And this is how badly I am afflicted by the chess bug...
...I’m now buying broken china just because it has a chess theme.
My research, and here I remind my readers of my diligence in such matters,
took me to a small village in southern Italy called Polominto and it was here
I met with a one legged man called Luigi ‘He Who Hops’ who told me it was
he who designed, then crafted and hand painted the above piece of porcelain.
As you can see over the course of time, he created this sculpture in his teens,
the chess pieces have been snapped off. I asked him if he could recall what
the original position was and was it taken from a famous game. But he replied
he could not even remember how he lost his leg and then told me to go away.
I approached the well known chess historian Edward Winter to see if he
could help but he too had no idea how Luigi, ‘He Who Hops’ lost his leg.
Maybe, and here I must admit I am taking a very wild guess, it was the
following position. Reasoning if a one legged man was going to recreate
a chess problem in porcelain then I think it would probably be this one.
White to play and mate in 3 moves.
Although admittedly a wild guess, I have not reached this conclusion
without some confidence. You see in 1969 I happened upon a crashed
Soviet spaceship in the Scottish Highlands. The crew had vanished but
they left behind a pocket chess set and it had this position set up upon it.
A coincidence? I do not think so and here I bring the readers attention
to the fact that Soviet pocket sets have only room for 28 captured pieces.
That is because they never played down to bare Kings, they always had at
least four left pieces on the board. It was against the Soviet state rules to play
with less than four pieces and that is why the Russians are so good at endgames.
When first trying to solve this (remember to avoid stalemate) you are tempted
to get the King onto the g and h-files where it runs out of room. But the knack
is to use the Black King’s lack of legal moves to force him into a checkmate.
[FEN "5K2/8/5k2/3Q1p2/5N2/8/8/8 w - - 0 1"]
1. Qb3 {If 1...Kg5 2.Qg3+ and mate next move.} 1... Ke5 2. Qb4 Kf6 {Only move.} 3. Qe7 {Checkmate. this was composed by Arthur William Daniel in 1903.}
Telboy 2 - genzo RHP 2007
[FEN "5Q2/8/8/4K3/8/8/6kp/1N6 w - - 0 1"]
1. Qg8+ Kh1 {In the actual game White found no way to force a mate and the game was, as they use to say in Victorian times, abandoned as a draw.} 2. Qd5+ Kg1 {There is a forced mate.} 3. Qd1+ Kg2 4. Qg4+ Kh1 5. Qf3+ Kg1 6. Nc3 h1=Q 7. Ne2+ Kh2 8. Qg3
I’ve got something funny to show you from a recent Edinburgh League OTB game.
This position arose with White to play. (thankfully I was not White.)
White is in complete control of the e-file. He should not lose this.
It took White just four moves to completely change this situation.
[FEN "r4rk1/5pp1/p1pq3p/3p2b1/3P2Q1/2B4P/1PP1RPP1/4R1K1 w - - 0 22"]
22. Bd2 Bxd2 23. Rxd2 Rfe8 {Now RxR+ then Re2, agree draw and off to the bar.} 24. Red1 Re4 25. Qh5 Rae8 {Incredibly Black is now in total control of the e-file. White went onto lose.}
Back to the Russians and we visit the 1957 USSR Championship.
R. Kholmov - M. Muhutdinov USSR 1957
This game contains an incredible trap that induced a back rank blunder.
[FEN "r3r1k1/1pB2ppp/p1n2bb1/2Np4/8/2P5/PPqQBPPP/3RR1K1 w - - 0 24"]
24. Qxc2 {With White wins a pawn and both players have seen far enough that Black can win it back.} 24... Bxc2 {It is this unprotected Bishop on c2 that enables White to nick a pawn and set the trap.} 25. Rxd5 Rac8 26. Bf4 Ne7 {Under normal conditions this would cost at least the exchange but White has the Bishop on c2 to attack.} 27. Rd2 Rxc5 28. Rxc2 Nd5 {And now Black uses the undefended Rook on c2 to win the pawn back} 29. Bd2 Nb4 30. Rcc1 Nxa2 {The material balance is restored. The problem is Black's back rank.} 31. Bc4 {OOPS! The a7 Knight is lost. White is threatening RxR mate. Black resigned, there is no way out.} 31... Rxe1+ 32. Rxe1 {The Knight still hangs and so does the Back rank.}
Some RHP games featuring a weak back rank all from 2017.
