CHAIRMAN'S REPORT

May I take this opportunity to wish you all a belated Happy New Year. May all your finesses succeed and dodgy contracts make.
The Bridge Season is well under way and we do seem to be surviving. Our rooms at Stafford are improving all the time. With the exception of a broken window, complaints are dwindling.
I am pleased to say that Lichfield have a Bridge Club again. They play appropriately enough at The Bridge Tavern, Upper St. John Street, on Friday evenings; visitors are very welcome.
As my term of office is drawing to a close my only feeling is one of slight frustration at the tasks that will inevitably be left undone. There is so much to do but with only one Bridge season in office, time eventually beats one. I shall finish visiting the remaining Staffordshire Bridge Clubs in due course and would like to thank you all for your hospitality at the Clubs I have visited. May I make a plea to the Members of Staffordshire? If you can find a good Chairman, please let him remain for at least two or three years. One Bridge season is not long enough to settle into the job and achieve anything. If you can find an active, interested, bard-working Chairman hang on to him like grim death.
One last plea before you criticise your Management Committee too much - just reflect on the unpaid time they spend working on your behalf. Ask yourself how much you contribute in comparison. As for myself, if you have any complaints, please shout. I'm here to help if I can.

Enjoy your Bridge.

Jim Riley (Burntwood 6895)

FROM THE SECETARY'S DESK

Since the last Bulletin our numbers have climbed slowly to a more respectable level. At December 31st we had 240 County members. This, however, is only about 35% of Club members playing Duplicate Bridge in the County; and compared with other Counties is a low percentage. Direct subscription to the English Bridge Union is £2.00 - exactly the same as our County subscription. So you could say you are getting a County Association for free. The E.B.U. are anxious to recruit all Duplicate Bridge players into membership. This way subscription rates can be kept down - and anyway, all Duplicate Pride players benefit from the services that the central administration body provide - chief of which are:-

1. The organisation of a national Bridge calendar
2. The licensing of bidding systems - so that blatantly unfair systems are kept out
3. Constant revision and updating of the laws. (One of the very best in recent times, in my opinion being "The opening lead face down)
4. They provide an Appeals Committee in disputes - and a Disciplinary Committee when flagrant bad behaviour has to be dealt with
5. And last but not least - THEY FINANCE AND ORGANISE OUR NATIONAL TEAMS, or does nobody care any longer how we do in international competition? Success in this field probably does more to promote the game in this Country than anything else.

The best people to recruit are you - the rank and file member - each one of you make a New Year resolution to recruit one new member to the County. What's in it for them? - I would suggest the County Teams-of-Four League and the County Pairs League when we get more than one Division going. WHY LEAGUES. Because they will find that due to the very nature of Leagues they will be playing in company having about the same skill and standard; they will have a genuine chance of winning - and if they are good enough, then next year they will meet slightly sterner opposition. This is something that most BridgeWebs cannot provide.

WHAT'S GOING ON AT THE SHOW GROUND

FIRST.
Below is published, the agreement your Committee has made with the Stafford. B. C. on the joint use of facilities at the Stafford Show Ground.

SECOND.
Members of Stafford B.C. are now extremely anxious to obtain a long lease on the rooms in order to set up a well-appointed B.C. In this they have the full support of your Committee. What has happened so far?

Two members of Stafford B.C. Ron Copley and John Barratt, who are personal friends of this of this years Chairman and Vice-Chairman of the Staffordshire Agricultural Society, started the ball rolling by inviting these two friends; 'Mr Vernon Prestwood, Secretary of the Agricultural Society, the N. F. U. Secretary; Mr Des Kennedy, Chairman of Stafford B.C. and yours truly; to an informal preparatory discussion over lunch to sound out the possibilities. We all met for lunch at Brocton Golf Club. The hospitality of Ron and John was superb and set the atmosphere for the exploratory talks. It transpired that we were welcome at the Show Ground; that the Society would do all it could to accommodate our requirements. There was, anyway, a £20,000 face-lift and expansion planned for the pavilion and some of the benefits could well be felt by the Bridge Club.

Following this initiative it has now been agreed that the Society's Architect shall inspect our end of the pavilion with the following points in view:

1. To alter the existing room to form one playing area to take 16 tables in comfort;
2. To provide our own toilets with warm water to the hand basins - and our own cloak rooms:
3. A small purpose built bar.

There is an outside chance that this could be completed by next September.

WASTE PAPER! - WHAT A LOAD OF OLD RUBBISH

Once more yours truly has come up with an idea which has got the hatchet men howling with derision - the amount raised will be peanuts - the stuff will litter the Club room and its surrounds - and anyway, we are not so poverty stricken that we cannot pay for proper facilities.

Last year I had brought everyone to play in a glorified "cow shed". This year Stafford B. C. at least finds it has the best potential for a venue to establish, a Bridge Club in or near Stafford. That was my opinion from the start. But I must say that I was the butt end of such abuse and even I began to have my doubts. So maybe not all my ideas are daft! IT IS MY OPINION THAT WHEN WE GET IT GOING PROPERLY waste paper collections will produce a sizeable sum of money. Why don't more people go in for it then? The facilities that allow you to collect are not easy to come by - fire risk and bulk storage being the two big stumbling blocks. Through the good office of the Show Ground Secretary we have been given the necessary facilities. SO BACK TO THE FACTS OF THE JOB.

