does anyone not have amouse these days?), to disableemail notifications for opponentsmoves and to disable emailnotifications for your own moves.This will stop you trying to play byemail and making mistakes. Don’tforget to save the changes youmake.

Press “My Games” (on the lefthand side) to see a list of yourgames You should first note that by usingthe check boxes at the top of thisscreen you can show or supressfinished games or show or supressgames where it is not your turn tomove. At a glance you can see allyour opponents’ and the timesituation. If you click on theindividual headings the list will besorted. I recommend that you lookmainly at games where action isrequired and sort your games intoTime Left. In any game if yourTime Left is less than 20 days thenyou should move now if possible.In any game if your Time Spent isgreater than 20 days then youshould also move now if possible.Some players regularly sail muchcloser to the wind on time but it isnot recommended unless you arean experienced player. Simplypress on Your Move to see thechessboard and make a move. Takeleave or download the PGN file toyour favourite database or engineif required.

(Continued on page 34)

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Games Columnby IM John-Paul Fenwick

Just one game for this edition asunfortunately I had twosubmissions by readers withdrawn.This column can only survive if wereceive a greater level of audienceparticipation, so again I encourageour readers to share their games. Itdoesn’t matter if the games are notperfect - in fact games with a fewtwists and turns are usually moreinteresting and can be moreinstructive than a perfectly playedgrandmaster game.In the absence of other material, Iam presenting one of my rarerecent wins. My opponent is a2505 rated senior internationalmaster who until this game hadonly lost one game incorrespondence.

J. Fenwick – C-I Epure

ICCF World ChampionshipSemi-Final WC39/SF11

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5

Avoiding the Svesnikov variation –3d4 cd4 4Nd4 Nf6 5Nc3 e5 –which has been heavily analysedand has proven a hard nut to crack.

3…g6 4.O-O Bg7 5.c3 Nf6 6.Re1O-O 7.h3 Qb6 8.Ba4

8Na3 and 8Bf1 are reasonablealternatives.

8…Rd8

Black has plenty of choices herewith 8…d6 and 8…d5 being themost popular.

9.d3!?

9d4 has also been played but after9…d5 10e5 Black has theannoying option of playing 10…Ne4

9…d5 10.e5 Nd7 11.d4 Nf8

XABCDEFGHY8r+ltr-snk+(7zpp+-zppvlp'6-wqn+-+p+&5+-zppzP-+-%4L+-zP-+-+$3+-zP-+N+P#2PzP-+-zPP+"1tRNvLQtR-mK-!xabcdefghy

12.dxc5!?

Two previous correspondencegames had gone 12Bc6 bc6 13b3and although it relieves pressure ond4 I didn’t think it was necessaryto give up the bishop pair.

32

12… Qxc5 13.Nbd2 b5

In another correspondence gameplayed around the same time,Conde Poderoso – GonzalezBarcina 2015 Black went for 13…Ne6 14Nb3 Qb6 15Be3 Qc716Bc6 bc6 17Nc5 which looks abit passive for Black

14.Bc2 Qb6 15.Nb3 Ne6

Black would like to go for 15…b4where he doesn’t have much toworry about after 16.Nbd4 bxc317.bxc3 Ne6 18.Ba3 Nexd419.cxd4 Nb4 but White has 16cb4Nb4 17Be3 Qc7 18Bd3! Whichlooks a bit better for White – e.g.18…Nd3 19Qd3 Qb8 19Na5!

16.Nbd4

XABCDEFGHY8r+ltr-+k+(7zp-+-zppvlp'6-wqn+n+p+&5+p+pzP-+-%4-+-sN-+-+$3+-zP-+N+P#2PzPL+-zPP+"1tR-vLQtR-mK-!xabcdefghy

16…Nexd4?!

This might have been a bitcareless. 16…Ncd4 looks better –17cd4 a5 18Be3 b4 looks just alittle better for White. The main

point is that with the knight on …e6, if white plays Ng5, Black cansimply capture

17.cxd4 a5 18.Be3 Nb4

My opponent seemed to beunaware of the danger he wasputting himself into, otherwise hemay have gone for something like18…a4 19Rc1 (White can also try19a3!? Or 19b3 followed by Rb1)Na5 20Bg5 Re8 21Bd3 Bd722Qe2 and now either 22…Nc4 or22…Nc6. The way he playedleaves his kingside undefended.

