ANOTHER HARD FOUGHT VICTORY

Tonight`s match against Ballynafeigh2 ended with a hard fought 3-2 victory, once again Gareth clinched the match.

Roookie`s Report

Kelly's Heroes "Defeigh" Ballynafeigh 2! 

Kelly's Heroes march on with a narrow win over Ballynafeigh 2 to record their fifth consecutive win and Belfast South's total of 11 unbeaten games in a row- 10 wins and one draw!

 Kelly's Heroes are now joint second behind champions Strand 1, whose only defeat all season was against...Kelly's Heroes! 

John McKenna guaranteed his Board 5 board prize while Gareth Annesley and John Bryars have still a great chance of board prizes too! +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

Ecc 12:!2 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

ROOKIE`S REPORT ON THE FRUITHILL MATCH

Rookie`s report is below.
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Another amazing result followed on from victories over Strand 1 and Ballynafeigh 1, totalling 16.5 out of 21 and putting us in second place! 

Firstly, John Bryars got revenge over Ryszard, "hard" though it was! 

There was nothing "marring" David's win over Marron! 

Sam was flummoxed by Masterson's mastery after drawing with him last time! 

John McKenna clinched the match after showing "Stevadore"! 

Finally, Gareth, with 21 seconds left and a piece up, made up for his two defeats against Cairns by forcing perpetual check and "earns" a draw against Cairns! 

Overall, a complete turnaround from our 6-1 defeat to them last time. 

Also, Gareth and the two Johns kept their hopes of a board prize alive. Martin Kelly (Captain ).

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The famous soundtrack from Kelly`s Heroes is below.

Ecclesiastes 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

ANOTHER WIN FOR KH, 3.5-1.5 AGAINST FRUITHILL

Another win for KH, 3.5-1.5 against Fruithill. Gareth once again played amazingly well when really, really, really short of time!



In my game with JM, this position occurred, it is a well known piece sac for 3 pawns by white.

I did spend some time thinking about playing it, but decided I did not want to try it against a strong opponent.

Have had this against computer programmes but it was always at the lowest strength playing levels when it occurred.  It is white to play.

Below is a possible position in the piece for 3 pawns sac. It is now Black to play? White obviously intends to take the third pawn on d6.

As things turned out, I may as well have tried it as I lost anyway!

The Bible verse below speaks of Christ the great sacrifice.

Hebrews 10:12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;

SIX SECONDS

Last night`s division one match against Strand ended up with a 3.5 win for Strand.

At one stage it looked like a whitewash was on the cards, but John Bryars halted the rot by grabbing a draw.

Gareth Annesley then grabbed another point for Kelly`s Heroes with a splendid win having only six seconds remaining on the clock.

It was a great night`s chess in a great venue. I have some video clips I will upload later.

1 Cor 7:29 But this I say, brethren, the time is short:

Most people are unaware that the Devil will have serious time trouble!!

Revelation 12:12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

LOTS OF GREAT PICTURES

UCU site has posted a report of the recent tournament. There are lots of great pictures.
Picture below shows the famous "Rookie."

Cathal wearing a hat.

Steve Scannell with Gareth keeping an eye on him.

Ecc 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

CONGRATULATIONS TO GARETH

Congratulations to Gareth Annesley on winning last week end`s tournament.
Just read the details in an email from the UCU.

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Annesley retains Nemtzov Cup

The City of Belfast Championships came to the Maynard Sinclair Pavilion for the late May bank holiday weekend. With a relatively relaxed schedule of two G/90+30 games per day, excellent playing conditions, and a strong field including two visiting titled players from Germany, all the ingredients were there for a great weekend of chess - and this year's CoB did not disappoint.

In the Nemtzov Cup, all eyes were on CM Andreas Arnold Schmitz, the top seed on account of his FIDE rating of 1989. Would he be able to take the trophy to Germany? After a disastrous first half of the tournament, with losses to defending Nemtzov Cup holder Gareth Annesley and Robert Lavery and a draw with bottom seed Chris Kelly, the answer was a resounding "no". While he recovered to finish on 3/6, he will surely see this weekend as a disappointment as far as results on the board are concerned. In the end, Annesley retained the cup with an undefeated 5/6, with Danny Roberts taking second place and Nial Troughton picking up the under-1800 rating prize.

