Cordingley puzzle 117 #chess

White to play and win

Solution

This one came to me fairly easily, because it is a typical problem first move: 1 Rd6! is the first move you think of, knowing it is a problem.

Trying to find more logic, the following features are apparent. Firstly, the powerful bishop and knight combination; second the alignment of the white queen and black king (the jump check in Purdy's parlance) and finally the limited space for black's queen – again, in Purdy's parlance, there is the chance of a 'net'.

This last feature is the key, so to quote CJS Purdy:

(Purdy on nets, pins and ties, Fine Art, vol 2, pg 205)

Some things are hooey,

and most others lies;

But forks you mustn't miss,

nor pins, nets, ties.

So 1 Rd6! Qb5 after which the line I had was 2 Nd4 Qa5 3 b4 Qc7 4 Nb5 Qb8 when I knew something must win, perhaps 5 Bg3 (Houdini tells me lots of moves win) but better is to reverse the move order and play 2 b4! threatening Nd4, which is impossible to meet.

I concentrated on 1…Qb5, not (alas) giving full attention to 1…Qc7, thinking it would be straighforward to defeat, but in so doing I missed the pretty game continuation.

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