By the end of week three in the current campaign, the Green Road Club (Kidlington) had suffered narrow and honourable defeats to the best two quiz teams in Oxfordshire; Premiership giants, the Plough and the Ploughman’s Bunch! (both Wolvercote).

Sandwiched in between, they had comprehensively outplayed the defending champions in Section One, the North Oxford Conservative Club (Summertown).

Following that tussle with the Bunch!, the Green Road proceeded to embark on a ten-match unbeaten streak which culminated last Thursday in them taking the Section One title with one game still left to play.

Add to this achievement the fact that they have finished inside the top five in all the themed Tabletops contended, including two runners up spots, and it’s been a great summer for Diddly Dee, his brother the President, the Chinster, Kate, Rhys and the rest of the gang.

They bagged their first pennant for some years with a convincing 75-66 success over a very decent White Hart (Eynsham) outfit and they can now enjoy a pressure-free final outing this week against their closest challengers for most of the season, the Bletchingdon Nomads.

The destiny for the silverware in the Premier Division has gone down to the last round of games featuring all the main protagonists, also in two days’ time.

Needing to beat their fellow housemate and principal rival to successfully retain their trophy, the Plough faltered against the Bunch!, despatched 82-71.

They must now see off the challenge of the Bell (Lower Heyford) because failure to do so and a win for the Bunch! over the Gardener’s Arms (North Parade) and they will land the laurels. Needless to say, the Plough are overwhelming favourites at the bookies.

Actually, the Bell go into this decisive contest on the back of an excellent performance against the ‘Pea Eaters’ from Botley, the Seacourt Bridge. Their 68-55 triumph was their fourth to date.

Elsewhere, the Bletchingdon Nomads were comprehensively outplayed by the Royal Blenheim, 78-62, thereby terminating their brave stab at the divisional trophy, while the Gardener’s Arms probably recorded their best effort as they got the better of a slightly out of sorts Royal Sun (Begbroke), 75-64.

In the one other match of the night, the North Oxford Conservative Club fielded their supposedly usual starting five for the first time in a while and duly repelled the challenge of visitors, the Blue Boar, 73-57.

It has been a tough schedule for this hybrid unit from Chipping Norton, also comprising members from the Winter line-up of their neighbour, the Chequers, but it has been their first experience of the Summer Leagues and they have acquitted themselves very well indeed.

If you would like to enter a team visit the website at oxfordshirequizleague.co.uk or email me at quinnd@hotmail.co.uk

JAMES CARR'S QUESTIONS

1. The Stand in the Schoolhouse Door incident brought who into the national spotlight in America on June 11, 1963?

2. Similar to Shepherd’s Pie, Bobotie is a national dish of which country?

3. Which fictional character describes himself as ‘a little black rain cloud hovering under the honey tree’?

4. Which is the largest US city beginning with the letter A in the Mountain Time zone?

Answers: 1. George Wallace; 2. South Africa; 3. Winnie the Pooh; 4. Albuquerque.