The second round of the quickplay saw me up against Paul Taylor. Paul is a tricky but erratic player, and while I have generally done well against him, I have suffered a few defeats too.
In the first game, Paul played an unusual line that he had used to defeat me in last year’s Horsham 1 vs Horsham 2 match. However, I was prepared for it and he made a serious mistake on move 9, allowing me to win the exchange and a pawn. Although I didn’t play as well as I might in what followed, I was still able to win in the end.
In the second game, I was able to establish a slight advantage out of the opening. An aggressive, double-edged thrust (15 g4!?) did not immediately yield dividends, but fortunately for me, my opponent tried an exchange sacrifice that was simply unsound. With some calm play, I was able to consolidate and win.
I give the games below with some notes.