Category Archives: Games

Glorney Cup 1972

The Glorney Cup for 1972 was held in Sidcup, England. Six teams competed, including the Netherlands and France. The Irish team was Bernard Kernan, Stephen Meyler, Tony Spillane, Colm Quigley, Robert Pye, John Nicholson, and Rod Nixon. Ireland finished fifth, … Continue reading

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Marshall’s reminiscence about his game against Fagan

Michael Fagan’s opponent in the Ireland-Wales 1949 Glorney Cup match was Walter Marshall, later Baron Marshall of Goring and described in the The Independent as “one of the more colourful technocrats of our age” in his 1996 obituary.  In 1984 … Continue reading

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Marshall-Fagan, Glorney Cup 1949

The second Glorney Cup, held in Birmingham, July 27-28, 1949, featured three teams, with Wales joining Ireland and England. (Scotland were due to take part, but seem to have dropped out shortly before the event.) The OlimpBase page gives the … Continue reading

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An intricate ending

In this year’s Glorney, Gilbert, Robinson, and Stokes Cups, held in Paisley, Scotland, all games from rounds 1-3 were available on live boards, but there was a delay for rounds 4 and 5. The organisers have now made the remaing … Continue reading

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Ulster Championship 2018

This year’s Ulster championship, which ran from August 25-27 in Belfast, was a 6-round event with 12 players, and resulted in a clear-cut win for Thomas Donaldson, a full point clear of the field, for his first title. The report … Continue reading

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New analysis: a missed win

Round 6 of the 1975 Irish championship paired Oisín McGuinness and Alan Ludgate, each on 3½/5 and just half a point off the lead. The following position was reached after White’s 24. Nce4. McGuinness – Ludgate, Irish Championship 1975 Black … Continue reading

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Mulcahy-Bouwmeester, Munich Zonal 1954

Today, March 24, marks the 50th anniversary of the Viscount air disaster. One of the 61 people on board was Noel Mulcahy, one of Ireland’s strongest players. He was Irish champion in 1953, and equal second or better in five … Continue reading

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A snapshot from the 1973 Easter Tournament

The 1973 Easter Tournament was similar to previous ones, with a field as strong as any Irish Championship and played in plush surroundings with wooden boards and pieces on every table. Those were the days! After three rounds, Hugh MacGrillen, … Continue reading

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Karpov-Moles revisited

In his post “Karpov-Moles, Groningen 1967-8”, from 2014, David McAlister discovered surprising and long-overlooked resources for John Moles in his game against Anatoly Karpov, Groningen 1967-68, played fifty years ago this month. His most startling discovery was that Moles had … Continue reading

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Cootes-Heidenfeld, Irish championship 1973

Wolfgang Heidenfeld’s wild game against Arthur Cootes from the first round of the Irish championship in 1973—discussed by David McAlister in his reconstruction of the event in the previous post—featured a king hunt triggered by an early piece sacrifice by … Continue reading

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