Jack’s royal triumph in Kilkenny

Kieran O’Riordan vs. Jack Killane

Game annotated by Jack.

This game was in round 3 of the Kilkenny Major 2009 (which Jack won – ed). My opponent is a young player from Cork.

 Ruy Lopez, Open Variation
1. e4 e5, 2. Nf3 Nc6, 3. Bb5 a6, 4. Ba4 Nf6, 5. 0-0 Nxe4

The open variation of the Ruy Lopez. I have played this at irregular intervals for some years as I dislike the protracted manoeuvring of the mainline Ruy Lopez, while White often doesn’t allow the Marshall Attack.

6. d4 b5, 7. Bb3 d5, 8. dxe5 Be6, 9. Nbd2

White has a number of alternatives here – c3, Qe2, etc. Against c3 I have played the Dilworth variation (Bc5). In several attacks, Black sacrifices the knight on e4 and the bishop on c5 for a rook and pawn, with an attack.

9…Nc5, 10. c3 d4, 11. Ng5!?

This move was first played by Karpov in his 1978 World Championship match with Korchnoi in Baguio. The point is that after 11…Qxg5 White plays Qf3 with a strong attack. Korchnoi didn’t accept the piece and drew the game.

11….dxc3, 12. Nxe6 fxe6

12… Nxe6 looks best, but six months earlier in the Rathmines Senior Club Championships against Tony Scannell, I played 12…Nxe6. The game finished:
13. bxc3 Be7, 14. f4 0-0, 15. Qg4 Qe7, 16. Ne4 Nc5, 17. Qxd7 Nxd7, 18. e6 Nc5, 19. exf7+ Kh8, 20. Bd5 and black resigned.
Comment from Tony: In a further interesting aside, young Kilkenny player Arvind Menon played 11…Qd7?! against Tony Scannell in this same variation (rather than dxc3 first) last Saturday, in the Armstrong. With my experience in the game against Jack, I knew I could drum up an attack if the knight takes on e6. The game ended rather quickly: 12. Nxe6 Nxe6, 13. f4 Bc5, 14. Kh1 0-0, 15. Ne4 Be7, 16. f5 Nd8 (black is already lost…), 17. f6 gf, 18. ef Bd6, 19. Qh5 Ne6, 20. Ng5 and black resigned. He has no way to prevent mate. Another 20 move game!

To return to the more recent game:

13. bxc3 Qd3!

Black must keep the White queen from f3. The following black moves are all based on this idea.

14. Bc2 Qxc3, 15. Nb3 Nxb3, 16. Bxb3 Be7, 17. Bxe6 Rd8, 18. Qg4 Nxe5

With the rook off a8 and the knight off c6, black’s game is OK.

19. Qf5 Rf8, 20. Qxh7 Rd6, 21. Bd2 Rxd2, 22. Rac1 Qd4, 23. Rxc7 Qxf2+ 0-1

After the game, my opponent referred to the Karpov-Korchnoi game and to a more recent Kasparov-Anand game which white won (I wasn’t aware of this game). GM Mark Hebden (a really nice, pleasant chap who often plays in Irish tournaments and is very popular, as he stays up well into the night without seeming affected) commented that this line is now discredited for black. He gave 15. Bb2 as winning for white. After Qxb2, and Qf3! (the key move in this whole Zaitsev line), black is in serious trouble.

(Note: I’ve just checked the 15. Bb2 suggestion from Hebden and Fritz sees it as instantly losing for white, after 15….Qxb2, 16. Qf3 0-0-0, 17. Qxc6 Rxd2! and black is safe, despite the naked looking King. I can only assume that Jack has deliberately laid a devious plot to win his next game in this variation by making his opponents think that Bb2 works! – Tony)

Belgium hotel – Update

Stephan has recommended that people book directly with the hotel, over the hotel’s website, rather than group book. Apparently, group booking is more expensive, rather than less expensive!

You can access their booking forms here: Ibis Centrum, Ghent

I have already booked in for two nights, single room, at about 135 (excluding breakfast). Breakfast is an all-you-can-eat-buffet but is expensive at 14 euro per morning.

For those wanting to book a twin room, to share and keep the expenses down, I suggest that you either contact me about it (and I can try and pair people up) or get directly in contact with someone else you know is travelling and wants to share.

