PRESIDENT CH AIRM AN TREASURER ASST. TREAS SECRETARY P.R.

D
Brendan Murray Sean O' Driscoll Bill Dobbins Liam Doyle Sean Phillips Gerald Callaghan
Main Street Drimeen Blackwood 56 ShemalierPark Cullinagh Millfield
Dunshaughlin Broadford Robertstown, Naas East Wall Newcastle West Buncrana
Co. Meath Co. Clare Co. Kildare Dublin 3 Co. Limerick Co.Donegal

IR IS H DRAUGHTS A S S O C IA T IO N NEW SLETTER

DECEMBER 2 0 0 6 ( new series Vol 1 No 1)

EDITORIAL

At the Annual General Meeting o f the IDA held on 30th October 2006, it was agreed that the IDA Newsletter
would be edited by Liam Stephens . The Newsletter will be distributed free to members of the IDA.
Membership is €10 per annum, (€12 GB and Europe, €15 USA). Subscriptions should be sent to the
Treasurer of the IDA: Bill Dobbins, Blackwood, Robertstown, Naas, Co. Kildare, Ireland.
It is hoped to publish 4 issues, at least, per annum, but this will depend on the response and support
forthcoming from subscribers. Material for publication in future issues should be sent to:
Liam Stephens, 45 The Crescent, Lakepoint Park, Mullingar, Co. Westmeath, Ireland.
Contribution of news items, games, analysis, problems etc are all welcome.
To all our readers, we wish you a happy Christmas and prosperous New Year.

ALL IRELAND OPEN 2006

This was held in the Dolmen Hotel, Carlow, from 28 Oct to 1 Nov 2006, with an entry of over 50 players
taking part, including the World W omen’s 3 Move Champion, Patricia Breen.
In the Masters it was a close fought tourney with the outcome in doubt right up to the final round. Going into
the last round, Myles Hannigan and Shane Mc Cosker were level on 23 points. Shane had beaten Myles in an
earlier round and so only needed two draws to win the tournament. However Myles scored a win and a draw
in the last round to take first place. This was also a fine performance by Shane, following on from his 5th place
in the British Open. Charlie Mc Kenna in 3rd place put in a grandstand finish with 2 wins against Garrett
Owens in the last 2 rounds. In the Seniors, Francis McNally came from behind during the last two rounds to
clinch the title. This was his best ever performance and he is now promoted to the masters.
In the Intermediates, John Davis, from Dublin, was also a worthy winner. Congratulations to all the winners.
A special word of thanks to Sean Phillips and P J Furey, who found this excellent venue at short notice .
Sean also arranged an excellent Buffet and social evening for players during the week.
Controllers for the event were Peadar Sweeny and Jim Somers, who ensured that all ran smoothly.
Cash prizes and plaques were presented to the winners in each section.

Prize Winners in the 2006 All-Ireland Open

MASTERS SENIOR INTERMEDIATE

1st Myles Hannigan (Strabane) 26 1st Francis McNally (Cookstown) 25 1st John Davis (Dublin) 23
2nd Shane McCosker (Strabane) 24 2nd Con Boyle (Dublin/Donegal) 25 2nd Charlie McElroy (N. Irl) 23
3rd Charlie McKenna (Derry) 23 3rd Joe Maguire (Dublin) 24 3rd Brendan Crawley (Dundalk) 21
4th Garrett Owens (Dundalk) 22 4th John Morgan ( Wales) 24 4th Vincent Beirne (Roscommon) 20
5th Sean Cronin (Limerick) 22 5th Anthony Rose (Scotland) 23 5th Colm O ’Connor (Buncrana) 20
6th Sean O ’Driscoll (Clare) 22 6th Tom Bryson (Arklow/Donegal) 23 6th Michael Igoe (England) 20

See Crosstables overleaf :

Fund Raising Draw

The Fund Raising Draw for the All-Ireland Open was held at the Dolmen Hotel, Carlow on Monday,
30.10.06. The organisers would like to thank everyone who sold or bought tickets in order to support
these Championships. The prize winners in the Draw were:
FIRST €500 Billy Kelly, Dublin. Ticket no. 1794
SECOND €300 Irene Moran, Castlebar. Ticket no. 1989
THIRD €200 Mary Phillips, Newcastle West. Ticket no. 4330

