Club members in action in Limerick Congress

Half a dozen club members went to Limerick to play in the Limerick Congress over the bank holiday weekend. We came away with two prize-winners in the under-1400 section: David Piercy came third equal with 4 points out of 6 (a steady two wins and four draws) whilst Zalan Nemeth also came third equal (also undefeated) and in addition won the under-1050 grading prize because of his better tie-break. David and Zalan played each other in round 5, and the game was, of course, drawn.

In the Open section, Pete Morriss and David Baird both scored 3½ points, Denis Ruchko 3, and Kynesha Ryder 2½. Denis and Kynesha’s performances were both particularly outstanding: Denis had two fine wins against players rated 1900 or more, and finished with a rating performance over 200 points above his initial rating; whilst Kynesha, despite being the lowest-rated player in the field, more than held her own in her games, including gaining a draw with an opponent rated more than 1000 points higher than her. Denis and Kynesha are two juniors who are improving rapidly; Denis already has an impressive string of achievements to his name, and there is little doubt that Kynesha will soon be following suit.