19.Bb1 Bd7

XABCDEFGHY8r+-tr-+k+(7+-+lzppvlp'6-wq-+-+p+&5zpp+pzP-+-%4-sn-zP-+-+$3+-+-vLN+P#2PzP-+-zPP+"1tRL+QtR-mK-!xabcdefghy

20.Ng5!

With the centre stable, and Blackhaving left his king largelyundefended, the time was right tostart kingside action. Black has anunpleasant choice betweenweakening his king position to kickthe knight away or allow white tobuild an attack with Qf3-g3-h4 or

33

h4-h5

20….h6

Accompanied by a draw offer but Iwas confident that this positionwas actually close to winning. Analternative line I looked at was20…Rf8 21Qb3 e6 22h4 Nc623Qd1 Ne7 24h5 and White’sattack looks promising.

21.Nf3 Rdc8 22.Qd2 Kh7 23.a3

My idea was to play Ba2 to forcee6, further cutting off Black’sforces.

23…Nc6

XABCDEFGHY8r+r+-+-+(7+-+lzppvlk'6-wqn+-+pzp&5zpp+pzP-+-%4-+-zP-+-+$3zP-+-vLN+P#2-zP-wQ-zPP+"1tRL+-tR-mK-!xabcdefghy

24.h4!

The immediate 24Ba2 e6 25h4 b425h5 Rab8 seemed less effective

24…a4

If 24…b4, White abandons theBa2 plan and plays 25h5 with Nh4to follow.

25.Ba2 e6 26.h5 Qa5

I had expected 26…b4 when whitesimply continues the attack with27g4 – with the centre fixed thereis no danger to the White king –followed by either g5 or Kg2 andRh1

27.Qd3 Qa6

After 27…b4 White just plays28Bb1 Be8 (28…Ne7 29Bd2)29g4 as in the game

28.Bb1 Be8

XABCDEFGHY8r+r+l+-+(7+-+-+pvlk'6q+n+p+pzp&5+p+pzP-+P%4p+-zP-+-+$3zP-+QvLN+-#2-zP-+-zPP+"1tRL+-tR-mK-!xabcdefghy

29.g4

The final phase of the attackbegins. With his pieces stuck onthe queenside, Black has no answerto the dual threats of g5 and Kg2followed by Rh1 and Qg1-h2

29….b4 30.Qd1 bxa3 31.bxa3Kg8

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Hastening the end but even afterthe better 31…Ne7, 32g5 isdevastating – 32…Nf5 33hg6 fg634Bf5 gf5 35gh632.g5! hxg5 33.Bxg5 Nb8

XABCDEFGHY8rsnr+l+k+(7+-+-+pvl-'6q+-+p+p+&5+-+pzP-vLP%4p+-zP-+-+$3zP-+-+N+-#2-+-+-zP-+"1tRL+QtR-mK-!xabcdefghy

34.h6 1-0A nice way to finish the gameAfter either 34…Bf8 or 34…Bh8white can follow up with 35h7followed by Kg2, Rh1 and Qg1-h2.As noted in the introduction, forthe games column to work we needreaders to submit me their gamesfor inclusion in this column. Pleasesend to jpfen@iinet.net.au

(Continued from Page 30)Understand the Time ControlThe standard ICCF Time Controlis 10 moves in 50 days (thoughnote that faster and more exotictime controls are slowly beingintroduced). The time shown is thecumulative Time Left to reach thenext Time Control. You lose ontime if you go down to 0 days leftand remain there for 24 hours.However, many players overlookthe special rule that you lose if youexceed 40 days on any singlemove. Finally, I recommend thatplayers should resign their gamerather the exceed the time limit.Exceeding the Time Limit (ETL)and playing the Dead Man’sDefence (slow play) is regarded asbad sportsmanship by all of us.

Brian JonesCCLA International Secretarybrianjoneschess@outlook.com 1 May 2016

*ICCF WebserverThe CCLA is now making domestic events on the ICCF Webserveravailable. Please go to www.iccf.com/ for further information, all

entries must go via the International Secretarybrian@chessaustralia.com.au at the moment.

The cost for each Server event is $10.00 (equivalent to 20 stamps!)so this is very reasonable. (NB Major CCLA Events do cost more) It is recommended that all new players to the Webserver view the

ICCF Tutorial at http://correspondencechess.com/campbell/tutorial/

35

Shop

Price Qty TotalAnnual Subscription (due October) $30 .....Internet Only $20 …..Pensioners and Students $25

.....

General Tournament Entry (Postal)Four-Two [ ] FreeNo Preference [ ] Friendlies [ ] Free

Web Server Tournament (Bicycle) [ ] Free …. ….