1
 Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 Round 6 Round 7 Round 8 Round 9 Round 10
Masters Pos'n
Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op Pt. TP Op Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP
1 Colin Young 3 3 3 2 1 4 16 2 6 17 3 9 5 2 11 18 0 11 13 4 15 6 1 16 10 3 19 16 2 21 7th
2 Paddy Havlin 7 3 3 1 3 6 5 2 8 8 2 10 6 0 10 16 1 11 11 2 13 9 3 16 17 1 17 9 1 18 13th
3 Bernard Coll 1 1 1 7 0 1 11 1 2 13 3 5 12 1 6 15 2 8 bye 2 10 4 1 11 9 2 13 bye 2 15 17th
4 Bill Dobbins 14 1 1 11 4 5 17 1 6 16 2 8 9 2 10 12 2 12 10 2 14 3 3 17 18 1 18 17 2 20 10th
5 Sean O' Driscoll 13 4 4 8 2 6 2 2 8 7 2 10 1 2 12 14 3 15 6 2 17 18 1 18 16 1 19 8 3 22 5th
6 Shane McCosker 16 2 2 15 2 4 9 3 7 18 3 10 2 4 14 7 1 15 5 2 17 1 3 20 8 3 23 18 1 24 2nd
7 Garrett Owens 2 1 1 3 4 5 10 3 8 5 2 10 8 3 13 6 3 16 18 2 18 16 2 20 14 1 21 14 1 22 4th
8 Liam Stephens 11 4 4 5 2 6 18 2 8 2 2 10 7 1 11 10 3 14 16 2 16 17 2 18 6 1 19 5 1 20 9th
9 Frank Moran 12 2 2 16 2 4 6 1 5 15 3 8 4 2 10 17 2 12 14 2 14 2 1 15 3 2 17 2 3 20 11th
10 Paddy Doyle 15 2 2 12 3 5 7 1 6 10 3 9 18 1 10 8 1 11 4 2 13 11 3 16 1 1 17 12 2 19 12th
11 Con McCarrick 8 0 0 4 0 0 3 3 3 12 3 6 14 1 7 13 2 9 2 2 11 10 1 12 bye 2 14 15 2 16 16th
12 Tom m y Canning 9 2 2 10 1 3 13 2 5 11 1 6 3 3 9 4 2 11 17 2 13 14 1 14 15 2 16 10 2 18 14th
13 Sean Mc Elkenny 5 0 0 17 2 2 12 2 4 3 1 5 15 2 7 11 2 9 1 0 9 bye 2 11 w/d 0 11 w/d 0 11 18th
14 Charles McKenna 4 3 3 18 1 4 15 3 7 14 1 8 11 3 11 5 1 12 9 2 14 12 3 17 7 3 20 7 3 23 3rd
15 Sean Phillips 10 2 2 6 2 4 14 1 5 9 1 6 13 2 8 3 2 10 late 2 12 late 2 14 12 2 16 11 2 18 15th
16 Sean Cronin 6 2 2 9 2 4 1 2 6 4 2 8 17 2 10 2 3 13 8 2 15 7 2 17 5 3 20 1 2 22 6th
17 Patrica Breen bye 2 2 13 2 4 4 3 7 1 1 8 16 2 10 9 2 12 12 2 14 8 2 16 2 3 19 4 2 21 8th
18 Myles Hannigan bye 2 2 14 3 5 8 2 7 6 1 8 10 3 11 1 4 15 7 2 17 5 3 20 4 3 23 6 3 26 1st

