NEWSLETTER No 7
DECEMBER 2011
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Rugby Bridge Club continues to thrive, with new members joining, beginners’ classes starting in September and the improvers’ sessions on Saturday morning remaining popular. Thursday evenings and Friday afternoons are seeing more members attending, with up to eleven tables on Thursday and eight tables on Friday afternoon.
The Rugby Bridge Club website www.bridgewebs.com/rugbylimited has now been running for over a year and is receiving 5,000+ visits to the pages each month.
It is kept up to date regularly with news, social events and all results.
Many of you have discovered the Competitions page where you will find your average results together with your partnership results.
The averages for Tuesday nights can be found under Club Information, as are the host lists for Tuesday, Thursday and Friday sessions. Also each week the ‘weekly winners’ are announced on the home page.
Any amendments of changes of dates/venues etc. please email to Liz at lizr@rovema.co.uk
For all the latest Rugby and District League news visit www.bridgewebs.com/rugbyleague
Hope you add the addresses to your favourites.
Festival of Christmas Trees 2011 - Rugby Bridge Club Limited
For the past seven years St Andrews Church in the centre of Rugby has held the Festival of Christmas Trees where local charities, schools and organisations enter trees to promote themselves and, more importantly, to raise money for local charities. This year money is being raised for the Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance.
For the third year Rugby Bridge Club will be entering their tree ‘7 No Trumps’, so hope you are able to come along to see it and all the beautiful Christmas Trees that have been entered.
This event has been growing in popularity and the display of trees is wonderful to see. All the visitors to the church have the opportunity to vote for their favourite tree.
The festival is open:
Friday 9th December from 10.00am
Saturdays 10th & 17th December 10.00am – 4.00pm
Sundays 11th & 18th December 12.00pm to 4.00pm
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More Dates for Your Diary
Tuesday 13th December Nibbles and drinks 7.00pm start
Thursday 15th December Buffet… so go easy at tea-time 7.00pm start
Tuesday, 17th January AGM at the Sacred Heart 7.00pm start
Friday 20th January Annual Dinner - Dunchurch Park Hotel
Start time to be announced later.
Menu
Smooth chicken liver parfait with toasted brioche & homemade fruit chutney
Or
Chunky leek and potato soup
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Roast sirloin of beef served with Yorkshire pudding, horseradish cream
and traditional roast gravy
Or
Spinach, brie and walnut Wellington with a wild mushroom and tarragon sauce
Or
Cajun spiced salmon on a bed of wilted greens with crushed baby new potatoes
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Apple and mixed berry crumble with clotted cream
Or
Classic lemon tart with crème fraȋche
The cost will be £10.00 for members and £20.00 for partners.
The booking sheet is available at all sessions, so please make sure you get your name down.
Members’ Corner
We were very sad to learn of the death of Maureen Hagan. She had been a member of the Club for many years and she will be very much missed.
We have also just heard of the death of Frank Chappell who had been ill for some time. Frank was an enthusiastic and long time member of our Club and our thoughts are with Janet.
We are delighted to report that Lewis and Betty Pickard recently celebrated their Diamond Wedding Anniversary. Many congratulations.
If you didn’t already know, all our results are published in the Rugby Advertiser and Rugby Observer each week, and of course full details of all results and activities are on our website, thanks to the work of Liz Edwards. It is much appreciated.
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The Saturday morning sessions at Clifton are proving popular. We have seven beginners who started in September and, together with the Improvers group, the hall is often full to overflowing. The next Beginners Class will be starting on February 4th 2012, so if you know of anyone who would like to learn to play bridge please let Sue Osborne or Wendy Pattinson know.
We have seven more members since the last Newsletter, so welcome, Gerald Clay, Cecilia Walker, Colin Cramphorn (although I must say Colin I thought you were a member!), Joan Hollis, Sue Spirett, Michael Heffernan and Audrey Chandler. We hope you enjoy your bridge with the Club.
A quick note to inform members that tea/coffee and biscuits are now free on Tuesday evening. This is for a trial period and the decision will be reviewed when Phil realises how much it costs!
Lots of members have enjoyed bridge holidays over the years and Anne, Rod, Patti and Roger are no exception. They have just arrived back from a week in Lytham St Annes and Patti was prevailed upon to let readers know how they got on. She managed to scribble a few words on a scrap of paper and the following is what I was able to decipher.
Patti played so badly that she wished she had attended the Zumba classes in the hotel next door, but the standard was very high. Rod and Anne went bird watching at a lake. Rod managed to read the Daily Telegraph from cover to cover AND do the crossword. What a man!
Roger was very miffed when he realised that the other three travelled for free on the buses and immediately applied for his AOP pass. As a consolation he made friends with the lady in the picture.
IS IT YOU??
This year the Directors have made a point of trying to ensure that bridge at all our sessions is played in a friendly and pleasant atmosphere. In the past newcomers and inexperienced players have been put off by some members’ unpleasant behaviour. Sadly we still hear of players being critical of their partners and opponents. Being unnecessarily officious also makes playing an unpleasant experience.
DON’T DO IT!!
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Tournament Directors’ Corner
Malcolm Taylor
POST MORTEMS
A Post Mortem is an integral part of Bridge and can and should be used to improve one’s game but please do not:
(a) use it to criticise one’s partner who, after all, is on your side and is usually well aware when a mistake has occurred,
(b) forget that there is a significant difference between a suggestion for improvement and a criticism,
(c) forget that you may be embarrassing the other pair at your table,
(d) continue the suggestion when meeting new opponents who may not have played that
board,
(e) allow it to be overheard at other tables,
(f) start it until you have finished playing all boards in the current round or you may be
holding up the movement.