ICCF, Postal, Webserver Tournaments (please circle)7-Player, Open Class, WT , WS $12 ..... .....7-Player, Higher Class, WT, WS $12 ..... .....11-Player,Master Class, WT, WS $20 ..... .....13-Player,Master Norm,WT, WS $50 ..... .....Thematic Openings, Post, Email, Server $20 ..... .....NAPZ 7-player,Server only,Open/Higher $12 ..... .....

Correspondence Chess Score Books $3 ..... .....The CCLA scorebook is designed for CC play with room for 24 gamesof up to 55 moves plus dates and analysis.

Back Issue: ACCQ and CCLA Record (pre-1986) $1 per copyBack issues of our magazine are available from the Editor. Stocksinclude all recent editions and a selection of past issues dating back to1972. A mine of information. Please state date of issue (month andYear) when ordering.Date(s) of Issue......................................

All prices include postage Total $..........Name and Address:

Post order to: GPO Box 2360, Sydney, NSW, 2001Email order: shaunpress@gmail.com

36

ICCF Friendly Matches

All CCLA members are eligible to play in Friendly Matches for Australia.We compete against teams from all around the world and there is no cost.Matches are played on the ICCF webserver and we sometimes fieldAustralia B teams under the name of the CCLA Kangaroos. More Friendly Matches are planned in 2016, including against Poland andOthers. If you want to play in these or any other matches please contactBrian Jones at brianjoneschess@outlook.com

Completed Matches (2016 onwards)

Team Opponent Start Date End Date Boards Final Score

Australia/NZ CzechRepublic

April 2014 March2016

40 LOST 29 - 51

Australia Slovenia June 2014 March2016

22 LOST 18.5 –25.5

Australia/NZ Switzerland October2014

March2016

35 LOST 21 - 49

Australia Romania January2014

April 2016 35 DREW 35 – 35

Kangaroos GermanyU2100

January2015

April 2016 34 LOST 25.5 –42.5

Kangaroos BCCA July 2015 April 2016 26 LOST 17 - 35

Ongoing Matches (Australia)

Team Opponent Start date End

Boards Current Score

Australia Sweden June 2014 41 40.5 – 40.5 (1x)

Australia Iceland September 2014 29 14 – 43 (1x)

Australia/NZ Russia November 2014 120 47.5 – 190.5 (2x)

Australia/NZ Germany February 2015 80 48.5 – 109.5 (2x)

Australia Croatia February 2015 14 12.5 – 14.5 (1x)

37

Australia Slovakia May 2015 55 39.5 – 63.5 (7x)

Australia Bulgaria June 2015 27 13 – 32 (9x)

Australia Austria July 2015 47 24.5 - 43.5 (26x)

Australia Wales October 2015 34 31 - 28 (9x)

Australia Scotland October 2015 25 14.5 – 15.5 (20x)

Australia Argentina October 2015 18 16 – 12 (8x)

Australia Netherlands December 2015 40 16 – 23 (41x)

Australia India December 2015 20 8.5 – 4.5 (27x)

Australia Ukraine January 2016 45 16 – 25 (49x)

Australia England January 2016 30 4 – 8 (48x)

Australia France March 2016 20 0 - 0 (40x)

Australia USA March 2016 40 0 – 0 (80x)

NZ/Australia Finland May 2016 27 0 – 0 (54x)

Ongoing Matches – Other

Team Opponent Start DateEndDate

Boards Current Score

KangaroosNetherlandsUnder 2000

February2016

30 7 – 16 (37x)

KangaroosScheming

MindFebruary

201620 7 – 11 (22x)

KangaroosEnglandU2000

February2016

20 5.5 – 3.5 (31x)

38

CCLA Bicycle Events By Brian Jones

BICYCLE events are started regularly on demand. Wait time is usually nomore than a fortnight. All games are played on the ICCF webserver andare ICCF rated. The Time Control is 10 moves in 30 days. Entry isrestricted to CCLA members and guests, with ICCF ratings below 2000,who do not normally use chess engines. From 1 January 2016, allBICYCLE events are free of charge. If you want to play in a BICYCLEplease contact Brian Jones at brianjoneschess@outlook.com

AUS/2015/B30, Australian BICYCLE B30 (TD: Peter Maylott)

