Let’s set sail

A full-on morning, with 23 juniors filling the room. My thanks go to John Heath for helping out with the tutoring.

We were so busy that I forgot to take photographs — this is the only one, from the second hour.

The room in the middle of a session, with games under way along two long tables and more boards set up behind. — The second hour, with most of the room still playing.

The theme of the day: the Noah’s Ark Trap

The theme for the day on the display board was the Noah’s Ark Trap. It is a classic bishop trap in the Ruy Lopez, where Black’s queenside pawns cage White’s light-squared bishop.

The ark from the flood story floats on a giant chessboard under a rainbow, crowded with cartoon animals and waving children, with huge chess pieces standing in the water around it.

The core idea

At its simplest, the trap is a wall of pawns built around a bishop that has run out of squares.

The pawn cage, in its simplest form

1. e4  c5  2. Nf3  Nc6  3. Bb5  a6  4. Ba4  b5  5. Bb3  c4

Five moves, and the bishop on b3 has nowhere left to go.

Where it comes from

It arises in the Ruy Lopez after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 d6 5.d4 b5 6.Bb3.

The Noah's Ark Trap in full

1. e4  e5  2. Nf3  Nc6  3. Bb5  a6  4. Ba4  d6  5. d4  b5
            start of the Noah's Ark Trap idea
        6. Bb3  Nxd4  7. Nxd4  exd4  8. Qxd4  c5
            attack the Queen with the idea of then playing c4
        9. Qd1
            Instead of Qd1:
              9. Qd5
                  should the Queen go to c6+ thinking of winning the Rook?
              9… Be6  10. Qc6+  Bd7
                  Bishop blocks and Black's Queen still protects the Rook
              11. Qd5
                  threatening checkmate on f7
              11… c4
                  Blocks the mate threat and wins the Bishop - Noah's Ark trap
        9… c4

White grabs the pawn, Black chases the queen, and the bishop runs out of squares.

Plan for Black: push pawns to a6, b5 and c4 to build a “pawn ark” around the bishop on b3.

Key mistake for White: grabbing the central pawn with the queen and wasting tempi. After 11…c4! the bishop on b3 has no escape squares and is simply lost.

Why it works

Tempo gain. Black chases the queen with …c5, gaining the time needed to prepare …c4.
Pawn cage. Pawns on a6, b5 and c4, with support from …d6, form a net — and every bishop retreat (a2, a4, c2, d1 and the rest) is blocked or controlled.
Punishes greed. White is busy winning a pawn with Qxd4 instead of keeping the bishop safe and getting developed.

How to avoid it as White

Don’t play 8.Qxd4? Prefer a developing move or a different recapture. Don’t let your queen be chased around while the bishop sits on b3.
Watch the bishop’s escape squares. If Black is preparing …c5 and …c4, make sure the bishop can drop back to c2 or d1 in time.
Use c3. In many Ruy Lopez lines, supporting the centre and controlling d4 prevents the very pawn-trade sequence that sets the trap up.

The Ladder competitions are under way

The Ladder competitions started today — just a few games played, and mainly in the Rook group, our advanced players.

A cartoon of three children climbing three tall ladders that rise from a giant chessboard into a blue sky. Each ladder stands behind a chess piece — the orange one behind a black rook, the yellow one behind a white bishop, and the blue one behind a black knight.

Wins for Uzzaer, Oscar, Henry, Fin and Zayd. Draws for Jonah, Kieran, Lenaya and Tristan.

An early look at the tables

These are the first results of the season, so most of the club has yet to play a Ladder game. Scoring is 3 points for a win, 2 for a draw and 1 for a loss.

Rooks

Rooks — Ladder games played so far
Player	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points
Kieran	2	0	2	0	4
Jonah	2	0	1	1	3
Henry	3	2	0	1	7
Oscar	4	2	1	1	9
Uzzaer	3	1	0	2	5

Also in the Rooks, and yet to play a Ladder game: Wyatt, Michal M and Lewis.

Bishops

No Bishops games have been played yet. The group is Constance, Rowan, Michal K, Tish, Gagan, Arnav, Eden and Zayd.

Knights

Knights — Ladder games played so far
Player	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points
Lenaya	1	0	1	0	2
Fin	1	1	0	0	3
Adah	1	0	0	1	1
Tristan	1	0	1	0	2

Also in the Knights, and yet to play a Ladder game: Jack, Otis, Seyon, Mason, Orson and Rupert.

The Knockout tournament

I have 13 players so far, and I need 3 more volunteers to complete the draw: Lewis, Kieran, Fin, Rowan, Henry, Uzzaer, Oscar, Gagan, Tish, Michal K, Constance, Zayd and Mason.

If you would like to play, let me know at the next session.

Reporting your results

All Ladder results must be reported back to Graham.

We meet at Ferndown Library every Saturday, 10am–12 noon, and the club is open to 6–16 year-olds.