Results & Match Reports

• X-Pats lost at home to the 50s throwbacks that are Opsimaths

• St Caths notched a cool half century to beat Stumped and stay second in the table

• History Men keep St Caths company in second slot after beating the Electric Pigs

• Snoopy's Friends cruised past the Brains of Oak down at the Copper's Retreat

• Albert Park went down again at home to Albert

Quiz Paper Verdict

We seem to be on a good run at present.  This week's setters, Ethel Rodin, came up with another popular paper - high scores and a high enjoyment factor all round.  The '50s Nostalgia' round proved particularly popular with the Opsimaths who find it hard to recall much that has happened since (apologies to the 40 year old quiz league brat pack, but grey is the new black as far as I'm concerned).  Only slight gripes were: a whole round on Roman town names, and the 'what was in the paper that happened to be lying around when I'd run out of questions' round.  Great to hear that Cassandra Mirror quote once again (Round 6 Q5 - I gather from Roz that JFK was the answer proffered to this one at the Snoopy's/Brains contest).   And a special thanks from me to John T (for it must have been he) for serving a couple of Crossword questions straight into my lap (latest information suggests Barry Whitehead as the cruciverbal source rather than John - Ed).

For more debate and comment on question paper styles go to the 'perfect quiz paper' page.  Do email me if you have some thoughts of your own on this subject that you would like to add to the page.

The average aggregate score this week was 76.8.  Roz noted that only 6 questions went unanswered at the Snoopy's/Brains match - and, on reflection, this seems a pretty good way of measuring an evening's quizzing.  Actual aggregates around the games varied from 71 (Pigs/History Men) to 81 (St Caths/ Stumped).

The Question of the Week

By general consent at the Sun in September the 'Question of the Week' award went to Round 5 Q1:

The Italian zampogna, the French cabrette and the Spanish gaita are all types of which musical instrument?

(to see the answer to this and all the other questions click here.)

Chatterbox

Thursdays?

You may recall that we had a vote at the end of last season on changing from Wednesday to Thursday evenings as our regular match day.  It was a close run thing but Wednesdays just won the vote.  Chatting to the teams at the Oak this week there was a feeling that the groundswell for Thursdays has increased and that we need to have another vote.  I don't see us changing in mid league season but how about changing to Thursdays as an experiment for the cup matches (especially if there is local interest in the later stages of the European Champions Cup)?  Can we use the website as a sounding board for this issue?  I'll publish any feedback I get.

Feedback 1:

St Caths and X-Pats discussed this issue after their recent match and were firmly in favour of sticking to Wednesdays.

Feedback 2:

Copland has come back saying that Stumped also vote strongly against switching to Thursdays.

Feedback 3:

Mary O'Brien (Albert) favours keeping to Wednesday - at least until we've had a chance to debate the issue again at this season's gala night.

Refurbishment at the Red

A warning for the coming weeks:  we believe the Red Lion will be closed for refurbishment during the last week in March and the first week in April.  The Historymen and Ethel Rodin will need to make some alternative arrangements and we will have to fix an alternative pick-up point for the questions.  The Fletcher Moss has been suggested as a pick-up point.  Anyhow, Gary D is on the case and will advise all concerned shortly.

Fr Megson

Eine Kleine Weldkrieg

Fr. Megson writes this surrounded by Post Office engineers and hot-rodding electricians of the non-intelligent porcine variety.  They have told him to spend no longer than 5 minutes on the computer otherwise they will weld him onto the keyboard and then go on an extended lunch hour.  He tends to be unwilling to call their bluff so please read this as quickly as you can.

"Just to say we got to play at Snoopy Dog's new venue last Wednesday and very nice it is too.  A bit like Guantanimo Bay on the outside but more like La Manga inside.  We were cordially welcomed by the local Il Capo, Tony Cassandra and his exclusively female entourage who served us drinks and then proceeded to encase our feet in concrete and throw us off the deep end thus ensuring that we spend eternity at the bottom of the league - or thereabouts.  We didn't mind though because they apologised and said it was nothing personal.  It was just something they tried to do to all their guests.

"One slight quibble about this new venue - or two, if you count having a room named after James Anderton -  sorry but the beer is appalling especially the current guest beer which is called something and Spank.  Fortunately Fr. M. hasn't got time to think of a rhyming word to describe the taste.  Our new transfer window signing John Dennis-the-menace-son was carried off injured after one sip and, like Barry last week, his long term prognosis is not looking good.  Still, he's only a young lad with a mere handful of games and a very frisky ferret under his belt and I'm sure he'll come bouncing back from the Gents any day now.

"Gotta go now 'cos they've just soldered my tongue to the screensaver............ I wonder what they're going to do with that blowlamp under my chair.....................................................................................................................GOSH.

"PS. My football poser this week comes from a Fr. Ferguson, a former racehorse owner, and now sadly underemployed preacher in the wilderness, who asks:

What is the difference between Leicester City and Manchester Utd?

A: Leicester City still have some players in Europe"

Fr. M.