30th January

Again no game for the Lemmings but Nick and Sunil sat through most of the Specialist questions – quite difficult.

Main reason for posting is to offer a forum for anyone who wishes to comment.

Also see Brian’s comment on 16th January asking that anonymous comments be disallowed – I am in agreement with this – no need to be intrusive but some indication of which team you play for and perhaps initials or first name should be shown is all that should be required – permissions have been change please let us know if there is a problem

23rd January Cup/Plate Semi Finals

Although the Lemmings had already been eliminated from the knockout competitions they were called upon to provide one question master and Nick was fortunate to preside at the Waters Green Tavern for the game between the Rams and the Sutton Mutton. He was also very lucky to have Becky come along to see her first knockout game and more importantly to watch over his clumsy attempts to fill in the scoresheet.
An unexpected pleasure was to see Adum again still on crutches and in plaster but this time with a festive sock to keep his toes warm.
From the chair it did seem that the questions were very imbalanced and it will be interesting to see comments by some of the other players below. Nevertheless both teams played with good humour and the Rams now move on to the the semifinals although the Sutton Mutton played a spirited game particularly as they were having to play with only three following a team member's sudden admission to see a consultant.

The Tavern’s ale kept everyone (especially Nick) refreshed and the evening was rounded off with a wide selection of sandwiches – thanks to Brian and to the two teams for making the question master’s job an easy one.

16th January–The Royal Oak–No Hiding Place

The Lemmings ventured over the border into Staffordshire for the first game of the second half of the League. The Royal Oak has seen some difficult times fairly recently when owned by Marstons but the community and some businesses set up a cooperative and purchased it. It is now a very friendly community pub where dogs and muddy boots are welcome, with an extensive menu and a lively local life – indeed when the Lemmings walked in they came across another quiz taking place! Very friendly staff, decent beers and a warm welcome have completely turned around the fortunes of this real local pub – well done the landlord and the village.

It seems that vetting the questions was something of a problem particularly the specialist rounds where one challenge was rebuffed with the statement that it was not going to change by executive decision, a phrase probably unknown in the Quiz League before!! Once again despite repeated requests the lazy collective noun question raised its head, this time for crocodiles; and a question about braille was simply wrong and the Lemmings were the wrong team to ask (see blog below for 12th December) – all six dots represent the group for.

At the end of the Specialist the Lemmings had crept ahead with a slender lead of 50 to 47 and were feeling fairly buoyant – but it was misplaced and the home team beat the Lemmings with 80 to 74 taking the game with three points 127 to 124. So unlike Charles II There was no escape for the Lemmngs.

Individual scores were Bob 9/9, Sunil 6/12, Nick 6/12 and Tomo once again breaking the 30 barrier with 9/24; conferred points were 14/10 with 6/7 pass-overs whilst the home team collected 6/13 pass-overs.

It was a most enjoyable evening with Dave the question master controlling proceedings with a light touch rounded off with a fine selection of sandwiches and salad. Many thanks to the home team, to Dave and with very best wishes to the landlord and his team.

The Lemmings now have no game for two weeks that will be spent in silent contemplation and introspection before appearing like Athene fully armed from the head of the god of quizzing (whoever he might be!!!!)

9th January - THE HALFWAY STAGE

The halfway stage and the local derby between the Lemmings and the Rams on the home turf in the Waters Green Tavern. The Rams currently vying for first place with the Nags Head (who have set tonight’s GK questions) with a game in hand. Becky was playing to bring the team to full strength and soon made a name for herself as the team’s number one guesser.

The last blog mentioned Adum’s fall at the Harrington Arms and he turned out for the Rams this time with his leg encased in plaster after having two plates screwed into his leg – it was a much more serious fall than had been realised – and testimony to Adum’s devotion to the quiz.

The Specialist rounds had been set by the Prince of Wales and whilst there was a lot of meat in the range of questions it was not felt that they were well presented, reflected in the generally low scores by the Lemmings. They started off well with questions about Cheshire celebrities but the standard was not held and there was a narrow escape for an armadillo question with one about how to score more than 147 in snooker – the answer took about 10 minutes to read out but as it was a supplementary we felt it did not qualify. Also one question was thrown out by both teams as it required the answer peat to a type of coal – a supplementary was used instead.

At the end of the Specialist rounds the Rams were a nose ahead with 47 to 42 – not too much to worry about.

General Knowledge were much better balanced and spread but the Lemmings failed to make up the deficit and in fact lost the rounds by 68 to 65 making a final total 115 to 107.

Special mention must be made of Andy Johnson who as question master controlled the game with humour spiced with anecdotes about the vetting process.

individual scores were Bob 12/6, Becky 3/0, Nick 0/18, Tomo 6/9 with conferred 13/20 and 8/12 pass-overs. The Rams collected 2/9 pass-overs.

The game ended with a generous spread on the cheeseboard with baguettes, biscuits and celery with two excellent chutneys and the spirits of the Lemmings had been held up by the superb Ossett beer Nelson Sauvin (New Zealand hop) with Becky opting for the slightly melon-flavoured offering from Mallisons. Thank you Brian for a wonderful spread, Andy for making defeat a pleasurable experience and the Rams for a lively and enjoyable evening.