You are here: Home Archives Ulster Chronicles 2013-2014 season UCU Web 2014 B&D League - Part 2, Week 12 round-up

B&D League - Part 2, Week 12 round-up

Bangor beat NICS to officially seal the John Strawbridge Cup, but the Silver King is still very much up for grabs as Lindores edge out Fisherwick.
B&D League - Part 2, Week 12 round-up

Off to the seaside

Division 1

Fisherwick 2-3 Lindores

Lindores kept their title chances well and truly alive with a win over champions Fisherwick. The match started well for Fisherwick as Gavin Fong made short work of Ross Harris, while John Cairns defended well against a strong sacrificial attack from Alan Delaney, forcing a draw by repetition. The board 1 clash between Michael Waters and Gabor Horvath, the two top-rated active players in Ulster chess, seemed to be going the Fisherwick man's way as he obtained a favourable endgame in return for an exchange, but Horvath's excellent endgame technique gave Lindores a vital half-point. Lindores then drew level as Fred MacDonald got the better of a tricky endgame against Callum Ormerod, leaving John Masterson and Calum Leitch to battle it out for the match. In a bizarre finish, Leitch blundered, allowing a fork of his king and rook - which Masterson failed to spot, resigning instead. Masterson was doubtlessly kicking himself after realising his mistake, and will probably do so again if it means Lindores win the league. That said, with a match in hand and an easier run-in, Fisherwick are still favourites to make up the four-point gap to Lindores and win their fourth successive Silver King, but Lindores are still very much in the hunt.

Muldoons 1 4-1 Ballynafeigh 2

Muldoons 2 defeated a weaker-than-usual Ballynafeigh 2 team to effectively guarantee third place. Gareth Annesley opened the scoring with a win over Damien Cunningham, thanks to Annesley's white knight wreaking havoc in the black position. Ken Millen then fell to Des Moreland, while Soren Jensen pulled one back for the visitors with a win over Nicholas Pilkiewicz. Stephen Wood secured the match for Muldoons 1, though, with a win over Eoin Carey. The final game to finish was the board 3 encounter between 2013 Ulster Intermediate Champion Robert Lavery and 2013 Irish Intermediate Champion Danny Mallaghan. Despite giving away nearly 300 rating points, Lavery made it clear that he was playing for the win as he sacrificed a knight with the intention of blowing open Mallaghan's king position, but was eventually forced to admit defeat as Mallaghan had everything covered.

Lagan 3.5-1.5 Ballynafeigh 1

Lagan closed the gap at the bottom of Division 1 with this win over Ballynafeigh 1, achieved thanks to wins for Chris Kelly and William Storey over Ram Rajan and John Price. The match also saw a creditable draw for John Nicholson against David Houston.

PlayedPoints
Lindores 20 102.5
Fisherwick 19 98.5
Muldoons 1 19 87
Ballynafeigh 1 21 78.5
Ballynafeigh 2 19 67
Belfast South 1 20 60.5
Lagan 20 60

Division 2

Ballynafeigh 3 0.5-4.5 Belfast South 2

Belfast South 2 eased to victory away to Ballynafeigh 3. Only a draw by Paddy Magee against John McKenna saved the home side from a whitewash, although with over 400 rating points separating the two  it was quite a draw.

Ballynafeigh 4 1.5-3.5 Muldoons 2

Muldoons 2 improved their chances of avoiding the wooden spoon with a win away to Ballynafeigh 4. There were wins for Steven Eachus, James Waddell and Pat McKillen, while the debuting Gerard Bannon gave the home side their sole win against Paddy Maguire.

Bangor 3-2 NI Civil Service

Bangor confirmed their status as Division 2 champions with a 3-2 win over their nearest rivals NICS. Going into the match, Bangor only needed to score 1.5 points for their lead to become unassailable, and soon they were two-thirds of the way there as Walter Wilson blitzed Drew Ferguson. Adrian Dornford-Smith put the celebrations on hold, however, with a win over Garry Johnston. However, with the home side being higher-rated on all boards bar the top board, it was inevitable that the breakthrough would occur at some point, and it was Alan McConnell who would ensure that the John Strawbridge Cup would be coming to the Groomsport Church of Ireland Hall with a win over Alan Burns. Burns battled gamely despite going a rook down early on, but McConnell had too much in the end. Both remaining games fizzled out into draws, giving Bangor a 3-2 win.

PlayedPoints
Bangor (Champions) 10(+10) 82
NICS 9(+10) 53
Fruithill 8(+10) 43.5
Belfast South 2 10 40.5
Ballynafeigh 3 9(+10) 27.5
Ballynafeigh 4 10 27.5
Muldoons 2 10 26
Navigation
News
The Monthly Childrens Chess Kicks off Oct 4th at Methodist College The LJCC Belfast Qualifier a one day 6 round tournament starts our annual series of monthly tournaments at Methodist Col... Sep 29, 2025
The 2025 Summer tournament ends with a fun tournament and award ceremony Weds 24th September 2025 saw 24 players gather to celebrate the end of the UCU Summer Tournament. Who won? we have the f... Sep 27, 2025
Belfast Qualifier for the British Open Blitz 2025/26 Belfast runs one of 16 tournaments that allow players to qualify for the British Open Blitz tournament. The top player a... Sep 27, 2025
The Annual UCU Summer School at Ormeau Park We had 18 young chess players for 3 days of brilliant chess activities over Weds/Thurs/Fri 6th, 7th, 8th August 2025. At... Sep 14, 2025
One more game to play in the Summer Tournament 2025 We have played 19 weeks of glorious chess. What are the standings with only one game to go. Sep 13, 2025
More news…
« October 2025 »
October
SuMoTuWeThFrSa
1234
567891011
12131415161718
19202122232425
262728293031
Upcoming Events
LJCC - Belfast Qualifier 2025: 4th October An opportunity for Primary Students to Qualify for the London Junior Chess Championships and for Secondary pupils to enj... Oct 04, 2025 09:30 AM - 05:00 PM — Methodist College,1 Malone Rd, Belfast BT9 6BY
Bangor: FIDE RATED Blitzmania 10 Rounds 11-20 Thursday 9 October 2025 Blitzmania at Bangor - a series of exciting Blitz tournaments at City of Bangor Chess Club. Oct 09, 2025 07:15 PM - 10:00 PM — City of Bangor Chess Club, Church of Ireland Parish Hall, 30 Main Street Groomsport
FIDE RATED County Down Rapid Chess Championships 2025 (for adults) The event will run as one open section with age specific champions crowned at the end of the day, based on the highest p... Oct 11, 2025 09:30 AM - 05:00 PM — City of Bangor Chess Club, Church of Ireland Parish Hall, 30 Main Street Groomsport
FIDE RATED County Down Junior Chess Championships 2025 (for children aged 7-17) The event will run as one open section with age specific champions crowned at the end of the day, based on the highest p... Oct 11, 2025 10:00 AM - 05:00 PM — City of Bangor Chess Club, Church of Ireland Parish Hall, 30 Main Street Groomsport
FIDE RATED City of Bangor 10 Round Halloween Blitz at 3+2 Celebrate Halloween with 10 rounds of Chess Blitz at City of Bangor Chess Club. Thursday 30th October. Oct 30, 2025 07:15 PM - 10:00 PM — City of Bangor Chess Club, Church of Ireland Parish Hall, 30 Main Street Groomsport
Upcoming events…