The bottom line is: YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR BOOKING YOUR OWN ACCOMMODATION!!! The club is merely facilitating the schedule and dates, but cannot be responsible for organising individual flights or rooms, etc. Thanks.

Heidenfeld result from Saturday

Here’s the result of the Heidenfeld match Rathmines A vs. Curragh, played Saturday 23-Jan-10:

Bd Rathmines A ICU no. Rating Result Curragh ICU no. Rating
1 David Goggins 1817 0.5 – 0.5 Richard Arundell 1918
2 Leon Fagan 1790 0 – 1 Pearse Dunne 1809
3 James Burke 1718 0.5 – 0.5 Noel Lynch 1637
4 John Burns 1744 0.5 – 0.5 Mark McLoughlin 1548
5 Michael Kennedy 1838 1 – 0 Martin Brehhov 1496
6 Philip Doyle 1697 1 – 0 Harijs Valters 1460
7 Pat McEvoy 1586 0.5 – 0.5 Peter Klompers 1404
8 John O’Connell 1452 1 – W
5 – 3

Kieran Cranny Blitz results

The Kieran Cranny Perpetual Trophy Blitz tournament kicked off last night in fine fashion. There was a great turnout of 20 players. Without the absent Killian Delaney and Mindaugas Janusaitis, winners over the last three years, the competition looked very open. Michael Kennedy was deputising for the regular controller, John Crowley, who was absent through illness. Michael was using the software for the first time last night, but it didn’t show, because the whole thing was very ably administered. John Maher opened the club and did a great job organising tables, boards, and clocks.

It turned out to be a very exciting and close-fought contest.

After three rounds, Tony and Leon were leading on 3/3 points, so their fourth round clash proved a turning point when Tony misplayed the position against Leon’s strong French defence setup. But then things tightened considerably when Ken beat Leon in the next round, to leave several players on 4/5 – Leon, Ken, and Tomasz. Tomasz is a new player who has started in the club recently. He told me that he hasn’t played competitively for several years, but he didn’t look too rusty last night. He began to look value for his 2050 rating as the competition progressed. His progress was slowed a little with a draw against Leon in round 6, while Ken lost to Abul in the same round. That left an even tighter crunch at the top – with Tomasz and Leon on 4.5/6 with Tony, John Aherne, Ken, Cormac, and Abul all on 4 points. Cormac was proving to be a revelation – easily the lowest-rated player in that top group, after early losses against Tony and Ciaran, he had bounced back with victories over Roland, Pat, and John Gaffney in quick succession.

It was anybody’s prize with three rounds to go!

Round 7 featured Tony vs. Tomasz, Leon vs. Cormac, Ken vs. John, and Abul vs. Atanas. Tony got a large advantage out of the opening against Tomasz until he emerged a clear exchange ahead. However, as happens in blitz, he immediately threw away the advantage with the loss of a full knight, with Tomasz deservedly taking the point. Abul only managed a draw against Atanas, who seemed unusually subdued. Ken continued his fine run with a win over John Aherne, while Cormac beat Leon to really shake things up. Leon, after his early dominance, seemed to be faltering.

Cormac vs. Tomasz in round 8 was probably the deciding game of the tournament. Under incredible time pressure, Tomasz managed to queen a pawn and then mate Cormac with just three seconds remaining on his clock. At times, the board was just a blur of moving hands and pieces. It was a sight to watch, very entertaining for the neutrals. With a clear lead after that round, Tomasz still needed a draw at least in the final round to secure victory on 7 points, which he duly did against John Aherne. Leon emerged with two victories in the final two rounds to secure second place, with Ken, Abul, and Cormac all half a point behind on 6 points.

Thanks to everybody for making last night such an enjoyable occasion. And remember, the next round is on February 22nd, and you can join up even if you haven’t played in the first round!

Leaderboard

Place Name Feder Rtg Loc Score M-Buch. Buch. Progr.