The Henderson Cup for players under 1600 was won by Ram Rajan on 5.5/6, a full point ahead of 2016 winner John McKenna, with rating prizes going to Michael O'Connell and Adam Rushe, who also picked up the Davis vs Goliath prize for his shock round-1 win over top seed Shane Keers as a 536-point underdog.
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ECC 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

LAST LEAGUE MATCH WAS LOST

Last night`s league match against Ballynafeigh 2 ended with a 3-2 victory for the Ballynafeigh team.

The last 2 games to finish provided an exciting ending and was well played by all four players.

Ecc 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

FROM MONDAY NIGHT`S MATCH

Some video from Monday night`s match against Ballynafeigh 1. Ballynafeigh have returned to their home venue.

It was a 3.5 to 1.5 win for the Ballynafeigh team.

Got a great picture of Dennis.

GREAT NIGHT`S ENTERAINMENT AT A GREAT VENUE

I would imagine any chess club in the world would be delighted to have such a venue to play in?

Tonight`s match with Strand1 ended in a draw.

Final two games games to finish  provided a great night`s, exciting entertainment.  

The games featured John McKenna verus Calum Leitch and William Storey versus Modestas Razbadauskas.

John won on time but sadly William lost on time.  It was a splendid spectacle to watch and a credit to all 4 players involved.

In all competitive activities there has to be a winner and a loser. Both winning and loosing are there to teach us lessons, and build up character.

No human can win all the time, only God can do that!


1 Cor 9:24 Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.

25 And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.

STRAND 2 VERSUS BSA

Belfast South A team had to travel to East Belfast for their match with Strand 2. It took place last Friday.  

The games were played at Strand`s alternative venue and it was a very suitable venue for playing a chess match, as you can see in the video below.



Strand2 won the matach by a score of 4.5 to .5.

My game with Ross Harris is published below. I was short of time so I did not get all the moves written down.
The analysis is by Fritz 14.

Ross won the game on time.  I can honestly say this was the most exhausting game I have ever played in, felt the draining consequences of it for a few days afterwards.

Play online chess

Ecc 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

LAST NIGHT`S MATCH AGAINST MULDOONS

Last night`s match at Muldoon`s home venue ended up with a 4-1 win for Muldoons.

Well played lads.

Had to utilise my knowledge gained from this DVD, in my own game against Stephen Morgan.

Ecc 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

FIRST MATCH AT NEW VENUE

The first match at the new venue Quakers meeting house, of the Lisburn road.

Ballynafeigh versus Belfast South ended with a 4.5-0.5 victory for Ballynafeigh.  John Bryars cleverly forced a draw by repetition against DC to claim the sole half point.

I will post  Rookies report of the match later below.
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ECC 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

LAST LEAGUE CHESS MATCH AT THE ULSTER BANK CLUB

Wednesday night saw the last League match a the Ulster Bank Club. The match result was a 4-1 win for Civil Service.

The club officials are in the business of locating another venue for the second half of the season.

ECC 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

ANALYSE THIS

Strand won both matches tonight, not quite sure what the exact scoring was.
I had a very interesting game, though I lost on time.

However a typical position arose which illustrates the type of position which club players have to deal with. It is not a tactical position, where you can win a pawn, a piece, or get a forced checkmate.

It is more of a mundane type of position, where there is possibly one or more options.

Just how is the club players supposed to work out which is the best, or one of the best moves to make?

Here is the position, it is very interesting. Black to play? What would you play?

I will post the move I made in the comments section and the reason I chose that particular move.

ECC 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

BELFAST RAPID PLAY

Here is a very short video of the Belfast Rapid Play which took place on 28/4/2017. There was a very good turn out for this enjoyable and well run tournament.

A link with full report for the tournament site.

Congratulations to all the prize winners.

Ecc 12;12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

WORST DEFEAT EVER?

Tonight`s game was possibly my worst defeat ever against a human. 

At the end of the game I initially thought it was my worst defeat for years, but the more I thought about it, I concluded it is my worst ever defeat against a human.

The opening was a Najdorf Sicilian defence where white plays the solid Be2 line.

I resigned in a middle game position with the same number of pieces and pawns on the board for both sides, I felt it was a hopeless position.

It is a long time since I faced the Be2 line. My computer programme is Deep Fritz 14 and it does play a wide variety of lines against the Najdorf, though it has not played the Be2 line for a good while.


