English Chess Forum

I was teaching some kids yesterday about forks and discovered checks. I showed the following amusing little study to them:

[FEN "2k5/3N4/8/8/8/7B/8/3b1K2 w - - 0 1"] [SetUp "1"] *
White to play and win, A.V. Saritsjev, 1948

The solution is straightforward, of course, but the kids absolutely loved it. The discovered attacks are easy to find and the solution (chasing the bishop straight across the board with the king) is one they loved reproducing. King moves. Bang! Bishop runs away. King moves. Bang! and so on...

Shows that you don't necessarily have to dumb things down, provided the material is good.

Hi Paul

That is a cracker and the set up is easily remembered
thus making it a perfect teachers tool.
Add in the metaphor by Rueben Fine that the discovered check
is the 'Dive Bomber' of the chessboard and it's a positive hook.

Of course there has to follow the hard bit showing them
the Bishop and Knight mate. Hard in the fact you have to
make it just as interesting and fun.

The study brought this one to mind, again easy to recall and set up.
The Bishop tries to give itself up and White is not interested.

[FEN "8/2k5/P1N5/1K6/8/8/3b4/3B4 w - - 0 1"]

1. a7 Kb7 2. a8=Q+ Kxa8 3. Ka6 Ba5 4. Bg4 Bb6 5. Bc8 Bd4 6. Bb7

And there was a game...This time my memory failed me.

I know it was played by one of the lads in Rampant Chess and it popped
up when Keith and me were selecting games.
I knew it was one of Keith's players and I was 100% sure it was a Paul Motwani
game but I could not find it. So went through his players games and found it.


Craig Pritchett - D.Wright British Champs. Eastbourne 1973

It's not a forced win, Instead of 5....Bc8 Black shoudl play 5...Bc6.

[FEN "8/3b4/8/4K1Np/7P/6k1/8/5B2 w - - 0 1"]

1. Ne4+ Kxh4 2. Kf4 Bh3 3. Bc4 Be6 4. Bd3 Bd7 5. Ng5 Bc8 6. Nf3+ Kh3 7. Bf1

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Thanks, Geoff!

Love that endgame by Pritchett, that's a nice one, too!

On the subject of studies involving bishops and knights, here's a nice one by Pogosjants:

[FEN "4b3/8/B6K/8/4N2k/5Pp1/8/8"] [SetUp "1"] *

White to play and win.

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Jack, maybe I'm being a bit dense here, but all I see is 1. Bf1 to stop the g-pawn. Then White pushes his f-pawn, wins it for the Bishop and mops up. Something like 1... Bd7 (threatening 2... Bh3) 2. Ng5, followed by Kg6, f4, f5, etc. Possibly throwing in Bg2 helps as it stops the Black king activating itself by g2, followed by Kg3. Is that the point of the study, something like 1. Bf1 Bd7 2. Ng5 g2 3. Bxg2 Kg3 4. Bf1 Bc6 5. Be2 Kf4 when it is difficult to get the f-pawn going?

Black's first move in the main line is 1...Bb5, if that helps.

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The drawing threat, or one of them, is to take the Knight on e4. White replies fxe4, but then Kg4 will catch the pawn, with the help of using the g pawn, if necessary, as a distraction.

Ah, interesting. Is 1. Bf1 Bb5 2. Bg2 Bf1 3. Bxf1 g2 4. Ng3 the idea? That's a lovely idea, if it is!

That's the one.

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http://westcountrychess.blogspot.com

Phew!