Category Archives: Players

Sonja Graf – Part 3 Overlapping Matches

Posted on August 22, 2025 by David McAlister

MATCH AGAINST  JOHN J. O’HANLON John James O’Hanlon, as the saying goes, needs no introduction, but the Irish Chess Union website does have this fine tribute from J.J. Walsh. The Irish Independent reported on Day 1 of the match in … Continue reading →

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Sonja Graf – Part 2: Simultaneity, Dancing and Blitzing

Posted on August 22, 2025 by David McAlister

The Evening Herald in its 2nd February 1935 edition reported on Sonja Graf’s imminent arrival and gave a brief preview of her likely engagements. The German lady chess champion, Fraulein Sonja Graf, who will arrive in Dublin this (Saturday) evening, … Continue reading →

Posted in Players, Simuls | 4 Comments

Sonja Graf – Part 1: Foundation

Posted on August 22, 2025 by David McAlister

“Many highly-coloured stories have been written about Sonja Graf, but the majority of these have been found to be without foundation.” Anne Sunnucks, The Encyclopaedia of Chess, 2nd Edition, 1976, Robert Hale, London. This is the first of four posts … Continue reading →

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Koltanowski Simuls and Match -v- O’Hanlon 1937

Posted on August 14, 2025 by David McAlister

On the 21st January 1937, after playing in the famous Hastings Christmas Congress and then an international tournament in Birmingham, George Koltanowski embarked on a lengthy exhibition tour of Britain and Ireland, but when he arrived in Dublin, it seemed … Continue reading →

Posted in Analysis, Players | 1 Comment

O’Hanlon at Cambridge 1932

Posted on August 5, 2025 by David McAlister

Throughout his career, J.J. O’Hanlon would send a selection of his game scores to the editors of Irish chess columns, frequently with his own annotations appended. Here we present the result of one such offering, as described by T.P. Donnegan … Continue reading →

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Gerard Kerlin, and the 1942 Champions’ Chess Tourney

Posted on July 1, 2025 by David McAlister

On the 25th of August 1969 Albert Long, Honorary Secretary of the Ulster Chess Union, wrote to Brenda Kerlin about her brother Gerard. In the letter, by way of introduction, he indicated that he had been given her address by … Continue reading →

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

Posted on June 22, 2025 by Sean Coffey

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

Posted on June 5, 2025 by Sean Coffey

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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Gerard McDonnell 1960-2023

Posted on April 25, 2025 by Sean Coffey

I was very sorry to learn of the passing of Gerard McDonnell, in Manhattan, New York, on June 3, 2023, after a long illness. He was born in Castlebar, Co. Mayo, on October 30, 1960, the eldest of a family … Continue reading →

Posted in Connacht champions, Photos, Players | 1 Comment

Zalan Nemeth, FM title and two IM norms

Posted on February 24, 2025 by Sean Coffey

Congratulations are due to Zalan Nemeth, who recorded two IM norms within the span of the past few weeks, at the SixDays Budapest IM-C January 2025 and the 1st EUTender Sinus Sárkány IM 2025. Each was structured as a ten-player … Continue reading →

Posted in Games, Norms and titles, Players | 1 Comment