Evening all. Onwards and upwards, with the first Oxbridge match of the series. Most of the Oxbridge matches we had last series were memorable one way or another, so no doubt we were all hoping for another tonight.
Christ's College Cambridge was founded in 1427 as God's House, a school for grammer teachers, and was refounded under its current name in 1505. Alumni include Charles Darwin, historian Simon Schama and Sacha 'Borat' Baron Cohen. It last sent a team to UC back in 2010-11, where they had a good run to the QFs before losing heavily to eventual champs Magdalen. This year's quartet were:
Vivek Midha, from London, studying Economics
Joe Kitchen, from Much Hadham in Hertfordshire, studying History
Captain: Douglas Morton, from Bearsden near Glasgow, studying Law
Evan Lynch, from Castleford in West Yorkshire, studying Natural Sciences
Kellogg College Oxford, by comparison, was founded as recently as 1990, and takes its name in reference to financial aid provided by the eponymous cereal family. It is a graduates only college, and many of its students work by day, study by night. Tonight was the college's UC debut; hoping to make a good first impression were the foursome of:
Jake McBride, from Cheltenham, studying English Literature
Victoria Ball, from London, studying Sustainability
Captain: Jonathan Finlay, from Belfast, studying British and European History
Simon Dismore, from London, studying Cyber Security
Off we set again then, and a very quick buzz from Mr Midha got Christ's off to a good start. No bonuses followed, but Mr Morton took the second starter, and this time two bonuses followed. A third starter in a row proved a step too far, and Kellogg took the points to get off the mark. They took two bonuses. The first picture starter was dropped, and Kellogg lost five on a subsequent replacement starter; the picture bonuses, on diagrams of constellations, went to Christ's, who took one to increase their lead to 45-15.
Mr Morton took the next starter, and the films of Peter Morgan formed their subsequent bonus set, of which they took one. Ms Ball provided Kellogg with a second starter, and they took one bonus. Christ's took a full set of bonuses on their next set, on terms coined by alchemists. Christ's were acing the bonus rate at this point, and that was giving them a strong lead.
The music starter was dropped; the bonuses, on classical pieces in the style of the Cuban dance the Habanera, went to Christ's. The Cambridge side led 100-30 at this point, and Paxo felt the need to tell Kellogg there was plenty of time left, which, if he says, means you're in trouble. It seemed to work though, as Mr Finlay took the next starter, and one bonus on works by Banksy followed, with another unluckily missed. Comedy moment of the night came in a set of bonuses on French intellectuals, when Christ's suggested Jacques Chirac died in 2002; Paxo was more amused by them thinking him an intellectual!
The second picture round, on the names of countries written in their native language, went to Christ's, and they took their lead to 140-45. Kellogg were going to have to get a move on if they were to catch up, but another starter to Christ's meant they were going to have to get a move on. Another starter to Christ's, and a full bonus set, and that was most likely game over.
Kellogg did manage one final starter courtesy of Mr Finlay, and one bonus on bridges followed. Christ's took another starter, which only served to cement their win, and they took two bonuses on fish. The gong went just as Christ's buzzed in on the next starter; they won the match 205-60.
A fairly one sided match to be honest. Unlucky Kellogg, who were simply outplayed on the buzzer throughout, and I suspect would have fared better against another team, but thank you for playing anyway. Very well done Christ's though; a solid, if not that spectacular performance, and I look forward to seeing you play again!
Mr Morton was best buzzer of the night, with five starters under his belt, while Mr Finlay was Kellogg's best with two. On the bonuses, Christ's converted a respectable 19 out of 33, while Kellogg managed 5 out of 12 (with one penalty).
Next week's match: Sussex vs Queen's University Belfast
I'll be reviewing tonight's Only Connect next week, alongside next week's show, as I am not in a position to do it this week.
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