25. A PLAYER'S MOTIVES CRITICISED IN A SPECIMEN GAME
Now that a few of my games with my own notes have been given, I offer for close perusal and study a very fine game played by Sir George Thomas, one of England's foremost players, against Mr. F. F. L. Alexander, in the championship of the City of London Chess Club in the winter of 1919-1920. It has the
interesting feature for the student that Sir George Thomas kindly wrote the notes to the game for me at my request, and with the understanding that I would make the comments on them that I considered appropriate. Sir George Thomas' notes are in brackets and thus will be distinguished from my own comments.
Example 55.—Queen's Gambit Declined. (The notes within brackets by Sir George Thomas.) White: Mr. F. F. L. Alexander. Black: Sir George Thomas.
| 1. P - Q 4 | P - Q 4 | |
| 2. Kt - K B 3 | Kt - K B 3 | |
| 3. P - B 4 | P - K 3 | |
| 4. Kt - B 3 | Q Kt - Q 2 | |
| 5. B - Kt 5 | P - B 3 | |
| 6. P - K 3 | Q - R 4 |
(One of the objects of Black's method of defence is to attack White's Q Kt doubly by Kt - K 5, followed by P × P. But 7 Kt - Q 2 is probably a strong way
of meeting this threat.) There are, besides, two good reasons for this method of defence; first, that it is not as much played as some of the other defences and consequently not so well known, and second that it leaves Black with two Bishops against B and Kt, which, in a general way, constitutes an advantage.
| 7. B × Kt | Kt × B | |
| 8. P - Q R 3 | Kt - K 5 | |
| 9. Q - Kt 3 | B - K 2 |