[Event "NACC Simultaneous"] [Site "?"] [Date "10.1.2019"] [Round "?"] [White "Aarv Paul"] [Black "GM Keith Arkell."] [Result "1-0"] [WhiteELO "?"] [BlackELO "?"] 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. Bg5 c5 5. e3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 Qa5 7. Qc2 {Did Aarv notice that his Bishop would be lost, but that, in compensation, Keith's knight was trapped?} 7... Ne4 8. Bd3 Nxg5 9. f4 cxd4 10. exd4 Nc6 11. Ne2 h6 12. O-O b6 13. fxg5 Qxg5 14. Rf2 Bb7 15. Raf1 O-O 16. Bh7+ Kh8 17. Rxf7 Rxf7 18. Rxf7 Nb4 {This looks as though it wins, but Keith must have missed Aarv's reply. 18....Ne5 wins eg 19.Rf2 Ng4 20.Rf4 Nf6 21.Be4 (forced) Nxe4 22.Bxe4 wins the exchange for no compensation (22.Rf8 is even better!) } 19. Qg6 Qxg6 20. Bxg6 Nxa2 {The knight is now trapped, and Keith is lost but there was little choice. eg 20....Nc6 21.Rxd7 Rb8 22.Nf4 Nd6 23.Na5 is still completely winning for white.} 21. Rxd7 Ba6 22. Rc7 Rc8 23. Rxc8+ Bxc8 24. Bb1 Nxc3 25. Nxc3 Bd7 26. Kf2 Kg8 27. Kg3 Kf7 28. Kf4 Bc6 29. Be4 {Aarv plays the ending very coolly, centralising his king and swapping off pieces.} 29... Bxe4 30. Kxe4 Kf6 31. c5 Ke7 32. cxb6 axb6 33. Ke5 Kd7 34. g3 h5 35. Nb5 Kc6 36. Kxe6 {A final good piece of calculation. Aarv gives up his knight as there will be no stopping the d-pawn. Keith resigned - a game that Aarv will always remember!} 1-0

[Event "NACC Simultaneous"] [Site "?"] [Date "10.1.2019"] [Round "?"] [White "GM Keith Arkell"] [Black "Trefor Thynne"] [Result "1/2-1/2"] [WhiteELO "?"] [BlackELO "?"] 1. d4 {As a background to this game I had been working on the QGD Exchange Variation in the book "Chess for Life" which dissects Keith's mastery of the White side over a 30 year period. I decided to take Black with a view to testing out some defensive ideas, knowing what White was trying to do.} 1... d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. c4 e6 4. cxd5 exd5 5. Nc3 c6 6. Bg5 Be7 7. Bxf6 {this exchange, unprompted by h6, is very interesting. The key ideas are, firstly, that the bishop on f6 is aiming in the wrong direction for the kingside counter-attack which is Black's main plan against the coming minority attack on the queenside and, secondly, that on f6 the bishop no longer prevents b4 (a key move in the minority attack)} 7... Bxf6 8. e3 O-O 9. b4 a6 10. a4 Nd7 11. b5 {I wondered here whether White was not rushing his attack as he has still not completed his development} 11... axb5 12. axb5 Rxa1 13. Qxa1 Re8 14. bxc6 bxc6 {White now has his target, the backward c6 pawn. Keith has played hundreds of games in whichhe converts this type of position into a win. Normally if the c6 pawn falls the d5 pawn follows quickly} 15. Be2 {I expected the bishop to go to d3 and to be exchanged for the black queen's bishop as often happens in Keith's games} 15... Nf8 16. Na4 {but this is a careless mistake quickly exploited by Black} 16... Qa5+ 17. Kf1 {an awful move to have to make but 17 Nd2 leaves White unable to castle next move} 17... c5 {thematic-Black eliminates his weak pawn and converts it into a potential winner next move} 18. Qd1 c4 {also thematic but the computer suggests that black gets a very strong attack if he opens up the position with 18....cxd4} 19. h3 Bf5 20. g4 Bg6 21. Nc5 Rb8 22. Kg2 Rb1 23. Qa4 Qxa4 {Black sees that his c pawn may win him the game so heads for the endgame} 24. Nxa4 Rxh1 25. Kxh1 Nd7 26. Nd2 Be7 27. Bf3 Bb4 28. Nf1 Be4 29. Bxe4 dxe4 30. Ng3 c3 {White has to give up a piece but gets two pawns and his remaining pawn structure is good so the win, if there at all, is hard to find} 31. Nxc3 Bxc3 32. Nxe4 Bb4 33. Kg2 Kf8 34. Kf3 Ke7 35. Ng3 g6 36. h4 Ke6 37. e4 Nb6 38. Ke3 Be1 39. Ne2 Nc4+ 40. Kf3 Nd2+ 41. Ke3 Nf1+ 42. Kf3 Nd2+ 43. Ke3 Nb1 44. Kf3 Bd2 45. Nf4+ Bxf4 46. Kxf4 h6 47. Ke3 Nc3 48. f4 Nb5 49. Kd3 Kd6 50. h5 Nc7 51. g5 {ouch! I suddenly had a moment of panic -had White swindled me and would he promote a pawn?} 51... gxh5 52. gxh6 Ne6 {saved by the resource of a check on f4 on the way to g6} 53. f5 Ng5 54. e5+ Kd5 55. Ke2 Kxd4 56. e6 {now the game is drawn because after fxe6 57.fxe6 Nxe6 58.h7 Nf4+ followed by Ng6 saves. Notes by Trefor Thynne} 1/2-1/2