Mike played many brilliant games. As we build up the database, we will present some of his 'greatest hits' here.
I am very pleased indeed to have secured the services of Peter Lalic for this section.
Photo © Peter Lalic
Peter is a very talented, London-based player who is rapidly rising through the ranks
.
In addition to being an excellent player, Peter also produces
chess videos,
featuring annotated games and chess lessons. They can be found here:
http://www.youtube.com/user/DraganLalic
Game 10
May's Game of the Month features one of Mike's special openings. He liked to play an unusual variation of the Modern Defence, with his King's Knight heading for f7 via h6. He had a lot of success with this system. Why not give it a try? It's especially good in Rapid and Blitz games. By the way, Mike's inspiration for adding this variation to his repertoire was the book 'Journal of a Chess Original' by Stephan Gerzadowicz (published by Thinkers' Press).
Game 9
April's 'Game of the Month' is a bit of a misnomer, because this time Peter Lalic has provided a double feature!
Mike loved playing against the French Defence and Peter shows how he dismantled one of the most solid defences around with his tactical flair.
Sit back and enjoy two excellent games, enhanced by Peter's excellent and entertaining commentary.
Game 8
Mike loved both sides of 1 e4 c5. The Dragon was his favourite but he was happy to take on any variation.
His tactical battle with Vidal Madria is our 'Game of the Month' for March, with the usual excellent video treatment from Peter Lalic. Enjoy!
Game 7
How should one play against such a sharp player? Well, why not try and keep him quiet with the English Opening? It doesn't always work...
Mike's opponent this time was David Baillie, former county champion and long-term Redcar stalwart. In fairness, David never plays 1 c4 with the idea of making a draw. He is a chess fighter who revels in exciting, creative games. David played Mike many times and earned some important victories too. It was always a fine game when they met.
Enjoy February's 'Game of the Month', brought to you once again by the great Peter Lalic - King of chess videos!
Game 6
The Sicilian Dragon was a very special opening for Mike. He was completely at home with both colours and despite some very wild games his Dragon defeats were very few and far between.
Sit back and enjoy another excellent presentation from the inimitable Peter Lalic.
Game 5
December's Game of the Month features the Danish Gambit, unquestionably one of Mike's absolute favourite openings.
He didn't often have the chance to play it weekend congresses, but this game shows him seizing the opportunity.
Sit back and enjoy another great game, expertly annotated by Peter Lalic. I'm sure you will all agree that Peter's work on these games is absolutely fantastic and I am deeply grateful for his efforts.
Game 4
November's Game of the Month is an unusual one, at least as far as Mike's style is concerned. Playing this particular variation of the Sicilian was an experiment for him; he normally opted for the Dragon or Najdorf.
His opponent, Steve MacCormack, is a very good attacker and it looks like he has Mike in real trouble. However, a devastating counter attack results in a Black win - but Mike had to dig deep for this one.
Enjoy the game, greatly enhanced by Peter Lalic's expert commentary.
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Game 3
Mike always enjoyed his games against Steve Dauber. For a number of years they played together for Elmwood. I was on the same team; we were very successful. Mike and Steve also met many times in tournaments, particularly the Cleveland Individual Championship (Mike's favourite event).
October's game of the month is a little bit unusual. Instead of a storming Kingside attack against Steve's Sicilian Defence, the game takes a couple of unexpected turns and ends up being an excellent example of the power of the Bishop pair.
Over to Peter Lalic for his latest top-class commentary...
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Game 2
Mike and I only ever played at the York Congress once, and that was back in 1991. We both enjoyed it but never seemed free at the same time in subsequent years. As the congress was played on the first weekend in January, it was always a busy time, family-wise.
I remember that Mike was on very good form and he just missed out on securing one of the top places, but he did win a grading prize.
Early in the tournament he played future Grandmaster and Scottish International John Shaw and this is our Game of the Month for September.
In played John later in the same tournament and it was 1...g6 again, with the same result. In a conversation we had at another tournament, he revealed that York had seen his last games with 1...g6, as he realised it didn't suit his style. His decision turned out to be a very good one, as title norms soon followed!
This is a very tactical game and I'm sure you'll agree that Peter Lalic really brings it to life with his superb commentary and analysis. Just sit back and enjoy!
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Game 1
For the first game in our series, we'd like to present a game played at the 4NCL. Mike only played there on one weekend. His first game - the one we are about to see - features one of his all-time favourite openings: The Danish Gambit.
Mike did play the Ruy Lopez too, but he really loved playing the Danish. Swashbuckling pawn sacrifices for the initiative definitely appealed to him. He considered this game one of his best ever performances and he was delighted when it
eventually found its way into the book, 'Danish Dynamite', by Muller and Voigt.
Over to Peter for his expert commentary on the game...
Here's a direct link to the video on Peter's site:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnvIPXsgZ9Y