FIRSTLY.
If you are so affluent that you don't want to bother - or for good reasons it is difficult for you to help - then your ante to leave you with a clear conscience is £2.00 per annum. Send this to me and your name will appear in a list headed DEVELOPMENT FUND - CONTRIBUTIONS.

SECONDLY
Let's examine some facts. Weigh 6 copies of your daily together with you weekly, your Radio Times and one other magazine the average newsprint for a household) - it should come on average to 3lbs. This over 50 weeks comes to 150 lbs. or approximately £1.50 per annum. Ask a neighbour to conserve his newsprint and you get £2 with ease. Get the kids to canvass down the street and collect once a week and the total can be staggering. It's surely not much trouble to dump this lot at the door as you come in to play; NEATLY PARCELLED, please - magazines go best in a box the right size - easily found at any supermarket. But for me there is a wider issue to it as well - conservation. We are using up our natural forests at an alarming rate. What a load of rubbish it is not to conserve our clean waste paper and help to cut down this destruction of trees. So those groups who have the facilities to conserve should use them - and that means US.

I started this campaign to raise money for an expensive extractor fan. Now the need for money seems to be more urgent and for more exciting improvements. If it is found possible to build a well appointed B.C. at the Show Ground then our ante may be as much as £1,000. I would suggest to all our members when the time comes that we raise this overnight by calling for an interest free LOAN of £10 from every member - and that as we collect paper and development fund subscriptions, we draw lots for who shall be repaid. Every time we have a £100 in the kitty, ten names are drawn out and these members get their £10 back. We did this at my Sailing Club when I was on the Committee and it worked like a charm - of course, there will be some members who cannot afford. Likewise, there will be some to whom £20 would not be hard to find as a loan and there will be some who can loan £10 as long as they are the first to be repaid. I find the immediate future to be exciting. I enjoy my bridge so much more when I play in comfort.

DEVELOPMENT FUND CONTRIBUTIONS
John Messenger £2.00. Roy Martin £4.00 (I smoke like a train and it's the least I can do to help clear the fog - thanks Roy)

WHY DO WE ALWAYS HAVE TO GO TO STAFFORD?
Let's begin by a study of certain facts

There is just no other venue as fair to all members, nor one that will allow members to get there and back for evening sessions; and as backbone of County bridge is the Teams of Four League, to be joined we hope by a thriving Pairs Trial League - it is essential that we should have a venue we can all reach for an evening session. We also need a room equipped with Bridge tables and Bridge accessories AT A PRICE WE CAN AFFORD. And that means sharing with Stafford B.C. If, and I hope it will, the Pairs League prospers as has the Teams of Four, then it may be possible to meet our share of the running expenses of the Bridge room from table money collected on these nights.

Then we can consider once again playing the traditional County Events at the major clubs in rotation. Until then we need the income from these events to pay our corner. I agree wholeheartedly with the County members who like being a guest at another club once or twice a year. I am sure this ought to be part of the County scene. Meanwhile County members of Stafford Bridge Club must realize the tremendous advantage this, is to them personally, as well as to their club. I repeat, and will go on repeating until it sinks in, that it costs a minimum of £60 to run a car 14 times to Stafford, so that if four people share it costs every member £15 to play County Bridge; so that is £15 more than it costs County members who belong to Stafford B.C. So once again I am asking for special help from County members of Stafford B.C. to ensure that County members who come to play at Stafford from a distance feel welcome and cared for. It's got to be you - nobody else lives near enough. But I personally feel very strongly that it ought to be you - seeing the advantage you have that your Club is the central venue. Therefore I am disappoint and hurt by the lack of volunteers putting their names down to act as hosts. There are 21 nights to cover - there are 52 County members at Stafford B.C. If you work in pairs (and I think this the best way) it means one night a year per member only. The difference it would make to the atmosphere if two people arrived ¾ of an hour before play starts to ensure the room is clean and warm - and be prepared to serve hot drinks to cold arrivals would be enormous. The facilities are there it just needs a little loyalty to the County Association to get it going. Please just don't assume the County has got to use your Club - that there is no other place to go; the County could fold up. Remember, I'm only in this job because it was suggested that it should be wound up and I thought this would be a pity.

There are a handful of members at Stafford B.C. that at the moment make up for all the others; in the past year they have done a marvelous job; and it looks as if things are going from strength to strength, so come on all the ROYAL STANDBACKS and let's make Stafford B.C. renowned for its hospitality.

Members will be very sorry to learn of the sudden death last month of Maureen Barar of Wolverhampton Bridge Club. A wreath was sent from the Club.

JOHN HUDSON

BRIDGE FEATURE BY ALAN MONCKTON

This article starts with our match against Northants, and rambles on from there. We lost to them in a match where some close games were made by them but often defeated when we played them. Try this one: You play 4S by W on the play of ♦A then ♦K from N who has overcalled in diamonds, but at our table was apparently limited to a minimum opener in high cards, (or so we were told).

