The nine in attendance again – good evening to you all.
Your host started his pred spreadsheet last night and something was pricking his mind (now, now) as he headed two adjacent columns Lon Dew. He couldn’t quite summon the reason at that point though.
It was a weekend of two equal halves this week in prediction land. Three on Saturday, three on Sunday. Let’s start with the BBQ (though it’s hardly the weather). We punters were clumped pretty tightly within a range of 45 to 56 tries. After the first two matches (during which the sides involved racked up 24 tries) we were all looking a gnat’s nudger on the shy side. Then The Trannies & ‘Fax added another 9 ‘twixt ‘em (6 of the 7 Tranny tries scored by Leigh alumni – and the other by a lad from Golborne!) 33 tries overnight.
Overnight, five punters were still on for the Pokemon.
Also overnight, Bongser’s cluttered mind offered up the missing info. Ol’ Ma ‘n’ Pa Bongser had an eight volume encyclopedia when thine host was a nipper (haven’t seen it for thirty years). Ignoring the 8th volume (index), the others carried on their spines the opening letters of both the first and last entries therein. They ran: A-Bon, Bou-
Dew, Dia-Grap, Gras-Lom,
Lon-Pap, Par-Sop & Sou-Zwi!
With crud like that wombling around in his head now do you see why Bongser is so unstable?!
On to today’s matches. Cagey first twenty minutes but then the tries came a little more regularly. Come half-time (15 tries) and the water was already above Wanderer’s plimsoll line and up to those of Cokey & VL.
It didn’t take long for the tries to start coming in the second half and with Barrow’s in the 63rd minute, six of The Fellowship were outside five tries. Three left: (alphabetically) Connor McLeod of the Clan McLeod, Sundar Kastagir & The Kurgan. There could be only one!
Well into “time added on” in all three games, Chas & Pubbers fell outside ten tries and WLJ went through the “quickening”. As all know “The Prize” includes mortality and, had just ONE more try been scored, WLJ would also have been “pooshin’ oop daisies” in the locker of D Jones esq. As it happened (and Bongser’s taking “within 10” to mean “not more than 10 out”) there were no further tries and WLJ (aka Connor McLeod) lives to see another day with a measly two points in the bag – but many a mickle mak’s a muckle!
Two bonus points then out of a possible 90 for the walkers. Zero correct margins to boot. Was a high scoring round in The Championship to be counterbalanced by a low one in pred land? Nope!
The gee-gee loving Mr Caroli fell at the last fence by predicting a Rochdale win. Had he not, he would’ve once more been King o’t’ ‘eap t’neet.
However the other four of the overnight hopefuls successfully converted their Pokemons from the touchline. Congrats to Cokey, Wanderer, WLJ & Zulu. Twenty point bonus for that quartet. Had Leigh scored one more try, three of the above would have garnered a further 25 (WWB) – Bongser would rather Leigh be a trampy lady, go to the party but never come late – that looked uncomfy for a fair while!
And...................this, ladies and gentlemen, is why Bongser spoke of the bonus for so long. Those measly two points make westleighjim (dignified with his full monicker tonight) this week’s winner – a further 25 points pat on the head. Bravo!
The standings? As Charlie hit the upright and as runaway leader, Atomic, had a stinker this week, four scoring highly this round has put the cat well and truly amongst the pigeons:
1. Atomic – 353
2. Chuck – 337
3. Wanderer – 288
4. Pubbers – 255
5. Zools – 248
6. Bongser – 244
7. Cokers – 230
8. WLJ – 223
9. Lee van Couver – 172
10. Diggers – 110
11. LeytherX111 – 94
12. SaBadSel – 16
Squaring the circle and ending with reference books, Bongser cannot say what the word starting with Zwi was in volume 7 of the abovementioned encyclopedia was. What he can tell you (without looking) is that the last word in the lexicon itself of Chambers Dictionary (’98 edition) is Zythum – the earliest recorded mention of a beer-like drink. Bongser is going for a beer now and, despite having next week’s puntables ready, will wait a while until he’s sure that nobody is going to point out another gaffe!
Under 750 words – no way verbose!!
