Steve Scannell earned himself a slice of Ulster Chess history this August Bank Holiday weekend as he claimed top spot in the Ulster Championships for a record seventh occasion. The Championship, first fought for in 1892, was again played in the prestigious Europa Hotel for 2008. Such a venue was fitting for Scannell's achievement, as he broke the previous best of six McSparran Cup wins that he had shared with the late Eugene O'Hare.

A strong field of 30 players ensured that top seed Steve wasn't ever likely to have it all his own way though, as was very quickly proved.

In the opening round Scannell's Championship ambitions took a knock when he conceded a draw to fellow QUB player Calum Leitch. However, Steve then stormed through the following rounds, reeling off consecutive victories over Chris Kelly, Gareth Annesley, Des Forson and former Champion James McDonnell.

Those results setup a final round showdown with Fisherwick's 2010 rated John Cairns. Scannell held the advantage though, with only a draw needed on his part to seal 1st place while Cairns required a win. The decider was predictably tense, going all the way down to a finely balanced knight and pawns v. bishop and pawns endgame. Finally, despite all John's probing, Steve's position held firm and a draw was agreed.

Thus another Championship success for Scannell and a place in the record books along with it. Joint second were Cairns and McDonnell with 4.5/6, while the Intermediate and Junior prizes went to Ciaran Marron (RVH) and Alex Beckett (Fisherwick) respectively.

Also competing for Queen's were Damien Lavery and Calum Leitch (as mentioned above). Lavery's impressive 4/6 saw him miss out on the Intermediate prize to Marron only virtue of a marginally lower tiebreak. Leitch recorded 3.5/6 despite playing top seeds Scannell and Cairns along the way.

Final standings in full here.

Much credit has been earned by the UCU for ensuring another successful showpiece tournament. A superb venue and large field (including names such as Des Forson, Eddie Whiteside and Cecil Sloan) made for an excellent competition.

On a perfect July night, the curtains of the Belfast chess scene opened up for the inaugural QUB Blitz tournament in Bar Sub of the Students' Union. Over 20 competitors packed into the Union's basement for five rounds of old fashioned, shoot-out style blitz.

First place was shared jointly between Damien Lavery (QUB), John Bradley (Fisherwick), Cal Leitch (QUB) and Steve Scannell (QUB) - with Lavery and Bradley claiming 1st and 2nd spots respectively via tiebreak.

Damien raced out of the blocks to score 4 wins from his opening 4 games - recording victories over Constantine Talaleau, Ananda Srinivasan, Bradley and Leitch. However, he was pegged back by defeat to Scannell in the final round, forcing him to settle for a share of the spoils. Bradley, meanwhile, recovered from his loss against the eventual winner by seeing off Zul Zulkifli in his last match to ensure his place on the winners list.

Also collecting prize money for their performances were QUB novice PJ Mallon and RVH chess supremo Jo Mordeno. Mallon belied his ungraded status to notch up 3 wins from his 5 games - an indication of (and just reward for) the progress the first year student has made with his game since arriving at the club last September. Mordeno was equally delighted to be clinching his winner's cheque, recognition as it was for his "David v. Goliath" victory over top seed and Ulster Champion Scannell.

Those not fortunate enough to be cashing in on their night's chess were still able to enjoy the more relaxed atmosphere of informal tournament chess, the comfy modern surroundings of Bar Sub and the student-priced drinks. A winning formula may have been found here... The excellent level of interest generated by the Blitz suggests that similar events should continue to feature prominently on the QUB Chess calendar. Expect to be hearing of another opportunity to blitz it up with the best of Belfast chess by the time October rolls around.

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Stephen Scannell was QUB's sole representative at this July's annual Irish Championships and put in a strong performance to finish joint second in the Open Weekender event.

Scannell's 4 points from 5 games saw him finish joint 2nd overall - level with the likes of QUB Rapid 2008 runner-up Semyon Mkrtchyan, but behind outright winner GM Gawain Jones. On his way to second place, Steve put in the type of performances that regulars at Ulster Chess weekenders are by now well-accustomed to.

In the final three rounds he first easily dispatched 1800 rated Colm Fitzpatrick and then Rory Delaney (who guested for QUB himself in last season's 5-0 annihilation of Fisherwick), before drawing with the Luxembourg Fide Master Serge Brittner.

