(1) Rowlison,Colin - Farrell,Keith [D02]
Gosford May fast 2010 (1), 18.05.2010
[notes by Keith]

1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Bf4 Bf5 4.e3 e6 5.Bd3 Bxd3 6.Qxd3 c5 7.0-0 Nc6 8.c3 Qb6 9.Nbd2 c4 10.Qc2 Be7 11.Rab1 Nh5 12.Rfe1 0-0-0!? Diagram

with the intention of slugging it out in big pawn storms, since white was already shaping up against black's kingside 13.b3! and the question is immediately put 13...Qa6 14.bxc4 dxc4 15.Ne5 Nxe5 16.Bxe5 f6 17.Bg3 g5 18.Qe4 [18.a4 suggestth Rybka 3] 18...f5?! [18...Rd5 19.a4 Nxg3 20.hxg3 f5? (20...Kb8) ] 19.Qe5 Bd6?? 20.Qxe6+ black did not resign straight away, but stumbled on to lose mostly pawns and THEN resigned [20.Qxe6+ Kc7 21.Qf7+ Rd7 22.Qxh5] 1-0

(2) Farrell,Keith - Burrell,David [C65]
Gosford May fast 2010 (2), 18.05.2010
[notes by Keith]

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.0-0 g6 5.Re1 d6 6.d4 Bd7 7.Bxc6 Bxc6 8.dxe5 dxe5 9.Qxd8+ Rxd8 10.Nc3 covering the d1 square [10.Nxe5 Ghosts ! - I became nervous of an unguarded d1 - example : 10...Bb5 11.Re3 Rd1+ 12.Re1 Rxe1#] 10...Bb4 11.Bg5 Rd6 12.Nxe5 Nxe4?? Diagram

13.Rxe4 [13.Nxc6 Bxc3 14.Rxe4+ Kd7 15.Nxa7 f6 16.bxc3 fxg5 17.Rae1] 13...Bxc3 14.Nxc6+ Re6?? 15.Rd1! bxc6 missed it [15...0-0 16.Ne7+ Kg7 17.Rxe6 fxe6 18.bxc3] 16.Rd8# 1-0

(3) Clark,Neil - Farrell,Keith [C55]
Gosford May fast 2010 (3), 18.05.2010
[notes by Keith]

time control : 20 minutes with 10 second increments 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 h6 5.0-0 Be7 6.d4 exd4 7.Nxd4 Ne5 8.Bb3 0-0 9.Nf5 d6 Diagram

10.Nxe7+ [10.Nxh6+ Neil took several minutes before deciding NOT to play this way - only because his Queen could not somehow join the party 10...gxh6 11.Qd2 Be6 12.Qxh6] 10...Qxe7 11.f4!? Ned7 the 'correct' move - at this stage 12.Re1 Nc5 13.e5 Nxb3? making two sensible moves in a row must have exhausted me, I was quite calmly playig what I assumed was a simple exchange - perhaps I was overly concerned over the dangerous Bishop 14.exf6 Qxf6 [14...Qxe1+ 15.Qxe1 Nxa1 later that night I somehow concluded THIS was better - perhaps evven an OK position ????] 15.axb3 Diagram

15...Bf5 not content with 1 gigantic error - a week or so befo9re Neil and I played in a fast tournament at Ettalong with eerily similar inept (and double-piece-losing) play from me [15...c6; 15...Be6 both were better] 16.Nd5 Qd8 17.Ne7+ black resigns 1-0

(4) Howells,Colin (1090) - Clark,Neil (1350) [C21]
Gosford May Rapid 010 (2), 18.05.2010
[notes by Keith farrell]

Round 2 of a Rapid - time control 20 minutes with 10 second increments - Fischer style 1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3 dxc3 Diagram

the Danish Gambit 4.Bc4 d6 [4...cxb2 5.Bxb2 d5 sort-of an 'anti-Danish' preferred nowadays to 'take the air out of' the Gambit 6.Bxd5 Nf6 7.Bxf7+ Kxf7 8.Qxd8 for excitement-plus 8...Bb4+ 9.Qd2 Bxd2+ 10.Nxd2 Re8 11.Ngf3 Nc6; while 4...Bb4 has been my preference over the years - though against John Nutter it proved to be a happy hunting ground for him (funny thing that) 5.Nxc3 Nf6 6.Bxf7+ Kxf7 7.Qb3+ d5 8.Qxb4 Nxe4 9.Nge2 Na6 10.Qb3 Nec5 11.Qxd5+ Qxd5 12.Nxd5] 5.Nf3 Be7 6.Nxc3 [6.Qb3+/= would have been preferable] 6...Nf6 7.0-0 0-0 8.Bg5 c6 9.e5 a new move 9...Nfd7? 10.Bxe7 Qxe7 11.exd6 Qf6 12.Ne4 Qd8 13.Bxf7+?!= couldn't resist the hopeful lunge which didn't cost THAT much 13...Rxf7 14.Nfg5 Rf5! 15.Qb3+ Kh8?! [15...Rd5] 16.Nf7+ Rxf7 17.Qxf7 Qf8 18.Qe7 c5 19.Rad1 Nc6 20.Qxf8+ Nxf8 21.d7?! [21.Nxc5] 21...Bxd7 [21...Nxd7] 22.Nxc5 and now, according to the computer, its about as even as could be 22...Bg4 23.f3 Bf5 24.g4 Bg6 25.Nxb7 Ne5 26.Rd5 Rb8 27.Nd6 Nd3?! black was drifting positionally 28.b3 except that gradually Colin has allowed his pawn structure to drift also 28...Nf4 29.Rd4?? N8e6?? although Neil may have seen and been distracted by forming the mating net [29...Ne2+-+] 30.Rc4 Nh3+ 31.Kg2 Nef4+ 32.Kg3 Bd3 the tactical shots are coming thick and fast by black with his extra piece 33.Rc8+?? actually a bad idea [33.Rfc1 Bxc4 34.Rxc4 Kg8 35.Rxf4] 33...Rxc8 34.Nxc8 Bxf1 35.Nxa7 Diagram

the mate was tantalizingly close, Neil 'almost' seeing the mate - though the pressure of the time no doubt ... 35...Ne2+ [35...g5 36.b4 Ne2#] 36.Kh4 g5+ 37.Kh5 Nef4+ 38.Kh6 Bd3 39.Nc8 Ne6 40.Nd6 Bg6 41.b4 Bd3 42.a4 Be2 43.b5 Bxf3 44.b6 Nc5 45.a5 Nb7 46.Nxb7 Bxb7 47.Kh5 Diagram

it was around here I noticed the times left - white had 7 minutes 25 seconds while Neil (not at home in speed chess) had 2 minutes 11 secs. 47...Nf4+ [47...Kg7 48.a6 Bd5 49.b7 Bf7# a VERY cute mate; 47...Kg8 48.Kh6 Bc8 49.Kh5 Kf7 50.a6 Bxa6 51.Kh6 Kf6 52.Kxh7 Ke5 53.Kg6 Kf4 54.Kh6 Kxg4 55.Kg6 Kf3 56.Kf5 Kg2 would have been 'my' line - assuming I missed the mate - which given the time pressure ...] 48.Kxg5 Nd5 49.h4 Kg7 50.Kf5 Bc8+ 51.Ke5 Ne7 52.Kd6 Kf7 53.Kc7 Bxg4 54.b7 Nd5+ 55.Kc6 Nb4+ 56.Kc5 Na6+ 57.Kb6 Be2 58.Ka7 Kg6 59.b8Q Nxb8 60.Kxb8 white resigns 0-1