When things go wrong, one can always find someone to blame and the memory lingers. When things run smoothly, just as on this occasion, it is all too easy to forget the enormous effort and teamwork that makes it so.
Packing up and moving almost the entire club to Dean Close – and back again – is no mean feat, but Mark and Neil were once again up for the challenge and this time ably assisted by Val and Gordon Atkinson, Rowan and Mike Lytheer, Stuart Tomlinson, Philipa Gregory, Mark Ovington and others whose names I fear I may have missed.
Quenching the thirsts of upwards of 200 players is at least as demanding as it sounds. Dutifully manning the refreshments desk at various times were Sue Mostyn, Rob Huguenin, Nicola Renshaw, Susan Young, Richard Horne, Pat Barbour, Kathy Hedigan and Marilyn Fairbairn.
Guiding the players’ cars to the designated parking spaces was again expertly undertaken by Steve Potter and Derek Knight and we must congratulate Pauline Sanderson for producing and erecting the street-side banner and all venue signage (cafeteria, toilets, registration desk, playing rooms and all points North!) that made sure the players found their way to the correct locations. (PS also manned the registration desk both days, gratefully assisted by Cath Jack.)
Called upon at very short notice, Teresa Thomas and Jackie Saitch were able to deal extra boards for Sunday’s Swiss Teams – thank you! Fulfilling a critical role behind the scenes was Ian Jones who made sure the key technologies on which we depend and yet take for granted (Bridgemates, PCs, networking, etc.) were all functioning correctly.
So, one very large team, all working for the good of the game and upholding the Club’s reputation for excellence. But wait – there is one more person not yet mentioned, one person more deserving than any other to be crowned man of the match – and that is Jonathan Bailey!
Undaunted by past technical challenges, Jonathan seized the opportunity to show us what can be done when you apply your mind and conduct thorough testing ahead of time. Jonathan – planning, organising, setting up, directing and scoring the 9-High Pairs tournament was a tremendous achievement. Well done you!
Well done everyone.
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