After watching the games I had a sore tongue - I had to bite it so many times! These are the main things I wanted to tell the youngsters during the games, and which parents and teachers could in my view work upon.
![]() | Tip 1: Make sure know all the rules and where the pieces go at the start of the game |
![]() | Tip 2: Check each move before you play it |
But please don't move a piece to a square, hold on to it and then look round - this is quite off-putting for your opponent who cannot see the whole board while your arm is in the way. Also, if you do decide to retract the move, (1) you have to move that piece (touch-move rule) when you might prefer to move a different one, and (2) your opponent now knows what you are thinking about!
![]() | Tip 3: Know how to finish off a won game. |
![]() | Practice with a friend, trying to win when you have a King+Queen vs. a bare King, or King+Rook vs. King. You can make this a little game yourselves - who can do it fastest? Less than 12 for the King+Queen vs. King and less than 20 for the King+Rook are good scores; the maximum scores for perfect play are 10 and 17 respectively. Watch out for stalemate! |
Those are the top three that I'd suggest for many of the players. But even the better ones might also need to pay attention to my next tip for improving their openings.
![]() | Tip 4: Play an open, tactical game |
There are all sorts of ways to liven this sort of thing up - for example, White can opt for the Open variation on move four of the GP: 4. c3, Nf6; 5. d4, exd4; 6. cxd4, Bb4+; 7. Bd2, Bxd2+; 8. Nxd2, d5; 9. exd5, Nxd5. Or, White has the Evans' Gambit: 4. b4!? Bxb4 5. c3, Ba5; 6. d4 when White has a move up on the Open variation at cost of a Pawn. Black can vary with 3...Nf6, the Two Knight's Defence, with the main lines being 4.d4 or more usually the gambit line 4. Ng5, d5; 5.exd5, Na5; 6. Bb5+ c6; 7. dxc6, bxc6; 8.Be2. White can't duck into a square-knight line with 4.Nc3 because 4...Nxe4! (idea 5...d5) gives Black a free game (or a free pawn!) As a rule all these lines are going to be more fun and better training for young players than the Four Knights type of development. If you must play the Giuoco Pianissimo, as the line with 1. e4, e5; 2. Nf3, Nc6; 3. Bc4, Bc5; 4. Nc3, Nf6; 5. d3 is called, there are some hot tips for this line too.
Giuoco Pianissimo
![]() | Here's how I see the White side - Black being the same. |
Tip 5: Don't be in a hurry to castle:
your opponent may play ...Bg4 (or Bg5) and pin your knight against the Queen. If you have castled you probably won't be able to play h3 (or ...h6) without dangerously weakening your king. Steinitz discovered that the sacrificial idea 6. O-O, Bg4; 7. h3, h5! 8.hxg4, hxg4 was playable for Black in many positions because of the attack on the King down the open h-file: once the Queen gets to h5 White is finished.
Even playing 1.e4, e5; 2. Nf3, Nc6; 3. Bc4, Bc5; 4. Nc3, Nc6; 5. d3, d6; 6.h3 is not advisable as Black may play the standard sacrifice ...Bxh3 at some point. (See Tatai-Korchnoi and and liubarski - soultanbieff at the end of the Technique section.)
Tip 6: The key question in this line is: how are you going to develop your queen's bishop?
White on move six can go 6. Be3 hoping for 6...Bxe3; 7. fxe3 when there is a juicy half-open f-file to attack along. Black is better off calmly retreating with 6...Bb6 or even leaving the Bishop at c5.
Tip 7: The analysts gradually agreed that 6.Bg5, the Canal Variation, is the best move.
One line of this goes 6...h6; (this is OK for Black before castling) when the main line goes 7.Bxf6, Qxf6; 8.Nd5, Qd8. White has given up the Bishop pair to achieve a bit of initiative. [There is a hairy line with 6.Bg5, h6; 7.Bxf6, Qxf6; 8.Nd5, Qg6!? 9.Nxc7+ which is supposed to be poor for Black if White plays 9.Rg1 instead, but White has to prove it!] Other ways to play for Black are to hit the other bishop with 6...Na5 (as in the final game) or to play himself 6...Be6.
