When one side is up significant material (a Rook here), always be on the lookout for opportunities to sacrifice back material.
1. Qc2 is a little bit complicated, since Black can try 1. … Nf5?! Simple captures just leave Black up the exchange. (Before you try 2. gxf5 Qxf5?? 3. Rg7+, consider 2. gxf5 Kh6.) 2. Ne4 Qe6 3. Nd6 Kf6 doesn’t seem to make progress either. If 1. Qc2+ Nf5 2. Nd7?! Qe6 3. gxf5+ Qxf5 4. Nxe5+ Kf6 peters out as well. Maybe there’s a way to win there, but you have to consider 1. … Nf5 rather than only 1. … e4.
I also looked at 1. Ne4, trying to eliminate the 1. … Nf5 possibility. The straightforward responses like 1. … Nxe4?? or 1. … Rxa6 2. Qc2 Ra2 3. Qd3 (the reason for the pawn at c3, perhaps?) look good for White. But what about 1. Ne4 Rxb7 2. Nxf6 Rb6?
There probably is a White win in there somewhere, but this is not as easy as it looks.
“1. Qc2 is a little bit complicated, since Black can try 1. … Nf5?! Simple captures just leave Black up the exchange. 2. Ne4 Qe6 3. Nd6 Kf6 doesn’t seem to make progress either.”
2 Ne4 Qf8! seems to hold for black, so 2 Nd7! is better, and black is in trouble:
“If 1. Qc2+ Nf5 2. Nd7?! Qe6 3. gxf5+ Qxf5 4. Nxe5+ Kf6 peters out as well. Maybe there’s a way to win there…”
Ok, instead of 3 gxf5+??, which lets black off the hook, instead try 3 RxR!! for if …RxR then Nf8+! with the dreaded royal knight fork, winning the queen. Hence black is a rook down if he doesn’t take the rook, and loses the queen to a knight fork if he does.
There’s your win. You almost had it but you missed the trick of winning the rook because of the knight fork. If black moves the queen elsewhere, such as 3…Qe7 or 3…Qg7, then you take the knight with 4 gxf5+, and white is up a piece.
White is lost 🙁
wht abt qc2+
Oh, I don’t know about that… doesn’t Qc2 look like fun?
Anonymous cheer up.
The right target looks to me like h7, so Qc2+ e4 Nxe4.
Nxb7 is lost to NxQ.
Nxe4 is lost to Qxe4
So Rxb7 seems the only hope, when the ending is Q against N and R, look good for white.
1. Qc2+ e4
2. Nxe4
1-0
start with ne4 too….going with simon’s lines..
joeb
After 1.Qc2 e4 2.Nxe4, what happens after 2…Rxa6? Gets messy, ya?
When one side is up significant material (a Rook here), always be on the lookout for opportunities to sacrifice back material.
1. Qc2 is a little bit complicated, since Black can try 1. … Nf5?! Simple captures just leave Black up the exchange. (Before you try 2. gxf5 Qxf5?? 3. Rg7+, consider 2. gxf5 Kh6.) 2. Ne4 Qe6 3. Nd6 Kf6 doesn’t seem to make progress either. If 1. Qc2+ Nf5 2. Nd7?! Qe6 3. gxf5+ Qxf5 4. Nxe5+ Kf6 peters out as well. Maybe there’s a way to win there, but you have to consider 1. … Nf5 rather than only 1. … e4.
I also looked at 1. Ne4, trying to eliminate the 1. … Nf5 possibility. The straightforward responses like 1. … Nxe4?? or 1. … Rxa6 2. Qc2 Ra2 3. Qd3 (the reason for the pawn at c3, perhaps?) look good for White. But what about 1. Ne4 Rxb7 2. Nxf6 Rb6?
There probably is a White win in there somewhere, but this is not as easy as it looks.
Geetings,
1. Qc2+ Nf5!?(2…e4 3.Nxe4)
2. Nd7! Qe6 (2…Qf7 3.Nxe5+)
3. Rxa7! Rxa7
4. Nf8+; And the Royal Fork is Conclusive.
My Regards
King.
First, Ishar asked, “After 1.Qc2 e4 2.Nxe4, what happens after 2…Rxa6? Gets messy, ya?”
No, it’s mate in 3 with 2…Rxa6?? 3 NxNdisc+!! 4 QxQ+ Kh6 Rh7++.
anonymous writes:
“I also looked at 1. Ne4…but what about 1. Ne4 Rxb7 2. Nxf6 Rb6?”
Yep, 1 Ne4? loses bigtime, leaving 1 Qc2! Anonomous writes:
“1. Qc2 is a little bit complicated, since Black can try 1. … Nf5?! Simple captures just leave Black up the exchange. 2. Ne4 Qe6 3. Nd6 Kf6 doesn’t seem to make progress either.”
2 Ne4 Qf8! seems to hold for black, so 2 Nd7! is better, and black is in trouble:
“If 1. Qc2+ Nf5 2. Nd7?! Qe6 3. gxf5+ Qxf5 4. Nxe5+ Kf6 peters out as well. Maybe there’s a way to win there…”
Ok, instead of 3 gxf5+??, which lets black off the hook, instead try 3 RxR!! for if …RxR then Nf8+! with the dreaded royal knight fork, winning the queen. Hence black is a rook down if he doesn’t take the rook, and loses the queen to a knight fork if he does.
There’s your win. You almost had it but you missed the trick of winning the rook because of the knight fork. If black moves the queen elsewhere, such as 3…Qe7 or 3…Qg7, then you take the knight with 4 gxf5+, and white is up a piece.
1. Qc2+ Nf5
doesn’t work, anonymous,
2. Nd7 Qe6
3. Rxa7 Rxa7
4. Nf8+ wins