Congratulations to everyone!  That was a fantastic win and a solid team performance.

I've been saying to everyone "be aggressive, be aggressive"...  and tonight we certainly were, which produced this score:

248 to 100 IMPs
18.42 to 1.58 VPs

Looks as if Division 1 isn't scary after all, then!

Click here to play through the hands.

Cross-IMPs

Finn Clark & Stuart Forsyth (Blewbury) = +2.31 IMPs
Ian Van Maanen & Mike Allen (Blewbury) = +1.75 IMPs
Dermot Paddon & Nigel Carter (Blewbury) = +0.31 IMPs
Peter Randall & Liza Furnival (Oxford B) = -0.11 IMPs
Hilary Strang & Shirley Moore (Blewbury) = -0.25 IMPs
Keith Terrell & Peter Briggs (Oxford B) = -0.86 IMPs
Ronald John Gould & Cyril Berkeley (Oxford B) = -1.19 IMPs
Hugo Huggett & Simon Harrison (Oxford B) = -1.94 IMPs

Board 1 = +8 IMPs

Lively auctions at all four tables.  Crucially, N-S was never allowed to settle in the last making contract, 3♦, and so all declarers went off.  One E-W stole the hand in 3♥-1 (which might look bad on the traveller but is still a better score than letting North make 3♦), while all other tables saw North-South buy the contract and not enjoy it.

Board 2 = +10 IMPs

The biggest score was Oxford's +550 for making 5♦ doubled, but the funniest result was against me and Stuart.  South opened a 12-14 1NT and I doubled with my massive diamond suit.  North bid 2♦ (alerted as a transfer to hearts), but South didn't get the message and passed.  I thus found myself defending a vulnerable 2♦ with a trump holding of AKJ109872.

This feels like some kind of record.

Shirley and Hilary also scored well.  Their opponents bid 4♥ (vulnerable) and Hilary doubled with ♠ AK1095 ♥ 87642 ♦ 6 ♣ 93.  Result: +500.

Board 3 = +10 IMPs

I can't explain North-South's bidding at our table.  South opened 1♣, I made an unremarkable 1♥ overcall as West and was allowed to play there for a placid +80.  (South's final pass seems conservative, while North had the option of either raising clubs or bidding a natural, constructive 1NT.  He has eight very respectable points and a double stop in my suit.)

The normal contract elsewhere was 3♣ for +110 to North-South.

Board 4 = +2 IMPs

East-West can make eleven tricks in clubs, spades or no-trumps.

Board 5 = +13 IMPs

It's interesting that this hand was never thrown in.  I opened 1♥ in the pass-out seat with an 11-count including a singleton queen...  but I have a good suit and both majors.  At this level, expect everyone to do that.

Ian and Mike were the only pair to make a contract here (2NT when the computer says seven tricks is theoretically the limit), with all other declarers going off.  Oxford overreached against Dermot and Nigel, reaching 3NT on two eleven-counts with no fit.  Against us, North-South stuck in their oar and Stuart started doubling.  I failed to double the final contract of 2♠, which Stuart thinks was a failure of nerve.  It would have turned +300 into +800.

Board 6 = +40 IMPs

A vulnerable 4♠ made twice by Blewbury (Stuart and Shirley), despite holding only 12 points opposite 7.  The auction was easy for Stuart and me given our five-card major system (I jumped straight there after the opponents' Unusual 2NT), but well done to Hilary and Shirley for finding it.

Elsewhere, Dermot and Nigel stole the hand in 4♥x-2, while Ian and Mike managed to defeat 4♠.

Board 7 = flat

4♠+1 by the entire world.  Even the double-dummy computer agrees.

Board 8 = +15 IMPs

One Oxford North-South stopped in 3♦ and was punished for it by the scorecard.  Everyone else bid 3NT and succeeded, with Stuart making two overtricks.  South holds ♠ KJ10 ♥ KJ10 ♦ K97543 ♣ 4 and North's opened a 12-14 1NT.  The two reasons to bid 3NT are (a) you might make it by force, holding 11 perfectly good points with reinforcing tens in both majors, and (b) you have a source of potential tricks in diamonds if North has something to help, which he does.

Board 9 = +25 IMPs

Ian and Mike scored +160 in 1♠x by East, after a slightly aggressive 1♠ opening bid from Ian that I completely support.  (South's double looks okay to me, but North's pass deserves everything it got.  A five-card suit to the nine hardly suggests a search for blood at the one level.  You have no attractive alternative, admittedly, but another North with the same problem bid 2♥ and made it despite playing a 3-3 trump fit.)

Stuart takes the prize on this hand, though.  He opened 1♠ as dealer on favourable vulnerability on ♠ 98754 ♥ K73 ♦ A105 ♣ Q5, then accepted the push to 3NT after I'd game-forced with my 13-count...  and made his impossible contract with an overtrick.  Amazing.  The defence could have done better, but understandably they played on the assumption that Stuart didn't hold his actual hand.

Board 10 = -3 IMPs

East-West have spades and North-South have hearts.  Not much in it.  North-South can make 4♥ if they bid it, but only because everything's right.  Swap the East-West hands and even 2♥ fails.

Board 11 = -33 IMPs

One of only two double-figure minus scores for Blewbury.  Oxford made two 4♥ contracts by East-West, while Blewbury's contracts with the same cards were 4♥-1 and 2♥+3.  We're just lucky we weren't vulnerable.

