Division 1
Team Played Points RVH Falcons 12 70.5 RVH Hawks 12 54.5 Fisherwick A 12 45.0 Bangor Carnegie 12 43.5 Civil Service 12 40.5 CIYMS 12 26.5 QUB 12 13.5 North Belfast 2 13.0 North Belfast withdrew after playing only 2 matches and their results were annulled.Division 2
Team Played Points Bombardier 14 70.0 RVH Eagles 14 69.0 Fisherwick B 14 58.0 Groomsport 14 58.0 Randalstown 14 41.0 Hillsborough 14 38.0 Fortwilliam 14 36.5 RVH Ravens 14 21.5HILLSBOROUGH CHESS CLUB'S FIRST COMPETITIVE OUTING
Hillsborough Chess Club was founded in the autumn of 2000. In its first year, under secretary Geoffrey Collins, it mainly concentrated on building itself up, though a couple of friendly matches were played with Fisherwick. This season the club has entered a team in Division 2 of the UCU Belfast & District Leagues and fittingly its first match was at home against Fisherwick B. The visitors brought a strong team scoring three wins, a draw and only one loss. However the largely inexperienced home side put up a strong showing with the highlight for the hosts being the win on Board 2 by Michael Harkness.
Michael Harkness (Hillsborough) - Jim McLean (Fisherwick B), 6th November 2001
[Event "Strawbridge Cup 0102"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2001.11.06"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Harkness, Michael"]
[Black "McLean, Jim"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "B01"]
[PlyCount "55"]
[EventDate "2001.11.??"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventCountry "IRL"]
[SourceTitle "Ulster Chess News"]
[Source "David McAlister"]
[SourceDate "2003.01.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.01.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Nf6 3. d4 Nxd5 4. Nf3 Bf5 {4.Bg4 is more usual.} 5. Bd3 Bg4 {
This simply loses a tempo.} 6. h3 Bh5 7. g4 Bg6 8. Bxg6 hxg6 9. c4 Nf6 10. Ne5
e6 11. Nc3 c6 12. Bg5 Bd6 13. Qf3 Nbd7 14. O-O-O Qc7 15. Nxd7 Nxd7 16. c5 Be7
17. Bxe7 Kxe7 18. Ne4 Nf6 19. Nd6 Rhf8 20. Rhe1 Nd5 21. Qg3 a5 $6 22. Qe5 Rg8
23. f4 {White has built up a formidable space advantage.} Qd7 24. Rd2 b5 25.
Rde2 Nc7 26. f5 $1 b4 {A blunder but Black was in severe difficulties whatever
he played.} 27. fxe6 fxe6 {27...Nxe6 28.Qg5+ Kf8 29.Rxe6 fxe6 30.Rf1 Qf7 31.
Rxf7 mate.} 28. Qg5+ {Mate in two follows after 28...Kf8 29.Rf1 Qf7 30.Rxf7.}
1-0
AN ALTERNATIVE TO THE FOOTBALL ON THE BOXOn the evening of Wednesday 9th January your editor was sitting at home with his feet up watching Chelsea beat Tottenham Hotspur in the Worthington Cup. Others were engaged in more cerebral efforts, as became clear when I received an e-mail from Robin Triggs the next day.
Robin Triggs (QUB) - Ray Devenney (Fisherwick), 9th January 2002
[Annotations by Triggs]
[Event "Ulster Trophy 0102"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2002.01.09"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Triggs, Robin"]
[Black "Devenney, Ray"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D43"]
[PlyCount "78"]
[EventDate "2001.11.??"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventCountry "IRL"]
[SourceTitle "Ulster Chess News"]
[Source "David McAlister"]
[SourceDate "2003.01.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.01.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
{Last night's match No, not talking about the football, a chess match I
thought you might be interested in. QUB vs Fisherwick A was a very competitive
match hampered only by Queen's being two players short! I don't know if you
can help at all, but we're having trouble getting players at the moment. Any
suggestions would be welcome - I know Calum Leitch was wanting to join, but
he's already played a game for CIYMS, and anyway I don't know how to get in
touch with him. Anyway, last night's match was, as I said, a very close
affair. Fred MacDonald got a draw with J. Cairns on board one, whilst David
Collins was beating G. McCormick on board three - thus if I'd held on to beat
R. Devenney on board two we'd have scraped a draw. it wasn't to be, but it was
an excellent game, and I thought you might like the score.} 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6
3. Nc3 c6 4. Nf3 Nf6 5. Bg5 h6 6. Bh4 dxc4 7. e4 g5 8. Bg3 b5 {Too passive for
my liking. Bb4 keeps up pressure on the white centre, but there were a number
of options.} 9. a3 a6 10. Be2 Bb7 11. O-O Nbd7 12. Re1 {Looking to push the d
pawn, should c5 be played.} Nh5 13. Be5 Nxe5 14. Nxe5 Nf6 {White is down a
pawn, but has a much better position. The central pawns look weak, but black
has few attacking options.} 15. Bf3 Bd6 $2 {This just loses position.} 16. Nxf7
Bxh2+ 17. Kxh2 Kxf7 18. e5 Nd5 19. Bh5+ {19. Ne4 may have been better.} Kg7 20.
