Dear Members,

I am pleased to attach below the link for the fourth edition of the new-style Irish Bridge Journal, completing the cycle for the first year of CBAI publication. I hope that you are enjoying the Journal, and I’d like to thank our editor Enda Murphy, our designer Sue Power, and all our contributors for the work they have put into it. We are planning a member survey on the topic of “communications” for the new year, and will be seeking your feedback on the Journal as part of that. Enda is always in the market for new contributions, so if you have an idea, or even the germ of an idea, please share it with him.

https://www.cbai.ie/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/CBAI-Bridge-Journal-Issue-4.pdf

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support during season 2023/24 so far, particularly to those of you who have come out to attend regional and national competitions and congresses. While we are clearly still in rebuilding mode, and the overall picture is a bit mixed, the numbers at the tope level have been very heartening. As I write, we have a full house of more than 100 pairs booked in for the Master Pairs in Templeogue tomorrow. Hopefully the picture will continue to improve at all levels in the new year. We're also hearing positive news about many of the clubs in the country, with some even booking bridge weekends away as they did pre-covid. If your club is considering something like that, why not select one of our congresses and travel to it - a weekend away and good bridge without having to do too much organising yourselves.

There’s plenty of bridge to enjoy in the new year. Upcoming national events are:

• The Men’s and Women’s Pairs & Teams (Masters and Inter As) in Clane, 13-14 January
• The new Regional Masters Confined Pairs & Teams (Regional Masters and Area Masters only) in Templeogue, 3-4 February
• The Holmes Wilson Trophy (Masters & Inter As) in Tullow, 10-11 February (the hotel is already fully booked, which is a great sign), and
• National President Gordon Lessells’ Intermediate & Novice Congress (Novices and Intermediates only), in Ballykisteen, Co Tipperary, 16-18 February

We also have Waterford, Cork, and Ennis Congresses on 5-7, 19-21, and 26-28 January respectively, and all are welcome. The first weekend in January also sees our first home international of the year, as Mark Moran, John Carroll, Tom Hanlon, Conor Boland, David Walsh, Ciarán Coyne, and NPC Gráinne Barton do battle for us in the first weekend of the Camrose Trophy in Wales. I’m sure you’ll join me in wishing them well.

Finally, you may have seen from our website that the CBAI has a new sponsor, ALHomecare – the Live-In Care Specialist. The firm, which has coverage throughout the country, and earns consistently excellent reviews, will sponsor some of our major competitions, and advertise in our publications, for this season and provisionally next season too. We are delighted to have partnered with ALHomecare, and would ask all members to consider them for any family live-in homecare needs.

Have a very happy Christmas, enjoy the (hopefully short) break from bridge, and we’ll see you back at the table in the new year.

With best wishes,

Yours sincerely,

Dermot O’Brien

Chief Executive, CBAI

It is with sadness that Raheny Bridge Club has learned of Terry Byrne's passing. May he rest in peace.

Details on:

https://rip.ie/death-notice/terence-terry-byrne-dublin-clontarf-536273

Hi there,

This is just to let you know that the following proposal was unanimously passed at our AGM last week.

“That Raheny Bridge Club moves to amalgamate with one or more of the other Clontarf Area Bridge Clubs (Vernon, Clontarf, St Anthony’s, St Gabriel’s) if any of those clubs decide that such a process is in the best interests of the bridge playing community in the Clontarf area.”

I am delighted to say that, Vernon and St Gabriel’s passed a similar motion at their AGM’s. At the Clontarf AGM, the members agreed to not enter into amalgamation discussions until such time as there is clarity on a future premises for bridge in the area and St Anthony’s have yet to decide as they won’t be holding their AGM until October.

For now though, the 3 clubs, Vernon, Raheny and St Gabriel’s are ready to start looking at how an amalgamation might work, so that they can bring a proposal back to their members. And don’t forget during the Summer months each of the above clubs are open to non members, so if you fancy a game on a Monday at 19.15 come along to Vernon BC in St Pauls College or on a Friday at 19.00 with St Gabriel’s BC in St Gabriel’s Parish centre.

In the meantime the 3 clubs hope to put a working group together to begin to address issues raised at the AGM’s and to discuss a series of potential early initiatives. These may include: 

• The use of our CBAI NBID numbers as our reference numbers when using Bridgemates. This will make it more efficient for non members to play in each of the clubs

• Agree how best to facilitate members from each of the clubs playing in each other’s club nights from September onwards.

