Ulster Schools' Individuals Tournament
Under 19
The under 19 section was the strongest in several years, with 18 competitors of whom eight competed regularly in senior competition during the 2004/05 season. Play was held over five rounds with the title being won by Chris Millar only after a tense final round decider in which he defeated first seed Calum Leitch.
Final Standings
| Player | School/Club | Games | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Millar (1497) | MCB/Fisherwick | 5 | 4.5 |
| Calum Leitch (1704) | Campbell College/Bombardier | 5 | 4 |
| Ryan Murray (1493) | RBAI/Fisherwick | 5 | 4 |
| David Symmington (1354) | RBAI/Bangor | 5 | 3.5 |
| William Stewart (1243) | RBAI | 5 | 3.5 |
| Shane Keers (1566) | Sullivan Upper | 5 | 3 |
| Andrew Wright (1294) | MCB | 5 | 3 |
| Nathan Stewart (1351) | RBAI/Hillsborough | 5 | 2.5 |
| James Gill (1239) | St.Columb's | 5 | 2.5 |
| John Gill (1054) | St.Columb's | 5 | 2.5 |
| Matthew Leebody (933) | RBAI | 5 | 2.5 |
| David McBride (1201) | St.Malachy's | 5 | 2.5 |
| Nicola Hood (1001) | MCB/Hillsborough | 5 | 2.5 |
| Timothy Ng (1036) | Wallace | 5 | 2 |
| Andrew Hoey (897) | St.Malachy's | 5 | 1.5 |
| Robert Lavery (895) | St.Malachy's | 5 | 1 |
| Ryan Deane (951) | MCB | 5 | 1 |
| David Corrie (994) | Sullivan Upper/CIYMS | 5 | 0.5 |
First Round
In the opening round first seed Calum Leitch enjoyed a comfortable win against Methody's First Division player Ryan Deane. In contrast, however, second seed Shane Keers lost to Nathan Stewart of RBAI and Hillsborough. The clash between Methody and St.Columb's first boards, Chris Millar and James Gill, was the final game of the round to finish and produced a draw.
Second Round
Calum Leitch and RBAI's Ryan Murray were among those to maintain a 100% record in the second round after beating Nathan Stewart and Andrew Wright respectively. Meanwhile, Shane Keers and Chris Millar enjoyed their first wins as each employed the French Defence.
Third Round
The most notable result from the third round was perhaps Calum Leitch's victory over Ryan Murray in a game which appeared to be heading for a draw. David Symington and David McBride both dropped off top spot as they agreed to a draw in their match.
Fourth Round
In the penultimate round Chris Millar and Calum Leitch set up a final round decider with each other as they both enjoyed comfortable wins over David Symington and David McBride respectively. Ryan Murray continued his push for a top three finish after defeating Sullivan Upper's Shane Keers.
Fifth Round
In the competition's concluding round Chris Millar defeated Calum Leitch to become Ulster Under 19 champion for the first time. The game itself was extremely close with a Dutch Defence opening that produced a position calling for careful manouvering from both sides as each player attempted to gain a positional edge. However, under time pressure, Calum dropped the exchange for a pawn and eventually his flag fell in what was a lost position.
Ryan Murray, meanwhile, beat James Gill to secure third place behind Calum Leitch on tiebreak. Nicola Hood of Methody and Hillsborough defeated St.Malchy's captain Robert Lavery as she maintained her title as Ulster Schoolgirls' champion.
Under 16
Methody's Simon Wright enjoyed his best form of the season to win the Ulster Under 16 tournament after finishing above strong opposition. This was primarily in the form of Sullivan Upper First Division players first seed Richard Montgomery and Robin Brown (who finished second and third respectively) and Methody third years Philip Chen and Frank Wu.
Final Standings
| Player | School/Club | Games | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Simon Wright (900) | MCB | 6 | 5.5 |
| Richard Montgomery (1493) | Sullivan Upper/Bangor | 6 | 4.5 |
| Robin Brown (1302) | Sullivan Upper | 6 | 4 |
| Philip Chen | MCB | 6 | 4 |
| Fabian Schaub | St.Malachy's | 6 | 4 |
|
Frank Wu (894) |
MCB | 6 | 3 |
| Eddie McCaffrey | RBAI | 6 | 3 |
| Neil McAlister | Sullivan Upper | 6 | 3 |
| Aaron Murray | RBAI | 6 | 2 |
| Michael Milliken | St.Malachy's | 6 | 2 |
| Matthew McCaughey | St.Malachy's | 6 | 2 |
Under 14
Ananda Srinivasan, of Methody and Fisherwick, followed up on his winning of the Civil Service Cup with eight victories from eight games to become Ulster Under 14 champion.
Christopher Kelly of St.Columb's finished with six points to finish second on tiebreak ahead of RBAI's David Haddock.
Under 12
City of Derry and St.Columb's player Leon Hulleman also dominated his section to finish with a 100% record after nine games.
Oliver Brown of Grange Park and Robin Claxton of RBAI finished second and third respectively with each completing the tournament on seven points from nine.