Ne4 Rf8 21. Nd6 Qe7 22. Kg1 a5 23. g3 Kh8 {A good move, limiting white's
attacking options.} 24. Qc2 Qg7 25. Kg2 $2 {A bad mistake - Nxb7 was correct,
as although it surrenders white's most powerful piece, after 25. ... Qxb7 26.
Qg6 picks up a pawn and white has a slight advantage. As it was, black was
able to exploit a tactical weakness in white's position.} c5 $1 26. Kg1 Bc6 {
Black has plans!} 27. dxc5 Ra7 28. Qd2 $4 {White has missed the point of Ra7.
The queen move is nothing more than an attack on the a pawn (assuming that
black is planning Rc7). But white is surrendering g6, a crucial square.} Nf4 $3
{And the game is effectively over.} 29. g4 Nh3+ 30. Kf1 Nxf2 31. Qxf2 Rxf2+ 32.
Kxf2 Qf8+ 33. Ke2 Qf4 34. Rf1 Qxe5+ 35. Kd1 Qxc5 36. Nf7+ Kg7 37. Kd2 Qd4+ 38.
Kc1 Qe3+ 39. Kd1 Rd7+ {It was a good game, I thought I had him, but one or two
bad moves...} 0-1
MID-SEASON TRANSFERThe piece immediately above An Alternative to the Football on the Box revealed that Queen's were looking for extra players. Well, they got their man. Calum Leitch had played earlier in the season for CIYMS. Normally this would have prevented him turning out for a different team. However, he was given permission to "transfer" to Queens, presumably because his only game for CIYMS was against North Belfast, who have now withdrawn from the League with the result that all their matches are null and void (although individual encounters still count for rating purposes). Here is Calum's account of his first two games for QUB.
Calum Leitch - Gerald Harvey QUB -v- Civil Service, 16th January 2002
[Annotations by Leitch]
[Event "Ulster Trophy 0102"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2002.01.16"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Leitch, Calum"]
[Black "Harvey, Gerald"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "D02"]
[PlyCount "68"]
[EventDate "2001.11.??"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventCountry "IRL"]
[SourceTitle "Ulster Chess News"]
[Source "David McAlister"]
[SourceDate "2003.01.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.01.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
{I am back in League chess, this time hopefully with a vengeance - not for
CIYMS but for Queens and I made my Queens debut against Gerald Harvey. With
Ashley Peile being absent I was on board 4. While Fred MacDonald was beating
John Nicholson on board 1, Robin Triggs was drawing with Tom Esmonde on board
2 while David Collins was defeated on board 3 by P. May. If I were to win I
would get Queens a draw but against a 1700+ that was never going to be the
case but I put up a great fight but as all villains do they go down in the end.
} 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 e6 3. Bf4 {Trying to get the London system.} Bd6 {White is
posed a question to take or not to take. I decided not to take.} 4. Bd2 Nf6 5.
e3 Nbd7 6. Bd3 O-O 7. O-O e5 8. dxe5 {If I did not take there was e4 and I
would lose a piece so I was forced to take.} Nxe5 9. Nxe5 Bxe5 10. c3 {
Blocking from losing my rook.} Bg4 11. f3 Bd7 12. Be1 {To open up squares for
my bishop.} c5 {This is a great move for Black because the queen is free and
he is getting a big centre.} 13. Qc2 Qb6 {Another good move for Black
attacking the e3 pawn.} 14. Bf2 c4 {I defended the pawn but now Black attacked
the bishop so I kept it on the same line as the c-pawn in case of e4.} 15. Be2
g6 16. e4 {Attacking the queen but now Black attacked h2.} Qc7 17. g3 dxe4 18.
fxe4 Ng4 19. Bxg4 {I was forced to take.} Bxg4 20. Na3 a6 21. b3 {A stupid
move. The time was getting to me.} cxb3 22. Qxb3 Qxc3 {A pawn down now.} 23.
Qxc3 {I was forced to take - if I didn't I lost a knight.} Bxc3 24. Rab1 b5 25.
