Hand from Wed Captains prize

Good morning folks

Last night I directed the Maura Carroll Captains prize in Malahide. 60 pairs showed up.
This morning while scanning through the boards for something interesting I spotted this hand and my first interest was how in the world a declarer managed to go down in this hand. I could not see it.

5H 2D 2C minimum on the Club Queen lead. So presume some kind of accident or revoke happened.

Not a big deal anyway whatever happened. Someone got a free top and someone suffered the pain of a bottom. I also noted the presence of a 1 diamond contract. Presumably another accident. 

However so anyone reading this is wondering whats the point. Is he outing Charles or is he on about the Pair 6 who played 1 diamond. 

Not at all I am intrigued as to how 26 North Souths can declare 3NT on a hand that myself and any of my bridge partners would drive into 4H all day everyday. Are we playing a different game than what they play in Malahide or am I missing something. Like if I am playing there with any of my old partners apart from Big Wallace its a nice pleasant 4H contract on a 5-3 fit making the 11 tricks and gathering in a fine score normally. 

Further examination notes the presence of several EIGHT OF CLUBS LEADS..

SEVEN FOLK led the EIGHT OF CLUBS from QJT8.

Now fair enough I get it ... 4th highest leads .. .but I presume the teacher forgot to tell them about leading from a sequence.. QJT8 ... most are leading Q to show where they are at.

In this case several folk make 460 ...by being awake enough to play the NINE of clubs in dummy. 

It was just a hand I spotted while having the cup of tea ..

For me and my old partners like Paul Delaney David Dunne or even the legendary bridge teacher Thomas MacCormac its 

1D 1H 2N 3S 4H or something similar.

For the players in the above event they will miss out on 5-3 HEART fits and 4-4 spade fits 

as they probably went 

1D 1H 3NT end 

Just a little hand but several stories for bridgeplayers. 

I am not sure how my new partner Andrew would bid the hand. 

I will go around later and ask him. 

We got 60% in the helpers night. Andrew kept us well away from the Billy Ronans and John Murrays and Paul Doyles and other Malahide luminaries. We got the bottle of wine and Andrew did 80% declarer play. On Tuesday he indicated ....the stats don't lie.... at least you did not carry me. 

Camrose Trophy 2018 and Donplayer upgrades to coach

Last weekend saw the rearranged Camrose Trophy at the CityNorth hotel. All went pretty good over the weekend. Good performances from Jim Mullally and Carol Sheridan kept the show on the road. Gilda Pender weighed in on Friday and Sunday. We also imported the always willing Sandy Millership and tireless Liz Scott. Paul Porteus CBAI CEO and match manager also put in several shifts as BBO operator. We also had Toss Magee from Ardee and Dermot O'Brien from Dublin South.
On the playing side the Irish team was hamstrung from the off as Tommy "Fidel" Garvey was unavailable so we were on a 5 man operation backboned by ironman 160 board performances from Thomas Hanlon and  John Carroll. After Rory Boland twisted his ankle outside Carlow  and two other team members suffered from unforeseen circumstances Ireland was struggling all weekend. Despite not firing on all cylinders Ireland put in a decent shift and the favourites England remained in sight until early in the final match.

Carol Sheridan an inter A player from Balbriggan and part of the Sheridan bridge dynasty operated on BBO for the whole weekend and indicated that the players in her room "play quite well"
Meanwhile Mairead Basquille tried to move a monument. She placed the Rex Anderson name in the North seat and Greenwood in South. Did not matter as Rex had played South for over 110 Camrose matches so was not going to change..... Not even the Great Mullall could move Rex into the North seat. "Okay call me Greenwood but I am sitting South"

All results can be found at The website of Fearghal O'Boyle

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Meanwhile Declan the Donplayer is now giving out coaching advice. "Eamon you need to start avoiding those 20% and lower boards. " "if you can manage that you will be able to look down on those good players Cashen and BJ O'Brien and that Mullally chap who sometimes comes to the club with you" ..Declan the Donplayer has played once in a bridge club and now he is handing out advice on how to play bridge.
This week he offered me a pint bet about whether I would break 67% or not. I accepted .. Then a few minutes later Declan the Donplayer finally slipped in the dog pooh by suggesting a further pint on me breaking 64%. I will win that pint in comfort. The 67% is tight but if the computer adds up the scores correctly I might just get over the line.

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Finally for this episode I have found a few more locals who are showing an interest in bridge much to my surprise. A group of local 20 somethings play a game called SWITCH and one of them indicated to me that their mother and grandmother are the best bridge players in Swords. So the plan is by Xmas this group are going to be able to play bridge with their Ma and Grandma as an Xmas present.

One of them came over the other night to ask about a bridge app for her phone. Then she said "Eamon you need to get the hair cut" .. I said I am going over to that hairdressers sometime this week pointing in the direction of the local hair place. She says " Wow I work there for the last 3 weeks ..come in on Thursday morning and I will be on the barber side and we will get it done.
So it is done now ...all over number 2 cut. The Paul Tranmer style.

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Tonight in Malahide Regional Bridge Club the semi final of the Kirwans League takes place. It started with 18 teams and was co-ordinated by Mary Kelly Rogers. Now there are 4 teams left in the final 4. Sheridan Timoney Newcomen and Terry. The team I ended up playing on Terry takes on Newcomen from Drogheda area tonight at 1930. There is little information available on the Newcomen team so I don't know who my opponents are or what their system is.

It might be Sean Newcomen and Christy Tierny and a player called Reid. All I can see on the website is after an uninspiring start they banked two 20-0 victories to score 51 of their 76 points in the last 3 matches so they have come into a rich vein of form. However the Conor O'Hara powered Terry team will not go out too easy one hopes.
Kirwans League Master section

Meanwhile in the 2nd semi final Sheridan takes on the Joe Coyne powered Timony team.
In the League match they only managed to play 12 boards despite having the 2 Marys organising according to my sources. So the result after 12 boards stood as per the rules. With the 16-4 result qualifying both teams to the semi finals I guess it was acceptable to both.