Coach Chesswick
Hi peao71 – constructive feedback from your recent games
1. Opening play: follow sound principles first
- As White you often start with
e3–Qe2–f3. Those early queen and pawn moves slow development and leave the king in the centre. Try a simpler “principle-first” sequence such as 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 (Italian) or the London System withd4–Nf3–Bf4. - With Black you reply to 1.e4 mostly by
d6–e6–Qd7–Ne7. That Pirc/Philidor hybrid keeps your pieces passive. A more classical path is 1…e5 2…Nc6 3…Nf6 followed by castling, or learn the straightforward Scandinavian (1…d5). - General rule: move each piece once before you move any piece twice, keep the queen in the garage until minor pieces are out, and castle by move 10 whenever possible.
2. King safety: castle early
Two of your last three losses featured a queen+rook attack on an uncastled king. In the game against untossabledwarf the following position occurred:
If you had castled instead of advancing pawns, the tactic …Ra2 would never have worked.
3. Tactics first!
- Common motifs you allow or could exploit: forks on f7/f2, back-rank mates, and skewers along files.
- Set a daily target of 10 puzzles. Look for Checks, Captures, Threats before every move.
4. Time management
- Most results are decided on the clock, not the board. Try 5 + 5 or 10 + 5 to give yourself thinking time.
- Use your opponent’s clock: think during their move and have a reply ready.
5. End-game conversion
Your win versus claudio27281 reached a won rook-and-pawn ending, yet still finished on time. Practise the basic wins (K+P vs K, Lucena, Philidor) so you convert quickly.
6. Suggested training plan
- 10 tactical puzzles per day.
- Play 5 rapid games (10 + 5) per week and analyse each one briefly.
- Adopt one main opening as White and one as Black; add one new idea per week.
- Review a critical moment from every game – even the wins on time.
7. Your current progress
Peak ratings so far: 643 (2024-04-22). Keep an eye on these trend charts:
Small, consistent improvements in each area will add up quickly. Good luck, and enjoy the journey!