Seniors Round 1 Round 2 Round 3 Round 4 Round 5 Round 6 Round 7 Round 8 Round 9 Round 10
Pos'n
Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP Op. Pt. TP
1 Graham Young 3 2 2 13 0 2 4 0 2 16 3 5 7 2 7 8 3 10 2 2 12 15 1 13 5 2 15 16 3 18 12th=
2 Anthony Rose 8 3 3 14 0 3 5 0 3 7 4 7 16 3 10 12 2 12 1 2 14 4 2 16 9 3 19 15 4 23 5th
3 Sean Mc Kenna 1 2 2 11 2 4 6 2 6 15 3 9 10 2 11 13 0 11 4 0 11 7 3 14 16 2 16 11 2 18 12th=
4 Andy Dobbyns 10 0 0 7 3 3 1 4 7 12 0 7 15 0 7 16 0 7 3 4 11 2 2 13 11 2 15 7 2 17 14th
5 Con Boyle 6 1 1 8 2 3 2 4 7 13 2 9 11 3 12 14 2 14 10 2 16 9 3 19 1 4 23 6 2 25 2nd
6 Francis Mc Nally 5 3 3 12 1 4 3 2 6 11 2 8 8 3 11 10 3 14 9 2 16 14 3 19 13 4 23 5 2 25 1st
7 Liam Doyle 9 0 0 4 1 1 16 3 4 2 0 4 1 2 6 11 1 7 8 0 7 3 1 8 12 2 10 4 2 12 16th
8 Tom Bryson 2 1 1 5 2 3 15 4 7 9 1 8 6 1 9 1 1 10 7 4 14 11 3 17 14 4 21 10 2 23 6th
9 Joe Maguire 7 4 4 10 3 7 14 1 8 8 3 11 13 2 13 15 2 15 6 2 17 5 1 18 2 2 20 12 4 24 3rd
10 John Morgan 4 4 4 9 1 5 12 3 8 14 3 11 3 2 13 6 1 14 5 2 16 13 3 19 15 3 22 8 2 24 4th
11 Brendan Murray 14 2 2 3 2 4 13 2 6 6 2 8 5 1 9 7 3 12 16 2 14 8 1 15 4 1 16 3 2 18 11th
12 John Joe McGee 13 3 3 6 3 6 10 1 7 4 4 11 14 0 11 2 2 13 15 2 15 16 4 19 7 0 19 9 0 19 9th
13 W illiam Kelly 12 1 1 1 4 5 11 2 7 5 2 9 9 2 11 3 4 15 14 2 17 10 1 18 6 0 18 14 2 20 8th
14 P J Furey 11 2 2 2 4 6 9 3 9 10 1 10 12 4 14 5 3 17 13 2 19 6 1 20 8 0 20 13 2 22 7th
15 John Preston late 0 2 16 4 6 8 0 6 3 1 7 4 4 11 9 3 14 12 2 16 1 3 19 10 0 19 2 0 19 10th
16 Mick O' Dowd late 0 2 15 0 2 7 1 3 1 1 4 2 1 5 4 4 9 11 2 11 12 0 11 3 2 13 1 1 14 15th

2
Previous Winners at the Irish Championships
YEAR FORMAT VENUE MASTERS SENIOR INTERMEDIATE HOME - BASED
1977 Closed Castlebar Pat McCarthy T. O ’Donnell Arnold FitzPatrick
1978 Open Dublin Derek Oldbury Myles Hannigan John Sweeney
1979 Closed Lifford Pat McCarthy Eamon Greene John Sweeney
1980 Open Lifford Pat McCarthy Lindus Edwards Con McCarrick
1981 Closed Monaghan Pat McCarthy Hugh Carlin Con McCarrick
1982 Open Kingscourt Derek Oldbury Charles Walker John Sweeney
1983 Closed Cork Pat McCarthy P.J. Furey Tom McGurk
1984 Open Dublin Tom Watson Bernard Coll Hugh Devlin
1985 Closed Lifford Hugh Devlin M. McGlynn Hugh Devlin
1986 Open Raheny Bill Edwards John MacKay Hugh Devlin
1987 Closed Carlow Pat McCarthy Bill Dobbins Kevin Watson Hugh Devlin
1988 Open Raheny Pat McCarthy Peter Kierans Sean Phillips Hugh Devlin
1989 Closed Lifford Con McCarrick Sean Carlin Paddy Havlin Myles Hannigan
1990 Open Carlow Pat McCarthy Bill Halsey Patricia Breen Myles Hannigan
1991 Closed Carlow Con McCarrick & Hugh Devlin P.J. Furey Jim Somers Con McCarrick & Hugh Devlin
1992 Open Ennis Tom Watson Sean Cronin Karena Breen Hugh Devlin
1993 Closed Strokestown Hugh Devlin Patricia Breen John Keenan Hugh Devlin
1994 Open Carlow Ronald King Rawle Allicock Paddy Warde Hugh Devlin
1995 Closed Carrick-on-Shannon Con McCarrick Paddy Havlin Patrick Breen Con McCarrick
1996 Open Limerick Tom Watson John Cunningham Anne-Marie Breen Hugh Devlin
1997 Closed Carlow Paddy Doyle Paddy Warde Paddy Hughes Paddy Doyle
1998 Open Limerick Hugh Devlin P.J. Furey John Preston Hugh Devlin
1999 Closed Carlow Sean Cronin Sean Carlin Tommy Canning Sean Cronin
2000 Open Carlow Pat McCarthy William Mulligan Elaine Breen Patricia Breen
2001 Invitational Carlow Ronald King Tony Lagan Charlie McElroy Sean Cronin
2002 Invitational Carrick-on-Shannon Pat McCarthy Sean Phillips Eddie O ’Gara Sean Cronin
2003 All-Ireland Cookstown Ronald King Mick O ’Shaughnessy Bashim Durdyev Sean Cronin
2004 All-Ireland Cookstown Ronald King Amangul Durdyeva Sean McKenna Sean O ’Driscoll
2005 All-Ireland Limerick Ronald King Shane McCosker Sean Magee Sean Cronin
2006 All-Ireland Carlow Myles Hannigan Francis McNally John Davis Myles Hannigan

