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This was my first Shropshire League match for my new team, Shrewsbury A |
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1. d4
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My opponent is Glyn Pugh. I have played alongside him in 4NCL teams |
 
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1... Nf6
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I play my usual |
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2. c4
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Conventional stuff so far |
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2... g6
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I aim for my usual Grunfeld |
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3. h4
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Unusual, and very aggressive, signalling a possible king side attack already |
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3... Bg7
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I decided to ignore it |
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4. Nc3
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So here he allows me to transpose into a Grunfeld Defence with 4....d5, but I thought that was not good as he could at some point continue with cxd5 Nxd5 h5, as, with the knight decoyed away from control of h5 and then his 3. h4 begins to make more sense. I found out later that 4....d6 transposing into a King's Indian Defence is most common here, but I decided to follow what I think was a suggestion by Bill Hartston in his book on the Grunfeld. |
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4... c5
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So I offer him a transposition to a Benoni, an opening where an early h4 is rare. Stockfish does recommend this move, but still gives a marginal advantage to white. |
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5. d5
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Which he accepts. |
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5... e6
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I immediately start to "nibble" at his centre. |
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6. e4
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So naturally he reinforces his centre. |
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6... exd5
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I take |
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7. cxd5
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He takes back. Stockfish thinks this is the best way to take back, and it is the more normal way to take back in the Benoni, but the only games I can see on my opening databases (Lichess and Gameknot), with this position, white recaptured with the pawn. |
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7... d6
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Necessary, to stop e4-e5 |
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8. Be2
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Clearly aiming to support h4-h5. Now I do have this position, by transposition, on the Lichess opening database. Black here played either 0-0, h5 or a6. However what I played is what Stockfish thinks is the strongest move. |
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8... Qe7
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Attack the e pawn! |
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9. Qc2
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He defends. Stockfish gives this as equal. |
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9... h6
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PLayed to meet h5 with g5. Sockfish recommends Nb-d7 |
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10. Bf4
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Stockfish recommended 10. h4-h5 |
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10... O-O
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As recommended by Stockfish, who thinks it is still equal. |
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(2224)