Results 1 to 6 of 6

Thread: How to beat junior players

  1. #1
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    Ottawa Ontario National Master Former Gov.
    Posts
    10,761
    Blog Entries
    61

    Default How to beat junior players

    Back in the 1980s my friend IM David Ross observed that it was a great idea to go into an endgame against junior players... the next decade my friend National Master Jim Ferguson noted "All juniors are tactical". These attempts at defining juniors' strengths and weaknesses may remain largely true, but nowadays coaching of junior players in Canada is commonplace, and such one-sidedness is not as often to be observed on their part. Still, a lot of chess knowledge/skill can only best be absorbed through a considerable amount of experience, such as is acquired in playing positional openings or complex endgames (including ones where the proper result is uncertain). Even some rather dynamic openings may not be poor practical choices vs. a junior, if a lot of judgement about the kinds of positions that typically arise is required. Also offbeat opening choices, whatever their nature, may work wonders, as even a conscientious coach has only so much time to impart specific information about such.

    In the following game I chose an opening that's not very popular these days, at least on the local scene, against a promising junior already rated higher than myself:


    [Event "RA Winter Frost"]
    [Site "Ottawa, CAN"]
    [Date "2017.12.14"]
    [Round "1"]
    [White "Demchenko, Svetlana"]
    [Black "Pacey, Kevin"]
    [Result "0-1"]

    1.d4 c5 {I hoped to play a game using the Modern Benoni before the end of the year, regardless of it perhaps being [or arguably not being] a suitable choice vs. my young opponent in this game. I used this first move [often the prelude to an Old Benoni] so as to pre-empt the possibility of White playing a London System.} 2.d5 Nf6 3.c4 {The acid test of Black's move order is to try to do without this move, but a lot of White players are content just to try to transpose to an opening that they know more about.} e6 4.Nc3 exd5 5.cxd5 d6 6.e4 g6 7.Nf3 {Here the little-played 7.h3 or 7.Bd3 seems to give Black less choice, if White wishes to play the so-called Modern Main Line.} Bg7 {Instead 7...a6 is the way to try to take advantage of White's very common move order. Then if 8.a4 Bg4 or 8.h3 b5, although the latter is not necessarily easy for Black, transposing as it should to a relative main line of the whole system with h3 + Bd3. I decided not to go for this as I think Black is more or less okay all the same, if at times placed a bit passively.} 8.Qc2 {Unless my opponent was trying to be cagey, it turns out she knows little about the dynamic, if not currently so popular, Modern Benoni. The way to the defining position of the Modern Main Line is 8.h3 O-O 9.Bd3. Her chosen move commits the queen rather early, for no clearly compelling reason.} O-O {In a big database even this position has been reached a number of times.} 9.Bd3 Na6 {Black has previously won with 9...b6, unknown to me.} 10.a3 Nc7 11.O-O Re8 12.a4 {Although my machine did not really slag this move, this tempo loss alone suggests that White has a rather juiceless position. Now the engine suggests ...Na6 at once or next move.} b6 13.Bf4 Ba6 14.Nd2 Bxd3 15.Qxd3 Nh5 16.Be3 a6 17.Rfe1 Rb8 18.Nc4 Qd7 {My machine finally admitted Black was equal [I'd say at least]. Clearly at least some engines mistrust Modern Benoni positions for Black.} 19.a5 b5 20.Nb6 Qd8 21.f4 {The machine prefers 21.f3.} Na8 {A bit of a contortion not unheard of in the Modern Benoni. However my machine thinks I could do better with 21...c4 22.Qc2 Qe7 claiming a slight edge.} 22.Nxa8 {With equality says the machine, though it claims next White should play 23.f5 to avoid slight disadvantage. Black just might then have some sort of trouble making real progress.} Rxa8 23.g3 Nf6 24.Bd2 Nd7 25.Be3 Qc7 26.Kh1 {Better was 26.Bf2. Now Black has a big edge.} c4 27.Qc2 Nc5 28.Bxc5 Qxc5 29.Rad1 {Better was 29.g4. Now White is lost says the engine, plus she was in time trouble.} b4 30.Na4 Qa5 31.e5 {Finally this central pawn break, that is often the bane of Modern Benoni players. Here it proves to be of no avail.} dxe5 32.d6 Rad8 33.Re4 Qb5 34.Rxc4 exf4 35.Rc7 {Better was 35.Rxf4, but then 35...Be5 follows.} Rxd6 36.Rc5 Qb7+ 37.Kg1 {Only better in the eyes of a computer was 37.Rcd5. Now Black should play 37...Qf3, with mate in 11 moves, says the engine, but it's academic.} Bd4+ 0-1
    There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
    Hamlet (1.5.167-8), Hamlet to Horatio.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    Kanata, Ottawa, Ontario
    Posts
    1,227

    Default

    Thanks again for these posts Kevin!

