0 Small Errors

McDonnell -- De La Bourdonnais 1834

Down 4-2 plus three draws (not counted), Alexander McDonnell continued his losing streak in the tenth game (see "Two Losses" for games eight and nine). His response to the Queen's Gambit gave him a difficult position, but one where he might have held. Alas, Louis-Charles Mahé de La Bourdonnais continued to give him small problems to solve and he eventually found himself a pawn down in a knight ending.

De Labourdonnais,Louis Charles Mahe -- McDonnell,Alexander [D20]
London m1 London (10), 1834

1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.e3

Modern databases contain very few games with this position that precede the McDonnell -- La Bourdonnais matches. 3...b5 appears as early as Greco, and likely precedes him. 3...e5 appears in two games between George Atwood and Philidor. Although the Queen's Gambit had been long known, it was essentially a slightly unorthodox opening in the 1830s.

3...e5

McDonnell offers a line where the queens come off quickly and both sides get pawn majorities.

4.dxe5 Qxd1+ 5.Kxd1

La Bourdonnais accepts the offer of a queenless middlegame, and then outplays McDonnell. It is our task to identify where McDonnell might have improved his play.

5...Nc6 6.f4 Be6 7.Bd2

This game is the only one in ChessBase Online that contains this move. The other thirteen games with the position after Black's sixth move are between class players. Black has done well. But play has been far from optimal in this small sample of games between relatively weak players.

7...Bc5 8.Nf3

Black to move

8...h6

Preventing the knight's move to g5 is part of the effort to maintain the pawn on c4.

He might have tried 8...Rd8 9.Ng5 Bg4+ 10.Kc1 (10.Be2 Bxe2+ 11.Kxe2 Black's queenside majority balances White's central/kingside majority) 10...b5.

9.Nc3 Rd8

Threatening e3 by pinning its defender

10.Ke1 Nge7?

10...a6 merits consideration, as it may have been the last chance to avoid a one pawn deficit.

11.Rc1 

Black to move

White increases the pressure on c4.

11...Bb4

11...a6 no longer saves the pawn. 12.Ne4 Bb4 13.Bxc4.

12.Nb5

Both of Black's c-pawns are under attack.

12...Bxd2+ 13.Nxd2 Rd7 14.Bxc4 Bxc4 15.Rxc4

Black to move

White has a clear advantage

15...0–0 16.Nf3 Rfd8 17.Ke2 Nd5 18.Nbd4 Nxd4+

18...Na5 does not seem to help. 19.Rcc1.

19.Rxd4 c5

This move drives the rook back this moment, but it also creates a permanent weakness on d6.

20.Rd2

Black to move

20...Nb4

White's central pawns are stronger after 20...b5 21.Rhd1 Kf8 22.e4 Nb6 23.Rxd7 Rxd7 24.Rxd7 Nxd7 25.Kd3 Ke7.

21.a3 Rxd2+ 22.Nxd2 Nc6 23.Nc4

This knight prepares to occupy d6, athough the usefulness of this square is not entirely clear.

23...b6

23...Kf8 24.Rd1 Ke7 25.Rxd8 Nxd8 26.g4 or Kd3 as in the game, and White still has the upper hand.

24.Rd1 Rxd1 25.Kxd1 Kf8 26.Ke2 Ke7 27.Kd3 Ke6 28.Ke4 Ne7 29.g4

Black to move

White's pawns now dominate the center of the board

29...g6 30.a4 f5+ 31.exf6 Kxf6 32.Ne5

The knight is placed even better on e5 than upon d6.

32...Ke6

White to move

33.Nxg6! Nc8

33...Nxg6 34.f5+ Kf6 35.fxg6 Kxg6 36.h4 with an easy win for White.

34.f5+ Kd6 35.h4 Kc7 36.Ke5 Nd6 37.f6 a6 38.Ke6 b5 39.axb5 axb5 40.f7 Nxf7 41.Kxf7 Kd6 42.Nf4 c4 43.g5 hxg5 44.hxg5 b4 45.Ne2 1–0

It seems to me that McDonnell was strategically lost before move fifteen when he lost a pawn. The eleventh game is discussed in "Losing Takes its Toll".

