Ireland (Open) misses out on qualification for 2nd round

Dear Bridge Players,

I’ve been remarkably quite during the first 19 preliminary rounds of the European Championships in Pau for the simple reason that I was waiting for a point of inflection in Ireland’s performance – where we started to glide into the qualification comfort zone.

But the reality was that the Irish campaign never kick started. Now that we are out, there is a real sence of loss – but thankfully this low does not match the high we had 2 years ago when they snatched Silver in Warsaw.

The question is where did it all go wrong? Well I doubt the team will want to respond now (or ever) because one thing is sure … they are hurting.

However, its important to remember that they are still a great team and we’ll see all their names in lights again. Make no mistake, this is a big surprise both for us Irish and globally … the proof is that the betting (on Betfair.com) heavily suggested a top 6 finish.

With a little luck I’ll get the thoughts of Jacko in good time.

Rueful Rabbit