    An insightful line in your comments was "a lot of ... players are content just to try to transpose to an opening that they know more about". This is a particular problem for one of my better students, who has superb memory for opening lines, but then compulsively keeps trying to transpose back to them. Any thoughts from other teachers out there?

    Thanks and regards, Aris.

  3. #3

    Default

    Hi Kevin:

    I'm only a class "c" player (with occasional surges into "b" and occasional plummets into "d") so my perspective is going to be different that yours or Aris' views. At the levels I play at, several things become factors when playing juniors.

    1. Juniors are very, very, tactical. It is better to steer the game to more positional lines if possible, and to remember to be *very* vigilant for tactical tricks.

    2. Juniors are usually very well booked up on common openings, particularly for all the traps in them. Using a slightly offbeat opening can be an advantage here. Coming out of the opening with an inferior position which you know how to play is better than coming out with a superior position which is clear as mud to you but clear as crystal to your opponent.

    3. Juniors tend to play quickly. I frequently have found myself playing faster than my usual pace and starting to make mistakes because of it. Why was I playing quickly? Because my opponent was. (I suck at blitz and will always suck at blitz.) Play at *your* pace, not your opponents.

    4. The rating of a junior can frequently be meaningless. It is important to recognize that age is not proportionate with playing skill. Always remember that your opponent is likely under-rated and can clobber you.

    5. If you teach chess (I have) it can be a problem. It's too easy to get into a "teacher" mindset and forget that you are playing a real game and that your opponent is not one of your students. They are out to beat you and they will if you mentally treat them as a "kid".

    6. Juniors tend to not defend as well as they attack. (This may be more of a skill/rating issue but I think it holds in general against juniors at the class level.) A well-timed attack or unsound sacrifice may rattle them into mistakes.

    The advice that you and Aris gave is generally true. Reaching an endgame with an unclear position is usually advantageous. Sadly I rarely reach endgames having likely blundered away a piece, or hemorrhaging too many pawns in the middlegame.

    Steve

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Aug 2008
    Location
    Kanata, Ottawa, Ontario
    Posts
    1,227

    Default

    That's an insightful list Steve, thanks.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jan 2009
    Location
    Tecumseh, ON
    Posts
    3,268
    Blog Entries
    1

    Default

    At the recent Canadian Open I played four juniors and four adults all of whom were higher rated at least on the CFC side. I got 1/4 against the juniors and 3/4 against the adults with no losses against adults. Two of the young players were from Windsor and I simply played really badly against them. One of the youngsters was Maili Jade Ouellet the Canadian Women's champion and I inexplicably sacced an exchange against her totally without justification when I missed a move that consolidated her advantage. I had the option of retreating my rook with an equal position and instead went into complications and only noticed the problem after I was already committed and had sacced/lost the exchange.

    The one junior that I managed to beat was a come from behind victory when my opponent ignored king safety to grab a pawn or two. By the time he began paying attention to his king's predicament I won the two pawns back with interest. In that game I managed to prepare for the game and played an offbeat line which prevented him from playing his favourite anti-Sicilian but then forgot then that I had the standard tactic which would have given me an open Sicilian Najdorf (ie I was seeing ghosts) in which I would have liked my chances. Instead I got the cramped position of a Maroczy bind type position. One thing with juniors is you have to check and triple check the tactics because they are always manufacturing threats that are easy to miss. At one point, I almost blundered my queen but noticed his tactical idea just in time. The cost of not noticing it a move earlier was that I got a weakened pawn structure and he later managed to win those pawns.

    Juniors have more time to study chess. They work at chess more than adults do. I think my results improved as the tournament went on because I was spending some time studying chess during the tournament with a schedule of only one game a day.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    Ottawa Ontario National Master Former Gov.
    Posts
    10,761
    Blog Entries
    61

    Default

    As an experienced old master, I find I can coast along for years without much (or any) review of aspects of the game other than the opening phase of the game.

    At least while the kids are on the youngish side, they still have a bit of catching up to do on strategy and endgame play, compared to us veterans. Sometimes the key is to get them into positions where they are bored and/or don't know what strategy to adopt (they might then, e.g., play for a trap, but at a cost to their position). We veterans begin to have a harder time focusing etc. against any younger person when we're nearing senior citizen status.
    Last edited by Kevin Pacey; 07-31-2018 at 02:56 PM. Reason: Adding content
    There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
    Hamlet (1.5.167-8), Hamlet to Horatio.

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •