This really is a new era of bridge, one that we wouldn't have imagined a year ago. While the convenience of online bridge has nurtured a lot of cross-state partnerships, recent face-to-face bridge congresses have been well supported by players who couldn't wait to travel again. 

The first face-to-face Congress organised by NSWBA will be the WITS Swiss Pairs on Sunday 25th April. This is a one-day congress, open to all, which will run alongside the Women's Interstate Teams Selection Final. That means at least some players who don't qualify to the Final are likely to join in the Sunday congress, so the number of entries will be more than what shows up on the list on the NSWBA website.

The first face-to-face NSWBA Monday Night Championship will start on the 26th April. The NSWBA State Mixed Pairs The first face-to-face NSWBA Monday Night Championship will start on the 26th April. The NSWBA State Mixed Pairs Direct Qualifier will be held over two Monday nights i.e. 26th April and 3rd May. Pairs finishing in the top sixth of the field will receive free entry to the Finals on 29th - 30th May. If you can't manage to play in the qualifying events, you can still enter directly to play in the Finals. 

Other upcoming F2F congresses:

• NSWBA WITS Swiss Pairs on ANZAC Sunday 25th April
• Trumps Bridge Centre Autumn Teams on 2nd May
• NSWBA SITS Swiss Pairs on 16th May

If you haven't visited the NSWBA clubrooms since the outbreak of Covid, you may be interested in this report about the Easter Monday Congress held in early April:

• SBC Easter Monday Matchpointed Swiss Pairs by Julian Foster

Every year NSWBA selects 4 teams (Open, Seniors, Women and Youth) to represent New South Wales in the Australian National Championships. This year the first two stages of the Open Interstate Teams Selection were run online on RealBridge, and the Final was held at the NSWBA clubrooms on 17th - 18th April. The top 3 pairs form the representative NSW Open Team. Congratulations to:
1st Warren Lazer - Pauline Gumby
2nd Kim Morrison - Avon Wilsmore
3rd Julian Foster - David Weston

At the national level, the Tasmanian Gold Swiss Pairs was the first F2F national congress, held over the period 9th - 11th April. NSW players did well in this event and more are going to the next F2F national congress, the Autumn Nationals in Adelaide from 29th April - 3rd May. Please enter via MyABF, the new online entry system.

For those who are going to Adelaide, please note that you will need to complete a Cross Border Travel Registration form. You will also need to download a different sign in app for contact tracing during your visit there.

If you're craving something more than interstate travel, the New Zealand Bridge Association invites you to consider the NZ National Bridge Congress at the end of September in Mt Maunganui/Tauranga.

For those who are tight for time, online Congresses continue to offer convenience:

• MasterBridge Online May Online Swiss Pairs on 1st May
• Coffs Harbour Bridge Club Online Swiss Pairs on 15th May