• Agree approach to membership fees for 2023/2024 season. Ideally members would continue to pay their membership fee to the clubs that they are currently members of

• Agree how to accommodate novice members across the 3 clubs from September

• Potential to have a joint charity event in September

• Potential to have an inter club team competition.

• Potential to use pre dealt boards for some or all games

• Potential to set up a common Bridgewebs site where the results from the 3 clubs could be displayed and all news relating to amalgamation initiatives could be updated.

The above is just for starters. If there is anything that you feel needs to be considered either in the immediate term or longer term relating to amalgamation discussions or if you would like to be part of the working group, please contact me or any of the other committee members.

Enjoy your Summer bridge and whatever take your fancy during what I hope are fine balmy summer days

Raheny BC Committee

The Irish Bridge Journal was originally a paid subscription magazine. CBAI has now taken over publication and the magazine will be published 4 times a year online. It is now free to all members.
 

Hi there,

Player of the Month

The November competitions commenced last evening the 8^th November and will run until Tuesday 30^th November. I was very busy last week with setting up Novice/Inter B Kirwan League and did not get around to finishing write up of October competitions. But never fear, write up is on the way this week.

IBU Simultaneous Pairs.

As you know we ran the IBU Sim Pairs in conjunction with Glasnevin all last week. You will find the full results up on the CAVBC Website. CAVBC Clontarf Area Virtual Bridge Club, Dublin (bridgewebs.com)

Xmas Turkey Draws

Last year we ran a series of very successful Turkey Draws before Xmas where we had vouchers for Nolan’s supermarket as prizes. Well, this year we are going again, but with BBO$’s as prizes. You may have some difficulty converting your BBO$’s into turkeys, but at least your bridge won’t cost you anything for a while if you are among the winners and you can put the money that you save against the Turkey!

Each club will host a Xmas Turkey Draw between now and Xmas. These games will replace the normal club game(s) on the specific night. The dates of the Xmas Turkey Draw games are as follows:

As with last year, we are expecting a huge interest in these games, and as a result we plan to use a Swiss Movement. The winning pair will each receive 50BBO$’s, the pair in 2^nd place will each receive 30BBO$’s and the pair in 3^rd place will each receive 20BBO$’s. All winners will have BBO$’s put into their BBO Accounts by Sunday 19^th December. We want to spread the prizes amongst as many of you as possible, so a player can only win one “Turkey” over the five Turkey Draws. We will also be giving out spot prizes during each of the games with 6 people each receiving 10BBO$’s

Our first Turkey Draw is on next Monday 15^th November at 19.30 and will be hosted by Vernon Bridge Club. You will need to pre enter for this game by registering on CAVBC CAVBC Clontarf Area Virtual Bridge Club, Dublin (bridgewebs.com) or by sending your details to the following:

 You can register for our 1^st game up to 18.00 on next Sunday 14^th November.

You can see the up-to-date list of players, that plan to play on a daily basis on the CAVBC Bridgewebs Site. (As of today, 14 players have registered already – well done all)

And what will happen then?

On the morning of competition, we will have a draw for partners, where we will partner an experienced player with a less experienced player. We will then advise each player of their partner and let them know how to register for the game. Then at 17.30, when registration for the game opens on BBO, the experienced player should invite their partner to play with them. It is important that the experienced player does the inviting as this will ensure that all experienced players will play in either the North seat or the West seat and as such get to play the same cards as each other.

Xmas is coming

We have some other Xmas presents for you.

Free Games

All our games between Monday 6^th Dec and Friday 10^th Dec will be free (including the Xmas Turkey Draw game on Thursday 9^th Dec.)

Individual Game

On Saturday 27^th November at 19.30 we will hold an Individual game on BBO. There will be BBO$’s for the leading players and there will also be spot prizes. So put this game in your diary. You may even manage to win a turkey leg!!

