County Match (Open) 2025-26: Sussex – Cambridgeshire

   [Event "Minor Counties Knockout"]  [Site "Horsham"]  [Date "2026.05.09"]  [Round "9"]  [White "Linton, Alexander"]  [Black "Mansson, James C"]  [Result "0-1"]  [Annotator "Mansson,James"]  [ECO "B33"]  [WhiteElo "2043"]  [BlackElo "2059"]  [WhiteFideId "-1"]  [BlackFideId "-1"]  [PlyCount "116"]  [GameId "2307967008977123"]  [EventDate "2025.09.01"]  [EventType "swiss"]  [EventRounds "10"]  [EventCountry "ENG"]  [WhiteTeam "Sussex"]  [BlackTeam "Cambridgeshire"]  [WhiteTeamCountry "ENG"]  [BlackTeamCountry "ENG"]   {In this video I am going to look at a game I played a couple of Saturdays ago in a county match against Cambridgeshire in the Minor Counties quarter-final. The match was played at a neutral venue in Wanstead.  I was on board seven. I had the Black pieces and was up against Alexander Linton.  My opponent started with} 1. e4 {and I responded with} c5 {The Sicilian Defence} 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e5 5. Nb5 d6 {The Kalashnikov Variation} 6. a4 (6. c4) (6. N1c3) 6... Nf6 7. N1c3 a6 8. Na3 Bg4 $1 {The Poke (Danny King)} 9. f3 Be6 10. Bc4 {Now both sides play was inaccurate over the next few moves.} Be7 $6 (10... Rc8 $1 $11 {King}) 11. Be3 $2 (11. Nd5 $14 {The knight cannot easily be dislodged. If Black had played ...Rc8 rather than ...Be7, ...Ne7 would be an option, but that is not the case here.}) 11... O-O $6 (11... Nb4 $1 $15) 12. Qd2 Rc8 13. O-O Bxc4 14. Nxc4 Nd4 $1 {This is a neat tactic, exploiting the weakening of the a7-g1 diagonal.} 15. Bxd4 $2 (15. b3 $11) 15... exd4 {Black now wins a piece.} 16. Ne2 (16. Qxd4 d5 $1 17. Ne3 Bc5 18. Qd2 Bxe3+ 19. Qxe3 d4 $19) 16... Rxc4 {Now Black is a piece up and just has to play carefully.} 17. b3 Rc8 18. Nxd4 g6 19. Kh1 Nh5 20. g4 Ng7 21. Rad1 Ne6 22. Ne2 Nc5 23. Nc3 Bf6 24. Nd5 Bg7 {Black has regrouped his minor pieces to stronger squares.} 25. Qg2 {White prepares f4 by covering e4.} Kh8 {This seemed a useful prophylactic move, as otherwise Black's queen is tied down to covering the e7 square, preventing Ne7+ by White.} 26. f4 Re8 27. Rde1 b5 28. axb5 axb5 29. f5 {White now decides to go for it on the kingside.} Be5 30. f6 Ne6 31. g5 {White is hoping to build up an attack down the h-file, but Black can counter-attack on the queenside.} Qa5 32. Re3 Qa2 33. Nb4 Qa7 34. Rh3 {White now starts throwing all his pieces into the attack, but he can't create anything quickly enough. Meanwhile, Black's pieces are very effective in the centre and on the queenside.} Nf8 35. Rh6 Bc3 36. Nd5 Qd4 37. Ne7 Ra8 {Black now threatens ...Ra1, swapping a pair of rooks.} 38. Rh4 {This was a sign that White had run out of ideas, while acknowledging that Black's play on the queenside was strong.} Ra1 39. Rxa1 Bxa1 40. Qh3 Qd1+ 41. Kg2 Qe2+ 42. Kh1 Bd4 {Black threatens ...Qe1+ with a quick mate.} 43. Rf4 {White is forced to abandon his kingside attack totally, but now his situation is hopeless.} Ra8 44. Rf1 Ra1 {Black forces off a second pair of rooks.} 45. Rxa1 Bxa1 46. Qg2 Qe1+ {Black first wins a pawn.} 47. Qg1 Qxe4+ 48. Qg2 {Now Black was hoping to force a quick mate, but soon had to concede that he had to go into an endgame.} Qe1+ 49. Qg1 Qe5 50. Qg2 Qe1+ 51. Qg1 Qxg1+ 52. Kxg1 Ne6 {This endgame is obviously winning for Black.} 53. Nc8 Be5 54. h4 h6 55. Kg2 hxg5 56. hxg5 Nxg5 57. Na7 b4 58. Nc6 Bc3 0-1