troydaniels: Normally the game was over after move 32. b9. Black would not need to capture the three white stones, as they are dead. By capturing at a4, black places a stone inside own territory, reducing it by 1. This could make the difference between win and loss, though not in this case, where white wins anyway.
It is necessary to mark the dead stones after passing, so that the score is calculated right.
(hide) If you want to find an opponent with similar playing skills to your own look in the Ratings page of the type of game you want and find a player with a similar BKR. (pauloaguia) (show all tips)