The Siers combination - Narayanan's Problem Corner

Narayanan's Problem corner

The Siers combination

In a Siers battery, readers may be aware that, the frontal piece of a white battery eventually delivers the mate after the black king moves to adjacent flight squares. The familiar and lighter ones are those Siers batteries where the black defences lead to self-blocks in the far away king’s field. Master composers have experimented from 1960 onwards on the effects Siers could offer and its potential to combine with other popular themes and the results were astounding. I would like to present a few heavy but nevertheless outstanding prize-winners featuring Siers combination in this edition.

In the first problem, a longer-mover, decoy of black rook is a prelude, rather a fore-plan, before the actual formation of white battery. 1. Ba6? straightaway forming the battery threatening 2.Na5+ followed by Siers mate 3.Nxc6 fails to 1…Nxe5! .Similarly 1.Bc4? threatening 2.Be6 is met by 1…Re8! (Here if black tries to defend with the BNg6 then 2. Ba6 and subsequent Siers mate on c6 would become unavoidable). So white bishop chooses a different square on the diagonal for a different threat.

The key move is 1.Bd3!! which threatens 2.Bf5. Now the forced defence is 1…Rh5 and the tries become continuations. 2.Bc4! , Rxe5 ( a Munich like blockade as Nxe5 is no longer possible) 3.Ba6! Ne7 4. Nxd6 dbl.ch, Kd8 5.Nf7 mate.Note the self block on e7.

wKa8, Bf1, Nb7, f6, Pe5 / bKc8, Rh8, Bd6, Ng6, Pc5,c6,c7 (5+7)

A.Grunenwald
2 Pr, Europe Echecs 1964

Mate in FIVE moves Key 1.Bd3 !!

Can cross-check combine with Siers battery? Why not, have a look at the following position where the frontal white piece,the usual white knight, pins itself while parrying the check from black line pieces but then how does this pinned piece give a Siers mate? The black king unpins the pinned knight in all the three variations.

Dr. Bohumil Idunk
I Pr, Pongracz Memor. Ty 1970
Mate in THREE moves

WKe8, Qc3, Rd8, e3, Bd2, g8, Ne4, g3, Pb6, e2, g7 / bKe5, Qc1, Ra8, h1, Bb2, Nb8, h8, Pd3, d4, d7, g4, g5, g6 (11+13)

The key 1.Kf8! threatens 2.Re8 ch followed by 3.Rf3 mate.
1…Qf1 ch 2.Nf2 ch, Kf4/Kf6/Kd6 3.Nxd3/ Nxg4/ Qc7
1…Rf1 ch 2.Nf6 ch , Kf4/ Kxf6/Kd6 3.Nd5/ gxh8=Q/ Re6
1…Ba3 ch 2.Nc5 ch, Kf4/ Kf6/ Kd6 3.Qxd4 / Qxd4/ Nb7
While in the first varition two of the unpins lead to Siers mate, the other two variations have one unpin each with interesting by play by the WQ and WR.

The last example shows six remarkable self-pin Siers mates.

WKa8, Qd2, Ra5, e8, Bh2, Na7, c5, Pb4, b7, g2, g6 / bKd5, Qe7, Rd1, g7, Bc8, e3, Nh3, h7, Pc4, d4, d6, d7, f6 (11+13)

Shlomo Seider
I Pr, Israel Ring Ty 1969

Mate in THREE moves

The perfunctory key 1.Qe2!! prepares for 2.Qf3 ch followed by mate. The defences are:
1…N(7)g5 2.Nxd7 !, Ke4/Ke6 3.Nxf6/Nf8 both using the pin of the black queen.
1…N(3)g5 2.Nd3 ! , Ke4/Ke6 3.Nf2/ Nf4 both using the pin of BB
1…Rf1 2.Nb3 ! , Ke4/Ke6 3. Nd2/ Nxd4 again using pins of the same BB.

Here is a Siers for solving

H&P Le Grand
I Pr, Schach Echo 1956
Mate in THREE moves.

WKe6, Ra3, Nb4, f5, Pd5, e2, g3 / Ke4, Qg1, Ba1, Pb6, b7 (7+5)

Solution to problem in The Munich theme
1.Ke8!! (threat 2.Rc1+, Nxc1 3.Nc3 mate) 1…cxd4 2.Neg1, Nc1 3.Bc2 mate

- C G S Narayanan

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Glossary

Symbol	Meaning
+	Check
#	Checkmate
x	Capture
!	Good Move
!!	Excellent Move
?	Bad move
??	Blunder
!?	Interesting Move
?!	Dubious Move
1-0	White Wins
0-1	Black Wins
1/2	Draw
Twoer	Mate in Two Moves

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About the author

C G S Narayanan, an international composer of repute, has been composing Chess problems for the past thirty years. He has won several awards for his compositions in International composing tourneys and he has an output of over 300 problems to his credit. He is the second Indian to win the prestigious Brian Harley Award for the best two-mover composed by a subject of British Commonwealth twice in 1977 and 1991. He has been editing THE HINDU Chess problem column from 1982 onwards, after S K Narasimhan. He has captained the Indian team in the World Chess Compositions Tournaments held by FIDE.

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