DESPITE admitting that virtually everything went their way, the Ploughman’s Bunch! (Wolvercote) were good value for their victory over housemate and Premiership rival, the Plough.

In an extremely high-scoring affair, in which only three questions were answered unsuccessfully, the Bunch! won every round bar the last, but by that stage the contest was over. In winning 87-73, they have hauled themselves back into the championship race and now sit just two points behind their arch-nemesis.

Not slow to capitalise on the Plough’s misfortune, the Royal Blenheim (Oxford City) totally overwhelmed the Bell (Lower Heyford), 82-48, and are now tied on top spot with the Plough, with a game in hand.

At the halfway mark in the season, things could not be much closer in the North where only four points separate the five protagonists.

The turnaround in fortunes has been startling as the bottom two sides for the past couple of years now lie second and third with the same number of wins and having played one less than the marginal frontrunner, the Bletchingdon Nomads.

Indeed, it was the Sun Inn (Hook Norton) who downed the Nomads last Thursday in a tight encounter, 56-52, whilst the other traditional also-ran, the Chequers (Chipping Norton), valiantly repelled the challenge of the leaders in the West, the Windrush Club (Witney), 61-56.

The reigning champions of this section, the Blue Boar Bees (also ‘Chippy’), cannot be ruled out regaining their crown just yet, even though they have suffered five losses this campaign.

Their trip to Cowley was richly rewarded with the narrowest of successes, edging an absolute belter with hosts, the Black Swan, 68-67.

Notwithstanding the Bunch!’s escapades with the Plough, toast of the night must be raised to the Woodman (North Leigh).

Confounding the bookies’ predictions, ‘Birchy’s Boys’ got the better of the strongly fancied White Hart (Eynsham), 70-66, thereby putting a dent in the title ambitions in the West of their vanquished opponents.

Adding this mishap to that experienced by the Windrush, the Royal Sun (Begbroke) took full advantage and assumed pole in this division.

Leading from the gun, they dominated their head to head with the North Oxford Conservative Club (Summertown), never looked like relinquishing their advantage and finally took the honours, 75-65.

In the two other ties scheduled, the Green Road Club (Kidlington) tightened their grip in the East after outplaying near-neighbours, the Seacourt Bridge (Botley), 74-60, and the Eight Bells (Long Crendon) ended a run of four defeats by accounting for the ever-resilient Gardener’s Arms (North Parade), 76-66.

JAMES CARR'S QUESTIONS
1 Who, during World War II, promised that no bombs would ever fall on Germany?
2 Which novel includes the line, ‘You should rejoice that you’re in prison. Here you have time to think about your soul’?
3 Who at the age of 14 is the youngest person ever to be admitted to the Society of American Magicians?
4 The Yucatan Channel separates Mexico from which country?

Answers: 1 Herman Goering, 2 One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, 3 David Copperfield, 4 Cuba.