Trapping the enemy king like this is often referred to as making (or weaving) a “ mating net.” This net is particularly strong, and can be very tricky to defend against, once it is properly set up. This locks the enemy king in the corner, preventing him from escaping. The rook guards the square that stands between your knight and the enemy king, and the knight guards the other two squares around the king. Notice that in this position the enemy king is trapped: he can’t make a move. Then maneuver your knight to the f6 square (or the comparable square for one of the other corners). Place your rook to cut off the king’s escape on either the seventh rank or the g file. To set up the checkmate, the opponent must have his king in the corner or in a position where you can drive it into the corner. Of course, this pattern could occur on the other side of the board, with the enemy king trapped on a8, or it might occur in the a1 or h1 corners too. But it might be on the g-file as well, checking from g8. The rook will often be on the seventh rank, checking the enemy king from h7. Other times, you may be able to force the king to move to the corner.
Very often you can set up this pattern by moving your knight to the f6 square (or one of the other squares mentioned above) while the king stands in the corner. The enemy king must be on the corner square. Put another way, to reproduce the pattern, the knight should stand on c3, c6, f3, or f6. Notice that the knight stands on f6, a square that is on the diagonal that leads to the corner square, with one square between the knight and the corner square. You can rescue games (as I have) knowing this pattern.
The checkmate with rook and knight against a king comes up fairly often, but most beginners don’t know it, and even some fairly strong players either don’t know it well or miss it easily. Trap your opponent in the corner using your rook and knight!
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