Archive for the ‘My Own Games’ Category

Coming close to victory

Posted in My Own Games on March 21, 2026| Leave a Comment »

After a most pleasant evening at the chess club last night and more than enough examples of play which brought victory rather impressively I must say…well only one or two actually but that’s enough, I decided to return to Lucas Chess to face the engine Greko98 once more in hope of giving it a good thrashing, after all, it’s only rated 2500! At the chess club last night I told someone my FIDE rating is 2 but it’s actually a little higher than that. As mentioned in a previous post, I beat an engine rated 2200 and 2400, so Grecko98 it is, rated 2500. What I like about playing it is I have to analyse my games and learn from my mistakes to stand any chance. The video below shows the closest I have come to beating it. I was celebrating half way through it, thinking the win was mine, forgetting I always take my foot off the pedal when I think I have won, so I lost instead! I just got carried away with my attack and didn’t evaluation the position, failing to notice I had poor king safety. I shall make a note not to get too excited next time if I have what I think is a strong attack, I think this game is a good ilustration of the fact that I am not used to playing such high rated opponents and do not realize just how difficult they are to beat. It could be argued that that was to be expected. Grecko98 is a tough cookie. I might nick a draw of it but that’s probably all I can hope for. It’s been fun as this is the toughest engine I have ever taken on, I decided not to play the ones that can beat the world champion! Although I like to play, I don’t like it when I’ve got absolutley no chance and will get thrashed every game, so I gave those engines a miss and me thinks me shan’t go above 2500 also as I am under the kosh a lot. What I liked most about this game was it showed I wanted to stick it to my oponnent despite suffering material loss.

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Dodgy engine antics

Posted in My Own Games on March 18, 2026| Leave a Comment »

It is Lucas Chess that I use and in the previous post I showed how the engine rated 2200 was rather easily beaten, so I then decided to play one rated 2400 but will not be posting a video of that. It was well dodgy and left its queen en prise, so I won again. A pyrrhic victory.

M J M

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Supposedly me at my best!

Posted in My Own Games on March 18, 2026| Leave a Comment »

When we don’t expect the unexpected what then? I made a video of me beating Lucas Chess 2200 engine. I had been playing well earlier in the day and so upped the anti. I didn’t think I could be confident enough to do such a thing but it was well founded as I won convincingly, much to my disbelief. I didn’t have to think that hard either but I did stay very focused! The only conclusion I can draw from this is that I must be better than I thought! I suspect it will be some time before the disbelief passes. Comments on the game are very welcome.

M J M

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Dutch defence win

Posted in My Own Games on March 17, 2026| Leave a Comment »

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The song does not remain the same…

Posted in My Own Games, Personal Interest & Experience on August 20, 2025| Leave a Comment »

I hold it true, whate’er I befall;

I feel it when, I sorrow most;

‘Tis better to have loved and lost

Than never to have loved at all.

Tennyson, In Memorium 27

Old Heraclitus once said ‘You can never step into the same river twice for it’s not the same river and it’s not the same man’. When I bought and read IM Littlewood’s publication ‘Chess Tactics’, I did so voraciously at school; therefore, I was a mere teen and not a man. That book was one of many my small school bag was stuffed with, often read in T. D. (Technical Drawing), on the bus too, and wherever else whilst uniformed. How would it read upon rediscovery some 37 years on?

The cover was green, now it’s orange. The song does not remain the same. It’s a book for beginners and I don’t recall any of the puzzles, just that I found it challenging… .

Why does the song not remain the same? The reasons are multifarious, primarily however, reading it is of no benefit anymore thus of no interest: it retains a certain sentimental value, perhaps, but no more really… except that it may be helpful if teaching chess… .

Type O’ Negative have a song called ‘Everything Dies’. In death I will now become known as one who once read Littlewood’s ‘Chess Tactics’…what else have I got to hope for?

O heart, how fares it with thee now,

That thou should’st fail from thy desire,

Who scarcely darest to inquire,

‘What is it makes me beat so low?’

Something it is which thou hast lost,

Some pleasure from thine early years.

Break, thou deep vase of chilling tears,

That grief hath shaken into frost!

Tennyson, In Memorium 3

M J M

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Droidfish draw

Posted in My Own Games on July 11, 2025| Leave a Comment »

This is rather unimpressive and untypical too because of white’s early d5 push and several sub-optimal moves played by white. But I do like that I did play in the spirit of the Dutch and siught counterplay to grab the draw.

Mark. J. McCready

Chapinero, Bogota, Colombia

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Late night blitz with no thought needed

Posted in My Own Games on June 6, 2025| Leave a Comment »

I really am not a fan of online chess but it does help alieviate boredom I suppose. Anyway, here’s four wins which show how badly I play online and how bad my opponents usually are. Not anything to be proud of but rather ashamed of instead yet still I post! It remders my play quick fire and impulsive. If you do have to watch any of them then only the last game is worth looking at as my opponent is not so terrible… .

  1. In order to have a break from 1. c4, I vary with a return to 1. f4, which goes wrong immediately.

2. No thought needed here, another example of poor opening play by my opponent.

3. Far too easy.

4. Nice trip down memory lane.

Mark. J. McCready

Colombia

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Attack with 1. c4

Posted in My Own Games on May 31, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Here is a game which exemplifies I am a mere club & county player, and both challenges the widely held belief that 1. c4 is a quiet move often leading to postional struggles as well as that I am playing for a win still, despite having stopped playing sacrifical chess against computer engines. It’s far from brilliant, like most ad hoc online games are, but looks like the right way forwards for someone wnting to move away from 1. e4.

Mark. J. McCready

Colombia

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An acceptable loss

Posted in My Own Games, On-line journal on February 26, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Opponent Monarch 1.7 ELO 2100 (ECF184). I am white, have the better game but let it slip at the end. Good game: I am implenting what I told myself now but more time is needed.

Mark. J. McCready

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Updates on December’s experiment

Posted in My own endeavours, My Own Games, On-line journal on February 24, 2025| Leave a Comment »

Playing for pleasure and playing to win are two different things altogether.

I have upped the engine on Lucas Chess to Monarch 1.7 (ELO2100/ECF184).

I have not yet fully absorbed the advice I previously posted from Rowson’s The Seven Deadly Sins of Chess. Because of this, I lost the second game against it when I should really have won. But for the first time I also did the other thing required, to look at my games and learn from my mistakes (more on this to come).

Now there are conditions too:

Firstly, play with a clear head.

Secondly, make sure I am ready to play and want to play.

Thirdly, allocate more time to the games, as this will help.

From the harrowing loss, I have learnt I am missessing the position and not spending enough time on that. I also need a broader approach and play with more caution. By this I mean give less emphasis to wanting to seize the initiative all the time, which I tend to do. I really couldn’t believe I lost.

Clearly winning but misassessed.

Here I went a bit wrong. The correct move is 27. …. h5 and not 27. …. Qxh1. I should have eased off grabbing material and seen that my knights were controlling the position and essential to retaining control of it. I should have made more effort to assesss the position and not thought more in terms of the result. /

32. Ka4 Kh8 22. Bh2 Nc4?? That move lost me the game whenI thought I had it won. Nd7 is better. The position is not won, it’s marginally worse. I just thought he’s bound to get mated when in fact the king is safe there.

3-6 months it stays. About right for someone so out of practice. On we go.

Mark. J. McCready

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