22nd October–Away to the Harrington Academicals

Ah the Harrington at Gawsworth home to so many memories – the 20W bulb, pickled eggs, the end of a summer walk, cyclists gathering, the evening folk music sessions all under the vigilant eye of Mrs Bailey who never forgave Robinsons Brewery for introducing hand pumps so she no longer had to take a jug to the cellar.Despite some modernisation the Harrington still remains the model for a country pub,

The Lemmings last played the Academicals in the Plate final where, although they did not disgrace themselves, they lost heavily and weren’t exactly looking for revenge especially as Bob was not playing.

The questions were pretty good and the only bleak spot was when Nick, the champion of conferrals, gave three wrong answers!!  This must be a record. Tomo saved embarrassment by almost scoring 40!

Original scores Becky 9/9, Rakesh 0/0, Nick 6/12,Tomo15/24 conferred points 10/16 with 5/6 pass-overs.

It was a game played with good humour that was rounded off with with a very tasty selection of sandwiches – many thanks to the Academicals, to the landlords and to Keith question master from the Rams.

15th October Away to the Rams–Local Derby

This was the week Nick was away tasting the beer, wines and delicacies of Alsace so the team welcomed new volunteer reserve Rakesh to make up 4 with Bob, Tomo and Sunil.. As Nick was away he cannot really comment on the game but at least the questions are available at the website http://maccql.com/questions/latest/latest%20questions.php

Unfortunately the Lemmings were heavily defeated by the Rams with scores of 173 to 110 (a decent score in many other games!!) with individual scores being Bob 6/18, Sunil 0/2, Rakesh 0/0 and Tomo 15/12 with 19 conferred and 6 pass-overs. The Lemmings hope to settle down now with fewer absences.

8th October Home to the Robin Hood

Looking back to the last season there were several similarities with Macc Town Football Club already noted but none as  spectacular as the fight for survival at the end of the season – both teams narrowly avoided relegation with a last gasp rally, the footballers guided by the magnificent Sol Campbell;not only that neither team was paid! The Lemmings held together but sadly Sol had to move on to build his career and we wish him all the best. The footballers however are now facing administration and expulsion from the League. Why buy a team with no intention of supporting it?

The Lemmings first game of the season was against the Robin Hood who filled the blog last week when the Lemmings for once had nothing to say – it was very interesting, well written and welcome.Many thanks for that.

However this good will was stretched rather as when the Lemmings arrived (minus Bob whom the RH had given a lift) were ensconced in the Lemmings traditional home table and chairs – was this a bad omen for the game?

The questions whilst perhaps long-winded were nevertheless very, thoughtful, different and much appreciated and marks were awarded accordingly. The Lemmings took a little time to hit their stride and whilst Bob and Tommo both did well they slipped behind in the Specialist rounds ending with 49 to the visitors’ 57.

After a refreshing break and fortified by the magnificent ales at the bar the Lemmings slowly began to climb back led by Bob and Tomo and finished with an excellent score of  79 to 66 making up the deficit of 8 and winning by 5 points

Individual scores were Bob 12/15, Sunil 3/6, Nick 3/12 and Tomo 12/18 with conferred points 14/19 and 5/9 pass-overs. The visitors collected 5/5 pass-overs so a final score of 128 to 123 to the Lemmings.

It was a most enjoyable evening with lots of laughter.helped considerably by the humorous and fair question master particularly with deft use of the completely fictitious name Colin Figgis dreamt up by Bob when we didn’t know the real answer.A final drink and a varied selection of  tasty sandwiches rounded off the evening. Many thanks to Brian, the Robin Hood (not least for getting Bob to the Tavern and home) and the question master.

1st October first games of the season


The Lemmings have no game this week so I am pleased to publish this article from the Rainow Village magazine:

The Robin Hood Quiz Team - Question: What Happened? By Jim Kennelly

When we last wrote about the Robin Hood Quiz team back in 2015 things were looking extremely good; after only 4 seasons in the competition, we had ascended to Mount Olympus, colloquially known as the A league of the Macclesfield Quiz League.
Here be Heavyweight Quizzers, Saloon Bar Sages and Titans of Trivia, some with a presence on national broadcast media. The established A league teams have a former winner of Mastermind, contestants from TV’s Who Wants to be a Millionaire, Fifteen to One and people on Phone a Friend terms with panellists off Eggheads. A matter of a few weeks ago, two A league stars appeared on BBC Radio 4 as competitors in the Brain of Britain contest.

