Blewbury beat Bicester with 13.32 VPs (104 to 83 IMPs).

Click here to see all the hands from the match

Click here to see the Wessex League table

We won again!  Congratulations to everyone on a strong team performance.  Everyone got positive cross-IMPs, with Stuart and me coming last of the Blewbury pairs.

We've now played all our games this season.  Blewbury's the first Division 2 team to have completed its matches and we'll probably come top.  We ended with 4 wins and 1 loss, for a total of 71.54 VPs and a 14.31 average.  The only team capable of overtaking us are Oxford C (second-placed with an 11.46 average) and they'd need to win both their remaining matches by nearly 20-0.  If you're curious, those will happen on 24 February and 7 April.

Incidentally, a 14.31 VP average is Blewbury's best I know of in a Wessex season. (My data goes back to 2012-13.)

CROSS-IMPS

BICESTER: David Thornton & Denise Thornton = +0.90
BLEWBURY: Shirley Moore & Hilary Strang = +0.69
BLEWBURY: David Long & Martin Keogh = +0.47
BLEWBURY: Diane Bell & Shiv Datt = +0.39
BLEWBURY: Stuart Forsyth & Finn Clark = +0.17
BICESTER: Mark Allington & Steve Procopiou = +0.04
BICESTER: Christopher Earl & Martin Chadwich = -0.90
BICESTER: Eric Gill & Neil Higginbottom = -1.76

BOARD 1 = +1 IMP

All Souths made 4♠, usually with an overtrick.  Stuart and I tried to get in the way by competing in hearts, but I missed an opportunity in the auction.

North opened 1♦, Stuart (East) did a weak jump overcall in hearts and South bid 2♠.  My hand strongly suggests that North-South can make game in spades, so I tried my arm with a semi-frivolous 3♣ to see what would happen.  North passed, Stuart rebid his hearts and South rebid his suit (3♠).

I now bid 4♥, since I have a good hand in support of hearts...  but this was a mistake.  North bid the unbeatable 4♠.  I'd pushed him there, basically.  Had I been cunning and passed, North might have erred and left partner in part-score (although he really shouldn't).

BOARD 2 = +14 IMPs

David & Martin bid and made 3NT on the North-South cards, despite a 1NT opening by East and only having a combined 22-count (but six useful clubs in dummy).  Good bidding.

All other tables saw South going off in a red-suit part-score (3♦-1, 2♥-1, 3♥-3).  That gave Blewbury three plus scores, with +630, +300, +100 and -100.

BOARD 3 = +11 IMPs

4♥ by South was bid at all tables, but the trumps break horribly (KJ95 sitting over declarer) and Martin Keogh was the only declarer to succeed.

BOARD 4 = +10 IMPs

Diane & Shiv collected 10 IMPs when their opponents stopped in 2♥+3.  Everyone else bid game, with Stuart bringing in twelve tricks.

Incidentally, this was another fit-jump hand for us.  Stuart opened an off-centre but lucky 1♥ in third seat as East, making it easy for me to bid 3♣ (trump support and a long club suit).

BOARD 5 = +16 IMPs

Blewbury's best-scoring board of the match.  Blewbury's North-South pairs bid and made 4♠ (David & Martin and Diane & Shiv), while Bicester's played in 4♠-1 (against Shirley & Hilary) and 3♠-1 (against Stuart & me).

For what it's worth, computer analysis says 9 tricks is the maximum against ideal defence.

BOARD 6 = -9 IMPs

This one's down to Stuart and me, alas.  Stuart opened a trash multi in hearts, I blasted 4♠ with 6-6 in the black suits and North overcalled 5♦.  I doubled this and we misdefended.  Whoops.

Only ten tricks should be available for declarer, as was demonstrated at other tables.  Congratulations to David & Martin for stopping in 4♦.

BOARD 7 = +1 IMP

North-South can make twelve tricks in hearts.  Blewbury bid slam at both tables while Bicester stopped safely in 4♥+1 and 5♥, but Shirley made her slam while I went off.  What could have been a huge swing ended up as one modest IMP.

Shirley played it from the North seat and got a helpful spade lead.  I played it from the South seat and got an extremely unhelpful diamond lead.  Even after that, though, I can still make my contract.  I need to rise with dummy's ace, finesse in clubs and discard a spade from dummy so that I can take a backwards ruffing finesse in that suit.  This would be a bit psychic, though, since the opponents had been silent in the auction and I have no information about the black-suit honours.  (You'd look a right charlie if you did this and went off when the straightforward spade finesse was right all along.)

BOARD 8 = -11 IMPs

Computer analysis says that North-South only make five tricks in no-trumps.  East-West can cash six club tricks and also have a trick in each red suit.

Shirley & Hilary met this fate in 2NT-3.  However, other North-South contracts were 1NT, 1NT+1 and, whoops, 3NT by a Bicester pair.

