More
thanks to Patrick Shields now for providing us with some highlights from
the
Our team was Adrian Thomas & Peter Goodman, Filip Kurbalija & Tim Rees, Patrick Shields & Paul Denning. Last year - as in previous years - we had improved during the second weekend and ended a third overall, well clear of fourth. This year our target was one place better.
The first
match for Wales was against England. There were three slam hands - one
good, one bad, and one solid. England bid all three but Wales only the
last of these. We were lucky that a certain opponent took an odd line
to go off in the bad slam - leading the queen from Q8762 opposite AT954 rather
than dropping the singleton king. We were unlucky to lose on this
hand -
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KQJ8 10874 72 J85 |
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The East hand was dealer and in both rooms the bidding started 1D-1S-X-2N. The double was negative and the 2NT bid showed four card support for spades. It was natural now to end in 5D and that was the contract at four of the six tables (the others were 4D= and 3N-1). Tim Rees was declarer for us.
The spade lead was ruffed and trumps drawn. It all came down to how to play the heart suit. There is a need for three tricks, but with the slight complication of reaching dummy for the fourth round of the suit. Three declarers started with a small heart to the queen which scored, and continued next time with a small heart towards the A93, and when the doubleton king appeared, they made three heart tricks and so 5D.
Tim
ran the HJ on the first round of the suit, and later finessed the H9
to the HT and could only make two heart tricks. Tim's line feels
better, coping with 6 small doubletons offside, while the other gains
with the four king doubletons onside. |
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9543 AQ93 84 864 |
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--- J65 AKQJT63 A72 |
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A10762 K2 95 J953 |
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We ended that first half match 31 imps down but pulled back 24 imps in the second half, mostly because the English bid three slams against Denning & Shields and made none of them! Kurbalija & Rees bid only one of these - and made it. Curiously, one of these hands was AJ9852 - void - AKJ762 - A, opposite a 1633 shape. The contract was 6D at three tables, 3D and 4D at the others - nobody in the diamond game! And the sixth table - they played in 4S (don't ask). We lost the match 14-16.
The second
match was against Scotland, and a 10:00 am start. It didn't affect us but
the opposition failed to waken up, and we won the first set 71-11. This hand
gained us 11 imps but could have gone differently in both rooms ...
...
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542 K764 J82 1032 |
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At 5 tables East opened their club suit (McIntosh opened 1N) and against 1C, four of the five Souths doubled (the other bid 1S), Clubs were raised ot the three level and South doubled again, forcing North to bid his hearts. Life looked awkward on a club lead, ruffed and Shields tried a small spade off dummy at trick two. The SK won that and another club was ruffed. Declarer played HA and overtook the HQ with the HK to take the spade finesse but when that lost he went one off. Playing SA and another was the alternative and works because the DT is well placed. So -100 which might have been +140.
After the spade overcall in the other room Filip Kurbalija bid 1N and was raised to game. The spade lead went to the ace and a second spade to the king. Now a diamond to the DK and DA and the defence failed to find the heart switch - so that was 3N made for +600, despite 6 tops losers! |
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KQ7
J103 1054 Q864 |
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108 92 KQ7 AKJ975 |
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AJ963 AQ85 A963 ---
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5 AJ987 K3 A10952 |
AQT83 10 962 KJ87 |
The
opening bid was 1H from West and North overcalled 1S. East was clearly
interested in a penalty, but since he was playing negative doubles he
had to pass. West re-opened with 2C, as expected on a minimum shapely
hand. Now how does East show values? Our man bid 5C while the
Scot bid 4C and missed the game. In another match both Easts bid 2S
but one was left to play there. In the third match one East passed
2C while at the other South had bid 1N over 1S-P and was doubled
there for -300. No two stories the same! |
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Q832 |
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North opened 1D and East overcalled 1H; after P-P and a takeout double from North, South bid 1N and West pushed on to 2H. Since the opening was ambiguous (strong club system) Paul Denning as South led a club and that went to the ace and another back to the CK. Liz McGowan cashed the HA and when she saw the HQ she recognised the heart distribution.
She cashed the CQ and now played a spade, won by North. It looks natural to cash the DA and DK now - but care is needed. If a third diamond is played East will ruff, and then play to SA and ruff a spade. The end position is 87-K6 of trumps and East leads the fourth club towards dummy, forcing South to ruff and lead away from the remaining heart honour.
Patrick Shields managed to avoid the third diamond, playing a spade back into the dummy, and now declarer lacked the entries for the end play. All that for one off. (and 5 imps). |
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AJ95 |
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74 |
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K106 |
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QJ862 |
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South started with a strong club at a few tables and West's mechanism was 1S to show two suits of the same rank. North passed and East assumed, naturally that partner had the majors, and so bid 2H as the least bad offering. The Irishman passed this and then Fil Kurbalija converted to 3C showing the minors, and Tim Rees raised to 5C. South came in with 5S now, which looked like a very good view to take, but when it passed round, Tim continued with 6C and ended in 6C-X making for +1090. A great result - but it needed to be ....