1 Skrzypnik, Tomasz 2050 7
2 Fagan, Leon 1790 6.5
3-5 Moore, Ken 1657 6
Kalam, Abul 1993 1993 6
O’Brien, Cormac 1475 6
6-7 Scannell, Tony 1866 5.5
Ahern, John 1760 5.5
8 Gaffney, John 1409 5
9 Kouhtev, Atanas 1367 4.5
10-16 Maher, John 1353 4
Osborne, James 1357 4
McCrann, Roland 1156 4
McEvoy, Pat 1586 4
Byrne, Ciaran 1328 4
O’Brien, Pat 960 4
Cooke, Peter 700 4
17 Cooke, Frank 846 3
18 Kavanga, Patrick 1000 2
19 Mowlds, Dee 700 1
20 Boyle, Paul 1150 0

Crosstable
No Name Feder Rtg 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9

1 Skrzypnik, Tomasz 2050 9:W 3:L 11:W 10:W 4:W 2:D 6:W 5:W 7:D
2 Fagan, Leon 1790 14:W 13:W 4:W 6:W 3:L 1:D 5:L 10:W 11:W
3 Moore, Ken 1657 15:W 1:W 6:L 14:W 2:W 4:L 7:W 8:W 5:L
4 Kalam, Abul 1993 11:W 7:W 2:L 8:W 1:L 3:W 9:D 6:D 15:W
5 O’Brien, Cormac 1475 16:W 6:L 14:L 12:W 8:W 13:W 2:W 1:L 3:W
6 Scannell, Tony 1866 10:W 5:W 3:W 2:L 7:L 9:W 1:L 4:D 12:W
7 Ahern, John 1760 12:W 4:L 9:L 16:W 6:W 10:W 3:L 18:W 1:D
8 Gaffney, John 1409 19:W 9:L 16:W 4:L 5:L 17:W 13:W 3:L 10:W
9 Kouhtev, Atanas 1367 1:L 8:W 7:W 13:L 14:W 6:L 4:D 15:L 17:W
10 Maher, John 1353 6:L 15:W 13:W 1:L 12:W 7:L 11:W 2:L 8:L
11 Osborne, James 1357 4:L 17:W 1:L 15:W 13:L 14:W 10:L 19:W 2:L
12 McCrann, Roland 1156 7:L 16:L 17:W 5:L 10:L 15:W 14:W 13:W 6:L
13 McEvoy, Pat 1586 17:W 2:L 10:L 9:W 11:W 5:L 8:L 12:L 19:W
14 Byrne, Ciaran 1328 2:L 19:W 5:W 3:L 9:L 11:L 12:L 16:W 18:W
15 O’Brien, Pat 960 3:L 10:L 19:W 11:L 16:W 12:L 20:W 9:W 4:L
16 Cooke, Peter 700 5:L 12:W 8:L 7:L 15:L 19:W 17:W 14:L 20:W
17 Cooke, Frank 846 13:L 11:L 12:L 19:W 18:W 8:L 16:L 20:W 9:L
18 Kavanga, Patrick 1000 0: 0: 0: 0: 17:L 20:W 19:W 7:L 14:L
19 Mowlds, Dee 700 8:L 14:L 15:L 17:L 20:W 16:L 18:L 11:L 13:L
20 Boyle, Paul 1150 0: 0: 0: 0: 19:L 18:L 15:L 17:L 16:L

Rating Performances

No Name Feder Loc Id Loc Score Exp. Chg*K Rav Rprfm

1. Skrzypnik, Tomasz 2050 7.0/9 8.37 -14 1624 1844
2. Kalam, Abul 1993 6.0/9 8.37 -24 1580 1705
3. Scannell, Tony 1866 5.5/9 7.20 -17 1622 1702
4. Fagan, Leon 1790 6.5/9 6.39 1 1629 1795
5. Ahern, John 1760 5.5/9 7.65 -22 1460 1540
6. Moore, Ken 1657 6.0/9 4.86 11 1626 1751
7. McEvoy, Pat 1586 4.0/9 7.74 -37 1273 1230
8. O’Brien, Cormac 1475 6.0/9 4.14 19 1505 1630
9. Gaffney, John 1409 5.0/9 5.85 -9 1297 1340
10. Kouhtev, Atanas 1367 4.5/9 2.52 20 1533 1533
11. Osborne, James 1357 4.0/9 3.96 0 1401 1358
12. Maher, John 1353 4.0/9 2.25 18 1548 1505
13. Byrne, Ciaran 1328 4.0/9 5.49 -15 1245 1202
14. McCrann, Roland 1156 4.0/9 2.52 15 1319 1276
15. O’Brien, Pat 960 4.0/9 1.26 27 1270 1227
16. Cooke, Frank 846 3.0/9 1.26 17 1158 1033
17. Cooke, Peter 700 4.0/9 0.36 36 1198 1155
18. Mowlds, Dee 700 1.0/9 0.54 5 1148 797
19. Kavanga, Patrick 1000 2.0/5 1.45 6 1157 1085
20. Boyle, Paul 1150 0.0/5 4.30 -43 841 0

