News
Results
Sunday, April 1, 2012
ENNIS TRIUMPH
Naomh Barróg Ennis team win Trophy and secure promotion to 2nd Division.
Sunday, March 18, 2012
ENNIS TEAM IN LINE FOR PROMOTION TO HEIDENFELD TROPHY
With one round to play, Naomh Barrog's Ennis team need only 2 points to qualify for Heidenfeld promotion.
Four points from the last round will secure us the Ennis Shield. A convincing 5.5 to 0.5 win against Bray/Greystones in the penultimate round brought us to the top of the table with 39.5 points. Drogheda are second with 37 points and St Benildus lie third with 34.5 points. It's not guaranteed - our opponents in the last round, Royal Lopez, are no pushovers and will fight for every point. That said, it's now ours to win.
Less happy news is that the O'Hanlon team now seem certain to be demoted.
But our Bodley team finish mid-table.
Friday, November 25, 2011
LCU Winter Leagues get into Gear
All three of our LCU teams have now played at least one game.
The Bodley team scored a draw against Jobstown in their 1st match.
The O'Hanlon team were beaten 6 nothing by Cavan. They improved a little in the 2nd round, losing 1.5 to 4.5 against Celbridge. In the 3rd round they secured a three all draw against Dublin University.
Our new Ennis team is doing well, 12 points from their first four games.
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Naomh Barrog Players score in Dublin City Open
Six members of our Club members played in the recent Dublin City Open Tournament – one in the Majors (Justin Corry), three in the Challengers (Tom Collins, Stephen Kelly and Aridas Tolkus) and two in the Juniors (Joe Rafferty and Andrew O'Brien).
In the Challengers four players tied at the top with 5 out of 6 points. Two of the four were Naomh Barrog players Stephen Kelly and Aridas Tolkus. A tie-break gave first position to Aridas and runner-up to Stephen.
Good North Dublin Chess League showing
Two Naomh Barrog players scored well in this league. Barry Plummer won his section with 5 out of six. Sean Nolan shared first place in his section with 6 out of 7.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Naomh Barrog win Killane Shield
Naomh Barrog Chess Club secured their second trophy of 2011 by winning the Killane Shield final on Wednesday 22nd June. They beat a strong Bray/Greystones side by 4 points to 2. Wins on boards 3 and 5 and draws on the remaining boards secured the prize. The winning team was Sean Nolan, Airidas Tolkus, Stephen Kelly, Barry Plummer, Tom Collins and John Carroll (Justin Corry played in previous rounds).
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP: RESULTS FOR ROUND 5, 24TH/31ST MAY
Sean Nolan ½, Stephen Kelly ½,
Justin Corry 1, John O'Driscoll 0,
Airidas Tolkus ½, Tom Collins ½,
Barry Plummer 1, Austin Blake 0,
Paul Douglas 1, Mark Ansley 0,
John Carroll ½, Harry Howard ½,
Joe Rafferty 0, Neil Mullen 1,
Amos Walsh 1(W), Pat Stack 0,
John Ford, Martin Molloy and Paddy Doyle each receive a non-scoring BYE.
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Club Championship: Results For Round 4, 17th May
Stephen Kelly 1, Barry Plummer 0,
Sean Nolan ½, Airidas Tolkus ½,
John Ford 0, Justin Corry 1,
John O'Driscoll 1, John Carroll 0,
Martin Molloy ½, Paddy Doyle ½,
Austin Blake 1, Paul Douglas 0,
Pat Stack 0, Tom Collins 1(W),
Harry Howard ½, Joe Rafferty ½,
Amos Walsh 0, Mark Ansley 1,
Neil Mullen BYE
Monday, May 16, 2011
Great Result for Airidas in Philip Hogarty Blitz
Airidas Tolkus scored 3 of 6 in the Philip Hogarty Blitz held last weekend. His rating performance was a very impressive 1840.