In the other room South opened a natural 1S and West distorted things rather with a 2NT bid, after which East drive the bidding to 6D, also doubled. The lead was a spade, so that East was able to draw trumps and throw dummy's single heart on a club, making 13 tricks for +1190 and a gain to the CBAI of 3 imps! |
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543 |
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-- |
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AK1097 |
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We finished that session +23 imps and clocked up another +20 in a very flat second set to win the match 21-9 in VPs. It wasn't completely flat - we did bid one slam the opponents didn't bid, but that was after Blackwood and we were still missing two aces! The opposition missed a trick on this hand -
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AQJ92 43 J KQJ54 |
1087 Q986 Q653 A8 |
Declarer
was in 3S after RHO had opened with what turned out to be a weak NT
hand. The lead was HJ which held, and then a heart to the king,
and two rounds of diamond, ruffed. Declarer crossed to CA and took the
spade finesse and repeated it - but the trumps had broken 4-1 and she was
stuck in hand and couldn't finesse again. The answer was to think
ahead at trick four - you need to ruff with the SJ or SQ. Now
running S8 and then the ST leaves you in dummy to finesse a third time!
It was all for an overtrick and our men didn't get the chance
to solve this one as South at their table opened 1S and we played 2C.
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A54 K53 QJ106 Q82 |
K8 AQ64 AK53 AJ4 |
Every
table opened (or bid via multi to) 2N showing strong balanced. Two pairs
raised directly to 6N and the others all bid 4N. All Easts continued
over that, two directly to 6N but the other two carefully bid 5D en
route. They were raised to 6D and played there. As you can see, 6D is
by far the better contract but today the hearts broke 3-3 and the better
bidders all lost 2 imps! |
Later
on
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J10953 |
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East chose to open against Paul Denning (South) and Patrick Shields (North) with 1N and over this Paul bid 2N to show a strong (but not necessarily game forcing) two suiter. West was next with 3C and over that East raised to 4C. That was passed round to North who knew that partner had at least one of the majors (or both) so he bid 4H. East doubled and South now told the world that he had diamonds and spades - by bidding 4S. This has just three losers - so it was making, but West sacrificed in 5C and played there, doubled, one off.
At the other table East opened 1H and South bid 2H (spades and a minor). Filip sitting West made the good choice of 4C as a fit-jump, showing clubs and hearts. Now when North bid 4S Tim felt encouraged by the double fit to bid 5H - which can actually make - and the opponents bid on to 5S and that was doubled and one down also. |
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2 |
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A7 |
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KQ864 |
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Northern Ireland changed their line-up - but we continued as we had left off, picking up another 40 imps. It was curious to gain imps on ....
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42 4 KQ862 KQ983 |
A65 Q107 AJ7 A754 |
Paul
Denning opened 1N as East and South overcalled 2C showing both majors.
Now it was 3D (natural, forcing) <4S> P P and West introduced
his second suit with 5C and there it rested. After a spade lead it was
easy to draw trumps, throw away the S5,S6 on diamonds and clock up
12 tricks. Another slam missed! But then at the other table East opened
1C and, after some competition, East-West subsided in 4C. So we gained
10 imps anyway. The slam was not bid at any table, and in fact
4C wasn't the worst result - two tables played in 3N and the opposition cashed
five heart tricks at each. |
The final match was against "Team Ireland" - who had played in the Bermuda Bowl in October in Shanghai. We were hammered! In the first set 35-4 and in the second set 60-8. There weren't any successes to report, but there were some interesting hands ...
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Q9752 |
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West opened 1H after a pass by South (at three tables South opened) and North bid 2H showing 55 or more, spades and a minor. East doubled and South retreated to 2S. Now 3H from West showed a limited hand with long hearts and he was raised to game.
North started with DA and switched to a spade, so declarer rose with SA to throw his losing spade, and then played on trumps. - the HJ ducked and then South won HA and very carefully returned a heart. The contract had to go one off. If South had tried to cash the SK it would have been fatal - declarer draws trumps and plays a club to the C9 and CT at which point South is end-played.
Declarer missed a chance to be a star here - the play to the first few tricks (South showing a doubleton diamond, North not leading a singleton club) suggests North is 5260, so after HJ holds ruffing a spade before playing a second trump sets up the chance to end-play South. Magic! In the other room the Irish reached the unbeatable 3N - the only team to get there! 12 imps out! |
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J6 |
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A943 |
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K10 |
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and
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QJ852 |
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The dealer South passed at every table and three of the six Wests opened (1D twice, 1H once). After an opening bid North overcalled, was raised and got to game. When West passed the bidding started at all three tables 1S-P-2S (actually 1S-P-2D showing a spade raise once) and in each case West thought it time to enter and doubled.
Two of the Norths bid on, ignoring the double, and reached game in spades but the Irishman sitting North re-doubled and our pair could only just escape for -1100 in 3C-X. That was another 14 imps out. Well done by Team Ireland. |
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K943 |
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A106 |
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Finally when we did gain 6 imps ...
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A975 |
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Five tables played this hand in 4H - after all you have 24 points and a 5-3 fit, and they all made 10 tricks. The contact is poor odds - requiring (on the surface) a diamond finesse and a club finesse to make. One defender led a club and now it was just on the diamond finesse. Three defenders led a heart and one a spade and none of these managed to have North win the first spade with the SA and lead a club, so the club loser went on the SQ. And with the diamond finesse that was ten tricks.
When Team Ireland were sitting East-West they stopped in 2H! Given game needs two finesses (and without the D9 it's quite a bit worse than that) you have to admire their bidding. They might think it sad that they lost 6 imps on the board. |
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Q63 |
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J10 |
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K842 |
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The final result in this match (2-25 loss) was the worst 32 board result Wales have had since the Camrose format changed. It moved Wales back from first place into third, still well above average and a long way clear of fourth place. This is still the best position Wales has been in after the first Camrose weekend since the format changed, so we do look forward to the next meeting - the second weekend of March in Dublin.