Detail: Small Errors

0 Three Fighting Draws

McDonnell -- De La Bourdonnais 1834

The chess games of Alexander McDonnell (1798-1835) offer abundant instruction in tactics. McDonnell, born in Belfast, Ireland, is considered to have been the strongest chess player in Great  Britain during the early 1830s. He is most often remembered, however, for his matches with Louis-Charles Mahé de La Bourdonnais (1795-1840). McDonnell lost more than half of their 85 games played during six matches. He was thus the runner-up in the first unofficial world chess championship. He also won 27 of those games, however.

For the past several days, I have working through McDonnell's games during my morning coffee. My intention is to go through all of his available games (ChessBase has 110; chessgames.com has 105). Most of his play was at odds, as was customary in his day, so the selection of available games in databases is small. There are 35 games in addition to the match games against Bourdonnais. Two of these are short losses to Captain William Davies Evans, including what is probably the oldest recorded instance of the Evans Gambit. Most of the rest are games played during simuls.

After going through these 35 games neither as fast as Jeremy Silman claims was his habit as a young player, nor slow enough to understand every nuance, I reached the La Bourdonnais match games this morning. They appeared to play by a rule that would remain common for the next several decades: draws do not count and must be replayed. Hence, La Bourdonnais had White through the first four games. Each draw led to another game with the same colors.

Although all drawn, the first three games were battles from the first moves to the finish.

De Labourdonnais,Louis Charles Mahe -- McDonnell,Alexander [C21]
London m1 London (1), 1834

1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.Nf3 c5 4.Bc4 Nc6 5.c3 Qf6 6.0–0 d6 7.cxd4 cxd4 8.Ng5 Nh6 9.f4 Be7 10.e5 Qg6 11.exd6 Qxd6 12.Na3 0–0 13.Bd3 Bf5 14.Nc4 Qg6 15.Nf3 Bxd3 16.Nce5 Bc2 17.Nxg6 Bxd1

White to move

18.Nxe7+

18.Nxf8? loses material. 18...Bxf3. After the text, White remains down only the sacrificed pawn and retains a slight initiative.

18...Nxe7 19.Rxd1 Nhf5 20.g4 Ne3 21.Bxe3 dxe3 22.Rd7 Rfe8 23.Re1 Ng6 24.f5 Nf4 25.Rd4 Nh3+ 26.Kg2 Nf2 27.Rc4 Rad8 28.h3 h6 29.Re2 b5 30.Rd4 Rxd4 31.Nxd4 a6

La Bourdonnais's aggressive play has led to exchanges and an ending where Black retains the advantage of one pawn, albeit one that will fall.

White to move

32.Kf3 Nxh3 33.Rxe3 Ng5+ 34.Kf4 Rxe3 35.Kxe3

And now it is a knight ending with pawns on both sides. Such knight endings are often sought by players substantially stronger than their opponents because they offer better prospects of victory than rook endings.

35...g6 36.fxg6 fxg6 37.Nc6 Ne6 38.Ke4 Kf7 39.Ke5 h5 40.gxh5 gxh5

White to move

McDonnell has the advantage, but La Bourdonnais has the draw well in hand. As long as he holds, he gets another game with the White pieces.

41.Kf5 Nc7 42.b3 Ke8 43.a4 bxa4 44.bxa4 Nd5 45.Kg5 Ne7 46.Nb8 a5 47.Na6 Ng6 48.Kxh5 Nf4+ 49.Kg5 Ne6+ 50.Kf5 Kd7 51.Ke5 Nd8 ½–½

De Labourdonnais,Louis Charles Mahe -- McDonnell,Alexander [C44]
London m1 London (2), 1834

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4

Switching the move order of the first game has led to the Scotch Gambit, an opening occasionally employed as a surprise weapon in our day.

4.Bc4 Qf6 5.c3 d3 6.Qxd3

This time, White recovers the pawn quickly.

6...d6 7.0–0 Qg6 8.Bf4 Be7 9.Nbd2 h5 10.Rfe1 Bh3

McDonnell, too, shows some aggression.

White to move

11.Nh4 Bxh4 12.Qxh3 Bf6 13.e5 dxe5 14.Bxe5 Bxe5 15.f4 Nge7 16.fxe5

This time, it is White who has a vulnerable e-pawn that is far advanced.