BOARD 9 = +8 IMPs

North has ♠K94, ♥AK1032, ♦A65, ♣107.  That's a 5332 hand, i.e. balanced.  Having five hearts is neither here nor there.  Blewbury's two Norths correctly opened 1NT and made +90, while Bicester's Norths opened 1♥ and went off in 2♥-1 and 2♥-2.

BOARD 10 = +7 IMPs

North-South played the hand everywhere, but usually went off.  The only North-South plus was 2♥ from Shirley and Hilary.  The others were 3♥-1, 2♥-2 and a fairly outrageous 3NT-1 by me and Stuart.  (Stuart made a mildly aggressive double and I replied with a monstrous punt, but I should have made it.  I misjudged the ending.)

BOARD 11 = -8 IMPs

6♣ is unbeatable, but it needs the heart finesse and not all Souths made a helpful heart overcall.  David and Martin stopped in 3♣+3.

Blewbury's most effective auction was from Hilary and Shirley, who got active immediately and made life hard for East-West.  The best East-West auction was probably against me and Stuart...  until our opponents disagreed over whether 4NT was Blackwood or quantitative.  (After the auction's started with 1NT and a strong 3C jump, I think it must be Blackwood.)

BOARD 12 = 14 IMPs

Blewbury's East-West pairs bid 3NT and made an overtrick.  They probably expected the hand to be flat.  (That was David & Martin and Shiv & Diane.)

Against Stuart and me, West passed with a 19-count, only realising to her horror after the hand was passed out.  (I'd been puzzled in the pass-out seat because I only had one point, so it was mathematically impossible for no one to have an opening bid.)

Shirley & Hilary fared even better, though, when their opponents bid an impossible 6NT-1.  6♦ on a 4-4 diamond fit is much better and can be made on a double-dummy squeeze line.  Declarer leads a club towards the queen in hand, then eliminates the red suits and squeezes North in the blacks.  Having to keep four spades, he must bare his club ace and now declarer can play a small club from both hands.

BOARD 13 = +5 IMPs

A pretty wild hand, with extreme shape and East-West having game in either spades or diamonds.  The contracts at three tables were 5♠, 4♠+1 and 4♠x+1...  but Stuart and I stole it the other way in 5♥-1 on the fourth table.

The defence could have taken a fourth trick against us by playing three rounds of spades.  East and South are both out of spades, but East's best heart (from Q3) is higher than declarer's (from J107654).

BOARD 14 = -6 IMPs

North played in 3♠+1 (alas, by Bicester), 4♠-1, 4♠-1 and 5♠-1.  Stuart was the 5♠-1 declarer and was annoyed with himself afterwards because as the play went, he could have made it.  He has a guess on which minor finesse to take.

BOARD 15 = +13 IMPs

Shirley and Hilary made their second vulnerable slam of the match, with 6♠.  The other contracts were 4♠+2, 4♠+2 and 3NT+3.  (That last one was by me and Stuart.  The wheels came off and we had a system discussion afterwards.)

BOARD 16 = -6 IMPs

Stuart and I played in 3NT-1, while all the other North-Souths were in safe part-scores.

BOARD 17 = +4 IMPs

This is an interesting hand.  South holds ♠K10764 ♥void ♦KJ62 ♣QJ105.  That's only ten points, but the hand's massive and I think it's clearly worth a 1♠ opening in third seat when the auction starts with two passes to you.  (Third seat is when one traditionally takes the most aggressive actions, because if the auction goes pass-pass-pass then you're leaving the field politely open for the strong hand you expect to be sitting in fourth seat.)

Three Souths opened 1♠ and played in 4♠-1, 4♠-1 and 3♠.  (Stuart and I knew to stop low because of fit-jumps.  I opened 1♠ and heard a 3♥ "spades and long hearts" response, which didn't excite me at all and I chose to be conservative.)

At the table where South passed in third seat, East-West stole the hand in 2♣+1 and ran away with 110.

Curiously, the computer says East-West can make 4♥ despite inadequate points and a 5-0 trump break.

BOARD 18 = -1 IMP

One North-South played in 3NT instead of 4♠, but 600 vs. 620 is irrelevant at teams.

BOARD 19 = -2 IMPs

East-West can make 450 in hearts, but Stuart and I conceded 500 in 5♦x-2 at unfavourable vulnerability.  That would have been disastrous at duplicate, but again isn't that important at IMP scoring.

BOARD 20 = -5 IMPs

4♠ by East for 620 at three tables, but the fourth table was 5♣x-3 by South.  I still quite like the bid, though.  West bids 1♥, East bids 1♠ and South blasts 5♣.  Nice.  It lost a few IMPs, as it happens, but it was forcing East-West to guess at the five level.  (The main reason to think twice about the bid is the fact that you have two aces, i.e. more defence than partner will expect when wondering about whether to sacrifice in 6♣ if the auction goes that way!)

