Center Counter: 3.Nc3

Here is a Nc3 line for the Scandinavian ...

Center Counter: Line (1) - from a GM

Here is a solid way to treat the center counter ...

As usual, any comments welcome ...

3.d4 avoiding 3.Nc3 ...

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Weak Pawn Structures Proves Fatal!!

Yes - another Center Counter ... and a win for Black, but this time I was punished for my 4.b4 pawn sac. My opponent declined the pawn :( and left me with an inferior pawn structure including a boxed-in Bishop imitating a big, fat clumsy pawn !!! My opponent got great Bishop activity and I got absolutely none ... My next post will outline a different approach to the Center Counter. Some recommendations from a Grand Master that I ought to follow if I want to avoid this latest catastrophe ...

As usual, any comments welcome ...

Center Counter with Bishop Pairs ...

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Center Counter - I tried to be innovative!?

It seems that everyone is trying to play the Center Counter against me this year :) In this particular game I tried to gain some space in the center by making an early pawn thrust on move 5 ... I'm not sure that this was particularly sound though? I need to put this through Fritz I think ...

As usual, any comments welcome ...

Center Counter with Boxed-In Bishops ...

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The 'psychology' of moving rook to b5 on move 6!

I had one of my first games in the Berkshire League back in October 2013. This was a Center Counter - my opponent had probably never faced 1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Qxd5 3.Nc3 Qa5 4.b4 Qxb4 5.Rb1 Qa5 6.Rb5!? (Note: if Black holds on to the pawn in the endgame then he's probably won). Unfortunately for my opponent, he spent something like 15-20 minutes trying to decipher moves 5 and 6 which was simple scare tactics - a psychological ploy, nothing hidden and no more complicated than that! This is pretty much how the game continued ... I would play a move and my opponent would grace me by taking excessive chunks of valuable clock time (no doubt in this game his indecisiveness cost him).

Poor time-management is not uncommon, but it is one of those foibles that has to be stamped out to be in for a shout at club-level. Blitz is a useful exercise in training the brain to think quickly, especially in an endgame melee. This game boiled down to a simple tactic that allowed me to win a pinned Knight and take advantage of my opponent's poor time-keeping!

As usual, any comments welcome ...

Center Counter

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Center Counter leads to a draw ...

This week I played against the 'center counter opening' in a club game. I have played against this opponent several times before and played the same variation with an early b4 pawn sacrifice against him and lost. This time I improved - and managed a draw ... Afterwards I was duly and rightly criticised for not taking the initiative and playing more aggressively with 11.Nb5. It ended as a same coloured bishop ending (I remained a pawn down)...

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Center Counter - I let Black's Knight in!

The next game was a Center Counter. I have to confess I was slightly nervous and got psyched out (my opponent was 12 yrs old and already graded 143)! I played too hastily and my mistake was to allow my opponent's Knight to c4 forcing me to trade a Bishop for the Knight with great prospects for Black. In hindsight I should have played b3 first of all, keeping the Knight out of c4 ... I could have then played c5 with better chances. My opponent finished me off in the end with a few sound tactics ...

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