Author Archives: Sean Coffey

J.B. Tomson, series helpmate in 13

Posted on June 22, 2012 by Sean Coffey

Brian Tomson’s career as a player and (especially) a problemist was extensively discussed here last year (Brian Tomson 1942-1986; see also his biographical summary). Born in Belfast, he finished =4th in the 1965 Irish championship and played for Ireland in … Continue reading →

Posted in Players, Problemists | 1 Comment

Monthly update, May

Posted on June 13, 2012 by Sean Coffey

It has been quiet here lately because I’ve been spending my chess time budget on two new features: Search Posts and Search Games: The inbuilt WordPress search feature is very limited, searching only posts and not pages. Since all the … Continue reading →

Posted in Administrative | 1 Comment

First Branagan Cup

Posted on May 31, 2012 by Sean Coffey

This year’s Branagan Cup approaches its conclusion, with Elm Mount surprisingly winning easily against a much higher-rated Rathmines team in the first semi-final (so no double for Rathmines this year). The new mixed league/knockout system this year seems to have … Continue reading →

Posted in Club chess | 2 Comments

MTK Budapest-Dundrum, European Club Cup 1985

Posted on May 17, 2012 by Sean Coffey

My earlier post promised more information on this match, including two games that are not in the databases, so here they are: Egon Varnusz — David Drakeford MTK Budapest-Dundrum, European Club Cup (1.4), Budapest, September 1985 26. Bh4 Rec7 27. … Continue reading →

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Monthly updates, March and April

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Sean Coffey

Here is a summary of the changes in the past two months that were not the subject of separate posts: Branagan Cups: There have been quite a few updates here. Anthony Fox sent in details of the 2003 final, for … Continue reading →

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A neat finish: Lewis-Duffy, Armstrong Cup 1958

Posted on April 30, 2012 by Sean Coffey

From the Armstrong Cup 1958-59, W. Lewis – N. Duffy, Dublin-Phibsboro, board 6, played in late 1958 (and, by the way, not in the ICU games archive or other databases): In the diagrammed position Black sealed. It looks as though … Continue reading →

Posted in Armstrong Cup, Games | Leave a comment

Labourdonnais-McDonnell

Posted on April 25, 2012 by Sean Coffey

The full scope of this blog, declares the About tab above, is “anything to with Irish chess, from Labourdonnais-McDonnell to today”. Fair enough, you say, but how on earth could anyone say anything new about Labourdonnais-McDonnell? This was one of … Continue reading →

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MTK Budapest – Dundrum, European Club Cup 1985

Posted on March 31, 2012 by Sean Coffey

With the finale of the Armstrong Cup on this weekend (not to mention the thorny issue of the National Club Championship and European Club Cup the topic of renewed controversy), it’s time for a post with some reminiscences of club … Continue reading →

Posted in Club chess | 5 Comments

Monthly roundup: February

Posted on March 4, 2012 by Sean Coffey

Here is a summary of the changes this month that were not the subject of separate posts: Simuls: Four more simuls were scheduled for February; the one by Michael Adams was eventually cancelled, details of Nigel Short’s two simuls (Dublin … Continue reading →

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Colm Daly

Posted on February 27, 2012 by Sean Coffey

We’ve had no new player profiles here for a while, so an update is overdue. Since the Oscars were this weekend, the next profile up is Irish chess’s premier film-maker (among many other achievements, not least 4 Irish championships) Colm … Continue reading →

Posted in Irish champions, Players | Leave a comment