Report by John Auld

Our second match of the season was away to Leicestershire who fielded some strong players.

The teams with Butler imps :

Dawes

Stan Zygadio & Lloyd Eagling             15

Ankush Khandelwal & Steve Raine     -9

Mark Goddard & David Hodge            -43

Irene & John Auld                             -63

Porter

Shirley Ashtari & Keith Rodgers         42

Dick Milne & Graham Lee                  26

John Rolph & Gerry Franklin               10

Pravin Tailor & Bill Whalley                 2

Markham

Bill Milligan & Steve Mulligan              37

Jane Hall & Clive Wood                       27

Clare Batten & Graham Brindley          8

Keith Spencer & Maciej Lejman          -39

Keith Rodgers & Shirley Ashtari put in a strong performance to help the Porter to a 17-3 win while the Markham featured some good play to register a 15-5 win. The Dawes match did not feature much winning bridge from Notts least of all at the Aulds table. However, much of the 2-18 result can be credited to our opponents good play not just our mistakes.

For example they outbid us on board 5:

As East I was in no doubt about opening 2C  (normal Acol) given that it is easy to invent hands for partner with next to nothing and 6H cold. 1H could easily be passed out. However Jim Mason did what good players always seem to do ; he overcalled 2S notwithstanding the vulnerability, and Paul Bowyer raised to 4S.  Now I had to bid 5H (yes I had to !) and was one off. I am amazed to say that with one excepton 4H bought the contract elsewhere. This shows an unthinking respect for the vulnerability. What can go wrong?

The exception was in the Porter where Keith and Shirley were N/S. They were not in the mood to sell out and pushed opponents into 5H-1.

My next bad result was the small but interesting board 6:

I rebid diamonds and North reopened after some thought with a double. Now I bid clubs corrcected to 3D by partner. South thought for some time before passing and leading D10.

It is quite hard to go off in 3D but I managed it. To be fair the defence had a hand in my downfall. I played DQ covered by K and my Ace. With the trump losers down to one I just needed to organise 2 club tricks. It looks natural to cross to H Ace for a club finesse. If that works I have a ruff for the overtrick. However I did not need an overtrick and I was pretty sure that South had clubs given the bidding and the trump lead. Better seemed to be to clear trumps and lead clubs from hand towards the ten and maybe later lead one from table (entries pemitting). Accordingly I played a trump won by North. I wanted a club from him now but he meanly played HK. I ruffed a heart back to hand and played a club up to the 10,8 on which South played small witout a flicker. In this moment of truth I had to choose between South having clubs KJx etc or K9x etc.  I gave the lack of flicker too much weight and played the 8 for one off. Well defended but of course South knew what was going on; the other inferences suggest that KJxxx is most likely. Maybe I should immediately play a small club at trick 2. Ducking smoothly is harder now.

As I said this was a small hand but it contributed to a 97 deficit after set 1. The second set was quieter but we still reached -104 at half time.

Unfortunately things became exciting again in set 3 which featured consecutive grand slams starting with board 20:

Only 4 pairs bid the grand: Pravin and Bill plus Shirley and Keith in the Porter; and the Leicestershire pairs in the Dawes. I wonder how players like Terence Reese would have managed this one  back in the day? Perhaps 1S-3C later followed by Blackwood and a bash at the grand based on power. Quite effective really. Against us Duncan Happer and Ben Norton demonstrated that things have moved on. Their Polish Club auction proceeded thus: 1C could be strong, or a weak NT or natural; 2D showed a measure of spade support; 2S showed exactly 4 and extras; 3NT no shortage; 4N was RKCB; 5H looking for SQ; 5N said yes I have it but no extra Kings; 6C was looking for third round control of clubs. We ran out of pass cards around the 5 level and became distracted so I may not have got all that right. I was impressed and remain impressed.

As if that were not enough board 21 hit the table:

Nobody got this one to the seven level. In fact only 5 pairs bid a successful small slam. The Polish Club nearly got there via a strong NT, a club splinter ans a 5NT bid showing 2 or 4 keycards and a club void. Yes that is impressive but some things in bridge are still too difficult.

Well played Leicesterhire in the Dawes but congratulations to the Notts Porter and Markham teams.