CBAI Document on Cheating

The CBAI issued a Statement on Cheating earlier this year. Please take some time to have a look at this again. Cheating-2021.pdf (cbai.ie)

 Dan

Hi there,

Player of the Month

Another week of our October Player of the Month ended last Friday with only one more week to go before our new (or possibly old) champions are crowned. In the Novice/B competition, Kathleen Briody took advantage of the fact that Mary Byrne and Vanessa Timon only played one night and has jumped into the lead. In the Open competition Frances Gill still leads the way, but Patricia Quigley, who has been partnering Frances, has now moved into 2^nd place. It is all to play for this week though! You can keep up to date with how you are doing in the Player of the Month competitions by accessing the CAVBC web site CAVBC Clontarf Area Virtual Bridge Club, Dublin (bridgewebs.com)

IBU Simultaneous Pairs

We plan to run an IBU Simultaneous Pairs Competition each night from the 1^st to the 5^th November. The cost will be the usual 3BBO$’s and you will register in the normal way. For those of you who don’t want to play in the Sim Pairs, there is no need to worry, we will still be hosting a separate game on CAVBC each night.

CAVBC Graded Team of 4 on Saturday 30^th October ay 19.30

We currently only have 3 pairs entered for our CAVBC Graded Team of Four Tournament event on Saturday 30th October. If you would like to play you need to register with your partner on CAVBC. We will then make up the teams on Friday/Saturday by pairing a Novice/B Pair with a Master/A Pair. Although the game is on over the Halloween weekend there is nothing to be scared of, so come on get your costumes on and register for this fun game. You will find details on the CAVBC home page  

CAVBC Clontarf Area Virtual Bridge Club, Dublin (bridgewebs.com). Alternatively, you may enter by contacting Dan O’Mahony danjomahony@gmail.com or Dick Kiernan dickkiernan@hotmail.com 

Dublin North Kirwans League for Novices, Inter A’s and Inter B’s

You still have time to be part of the Kirwans Online League for Teams which runs from November 2021 to May 2022.

Application forms are available at Kirwans League | C.B.A.I. Dublin North Region (dnrbridge.com) or from myself. The closing date for receipt of applications is Friday 29th October 2021. The entry fee is €20 per team and this will be paid for by Vernon Bridge Club. Full details of the rules of the competition and the list of co-ordinators are available also on the DNR site.

Dan

Hi there,

Battle of the Bay - YOUR CLAN NEEDS YOU.

We still have places available in each of our Battle of the Bay competitions on Saturday 4^th September. Please let Patricia Quigley (patriciamquigley@gmail.com) know by next Saturday 28^th August, if you would like to play in any of the competitions that we are holding on the day as we need to finalise the participants in Clan Clontarf.

Team of Four starting at 14.00

                                                                Novice/B Pairs starting at 14.15

                                                                A/Masters Pairs starting at 14.30

                                                                Individual starting at 15.00

You will find full details about the event on CAVBC Clontarf Area Virtual Bridge Club, Dublin (bridgewebs.com)

To date we have raised nearly €2,000 for St Francis’s Hospice. You can donate through iDonate.ie | Support Clan Clontarf vs Clan Foxnevin. If you do not want to use this link but you still want to make a donation, please contact Patricia Quigley.

Online Bridge on CAVBC/Foxbay from 1^st September.

We are still not ready to return to face to face bridge. However, when we get clarity from the government on their plan to fully open the country, each of the Bridge Clubs will review their circumstances and advise you as to when face to face bridge can safely resume. In the meantime, you can continue to play online bridge on CAVBC/Foxbay. So here are the main features of our return to “Winter” bridge from the 1^st September even though it is still Autumn!

1. From the Monday 6^th September to Friday 10^th September, all our games will be free. With this in mind, we are extending the date for donations to St Francis’s Hospice to 11^th September.
2. Spot Prizes are back. One pair in each of our games will receive 10BBO$’s
3. We will continue the Wednesday 19.00 games hosted by Clontarf Bridge Club as a Novice/B game. We will not be hosting a Novice only game.
4. Player of the Month is back. We will have two competitions – the Open Player of the Month will be based upon the results of our nightly open games; the Novice/B Player of the Month will be based on the three Novice/B games each week.
5. Our games are for members of the constituent clubs of CAVBC and Foxbay only. However if you want to play with a non member, just contact Dan O’Mahony (danjomahony@gmail.com)
6. We do not plan to reinstate our Thursday morning game for the moment.
7. We do not require in game substitutes. If we have an uneven number of pairs, we will use robots as we have during the summer. If you find that you do not get into a game that you have registered for, please contact the TD and the TD will endeavour to seat you if we have a robot pair present.