Elected at Irish Draughts Association AGM

President, Brendan Murray. Chairman, Sean O ’Driscoll. Treasurer, Bill Dobbins. Assistant Treasurer,
Liam Doyle. P.R.O. Gerald Callaghan. Assistant P.R.O. Tommy Canning. Assistant P.R.O. Con
McCarrick. Secretary, Sean Phillips. Newsletter Editor, Liam Stephens. Executive: Frank Moran, John
Joe McGee,
M ick O ’Dowd, Graham Young, P.J. Furey, Sean Cronin, Paddy Doyle, Jim Somers, Peadar Sweeney.

Treasurer’s Report of the Irish Draughts Association 2005/06 ( Presented to AGM on 30.10.06)
INCOME
Credit Union Account @ 27.10.06 €618.24
T.S.B. Account €300.00
Membership Fees @ 2006/07 €80.00
Donation (Brendan Murray) €200.00
€1,198.24
EXPENDITURE
Membership Fee WCDF €80.00
October 2006 Newsletter €42.00
€122.00
Balance €1,076.24 Bill Dobbins - Treasurer

ALL IRELAND OPEN - 27th to 31st OCTOBER 2007

At the AGM the Inishowen Club put in a bid to hold the Irish Open for 2007, which was accepted.
This will include holding the W omen’s 3 Move World Championship Match between Patricia Breen and
Amangul Durdyeva, from Turkmenistan. There will also a non-title exhibition match between the m en’s
World Champion, Alex Moiseyev, and Irish Match Champion Hugh Devlin plus a World record attempt of
400 boards simultaneous exhibition by the World Champion.
The tourney will be held in Buncrana, County Donegal. Buncrana is situated on the west of the very scenic
Inishowen Peninsula, in County Donegal, with spectacular panoramic views of Lough Swilly. The name
Buncrana, (or Bun Cranncha in Irish), translates to the 'bottom of the Crana', the river adjacent to the town.
For further details contact Gerald Callaghan "Droim Ard", Millfield, Buncrana, Co. Donegal.
Tel 0749361932.
Email: geraldcallaghanbuncrana@hotmail.com
3
INISHOWEN NEWS reported by Gerald Callaghan

Quigley knocks Devlin off summit

Danny Quigley proved beyond doubt last Monday night at the “Rock”, M uff that he is one of the North
W est’s top master draughts players. The elegant Derry man exhibited all the enthusiasm and concentration
necessary to topple Letterkenny’s Hugh Devlin, who is the Irish “Go-as-you-please” champion, from pole
position and elevate himself to the top of the leader board on 6 points.
Strabane’s Myles Hannigan, Toombridge’s Francis McNally and Antrim’s Charlie McKenna are also on
6 points apiece having defeated Tommy Canning, Charlie McElroy and Sean McElkenny respectively. Sion
M ill’s Shane McCosker bounced back to his winning ways once again having defeated Donegal Town’s Alan
Ramsey by a 3 - 1 margin. Buncrana’s John Joe McGee and his neighbour Pierce Caldwell shared the spoils
in their encounter which appeared a fair result on the night. The next five weeks will produce some excellent
games from these geniuses of the chequered board but Devlin is still the odds-on-favourite to take the title.