Monday, May 9, 2011
William Brennan Cup - B team lose
On Thursday, The B-team lost away to Bray in the William Brennan cup. With the A-team already out, this ends our interest in this cup.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Club Championship: Results for Round 3, 3rd May
Barry Plummer ½, Sean Nolan ½,
Justin Corry 0, Stephen Kelly 1,
Airidas Tolkus 1, John O'Driscoll 0,
Tom Collins 0, Martin Molloy 1,
Paul Douglas ½, John Carroll ½,
Paddy Doyle1(W),Harry Howard 0,
Mark Ansley 0, John Forde 1,
Neil Mullen 0, Austin Blake 1(W),
Joe Rafferty 0, Amos Walsh 1,
Pat Stack BYE
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Malahide Millennium Tournament
We had 5 players in the Malahide Millennium Tournament over the May bank holiday weekend (down from 8 last year).
We managed two prizes:
Airidas — 3rd Place - Challengers (< 1600)
Justin — Grade Prize - Majors (> 1500)
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Naomh Barrog through to Killane Cup Final!
Great 4-2 win by Naomh Barrog in the Killane Shield against Rathmines on 26 April 2011. This was especially noteworthy since Rathmines had the pick of the Rathmines teams that have just come first and second in the Ennis. Tom extended his O'Hanlon-Killane run in style to 10 out of 11. Also wins for Airidas and Sean.
Tuesday, April 26, 2011
Club AGM Rescheduled
The club AGM has been rescheduled. This is due to conflicts with the LCU Summer Cups. The new date is Tuesday 5th July.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Well done to our representatives in the Leinster Championships
We had two players in the Leinster Championships.
Sean Nolan played in the 1600 - 1999 section where he was 15th seed but managed an excellent 7th place with 3.5 out of 6 and a tournament performance in the high 1700s.
Tom Collins played as 11th seed in the 1200 to 1599 section where he matched his seeding by coming 11th with 2.5 out of 6. His tournament performance also matched his rating. The weekend had promised so much more for Tom having taken his 2.5 points from the first 3 games but it wasn't to be!
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
Club Championship: Results for Round 2, 19th April
Sean Nolan 1, Tom Collins 0,
Stephen Kelly 1, Airidas Tolkus 0,
Mark Ansley 0, Justin Corry 1,
Harry Howard 0, Barry Plummer 1,
John O’Driscoll 1, Paul Douglas 0,
Amos Walsh 0, Paddy Doyle 1,
Austin Blake ½, Joe Rafferty ½,
Martin Molloy 1, Pat Stack 0,
John Forde 1, Neil Mullen 0,
John Carroll BYE
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Club Championship: Results for Round 1, 12th April
Paddy Doyle 0, Sean Nolan 1
Airidas Tolkus 1, Amos Walsh 0
Neil Mullen 0, Stephen Kelly 1
Justin Corry 1, Austin Blake 0
Tom Collins 1, John Forde 0
Joe Rafferty 0, John O'Driscoll 1
John Carroll 0, Mark Ansley 1
Pat Stack 0, Harry Howard 1
Paul Douglas 1, Martin Molloy 0
Barry Plummer BYE
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
William Brennan Trophy crashout
Naomh Barrog A team were decisively beaten 4.5 points to 1.5 by Rathmines in their first round match in the William Brennan Trophy. Stephen Kelly on Board 1 was our only winner. The rest is silence. Naomh Barrog B remain in the competition.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Rapid Play 2011 - Final Standings
The Rapid Play tournament concluded last night with an excellent victory for Stephen Kelly with 5 wins out of 5. Harry Howard and Austin Blake weren't far behind in second with 4 points. The best junior prize was shared between Katherine Bolger and Serguei Koustov with 3 points.
Once again Seán's handicapping worked out well with the top 6 showing a good mix of higher-rated players, medium-rated players, new members and juniors.
The excellent attendance and good spirit shown made for two fun and enjoyable nights.
Monday, March 14, 2011
Successful Final Round to Leinster Chess League
Naomh Barróg enjoyed a successful final day to the Leinster Chess League. The O'Hanlon A team beat second placed Kilkenny 4-2 to secure the trophy while the O'Hanlon B team took 2.5 points off Phibsboro to avoid relegation.
Unfortunately, the Bodley team was much weakened by providing subs to the O'Hanlon and could only many a half point against Blanchardstown.
Naomh Barróg also carried away 6 board prizes:
Sean Nolan
Airidas Tolkus
Justin Corry
Barry Plummer
Tom Collins
Austin Blake
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Good show by the O'Hanlon B Team
The O'Hanlon B team gathered a credible 1.5 points at home to a strong Kilkenny team. This keeps alive their hopes of avoiding relegation. It also does the A team a favour. They require just a half-point from the final match against Kilkenny.
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
O'Hanlon A beat Finglas while Bodley lose
The O'Hanlon A team won on all 5 boards last night to record a 5.5 to 0.5 win away to Finglas. This gives a minimum 4 point lead going into the last match versus Kilkenny.
Unfortunately, the Bodley team's chances of promotion appear to be gone after a 4-1 home defeat by Inchicore.
Posted by Justin, Sean and Tom
Naomh Barróg Chess Club Dublin
Welcome to the Naomh Barróg Chess Club website
We are based at the Naomh Barróg GAA Club, Kilbarrack North Dublin. Our teams play
in the Leinster Leagues in various divisions.
Thank you for visiting our website.
Naomh Barróg Ennis team win Trophy and secure promotion to 2nd Division
A nail-biting, cliff-hanging final resulted in a 3.5 to 2.5 win for Naomh Barróg over Royal Lopez. We needed four points to be absolutely sure of the trophy. Drogheda dropped
half a point early on so that left us needing just 3.5 points. Early wins for us on boards 1 and 4, and things were looking good. Then we lost on boards 2 and 3. Now we needed 1.5 points from the remaining two games and both games looked drawish. In a sweet endgame manoeuvre Barry sacrificed two pawns to get a passed pawn and secure the win. The remaining game was drawn and we had the trophy. Now for the Heidenfeld!
Our winning team, including subs throughout the year, is:
Brian Gallagher, Sean Nolan, Stephen Kelly, Airidas Tolkus, Barry Plummer, Justin Corry, Tom Collins, Austin Blake, John O'Driscoll, Andrew O'Brien.
The O'Hanlon team finished with a flourish, beating Phibsboro 4/2 but, unfortunately, still demoted.
From left: Stephen Kelly, Tom Collins, Airidas Tolkus, Sean Nolan, [LCU, Gerry Smith LCU above standing], Barry Plummer and Austin Blake (who didn't play on the day). Brian Gallagher (absent from the photo) played Board 1.
Two of the three board prizes were won by Naomh Barróg players. Sean won one with a score of 8.5 out of 11 and Barry Plummer won the other with the score of 9.5 out of 11 (the highest score in the division).
Sean Nolan collects his board prize.
Who's the Man!!? Barry Plummer displays his cache of trophies.
Two chess players from Finland dropped in for a visit on Tuesday 3rd April. They are (pictured) Pasi Korhonen and Sippo Puroila from the Espoo Chess Club near Helsinki.
Both are playing in the Masters section of the Easter Tournament starting in Dublin this Wednesday (4th April). We wish them luck.
NAOMH BARRÓG JUNIORS SCORE HIGHLY IN CHESS-FOR-ALL COMPETITION
The first "Chess for All" Championship was held in the Hilton Hotel Malahide Road on 3rd March 2012.
Thirty-seven teams from all over the country participated in what proved an exciting and ground-breaking event.
Our team finished 5th, just out of the prizes, after initially sharing 4th place with five other teams.
Individual scores were as follows:
Katherine Bolger 4 out of 5
Cormac Graham 2 out of 5
Michael Behan 4 out of 5
Ciaran Bolger 3 out of 5
Clare Gallagher played for St Brigid's team and scored 3 out 5.
Well done everybody.
2012 Club Championship
The draw for the fifth round is:
The fourth round results:
The third round results:
White Player Pts Black Player Pts 1) Sean Nolan 0 Airidas Tolkus 1 2) Tom Collins 0 Brian Gallagher 1 3) Stephen Kelly ½ Barry Plummer ½ 4) Harry Howard ½ Sean Waldron ½ 5) Paddy Doyle ½ Michael O'Dwyer ½ 6) John O'Driscoll 1 Austin Blake 0 7) Martin Molloy 1 Niall Mullen 0 8) Clare Gallagher 0 John Carroll 1 9) John Forde 0 Katherine Bolger 1 10) Amos Walsh 1 Niall Behan 0 11) Cormac Graham ½ Pat Stack ½ 12) Andrew O'Brien 1 Paul Douglas 0 13) Ciaran Bolger 1 Michael Behan 0
White Player Pts Black Player Pts 1) Brian Gallagher ½ Stephen Kelly ½ 2) Barry Plummer ½ Sean Nolan ½ 3) Airidas Tolkus 1 Tom Collins 0 4) Sean Waldron 1 John Forde 0 5) Michael O'Dwyer 1 Andrew O'Brien 0 6) Niall Mullen 0 John O'Driscoll 1 7) Austin Blake 1 Cormac Graham 0 8) Katherine Bolger 0 Harry Howard 1 9) Niall Behan 0 Paddy Doyle 1 10) Paul Douglas 0 Martin Molloy 1 11) John Carroll ½ Pat Stack ½ 12) Edward Byrne 0 Amos Walsh 1 (W) 13) Michael Behan 0 Clare Gallagher 1
The second round results:
White Player Pts Black Player Pts 1) John O'Driscoll 0 Brian Gallagher 1 2) Sean Nolan 1 Michael O'Dwyer 0 3) Harry Howard 0 Airidas Tolkus 1 4) Stephen Kelly 1 Austin Blake 0 5) Paddy Doyle 0 Barry Plummer 1 6) Tom Collins 1 Paul Douglas 0 7) Niall Behan 0 Niall Mullen 1 8) Martin Molloy ½ John Carroll ½ 9) John Forde 1 Amos Walsh 0 10) Katherine Bolger 1 Michael Behan 0 11) Cormac Graham 1 Edward Byrne 0 12) Andrew O'Brien 1 Clare Gallagher 0 13) Pat Stack 0 Sean Waldron 1
The first round results:
White Player Pts Black Player Pts 1) Brian Gallagher 1 Martin Molloy 0 2) Niall Mullen 0 Sean Nolan 1 3) Airidas Tolkus 1 John Forde 0 4) Amos Walsh 0 Stephen Kelly 1 5) Barry Plummer 1 Andrew O'Brien 0 6) Clare Gallagher 0 Tom Collins 1 7) Michael O'Dwyer 1 Cormac Graham 0 8) Edward Byrne 0 John O'Driscoll 1 9) Austin Blake 1 Katherine Bolger 0 10) Michael Behan 0 Harry Howard 1 11) John Carroll 0 Niall Behan 1 12) Pat Stack 0 Paddy Doyle 1 13) Paul Douglas BYE
Christmas Blitz 2011 - Report
We had our annual Christmas Blitz on Tuesday 20th December with 21 participating. Thanks to all who attended for making it a really fun and enjoyable night.
We used the same time-handicapping system worked out by Sean Nolan last year and again it worked well with the top of the leader board throwing up a nice mix of players on different ratings.
Thanks to all those who helped out with setting up the tables and boards, refreshments, tidying up etc. And an especial thanks to Justin Correy for organising and running this enjoyable Blitz with his relaxed professionalism.
 Winner (5 out of 5) - Brian Gallagher |
 |
 2nd (Tie on 4 out of 5) - Harry Howard & Katherine Bolger |
|
 Best Junior (Tie on 3 out of 5) - Cormac Graham & Clare Gallagher |
Joe Rafferty RIP - An Appreciation
Joe was originally a member of the Caissa Chess Club, located in the White Horse Bar, Burgh Quay, Dublin 1. However, Joe wished to set up a more local chess club and, with the help of PC Quinn, he helped found Trinity Chess Club based in the Trinity Sports and Leisure cente in Donaghmede in 1982.
Joe was also a founder member of the Trinity Sports and Leisure centre and used his "good influence" to secure a small room located adjacent to the Squash Court for the chess club. This room was by no means generous in size and was probably the smallest chess venue in Dublin - if not the Country at the time! This room had no windows.
Nevertheless we all managed to squeeze in to it and we had some very enjoyable chess matches there. One drawback was that on the same night as our chess night an Aerobics class was held next door in the Squash court. This meant that we could hear all the hits of Madonna and the other stars of the time belted out on a ghetto-blaster while trying to concentrate on the chess. Certainly an intimidating atmosphere for any opposition!
From there we graduated to the back bar and then to the boardroom in the Trinity Sports & Leisure Centre with about a two year spell in the Baldoyle Youth club in between times.
Unfortunately a new Committee arrived in the Trinity Sports & Leisure Centre and we were no longer welcome in the Boardroom so it was a case of moving on. Again Joe used his good influence with a friend who was the caretaker of St. Kevin's School in Donaghmede to secure a playing venue. One drawback however was that we had to vacate the building when the caretaker arrived back at around 10.30 pm!
On one occasion I remember playing a League match and noticed the caretaker hovering around as it was getting late. I suggested to my opponent that we might adjourn the match which you could do at that time. He was initially reluctant to do this, but I had to explain to him that the lights would be going out shortly and that if he wanted to he could spend the night there. Needless to say he decided to adjourn the match.
Our stay in St. Kevin's School did not last long after that and we were on the move again. This time we managed to secure a room in Naomh Barrog GAA Club thanks to the goodwill of the Naomh Barrog Committee and soon after changed the name to Naomh Barrog Chess club.
Joe was a fully committed member of the chess club and very often was one of the few left at the end of the evening putting the chess equipment away. At that stage we would usually adjourn to the Bar upstairs where Joe enlivened the conversation and the craic.
Joe could always be relied on to get our chess stationery as he had a good contact that ensured we never ran short of chess score sheets.
There was also a very human side to Joe which some people may not be aware of. If anyone needed help or if anything needed to be mended Joe was always on hand. He saw to it that the Club notice board was properly fixed, that Tom was taking garlic pills for his cough and that John Forde had something to cure his sinus problem. Joe was forever making life more livable for those around him.
I myself recall a period when, after surgery, I spent two weeks recovering in the Orthopaedic Hospital in Clontarf. Joe was a frequent visitor to see me. He used to bring in fruit, sweets and the chess board and, to the amusement of the other patients, we had some entertaining chess matches.
I along with a lot of other people have very fond memories of Joe.
Ar dheis Dé go raibh a h-anam dilis.
Michael O'Dwyer
Treasurer
Naomh Barróg Chess Club
LCU Winter Leagues get into Gear
All three of our LCU teams have now played at least one game.
The Bodley team scored a draw against Jobstown in their 1st match which leaves them about mid table.
The O'Hanlon team had a shaky start, beaten 6 nothing by Cavan. They improved a little in the 2nd round, "only" losing 1.5 to 4.5 against Celbridge. In the 3rd round they secured a three all draw against Dublin University. So perhaps they've turned the corner.
Our new Ennis team is doing well. 12 points from their first four games.
* See the Club Info page for the LCU Leagues 2011 - 2012 Fixtures and Results.
Naomh Barróg Chess Club Players score in Dublin City Open
Six members of our Club members played in the recent Dublin City Open Tournament – one in the Majors (Justin Corry), three in the Challengers (Tom Collins, Stephen Kelly and Aridas Tolkus) and two in the Juniors (Joe Rafferty and Andrew O'Brien).
In the Challengers four players tied at the top with 5 out of 6 points. Two of the four were Naomh Barróg players Stephen Kelly and Aridas Tolkus. A tie-break gave first position to Aridas and runner-up to Stephen.
Andrew O'Brien in the Junior Section finished with a creditable 3 out of 6. After the third round he had scored 2.5 out of 3 - a very impressive score for someone who had never played in a Tournament or a competitive chess programme before.
While our remaining players didn't score as many as they would have wished, they each enjoyed, and benefited from, what was an exciting and well organised event.
Good North Dublin Chess League showing
Two Naomh Barróg players scored well in this league. Barry Plummer won his section with 5 out of six. Sean Nolan shared first place in his section with 6 out of 7.