A final crosstable for the tournament is available here: icu.ie

The final Saturday in June saw FONIC's (Friends of Northern Ireland Chess) second fundraising tournament since the body's recent formation. This event took the form of an eight-round handicap rapidplay, with competitors receiving time handicaps in proportion to their respective ratings.

Queen's student Eamonn Walls, currently considering a move from North Belfast to Clifton House, followed up on his Fisherwick Quickplay win with another rapid victory.

QUB players John Masterson and Calum Leitch took the 2nd and 3rd place spots. The runner up position was particularly frustrating for Masterson who, after opening with a half point travelling bye and then a loss against Ananda Srinivasan, reeled off six straight wins including against eventual winner Walls.

The RVH Chess Club continued to show strong signs of its revival with the hosting of a successful time-handicapped rapid. The tourney, originally planned as solely an in-house competition, became an open after a chance meeting earlier in the week between organiser Jo Mordeno and Clifton House player Nicholas Pilkiewicz. As a result, RVH regulars including Michael Holmes, Tony Parker and John Monaghan were joined by players from Clifton, Randalstown, Bangor and Queen's.

In the end, first place was shared between QUB player Calum Leitch and the host club's highest rated player Holmes. Each finished with 5 wins and 1 defeat from their 6 games. Leitch employed the Grand Prix attack to defeat Holmes in their head-to-head, but Cal was to lose to Gareth Annesley of Clifton House while Michael won all of his 5 other matches.

Another RVH player, Phrzemek Gazywcz, capitalised upon his time advantage over the top seeds to record 4.5/6 and land the third place prize.

The last Sunday of May 2008 saw the Belfast Boat Club host a UCU Odds tournament very generously sponsored by an anonymous donor.

QUB club member and RVH league player Zul Zulkifli scooped 1st place plus £300 with a 4.5/5 total. RVH's Jo Mordeno continued his excellent season by claiming second place with 4 points, while Cal Leitch of QUB shared 3rd place with Fisherwick captain Ian Woodfield on 3.5/5.

Zul's tournament started with four straight wins against Mordeno, Geoff Hindley, William Storey then Paul McLoughlin before a final round draw against Woodfield sealed first place and the winner's cheque.

QUB's Steve Scannell continued his domination of Ulster Chess weekenders, this time by notching up another clear first in the City of Belfast Chamionships. In retaining the Nemztov Cup, Scannell secured his sixth successive UCU weekender win.

Steve finished on 5.5/6 points, with his one draw coming against Nicholas Pilkiewicz of Clifton House. After starting off with a win against Wenceslao Torres, the Ulster Champion was pushed all the way by Bombardier's Mark Newman. However, after coming through this scare unscathed, Scannell then beat Danny Mallaghan and Gareth Annesley on his way to taking the trophy.

Annesley and Pilkiewicz shared second, as William McrGrattan earned the grading prize on tiebreak ahead of Joseph Mordeno.

Alan Burns, meanwhile, refound top form to land the Henderson Cup (under 1600) with a perfect 6/6. Six points, but doubtless innumerable gambits from a Burns back to his best. John Monaghan of RVH continued to make a name for himself, this time beating Richard Proctor again to lift the "David and Goliath" prize.

Final standings in both sections here: Ulster Chess Chronicle

QUEEN'S CROWNED KINGS OF ULSTER CHESS

QUB Chess recorded the highlight of another hugely successful season by claiming the title of Ulster Club Champions 2008.

The multinational Queen’s team enjoyed an extraordinary league campaign on their way to lifting the magnificent Silver King trophy, which incredibly has been competed for since 1894. Included in their table-topping run were consecutive 5-0 whitewash victories over their two main rivals - inspiring comparisons with the late Bobby Fisher’s famous World Championship run.

UCU DIVISION 1 FINAL STANDING

In what was expected to be among the hardest-fought title races in years, Queen's were immediately put under pressure by a 3-2 loss in round 1 against the Champions of the previous three years, Clifton House. However, Queen's recovered parity by Christmas before back-to-back February 5-0 victories over Fisherwick and Clifton saw them pull away from the chasing pack. First place was finally guaranteed with a final round 3-2 win away to North Belfast.

