Bridge - bid and play techniques, with prepared hands.
   Quizzes, crib sheets, opening leads

<= find/hide more deals exploiting this aspect

Signals & discards. After partner's lead

Show attitude ("I like the suit", or "I don't")

So it's different from when the declarer leads a new suit.

But a 'partner new-suit lead' happens much less often. Whenever a suit is led for the first time, it's most often by declarer, assuming declarer wins the 9 tricks in his typical contract.

However, there's always at least once per contract when defender always does have to lead a new suit: on the blind opening lead.

When it does happen that partner leads a new suit for the first time, it's best to tell partner about your Attitude, not about your shape / Count

• if you like the suit, (and you want your partner to keep leading it), send a 'like' signal
• if you don't like the suit, (and you don't want partner to keep leading it), send a 'no-likey' signal!

Consider this example: partner leads Ace, thereby promising you the K too. You can encourage him to lead them again, or to avoid Hearts, by playing little cards as follows:

1202. 'Attitude' after an Ace opening lead from partner
ref	your cards	like or not	using 'HELD'	using 'LLHH'
1	Q 10 4	like	10	4
2	J 4	like	J	4
3	J 8 3	don't like	3	8
Add to your customised cribsheet

With holding number 1, after leading his Ace, partner will notice your encouraging signal and then, after leading his King, will lead a third Heart so that you can hopefully win the third trick with the Queen.

Similarly, in the second example, after leading his Ace, partner will notice your encouragement and then, after leading his King, will lead another Heart so that you can win the third trick by ruffing.

In the third case, being observant of the no-likey signal that you chose to send after his first lead, your partner will not rely on you to win the third heart trick, and will probably switch to another suit for his second trick, holding back the King for killing enemy Queens in declarer's hand. Then, when you eventually get the lead, you have 2 cards left and you might for example lead your J ....

Note: In table 1202 above, there are two different 'attitude' languages for revealing your attitude, one called HELD (High Encourage, Low Discourage), the other LLHH (Low Like, High Hate).

The exceptions after partner's lead

For more advanced players

For those who are newcomers to using signals, don't read this section! You've got enough to think about.

More advanced players don't always tell their partner whether or not they like the suit that's been led. The main reason is your attitude is clear:

1. If partner leads into a clearly strong and winning dummy suit (e.g. AKQ), there's no point telling him whether you like the suit or not, 'cos it's obvious you don't like them. In that case he'll expect you to give 'Count', telling him about your shape, to help him work out possible ruffs and long suits.
2. If partner leads a low card into a weak-ish dummy, and you can't win it, then it's again clear you don't like the suit. At this point give 'Count' to help your partner work out how many cards the declarer must have in the suit. See deal 126254 for example.
3. Partner leads a suit which has a singleton in dummy. Obviously, all future leads of that suit will tend to get ruffed, so no point telling him if you like them or not. Assuming he's played a winner, he'll expect you to tell him which of the other two non-trump suits you'd like to be led to you: a 'high' little card (7, 8 or 9) for the higher ranking suit. ('suit preference'). See deal 126253 for example.
4. Similar: Partner leads a winner (let's say a K) in the suit you'd bid, and your team has three top tricks in the suit. If you play an unnecessarily high card (an honour), your partner will not take it has 'attitude' or 'count' but instead will take it as a clear 'suit preference' signal, requesting the suit he should attack on his next lead. Especially true if there is a likely shortage with declarer/dummy in the suit that was led. See deal 126262 for example.
5. Similar: Partner leads an Ace to a singleton in hidden declarer's hand (the bidding will tell you it's a singleton). Again, all future leads of that suit will tend to get ruffed, so no point telling him if you like them or not. He'll expect you to tell him which of the other two non-trump suits you'd like to be led to you: a 'high' little card (7, 8 or 9) for the higher ranking suit. ('suit preference') See deal 126257 for example.
6. Similar: Partner leads a winner in the suit you'd bid, and you're team has three top tricks in the suit. If you play an unnecessarily high card (an honour), your partner will take it as a suit preference, especially if there is a likely shortage with declarer/dummy.
7. "King led, so Kount". This exception doesn't crop up too much, though some more advanced players do use it:
   When your partner leads a King, it's either because he has touching honours, the KQx... OR because he has just 2 cards (the AK only).
   In either case he's not very interested in whether you like the suit or not.
   1. If he's got the Ace-King doubleton, then he can't ever lead it again! No interest in your 'attitude'.
   2. But this reversing of the King/Queen order is very useful, since you will now know that he's got a void, which might enable ruffing.
      So when the opening lead of King was led - although you could have given attitude as usual, but when it held the trick and was followed by the Ace lead, some people would have preferred to have given 'suit preference', telling partner what to lead next.
      Thus a 'Count' or 'suit preference' signal might be more useful than 'like/dislike', just so long as you AGREE what to give after an opening lead of a King.
   3. If it was a lead from a KQx... suit, and so the enemy have the Ace, they'll win the trick, and - just maybe - partner will eventually get a chance to make the Queen, depending on Declarer/Dummy's length. At that point, in the rare event of a perfectly flat 4333 suit distribution with nobody ruffing, you might want to give attitude ('like' if you have the Jack to win the third trick in the suit), or perhaps you'll be leading the suit to him, so that his Queen can kill the enemy Jack.... Again, maybe shape from 'count' is more useful for larger brains/ more advanced players.

Now try the quiz

Can you put all this into action ? Try the quiz for this subject by clicking on the link at the top left of the page, just below the main menu.
(You can try quizzes for any other subjects too while you're there. Look out for the thin red line).