Last Monday was a Bank holiday so Pat Cassidy and Billy Ronan attemped to knock off the legendary Great Mulall again. Great Mulall had elbowed them aside the previous time by about 130 to 70 imps over 28 boards.
This time 32 boards of pre-dealt boards were ready and waiting for the Great Mulalls perusal.
Mulall and partner played North South throughout.
Board 1 was an easy 3NT especially as Ronan on lead with the spade AKQxx chose to lead a non-spade and 12 tricks rolled. His partner held Spade J32
6 clubs was cold though for North South
Board 2 had Mulall stealing away in a quiet 2S for +140.
Billpat might compete in 3H losing 100 even if doubled
Board 3 and the great Mulall strikes for the only time in the match.
4C doubled and mulall leads the Spade King gobbled up by the AQ
-710 and minus 12 imps
Running score 4-12 to BillPat
Board 4 Great Mulall disdains the 5-3 Heart fit and plays in the 4S 5-2 fit and with
spades 3-3 620 and 3 imps is clocked up
Board 5 Billpat play in 3C to gain 2 imps
Score 7-14
Board 6 Mulall plays in 2H-1 .. 2S is good for Billpat
Flat board but Billpat have 21 hcp
Board 7 Billpat overstretch to 5D which drifts 2 vulnerable tricks off and 5 imps to Mulall
Board 8 Billpat play a normal 3C making
Board 9 Billpat reach another 5 level contract 5C which again drifts off 2 vulnerable tricks.
Should be one off ..
Score 18-15 as mulall eases back into the lead
Board 10 a quiet 2D going off 1 vulnerable
Board 11 Great Mulall holding KJT6 ,void, KQT,KQJ962 opens 1 club and Pat Cassidy overcalls 2H weak jump. Galligan fingers the AJT72 of hearts and the other 2 aces in his hand and passes
Ronan passes and Galligan wonders will Mulall find the normal takeout double he must hold.
Mulall bids 2S without pause for thought and the storm that was brewing for Cassidy recedes.
Galligan bids 3N and 490 and 2 imps ...Cassidy would not have made many tricks in 2H
Board 12
1NT 12-14 opened by cassidy and 2H anti by galligan and Billpat find their way into 4S and Great Mulall starts to gurgle and bubble. He anoints the 4S with the Red card and continues to
gurgle happily. We don't have much but normally 6 trumps to Ace is trouble.
4S-2 doubled and vul netted in 12 imps
Score ... 32-15
Board 13 A standard 4S by Mulall
Board 14 Billpat played a hopeless 3D and 2 off and 3 more mulall imps
Board 15 Team Mulall ventures into 3S and the spades break 5-0 but no double materialises
and its just 4 imps away. I am fairly sure Mulall got us up to 3S ...
Board 16 and Bill Pat play 3S which might make but is one off and 3 imps to mulall
Board 17 Billpat venture into 3D and galligan with KQxx of trumps decides not to double and its 3 off for 150 and 4 imps
Board 18 Galligan holding Kx of diamonds against 3NT ...gets a spade lead eating SQ in dummy with Ace and spade back won by Jack in declarers hand. Declarer plays small diamond to AQJxxx on table and galligan ducks smoothly .. Brief pause for thought and declarer Mr Billy Ronan plays Ace of Diamonds and topples galligans King... Mud on face as 3NT has no play.
However there are not many declarers who would not return to hand and take the 6D tricks and 2 spades and the Heart Ace .....but Billy Ronan spoiled the story ..the fecker ..
Meanwhile Mulall boiled at the other side of the table as 8 imps went out the window and the rest. Mulall is a grinder and does not appreciate flare plays when they lose...
However on seeing the hand record sheet afterwards he appreciated the attempt..
Score 43-27 Mulall
Board 19 Finally the Ronan steps in the dog doodah ...Pass Pass to galligan who wields
an off centre 2S hammer ...Double by Ronan holding more then half the deck.
Stop 4H by passed hand Cassidy ...Stop 6H by Big Billy ..
Cassidy should be bidding 3H lebenshohl with a 7 count and J3 . JT965 . AJ82 . 98
but wanted to get to 4H game ..
2 off and 13 imps pulled in by mulall
Board 20
BillPAt play a doomed 3H and lose 2 imps
and mulall leads 58-27
Board 21 flat in 2H
Board 22 and Mulall wields a 2S natural bid over 1NT opener ... Galligan fingers his shapely 14 count and 3NT is on his mind. Suddenly a double appears from Cassidy and Galligan knows mulall must still have cards from last hand in his paw.. All pass and Galligan retreats to back garden giving Mulall the dummy .. The Lead is made and mulall starts placing the dummy , gurgling louder and louder as the hcp appear ..
A few minutes later I can see the Great one delivering his lecture to a despondant Billy Ronan.
YOU SHOULD NOT PLAY YOUR DIAMOND JACK
I am not sure how the play went but the only lead that causes trouble seems to be a trump.
11 imps to Great mulall
Board 23 and Galligan holding A . K987653 .762 . K2 chooses to open a vulnerable 3H and
opps play in 3S ..off one and 4H is cold ... maybe a 1H opener is best ..
4 more mulall imps
Board 24
Mulall steals away in a quiet 3C for 4 imps
Board 25
Billpat bid and make a standard 3N
Board 26 and Galligan gets caught speeding and goes for 800 and 13 imps out
points 20-20 and had an 8 card fit but the police were out
mulall lead down to 78-40 but billpat failed to score for the last 6 boards
Board 27 Mulall wields a 5 card 2S opener ..not sure where he learned that one
Cassidy overbids with 2N and Ronan clambers into 4H .. Galligan ponders his 13 count and
mulall always has points so the AXE is applied and Ronan emerges with 7 tricks and 10 more mullal imps
Board 28 A quiet 3Nt for flat board
Board 29 Billpat are down in 4H holding a 21 count and 9 card fit
Board 30 Billpat climb into a normal 3NT .. Mulall leads the spade Jack from JT9
Billpat should make this I think but instead drifts one off and 8 imps away
Running score 100-40
Board 31 Billpat arrive in 6S and mulall leads a club ..
Q93 . QJ . QJ5 . AQT95 opposite AKT762 . A832 . A4 .4
According to the gospel of Mulall the clubs can be setup for discarding and 6S is cold .
Billy failed to follow the Mulall gospel and another 11 imps is out window.
The final board arrived ... and Billpat is battered and bruised after going down in 15 of 21 attempted contracts.
I don't recall what exactly happened but Billy reached 5H vulnerable and the great mullal
holding KJ43 of trumps applied the axe and Billy went 2 off for -500 and 11 more mulall imps.
Final score using compensation scoring = Great Mulall 122 Billpat 40
Sumation
Billy went to the cooker and found a large plate of curry and we all munched it down.
Billy and Pat were very happy as they are used to placing highly in their local club in Malahide Regional. They are somewhat taken aback to find the Great Mulall plays about 2 times a month at most but can step out of his taxi cab and stamp on 2 A players. Mulall claims size matters and his brain is larger then the rest.
On Tuesday Eamon and Mulall went to a local pub for a review of the boards.
We did not get to review many boards as Christy somebody was playing loud Irish music.
Celtic Fusion I think was the name of the band. Instruments somewhat tinny but a few guinness
and the tinny got forgotten. There was also something else going on in the corner but I never worked it out. Seemed to be some older gentleman holding discourse with some attractive younger non-Irish ladies. However said ladies seemed to be able to put away their pints of lager.
Anyway older gentleman disappeared in taxi with younger women but I don't know what it was all about.
Thats it
Thanks
Eamonn ...but I doubt you got this far ..
