Chess
Ladykiller
David Spanier
women chess players are coming up in the world. The best are almost on equal terms with men; the second echelon is good enough to give most men a fright at the board. Yet it is very hard for a woman to make the grade. Chess is still a male- oriented game, with the Catch-22 that women can't compete against the top men unless they have the ratings, and they can't get the ratings unless they ,compete .against men.
The best British-born woman player in action is Sheila Jackson, now employed by Lambeth Council, born in Liverpool, who in her mid-twenties has struggled hard to improve her game. She has to take time off from her work in lieu of holidays to compete in tournaments, often meet her travel expenses out of her wages, and cram long hours in training.
What a contrast from women's tennis where a player may be tenth in the national list and umpteenth in the world rankings, and still make an extraordinarily good living. Things will never change in this country until chess is presented in a way which attracts popular support (even darts in their hearts do it. . .). I gather that the estimable Jeremy James is hoping to pep up his television presentation of chess; the two Ks have not helped him.
Sheila, now playing in the women's team in the Olympiad, recently beat the Amer- ican women's champion Diane Savereide in a week-long joust at Chequers, the chess café in Chalk Farm. In the last Lloyds Bank tournament, she won a good attack- ing game against Niaz Murshed, the young Bangladeshi player who himself has got a grandmaster norm. It should not be long before Sheila achieves her Woman Grand- master rating.
Jackson — Murshed: Lloyds Bank 1984; Sici- lian.
1 e4 c5 2 c3 Nf6 3 e5 Nd5 4 d4 cxd4 5 cxd4 Nc6 6 N13 e6 7 Nc3 Nxc3 8 bxc3 d5 9 exd6 Bxd6 10 Bd3 Qc7 11 0-0 Bd7 12 c4 0-0-0 Risky. 13 Be3 NM Waste of time, better h6. 14 Be2 Kb8 15 Qcl Ka8 16 Rbl Nc6 17 Rdl Qc8 18 Ng5 Be8 19 Ne4 Bb8 Back go the bishops. 20 d5 Ne5 21 Qb2 Ba4 22 Rd2 b6 23 QM exd5 24 cxd5 Bd7 25 f3 f5 26 Nc3 Rhe8 27 Bg5 Qc7 28 d6 Qc6 29 Bxd8 a5 30 Qxb6!?! Sheila did not exactly foresee her queen sacrifice. Her opponent was in time trouble and her game 'just flowed'. 30 . . . Ba7 31 Nd5 Bxb6+ 32 Bxb6 Nc4 33 Bxc4 Qxc4 34 Nc7+ Kb7 35 Nxe8 Bxe8 36 d7 Bxd7 37 Rxd7+ Ka8 38 Bf2 Resigns She has two checkmates. Poor Murshed, according to spectators, was shaking like a leaf.
Jackson — P. E. Littlewood: Phillips and Drews 'Knights', London 1984; Ruy Lopez.
1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bb5 a6 4 Ba4 N16 5 0-0 Be7 6 Re! b5 7 Bb3 0-0 8 d3 d6 9 Bd2?! (9 c3!) 9. . . Bg4 10 h3 Bh5 11 c3 d5 Offering a pawn to induce White to weaken her king side. 12 exd5 Nxd5 13 g4 White accepts the challenge. 13. . . Bg6 14 Nxe5 Nxe5 15 Rxe5 NM 16 d4 Bd6 17 Bg5 Qd7 18 Re! Nc4 19 Bxc4 bxc4 20 Nd2 Qb5 21 Be7 Bxe7 22 Rxe7 Rae8 Probably too ambitious. Jackson suggested 22. . Qxb2 23 Nxc4 Coxc3 24 Ne3 Rad8 25 d5 0c5 26 Re5 0c3 with equal chances. 23 Rxr7 15 24 Nxc4 Qb8 25 Rc5 fxg4? Black could still have set some problems by 25 . . . Of4. No doubt he intended to play this after the obvious recapture 26 hxg4 but . . . 26 Ne5! White calmly returns two of her three surplus pawns in order to snuff out Black's counterplay. 26 . . . gxh3 27 Qb3+ Qx133 28 axb3 Be4 29 Re!! 29 Rxa6 gives Black some chances after 29 . . . h2+ 30 Kxh2 Rxf2+. But nbw White is in complete control and finishes off efficiently. 29 . . . Ba8 30 13 Rd8 31 Re3 Rf4 32 Kh2 Rdfli 33 d5 g5 34 Kxh3 Bb7 35 Kg3 Bc8 36 d6 B15 37 d7 Kg7 38 Rd5 Rd8 39 Re2 h5 40 Red2 h4+ 41 Kh2 Kf6 42 Rd6+ Be6 If 42 . . . Kxe5 43 R2 d5 mate. 43 Nc6 Rxd7 44 Rxd7 Bxd7 45 Rxd7 Rxf3 46 Rf7+ Black resigns in view of 46 . . . Kxf7 47 Ne5+ followed by 48 Nxf3. A cool defensive perform- ance by the 1981 British women's champion against the men's (Open) champion of the same year.
British women chessplayers have for some time now had their own magazine, Queen's File, which is obtainable for £6 per annum from Louise McDonald, 35 Ceres Road, London .SE18 1HR.
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