Latest rating changes

The ICU has updated ratings for some players. I am not sure why they’ve included only these players and why some ratings have remained static.

ICU No.	Name	Rating	Games	Club
318	Delaney, John (FM)	2211		Rathmines
159	Cafolla, Peter	2038		Rathmines
16042	Kalam, Abdul	1993		Rathmines
5104	Delaney, Killian	1980		Rathmines
740	Killane, Jack	1888		Rathmines
5722	McCabe, Darren	1877		Rathmines
12148	Janusaitis, Mindaugas	1869		Rathmines
1533	Scannell, Tony	1866		Rathmines
10298	Goralski, Lukasz	1787		Rathmines

Reminder – Blitz starts Monday 18th January!!!

Belgium 2010

Plans for going to Belgium are well advanced. Many people have already booked their 6.50am (yawn!) flights. They’re still incredibly cheap (I checked about 2 days ago) – around 100 euros all inclusive for return flights.

It looks likely that we’ll be booking the Ibis Centrum. It is central, economical, and has plenty of rooms. And Stephan has promised to book us a decent Turkish restaurant for Friday night too. 

http://www.accorhotels.com/gb/hotel-1455-ibis-gent-centrum-opera/index.shtml

In order to block book (and attempt to get cheaper rates) I need to know firmer numbers. So far, I know we have Lukasz, Tony, Leon, Peter, Jack, James (plus Stephan himself). I know there are others interested. It is important to please contact me by this FRIDAY, January 15th, 5pm if you want to be included in the bookings. Indicate if you want a single room or are happy to share too, even if you are on the above list. You can either, (i) leave a comment here to say you’re going, (b) text me on 0863419437, or email me on scannell_tony@yahoo.co.uk. Don’t panic if you cannot decide before Friday – we can always accept more travellers right up until the final few days before the trip itself.

Also, if you have any ideas for activities etc, do let us know. Roughly, the plan is Ghent sight-seeing on Friday, Turkish meal Friday night, brewery visit in Opwijk on Saturday, the main chess event/match/fun, and then beers Saturday night. Sunday is reserved for Bruges. None of the above (aside from the chess) is compulsory, so feel free to go off and do your own thing too.

Of course, the Irish Times reckons it is bad out there:

More than 1,000 Belgians travelling between Brussels and Ghent were left stranded in an icy train on Thursday evening when heavy snow caused overhead electrical cables to collapse.

I’m fairly confident they’ll have cleared the frozen passengers away by April…gulp.

Postponed games

Armstrong A game on Thursday 14th January against Gonzaga has been postponed due to worries about the weather.

The next game is scheduled for Saturday, January 23rd, vs. Kilkenny, at home.

Drogheda vs Rathmines A in the Heidenfeld (Sat 9th Jan 2010) was also postponed.

If other captains know of any postponements, please comment here and I’ll add them to the main posting, thanks.

Kieran Cranny Cup – Blitz 2010

There’s one guaranteed way to heat those cold bones up…blitz!

The dates for our annual, three-round Kieran Cranny Perpetual Trophy blitz competition are January 18th, February 22nd, and March 22nd, 2010.

The rules are simple: three rounds of nine games each. Everybody is in one draw. You can enter any individual round, even if you miss a round, but obviously you stand a much better chance of winning if you enter all three rounds. There are prizes for the overall winner, an intermediates winner, and a junior winner (based on ratings). Organised by John Crowley.

Rathmines 2010 Opening

We open again on Thursday, January 7th 2010.

I have given the site a new look, to celebrate the new year. I’m not convinced, eek! Maybe the old template was better, if you strongly disapprove I’ll switch it back!

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYBODY!