Author Archives: Sean Coffey

Henry Higgins 1941-2025

I was very sorry to hear of the recent passing of Henry (Harry) Higgins, via an obituary by Kevin Burke on the ICU web site yesterday. He organised the Dundrum International Opens in 1975 and 1976, which were at the … Continue reading

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Three new FMs

The European Club Cup in Rhodes, Greece, finished yesterday. Six Irish teams competed, with Blanchardstown achieving the highest placing, finishing 74th, with 6 match points. Ennis and Master C.C. finished 79th and 83rd, respectively, with 5 match points. Malahide, U.C.D., … Continue reading

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Cork Masters 2025

The Cork Congress took place last weekend, in the Clayton Hotel Cork City, a new venue. A total of 177 players competed over three sections, and there was a Blitz on Saturday, with 57 players. Games from Cork Congresses have … Continue reading

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Gonzaga Masters 2025

The 20th Gonzaga Charity Classic took place over the weekend of January 17-19, 2025. A total of 187 players took part, spread over four sections. A report on the Masters section has been added to the Tournament pages here. The … Continue reading

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Ulster championships 2025

The Ulster championships 2025 were held in Lisburn C.C. over the August Bank Holiday weekend, August 23-25. Apparently there was a last-minute change of venue after the usual Queen’s University location fell through, and this caused entries to be limited. … Continue reading

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Irish Championship 2025

The Irish Championship started on Saturday in Ennis, and has today reached the two thirds stage. A preliminary report has been added to the Tournament pages here. Initially entries were slow to arrive, and it seemed the event might follow … Continue reading

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Armstrong Cup 1932-33

Four teams contested the Armstrong Cup in 1932-33: Sackville (holders), Dublin, Blackrock, and Colmcille. Matches were over eight boards, each team played each of the others home and away, and only overall match results counted. Sackville and Dublin had dominated … Continue reading

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European School Championships 2024

Last year Ireland hosted the European School Championships at the University of Limerick (May 31-June 7). This was a major undertaking, comprising 12 tournaments (U17, U15, U13, U11, U9, and U7 in both Open and Girls categories), with 191 players … Continue reading

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North City, Ennis Shield champions 1936-37, contd.

In response to the recent post on North City and the Ennis Shield 1936-37, Philip Doyle has written to provide more information on two of the players, much more in the case of one of them. “W. Breen” in the … Continue reading

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Irish championship players

The lists of Irish championship players have been updated to reflect the 2024 championship, and to add some details. The full list is available in alphabetical order and in descending order of number of championships played. The 2024 championship set … Continue reading

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