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QLL Winter League 23/24 Week 13 - Division 1
We enter the final third of the season, then, and commence proceedings at the Spread Eagle, where Allsorts hosted Fit For Purpose?, with both sides having not won their previous two games. It was the hosts who got out of the blocks quicker, with an 8-5 opening salvo including at least one of Hill Top or Margaret Atwood being stolen. Those thieving Allsorts kept true to form in Round 2: both Kristin Scott-Thomas and the DRC going over on their way to a 9-4 R2 and an already-commanding 17-9 lead. Emboldened by this, they secured a roundhouse in R3 courtesy of the Portsmouth ibn Battuta's commanding Roman history knowledge; Tom Dineen correctly parsing Colossus of Rhodes; and King Kev's misspent youth playing Sub Search. FFP? did score 6, but 25-15 looked ominous - particularly as Allsorts secured a second roundhouse (Dineen with Rovelli and Gavin Fuller tucking into a Large Mac), and even a 7 from FFP? wasn't good enough. 33-22 at the half became 39-29 after R5, but there was simply too much for the visitors to do: 7-4; 8-5; and 7-6, presumably courtesy of some bold attempts at 2s (as is right and proper), and the hosts ran out 61*-44 winners. Gavin Fuller was absolutely masterful in securing a full house and 20(8) - Ashman ably in support with 17(7) - while Phil Small's 14(6) in a very tough seat will forever be underrated, but the streets won't forget.
At the Coat and Badge, a clash of bottom vs top saw Banana Splits took on Gray Monks, and a scrappy start in which only two 2s were scored was taken 5-4 by the Splits. The Monks clearly decided they needed to get their act together and promptly hit back with a 5-8 R2, before the pendulum swung back toward the hosts with the very next question, as Gillian Woon nabbed stocking to help her team to a 7-6 R3. 7-5 to the hosts in R4 made it 24-23 at the half, with George Scratcherd in fine form sat on 13(4) already. Clearly the Monks were given a stern talking to at half time: 5-7 that round (including an X on Burnley - a surprise!) saw them re-take the lead, and preserve the one-point advantage with five apiece in R6. Clearly the theme of this game was relative caginess: four 2s in R7, but two bonuses to the home side drew the scores level in a tight match. Could 10th pull off the upset and beat 1st? After George Scratcherd and Jon Breakell knew Top Cat and legumes, while Ian Orriss and Shaun Wallace played safe and passed Zeus at Olympia and tic-tac-toe respectively, it was possible with a two-point gap and four questions to go. But the rib stitch eluded the table, and Seoan Webb slotted away Arminius without a second thought. Scores level. Alas, neither Gillian Woon nor any other Splits could recall Munich's English Garden, which went over, before Paul Sinha wrapped up proceedings with his own silver bullet. 44-47 in the end, with Seoan Webb's 15(6) leading the table, though George Scratcherd's 15(5) was highly admirable in defeat.
The Bangkok Bad Boys welcomed Broken Hearts to the Wilmington, who got off to a better start to take R1 5-7. They consolidated that lead with a 6-7 R2 - Aztec codices escaping BBB - and then again with a 4-6 R3, where only two 2s were scored in total, but where everything was picked up for a bonus (three of them to Mark Grant). A level 6-6 R4 meant it was a slightly bizarre 21-26 at the half, where BBB had scored 9 2s to BH's 6, but knew absolutely everything. This strange case of unfortunate seating continued to afflict BBB in Round 5, with them scoring 4 (only one 2), to BH's 8, opening the lead to 25-34 and the game was rapidly slipping away from them. A brief revival was threatened with a 7-6 R6, but there was simply too much to do for the home side, and a brace of 5-6 rounds to close affairs saw it 42-52 to Broken Hearts. Both Olav Bjortomt and Mark Grant filled their boots with bonuses, with scores of 19(5) and 18(5) respectively, but a star turn in defeat from Liam McCarthy with a 16(7) led the table.
At the King and Queen, Hornets' Rest had Ceefax the Hoop for company, and there was nothing to separate the two sides in the opening exchanges, with Round 1 falling 6-6. That changed, however, with R2: three 2s and a steal for HR made it 7-5, before a generally high-quality R3 was 7-6, and the gap was three points at 20-17. A slightly scrappy yet bonus-laden R4 fell 5-6 to the visitors, and with it 25-23 at the half, all results were in play. Ceefax certainly picked it up in R5 though: a roundhouse courtesy of Nick Patterson's football knowledge and Ian Clark correctly identifying the Amaravati marbles as Indian saw that 7-8, as Daoud Jackson picked up Patricia Arquette in the only drop all round. The away side drew level in a round starkly contrasted with the previous: only two 2s, both to the visitors, in a 4-5 round (an unfortunate seating arrangement for the Hornets' Rest it seems), and it was 36-36 with two rounds to go. Two 2s fell to either side in R7, but the hosts held an extra bonus for a one-point advantage into the final round. They started it stronger, too: Thomas Hill and Ewan MacAulay slotting home Top Cat and legumes, while Ceefax passed a couple for bonuses (or possibly had one stolen). Ultimately, Daoud Jackson eventually put things beyond doubt with Munich with it a 7-5 final round, and a final score of 49-46* to the hosts. That man Action Jackson's 16(6) led the way for the hosts (all other members notching a solid 11(4) mind), while Frankie Fanko's 17(5) and Nick Patterson's 14(6) were admirable in defeat.
Finally, Nomads welcomed an in-form Pericardium outfit to the Carpenters, who - beyond deploying the Stainer Gambit - were in no mood for pleasantries, and duly stormed to a 4-9 opening round, stealing both Wandsworth and Hill Top on the way. That rather set the tone: 6-7 in R2, then a superb 6-9 in R3 with a full house courtesy of Iain Thoms' knowledge of Varus, and Kathryn Johnson's stitch affinity. At 16-25 Nomads were staring down the barrel already, and hoped to rally ahead of the half - but the insatiable Pericardium won that 5-7 for a 21-32 lead. Round 5 was of no help to Nomads: India and Burnley both Xing and a 4-6 round for a thirteen-point lead to the visitors meant this was essentially a foregone conclusion. The hosts stemmed the bleeding in R6, at five apiece, but 5-7 and 6-7 in the final two rounds meant a comprehensive 41-57* win for Pericardium. Hertford's finest, David Stainer, led the table and the division with a furious 21(8), while Paul Steeples went admirably for a 12(6) in defeat.
And that's that: no real change in the division bar Allsorts and FFP? swapping places. The top three are perhaps pulling away, while Bangkok are running out of time and matches to overhaul Nomads with a four-point gap there. CeefaXs bonus has put them closer to being safe on 30, eight ahead of the relegation zone (and crucially, two full wins away). What's gonna happen though? Anything can, if Week 11 is anything to go by. See you soon.
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