This sadly is Malcolm’s last Tournament Directors’ Corner and I would like to thank him for his contributions to the Newsletters.
And now a word from our Chairman…………………
Thanks, Malcolm.
No longer will we hear the plea “LADEEEES and Gentlemen!”
No more of his TD corner in the Newsletter.
No more monthly talks.
After more years than I can care to remember Malcolm Taylor is bowing out – not from Bridge completely but from organising, cajoling and advising the rest of us on etiquette, Laws (never “Rules”), and generally educating us.
Malcolm, I am sure he won’t mind me saying, is of the “old school”. He values our game (he would perhaps baulk at the rather twee “mind sport”) for what it is – an intellectual challenge, a meeting and a clash of brains, a competition to be won or lost but to be done so within the letter of the Laws, with courtesy and with dignity in both victory and defeat. Gloating over unfortunate opponents never even occurs to him.
You have given so much of your time to us at Rugby Bridge Club, absorbing and interpreting Laws, answering erudite questions of the probability of holding so many points and such-and-such a distribution, directing, organising rotas and generally being an impartial mentor to those seeking your wisdom and advice. I hope that you continue in that role.
I hope you have many more happy years playing at Rugby Bridge Club.
From all of us, a big thank you!
Chris
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Roving Reporter
Our Roving Reporter managed to capture another not too enthusiastic victim, but thank you, Phil, for your thoughts about bridge and our Club.
1. How long have you been playing bridge and what (or who!) persuaded you to take it up?
I started learning bridge in November 2007 at Clifton, having wanted to learn the game for many years. I had, until then, not found anywhere to learn.
2. What do you think are the features of bridge that make it so challenging and entertaining?
Bridge is a game that is constantly evolving, consequently you are always learning and this is what I find makes it so challenging. Hopefully, it is keeping my brain working properly, but I sometimes wonder. Who knows!!!
3. What is your idea of perfect happiness at the bridge table?
To have opponents at the table who are polite and friendly, don’t tell you when you made mistakes (unless you ask them) and hopefully make catastrophic errors giving you and your partner 100% every time!!!
Pity it doesn’t happen like that!
4. What bidding system do you favour, and why?
I still class myself as an improving novice in the game, and this year I have a new regular partner (Clare Dixon). We started with generally basic ACOL, but have recently progressed to employing weak two openers and we also use 2 spades (as a transfer to clubs) in response to partner’s opening bid of 1NT, if we are weak, but have at least 6 cards in either clubs or diamonds. Generally this works well.
5. What other games, sports or hobbies do you enjoy?
I do not play any other sports, but I enjoy walking as a hobby. My main interest in sports (watching them on TV) is Formula 1 and British Touring Cars. I am also pretty good at DIY and enjoy all sorts of practical things including gardening.
6. You have done a lot to make sure that Bridgemates work effectively. What benefits do you think they have brought to the Club?
The introduction of Bridgemates has great benefits in that the director on the night doesn’t have to go home and spend another hour calculating the results. When the information is entered CORRECTLY on the Bridgemates, the result is known immediately the last board result has been entered and people like this immensely! Like any new piece of equipment, there are teething problems, most of which we can resolve very quickly. Occasionally, we have problems at a session when players don’t check the information on the Bridgemates and this can result in a lot of work for the director (or the computer operator) to put things right. Unfortunately, on one or two occasions there have been too many problems to correct and the result has to be voided! Let us hope people learn from these incidents and everyone checks the Bridgemates more closely!
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7. What have been your biggest bridge triumphs and disasters?
Biggest triumphs, coming top at the Tuesday Children in Need SIMS in 2009 with Liz Edwards and top on Tuesday night earlier this year with Clare Dixon. I have also bid and made two Grand Slams in the last 12 months, with different partners. My disasters are too numerous to mention!!!!!!
8. You have had several partners. What is the secret of developing a partnership that works?
That’s easy! Talking with your partner, listening – and then trying to play what you have agreed between you! And, of course, if things go wrong don’t apportion blame and do have fun! I am very lucky to have Clare Dixon as my regular bridge partner.
9. Are there any changes we should make to the annual membership fee or table money, or are they all right as they are?
Everyone is finding money tight at present and I think that the membership subscription is currently at the right level. However, with increasing costs everywhere, I think the table money, at all venues, should be raised by 50p, to £2.50p. The Club has spent a large amount of money on new equipment in the last twelve months and there are ongoing maintenance costs associated with this. This small increase would not really be noticed, but would make a big difference to Club funds over a year.
10. Do you think there is a role for 'free offers' or similar incentives to attract new members?
I agree we should actively encourage new members to the Club and am all for ‘free offers’ (as we do now) and subsidised training to achieve this. I would like to see some younger new members to the Club.
11. What do you think Rugby Bridge Club will look like in ten years' time, and where will we be playing?
If we don’t encourage more new (and younger) players, in ten years’ time, we might be much depleted! I hope not! We need to encourage new members to keep the Club alive and growing. As everyone knows the Club has wanted a single venue for many years. There appears to be some genuine hope that we may have found somewhere, at long last, but as we all know, things can so easily go wrong. Let us all keep our fingers crossed that there is some good news to impart, on this front, at the AGM in the New Year?
Phil Shorey
FINAL WORD FROM THE EDITOR
I have been responsible for composing and editing the Newsletter for more than a year now and feel that there must be someone out there who is much more capable than I am. So, please, if you would like to take over, let me know and have a go.
Once more, many thanks to those who have contributed to this edition.
We look forward to seeing all our members at the Christmas social events and wish you all a great Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Wendy Pattinson
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