Annotated Game #333: When to trust an attack

This third-round tournament game highlights the attacking potential of the Colle / Stonewall Attack setup, with some spectacular tactics lurking if Black does not defend properly. Unfortunately I miss seizing my chances, first with a knight sacrifice on f7, then afterwards with a rook sac on the same square - which is in fact played, but one move too late to be decisive. My calculation and visualization challenges continue, leading to an eventual loss after sacrificing too much material, although I could have had a saving perpetual on Black's king.

Part of the problem was not trusting the initial attack enough to play into it. Even in a situation where you cannot calculate everything - which inevitably occurs at all levels - one can (and should) still evaluate the likely prospects for the attack. I am still relatively new to attacking play and therefore learning my way in such situations, which in this case called for more boldness. That said, I will also draw attention to the analysis, where after the sacrifices certain more patient prepatory moves would be necessary to seize the advantage. After not seeing immediate forcing sequences, however, I discarded the original attacking ideas. Patience in the attack is also something a lot of club players need to learn.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "ChessAdmin"] [Black "Class D"] [Result "0-1"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [ECO "D05"] [WhiteFideId "-1"] [BlackFideId "-1"] [PlyCount "58"] [GameId "2262411080920471"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. e3 d5 4. Bd3 Bd6 {when an opponent mimics your setup, it typically means they do not have independent knowledge of the opening. Black decides to break the symmetry in the Colle on the next move, although it's really move 6 which makes things more original.} 5. Nbd2 {a reasonable and flexible developing move.} (5. b3 $5 {instead commits to the Colle-Zukertort setup, and scores slightly higher in the database.}) 5... O-O 6. O-O Re8 {the rook is well-placed on the e-file, but this allows my knight to hop into e5, so I do so.} 7. Ne5 (7. e4 $5 $14 {the engine favors this standard Colle e-pawn break, threatening e4-e5 and activating the Nd2 if there is an exchange on e4.}) 7... Nbd7 8. f4 $14 {I now have e5 firmly under control.} c5 9. c3 {reaching a Stonewall Attack formation.} b6 {White is a little ahead in development - most notably there is no Black bishop on b7 yet - so there are a few more options than normal.} 10. Qf3 $11 {played with the idea of maintaining control of e4 after ...Bb7.} (10. e4 $5 {this central pawn lever still works, without Black's bishop on the long diagonal.}) (10. g4 {played immediately would defer placing the queen.}) 10... Bb7 11. g4 g6 {my opponent thought for a while before deciding on this defensive move.} 12. Qh3 {it is often difficult to decide how exactly to proceed in the Stonewall Attack, either relying on piece play or a pawn storm.} (12. h4 $5 {is now a viable attacking move, with the h-pawn potentially able to target g6 after the defending Nf6 moves. The queen can also swing in behind on h3.} Ne4 {looks good, but} (12... Rc8 13. Qh3 $14) 13. Bb5 $14 {is now a productive use for the bishop.}) (12. b3 Rc8 13. Bb2 $14) 12... Ne4 $2 {this removes the lone minor piece defender of Black's kingside for a crucial tempo.} 13. Bxe4 $6 {taking on e4 with the wrong piece.} (13. Nxf7 $1 {I spent a good deal of time over the board considering this, but could not see how to make it work.} Kxf7 (13... Qe7 {declining the sacrifice is safter but still losing.} 14. Nh6+ Kh8 15. g5 $18 {White is a full pawn up and with a great attack.}) 14. Qxh7+ Kf8 {I did not see how White could further the attack from this point, so did not trust it. However, now taking with the bishop is correct:} 15. Bxe4 dxe4 16. Nc4 $1 $18 {the knight can now penetrate, and if exchanged on e5 then White will retake with the f-pawn and add the Rf1 to the attack.}) (13. Nxe4 {this is the way to go if White wants to take on e4.} dxe4 14. Nxf7 Kxf7 (14... Qe7 15. Nh6+ Kh8 16. Bb5 a6 17. dxc5 Bxc5 18. Be2 $18) 15. Qxh7+ Kf8 16. f5 $1) 13... dxe4 14. Ndc4 $14 {the number two move, according to the engine.} (14. Nxf7 $1 Qe7 15. Nh6+ Kg7 16. b3 $18) 14... Nxe5 15. fxe5 {correctly opening the file for the Rf1, but White still is only slightly better. However, after the reasonable-looking} Bf8 $2 16. Bd2 $6 {I thought for some time at the board, primarily trying to make the capture on f7 work again - this time with the rook - but did not see how. I played the text move on the principle of connecting the rooks and adding to the attack that may, but I missed Black's pinning response.} (16. Rxf7 $1 {wins immediately.} Kxf7 (16... h6 17. Rxb7 $18) 17. Qxh7+ Bg7 18. Bd2 $1 $18 {Now this move is decisive - sequencing matters, as both the Ra1 and Nc4 are threatening to give check and join the attack.}) 16... Ba6 $11 17. Rxf7 $1 {this should still draw. Unfortunately I did not see Black's h-pawn defense, which led to further discombobulation in my thinking.} h5 $6 (17... h6 $11) 18. Raf1 $2 $17 {"long think, wrong think" as the saying goes. Now the Nc4 goes, while I do not get enough compensation.} (18. Rf6 {I spotted the idea but then did not give it enough thought. This immediately targets the weakness on g6, which cannot be defended.} Bg7 19. Rxg6 Bxc4 20. Be1 $14 {with the idea of redeploying the bishop to h4 and seizing the key h4-d8 diagonal, while continuing to threaten the weak h-pawn.} hxg4 $2 {would lead to} 21. Qxg4 Qd7 22. Bh4 $18) (18. b3 $4 {trying to be safe does not work.} Kxf7 $19) 18... Bxc4 19. R1f6 {another long think, correctly this time.} Be2 $2 {neither my opponent nor I correctly calculate the tactics involved in the defense. At the time, it struck me as a clever way to get the bishop involved and threaten taking on g4.} (19... Re7) 20. Rxg6+ $6 {This still should draw, even though I miss another win.} (20. Rxf8+ $1 {I had examined capturing on f8 before, but concluded that it did not work, so did not re-examine it as a candidate move.} Rxf8 21. Rxg6+ Kf7 22. Qxh5 Qd7 {the Black king cannot try to run without being mated, so this provides another square. Now multiple moves win, for example} 23. Be1 (23. d5 exd5 (23... Bc4 24. d6 Ke8 25. Rf6+ $18) 24. e6+ $18) 23... Ke8 24. Rf6+ $18) 20... Kxf7 21. Qxh5 $1 {this should still be enough for a draw.} Bg7 {only move} 22. Qh7 $2 (22. Rf6+ $1 {I did not even consider, missing the fact that the discovery made the rook untakeable. I actually did see this (dimly) early on in the calculation process, but then somehow discounted it.} Kg8 23. Qf7+ Kh8 (23... Kh7 $4 24. Rh6+ Kxh6 25. Qh5#) 24. Qh5+ {with a draw by repetition coming.}) 22... Rg8 {now my opponent's defense is more than enough to emerge with a win, given the material disparity, although it remains slightly tricky.} 23. Be1 {a good idea, but too late.} Kf8 24. Bh4 Qd7 25. Bf6 Qf7 $1 {kills off any remaining chances for White.} 26. Bxg7+ Rxg7 27. Qh8+ Rg8 28. Qh6+ Ke7 {the king now has plenty of room to run.} 29. Qg5+ Kd7 0-1