(Note, in the commentary it says Fritz 13 gives 1.88, this is a mistake my programme is Deep Fritz 14.)

In my possession I have Danny King`s DVD on the Najdorf.  This is a very good DVD but I could not remember the lines he gives against Be2.

This would be a very good DVD for people starting to play the Najdorf.

Lately I have also obtained Victor Bologan`s DVD on the Najdorf. 

It is a lot more detailed than the Danny King DVD but I have not seen it all yet.
Definitely need to get more clued up on the Be2 line.

When I started playing the Najdorf it was based upon the book "Mastering the Najdorf" by Arizmendi and Moreno.

If I was starting to do it all again, I would buy the Danny King DVD first to get started, then the Bologan DVD to give more detailed lines, then finally the book and I would pay particular attention to white`s Be2 line.

As you can see I have all the resources necessary to play the Najdorf at club level, which means I can have no excuses for a defeat. I was simply outplayed on the night!

Ecc 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

BELFAST SOUTH versus BALLYNAFEIGH B 2/11/2016

A short video clip from tonight`s league match.

Rookie`s report on the match is below.

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1. Ray Devenney 0-1 Mikhail Pavlov; 

2. Sam Flanagan 0.5-0.5 John O'Doherty; 

3. Bobby Thompson 0-1 Robert Lavery; 

4.Bruce MacLean 0-1 Niall Troughton; 

5.John Bryars 1-0 Colin Fenton. Total: 1.5-3.5. + Bonus: 1.5-5.5. 

Things go from Bankers' to Bonkers. 

All looked to be going well for us after 2 rounds of shadow boxing but the gloves came off as things went " bonkers at the Bankers' ", as we lost the last 3 games! 

Unusually, Sam was first to finish - Sam was in a "jam but kept calm until he had a draw in his palm"! 

John Bryars "enspires" , as he made a "dent on" Fenton's chess record to give us the lead! 

In the battle of the Bobbies, our Bobby made a few "boobies" and his loss tied the match so far! 

 "Pavlov's dogged" determination gave them a "lead" as Ray "tailed" off to defeat! 

Bruce had a "bruising" defeat to "Nial the 'Niallator", as Troughton "trod on" our chances of a drawn match! 

Remember our Mondaytournament starts next Monday, 7/11/16, at the Bankers' Club, Malone Road, around 7.30 pm. 

Fees due are £25 for Monday tournament; £30 for club league players; and only £40 for playing in both. 

Please try to pay at your next game or next Monday. Cheers. Martin Kelly.

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Ecc 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

WELL PLAYED STEPHEN

A few minute ago I just lost my league game against Stephen Scannell. It was a very interesting and enjoyable game though.

Here is a picture of Stephen Scannell playing Norman McFarland on a past occasion.

I will publish the game when the league season is over, as I do not want all my league opponents to know what I am playing and not playing.

The score was 3-0 in favour of Ballynafeigh 1 team when I left.

Roman 5:3+4 And not only [so], but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:

ROOKIES REPORT 20/10/2016

Here is Rookies report on last night`s second division match.

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No, it's not a clerical error,despite being in the Civil Service Club. We did beat them 6.5-0.5!   I have it in triplicate to prove it! 

First to finish was Bernard Jaffa, who proved you can have your "cake" and eat it! 

Jim McLean's grandson, Rhys, was"fleeced" by William Storey and was not too "plysed"! 

Their captain Newman was a "marked" man from the time he lost a piece!

 Paul McGuigan looked like a Goliath, a pawn up in his game, but David's "slingshot" of a move forced a draw!

 Our new member, Richard was going for "Gould" in his victory over another David!

 Finally, it was "a D S aster" for A.D-S. against Martin Kelly, who came back from 2 pawns down in time-trouble to win his second game in 4 days against the same opponent!

 Overall, we had a "storming" win at Stormont! Martin Kelly

(Captain)

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Ecc 12:12 And further, by these, my son, be admonished: of making many books there is no end; and much study is a weariness of the flesh.

LATEST RESULT; BELFAST SOUTH 1 MULDOON`S 4

Muldoon`s had a convincing win in their match with Belfast South by a margin of 4-1.

B.S. Versus Muldoon`s  from Sam Flanagan on Vimeo.