Lions draw level after big win in Groomsport
Division 1
- Muldoons 1 3-2 The A Team
- Bangor Groomsport 1-4 CS Lewis Lions
Muldoons 1 may have been the 200-points-per-board favourites against The A Team on Monday night, but they barely stumbled across the line as while the top two boards went according to plan, a win for Bernard Jaffa (1436) over Stephen Wood (1789) and draws for John Bryars (1529) and Martin Kelly (1317) against Danny Mallaghan (1824) and Des Moreland (1622) respectively gave the CS Lewis Lions a chance to take over at the top when they faced Bangor Groomsport on Thursday night. They weren't quite able to do so, with Ross Harris's (1694) defeat to Walter Wilson (1476) spoiling a whitewash for the Gresham Street outfit - instead, they now share the lead with Muldoons 1.
Ballynafeigh 1 vs QUB 1 was postponed.
Division 2
- NI Civil Service 1.5-3.5 Ballynafeigh 2
- CS Lewis Witches 1.5-3.5 Muldoons 2
- Kelly's Heroes 4-1 Fruithill
Leaders Ballynafeigh 2 recorded a 3-5.1-5 win over NICS, but they will have been disappointed at not claiming a more comfortable win; Adrian Dornford-Smith (1102) was defending resolutely against Chris Kelly (1566), but it seemed to be only a matter of time before Kelly broke through. In the end, it was a matter of time, but for an entirely different reason as the Ballynafeigh man got into time trouble and blundered, allowing Dornford-Smith to score the upset of the season so far. Not only that, but Robert Lavery (1587) had some nervy moments against Jim McLean (1144), with his king out in the open in the middlegame, before eventually prevailing. Would Kelly's blunder turn out to be decisive in the chase for the Strawbridge Cup? There was another Kelly who was hoping so; his Heroes were in action against Fruithill, achieving a convincing 4-1 win (in which JP Corrigan (765) held John Monaghan (1128) to a draw) to move half a point closer to their rivals. Elsewhere, Muldoons 2 edged closer to safety by defeating the CS Lewis Witches.
Division 3
- Andrew's Army 2.5-2.5 QUB 2
- QUB 3 1-4 Ballynafeigh 3
- Bangor Wannabees 3-2 Ballynafeigh 4
QUB 2 remain three points ahead after drawing their top-of-the-table clash with Andrew's Army; there were also wins for Ballynafeigh 3 and the Bangor Wanabees.
Standings
| Division 1 | Played | Points | Division 2 | Played | Points | Division 3 | Played | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Muldoons 1 | 9 | 39 | Ballynafeigh 2 | 9 | 45.5 | QUB 2 | 9 | 51.5 |
| CS Lewis Lions | 9 | 39 | Kelly's Heroes | 9 | 41 | Andrew's Army | 9 | 48.5 |
| The A Team | 9 | 32 | Fruithill | 8 | 27 | Ballynafeigh 3 | 9 | 37.5 |
| QUB 1 | 8 | 31 | Muldoons 2 | 9 | 26 | Ballynafeigh 4 | 9 | 22 |
| Ballynafeigh 1 | 8 | 26.5 | CS Lewis Witches | 9 | 21.5 | Bangor Wannabees | 9 | 19 |
| Bangor Groomsport | 9 | 14.5 | NI Civil Service | 8 | 21 | QUB 3 | 9 | 10.5 |