Veteran draughts player Liam Harkin from Mountcharles is the only player out of 49 competitors to survive
with the maximum points as the Inishowen Open reaches the third series of matches. Liam is a man of few
words and lets his draughts do the talking. In this intermediate section there are 18 eager and hungry players
with all sights set on a podium position. Derry’s confident Paddy Kerr is coasting along in joint second place
on 6 points but may have his tail cut next week when he meets Redcastle’s Paddy Barr who is improving with
every match. Buncrana’s Sean McGonagle and John Martin who are both on 6 points each also shared the
spoils in their match. Martin found this rejuvenated M cGonagle hard to handle but held on while his calories
declined. Inishowen’s team captain Joe Fullerton’s meteoric rise in form and fortune of late is nothing short of
phenomenal, and Fullerton continued his rich vein of success with a great 3 - 1 victory over Neil McLaughlin
junior from Clonmany. Joe may be taken back to earth on Monday night when he meets the ever improved
Sean McGonagle. Buncrana’s Christy Monaghan should not be forgotten in this title race as he added
another 3 points to his tally when he defeated Alex McLaughalin. The Swilly Print chairman found
M onaghan’s computerized playing system a little out of his depth. Toombridge’s Mervyn Moore has made a
strong impression in his first tournament in Inishowen as he defeated Fahan’s David Walker by a 3 - 1
margin.
David is a 1st. class committee member and never lets a defeat get him down. Buncrana’s Kieran McCallion
had a good 3 - 1 victory over Michael Gillen but had to keep his concentration firmly on the match during
their two hour encounter. Derry’s Jim McGowan came away with 4 points in his match with John Davidson.

Unprecedented results were the order of the day in the “Philip Callaghan Cup” . Former cup winner
John Given from Donegal town was defeated by Toombridge’s John McElhone while Culdaff’ s Tony
Gibbons was at the wrong end of a 3 - 1 result with Tyrone’s Sean Donnelly. Donegal Town’s Bobby Love
got his foot on the first step of the success ladder when he defeated Tyrone Champion Cathal McCafferty by 3
points to one point. The only Inishowen man to dig in his heels when the going gets tough is Paddy Devlin.
The Clonmany man is setting a clear example to his Inishowen club mates how to rise to the occasion when
the necessity arises. Paddy is in joint first place on 7 points with John McElhone after his 3 - 1 win over his
neighbour Neil McLaughlin senior. Donegal’s Con Boyle has moved into 2nd. spot when he had a 4 - 0 win
over Redcastle’s Brian Lafferty. Our former chairman’s post match comments were full of praise for the
skill and concentration of the South Donegal man but advised the writer to have him promoted at the first
available opportunity. Con, who was 2nd in the All-Ireland championships, is odds-on favourite to win this
cup although Paddy Devlin and John McElhone will be his main obstacles. Buncrana’s Colm O ’Connor kept
his unbeaten record intact when he shared the spoils with Billy Grant. M oville’s Sean McCauley drew his
match with our chairman Danny Doherty which leaves both players 3 points adrift of the leaders. Bucrana’s
Sean Bradley and Fahan’s Hugh McCarron find the going tough in this division as both shared the spoils in
their encounter. Liam Kelly junior added another 4 points to his tally but will be on Holidays for the next
two weeks. A small presentation was made to Buncrana’s Liam Kelly in recognition of his eightieth birthday.
The presentation was made on behalf o f the Inishowen draughts club by our President John Joe McGee and
our Chairman Danny Doherty.

Play continues every Monday night for the next five weeks at “The Rock Bar” and once again we thank
Muriel and Irene for their display of food, heat and charm to all players and observers.

4
Limerick Draughts Club
Limerick Draughts Club held a six week competition among its members during September & October 2006.
The players finished as follows: 1st Sean Cronin, 2nd Sean O ’Driscoll, 3rd Mick O ’Shaughnessy,
and 4th Sean Phillips.

GAMES FROM IRISH OPEN 2006

Game 1 Black G Owens White C Mc Kenna

9-14 5-14 8-11 2- 7C 15-18 7-11

24-20 29-25 27-24 18-14 D 22-8 8- 3
11-16 6- 9A 11-15 10-17 3-28 F 11-15
20-11 28-24 31-27 21-14 20-16 3- 7
8-15 4- 8 7-11 B 12-16E 13-17 etc., White won the ending
22-18 25-22 23-18 26-23 16-12
15-22 9-13 14-23 16-19 17-22
25-9 24-20 27-18 23-16 12-8

A.4-8, 25-22, 6-9, 22-18, 8-11 27-24, 10-15, 26-22, 7-10, 24-19 etc leads to the Long v Hellman draw 1948.
B. The Cross Landing - a position that is well covered in “Lets Play Checkers” by Wiswell and Grover.
C. The recommended move to draw though 12-16 as taken by Oldbury v Hellman (with colours reversed) in
their 1965 match also draws. O f the 8 possible black moves here, 6 are losses and two are draws.
D. Here 21-17 is the usual continuation. The 18-14 move taken appears to have caught Garrett by surprise.
E. A loser, here 3-8* followed by 15-19 draws.
F. After the 3 for 3, the position is a data base win for White.