Preliminary analysis - 4 possible losers, ♦A, ♣K, ♠K and J. A further problem if trumps don't break. Trumps must be tackled now. How best to do so?'

I chose to lead ♠Q, on the grounds that North, having bid, was likely to hold ♠K or J. South held both K and J so down I went. Can you see the flaw in this? If ♣K is right (i.e. with South) a wrong spade guess matters not, but even so ♠K will be with N. But if ♣K is wrong (i.e. with North), then either ♠K or ♠J must be with South if the information we were given was correct. So the safest play for the contract is ♠A then a low spade from E, and then guessing whether to put the Q or 10 on if South plays low (as he should with KJxx).

The next hand is a good example of how an expert defender should think.
Bidding: South opens a 16 to 18 1NT North raises to 2NT which is passed out.

You lead the ♠Q. partner shows 4 spades and declarer wins the ♠A in dummy; now the ♦5 to his 10 and your J. You continue ♠J to declarer's K, and he leads ♦K which wins, then the Q which loses to partner's A as you throw a small club. Partner now leads ♠9, and declarer throws ♥3.
The position now is:

Preliminary analysis: we have 2 spade tricks to take now, 2 diamonds taken and need 2 more tricks. Declarer has shown ♠K, ♦KQ so has at least 8 more points, of which 4 must be in clubs.

Further thoughts: Since declarer has thrown a heart not a club, he has chosen to abandon a possible long card in that suit rather than in clubs. Therefore he has not got ♥ K and J. Therefore has at least 5 points in clubs. These can be AQ or KQ - but whichever he holds, ♣ Q is now definitely in his hand. So it matters whether E or W has the lead after cashing spades; the ♣Q will be a winner if I lead clubs now, and if partner puts, up his honour. I know this, partner may or may not know. Therefore I must keep the lead after the 2nd spade, to decide which switch to make. So let the 9 hold, and take the next spade, viewing declarers discard with interest. If it is a heart, you then 'know' he must have ♥K (with ♥J he would not weaken his suit so). In fact he throws a small club.

Now the switch is clear. Do, you see why?

He holds ♥K and K8x at best in hearts. His club discard marks partner with a doubleton high honour and he would not play so if he held AKQx in clubs. If partner has Ax in clubs, a club lead from sets up 2 club tricks as partner cannot duck his Ace. If partner holds Kx, the club lead gives declarer nothing he cannot take for himself, but that is his 8th trick. But, if we lead a heart, can we be 100% sure to give no trick? A low heart lead makes declarers ♥8 (if he has it) the vital catalyst for an extra trick for him. The ♥9 lead gives a finesse position if partner holds the ♥J ; but ♥Q lead gives nothing away, and may induce a wrong finesse for the ♥J. Try it and see.

Now a bidding problem. You are West and hold at game all:

♠ A63
♥ A952
♦ -
♣ AQ8764

Do you pass? Why? Preliminary analysis: Partner has a strong diamond holding, only 4 spades, about 9/10 points. Further thoughts: Help! If that is what partner has, unless clubs run we will be millions off in 3NT. So at teams don't play such a risky contract - even if clubs run you haven't necessarily got 9 tricks, as hearts look dodgy. Bid 4C (not forcing, but highly descriptive). In fact partner bids 5C, and turns up with:

♠ KQ87
♥ 7
♦ KJ1042
♣ 952

and you make the contract.

NEXT BULLETIN - I will include examples on bidding judgement and play from recent matches.

ALAN MONCKTON

CAPTAIN'S REPORT

Forming a team for these matches seems to get increasingly more difficult but, despite unavailability and late withdrawals, we achieved a respectable result against Nottinghamshire.

First Team
R. BEECH and D. DOWNS, R. TROUNCE and A. BLOXHAM, R. KEANE and J. MORGAN, A. SINGLETON and Mrs R. HUDSON        WON 7 - 5

Second Team
E. HARTLAND and C. TATE, G. HEYWOOD and J. SEYMOUR, D. McDONALD and J. HUDSON, L. MEREDITH and Miss B. Kitchenham     LOST 4 - 8
Congratulations to Les Meredith and Barbara Kitchenham on acquitting themselves well in their debut. They were selected on their County Pairs performances and Les Meredith's team have a commanding lead already in Division II of the County League.

TOLLEMACHE
The County came third in the heat of the Tollemache.
Team: DAVIES and DOWNS, SHAW and KEANE, TOPLEY and TOTTENHAM, MORLEY and ZYCHLINSKI

Result:

MACFARLANE CUP (DERBYSHIRE INVITATION TEAMS)
Staffordshire were represented by R. TROUNCE, G. SALWEY, A. MALLETT and A. BLOXHAM who finished SECOND

BECK CUP (OXFORDSHIRE TEAMS)
ANY TEAM OF 4 wishing to play at Oxford on 19th MARCH, please phone Sandon 434.

EDITOR: L. HIPKISS