What does the Robin Hood Quiz team have in common with 1960s Northampton Town FC? Is it that both are called Cobblers?

So how could us minnows survive swimming with the A league sharks? Well, the A league has similarities with Football’s Premier League. The four teams at the top are clearly stronger than the rest of the league - for the last 15 years this quartet have provided all the league champions, indeed in 12 out of the last 15 years the winners were one or other of the two Ox-fford pub teams. The remaining teams oscillate between A league relegation and promotion from the B league. So we were not completely overawed when we joined the A league – half the teams there we had played and beaten before.
We became bottom-dwelling scavengers, concentrating on games against other recent ex-B league teams. It worked; we amassed sufficient wins to flit away from the relegation zone. We had risen to the A league and survived!
Meanwhile in the engine rooms of the B league, there were ominous stirrings - teams were remodelling, reforming and strengthening with big hitters. The two B league teams promoted to the A league for the 2016-2017 season were a fearsome prospect and we had never played them before in their new configuration. They did to us what we tried to do to them – and so we were relegated at the end of the season.
We accepted that we would probably be another Yo-Yo team shuttling between the A and B leagues. However, smug complacency comes before a fall. During the following B league season we couldn’t win an argument, couldn’t call the toss right, even if we were to bring our own double-headed coin. We played the same as always, amassing good scores, but now almost always coming in a few tantalising points short of the opposition. Far from pushing for promotion, we were in freefall and plummeting towards the bottom of the B league table. A late rally brought a couple of wins, but too little too late, we were relegated and by October 2018 the Robin Hood Quiz Team had returned back where we started 7 years ago - the C league.
How did that happen? The team comprised all the same individuals that performed well in the A league. The only change was that Phil Moss, the initiator of the Robin Hood Quiz team, relinquished the captaincy due to scheduling conflicts (or as some might put it, having a life). Another member of the team filled in as captain. This player, although capable of strong individual performances, sometimes had eccentric decision-making processes when adjudicating on conferred team answers. Maybe this was sufficient to shave a few critical points off?
The team generously decided to give the captain the benefit of the doubt and we started our latest C league campaign unchanged. At least we had the consolation that we could not be demoted for a third successive year – there is no D league. In some ways, our Odyssey in the Quiz League resembled that of one particular football club, itself the occasional subject of a pub quiz question: “During the 1960s, which club rose from the 4^th Division of the Football League to the First then back down to the 4^th in almost successive seasons?” Answer: Northampton Town 1960 to 1969. Unfortunately, Northampton Town are nicknamed “the Cobblers” – best not to extend the analogy too far.
Back in the C league, however, the Robin Hood blasted off like a rocket, with 11 straight match wins. Just when we feeling we might end the season with a clean sweep (smug complacency – see above) we received a timely reality check, dropping a match to the second placed team. Nonetheless we still ran out as 2019 champions with 13 wins out of 14, with the real competition in the league being the scramble for the second place promotion slot. The quiz league website complimented the Robin Hood on an excellent season and hinted that we might be expected to challenge for the B league title again next season. Possibly, but we need to beware smug complacency (see above).
After our experiences, our team motto should change from Nil Desperandum (loosely translated: It’ll be alright on the night) to Delapsus Resurgum (when we fall, we rise again)
So congratulations to the Robin Hood Quiz team: Phil Moss, Lorraine Hilton, Tony Wilkinson, Andrew Clark, Tim Grimes, Jenny Edwards and Jim Kennelly. Prospects for next season: given our recent history – Who Knows?




Tonight the Robin Hood plays the Harrington Academicals who thrashed the Lemmings in the Plate final – we wish both teams the best of luck.
The original article contained a picture but for some reason cannot include (did read W10 latest update has picture problems) - sorry Jim