Game 2 Black S O ’ Driscoll White L Stephens

10-15 5-9 4-8 11-16 2-9

21-17 25-21 28-24 26-23 18-15
15-18 9-14 16-20 3-7 C 9-18
22-15 29-25 31-26 25-22 23-14
11-18 8-11 7-11 1- 5 16-23
23-14 26-23 21-17 22-18 D 27-18
9-18 11-16 A 14-21 6-9 20-27
17-13 24-19 B 23-14 13-6 32-23 Drawn

A. 11-15 here is pp.

B. 24-20 may be better.
C. 6-10 looks stronger. Continue 14-7, 3-10, 25-22, 2-6, 22-18, 1-5, 30-26, 21-25, 26-22, 25-30, 22-17,
30-25, 18-15, 25-22, 15-11, 8-15, 17-14 etc., should draw.
D. The shot with 23-18, 16-23, 14-10, 7-14, 18-9, 5-14, 27-9, 20-27, etc., also draws.

STATE OF THE GAME

Here are two quotes from the works of Derek Oldbury:

“ Strife gives life: only apathy kills.” - The Square World, Jan-Feb 1965.

“The real question is: Going up? ... or Going Down?” - Encyclopaedia, page 119.

DIRECT (ORY) ENQUIRIES

Can’t find a move? - Look it up in the Directory! See table overleaf:

5
 STEPHENS DIRECTORY - 1. THE CROSS 9-14 LINE

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
Trunk Abbreviations
bc Basic Checkers
11-15 ke Kear's Ency
23-18 lg Lees Guide M S X CC

CD

CO
8-11 oe Oldbury's Ency 31-27 31-27 6 - 9!!

i
27-23 A B C D sc Solid Checkers draws to a dr tricky, is better,
CO

sw Square World 31-26 Sturges see see

1

23-19 E F ADP American Draught Player loses 1800 Fraser's Fraser's

9-14 G IDC International Draughts and Checkers Sturges Inferno Inferno.
18-9 LPC Let's Play Checkers If 11-16
5-14 ACFB American Checker Federation Bulletin N T Y 26-23
22-17 H 18-23? 11-16? 7-11 W W

CD

CO
15-18 14-18? 13-9! 27-23 to a dr MacIndoe

i
26-22 J 32-27 25-22 DD EE FF 17-14 Sturges 18-27 Watson
11-15 K 18-23 11-15 CC 9-13 10-17 improves 13-9 v Pask
17-13 19-15 22-18 26-23 26-23 21-14 Payne 21 W W 1988 DD
7-11 L 11-18 11-16 12-16 8-11 into 6-10 GG sw oe bc sc 31-27

CM

CO
*
22-17 M 13-9 22-15 18-9 18-9 25-22 11-15 25-21

1
2-7 N P Q 6-13 10-19 6-22 6-22 to a dr 23-19 10-17 to a dr
32-27 R S 24-20 24-15 25-18 25-18 Ed King v 8-11 21-14 P U Z lg ke

CD

CO
CM

CO
1- 5 T 15-24 14-18 V
16-20 16-20 Lafferty Old 14th 11-15 12-16

i
1
24-20 30-26 22-6 31-27 W
29-25 AA 29-25 BB 1970, or to a dr to a dr loses as EE
15-24 5-9 1-10 7-10 X Y Z 20-27 20-27 but 7-10 LPC ke, oe in LPC 26-23
28-19 (or 11-16) 28-19 to a dr 31-24 31-24 17-13 questionable to a dr
to a dr to a dr 14-18 U Drummond to a dr to a dr 1- 5 Fortman ke LPC
J Lees Sturges to a dr AlsoDrummond Fraserv 30-26 Q V AA
CO

CO
1800 Bowen v Hellman Tinsley 1- 5 7-10 31-27? FF
1

LPC Yates 1877 v Long 1952 24-20* or 3 - 7 or 7-11 10-14 17-13

bc sc lg oe bc ke 1948 bc bc W W bc sc bc or 11-16 lose as in 18-9 11-16
sw oe sc lg lose as in LPC 1-5 B best,
A B B1 C D F H J K LPC BW see
22-17 24-20 15-19 24-19 18-14 32-27 31-27 19-15 11-16 W Oldbury v Fraser's
CO

