057517104 An efficient connection technique maximizes the rate at which data are transferred among source and destination network cards of a distributed network switch. Such maximum data rates are achieved by interconnecting the network cards through a mesh backplane comprising a novel arrangement of direct and indirect paths between the cards and thereafter transferring the data over those paths. In accordance with the invention, the indirect data path utilizes an additional network card of the switch as a 2-hop relay to provide transfer rate efficiency between the source and destination cards.