Tip 8: in the Canal Variation: to emphasise the pin on the Nf6,
if you're allowed, with moves like Nd5, and otherwise threaten to give Black doubled, and therefore weak, f-pawns. I played a miniature with this theme at the British Universities' Congress some years ago:
Regis (Exeter) - Orpwood (Salford), BUCA. 1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nc6 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. d3 Bb4 5. Nge2 O-O 6. O-O d6 7. Bg5 Na5 8. Bxf6! gxf6 9. Nd5 Bc5 10. b4 Nxc4 11. dxc4 c6 12. bxc5 cxd5 13. cxd5 dxc5 14. Ng3 Kh8 15. Qh5 Qd7? 16. Qh6 Qd6 17. Nh5 Rg8 18. Nxf6 Rg7 19. Qxg7+ 1-0 (Ne8+ will leave White a rook ahead)
Tip 9: again in the Canal Variation: move the Nc3 to e.g. d5 and play for c3 and d4 with a central space advantage. The knight can relocate to e3...
Tip 10: try to open up the f-file with f4:
this will require you to play Be3 to stop a check from the Bc5 and to move the other Knight e.g. Nh4. From h4 the Knight can threaten to go to f5 when Black may be reluctant to remove it by ...g6 which will create weaknesses. A Queen's Knight that has travelled from c3-d5-e3 also puts pressure on this square, and if Black does play g6 then Ne3-g4 hits all the soft spots.
we can see many of these themes at work in this game by the Swiss master Werner Hug:
Hug-Barle, Pula Interzonal 1975. 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. d3 d6 6. Bg5 Na5 7. Bb3 Nxb3 8. axb3 Be6 9. Na4 h6 (9... Bb6 10. Nxb6 axb6 {or 10...cxb6; 11.d4! with a superior pawn structure} 11. Rxa8 Qxa8 12. Bxf6 gxf6 13. Nh4 Pritchett) 10. Bh4 Bg4 (10... g5 11. Bg3 Nd7 12. Nxc5 Nxc5 13. b4 Nd7 14. d4) 11. Nxc5 dxc5 12. h3 Bxf3 13. Qxf3 Qd6 14. Bxf6 Qxf6 15. Qxf6 gxf6 (Here we have the doubled f-pawns again) 16. Ra5! {accurate: forces a permanent weakness on a7. Black must divert his King to the Q-side when a shift to the f-file catches him wrong-footed. Black is probably already lost.} 16... b6 17. Ra6 Kd7 18. O-O Kc6 19. f4 Kb7 20. Raa1 Rh7 21. fxe5 fxe5 22. Rf6 White now wins a pawn while Black struggles for counterplay. 22...a5 23. Rf5 Re8 24. Raf1 Re7 25. Rh5 Re6 26. Rhf5 Re7 27. g4 Kc6 28. Rf6+ Kb5 29. R1f5 a4 30. bxa4+ Kxa4 31. Rh5 c4 32. dxc4 Kb4 33. Rhxh6 Rxh6 34. Rxh6 Rd7 35. Rf6 Kxc4 36. Kf2 Rd2+ 37. Ke3 Rh2 (37... Rxc2 doesn't help, e.g. 38. Rxf7 c5 39. Rf2 Rxf2 40. Kxf2 Kb3) 38. Rc6+ Kb5 39. Rxc7 Rxh3+ 40. Kf2 Rh2+ 41. Kg3 Re2 42. Kf3 Re1 43. Re7 f6 44. g5 fxg5 45. Rxe5+ Kc4 46. Rxg5 Rf1+ 47. Ke2 Rb1 48. b3+ Kc3 49. Rb5 Rc1 50. Rxb6 Rxc2+ 51. Ke3 1-0