It's not a comfortable hand for declarer, though.  You have guesses to make, with a two-way spade finesse, an unsupported diamond king sitting under the ace and a king-or-jack guess in clubs.  I have sympathy for Nigel...  but there's an indication in favour of the winning line (i.e. playing North for all the important high cards).  North had opened 1♦, with the defence only holding 16 points between them.

Board 12 = +4 IMPs

3♥ was a popular but unsuccessful contract for North-South, with the most dramatic result being 3♥-5 vulnerable against Nigel and Dermot.  I can't explain why Ian and Mike were left in 1♦ as East-West...  it would have been a massive duplicate top for North-South, but it still looks anti-percentage to me.  You can add a king in the protective seat when wondering whether or not to pass out a hand, so on that basis South effectively has a 14-count with a five-card spade suit.

Board 13 = -2 IMPs

4♠ everywhere by West.

Board 14 = -8 IMPs

East-West can make 4♠, but no one found it.  East has ♠ K762 ♥  A53 ♦ A106 ♣ Q43 and West has ♠ A109843 ♥ 87 ♦ 95 ♣ A92.  Game is thin, yes, but you'll be lucky because the club king is onside.  At our table, I think our opponents should have bid 1NT (12-14) 2♥ (transfer) 3♠ (breaking the transfer even with a minimum, because you hold king to four of partner's suit and two aces) 4♠ (what the hell, given the sixth spade and the same "aces are punchy" reasoning).  Stuart and I muddied the waters slightly by competing to 3♥, but that shouldn't have stopped them.

Board 15 = -2 IMPs

South can make a comfortable part-score in either no-trumps or spades, with 10 points opposite 12.

Board 16 = +42 IMPs

A double game swing and Blewbury's biggest score of the match.  Both sides can make game.

At our table, Stuart opened 1♣ with ♠ A72 ♥ 2 ♦ 75 ♣ AQ107654, which I think everyone would agree looks unimpeachable despite only being a ten-count.  West overcalled 3♥, alerted as "10-12 with 6+ hearts", and I bid 3NT with ♠ J94 ♥ A4 ♦ A8642 ♣ K32.  I didn't like it with such a thin heart stop, but I liked the alternatives even less.  Ten tricks then rolled in, with seven clubs and three aces.

The question is whether our West should have competed to the unbeatable 4♥ on his grotty six-count.  Personally, I think "no".  The 3♥ overcall had been a flat-out lie and East's hand was a lot better than promised.

Blewbury's other results were an enormous +790 from 4♥x (Ian and Mike), a well-judged -50 from 5♣-1 (Nigel and Dermot) and an even better +100 from 5♥-1 (Shirley and Hilary).

Board 17 = +13 IMPs

3NT by East-West everywhere, except at our table.  I made a somewhat frivolous opening bid, Stuart doubled the opponents' eventual 3NT contract and they believed us, running to 4♣+1.

What's interesting, though, is that Stuart's double was absolutely right and 3NT is technically unmakeable.  Stuart would have led my diamonds, seen from dummy that we had no future there and made a desperation switch to hearts on getting in with the club ace.  This strikes gold and the defence take four heart tricks.

Board 18 = +8 IMPs

A good hand for the strong 1NT.  Easts who opened a 15-17 1NT bought the contract, whereas opening a minor lets South overcall 1S and North has more than enough for a raise to two.

Board 19 = -2 IMPs

North-South can make game in either major.  3NT is unmakeable according to the computer, but the defence need to lead a club to beat it.  In practice, all declarers made their contracts.

Board 20 = +20 IMPs

"Looks fairly flat" was my reaction to the traveller...  but no, it's +20 IMPs to Blewbury, despite all the contracts being at the one or two level and all either making or going at most one off.  N-S and E-W both made 1NT, in one case doubled.  Hilary and Shirley bid and made 2♠ as East-West, while Stuart and I took +200 from 2♣x-1.  (My double was low-risk because I'm not doubling them into game, and because partner's doubled 1NT and I have AQ6 of trumps.)

Board 21 = +18 IMPs

Ian and Mike bid a triumphant 4♠, with all other tables languishing in 2♠+2 or 2♠+3.  Excellent bidding.  Ian opens a 12-14 1NT and Mike holds ♠ Q109872 ♥ KQ742 ♦ 10 ♣ 4.  It's only seven points, yes, but look at that shape.  6511, with quite nice suits.  Game is a bit of a gamble, but you're vulnerable and you don't need much help from partner.

Board 22 = +20 IMPs

...and the same again!  Once more, Ian and Mike were the only pair in 4♠.

(At our table, I opened a tactical 1♦ as West, North made an uninformative 3♠ overcall and we ended up being allowed to play a quiet 4♦-1.)

Board 23 = -50 IMPs

Blewbury's worst board...  but no one did anything wrong.  It's just one of those things.  Oxford's successful 3NT+2 contracts came after a heart overcall by South that drew a fatal heart lead from North.  I agree with both the overcall and the opening lead.  They're both the right decision, given what's in front of you.  Sometimes, the correct play is unlucky!

At our table, Stuart and I bid an unopposed 1NT 3NT and the defence led a spade, taking the first seven tricks.

The other table was a quiet +100 from Hilary and Shirley, defending 3♠-1.  Which is understandable once the defence have bid spades.

Board 24 = flat

3NT+2 by everyone.  No one attempted the impossible slam.

And there we have it!  For now, we're now top of the table in Division 1, although no promises as to how long we'll stay there.  The next scheduled game is in December (with one still to organise), so we probably have a break until then.

Congratulations again!