Chess Openings for You - Bernard Cafferty

A solid opening repertoire for the positional player based around playing 1. e4 for White, and responding with the French Defence or Queen’s Gambit Declined as Black. The repertoire is designed to provide considerable scope for various styles, but avoiding razor-sharp tactical lines.

Chess Openings for You is a complement to Levy & Keene’s An Opening Repertoire for the Attacking Player which is aimed at more active lines, while this book by Cafferty is for the positional-inclined player with options to head into a more aggressive lines.

The first chapter introduces the opening repertoire selection, discussing the intensification of the scientific method and publishing in chess since the end of the Second World War. As a result the amount of data is too much for the club player to cope with. Even at the highest level selectivity is necessary. This sets the basis for the book of a suitable restricted selection of openings as a foundation for applying current ideas.

Chapter 2 is a marvellous coverage of the general principles of opening play, of development, material balance, the centre, piece planning, the pawn formation, and exchanges and simplification. Each factor is superbly demonstrated by top-level player. It also sets the premise of this opening repertoire; White taking advantage of his first-move initiative, and Black’s task to neutralise that initiative, or develop a compensatory initiative of his own. It also covers psychological considerations, with examples from the FIDE Candidates matches.

Repertoire as White (1. e4)

Starting as White playing 1. e4 Chapter 3 covers Black’s response of 1… e5 indicating Black is a solid defensive player. The Chapter covers both the Giuoco Piano aiming for lively piece play, or the Exchange Ruy Lopez which is solid and leaves Black with very little counterplay. The choice of the Giuoco Piano is at a time when it wasn’t in regular use at master level, so a good surprise weapon at club chess level.

Against Black’s 3… Bc5 Giuoco, Cafferty offers the creation of a pawn centre as the main approach, but also offers a gambit continuations for players who want something more active. Against the aggressive Two Knights Defence (3… Nf6), Cafferty offers 4. d3 and a calm build-up of piece play, in keeping with the quieter lines of the Guioco Piano.

Part 2 of meeting 1… e5 covers the Ruy Lopez (or “The Spanish Torture”) and in the spirit of the repertoire player dictating the couse of the game, Cafferty adopts the Exchange variation of the Ruy Lopez, based on Fischer’s success with in against leading players Portisch and Gligoric.

Cafferty finishes up the chapter covering early deviations to the Ruy Lopez: Bird’s Defence, the Classical Defence, the (old) Steinitz Defence, and the Schliemann/Janisch Defence. There’s also taking the Petroff addict aback by playing 3. d3, following a plan analogous to the Giuoco Piano, or a “sleepy crocodile approach” of slowly unravelling White’s position converting potential energy into dynamic on the board. The positions look like Reversed Czech Benoni/King’s Indian.

Chapter 4 covers White’s responsed the the Semi-Open defences. In an effort to dicatate the general approach Caffery recommends the player to use the Closed Sicilian (2. Nc3), aiming for a king-side fianchetto. It follows in the footsteps of Smyslov and Spassky. It avoid’s Botvinnik’s 6… e5 by deferring developing White’s king-knight.

Against the Caro-Kann, which has the reputation of being a sound defence, Cafferty suggests Fischer’s Exchange variation, using the e5-outpost in conjunction with building up strong pressure in the centre and kingside. Fischer overturned the assessment of the line in his comeback game against Petrosian in the USSR - Rest of the World match in Belgrade, 1970.

Against the French Defence Cafferty essays the Tarrasch variation (3… Nd2), leading to quiet plan and steady manoeuvring. For more tactical players he offers Estrin’s gambit against the … Qxf6 variation, and the redoubtable Korchnoi gambit on White’s fifth move (5. Ngf3). Against the Open variation (3… c5) White adopts 5. Bb5+ which is the preferred line for positional players wishing to simplify and direct their attention to Black’s isolated d-pawn.

Against the Alekhine Defence after 1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 White essays Tal’s recommendation 3. Nc3. Against Pirc and Modern, White is advised to set up a small well-supported pawn centre and treat it with due respect.

Repertoire as Black (French & Queen’s Gambit)

Chapter 5 introduces the French Defence as Black’s response to 1. e4, “the one semi-open defence to maintain it’s reputation as a sound opening for almost a century”. The introduction deals with facing your own opening (or analysing against yourself), mastering both sides of the opening, replete with examples and counter-examples. So against the Tarrasch the advice is to follow the lines from the previous chapter where it’s indicated White’s initiative has been reduced to the minimum.

Cafferty offers simple development against the Advance variation, and the McCutcheon variation against White’s 3. Nc3, avoiding the Winawer “which is immensely complicated and still a bone of contention among theorists”. Against the Exchange variation, avoid symmetry and exchanging off pieces along the e-file; by castling queenside he can initiate a king-side pawn attack. Then against the King’s Indian Attack play the … dxe4 exchange once White has committed to a kingside fianchetto, and get and maintain his dark-squared bishop to c5.

Chapter 6 covers Black’s response to 1. d4, advocating the Queen’s Gambit Declined as nnever been refuted as a sound defence. Recommending the Tartakover system (7… b6) against the Orthodox defence, following in Spassky’s steps, accepting hanging pawns and aiming for piece play. But if White pre-empts it with 7. Rc1 (without having played e2-e3) then switch into an improved form of the Lasker Defence with 7… Ne4!. Cafferty also covers the line when White plays Bxf6.

The second half of the chapter covers facing the Exchange Variation of the Queen’s Gambit, discussing the theory behind the minority attack, and outlining an ideal Black setup to counter it. And since that ideal can’t be forced he describes the active piece play Black needs to embark on in the centre and the kingside to offset White’s mangling of Black’s queenside. He also covers White’s other plans of queenside castling and attacking down the kingside, and kingside castling and preparing e3-e4. The last part covers the … Be7 move-order to rule out White’s Ng1-e2 manoeuvre.

Chapter 7 collects up dealing with various Flank openings, or English/Reti setups, proposing playing …e6 and …d5 against everything, modelling Spassky’s approach, leading to Queen’s Gambit style play.

Chapter 8 defends against uncommon openings, offering solid lines of play against Bird’s Opening based on a kingside fianchetto and …d6. Strongpointing the e5-square against the Nimzowitsch/Larsen (1. b3). And dealing with 1. c3, Sokolsky’s 1. b4, 1. Nc3.

Title

Chess Openings for You

ISBN

0713419768

Author(s)

Cafferty, Bernard

Publisher

B.T. Batsford Ltd

Year

1978