Place Name Rating Score Wins SB

1 AUS Mechlowski, Lennard 1800p 5.5 5 12.75

2 AUS Taylor, Kelvin 1800p 5.5 5 12.75

3 AUS McGirr, Joe 1800p 4 4 6

4 AUS Bishop, Joshua 1917f 3 3 3

5 AUS Clayton, Graham 1627 2 2 1

6 AUS Anderson, Len 1253 1 1 0

7 AUS Magill, Ray 1489 0 0 0

AUS/2015/B32, Australian BICYCLE B32 (TD: Peter Maylott)

Place Name Rating Score Wins SB

1 AUS Zheng, Anthony 1800p 5 4 12

2 NZL Cooper, Nigel 1964 4 3 11.5

3 AUS Cekulis, Maris 1800p 4 3 8.5

4 AUS Oats, Adrian 1981 4 3 8

5 MAS Lam, Edwin 1962 2 2 2

6 AUS Bishop, Joshua 1917f 1 1 4

7 MAS Kanagenthiran, P 1800p 1 1 1

AUS/2015/B34, Australian BICYCLE B34 (TD: Peter Maylott)

Place Name Rating Score Wins SB

1 AUS Taylor, Kelvin 1800p 6 6 15

2 AUS Groenhout, Ron 1796 5 5 10

3 AUS White, Christopher 1750 3 3 4.5

4 AUS Cook, Patrick 1698 2.5 2 4

39

5 AUS Wilkes, Adam 1840 2.5 2 3.5

6 AUS Finlayson, Mark 1769 2 1 2.5

7 AUS Chiverton, Barnaby 1646 0 0 0

AUS/2015/B44, Australian BICYCLE B44 (TD: Shaun Press)

Place Name Rating Score Wins SB

1 AUS Gillingham, Stephen 1656 5.5 5 13.25

2 AUS Wilson, Norm 1527 5 5 10.5

3 AUS Harris, Stephen 1635 4.5 4 8.75

4 AUS Jacobs, Gregory 1501 2 2 2

5 AUS de Jong, Oscar 1502 2 2 2

6 AUS Magill, Ray 1372 2 2 2

7 AUS Anderson, Len 1174 0 0 0

CCLA FAST Events By Brian Jones

FAST events are 4/2 events started regularly on demand. Wait time isusually no more than a fortnight. The games are played on the ICCFwebserver and are ICCF rated. The Time Control is 10 days followed by 1move in 3 days (three days is added to your time after each move). Entryis restricted to CCLA members and guests, with ICCF ratings below 2000,who do not normally use chess engines. All FAST events are free ofcharge. If you want to play in a FAST event please contact Brian Jones atbrianjoneschess@outlook.com

AUS/CCLA fast 1, Australian CCLA fast 1 (TD: Shaun Press)

Place

ICCF Name Rating

Score

Wins

SB

1 AUS 30509 Wilson, Gregory 1908 6 5 12

2 AUS 30614 Barukh, Yonatan 1425 3 3 3

3 EN 21182 Ward, Bill 1585 3 3 3

4 AUS 30535 Anderson, Len 1212 0 0 0

Australian FAST summaryFAST Start Date Winner Score TD

1 12/1/2016 Greg Wilson 6 Shaun Press

40

Bicycle GamesStubbs,Mike (1968) -Fraser,Wayne (1794)

AUS/2015/B40 (AUS) ICCF,12.10.2015

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 While theScotch Game is a regular fixture onthe present day GM circuit, it isworth remembering that 30 yearsago it was not considered a'serious' opening. 3...exd4 4.Nxd4Bc5 5.Be3 Qf6 6.c3 Nge7 7.Bc40–0 8.0–0 Ne5 9.Be2 d6 10.h3?This is a new move, with 10.f4being the most common of themany alternatives 10...Qg6 Whitemay have simply missed that thismove attacks both e4 and threatensBxh3

11.Nf5 [11.f4 Bxh3!] 11...Nxf512.exf5 Bxf5 13.Kh2 Bxe314.fxe3 Black is simply better atthis point. 14...Be4 15.Bf3 Nxf3+16.gxf3 Bc6 17.Rg1 Qe6 18.Qd4Qe5+ 19.f4 Qxd4 20.cxd4 Rae8

At this point Black is a pawn up,controls the e file, is hitting abackward pawn, and has bishop vknight. And yet, if you look at theend of the game, it is White whowins. So what is the reason? In factthere are 3 points to consider.Firstly, despite being a pawn up,Black needs to turn that pawn intoa passer. Secondly, Black needs totarget two weaknesses in White'sposition, as White can usuallydefend one. And finally, Blackneeds to manage White'scounterplay.