Dalradian (1555) - dhay (1614) RHP2017
Take a look a look this. White sets off on a suicide mission shunning a win on the way.
[FEN "3r1rk1/4pp1p/b2P2p1/q1p1B3/8/P7/5PPP/R2QR1K1 w - - 0 1"]
1. dxe7 Rxd1 2. exf8=Q+ Kxf8 3. Rexd1 {3.Raxd1 was much better but White gets another chance.} 3... Qb6 4. Rab1 Qa5 {Black's move here was 4...Qc6. White now has 5.Bf6 and the weak Black back rank gives Black a win.} 5. Rb8+ {Instead White now chases the Black King to exactly where it wants to go.} 5... Ke7 6. Bd6+ Kf6 7. Re8 Qxa3 8. Be5+ Kg5 9. g3 {This gives Black both the squares f3 and h3. 9. f4+ and the game is back in the pot.} 9... Qf3 10. Bf4+ Kg4 11. Rd7 Kh3 {White cannot do anything to prevent Qg2 mate.} 12. Rxf7 Qg2# {Checkmate. This is how the game ended.} *
Next White avoids a Back Rank Trap only to walk into it on the next move.
Steve - donwillrett RHP 2017
[FEN "6k1/4b1p1/pBn3qp/1p2pp2/2p1P3/2P2B2/PP3PPP/3Q2K1 w - - 0 23"]
23. Qd5+ Kh8 24. exf5 Qxf5 {White spots it. Qxc6 then Qb1 mates.} 25. Be4 Qf4 {Be3 is the move here.} 26. Qxc6 {White saw it the first time......} 26... Qc1# {....but missed it this time.}
Same theme. One player spots a Back Rank Trap then falls for it.
Ahmed Gattoo - IrishAce RHP.2017
[FEN "1r4k1/p1p2ppp/3p4/1p3q2/8/PQ5P/1PP2r2/2KRR3 w - - 0 29"]
29. h4 Qf4+ 30. Kb1 c5 31. Qxb5 {Very Clever thinks Black. If I play Rx Q you play Re8 mate. I'll just protect my b8 Rook.} 31... d5 {That protects b8....but what about e8.} 32. Re8+ {Yes Qe8+ does it as well.} 32... Rxe8 33. Qxe8# {Checkmate.} 1-0
Next Black takes steps to avoid being Back Ranked but it is this very step that
mates him. At the same time the losing player turns down a three fold repetition..
ragman1940 - sica RHP 2017
[FEN "2rr2k1/5ppp/p2p4/1p3N2/4Q3/P1q3PP/5B2/1K2R3 w - - 0 1"]
1. Ne7+ Kf8 {Black stays off h8. on f8 there no back rank tricks.} 2. Nxc8 {Black now has a perpetual with 2...Qb3+ 3. Ka1 Qxa3+ etc...White can never play Kc1 because Rxc8 is a check,} 2... Rxc8 {Now we see how crafty Black was a few moves ago. If the Black King was on h8 instead of f8 then 4.Qe8+ would mate Black.} 3. Qe7+ {By neglecting his checks and knocking back a perpetual Black has overlooked this check.} 3... Kg8 4. Qe8+ {The move 1....Kf8 was meant to prevent.} 4... Rxe8 5. Rxe8# *
This last one belongs in the Hall of Doom. Here is a diagram.
Obviously it is Black to play. Black wins. You can guess what happened.
Mctayto - suicidebishop RHP 2017
[FEN "3r4/4k3/2p1B3/R3BP2/6p1/8/5PPP/5RK1 w - - 0 28"]
28. Ra7+ Ke8 29. Rb1 c5 30. Rbb7 {There is nothing to say.} 30... Rd1