13-22 23-16 15-24 W aterloo 15-19 15-18 to a B W to a W W R 31-26 R S Thomson Inferno

1

26-17 27-23 12-19 28-19 is a weak ( not H Richards ADP 24-20? or 1950
9-13 12-16 B1 18-15 11-16 E line by 6-9) v 15-24 25-22 bc GG
30-25 32-27* 11-18 then if 24-20 M Hopper M Polonsky 28-19 or 11-16
13-22 8-12 22-15 26-23, is G Tinsley v 1929. R W Freyer 28-24 BB loses, but
26-17 18-14* 19-23 10-14 weak 9-13 Huggins 17-13 L v L W Taylor lose as in 31-27? 7-10
12-16 Black best to a B W is a B W ( see 26-23 1957 here 14-17 1958 Drummond loses to a dr
Black is Holmes v see Note B1 Note B) W W as in also loses 1838 as in LPC
powerful - bc bc Mc Kelvie 1901 o f C rescent bc Payne 35 bc loses. see LPC bc sw note AA

6
PROBLEM No 1

Author Unknown

White to play and win.

This problem was a favourite with the late John O ’ Connor o f the London and
Surrey Draughts Associations. He delighted in showing it to beginners at
Clapham Common. The solution, however, may elude even seasoned draughts
players, so a nice one for readers to ponder over during the Christmas season.

PROBLEM No 2

G H Slocum

White to play and win

A beautiful stroke composition combined with a familiar problem theme.

Appeared in the Draughts World as Gem No. 813

EVEN HOMER NODS

A Moiseyev

White to play and win.

In the 2001 American Freestyle Championship, A Moiseyev strayed into this

position (as Black) with White to play. White continued with 28-24? to an
eventual Black win.
Can you spot the golden opportunity that White overlooked?
This position also occurred, between J A Montague and G Buchanan,
in the 1903 Scottish Tourney, with Buchanan finding the winning move.

N Grosvenor

7
FORTHCOMING EVENTS

World GAYP Title Match (November 27th to December 2nd 2006) The Champion, Ronald King from Barbados, will play the
Challenger, Jim Morrison from the United States, at the Checkers Hall of Fame, Petal, Mississippi.
Kildare Open (February 17th to February 18th 2007) The Town House Hotel, Naas, Co. Kildare. This 3-Move tournament will
start at 10am sharp on the Saturday, with 3 rounds scheduled on Saturday, and 2 more rounds on Sunday. Accommodation in the
Town House is available at €70 for a single room, at €45 per person sharing in a double room or in a twin room, and at €30 per
person in rooms with 3 beds. For details, please contact Bill Dobbins, Blackwood, Robertstown, Naas, Co. Kildare.
8 (087)4160745.
Limerick Open (March 17th to March 19th 2007) The Kilmurry Lodge Hotel, Castletroy, Limerick. This 3-Move tournament
will be played over 6 rounds. The winner will become the Official Challenger for the Irish 3-Move Matchplay Title. For details,
please contact Sean Phillips, Cullinagh, Newcastle West, Co. Limerick 8 (069)62340.
Northern Ireland Open (soon after Easter 2007) For details, please contact Sean Donnelly, 33 Ballybeg Road, Coalisland, Co.
Tyrone.
English Open (May 14th to May 18th 2007) Morecambe, Lancashire. For details, please contact John Reade, 123 Andover
Avenue, Middleton, Manchester M24 1JQ, England.
Scotish Open (July 16th to July 20th 2007) Stonehaven, (near Aberdeen) Scotland. For details, please contact Graham Young,
East Bendings, Stonehaven, Kincardenshire, AB39 2XX, Scotland.
World GAYP Qualifiers (early October 2007) Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. For details, please contact Kim Willis.
All-Ireland Open (October 27th to October 31st 2007) The Gateway Hotel, Buncrana, Co. Donegal. For details, please contact
Gerald Callaghan, “Ard Droim”, Millfield, Buncrana, Co. Donegal.
World Ladies 3-Move Title Match (October 27th to October 31st 2007) The Champion, Patricia Breen from Carlow, will play the
Challenger, Amangul Durdyeva from Turkmenistan, at the Gateway Hotel, Buncrana, Co. Donegal.