QUB league player Calum Leitch competed in the Blackpool Conference. In what is now the British Isles' biggest chess tournament, Cal played in the under 2000 Challengers section and recorded a highly credible 3/5 against opponents' with an average rating of 1941.

The official tournament website, with crosstables and numerous pics, can be found here: http://www.blackpoolchess.org.uk/index.html

The Fisherwick Quickplay, held over the first two Monday nights in March, attracted a fine turnout in terms of numbers and quality. Queen's Theology student, Eamonn Walls, recorded an impressive 5/6 total to clinch outright first place ahead of second-placed Michael Waters' 4.5 points tally and the other 17 competitors.

The decisive moment came when the top two players (in seeding and final standing) met themselves. Eamonn beat Michael but still had to come through a tough final round match against Ian Woodfield, who at that stage shared the lead with the North Belfast player. Woodfield, however, couldn't prevent Walls enjoying his fifth win of the competition to secure top spot.

The one blip in Eamonn's tournament came on the opening Monday when he lost to Methody schoolboy Ananda Srinivasan. Srinivasan himself remained in contention throughout, but went down in his final round encouner with Waters. The Fisherwick board one's bid for victory was not only stymied by the defeat to Walls, but also through an earlier draw conceded to Norman McFarland.

Grading prizes went to Fisherwick veterans Alex Beckett and Martin Kelly (who each earned 4 points) and also to Cathal Murphy of the RVH club.

The latest edition of Fisherwick Chess Club's long-established Monday night tournament was run as a seven round swiss over January and February. The competition saw a blend of Fisherwick stalwarts alongside Bombardier, Queen's and Lagan players contest the destination of the trophy. With the news of yet another piece of Ulster Chess silverware going up for grabs, QUB were desperate for another reason to expand their already overcrowded trophy cabinet.

The tournament may have lasted over a month, but the leading places were only to be decided in the final minutes of the concluding round.

It appeared that a two horse race was emerging as early as round 3, with Chris Millar of QUB and Fisherwick's Ian Woodfield moving clear at the top with 100% records. After then drawing their own encounter, both drawing with Neil Green and beating Norman McFarland, the two Division 1 players entered the final round on 5/6 - a full point clear of the chasing pack.

At this stage though, fortune favoured Woodfield. His scheduled round 7 opponent - the extremely solid and experienced Gerry Pollock - didn't show. This left a 1.5 tournament point and 750 grading points upfloat for Kevin O'Neill. Ian dispatched his opponent cleanly and convincingly, leaving Chris to slog it out for a win against Bernard Jaffa for a share of the 1st place prize money and trophy.

After a highly untheoretical opening from Jaffa, Millar blundered and suddenly found himself looking on the worse side of the complications in an open position. It looked highly likely that a tactical bolt from the blue would provide a middlegame knockout for either side, yet play finally reached what seemed a very drawn rook and pawn endgame. Bernard, perhaps encouraged to fiddle by his opponent's dwindling time, put a foot wrong by conceeding a tempo and the exchange of rooks. When Jaffa then lost another tempo by gobbling an apparently free pawn, he was then ruthlessly ground out in what had become a won endgame for the QUB student.

This final action left Chris Millar and Ian Woodfield as joint winners - sharing the prize money and trophy - with each earning an unbeaten 6/7 score.

Kevin O'Neill claimed the grading prize, finishing with 3.5 points via wins over David Seaby and Cathal Murphy, plus a travelling and full point bye.

The QUB Rapid 2008 proved a huge success, with the increased prize fund drawing the largest, strongest and most nationality diverse array of competitors tournament chess in Belfast has seen for some time.

The 41 competitors - after battling it out over 5 rounds on the top floor of the QUB Students' Union - eventually saw French Fide Master, Maxime Sorin, emerge as this year's champion. The 2286 rated Sorin claimed the prize with a perfect 5/5 after defeating the likes of QUB's latest signing, Vlado Spiriak (1972), and Dublin's Gordon Freeman (2074).