Looking forward to “seeing” you at the bridge table.

Dan

BATTLE OF THE BAY, CHARITY EVENT - 4th September

The new bridge season will be starting on the 1^st September and it looks like we will still be playing online bridge for a few more months. To mark the occasion, we are planning to run a big charity event on the first Saturday of September to raise funds for St Francis’s Hospice in Raheny. We are calling the event “The Battle of the Bay” where we will have a battle royal between the CAVBC Clan (Clan Clontarf) and the Foxbay/GRVBC Clan (Clan Foxnevin). The event details are as follows:

Date: Saturday 4^th September

To donate click: https://www.idonate.ie/fundraiser/11411408_clan-clontarf-vs-clan-foxnevin.html

Competitions (Clan Units): (Artillery) Team of Four starting at 14.00

(Light Cavalry) Novice/B Pairs starting at 14.15

(Heavy Cavalry) A/Masters Pairs starting at 14.30

(Infantry) Individual starting at 15.00

The battle will be over by teatime, so we will all be able to get home and put our feet up. The victorious clan will be able to bask in glory while the defeated clan will just have to lick their wounds and live to fight another day!

How will the victorious clan be determined?

Each clan will have an equal number of teams/pairs/individuals in the different competitions (Clan Units) and the top 6 in each competition will be awarded points. The clan with the most points at the end of the day will be deemed to be victorious without spilling a drop of blood. 

How will the victory be marked?

The victorious clan will be awarded the Aidan Synnott (Virtual) Cup and the top 3 teams/pairs/individuals in each competition will receive Gold, Silver and Bronze (Virtual) medals. It’s just like the Olympics really!

Are there any real prizes?

Of course there are. Spot prizes of BBO$’s will be awarded for bravery throughout each competition and the lucky winners will see their BBO accounts increasing by the princely sum of 10BBO’s during the game. 

Is there a charge for participating in the competitions?

As you are all volunteers, the competitions are free, so you won’t see any BBO$’s being taken from your accounts when you play in one of them.

How do I make a donation to St Francis’s Hospice?

We will supply you with a link to a web page where you can pay a donation directly to the Hospice from your own bank account/credit card.

How do I make a donation, if I don’t want to use the web page link?

Just contact the undersigned and they will let you know how you can send your donation to them as either a cash amount or a cheque. We will then make sure that your donation gets to the Hospice. 

How much of a donation should I make?

We are asking that you make a donation of €10. But if you would like to make a larger donation, that would be really great.

If I am not taking part in the competition, can I still make a donation to the Hospice.

Of course you can. You can use the web page link to make a direct donation, or you can send a cash amount or cheque to the undersigned who will make sure that your donation gets to the hospice.

How do I take part in the battle?

As the battle will take place between 14.00 and 18.00, you can only opt to join one of the Clan Units (competitions). Once you have decided on your Clan Unit, please contact the undersigned by the 21^st August and let us know the following:

Of course if you want to join the infantry, you are on your own and all we need is your own name and BBO name.

What happens next?

Hopefully we will get enough volunteers for our clans, and we won’t have to start conscripting you.  Once we see all the volunteers and their preferred clan units, we will finalise our battle plans and let you know in which clan unit you will be serving. We plan to do this by the end of August. In the meantime, you can continue your basic training on our nightly online bridge games on CAVBC/Foxbay/GRVBC throughout August. 

At the Gala Night, President, Irene O'Driscoll, announced that Members who have reached 90 years of age are entitled to Honorary Membership. 

Irene congratulated Mairead Sheehy, Michael White and John Mackey who are the first qualifiers.

Members who have reached 90 and would like to enjoy this new status should contact the Committee who will deal with the matter.  

January 2023

Raheny Bridge Committee was saddened to learn of the death of Pat Stewart on Thursday 5^th of January.

Pat and her late husband, Sean, were long-standing members of Raheny Bridge Club, and both took active and committed roles, especially as Club Tournament Directors. During Covid lockdown, Pat took up online play, and returned with enthusiasm when face-to-face play resumed.

She held office as Club President 2002 – 2003, and also was Honorary Treasurer over many years. She also played as a member of our Dublin North Kirwan League team.

