0272 CENTER COUNTER DEFENSE
Wendy's XL, Rd:4, 11-20-02, Charlotte
NM J Lane (2073) NM Frankie Newton (2257)
1 e4 d5 (This is the first time I've played a Center Counter in a tournament game since June, when I used it successfully against NM Mouzon) 2 ed Qd5 3 Nc3 Qa5 4 d4 Nf6 5 Nf3 c6 6 h3 Bf5 7 Bc4 e6 8 0-0 Bb4 9 Ne2 Bd6  10 Bf4 Qc7 11 Bd6 Qd6 12 Re1 Nbd7 13 Ng3 Bg6 14 c3 0-0 15 Ne5 Rad8 16 Ng6 hg6 17 Qf3 b5 18 Bb3 c5 19 Rad1 c4! (This, and the subsequent b4-bxc3 pawn thrust sets White a fairly weak backward c pawn, that I am able to target and tie white down somewhat, to its defense) 20 Bc2 b4 21 h4 bc 22 bc Qd5 23 Qe2 Qa5! (Of course Qxc4 here fails to Rc8 and the favorable regaining of material on c3) 24 Qd2 Nb6 25 Ne4 Ne4 26 Be4 Nd5 27 Rc1 Rd6 28 h5 gh 29 Qg5 Qa2 30 Qh5 Nf6 (Time control has been reached, black is up a passed a pawn, and Black's King is, for the time being, relatively safe.  Over the course of the next few moves, it is in fact Black who begins to develop an initiative, first re-targeting the weak c-pawn, then going straight for the White Monarch!) 31 Qe5 Ra6  32 Bb1 Qd2 33 Rc2 Qh6 34 Rb2 Rb6 35 Ra2 Rb3 36 Ra7 Rc3 37 Ra1 Ng4! 38 Qe4 f5!! (This serves two extremely useful functions.  First, it kicks the queen to where it no longer defends the e1 rook, secondly it blocks the b1-h7 diagonal, so once the black rook comes to c1, white cant play Bh7+ folloewd by Rxc1 winning the exchange.  Also quite cute is that if Qxe6+ then Qxe6 Rxe6 Rc1+ and its mate in 1, so the e-pawn is, at least for the moment, immune to capture. White keeps the e pawn in his crosshairs, but Black's attack quickly proves to be too much) 39 Qc6 Rc1 40 Bf5 Rf5 41 Qd6 0-1 (Nxf2 is coming, which will threaten mate on h1) (Notes by Newton)