June 2008
The EBU Pay-to-Play Proposal
On 4-June the EBU held an Extraordinary General Meeting to vote on the proposal to change from a subscription organisation to one where membership was universal for affiliated clubs. That motion was carried by 52 votes to 31 with two abstentions.
Counties have varying numbers of votes according to size, Suffolk has two and these were cast in favour of the change. You can see how all the counties voted on the EBU website.
So that means there will be just one more year of collecting EBU (and county) subscriptions after this one. In April 2010, universal membership and Pay-to-Play will become a reality in England.
There is a timeline (page 25 of EBU strategy document) for the forthcoming changes to implement Pay-to-Play and the whole plan to revitalise bridge in England. For how this will affect an affiliated club, see the note on the Suffolk P2P pages.
Honour Roll for 2007-2008
At the AGM trophies were presented for the 2007-2008 season:
- AGM Pairs
- Pauline Hanson & Jeff Orton
- Married Pairs - Lang Cup
- Jane & Andrew Moore
- Senior Pairs - Stokes Trophy
- Andrew Moore & David Price
- Veterans' Prize
- Rosemarie Mascall & Norman Denny
- Ladies Pairs - Ladies Bowl
- Barbara Barker & Glynne Whitehead
- Men's Pairs - John Gudge Trophy
- Alan Green & Roger Tattersfield
- Club Championship - Abbeygate Shield
- Ipswich
- Suffolk Championship Teams - Jim Pettit Cup
- Michael Sherer, Eric Newman, Rick Hanley & Bill Tweddell
- The Plate
- Helen Mason, Norman Less, Chris Chambers & Jim Gobert
- Mid Anglia - Mid Anglia Rose Bowl
- Rosemarie Mascall & Norman Denny
- Suffolk Singles - Waters Cup
- Jyl Marsh
- Club Teams of Four - Thornaway Cup
- Julian Lang, David Morran, Bill Wilson & Hans Ehrlich
- Suffolk Championship Pairs - Alexander Cup
- Peter Gemmell & Peter Sutcliffe
- Pivot Teams - Ida Frost Bowl
- Debby & Peter Sutcliffe, Chris Chambers & Roger Marriott
- Mixed Pairs - Ringer Cup
- Elaine & Alan Green
- Novice Pairs
- Lynne Hall & Betty Roberts
- Summer League
- Ipswich
- Newcomers' Pairs
- Sonia Allfrey (with David Morran)
- Winter League - Premier Division
- Bill Tweddell, Rick Hanley, Eric Newman & Mike Sherer
- Winter League - Second Division
- Joan Mayhew, Judy Birley, Anne Wilmer & Caroline Gemmell
- Winter League - East Division
- Bogdan Talaga, Mike Free Stone, Jaroslaw Grochowski, Piotr Chwalewski & Raymond Wright
- Winter League - West Division
- Norman Less, Denis Carter, Helen Mason & David Mathews
Bridge in the Cupboard
This month's hero is that Chinese legend, Sun-Tzu, his master work, The Art of War these days cited by both management gurus and sports' psychologists alike. Read Mike Chanter's take on martial tactics: Sun-Tzu, the nine of Clubs.
EBU Club Focus
The third edition of Club Focus, the EBU bi-monthly email to clubs, is available as a download. Past issues are on the EBU website. The SCBA passes Club Focus to club secretaries so it may already have graced your notice board.
Forthcoming Events
Married Pairs
Tuesday 1st July 2008, 7:15pm at Stoke by Nayland Golf Club. A one session pairs event for, naturally, married pairs only, entry for which is £6.00 per person. Entries to SCBA tournament secretary .
Seniors Pairs
Wednesday 16th July 2008, 7:15pm at Clare Bridge Club. A one session pairs event, entry for which is £6.00 per person. A senior is any player is over 55 years of age on the day. There will also be a Veterans' Prize to the highest pair (not the winners) where both players are over 70 years of age. Entries to SCBA tournament secretary .
Results
Clare Swiss Pairs 2008
A fine afternoon in May saw a closely contested Swiss Pairs.
| 1. | Jonathan Taylor / Stephen Goodwin | 85 VP |
| 2. | Chris Chambers / Julian Lang | 84 |
| 3. | Norman Denny / Rosemarie Mascall | 81 |
Full results are on the website.
AGM Pairs 2008
The 2008-2009 season got under way immediately after the AGM with the annual pairs, Pauline Hanson retaining the title with a different partner.
| 1. | Con & Pauline Hanson | 60.65% |
| 2. | Anne Wilmer / Judy Birley | 59.92% |
| 3. | Claude Stokes / Norman Less | 59.13% |
Full results are on the website.
Suffolk Mixed Pairs 2008
The top seven places were secured by married pairs in this, the mixed, belying any negative stereotypes.
| 1. | Andrew & Jane Moore | 64.91% |
| 2. | Con & Pauline Hanson | 62.33% |
| 3. | Malcolm & Barbara Carey | 60.92% |
Full results are on the website.
Suffolk v Cambs & Hunts
Suffolk took on Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire on 8-June. The 'A' team had a fine result, including a 63 IMP whitewash in the third quarter which sealed the match, but the second and third teams struggled with many experienced partnerships disrupted by the start of the holiday season.
'A' Team won 20-0 VPs (+95 IMPs), 'B' Team lost 3-17 VPs (-54 IMPs) and the 'C' Team lost 7-13 VPs (-18 IMPs)