21.Rg3 Re7 22.Kg1 Rfe8 23.Kf2White has rearranged his rook andking to deal with the threats alongthe e file. This means Black nowhas to open another file to get hisrooks active. 23...b6 The c fileseems to now be the obvious homefor the Black rooks. 24.a4 Bb7This turns out to be an inaccuracy,although the reason why does not

41

become clear for a few moremoves. Putting the bishop on a8would be better. 25.b4 Rc8[25...c5 can be played here.26.dxc5 dxc5 27.bxc5 bxc5transforms the position into whatBlack wants.] 26.Nc3 a6 [26...c5 isstill ok but 27.bxc5 dxc5 28.Nb5 ismore annoying. The problem ofplacing the bishop on b7 is nowclear, as the a pawn would bedefended with the bishop on a8.]27.a5 c5?! While Black is stillbetter, this is the start of adownward slide. [27...b5 Whilethis moves runs counter to points 1and 2 made above, it does preventWhite from opening files in hisfavour.] 28.bxc5 bxc5

29.d5! An excellent move here.Despite the white pawns being onthe same colour squares as theBlack bishop they are sufficientlydefended and know reduce thebishop to an obstacle 29...f530.Rb1 c4 31.Rb6 With active

moves like this White is nowputting Black under pressure.31...Rd7 32.Rg1 Rc5 33.Rgb1Bxd5 34.Rxa6 Objectively thisposition is only equal, but thewinning chances are no longer justwith Black. The passed a pawn isWhites' trump and he soon plays it.34...Be4 35.Rb5 Rcc7 [35...Rdc7is the infamous right rook here.]36.Rab6 Ra7 37.a6 g6?? Thefinal mistake. Now White forcesthe pawn through by planting arook on b7 38.Nxe4 fxe4 39.Rb7c3 40.Ke2 Rc7 41.Rxc7 [41.Rxc7Rxc7 42.Rb8+ Kf7 43.Rb7+-] 1–0

McNeil,Michael -Laguerta,Cesar

AUS/2015/B40 (AUS) ICCF,12.10.2015

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 Nc6!? 4.d5[4.dxe5 dxe5 5.Qxd8+ Kxd8 6.Bc4f6 is another choice for Whitehere] 4...Nce7 5.Nc3 Nf6 6.Bc4Ng6 7.0–0 Be7 8.h3 Bd7 Whilethis position started out with Whitecalling the shots, Black often gets astrong attack with this setup. Themain issue is that the e4-d5 pawnsetup actually restricts White'spieces as they stand., giving Blackmore freedom on the kingside 9.b3h6 10.a4 a6 11.b4 Nh7 12.Be3Ng5 13.Ne1 Nh4 14.a5 0–015.Nd3 f5! The right move here.

42

16.Nxe5 With this move Whitedecides to find a tactical solutionto his problems. It does take an anamount of calculation to make itwork and it isn't surprising that theodd mis-step occurs for both sides.16...fxe4 [16...f4! is the bestresponse 17.Nxd7 Qxd7 and ifWhite tries to hang onto the bishopwith 18.Bd4 f3! is crushing.]17.Bxg5 Bxg5 18.Nxd7 Qxd719.Nxe4 White can actually bepleased with the outcome here, ashe is a pawn up, and few pieceshave been exchanged. 19...Bf420.Re1 Be5 21.Ra3 Rf4 22.f3[22.g3 I'm not sure why Whitepassed on this move. Possibly hewas worried about the queencapturing on h3. 22...Qxh3 23.Bf1!(23.gxf4 Qg2#; 23.gxh4 Qxa3–+)23...Qf5 24.gxf4 Qxf4 25.Rh3! isthe defence] 22...Raf8 23.Rd3Rxf3 Not the best move, butcertainly the most exciting.24.Rxf3 Nxf3+ 25.Kf2?? [25.gxf3Qxh3 26.Kf2 is the correct move

order] 25...Nxe1+ [25...Nd2+26.Kg1 Nxc4 also leaved Black ina winning position] 26.Kxe1 Qf527.Qg4 Qxg4 28.hxg4 Rf4 29.Bd3Rxe4+?? Black returns the favourwith this unnecessarysimplification. [29...Rxg4 30.Kf2Rh4 keeps Blacks advantage]