Pat generously accepted her nomination by Raheny BC as President of Dublin North Region in 2017 – 2018.

RBC extends sincere condolences to Pat’s family who meant everything to her.

May she rest in peace.

November 22

COX (née Connolly), Marguerita (Clontarf and formerly of Claremorris) – 1st November 2022, (peacefully) at home, beloved wife of the late Dr. Joe. Sadly missed by her children Marcus, Johnny and Nicky, daughter-in-law Kristina, adored grandchildren Sophie, Daniel and Oscar, brother Adrian, extended family, relatives and friends.

Rest in peace.

Reposing at the Kirwan Funeral Home, Fairview Strand on Thursday from 5pm until 7pm. Requiem Mass will be celebrated on Friday at 10.30am in St. Gabriel’s Church, Dollymount. Funeral thereafter to Dardistown Crematorium.

October 2022

Claire McCartney

May she rest in peace

Please see rip.ie for details

September 2022

Raheny Bridge Club extends deepest sympathy to Tony Wall and his family on the recent sad death of his wife Betty.

May she Rest in Peace

Betty will be reposing at Jennings Funeral Home, Springdale Road, Raheny on Wednesday, 14th September from 3.00-5.00pm. Funeral Mass will take place Thursday, 15th September, at Our Lady Mother Of Divine Grace Church, Raheny at 10.00am this can be viewed via the following link https://rahenyparish.ie/watch-us-live/ followed by burial in Balgriffin Cemetery.

July, 2022

Irene O'Driscoll passed away on 21st July 2022, Suddenly, but peacefully.

Irene was a longstanding member of several Bridge Clubs including Raheny, holding office as Hon Secretary (1954 - 1995) and President (1995 - 1996).  She played with a wide circle of partners and took part in all Club activities, distinguishing herself in several Competitions - Clibborn Cup; Teams; Kirwan League.  Since development of Covid Irene was an enthusiastic player online.

The President and Committee, on behalf of the members wish to extend condolences to Irene's daughter Anne, sons Peter and Tim & family. 

May she rest in peace.

January, 2022

It is with sadness we have learned of the passing of Gaye O'Brien on Saturday 15th January, 2022. See rip.ie

Rahany Bridge Club extends deepest sympathy to Gaye's family.  

Gaye will be remembered as a longstanding member of Raheny, and of several local Bridge Clubs, playing with a wide circle of partners and achieving success in Club Pairs & Club Teams events.

May she rest in peace.

Kay McDonald 

July, 2021

Raheny Bridge Club extends deepest sympathy to the family of Eleanor Kelly, whose death took place.on 31st July.

Eleanor and also her late brother, Tom, were long standing members of RBC. May she rest in peace.

January, 2021

Raheny B.C. extends deepest sympathy to Peggy Moyne and her family, on the sad death of her husband Martin, on Christmas eve. Air dheis Dé, go raibh a hanam dhílis. Details on www.rip.ie.

July 2020

Raheny Bridge Club extends deepest condolences to the Frank McGarry's wife and family.

October, 2019

It is with great sadness that I heard of the passing of John Mackey.  I offer my condolences to his family.

John was a long-standing member of Raheny B.C. & held office of President in 1998 - 1999.  He had a great reputation for his card play, proved by winning all major trophies in Raheny & several other Clubs.  His most recent success was Raheny Player of the Year for 2018 - 2019.  He entered wholeheartedly into Club events, playing in all competitions and delivering jokes & party pieces when called on.   He got a very warm welcome from all when he returned on August 20th after his long illness.

Rest in peace John, I will never forget your card skill, your sense of fairness and your kindness & generosity to me.

Kay McDonald

June 2019

It was with great sadness we learned the news that

Mairead Sheehy

died on Sunday 23rd June.

Mairead was a longstanding member of Raheny Bridge Club.  In recent years Mairead was able to avail of Honorary Membership.

Her high standard of play ensured that she regularly featured in prizes and was never short of partners.

We extend our deepest condolences to Mairead's family, may she rest in peace.

May 2019

I trust members will join with me in extending deepest condolences to Irene, and the O'Driscoll family, on the death of her husband, Con on 9th May. 

