Tactics practice

Discuss anything you like about chess related matters in this forum.
User avatar
IM Jack Rudd
Posts: 4818
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 1:13 am
Location: Bideford
Contact:

Re: Tactics practice

Post by IM Jack Rudd » Mon Jul 01, 2013 11:09 pm

Here's one from a club game I played tonight:



What did I play next?

Simon Brown
Posts: 798
Joined: Wed Oct 08, 2008 8:38 pm
Location: Sevenoaks, Kent, if not in Costa Calida, Spain

Re: Tactics practice

Post by Simon Brown » Mon Jul 01, 2013 11:21 pm

Qg7! Maybe not as Nf7 looks promising too.

Matt Fletcher
Posts: 271
Joined: Wed Mar 09, 2011 9:42 pm

Re: Tactics practice

Post by Matt Fletcher » Mon Jul 01, 2013 11:44 pm

I thought 1. Qg7 2. Ng4 initially - but there's too many ways to defend the Knight I think (eg Ra6 might even hold?)

How about 1. Rd8? Followed by stuff like Nxf7 and Bxf6?

User avatar
IM Jack Rudd
Posts: 4818
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 1:13 am
Location: Bideford
Contact:

Re: Tactics practice

Post by IM Jack Rudd » Tue Jul 02, 2013 12:30 am

The game did indeed finish 23.Rd8 1-0.

23...Kg8 is a defence that neither of us spotted at the time, although I think 24.Ng4 should deal with it adequately.

User avatar
Greg Breed
Posts: 723
Joined: Thu Apr 05, 2007 8:30 am
Location: Aylesbury, Bucks, UK
Contact:

Re: Tactics practice

Post by Greg Breed » Mon Sep 16, 2013 5:34 pm

A really nice problem here, which is easy once you see the pattern and therefore the first move. Sadly, Geoff's suggestion of "whiting" out the moves doesn't work, so i'll post the answer on Wedensday.

Makhatadze 1985
White to move and mate in 8.
Last edited by Greg Breed on Tue Sep 17, 2013 2:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Hatch End A Captain (Hillingdon League)
Controller (Hillingdon League)

User avatar
IM Jack Rudd
Posts: 4818
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2007 1:13 am
Location: Bideford
Contact:

Re: Tactics practice

Post by IM Jack Rudd » Mon Sep 16, 2013 5:57 pm

I take it the problem is "White to play and mate in 8"? Yeah, nice problem.

User avatar
Greg Breed
Posts: 723
Joined: Thu Apr 05, 2007 8:30 am
Location: Aylesbury, Bucks, UK
Contact:

Re: Tactics practice

Post by Greg Breed » Tue Sep 17, 2013 2:48 pm

IM Jack Rudd wrote:I take it the problem is "White to play and mate in 8"? Yeah, nice problem.
Yes, sorry, i should have written that. I hate it when others don't specify and here I am doing it! :roll:
Hatch End A Captain (Hillingdon League)
Controller (Hillingdon League)

User avatar
Greg Breed
Posts: 723
Joined: Thu Apr 05, 2007 8:30 am
Location: Aylesbury, Bucks, UK
Contact:

Re: Tactics practice

Post by Greg Breed » Tue Oct 01, 2013 10:22 am

Another nice problem from Shredder chess - white to move and get a winning advantage in 6 moves with best play by Black (or lose if you're not careful!).
Hatch End A Captain (Hillingdon League)
Controller (Hillingdon League)

James Toon
Posts: 250
Joined: Fri Apr 06, 2007 5:54 pm
Location: Surrey

Re: Tactics practice

Post by James Toon » Tue Oct 01, 2013 11:04 am



One from 2012. I'm White and it's my move. What should be the outcome with best play?

Barry Sandercock
Posts: 1356
Joined: Tue Sep 11, 2012 10:52 am

Re: Tactics practice

Post by Barry Sandercock » Tue Oct 01, 2013 2:35 pm

White is slightly worse, but with normal O.T.B. play anything could happen.

Roger de Coverly
Posts: 21301
Joined: Tue Apr 15, 2008 2:51 pm

Re: Tactics practice

Post by Roger de Coverly » Tue Oct 01, 2013 2:47 pm

James Toon wrote:

One from 2012. I'm White and it's my move. What should be the outcome with best play?
Rxf6 looks possible and it appears very difficult for Black to retake because of all the diagonal mates from the Queen and the Bishops.

John Cox
Posts: 352
Joined: Tue Dec 23, 2008 12:53 pm

Re: Tactics practice

Post by John Cox » Tue Oct 01, 2013 4:20 pm

Is it? I'm too idle to give it more than a couple of seconds' consideration, obviously, but how do I put Black to the sword after 1 Rxf6+ gxf6 2 Bh5+ Kg8 3 Qg3+ Qg7? I can take on c3, I suppose, but that's not mate.

James Toon
Posts: 250
Joined: Fri Apr 06, 2007 5:54 pm
Location: Surrey

Re: Tactics practice

Post by James Toon » Tue Oct 01, 2013 7:07 pm

Not all positions result in a clear win for one side. In this case, I'm over-extended and a pawn down, but Black's king is exposed. 19.Rxf6+ is all I've got. The question is how to follow it up. After 19…gxf6 (not 19…Kxf6 when 20.Qf3+ is a quick mate) 20.Bh5+, Black has a choice of three king moves.

20…Ke6 is the least interesting because White has nothing better than 21.Bg4+ Kf7 with a repetition.

20…Kg8 21.Qg3+ Qg7 22. Qxc3, as noted by John Cox, recovers some of the material but is not a win. White does have the more active pieces and a lot of pressure, and 23.Qc6 is awkward. In some lines White checks his way to a draw, but others are simply unclear.

In the game, Black chose 20…Kg7. Then after 21.Qg3+ Kh6 22.Bf3 Black has to do something about the threat of Bc1+. Later analysis suggested giving back some of the material by 22…Nxa2 23.Bxd5 forking rook and knight, with another unclear position. What actually happened was 22…Ne4 23.Bc1+ Ng5 24.h4 which both recovers the piece and continues the attack. The position is hard to defend and I eventually broke through to win.

Ian Thompson
Posts: 3551
Joined: Wed Jul 02, 2008 4:31 pm
Location: Awbridge, Hampshire

Re: Tactics practice

Post by Ian Thompson » Tue Oct 01, 2013 7:29 pm

Greg Breed wrote:Another nice problem from Shredder chess - white to move and get a winning advantage in 6 moves with best play by Black (or lose if you're not careful!).
I reckon White has a winning advantage already, or is the problem to work out how Black blunders? :)

Isn't this problem spoilt by White having two completely different ways of reaching an obviously resignable position for Black?

User avatar
Greg Breed
Posts: 723
Joined: Thu Apr 05, 2007 8:30 am
Location: Aylesbury, Bucks, UK
Contact:

Re: Tactics practice

Post by Greg Breed » Thu Oct 03, 2013 12:45 pm

Ian Thompson wrote:Isn't this problem spoilt by White having two completely different ways of reaching an obviously resignable position for Black?
I don't think so. It's why I pointed that Black can win as well if White gets careless!


You may (or may not) appreciate that a lot of those variations are mine and done without an engine or without much thought (on a lunch break), so comment away :D
Hatch End A Captain (Hillingdon League)
Controller (Hillingdon League)

Post Reply