Evening all. Half way point in the second round matches, and a remarkable stat that I hadn't noticed til after last week's show: all three winning teams thus far had ended the match with 195! And to add to that, all three winning teams on Only Connect's second round had won with 22! No idea what the odds on that are! Would it continue tonight?
SOAS came through the repechage, losing by a whisker to Wolfson of Cambridge on a tie-breaker, before comprehensively overpowering Durham in their play-off, winning 270-85 on that occasion. They were the same foursome as those two prior outings:
David Bostock, from Cheltenham, studying Southeast Asian Studies
Magda Biran-Taylor, from Harrow, studying Southeast Asian Studies
Captain: Henry Edwards, from London, studying Near and Middle Eastern Studies
Odette Chalaby, from London, studying Near and Middle Eastern Studies
Emmanuel College Cambridge were trailing Nottingham for large parts of their first round match, but a strong fightback and a late sprint saw them emerge victorious by 175-135. They too were unchanged from that occasion:
Tom Hill, from London, studying History
Leah Ward, from Oxfordshire, studying Maths
Captain: Bobby Seagull, from East Ham in London, studying Education specialising in Maths
Bruno Barton-Singer, from Wandsworth in London, studying Physics
Off we set again then, and our friend Mr Seagull slipped-up straight away, allowing SOAS to take the first starter, and to set their intentions firmly straight as they took all three bonuses. A second starter and full bonus in a row to the Londoners seemed to suggest the imperious form that won them the play-off wasn't dried up yet. A starter was dropped, before Miss Ward moved Emmanuel back into positive figures; a bonus set also on physics provided the Cambridge side with five points. Miss Ward then slipped up herself, before making amends with another correct starter, which, again, provided five bonus points. The first picture round, on the names of Ancient Greek thinkers written in modern Greek, went to Emmanuel, who swept the slate clean, and cut their deficit to 50-45.
A second starter in a row for Mr Barton-Singer gave Emmanuel the lead, and a bonus set on Shakespeare's sonnets added ten to their score. Mr Hill then had his turn to add to their score, which gave them a bonus set on plants, where they amusingly offered Rosemary instead of Thyme! Mr Edwards, top buzzer for SOAS in the earlier rounds, now took his first starter, but the London side only took five from a bonus set on former Indian states. Another starter was dropped, before Emmanuel acquired an amusing bonus set on dairy farming, which they unfortunately got nothing from.
The music round, on tracks kept in the US National Recording Registry, went to Emmanuel, who swept up the board; one of the pieces was Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, who long term viewers will remember as the subject of a famous wrong answer back in 2010-11! Emmanuel now led 115-65, but SOAS ate into the lead after Ms Biran-Taylor was somewhat leniently allowed 'Hapgar' in lieu of 'Apgar'; suspect William G Stewart would've allowed that, so fair enough that Paxo did too. SOAS swept up the bonuses, showing that they were still very much in the game. Mr Barton-Singer moved Emmanuel further ahead, but they got nothing from a tricky bonus set on proteins. A second starter in a row went to the Emmanuel right-winger, and two bonuses on symphonic poetry added to their score.
The second picture starter was dropped; the bonuses, on UNESCO world heritage cities, went to Emmanuel, with SOAS unluckily losing five in the process. They only identified Bath, but nonetheless upped their lead to 160-85. A very quick buzz from Mr Seagull pulled them to within sight of victory, and a bonus set on years of the nineteenth century saw them take two and unluckily miss the other.
But back came SOAS, as the late Mr Bostock took a starter to earn a bonus set on silent film directors, which they took ten from the move into three figures. But when Mr Barton-Singer took the next starter, just getting away with a slight pause, that was most likely game over. The resultant bonuses gave us comedy moment of the night as the Cambridge side struggled to recall something they'd discussed on the train earlier that day! They took five. Ms Chalaby took another starter for SOAS, and they went out with a bang with a full bonus set. The gong prevented the next starter being completed; Emmanuel won 195-130.
So, after another excellently played match by both sides, the run amazingly goes on! Unlucky SOAS, who were just simply outplayed by a better side on the buzzer, which would prove decisive as we'll see, but well done anyway on a very decent series of performances. Well done Emmanuel though; another strong showing against very good opponents, and very best of luck to yous in the group stage!
Mr Barton-Singer was the best buzzer of the night, with seven starters to his name, while Ms Biran-Taylor was SOAS's best with three. On the bonuses, SOAS converted a very good indeed 15 out of 18 (with one penalty), while Emmanuel managed 17 out of 36 with two penalties; so it was indeed a game won on the buzzer, with all eight players ending the night with at least one under their belts.
Next week's match: again, don't know yet, but hopefully all we be found out in the coming days.
Only Connect saw the return of the two play-off survivors from Group A tonight; tune back in tomorrow night to find out if their side of the run continued!
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