2026 SCCBA Charity Simultaneous Pairs

To benefit worthy causes which have been nominated by SCCBA members, why not play in this annual event which, this year, is in aid of :-

 Queen Victoria Charitable Trust, East Grinstead,

St Wilfrid's Hospice, Chichester and

UKHarvest, Chichester

Heats of the this year's event will be held in the week beginning Monday February 16th.  The current list of participating clubs is Avenue, Worthing, Chichester, Crawley, Patcham, Seaford, West Sussex and Eastbourne - see Calendar for start times.  Please note that individual players may only play in one heat.

If any other SCCBA club would like to hold a heat, they should email organiser Gerry Stanford.

2026 SCCBA AGM
Sunday April 26th at 11am

All members wishing to attend the SCCBA AGM (see agenda) should register with the Hon. Sec. Dick Wheeler by April 19th to receive the supporting papers and the Zoom invitation.

SCCBA Garden Cities Trophy heat
Patcham Community Centre
Saturday 28th March at 11am

SCCBA Clubs are invited to enter a team of 8 for the county heat of the Garden Cities Trophy.  30-40 boards will be played, depending on the number of clubs who enter.  Scoring will combine the IMPs achieved in each room and be converted to Victory Points.

The entry fee is £80/team payable to SCCBA and covers table money, tea and sandwiches.  Since making arrangements for refreshments is necessary, entries will close by Saturday 21st March.  There's no need for your club to finalise its team at the time of entry.  Just make the payment :-

• by bank transfer SCCBA sort code 20-49-76, account no 53941868, Reference code 'T8' + club name, or
• by cheque payable to SCCBA and sent direct to the SCCBA Treasurer, John Hardy, 2A The Fairway, Willowbrook Park, Lancing, West Sussex, BN158QZ.

and email organiser Gerry Stanford (or ring him on 01403-255952) to let him know that your club is playing.

The winners will represent Sussex in the Regional Final, again being played F2F on Saturday 9^th May at Richmond Bridge club.  Note: should you win the SCCBA  heat, you do not have to play the same 8 players in the Regional Final as long as substitutes have not have played for another team in the SCCBA heat.

Gerry Stanford

2025 EBU Dimmie Fleming Award Winner - Eddie Williams

Many congratulations to Eddie Williams who has received the prestigious Dimmie Fleming Award for services to bridge!

Eddie has been involved in the administration of Sussex bridge in multiple roles over more than two decades, including Vice Chairman, Management Committee member, Tournament Manager, Tournament Committee member, Membership Secretary, Calendar Editor and Competition Organiser.  Eddie has also spent much of that time as the Sussex Chief Tournament Director, maintaining the directory of Sussex directors and running the major county seasonal and green-pointed congresses in addition to his paid directorial duties.

Since his semi-retirement from County directing in 2019, Eddie has continued to give generously of his time, preparing schedules for bridge teachers, mentoring Sussex’s current County Chief TD, running courses for and supporting aspiring County directors, and taking charge of updating the County’s technical equipment.

Eddie is, of course, well-known as a (now-retired) EBU director, as the director-incharge at St. Leonards BC and as an organiser of bridge holidays and cruises but his contributions extend far beyond the commercial.  He continues to provide ad hoc advice and support and he is the epitome of a person who is always happy to help and offer his expertise.

See also Eddie's "biography" on the EBU web-site.

2025-26 Tollemache Final

The Sussex team finished fifth out of eight teams in the Tollemache Final, played in Cambridge over the weekend of 31 January/1st February.  With a few boards to play, they were lying in third place.  This was a highly creditable performance in a strong field, especially as four players who played so well to help them qualify were unavailable.  See full results on the EBU website.

Congratulations (tinged with commiserations!) to :-

• Mike Allen and Ken Ford
• Gunnar Hallberg and Sally Clark
• Andy Morris and Chris Phillips
• David Dickson and Matt Read
• Julian Mitchell and Peter Clinch

Neil Watts (non-playing captain)

David Pavey Trophy

This event, on Sunday January 25th, was a great success with eleven tables.  It was lovely to be host to players from several clubs who had travelled long distances to play in this event.

Congratulations to winners Anna-marie Beresford and Ann Mackown from Worthing.  Well done also to runners up Alice Louis and Karen Jackson, also from Worthing.

Thank-you to Alexa Baxter for directing and to the Worthing ladies who provided the lovely afternoon tea.

Eileen Perrigo (Organiser)

New Year Swiss Teams

18 teams participated in this year's New Year Swiss Teams on Sunday 18th January at Patcham Bridge Club.

Congratulations to those teams who finished in the top 3 places, namely winners Lindsay Geddes, Gerry Stanford, Mick Carrington and Kami Nadim, runners-up Mike Allen, Ken Ford, Sally Clark and Gunnar Hallberg and third-placed Sally Bugden, Joy Mayall, Neil Watts and Philip Hunt.

Congratulations to those teams who finished in the top 3 places, namely winners Lindsay Geddes, Gerry Stanford, Mick Carrington and Kami Nadim, runners-up Mike Allen, Ken Ford, Sally Clark and Gunnar Hallberg and third-placed Sally Bugden, Joy Mayall, Neil Watts and Philip Hunt.

Many thanks to: Director Stephen Kennedy, Caterer Charlotte Setahul, Webmaster Mervyn Wotton and Martin Pool who prepared the hands.  

Joy Mayall - Organiser

Gladys Hakki Trophy 2025/26

Affiliated clubs and members of the county management committee have been invited to make nominations (via the attached form) by end of February, 2025 for the Gladys Hakki Trophy.  The intent of the trophy is annually to recognise a member of the County who has given unstintingly of their time and service, and contributed exceptionally to the success of contract bridge in the County.  If you know of someone whom you believe meets these criteria, please contact one of your local club officers or a member of the county management committee to convey your views.

SCCBA Welcome Pairs at Horsham BC

on Sunday March 1st

Horsham will be running its annual Welcome Pairs competition again on Sunday March 1st.  We're inviting entries from those who are new to bridge or have an NGS rating of 5 or below.  There are prizes for three fields, i.e. :-
-   One to two years of training,
-   Three years of training,
-   NGS 5 and below.

The competition starts at 1.00 p.m., finishing at approximately 5.00 p.m. with a break for tea midway.  It is intended as a fun afternoon and we encourage as many people as possible to take part.

See full details and how to enter.

Denise Lincoln (Organiser)

Other County News