Marking a profitable return to the Belfast chess scene was the second place prize winner Semyon Mkrtchyan (1977). With the exception of a half-point dropped to Freeman in the second round, Mkrtchyan could do no wrong and finished with 4.5/5. Semyon played strongly and enjoyed the breaks at just the right time too, winning in the last round despite a hopelessly lost position - only awarded the final crucial win virtue of his sole remaining pawn and opponent's fallen flag.

On the day, it just wasn't to be for the strongest Belfast players competing. Ulster and Belfast Champion Steve Scannell lost momentum with a defeat against Steve Morgan and, after an unforgivingly tough draw, wasn't to recover. Morgan himself was left frustrated in round 3, following up his win over Scannell by losing a king and pawn endgame to William Storey (1315). Nevertheless, Morgan was to finish level with Fisherwick's John Bradley on 4/5 as the top finishing Ulster players.

The best under 1600 player in the tournament was another southern-based competitor, Steve Stokes of Bray Chess Club. The Greystones man - through his work driving forward the Irish University Chess Association in recent years - is certainly no stranger to chess in Queen's. Stokes' prize was extremely well-earned, with the 1537-rated player facing higher-seeded players in 4 of his 5 matches yet going through the entire tournament unbeaten. The highlight of Steve's tournament perhaps came in the 4th round, where he drew against the 2006 joint Ulster Champion, Michael Waters.

At least one prize was gained by a locally-based player, with Ismail Haji Jaya winning the award for the best ungraded player. Ismail's lack of competitive experience certainly didn't show, winning against more battle-hardened opponent's such as Chris Armstrong of the Lagan Chess Club on his way to an impressive 3.5/5 points tally.

Also deserving of note was the performance of the young Gupta siblings, who are currently the most precocious prodigies in Ulster Chess. Radhika and Raghav, both primary school pupils, each recorded wins and amazed all of the participants with their remarkable talent and all-too-evident potential to develop into extremely strong players. Hopefully such experience as this will be another step in nurturing their natural flair for the game.

There was also a very encouraging turnout of Queen's students enjoying their first taste of competitive chess. A superb total of 17 QUB players in all participated, reflecting the growing size of the club and all-round increase in chess interest at the University.

In conclusion, the 2008 edition of the QUB Rapid sees the expansion of the tournament begin to accelerate. Even bigger and better things are already being planned for next year. As the QUB Chess Club continues to move from strength-to-strength, the club's annual tournament will only do so along with it.

FINAL STANDINGS (QUB PLAYERS IN BOLD)

Spring time is nigh again, as ever bringing with it rejuvenation, re-birth and league chess approaching photo-finish finales at each end of the table and on each side of the border. With such a phase of the season perenially staging a league championship's crunch fixtures, the most enterprising captains look to the opposite side of the border in an attempt to bolster their ranks with the odd player or two that could tip a make-or-break fixture in their side's favour.

Thus it was so with Bray captain, Steve Stokes. In hiring his hitman, Stokes clearly noted one immutable law of chess - whichever team QUB captain Chris Millar ends up on will get all the breaks. Whether it be All-Ireland Colleges Championships, Irish Junior Interpros, Irish Intervarsity Championships, the John Strawbridge Trophy or (God willing) Northern Ireland's Division 1, Millar's fortune has always seen his team prosper.

The QUB student readily took up the invitation, relishing the opportunity of a taste of Southern League Chess and an experience of the increased four-hour time limit. His task was to aid Bray in their pivotal relegation zone clash away to Drogheda. The pre-match signs were bleak for Bray - played 8, won 0, drawn 2, lost 6 and sitting in the relegation spot of 11th place. Stokes' last hope was that Millar's Midas touch could bolster his troubled side with just 3 games of the season remaining.

On Saturday February 9th, with the sun shining it's blessing brightly upon the adventure, your author set-off on a fine day for a Drog-beating.

Millar found himself warmly welcomed into the Bray line-up (at least by the Bray camp) and enjoyed the serene playing conditions of the Drogheda Hotel's River Suite. The matches were progressing excellently for Bray, who outperformed all expectations to race into a 5-2 lead in the fixture. The final game to be played out was between the travelling Ulsterman and Drogheda player, Joseph Reid.

