“When you see a good move, look for a better one” (Emanuel Lasker)

I failed to listen to this great piece of advice in my match on Tuesday evening. Having seen a line which was favourable (winning the exchange) I played through the line not considering that something much better might be lurking elsewhere on the board.

Had my mind been more open to other possibilites I’d probably have seen the better move. Had the possibility to win the exchange not been there I’d probably have seen the better move.

My previous move had intentionally threatened to win the exchange and when my opponent’s reply didn’t address this threat I seized the material on offer. What I didn’t notice was his move now allowed me to force his King to a square where I could subsequently fork his Queen and King - winning the Q for a piece.

Unless you are under time pressure, after finding a good move it often pays to spend a few extra moments to look for something even better.

On 13th September 2004 I played in my first league match. I remember it well, playing for Downend E Team away to Yate D Team. It was played in the corner of a traditional English pub, slightly smoky, not much light, oak beams, wooden tables. I was playing on board 6, the lowest board, but still felt very nervous. I had a whole load of new things to remember: the clock, the scoresheet, time controls. Fortunately I was given an easy ride in my first game, but even so the nerves didn’t leave me, not until I’d finally checkmated my opponent. I never knew 2 hours of chess could be so exhausting!

The game is published here purely as a landmark in my chess life and is admittedly of low quality, but I was pleased to get the win and not make too many mistakes along the way - perhaps I oversimplified, but winning safely was my only concern.

I look back over this game and realise that I see much more now than I did back then - at least it shows that I’ve improved over the last 3 and 1/2 years.