Reposing in Staffords Funeral Home, Strand Road, Portmarnock, on Monday, 13th May, from 4.30pm to 6.30pm. Removal to St. Brigid's Church, Killester on Tuesday morning for 11am Funeral Mass, followed by burial in Balgriffin Cemetery.

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis

K.McD

May 2019

Maire Jennings, a long standing member of Raheny and local Clubs has died, may she Rest in Peace

April, 2019

We received the sad news that

Mary McAdams has passed away, following a short illness.

Mary was a long standing member of Raheny BC and will be missed by her many partners.

Mary was active in the running of the Club having been President and Hon. Treasurer in 1993 - 1996.

Her kind & cheerful personality will be remembered by all.

Raheny Bridge Club extends deepest condolences to Mary's family.

Dec, 2018

Raheny members offer their deepest sympathy, at this sad time to Breda McKenna and family, on the death of  Michael McKenna on 23rd December.  He was a long standing Club member and will be sadly missed.

Feb, 2018

It is with great sadness that we learnt of the death of  Peter Shiels R.I.P. 

Peter was larger than life in bridge circles and a member of our Club for circa 30 years. 

He was a great Club member always repairing tables and trollies and looking after stationery etc and a great man for recitations at social events.

He will be sadly missed.

He was,also, a member of several clubs in the Dublin North Region and achieved Master status early on in his playing career.

On behalf of all our members we offer deepest sympathy to his wife, Maureen, and family. May Peter rest in peace.

Irene O'Driscoll
President. Raheny Bridge Club.

Ethna Coyne passed away on January 12th 2018. She was an enthusiastic bridge player and member of this Club for 30 years winning several major competitions. She wasn't well for some years but continued to play thanks to so many members who partnered her.
Raheny Bridge Club extends sincere sympathy to her family especially her sister Olive.

We have received the sad news that

Miriam Dunphy has passed away.

Click for Funeral arrangements.

Miriam was a long standing member of Raheny BC and of several local Clubs and will be missed by her many partners.

Raheny Bridge Club extends deepest condolences to Miriam's family.

It is with great sadness that we announce the untimely death of Dermot O'Brien on October 8th 2017. He has been ill for some time but we hoped that the outcome would have been different.

Dermot was a member of our Club for over 25 years and was active on all fronts, including being President and taking position of Vice President last year before his illness. We are playing for the "Clibborn" Cup at present which Dermot won last year when it was the trophy for the Individual competition. He was, also, a member of the Kirwan League team and played a winning match on February 27th helping the team to come 2nd in the overall Competition.

Our Club offers sincere sympathy to his wife and family.

May he rest in peace.

 Irene O’Driscoll

President, Raheny Bridge Club

It was with sadness that we learned of the death on 22nd December, of Maureen White. Maureen had been unwell for some time.  Along with her husband Michael, Maureen was a long standing member of several Clubs in the locality.  She will be deeply missed by her many friends and partners. Raheny B.C. extends deepest condolences to Michael and their family.

Raheny BC is saddened to learn of the sudden and unexpected death on Sunday, 2nd October, 2016, of Eileen Murphy.

The Club extends deepest condolences to Barbara, Brendan, Raymond and all the family. Eileen was a member of long standing at several Clubs in the locality, playing at Master level.  She will be missed by her many partners and friends.

Raheny Bridge Club membership is saddened by the unexpected death of Brian Smyth.

Brian, was Past President and committee member, roles he performed with characteristic style and generosity.

He was a member of this Club for many years, during which time he played successfully with some carefully chosen partners.  His personal commitment to a high standard of card play enhanced the experience for his partners and raised the bar for his opponents. His many successes in the major competitions came as no surprise to anybody.

Recently, despite declining health, he continued to play enthusiastically, maintaining his usual standard. 

Brian always spoke with pride of his wife, Mary and their family.  To all of them, Raheny Bridge Club extends deepest sympathy.

May he rest in peace.

In memoriam

It was with deep sadness that I learned of the death of my dear friend Brian Smyth.

Brian and I were bridge partners for a good number of years.  Together we became members of several bridge Clubs.  Brian’s playing prowess, and expert knowledge of Bridge, resulted in him winning several major trophies.

Brian was a true gentleman, possessed of a sincere and caring nature.  On a personal note, I will certainly miss him.

Together with the members of Raheny Bridge Club, I extend my deepest sympathy to his wife and family.

John Mackey.