B&D League - Part 2, Week 11 round-up

Division 1

Ballynafeigh 2 3-2 Ballynafeigh 1

With neither team having anything to play for, the junior players were given a chance to shine - only two of Ballynafeigh 2's regular players took to the board in this derby, and none of the Ballynafeigh 1 regulars. Both of these players - Stephen Rush and Robert Lavery - did the business against Bill Lavery and Ken Millen respectively, and Paul Devlin sealed the win for Ballynafeigh 2 against Norman Rainey. John Price and James Weir gave Ballynafeigh 1 their two points.

Lindores 2.5-2.5 Muldoons 1

Title-chasing Lindores were held to a draw by third-placed Muldoons 1. Gabor Horvath beat Nicholas Pilkiewicz and Ross Harris continued his good form with a win over Stephen Wood, but it wasn't enough as Gareth Annesley and Danny Mallaghan won and Desmond Moreland drew with Fred MacDonald.

Belfast South 1 0.5-4.5 Fisherwick

Fisherwick took full advantage of Lindores' failure to beat Muldoons 1 with a big win over Belfast South 1, but they were helped by some key absences for the home side. George Jackson and Martin Kelly were both called up, losing to Norman McFarland and Ian Woodfield respectively. Sam Flanagan scored the home side's only half-point with a draw against John Cairns.

Lindores are only one point ahead, with Fisherwick having a match in hand. They play each other next week in a match which Lindores must win in order to realistically keep their title hopes alive, given Fisherwick's easier run-in.

Division 2

Muldoons 2 1.5-3.5 Ballynafeigh 3

Muldoons remain at the foot of the table with this loss to Ballynafeigh 3. Paul McMinn, making his league debut for the home side, lost to Norman Rainey on board 5. Eoin Carey and John Price scored the away side's other two wins, while James Waddell took Muldoons 2's only win.

Ballynafeigh 4 2.5-2.5 Fruithill

Ballynafeigh 4 and Fruithill shared the point on Tuesday night in a match that both teams will have felt they should have won. On board 1, Dennis Wilkinson ended his recent run of draws with a defeat to Ciaran Marron. The scores were soon level, though, as Sean Linton, who had the upper hand for most of the game, carelessly walked into a mate-in-one against Mark Hewitt. Eoin Carey showed some good endgame technique to see off Frank Carrothers despite time pressure, putting the home team 2-1 up. Only boards 4 and 5 were still in play at this point; on board 4, Paddy Magee had a number of clear winning opportunities against John Monaghan, including a forced mate in three, but failed to take advantage and by the time Barney McGahan lost on time against Fruithill debutant Ross Smith, Monaghan had found a perpetual check to draw the game and the match.

Belfast South 2 0-5 Bangor

Bangor whitewashed Belfast South 2 - who had beaten them 4-1 earlier on in the season - to take another leap towards the Division 2 title. They were helped by the home side's inability to field a full team, giving Kevin Agnew and Garry Johnston the night off, and when Walter Wilson defeated Peter Ratcliffe (making his first league appearance for the home side) the bonus points were in the bag. But Bangor didn't stop there, as Paul McGuigan and Paul McLoughlin completed the whitewash.

NI Civil Service 3-2 Ballynafeigh 4

In this rescheduled match from Week 7, NICS narrowly defeated Ballynafeigh 4. Barney McGahan and Paul Anderson picked up some well-earned points for the visitors against Drew Ferguson and Peter Storey respectively, but wins for Mark Newman, Alan Burns and Adrian Dornford-Smith gave the home side the bonus points.

Bangor play NICS next week - they only need to score 1.5 points to officially seal the Division 2 title.