{"id":33646,"date":"2025-09-21T00:26:08","date_gmt":"2025-09-21T00:26:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/33646\/"},"modified":"2025-09-21T00:26:08","modified_gmt":"2025-09-21T00:26:08","slug":"scrabble-seven-letters-and-a-triple-word-score-away-from-all-ireland-glory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/33646\/","title":{"rendered":"Scrabble\u00a0\u2014 Seven letters and a triple word score away from All-Ireland glory"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mary Doyle\u2019s destiny was never written in the stars. Instead, it was spelt across a Scrabble board that she stumbled upon by chance and that sparked a passion which has brought her all across the world to compete.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been more than 50 years since the Wexford woman discovered the board game in the recreational room of a ship bound for Australia.<\/p>\n

As she prepares to take part in the All-Ireland Scrabble Championships in Waterford, Mary says that chance encounter with the Scrabble board sparked a passion for the word game that continues to grow. The Scrabble fanatic is looking forward to meeting dozens of other enthusiasts at Dooley\u2019s Hotel in Waterford City on October 4 and 5.<\/p>\n

\"MaryMary Doyle discovered Scrabble while working as a nurse on an ocean liner half a century ago. She’s looking forward to meeting\u00a0\u2014 and possibly beating \u2014 some of Ireland’s other top players\u00a0in Waterford. Picture: Patrick Browne<\/p>\n

With 15 games set to feature, the event is being organised by the All Ireland Scrabble Association.<\/p>\n

Mary believes she has much to thank the game for. Since her late 20s, the octogenarian has made the world her Scrabble board, travelling to locations as diverse as Romania and Israel.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne of the places where I played the game was Tiberias which is located on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy parish priest told me I was the only person he knew who went to the Holy Land, not on a pilgrimage but to play Scrabble. That was in 2018 so before covid. It\u2019s horrific to see what is happening now with the genocide. Sometimes I can\u2019t believe the world is standing by and letting it happen.\u201d<\/p>\n

Berlin, Budapest, and Waterford<\/p>\n

Before the Irish event, Mary will travelled to Berlin before taking a train to Budapest for the Continental Scrabble Championships this weekend.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have some Israeli friends who are coming to Budapest to play. Some of them are anti-genocide<\/a> but sadly others are still on the side of the government.\u201d<\/p>\n

\" Irish Scrabble Championships tournament director Jennie Frizelle, left, taking on Mary Doyle for a game ahead of the All-Ireland tournament next month in Waterford City. Picture: Patrick Browne<\/p>\n

The now 80-year-old has fond memories of working as a nurse on the passenger liner the SS Australis, which transported Europeans heading down under to start a new life, and where she first saw a Scrabble board.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I opened it up I was intrigued. I could not believe there was such a game.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n I was in my late 20s at the time and loved doing crosswords. That was what attracted me to the game.\u00a0\n <\/p>\n

“From that day on, everyone wanted to play against me.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere were thousands on board the ship so it was more like a floating village.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was beating everyone so I suppose it was a challenge for people. I had a good vocabulary and was always anxious to learn new words.<\/p>\n

\u201cI never knew there were clubs or tournaments \u2019til I came back from abroad and I was looking after my mum.<\/p>\n

\" Jake Parkes, 14, and his 19-year-old brother Shane will be taking part in the All-Ireland Scrabble Tournament in Waterford in October. Picture: Moya Nolan<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was an ad in the newspaper with a PO box number inviting people to join a Scrabble club that was being formed. There were seven of us in the group and I\u2019m the only one left.<\/p>\n

\u201cScrabble has taken me all over the world. There are some countries that view Scrabble as a really important tool for learning. In Nigeria they teach it in schools and the government funds all the tournaments.\u201d<\/p>\n

Tsunami, prorogue, tzaddik…<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are two words that I am probably most proud of. One of them was \u2018tsunami\u2019. It was before the tragedy in Indonesia so not many people were familiar with the word.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had it on my rack but nobody believed it was a real word until I told them that I thought it had something to do with the weather. It turned out I was right and they couldn\u2019t believe it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe other one I\u2019m proud of is \u2018prorogue\u2019 which became widely used during Brexit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Teenager ‘inherited’ Scrabble<\/p>\n

Fourteen-year-old Jake Parkes from Meath and his brother Shane, 19, will be among the younger competitors in this year\u2019s All-Ireland Scrabble Championships.<\/p>\n

The brothers came across the game during a clear-out of their late grandfather\u2019s house four years ago.<\/p>\n

\"ChrisChris Broderick says: ‘If you learn the small words, everything else will follow. With this in mind, the two- and three-letter words are key.’<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was Shane who found the game,\u201d said Jake.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cAs soon as he discovered it, he decided that this was what he was going to do. His goal was to learn it and be really good at it. I soon followed suit.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy brother and I played together all the time.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe went on searching to see if there was anything competitive. That was when we discovered there was a league in Ireland.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n He has been my inspiration all this time and really encouraged me to get involved.\n <\/p>\n

Jake hopes to inspire other young people his age to try out the board game.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think my brother and I were the only ones to have that sort of niche. The closest thing we had to something like this in school was the chess club, and even that\u2019s quite small.\u00a0<\/p>\n

David v Goliath on a Scrabble board<\/p>\n

“When it comes to my age group there is a huge focus on physical sports like rugby and football which of course are great too. I just think it\u2019s sad that the love for board games isn\u2019t there anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jake has enjoyed the buzz of previous All-Ireland tournaments.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n The highlight for me was probably winning the David and Goliath Prize.\n <\/p>\n

\u201cThis is basically given out when the person with the lowest rating beats the person with the highest rating.<\/p>\n

\u201cI won a cash prize of \u20ac80 but I kept the envelope as a trophy. Your first one is always going to be special.\u201d<\/p>\n

Two-letter and three-letter words<\/p>\n

Chris Broderick, who lives in Castlelyons, Co Cork, is the chairperson of the All Ireland Scrabble Association and the 1995 All-Ireland champion. She still remembers her victory.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are an average of six tournaments a year and one is the All-Ireland. I have played in the majority of them, mostly for fun. I won the Ireland 30 years ago in 1995.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\" Jake Parkes, 14, playing his brother Shane Parkes, 19. Jake says: ‘He has been my inspiration all this time and really encouraged me to get involved.’ Picture: Moya Nolan<\/p>\n

“There has been a huge improvement in terms of competitors since and a lot of talented players have come on the scene. I was both shocked and stunned the time I won because it was unexpected.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“That was a long time ago. I\u2019ve been playing it a very long time now so my husband has proven himself to be very tolerant.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chris says she has always been fascinated by words and says a game of Scrabble can never be boring as there is always a new combination on the board.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are so many words and they change over the years.<\/p>\n

“An example of an unusual word I\u2019ve come up with in Scrabble is tzaddik which is the name given in Judaism for a righteous person.\u201d<\/p>\n

The veteran shared her top tips for those starting out.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe secret of improving your game is learning the two-letter and three-letter words. They are a limited resource but if you learn the small words, everything else will follow. With this in mind, the two- and three-letter words are key.\u201d<\/p>\n

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