Joseph Reid (1519 ICU) - Chris Millar (1516 ICU): Heidenfeld Trophy, Drogheda (Round 9)

(Diagram after black's 8th move)

9. dxc5 bxc5 10. e4 Nh5 11. Bxb8 fxe4 12. Nxe4 Rxb8 13. Ng3 Nf6 14. Ng5 h6 15. Bh7+ Kh8 16. h4 Qe8 17. Bg6 Qc8 18. O-O-O Bxg2 19. Rh2 Qb7 20. Rg1 Bd5 21. Nf7+ Rxf7 22. Bxf7 Bxa2 23. Ne2 Qe4 24. Qxe4 Nxe4 25. f3 Nd6 26. Bh5 Bf6 27. Rd1 Nc4 28. Nf4 Rb7 29. Be8 Ne5 30. Ng6+ Nxg6 31. Bxg6 Be5 32. Re2 Bf4+ 33. Rdd2 Bxd2+ 34. Rxd2 Bd5 35. f4 Kg8 36. f5 a5 37. h5 a4 38. Rf2 e5 39. f6 Bf7 40. Bxf7+ Kxf7 41. fxg7+ Kxg7 42. Rg2+ Kh7
and black went on to convert the win 0-1.

All-in-all a superb 6-2 result for Bray and Millar proving value for money. Bray enjoy their first win of the season and experience life outside the relegation zone for the first occasion in some time.

DROGHEDA 2-6 BRAY

Kieran Rogers (1770) 1-0 Stephen Stokes (1537)
Rick Goetzee (1698) 0.5-0.5 Liam Byrne (1584)
Donal O'Boyle (1752) 0-1 Brian Gaines (1627)
Joe Reid (1519) 0-1 Chris Millar (1516)
Rod O'Mahony (1564) 0-1 Gareth Cahill (1474)
Brendan Corrigan (1471) 0-1 Tom Malone (1475)
Frank Pentony (1149) 0-1 Eugene Rellis (1382)
John Doyle (1002) 0.5-0.5 Jim McAree (1391)

A fine February evening saw the Ulster Champion, Steve Scannell, take on all-comers and all at once in Queen's University Belfast. Room 208 of the Peter Froggatt Centre, packed to full capacity, hosted QUB Chess Club's first major event of 2008. It was a hugely successful night for both the club and Scannell, with the impressive turnout only outdone on the evening by Steve's performance, as he remarkably recorded 11 wins and just one draw from the 12 games.

The players involved represented an excellent cross-section of the Ulster Chess community. League players such as Cathal Murphy of RVH and Chris Armstrong of Lagan were well-flanked by UCU veterans like Geoff Hindley. Some of the stronger QUB members of course participated, including Zul Zulkifli (fresh from a particularly good 4/6 at the Ulster Rapid) and Robert Lavery (who defeated Scannell during his last simul display). They were complemented by some new to the club this year such as Laura Stronge, Gianluca Sarri, PJ Mallon and Jonathan Rodgers, plus those new to the club that evening, such as Tito Thomas and John Steen.

All the competitors put Steve through his paces, but special credit goes to Caroline Downey - the sole player to take even a draw off Steve on the night. Caroline held off Scannell's onslaught, while each of the other competitors were, one-by-one, put to the sword by the American.

Congratulations to Steve, who put on an excellent show for those who played and enjoyed a great evening of chess. Having already recorded two wins out of two in the league for 2008 and recaptured the Williamson Shield, the Ulster Champion has started the year in as blistering form as ever.

No doubt, therefore, Scannell will be among the leading contenders for the £200 prize up for grabs in the QUB Rapid on February 16th. This next event is targeted at players of all playing strengths though, so make every effort to get involved! Full details here.

As is tradition, the final weekend of January marked the first major Ulster Chess competition of the new year - the Williamson Shield 2008. The prestigious Williamson saw a new year and new faces but a familiar winner, as QUB's Steve Scannell lifted the famous shield for a remarkable seventh time. Scannell is now just one short of the late great Tom Clarke's total of 8 Williamson wins. Steve was delighted to be taking home the magnificient trophy for another year, not to mention the £100 winner's cheque along with it.

Scannell raced to 5 wins from 5, before being made to sweat by Bombardier's Mark Newman in the final round. Steve decided to eschew safe play - despite only needing a draw to secure clear first - and the former Bangor team mates found themselves in a complex, wide open position offering scarce shelter for centralised kings. Unbeknownst to the competitors, live Fritz analysis actually had Newman as somewhat better for a while. The complexities on the board and Scannell's trailing on time led him to offer an accepted draw. This half-point guaranteed another first for Steve, who in the end was to finish top by a full point.