16...Qg4 17.Qxg4 hxg4 18.Nb3 Ng6 19.e6 f5 20.Rad1 Nge5 21.Bd3 Rh5 22.Bc2

Black to move

22...Ke7 23.Nd4 Kf6 24.Rf1 Ne7 25.b4 Rah8 26.Ne2 Rxh2

McDonnell wins a pawn.

27.Ng3 g6 28.Bb3 Kg5 29.Rde1 Nd3 30.Re3 Nf4 31.Rf2 R2h7 32.Rd2 Nh5 33.Nxh5 Rxh5 34.Kf2 f4 35.Re5+ Nf5 36.e7 Re8 37.Rd7

Black to move

La Bourdonnais is positioned to win back a pawn, but McDonnell finds the way to another ending with a one pawn advantage.

37...Rh7 38.Rxc7 Rhxe7 39.Rcxe7 Rxe7 40.Rxe7 Nxe7

White to move

The players reach a minor piece ending where the bishop must contend with a knight that fights alongside a superior number of pawns.

41.a4 Kf5 42.a5 Ke5 43.Bd1 g3+ 44.Kf3 Nd5 45.Bc2 g5 46.b5 Nxc3 47.b6 axb6 48.axb6 Nb5 49.Kg4 Nd6 50.Bd3 Ne4 51.Be2 Kd5 52.Bf3 Ke5 53.Be2 Kf6 54.Bf3 Nf2+ 55.Kh5 g4 56.Bxg4 Ke7 57.Bc8 Kd6 58.Bxb7 Kc5 ½–½

The Frenchman survives again.

De Labourdonnais,Louis Charles Mahe -- McDonnell,Alexander [C44]
London m1 London (3), 1834

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Bc4 Qf6 5.0–0 d6 6.c3 d3 7.Qxd3 Qg6 8.Bf4 Be7 9.Nbd2 Nh6

McDonnell deviates from the previous game.

White to move

10.Rae1 0–0 11.Nd4 Ne5 12.Bxe5 dxe5 13.N4f3 Bd6 14.h3 Kh8

Preparing to thrust the f-pawn forward.

15.Nh4 Qh5 16.Qg3 f5 17.Nxf5 Nxf5 18.exf5 Bxf5 19.Ne4 Bxe4 20.Rxe4 Rf6 21.Rh4 Qf5 22.Qe3 Qd7

White to move

The tension builds in the match as the players keep their queens on the board longer than the first two games.

23.Bd3 g6 24.Be4

La Bourdonnais sets the stage for Aron Nimzovich to articulate the concept of blockade.

24...Raf8 25.Qg3

The g-pawn is threatened.

25...Qg7 26.b4 a5 27.a3 axb4 28.axb4 c5 29.Rb1 cxb4 30.cxb4 Bc7 31.Kh1

Black to move

31...Rb6

31...Rxf2? 32.Bxg6

32.b5 Bd8 33.Rg4 g5 34.Bf3 h5 35.Re4 g4 36.hxg4 hxg4 37.Qxg4 Rh6+ 38.Kg1 Qh7

White to move

39.g3 Rg8 40.Qc8 Bb6 41.Qc3 Rxg3+

Exploiting the pinned f-pawn, and the continuation of tactical actions aimed at the rook on b1.

42.Kf1 Bd4 43.Qc8+ Rg8 44.Qc4 Rh1+ 45.Ke2 Rxb1

Black wins the rook

46.Rxd4

White takes a bishop in exchange.

46...Rb2+

46...exd4 appears to lead to a draw by repetition due to perpetual checks by White's queen.*

47.Rd2 Rxd2+ 48.Kxd2 Rd8+ 49.Ke2 Qh6 50.Qc3 Qg7 51.Be4 Kg8 52.Qb3+ Kf8 53.Qf3+

Black to move

Again, perpetual check appears to be a resource for White.

53...Qf7 54.Bxb7 Qxf3+ 55.Kxf3 ½–½

After three games without gaining a clear advantage with White, the Frenchman will find his way to victory in game 4 (see "McDonnell Blunders").

*It is my intention to go through these games and write my own comments without reference to engine analysis. I will check my analysis after completing a pass through all games.

Detail: Three Fighting Draws