27/8 The round-robin phase of the championships ended today, and Ireland won both their final matches, to finish in thirteenth place with a record of ten wins, one draw, and twelve defeats. It was always a big challenge to make the playoffs, in a field crowded with teams of full-time bridge professionals, and mid-table is a very respectable finish for the Irish team. We congratulate Adam, Hugh, John, Mark, Tom, Tommy, NPC Gráinne, and Coach Nick on qualifying (for only the second time in our history) and thank them for the hard work they have put in, and the interest and excitement (and the odd frustrating moment!) that they have provided for us over the past eight days.
The eight qualifiers, in ranking order, are Norway, Switzerland, USA2, Poland, Israel, Italy, China, and USA1, with current European Champions the Netherlands just missing out. In an exciting finish, the final few matches saw quite a few changes in the standings, with USA1, China, and especially USA2 (the team with Zia and Meckstroth among it members) climbing the table – none of the three had been in the qualification spots with five matches to go.
26/8 Yesterday saw wins over China and hosts Morocco sandwiching a heavy loss to high-flying Poland, leaving Ireland in thirteenth place, and effectively ending our chances of qualification for the playoffs. Today we have matches against USA1, current leaders Norway, and New Zealand, with the round-robin concluding on Sunday with matches against the Netherlands and Canada. Even though we are now out of contention for the playoffs, the penultimate match may still have a lot riding on it for our opponents. The Netherlands were one of the fancied teams coming into the competition, but currently find themselves “on the bubble” competing in a tight race for one of the final playoff spots.
25/8 A mixed day yesterday, but the ultimate feeling will probably be one of disappointment for the Irish team. They started with a good win over Panama, then led Italy with two boards to go, but ended up losing, and then lost to Hong Kong China, a team towards the bottom of the rankings. We are now in twelfth place, so not far off the playoff spots, but a bit of a gap is beginning to open, and we have some tough matches left to play. Today sees us take on China, Poland, and finally hosts Morocco. Then three matches on Saturday, two on Sunday, and the eight playoff finalists will be decided. Fingers crossed for a good finish!
24/8 A tough day for the Irish team yesterday. They led at one point in each of their three matches, but emerged with two defeats and a draw, leaving them in 13th place in the standings. Today’s matches are against Panama, Italy (which will be shown on BBO Vu-graph from 13:15), and Hong Kong China.
23/8 A good day yesterday with two wins from three matches saw Ireland climb back to eighth place – the last of the playoff spots. As the back-end of their schedule is pretty tough, however, they will need to keep the pedal to the floor. Today sees matches against Belgium, Israel, and South Africa. The Israel match will be on BBO Vu-graph, shortly after the 13:15 start.
22/8 A tougher day yesterday for Ireland, with a solid win over Singapore being followed by defeats to Australia and tournament favourites Switzerland, leaving us in the middle of the field overall. The defeat to the highly-fancied Swiss will be particularly frustrating, as we were level-pegging throughout the match, only for a couple of late reverses to swing the match the way of the Swiss. Today sees a South American tour to start, with matches against Brazil and Chile, followed by an encounter with India.
21/8 Solid start by the Irish team, with two wins from three matches on Day 1 leaving them in eighth place – the final qualifying spot for the knockout stages, but still a long way to go. Today’s matches are against Singapore, Australia, and tournament favourites Switzerland – the “Zimmermann team” made up of relocated Dutch and Polish players plus the sponsor himself. This last match, which starts at 15:50, will be broadcast on BBO Vu-graph with a short security delay – the first opportunity to watch our team in action.
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This weekend sees the start of the 46th World Bridge Teams Championship in Marrakech, Morocco, and we are sure you will all join us in wishing the Irish team the very best of luck.
We have an experienced and well-regarded squad representing us (John Carroll, Tommy Garvey, Tom Hanlon, Hugh McGann, Adam Mesbur, and Mark Moran, with NPC Gráinne Barton, and Coach Nick FitzGibbon) and they have been preparing diligently for this event for some time. The competition will be extremely tough, with several teams made up entirely of full-time bridge professionals, and the schedule will be intense – an eight-day round-robin of three matches per day to qualify the top eight teams for a knockout phase … and all in sweltering conditions of 40 degree heat! The tournament starts on Sunday 20 August, and matches will take place at 10:00, 13:15, and 15:50 every day (Morocco is in the same time-zone as Ireland). Our first match is against Asia/Middle East representatives the UAE, followed by a marquee matchup against USA2, a team including such well-known personalities as Zia Mahmood, Bob Hamman, and Jeff Meckstroth, all multiple world champions. African representatives Egypt round out the first day’s opponents.
You’ll be able to follow the results and read a daily bulletin on the tournament here, and matches will feature every day on BBO vu-graph. We’ll also be posting regularly on the CBAI’s Twitter and Facebook accounts – hopefully with good news. The very best of luck to the team!
And we shouldn’t let the moment pass without noting a very good Irish performance in last weekend’s English Bridge Union Eastbourne Congress, where Maria Whelan & John Noonan came third in the prestigious Harold Poster Swiss Pairs in a very strong field of no fewer than 130 pairs. Well done Maria and John!