That was because the final round's battle for second place, between Gareth Annesley and Wenceslao Torres, could only produce a draw also. As a result, Annesley and Torres of Lagan shared the runners' up prize with 4.5 points each. Annesley has been making a habit of being Steve's bridesmaid in recent tourneys, while Torres enjoyed laying down another marker that his rating is considerably lower than it now should be.

Both grading prizes were also shared. The under 1600 prize was split between Stewart McConaghy, William Storey and John Phillips, who each scored 3.5 points. 3 points was enough, meanwhile, for the RVH's John Monaghan and Pearse O'Brien to share the under 1200 prize.

Ulster chess attention now both turns to the renewed league season and a series of events for the QUB Chess Club. The club's Inter Varsity side travels to Dublin next weekend in an attempt to retain their title as Irish University Champions against a 2100+ average-rated Trinity side (mission impossible?), the University's Peter Froggatt Centre hosts the Steve Scannell Simul on Thursday February 7th and the QUB Rapid Tournament takes place in the Students' Union on Saturday February 16th.

In 2007 the QUB Chess Club amassed a huge trophy haul, winning almost every single trophy in the local game alongside one or two from south of the border too.

Included above are the John Strawbridge Trophy, McSparran Cup, Nemztov Cup, Hammel Cup, Williamson Shield, Irish Universities Trophy and the Henderson Cup. Remarkably, all were won by QUB players/teams in 2007.

This was the third time this competition had been run during the Christmas/New Year Holiday period. Exactly a year previously on the 30th December 2006 Scannell dropped a half-point on his way to first place, but on this occasion was in no mood for such generosity.

Gareth Annesley of Clifton House, one of three joint-winners of the January 2006 edition, put his off-colour league form behind him to play strongly, only losing to Scannell to finish second. Queen's players Calum Leitch and David O'Donnell commuted from Preston and Omagh respectively to tie for third with four points from six. Fellow QUB players Damien Lavery and Zulhasrifal Zulkifli also performed well to land the grading prizes. This was an especially good showing for Zul, who was playing competitively for the first time in several years.

In 2007 Scannell has remarkably won every senior Ulster Chess Union individual tournament. Steve lifted the Williamson Shield in January (his sixth); won the City of Belfast Championships in June (for the fifth time); claimed the Ulster Individuals Championship in August (getting his name on the McSparran Cup for the sixth occasion); and of course retained the Ulster Rapidplay Championship in December. In addition to these UCU titles, Scannell also claimed the prestigious Hammel Cup during the summer with his victory in the Civil Service tournament. All the more impressively, no tiebreaks were required - Steve finished clear first in each competition.

The 31st Kilkenny Congress, one of Ireland’s biggest and most famous chess events, saw UCU players compete in each of its four sections.

Queen’s player Steve Scannell finished with 2/6 in a Masters section which included multiple GMs; Nicholas Pilkiewicz of Clifton House recorded 3.5/6 in the Majors; and Cathal Murphy from the RVH club did likewise in the Minor section. QUB captain Chris Millar finished joint first in the James Mason Cup to earn €275 with an unbeaten 5/6.

The newly-established UCU Autumn Congress was held over the penultimate weekend of October in the QUB Students’ Union. The event was created to comprise both an Ulster Under 21 Championships and an under 1600 “Stars Barred” weekender.

The first event to be decided was the Under 21 Championships. With the only two entrants on the day being Chris Millar and Ananda Srinivasan, the sharing of the title was quickly agreed. Millar had some much-needed preparation to do for a Monday morning presentation while Srinivasan was happy to have the opportunity to adjust his focus towards winning the other event. This represented both players third age-limited Ulster individual title - Millar having claimed the Under 16 and Under 19 titles in 2001 and 2004; Srinivasan previously winning the Under 14 and Under 16 titles in 2004 and 2006.