» Naomh Barróg Chess Club AGM 2011 Report «
The Club AGM was held on Tuesday 5th July 2011.
Seventy-five percent of the current membership attended.
• The O'Hanlon A and Killane Shield teams were congratulated on winning
their trophies.
• The Bodley team was congratulated on coming a creditable fourth in their
league.
• The O'Hanlon B team was congratulated on surviving relegation.
• The organisers/controllers of the Autumn Swiss, Club Championship and
Rapid
Play competitions were thanked and congratulated.
• The designer/administrator of our website (Sayuri Collins) was thanked and applauded for her skill in the presentation of the club's affairs.
• The Treasurer reported that, although we had spent a considerable sum on
new tables and clocks last year, we still had a small surplus. However, fees for
the LCU and ICU would shortly fall due, so payment of membership fees as soon
as possible would be appreciated.
• The Chairman (Martin Molloy), Secretary (Joe Rafferty), Treasurer (Michael O'Dwyer) and Team Selector (Sean Nolan) were each thanked for their work and
re-elected by acclaim.
Decisions:
1. Start a Ladder Competition next autumn.
2. The 2012 Club Championship to be held between January and May.
3. Investigate having the Club Championship results graded.
4. Investigate compiling a database of played competition games.
5. Members to be guaranteed a minimum of three rated games during the
winter leagues.
* For the Club Championship 2011 Final Results, see the Events page/Latest News from our Blog.
CLUB CHAMPIONSHIP 2011
New Champion Emerges
In a thrilling 5th round encounter Stephen Kelly drew with the reigning champion Sean Nolan to take the title. For each player this was their fourth opponent from the club's O'Hanlon A team, so the game was between opponents who had each a very tough path to get to this stage. Stephen had won his four previous games and Sean needed a win to secure a playoff. The game had everything – queen sacrifice and a dozen breathless spectators. Congratulations to Stephen and well played to Sean. John O'Driscoll won the Junior Championship.
Sean Nolan presenting Stephen Kelly with Club Championship Cup and trophy.
Sean presents John O'Driscoll with the Junior Champion trophy.
RAPID PLAY TRIUMPH
(March 2011)
The Club’s end of season Swiss Rapid Play Tournament attracted so many entries that the number of rounds had to be extended from 4 to 5. Almost 30 players with grades ranging from zero to the 1600s competed. The 1st two rounds were an hour each and the remaining three 45 minutes each. Adjustments for grading differentials sometimes resulted in the higher graded players having 2 or 4 minutes to make all their moves while their lower graded opponent had 58 or 41 minutes. This produced some pretty tense games and some very spectacular blunders. Fun to watch. Win or lose, everyone who participated enjoyed themselves and the Controller, Justin Corry, was cheered to the echo.
Naomh Barrog’s new Rapid Play Champion Steven Kelly [right] (5 out of 5) receiving his prize from Controller Justin Corry.
Rapid Play Runners-Up (Joint 2nd) Austen Blake [middle] and Harry Howard [right] (4 points each out of 5) receive their prizes.
Rapid Play Junior Champions Katherine Bolger [right] and Serguei Koustov [middle] receive their prizes from Controller Justin Corry.
THE CUP THAT CHEERS!
¨Naomh Barróg Chess Club win O'Hanlon Cup¨
Naomh Barróg “O'Hanlon Cup” Winners
Naomh Barróg Chess Club's team scored four points to two against their nearest rivals Kilkenny in the final round of the O'Hanlon Cup in the Teachers Club on Sunday 13th March. This left them comfortable winners with 49.5 points against Kilkenny's 42. The Naomh Barróg team also bagged six O'Hanlon board prizes – five for their A team and
one for their B team. The O'Hanlon B team also managed to survive relegation in a tight contest with Dublin Chess Club. This has been an excellent year for the club who now have a second trophy to polish in their cabinet (they won the Bodley in 2007). Joe Rafferty from the Bodley team narrowly missed a board prize by half a point.
The Prize Winners, from left to right: Airidas, Austin, Barry, Justin, Sean (captain) and Tom