BOARD 21 = -11 IMPs

Stuart and I went off in our second slam of the evening (6♠-1).  The other contracts were 3NT+2, 3NT+3 and 4♠+2.  I have a choice of two seven-card side suits to play on.  Hearts break 3-3 and clubs break 4-2.  Sigh.  I played on clubs because it has other residual chances, e.g. Jx or Qx with North, who'd opened a Weak Two in diamonds and so is known to have the majority of the outstanding points.

BOARD 22 = -14 IMPs

North-South have a combined 32 points (19 opposite 13) and should be considering slam.  Unfortunately, the only safe denomination is diamonds.  6♦ was bid successfully by a Bicester pair and 6NT-1 by a Blewbury one.  The other contracts were safe games (3NT+3, 5♥).

The successful Bicester auction was 1♥ 2♦ 3♦ 4NT 5♦ 6♦, which looks fine to me (although I'm surprised by North choosing to reply in diamonds rather than spades).  The key to that auction is South immediately supporting diamonds instead of rebidding no-trumps (as happened at our table).  There's also no need for North to leap straight into 3NT (to play) or 4NT (Blackwood).  A quiet suit response is forcing, so start with that and get more information from opener's rebid.

BOARD 23 = flat but colourful

South played in 3♣ and 4♣-1, while West played in 1♠+1 and 3♠-1.  The moral of this particular story is "push the opponents around".  Don't let them play in safe part-scores.  Admittedly, it makes life harder if you play a 5-card 1♦/1♥/1♠ system where 1♣ might only be a singleton...  but that just means it's more important for South to back in by rebidding clubs in the pass-out seat.  You have AQ9643, after all, and the system might easily have left North stuck for a response after the 1♠ overcall.

BOARD 24 = -10 IMPs

Shirley and Hilary played in 6♠-1 while the rest of the room was in 4♠.  I don't mind, though.  We gained handsomely from Shirley and Hilary's slam bidding over the match (while losing from mine and Stuart's).

Mind you, this particular slam is missing two aces.  Shirley and Hilary even had that information, having bid Blackwood.

I've been looking at NGS.

Next year, we'll return to Division 1.  Last year, we managed one excellent win against Oxford B, one nearly-a-draw against Banbury and four clear losses.

Now, the EBU's NGS system lets you check the strength of every game you play.  (Incidentally, the meaning of a raw NGS is that it's your predicted score at an average duplicate if your partner was yourself.  Also, it fluctuates.  It's recalculated after every new result.)  So, putting things in perspective...

Mondays at Wallingford = about 50
Thursdays at Blewbury = between 50 and 52 (if I'm not playing)
Wednesdays at Wallingford = about 53
Wessex League Division 2 = about 54
Wessex League Division 1 = between 54 and 57
Oxfordshire county B-team = anywhere from 55 to 60, usually the upper end of that

Blewbury's Wessex League team this season used fifteen players, with NGS scores that currently go from 47 to 67.  Slotting hypothetical opponents into an ordered list of our team's NGS scores, the Oxfordshire county B-team would rank 3rd or 4th.  (Which seems reasonable, since four of our squad have played in the Oxfordshire B-team.)  The Wessex League would rank 5th (division one) and 8th (division two).  This says a lot when the competition format is teams-of-eight.

Conclusion: coming top of Division 2 sounds about right and we should aim to win more often in Division 1.

However, of course, NGS is just a computer-derived number, it doesn't matter at all and I ignored it when doing this year's team selections!  I've always tried to give a game to everyone who wants to play!  I'm pleased that we used so many players, with everyone getting at least two games unless they had limited availability (Mike Allen, Shiv Datt).  I shared things out.  No one except me played in every game.

Congratulations, everyone!

Nonetheless, Division 1 might still seem scary to some.  Thus, next year, I'm considering starting another Blewbury team.  A new B-team in the Wessex League would start in the bottom division and have a relaxing time against weaker opponents.  (The downside is that we'd need more players and there are rules about how often someone can substitute up or down between the A and B teams.)  Or alternatively, we could play in the Wessex Daytime League, which is only teams-of-four and so is easier to arrange.  Furthermore, there's no restriction over player crossovers with the main Wessex League.  You could even play for Blewbury in the daytime league while representing Abingdon, Wallingford, etc. elsewhere.  (The downside is that daytime matches usually rule out anyone who's still working.)

Also, having multiple teams would mean having more games available.  My rotation system this year meant a lot of good pairs only playing two or three matches.

I'd be happy to do the organisation.  I could be a non-playing captain for the B-team.  Obviously, though, everything depends on what people want to do!  We can't run a team without players!  If anyone's interested in these suggestions, reply and let me know which of the above team(s) you might like the sound of.  I'll collate information and see what looks best in the summer.

Right now, though, let's enjoy having (probably) won Division 2.  Well done and many thanks again to everyone!