I was very sad to learn last week that Dinah Caplan has died. She was 90, and had been a hugely popular and respected player on the bridge circuit for as long as any of us can remember. But more than that, she was an inspiration to anyone who worries that they’ve left it too late to make their mark. Having joined her family’s clothing business at just 15, she juggled the demands of a job and motherhood for much of her life, and it wasn’t until 2011 that she decided to get more serious about bridge. She entered the England women’s trials (with Lizzie Godfrey), ended up winning, and at the age of 78 made her international debut – surely one for the record books. As it happens, I was also on the Lady Milne team that year, and I’ll never forget what a supportive and calming presence she was. We ended up tying for first place with Scotland – another first in the history of the Lady Milne.

After that, far from resting on her laurels, she achieved success in many more tournaments; perhaps her greatest triumph was winning the Portland Pairs with Michael Byrne at the age of 87. Here, Dinah showed just how sharp she still was:

West led the ♥K followed by a low heart to East’s ace. Back came a low club. Is it a pure guess? No. Dinah realised that for the contract to make, West had to hold the ◆K. The lead had already revealed 5 of West’s points (the ♥KQ). If he held the ♣A too, that would bring his total to 12 – and he would have opened the bidding. So she hopped up with the ♣K, drew trumps, took the diamond finesse twice, discarded the ♣J on the ◆A – and made a precious overtrick.

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