30.Bxe4 Bc3+ 31.Ke2 Bxb432.Bf5 b6 33.axb6 cxb6 WhileBlack is up a solid passed pawns,the opposite coloured bishopending is difficult to win. 34.Kd3a5 35.c3 Bc5 36.Bd7 Kf7 37.Ke4Kf6 38.Kf4 Ba3 39.g5+ Whitesurrenders another pawn, but theposition is now a simple draw39...hxg5+ 40.Ke4 g6 41.Bb5 Bc142.g4 Ke7 43.Kd4 Kd8 44.Ba4Kc7 45.Kc4 Kd8 46.Bc2 Ke747.Kb5 Be3 48.Bxg6 Kf6 49.Be8Ke5 50.Kc4 Bc5 51.Bd7 Kf452.Kb5 Ke4 53.Kc4 Kf4 54.Kd3a4 55.Bxa4 Kxg4 56.Ke4 Kg357.Bd1 Kf2 58.Bh5 b5 59.Kf5Ke3 60.Be8 Kd3 ½–½

43

Anderson,Len (1174) -Gillingham,Stephen (1656)AUS/2015/B44 (AUS) ICCF,

01.12.2015

1.c4 c5 2.g3 g6 3.Bg2 Bg7 4.Nf3Nc6 5.0–0 Nf6 6.Nc3 b6 7.d3 Bb78.Bf4 Nh5 9.Nb5 [9.Bg5 avoidsthe broken pawn structure.]9...Nxf4 10.gxf4 Bxb2 11.Rb1Bf6 12.e4 Nd4 13.e5 [13.Nbxd4Bxd4 14.Nxd4 cxd4 at least givesWhite a pawn centre in return forthe pawn lost] 13...Nxf3+ 14.Bxf3Bxf3 15.Qxf3 Bg7 16.f5 [Whitemissed a trick here with 16.Qxa8Qxa8 17.Nc7+ Kd8 18.Nxa8+-]16...Bxe5 17.f6 exf6 18.d4 cxd4

19.Qg2 So White has surrenderedfour pawns, and Black seems safe.Nonetheless it is still interesting toplay this one through to the finish,as White does not go down withouta fight. 19...a6 20.Na3 d321.Rbd1 0–0 22.Rxd3 Rc8 23.h4Bb2 24.Nc2 Rxc4 25.h5 g5

[25...Rxc2 was playable, but Blackprobably thought 'better safe thansorry'] 26.Ne3 Rh4 27.Nf5 [But27.f4 would have left Blackreconsidering his 25th move. Thebishop on b2 is hanging, and Whiteis threatening to capture twice ong5. 27...Kh8 28.Qxb2 gxf4 29.Ng2Rg8 leaves White a piece ahead,but still down enough pawns thatBlack is still better.] 27...Rf428.Nh6+ Kg7 29.Ng4 f5 30.h6+Kg6 The king is safe enough here31.Rd6+ f6 32.f3 fxg4 33.Qxb2b5 34.Qd2 gxf3 35.Rxd7 Qb6+36.Rf2 Rg4+ 37.Kf1 Rh438.Qd3+ Kh5 39.Rxh7 Rh1# 0–1

Anderson,Len (1212) - Ward,Bill(1585)

AUS/CCLA fast 1 ICCF,12.01.2016

1.c4 f5 2.g3 e6 3.Bg2 Nf6 4.Nf3Be7 5.0–0 0–0 6.Nc3 d6 7.b3 e58.d3 c6 9.Nd2 Qe8 10.e4 f4 Oneof the standard recipes for breakingopen a fianchettoed position.

44

11.Nf3 [11.gxf4 exf4 12.Nf3 Qg613.Nh4 Qg5 (13...Qh6 14.Nf5 Bxf515.exf5 Nbd7 offers attackingchances for Black) 14.Nf3 invites adraw by repetition.] 11...Qh512.h4 h6 13.d4 Bg4 14.d5 c515.Nb5 Not the right time to gorook hunting! 15...fxg3! 16.Nc7Nxe4 17.Nxa8 gxf2+ 18.Kh1 Bxf319.Bxf3 Qxh4+ 20.Kg2 Qg3+ 0–1

Barukh,Yonatan (1425) -Ward,Bill (1585)

AUS/CCLA fast 1 ICCF,12.01.2016

1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Nf6 3.Bc4 c6 Aninteresting gambit idea 4.dxc6Nxc6 5.Nf3 e5 6.Nc3 [6.Ng5 isalso punishing here] 6...Bc5 7.d3e4 A little too ambitious. Openlines will favour White, as soonbecomes clear

8.Ng5 0–0 [8...Bg4 9.Bxf7+ Kf810.f3 is a better option] 9.Ngxe4Nxe4 10.Nxe4 Bb6 11.0–0 Kh8