The Stars Barred competition was to prove a much harder fought affair. The turnout was again small, but the entrants consisted of several candidates for the leading places. Joseph Mordeno entered as top seed and was aiming to continue his recent tournament form while Srinivasan’s transfer to this competition was always likely to mean another prize for his weekend’s work. In addition, Pat McKillen was planning to record his first UCU under 1600 tourney victory since Summerfest 2006 and John Monaghan looked to add to his Ulster Junior title.

Round 3 results saw Ananda beat Joseph with black to put himself a full point clear of the chasing pack and become strong favourite for top spot. However, Ananda went on to concede draws to both Cathal Murphy and Pat McKillen. This resulted in Srinivasan having to settle for a joint first finish with Mordeno, who's round 4 and 5 wins earned him four points out of five and a share of the top prize.

The 2007 City of Dublin Chess Championships were held over the weekend of Friday 31st August to Sunday 2nd September in An Oige, Dublin, home of the Phibsborough Chess Club. Seven Belfast players made the trip south - Gareth Annesley, Nicholas Pilkiewicz and Danny Mallaghan of Clifton House; Calum Leitch and Chris Millar of QUB and Joseph Mordeno plus Cathal Murphy from the RVH club.

Each of the three Belfast clubs represented saw one of their players amongst the prizes to claim almost €500 between them. Millar finished 2nd in the 1200-1600 Challenger section, Pilkiewicz claimed 3rd spot in the 1600-2000 Majors competition and Murphy landed a grading prize in the under 1200 Junior tournament.

The Belfast players' central focus was upon the Challengers and Majors where it was clear from the outset that the Northern Irish contingent would be well in the running, with Mordeno and Annesley top-seeded in their respective sections.

CHALLENGERS

Jo Mordeno's participation as the highest rated competitor - fresh from the previous weekend's win over joint Ulster Champion 2006, Michael Waters - combined with QUB captain Millar's recent run of success in the Irish Uni's, Henderson Cup and Irish Junior Championship, promised much for Ulster chances in this section.

In the end, however, Millar's disappointing 4.5/6 left only the consolation of second place and the requisite prizemoney, while Mordeno's 4/6 left him out of the prizes altogether. Englishman Melvin King played strongly to make the most of his good fortune to finish on an impressive 5.5/6.

Disaster struck on Saturday morning for Millar, as his second round match against Phibsborough-based Russian Ogintas ended in defeat. Blame for this result lands squarely at the door of Mallaghan for his Friday evening/Saturday morning Dublin entertainment schedule, and also with Annesley, for his disturbingly loud snoring. Excuses aside, Millar was outplayed and his tame performance deserved nothing better than defeat.

By the end of round 4 King led with 4 points, while Mordeno and Millar shared joint second with Ogintas on 3/4. The penultimate round draw paired the two Belfast players together, with Mordeno as white, and the two fought to maintain in contention. A tactical trick in the opening gave Millar the exchange which eventually proved enough for a win.

On the other top board King's run continued. Ogintas twice refused draw offers in a dead drawn knight endgame before ploughing his way into a lost position. This left Millar needing a win against the tournament leader to become overall winner on tiebreak.

Despite finding a nice combination to lift a couple of pawns, the QUB player then played a poor positional exchange which was damaging enough to leave him happy to settle for a draw and second place overall.

MAJORS

In the 1600-2000 Majors, Ulster Intermediate and Under 19 Champion Cal Leitch represented QUB, while the strong Clifton House contingent of Pilkiewicz, Mallaghan and first seed Annesley also competed.

All the Ulster players produced good displays in an impressive field. Leitch scored 3/6 to narrowly miss out on a grading prize while Mallaghan finished with 3.5/6 and Annesley notched up 4/6. However, it was Nicholas Pilkiewicz who scored highest, his tally of 4.5/6 rewarded with the third place prize. The Clifton House player was only denied 2nd place virtue of Ray O'Rourke's superior tiebreak score.

Some excellent match results were recorded by the Belfast players along the way, not least by Pilkiewicz. The Clifton player bested Irish Intermediate Champion Xavier Busig with impressive comfort in the final round. Unfortunate for the 1900+ rated Busig, who again had attempted to chance his arm by claiming eligibility for the under 1600 section.

Phibsborough player Lukasz Kwiatek performed well above his provisional 1733 rating to land first place by a half-point with 5/6.