I'm sure you will find this game riddled with mistakes that a 1600-rated player includes in his style. However, this is one of my better efforts, against a player rated 200 points higher.
James Salisbury
Roselle NJ
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John Moldovan (USCF 1770) - James Salisbury (USCF 1595), ECP 4th Sunday Quads 10/25/1987
1.Nf3 b6 2.c4 Nf6 3.Nc3 e6 4.g3 Bb7 5.Bg2 d5
Black wishes to maintain pressure on e4 and block the h1-a8 diagonal. [Salisbury]
Better is the noncommittal 5...Be7. Stylistically, I prefer 5...c5 6.d4 cxd4, entering the Hedgehog formation versus the English. [West]
6.cxd5 exd5 7.d4 Bb4 8.Qa4+
This move may be premature. It will cost White a tempo and attacking possibilities. See Black's 12th move. [Salisbury]
8...Nc6 9.Ne5 Bxc3+ 10.bxc3 O-O
If 10...Qd6, then 11.Ba3 ends kingside castling for Black. [Salisbury]
11.Bg5
In review, John Moldovan offered 11.Ba3 and 12.Rc1 followed by 13.c4. If 11.Nxc6, then 11...Qd7 seems to hold. [Salisbury]
11...Nxe5 12.dxe5 Qd7
If the white queen retreats, then 13...Ne4 may be good for Black. [Salisbury]
Not if the queen retreats to d1! [West]
13.Qxd7 Nxd7 14.c4 Nxe5 15.cxd5 f6
I played this in order to occupy d8 with my rook. [Salisbury]
16.Bd2 Rad8
Maybe Black is better here. White has the two bishops, but his king is in the middle. Black has active rooks, two semi-open center files, and a well-posted knight. The black king is safe. Black will soon be winning the weak d-pawn. Also, White is now in time pressure. [Salisbury]
17.Rc1 Rf7 18.e4?
First 18.f4, chasing away the knight, and then 19.e4 is the right order of moves. [West]
18...Nd3+ 19.Ke2 Nxc1+ 20.Rxc1 Re7 21.Kf1 Ba6+ 22.Kg1 Bd3 23.Bb4 Rxe4
Black gives back the exchange to eliminate one of White's bishops. [Salisbury]
24.Bxe4 Bxe4 25.Rxc7 Rxd5 26.h4??
Instead of this time pressure blunder, White had to play 26.f3. [Salisbury]
Try moving it one more square! Right down to the end, White plays as though f4 were an illegal move. After 26.f4, White would have practical drawing chances, due to bishops of opposite color. [West]
26...Rd1+, White resigns.
{This article originally appeared in Atlantic Chess News in 1988}
