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137 pairs took part in this year's Charity Simultaneous Pairs which was played in the week beginning January 6th in support of :-

• the As You Are Centre in Southwick which delivers low cost counselling and group work services across West Sussex to those suffering from depression, stress and anxiety, and 
• Oscar’s Wish Foundation in Haywards Heath which offers comfort and support to parents, families, siblings and friends who have experienced the devastating loss of a baby before, during or shortly after birth,

for which it is expected that nearly £700 has been raised.

Congratulations to Diana Caplin and Anthony Simmonds who played in the Thakeham heat and are the confirmed winners.  The runners-up are Mike Moody and John Williams who played in the Avenue heat and in 3rd place are David Telfer and Chris Bury who played in the Chichester heat.

Many thanks to all the clubs who took part in this event.  Many thanks also to organiser Gerry Stanford and to Andrew Southwell who selected the hands and wrote the commentary.

(Gerry would also like to thank Mervyn Wotton for collating the scores from the participating clubs in his normal prompt time-scale.)

The 25 player, all play all, final of the Sussex Individual competition was played at Patcham on Sunday 19 January.  The, now somewhat ancient, trophy was won by Ann Lorimer with a score of 65.8% with runner-up Russell Calderwood just two match points behind.  In third place with 60% was Hayes Dockrell.  Both Ann and Hayes qualified from the Horsham heat of the competition and Russell was one of the few qualifiers from the Eastbourne heat.  The third heat this year was held at West Sussex BC.

Many thanks to Peter Langston who directed and scored the final, and to Charlotte Setahul for supplying an excellent tea.  Hopefully, more clubs will hold heats later this year of what is a fun competition and one of the oldest in the SCCBA programme.

Peter J Bates (Organiser)

This year's Junior Bridge Camp will be held at Bowles Rocks Activity Centre on Saturday 11th and Sunday 12th July 2020 on the same lines as last year's successful event.  As well as lots of bridge, juniors can participate in one of Bowles' activities - dry skiing, rock climbing, pool kayaking, or archery and bushcraft - all included in the  £75 residential, £40 non-residential price.    Juniors aged 8-21 and their parents and grandparents are all warmly invited to join us - see more information and registration forms.

It is with the deepest sorrow that we share the sad news of the sudden death of Sarah Mitchell, for many years the joint manager of the Avenue bridge club with her husband Julian. Sarah played at the Avenue for the best part of forty years and contributed hugely to the success of the club. Our thoughts and prayers are with Julian and with Sarah's family.

Sarah’s funeral service will take place at All Saints Church, The Drive, Hove, BN3 3QE, on Thursday 30^th January at 11.00 am. All are most welcome.

Dress Code!! - All of you who knew Sarah may be unsurprised to learn that she had very definite views on what should be worn at her funeral.

Gentlemen – Please, NO BLACK TIES.  Ladies – Please wrap yourselves up warmly, but Sarah would have liked there to be a splash of colour. Thank-you.

The reception/wake will follow on directly at the Avenue Bridge Club, 15 Third Avenue, Hove, BN3 2PB – Again everyone most welcome.

(There will be a short committal service, 12.30 pm at Woodvale Crematorium, Lewes Road, Brighton, BN2 3QB. Friends and family only.)

Flowers c/o Derriman & Haynes, 56 Ladies Mile Road, Brighton, BN1 8QF.  Donations to Kent, Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance Trust.

There was a large entry to the County's annual New Year Swiss Teams at Henfield on Sunday January 12th.  31 Teams competed in the event which was efficiently directed by Steve Foster, assisted by Peter Bates. The leading prizes were won by :-

..... winners Yves Lebrec, David Telfer, Cliff Vince and Richard Illingworth, .....

..... runners-up Neil Watts, Mike Allen, Andy Ryder and Philip Hunt and .....

..... in 3rd place, Dave Franklin, Gerry Stanford, Kamran Nadim and Martin Pool.

The Non-Expert Prize was won by Rob Wanders, John Hardy, Colin and Lynda Smith and .....

.....the Ascenders Prize, for the most progress in the last 3 rounds, was won by Jim Downes, Hayes Dockrell, Josie Allen and Tomasz Serkowski.

Many thanks to all who helped make this such a successful day and a special thank-you to Charlotte Setahul and her team who provided a delicious hot buffet.

Joy Mayall (Organiser)

P.S.  The next SCCBA Swiss Teams event will be on the second day of the Blue-Pointed Spring Congress at Uckfield on April 4th & 5th.

To check whether you've qualified for the David Pavey Final at Worthing BC on Sunday January 26th, please check the list of finalists.  If you have qualified but cannot now play, please contact organiser Eileen Perrigo (01903 520540) ASAP.

To check whether you've qualified for the Sussex Pairs Final at Patcham BC on Sunday January 26th, please check the list of finalists.  If you have qualified but cannot now play, please contact organiser Gerry Stanford (01403 255952) ASAP.

To check whether you've qualified for the Mixed Pairs Final at West Sussex BC on Saturday February 15th, please check the list of finalists.  If you have qualified but cannot now play, please contact organiser Gerry Stanford (01403 255952) ASAP.

Affiliated clubs and members of the county management committee have been invited to make nominations (via the attached form) by January 31st for the Gladys Hakki Trophy which is to be presented at the 2020 AGM.  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.

Among the next SCCBA events are the :-

• SCCBA Welcome Pairs at Horsham Bridge Club - Sunday March 8th
• SCCBA Blue-Pointed Spring Congress at Uckfield - Saturday April 4th to Sunday April 5th
• EBU/SCCBA Green-Pointed Swiss Pairs at Patcham - Saturday May 16th
• EBU/SCCBA Green-Pointed Swiss Teams at Patcham - Sunday July 19th

You can enter most events by using an on-line entry form and paying via Internet or Telephone Banking or you can print off an entry form and post it with your cheque.  Why not go to the Entry Forms section and make your choice now?

Also in the Entry Forms section are details of :-

• the Roy Skelton Cup (a pairs event for players with less than 10,000 Master Points run by Worthing BC) on Sunday February 23rd

For all other events, please see Calendar.

A two-day teacher training course will be held :-

• at Horsham BC on Thursday 16th and Friday 17th April.

The following course for club directors will be held at Richmond during 2020 :-

• Saturday Jan 18th - How to run a club duplicate
• Saturday Feb 1^st - Day 1 Book rulings
• Saturday Feb 29 - Day 2 Book & Judgement Rulings
• Saturday March 21^st - Assessment

For further details or to register for a course, please see the English Bridge & Development web-site and the current schedule for all Club Tournament Director Training Courses.

Other County News