Nc2 Be2 26. Rfc1 Bd2 {My rook is trapped...} 27. Nd4 Bxc1 {...and it's
effectively over.} 28. Nxe2 Bh6 29. Nc3 Rac8 30. Nd5 Rc2 31. a3 Bg7 32. Re1 Re8
33. Kg2 f5 34. exf5 Rxe1 {I missed the bishop being pinned. I guess it was the
pressure and the time, but well done Gerald - good game anyway} 0-1
Calum Leitch - Norman McFarland, Fisherwick -v- QUB, 23rd January 2002[Annotations by Leitch]
[Event "Ulster Trophy 0102"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2002.01.23"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Leitch, Calum"]
[Black "McFarland, Norman"]
[Result "1-0"]
[ECO "D02"]
[PlyCount "79"]
[EventDate "2001.11.??"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventCountry "IRL"]
[SourceTitle "Ulster Chess News"]
[Source "David McAlister"]
[SourceDate "2003.01.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.01.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
{On the following Wednesday night Queens played Fisherwick. I was up against
Norman McFarland and I got my first win in League chess in only my second game
for Queen's.} 1. d4 Nf6 2. Nf3 e6 3. Bf4 c5 4. e3 d5 5. Bd3 Nc6 6. c3 Bd6 7.
Ne5 Qc7 8. Bb5 {This is to block me losing a pawn.} a6 9. Bxc6+ {I was forced
to take the knight.} bxc6 10. Nd2 Bxe5 11. Bxe5 Qe7 12. Bxf6 gxf6 13. Qf3 f5
14. Nb3 c4 15. Nc5 a5 16. Qg3 f6 17. Na4 Ra7 18. Nb6 Kf7 19. Qh3 Rc7 20. b3 Qa3
21. Ke2 cxb3 22. axb3 Qxb3 23. Nxc8 Rcxc8 24. Rxa5 Rc7 25. Rc1 Qc4+ 26. Kf3 c5
27. Ra8 {I liked this move. No matter what, Black was losing at least a pawn.}
Rcc8 28. Rxc8 Rxc8 29. Qxh7+ Ke8 30. Qg6+ Kd7 31. Qxf6 cxd4 {At this stage
Black had about 3 minutes left on time.} 32. Qxd4 Qxd4 33. exd4 Rc4 34. Ke3 Ke7
35. Kf4 Kd6 36. Ke3 e5 37. dxe5+ Kxe5 38. g3 d4+ 39. cxd4+ Rxd4 40. Rc5+ 1-0
ONE BRICK IN THE WALLAnd finally a game played by Tom Clarke, the Board 1 of RVH Falcons, the 2001-2002 Division 1 champions.
Tom Esmonde - Tom Clarke, RVH Falcons -v- Civil Service, 13th November 2001
[Event "Ulster Trophy 0102"]
[Site "?"]
[Date "2001.11.13"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Esmonde, Tom"]
[Black "Clarke, Tom"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "A04"]
[PlyCount "44"]
[EventDate "2001.11.??"]
[EventType "team"]
[EventCountry "IRL"]
[SourceTitle "Ulster Chess News"]
[Source "David McAlister"]
[SourceDate "2003.01.01"]
[SourceVersion "1"]
[SourceVersionDate "2003.01.01"]
[SourceQuality "1"]
1. Nf3 f5 2. b3 Nf6 3. Bb2 d6 4. g3 {4.Bxf6 must come into consideration here,
but best is probably 4.d4 to prevent Black playing e5.} e5 5. d3 Be7 6. Bg2 O-O
7. O-O Nc6 8. e3 Qe8 9. c4 f4 10. exf4 exf4 11. Nc3 Qh5 12. Ne2 fxg3 13. Nxg3
Qe8 {Clarke's original intention was to play 13...Qh6 but he was concerned
thst after 14.Bc1 Qg6 his Queen might be short of space. A good plan for White
might then be Re1, Nh4 and Nhf5.} 14. Qd2 Nh5 15. Rae1 Nf4 16. Re4 Qf7 {
Black has now a superior position. The immediate threat is 17...Nxg2 18.Kxg2
Qxf3+ winning a piece. Esmonde decides to react tactically.} 17. Bxg7 {Clarke
had considered this move in other variations, but not in this particular
position. Now17...Nxg2 does not work because of 18.Bxf8. Capturing the Bishop
doesn't work either: obviously 17...Qxg7 allows 18.Rxf4 and White gains a pawn
while 17...Kxg7 18.Rxf4 and if now 18...Qxf4 19.Nh5+ winning the Black Queen.}
Nh3+ {But this move cuts across White's plans.} 18. Bxh3 Bxh3 {Now 19.Bxf8
loses to Qxf3.} 19. Ng5 {19.Qh6 might have been worth a try. Although 19...
Qxf3 20.Qxh3 Kxg7 leaves Black a piece up, the plausible 19...Qxg7 is met with
20.Qxh3 Rxf3 21.Rxg4 Bg5 22.Qh5 h6 23.Rxg5! (but not 23. h4 Ne5!) Qxg5 24.Qxf3
and White comes out a pawn ahead.} Bxg5 {Not 19...Qxg7 because of 20.Nxh3.} 20.
Qxg5 Qxg7 21. Qd5+ Kh8 22. Rfe1 Ne5 {Hardly a premature resignation against a
player of Clarke's ability but one possible variation 23.R1e2 Nxf3+ Kh1 Qa1+
shows just how much trouble White is in.} 0-1
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