12.Re1 f5? 13.Ng5 This move,and its follow up, are decisive.13...Qf6 14.Qh5 [14.Qh5 h615.Ne6 Bxe6 16.Rxe6 Qd417.Rxh6+ gxh6 18.Qxh6# is oneway the game might end.] 1–0

Laguerta,Cesar - Fraser,Wayne(1794)

AUS/2015/B40 (AUS) ICCF,12.10.2015

1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 g6 4.Be2Bg7 5.0–0 d6 6.Nd5 e6 7.Ne3 Nf68.d3 0–0 9.c3 b6 10.h3 Ne811.Nh2 f5 12.exf5 exf5 13.f4 Nf614.Bf3 Bb7 15.Nd5 Qd7 16.a3Rfe8 17.Bd2 Kh8 18.Qc2 Nxd519.Bxd5

Nd4 20.cxd4 Bxd4+ 21.Kh1 Bxd522.Bc3 Bxc3 23.bxc3 Re3 24.Nf3Rae8 25.c4 Bb7 26.Qc3+ Kg827.Kh2 R8e7 28.Rae1 Qe829.Rxe3 Rxe3 30.Nh4 Qe7 31.Nf3h6 32.Rf2 Be4 33.Nh4 Qxh434.Kg1 Qg3 35.Qd2 Bxg236.Rxg2 Re1+ 37.Qxe1 Qxe1+38.Kh2 Kf7 0–1

45

Fees for CCLA events played on the ICCF webserver

(excluding major tournaments)

CCLA event Format DirectEntry

Cost to CCLAmembers

BICYCLE

These are 6/1 events forplayers ICCF- unrated orrated under 2000 who do notnormally use chess engines.Each event has 7 players,who play 6 rated games at astandard time control of 10moves in 30 days repeating

N/A Free

FAST

These are 4/2 events forplayers ICCF- unrated orrated under 2000 who do notnormally use chess engines.Eachevent has 4 players, whoplay 2 rated games againsteach other player with anaccelerated time control of10 days followed by 1 movein 3 days repeating

N/A Free

STANDARD 6/1

As for BICYCLE events butwith no rating or enginerestrictions. 7 players, 6 games

N/A Free

STANDARD 4/2

As for FAST events but withno rating or enginerestrictions.4 players, 6 games

N/A Free

Friendly Matchesfor Australia andKangaroo teams

Various N/A Free

46

2015 Australian Interstate Teams Roebuck,Dr. Derek (2270) -

Gross,M. C (2179)AUS/2015/IT (AUS) ICCF,

11.05.20151.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.e5 c55.a3 Bxc3+ 6.bxc3 Ne7 7.Qg4Qc7 8.Bd3 cxd4 9.Ne2 dxc310.Qxg7 Rg8 11.Qxh7 Qxe512.h4 [12.Bf4 Qf6 13.Qh6 Ng614.Bg5 Rh8 15.Bxf6 Rxh616.Bxc3 was a line chosen byMagnus Carlsen in 2008.]12...Rxg2 This looks like a newmove in this position. 13.Bg5 Nd714.Kf1 Nf8 [14...Rxg5 15.hxg5Qxg5 looked unappetising at firstglance, but given what soonhappened, turned out to be thebetter choice.] 15.Qh6 Rg416.Re1 [16.Ng3! is even stronger.16...Ng8 17.Qh5 and attempts toextricate or protect the rook runinto Re1 followed by a big attack.17...Qd4 18.Re1 Ng6 19.Nf5+-]16...Nf5 17.Qf6 Qxf6 18.Bxf6Nh7 19.Bxc3 f6 20.Bxf5 exf521.f3 keeping the rook fromblocking on e4 21...Rc4 Now theminor pieces dance around theBlack rook, soon forcingresignation! 22.Nd4+ Kf7 23.Nb5Rc6 24.Bb4 Be6 25.Nd6+ 1–0

Stubbs,Mike (2113) - Dunn,Paul(2013)

