1. d4 c5 2. d5 I'll have to stop playing this. If they don't take, I get a very cramped game. 2... Nf6 3. c4 d6 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Nf3 Nb6 I'm trying not to get my QB trapped in. As it turns out, I don't get to move it for another 20 moves. 6. b3 g6 7. Bg5 Bg7 8. Rc1 O-O 9. e4 I don't want him to play e5, so I've got to do this. 9... Nbd7 10. Bd3 a6 11. O-O I don't have many sensible moves. My position is much too cramped. Must try to drive him back. 11... h6 12. Bf4 Nh5 13. Bd2 The tide has turned, because he has been over-cautious. Lightning out of a clear sky. 13... Ne5 14. Nxe5 Just noticed that if I retake with the bishop as planned, I lose the rook's pawn. 14... dxe5 15. a4 I'm still a bit short of decent moves. better bust it open. 15... f5 16. Qc2 f4 17. Rce1 f3 I was quite proud of this. Maybe I should have prepared more, but I think I needed to strike before he gets Re3 in. 18. Qc1 This is the start of the interesting stuff. I stand to lose a pawn, so gave it a lot of thought. After the game Ian Howarth said I missed a forced mate (I followed this up after the game - with some interesting exchange of e-mails Click here to see them ). If so, it should be in the next few moves. Tell me if you can see it. 18... fxg2 19. Kxg2 Qd7 20. Kh1 Nf4 21. Re3 Qg4 22. Rg3 Nxd3 I had planned Rxd3, Qxe4ch, but now se ethat the N is protecting e4 23. Rxd3 Rf3 24. Rg1 I thought of ...Qh5, but I don't think it leads to anything. Is this where I missed something? 24... Rxd3 25. Rxg4 Bxg4 26. Be3 I hadn't seen that. I thought I was ok. Now I'll have to sac the rook for bishop. No need to hurry though. 26... Rf8 27. Qc2 I now thought I'd got a forced mate, but it didn't quite work. 27... Rxe3 28. fxe3 Bh3 29. Ne2 Again the Knight! 29... h5 30. Qc3 I'm trying to get my other bishop mobile, and he's trying to stop me. 30... Rf2 31. Ng3 h4 If the knight moves, it's mate, so he lashes out on the other side. 32. Qa5 hxg3 33. hxg3 Bf6 I need my other bishop to get involved, to mate him. Maybe around here I should've stopped playing for mate, and tried protecting stuff. 34. Qxc5 Rg2 Got to get rid of that pawn if my other bishop's going to do anything. 35. d6 exd6 36. Qxd6 Kg7 37. Qc7+ Kh6 38. Qxb7 Rxg3 39. c5 Rxe3 Time to assess this. If I can get my bishop to g3 before he plays Kh2, I've got mate. Against that, he's only two squares away from queening a pawn. Conclusion, carry on trying to mate. 40. Qxa6 Bh4 41. Kh2 Bg4 42. c6 Re2+ 43. Kg1 I don't think I can mate him before he queens, and he can swap his original quen for my rook. (e.g. ....Bf3,c7 Bg3, c8=Q Re1ch, Qf1) and I lose 43... Rc2 44. b4 I now found out that we were winning the match 5-4 with just this game to go. Therefore I bailed out with a perpetual. If he interposes the queen, my bishops can stop his pawns and I win 44... Rc1+ 45. Kg2 Rc2+ Offered draw, and it was accepted. Good game. 1/2-1/2