ROLL of HONOUR
World 3-Move Matchplay Alex Moiseyev World GAYP Matchplay Ronald King
World Ladies 3-Move Matchplay Patricia Breen World Ladies GAYP Matchplay Amangul Durdyeva
U.K. & Irish Ladies Matchplay Karena Breen World Postal Champion Mac Banks
U.S. 3-Move National Tv. Ronald King U.S. GAYP National T v . Jim Morrison
British Open Mustafa Durdyev Welsh Open Tony Boyle
English Open Sean Cronin English GAYP T v . Dave Harwood
Northern Ireland Open Garrett Owens German Open Liam Stephens
Scottish Open Tom Watson East o f Scotland Colin Young
All-Ireland Open Masters Myles Hannigan Irish Home-Based Champion Myles Hannigan
All-Ireland Open Senior Francis McNally All-Ireland Open Intermediate John Davis
Irish 3-Move Matchplay Sean Cronin Irish GAYP Matchplay Hugh Devlin
Irish Ladies Matchplay Anne-Marie Breen Home International Team T v . Republic o f Ireland

WCDF World Ratings

1. Ronald King (Barbados) 2659 2. Alex Moiseyev (USA) 2623 3. Richard Hallett (USA) 2567 4. William Doherty (Scot) 2561
5. Tom Watson (Scot) 2546 6. Jack Francis (Barbados) 2546 7. Ed Bruch (USA) 2494 8. Sean Cronin (Irl) 2485
9. Richard Beckwith (USA) 2475 10. Louis Cowie (USA) 2472 11. Jim Morrison (USA) 2468 12. Lindus Edwards (Wal) 2467
13. Hugh Devlin (Irl) 2463 14. George Miller (Eng) 2462 15. Darwin Lorde (Barbados) 2459 16. Larry Keen (USA) 2457
17. Joe Davidson (Scot) 2453 18. Rawle Allicock (Eng) 2449 19. John Walcott (Barbados) 2449 20. Jim Grant (Scot) 2446
20. Bagityar Durdyev (Turkmen) 2446
Irish Players’ Ratings (World rankings in brackets)
1. Sean Cronin (8) 2485 2. Hugh Devlin (13) 2463 3. Myles Hannigan (31) 2394 4. Sean O ’Driscoll (33) 2383
5. Tony Lagan (39) 2372 6. Paddy Doyle (41) 2363 7. Garrett Owens (43) 2362 8. Frank Moran (44) 2359
9. Jim O ’Brien Snr. (45) 2359 10. Liam Stephens (48) 2341 11. Patricia Breen (51) 2337 12. Willie Mulligan (54) 2329
13. P.J. Furey (66) 2293 14. Charlie McKenna (70) 2290 15. Paddy Havlin (73) 2284 16. Bill Dobbins (77) 2279
17. Shane McCosker (79) 2270 18. Mick O ’Shaughnessy (85) 2264 19. Sean Phillips (95) 2230 20. Charles McElroy (104)
2212

OTHER NEWSLETTERS
The North West Draughts Federation Newsletter edited by Tom Canning. Subscriptions to Liam Kelly, Ballymagan,, Buncrana,
Co. Donegal, Ireland. 4 issues per year. £10 or €15 subscription.
Scottish Draughts News Sheet edited by Danny Oliphant. Subscriptions to Danny Oliphant, 4 Linwood Grove, Whiston, Merseyside,
L35 3XJ, England. 6 issues per year. £5 Sterling subscription.
The Scottish Draughts Association has authorized Sean Phillips to collect subscriptions on its behalf
English Draughts Association Newsletter edited by Dennis Pawlek. Subscriptions to Joan Caws, 54 Mayfield Road, Ryde, Isle of Wight,
P033 3PR, England. 3-4 issues per year: £5 Sterling subscription.
North & North East Draughts View edited by Graham Young. Subscriptions to Graham Young, East Bendings, Stonehaven,
Aberdeenshire, AB39 2XX, Scotland. 6 issues per year. £6 Sterling subscription.
Sean Phillips has been authorized by Graham Young to collect subscriptions from Irish based players on behalf of Graham Young.
Lancashire Checker Newsletter edited by John Reade. Subscriptions to John Reade,
123 Andover Avenue, Midleton, Manchester, M24 IJQ, England. 6 issues per year. £10 Sterling subscription.
American Checker Federation Bulletin edited by Jim Loy. Subscriptions to Don Brattin ,
126 Mountain View Drive, Berea, KY 40403, U.S.A. 6 issues per year. $40 subscription for Irish readers.