AUS/2015/IT (AUS) ICCF,11.05.2015

1.c4 c6 2.Nf3 d5 3.e3 Nf6 4.Nc3

Bf5 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.d4 e6 7.Bd3Bxd3 8.Qxd3 Nxc3 Swapping hereis small concession to White.Black could have waited untilWhite forced his hand. 9.bxc3 Be710.0–0 0–0 11.c4 Nd7 12.a4 Qc713.Bb2 Rfd8 14.Qc2 Removingthe queen from the firing line.14...Bf6 15.Rfd1 e5 Black has achoice of pawn breaks here.[15...c5 16.d5 exd5 17.cxd5 Bxb218.Qxb2 Nf6 19.d6 Rxd6 20.Rxd6Qxd6 21.Qxb7 and althoughStockfish regards this position asequal, White has the better pawnstructure (fewer islands). The onlyworry is the passed c pawn.]16.Ra3 [16.Rab1!?] 16...exd417.Bxd4 c5 18.Bxf6 Nxf6 unlikethe line starting with c5, Black isnow the one with a better pawnstructure. 19.Rad3 Rxd3 20.Qxd3Re8 21.h3 h6 Both sides take timeto avoid future back rank issues.22.Qb3 Re6 23.Rd3 Rb6 24.Qc2Rb4 The queenside pawns nowhave to be defended, while Blackis free to look for other targets.25.Nd2 a5 26.Nb3 Giving up apawn in return for greater activity.26...Rxa4 27.Rd1 Rb4 28.Nxc5Kf8 [28...Qxc5 29.Rd8+ is thetrick.] 29.Nb3 Rxc4 30.Rd8+ Ke731.Qd3 Rc3 White cannot defendthe rook and the knight. 0–1

47

ICCF RATINGS 2016-2 (APRIL 2016)The following 100 players are active with fixed ICCF ratings (minimum

30 games)ELO NAME # GAMES ELO NAME # GAMES2587 GM Chris Fenwick 128 1914 Peter Brackenridge 382578 IM Gordon Dunlop 665 1913 Steven O'Reilly 302534 SIM Bruce Oates 229 1909 Marc Vlietstra 462448 SIM Stephen Kerr 385 1906 Peter Sanders 622447 IM John-Paul Fenwick 293 1855 Graeme Deacon 502386 IM Dr Clive Barnett 232 1855 George Eraclides 692364 SIM Tim Runting 339 1853 Ron Groenhout 1382364 Barrie Mulligan 181 1844 Stephen Priest 492354 Colin McKenzie 383 1842 Steve McNamara 332325 LGM Veronica Henri 307 1836 Mark Ferris 392305 Dr Derek Roebuck 47 1836 Shaun Press 402290 Simon Jenkinson 803 1830 Alexander Sheward 622275 Malcolm Stephens 31 1827 Colin Parsons 872261 Dr Max Willow 393 1821 Paul Jonovic 1562241 Mulder, John 110 1818 Wayne Fraser 542220 Brian Jones 595 1811 Adam Wilkes 512220 Ryan Luey 117 1796 Peter Wark 1622208 IM Les Rowley 229 1787 Peter Brodie 562195 Donald Keast 172 1783 Geoff Kelly 742174 Maxwell Kershaw 110 1780 Andrew McKechnie 322160 Michael Gross 248 1753 Bruce Mason 362149 Joseph Tanti 451 1752 David Hughes 572141 Brian Thew 354 1745 Boyd Korab 672140 Ben McGinnes 44 1743 Glenn O'Brien 1032134 Peter Maylott 196 1740 John Williams 462132 Greg Devine 81 1736 Geoffrey Burrows 632130 David Flude 296 1735 Greg Roberts 432112 Jamie Davidson 392 1734 Ryan Lane 412110 Jeff Nutt 67 1727 Mark Finlayson 542105 Peter Dix 41 1722 Christopher White 552091 Gunter Stock 180 1715 Patrick Cook 2662090 Peter Greenwood 38 1687 Reza Safari Nejad 412087 Richard Egelstaff 43 1676 Stephen Gillingham 722078 Eric Staak 97 1644 Peter Hughes 582065 Jim Ramsden 692 1639 J C Peacock 352052 Anthony Martin 68 1617 Chris Liles 352047 Daniel Friere 246 1606 John Michas 552041 Dr Stewart Booth 233 1604 Chris Potter 2402035 Brian Pott 265 1603 Song Chen 362024 Paul Dunn 60 1598 Graham Clayton 1112020 Greg Hough 88 1585 Jason Gillard 462007 Adrian Oats 62 1566 Matthew Clarke 712005 IM Douglas Hamilton 694 1554 Norm Wilson 1112002 Mike Stubbs 390 1547 Brenden Walters 872000 Norman Garland 42 1523 Barnaby Chiverton 501959 Leon Kempen 213 1491 Joshua Hunt 1341953 Scott Humphreys 114 1409 Steven Pickles 1041937 Jonathan Chandler 141 1408 Terence Mills 661936 Michael Allies 32 1343 Ray Magill 971931 Gregory Wilson 66 1193 Len Anderson 518

48

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