University Challenge 2012-13 Revisited: Part 6: Matches 18 to 20

So, the sixth installment of this 10th anniversary sees us finish off the 2012 matches. I had hoped to bring you news of the next new series of UC as well, but there isn't any yet; hopefully we'll get some before long. I suspect we'll be getting the new series on either the 11th of July or, more likely as we've heard nothing this week, the 18th. Watch this space.

Match 18, Round 2 Match 2: York vs New College (26th November 2012)

The second second round match pitted two teams from opposite ends of the first; compare that to nowadays, when the teams from the first few matches of the series usually end up being kept waiting until the latter half of the second to appear again. York had the better match of the first, bettering their opponents on the buzzer and the bonuses, including another set, whose type was common then but not so nowadays, on pairs of persons where the surname of the first is the forename of the second.

 

At one stage, York led 100-45, before New College then got a run of starters and the bonuses finally fell for them, turning the match on its head. In no time at all, they’d made up the deficit and, after the second picture round, had run up a 75-point lead. York did finally get some points on the board again after that, but New College just ran away with a final sprint to win the game. York did take the final three starters of the game, but no bonuses followed, not that it’d have mattered if they’d gotten them all. New College won the game 215-145 and, as it turned out, would be Oxford’s sole representative in the group stage.

 

Match 19, Round 2 Match 3: Warwick vs King's

King’s got off to the much better start of the third match of the round, dominating on the buzzer at first in spite of an unfortunate five point loss from Ms Ace. This early run included the first picture round, on results of races in F1 seasons, which Jim later admitted on LAM he only got thanks to the commentary for an old F1 video game! A 70-0 lead quickly started to get eaten into after Warwick got some points on the board however, and, by the second picture round, they’d taken the lead, despite an unfortunate error of offering ‘Burke and Hare’ in lieu of ‘Burke and Wills’!

 

After an ill-fated attempt by Jim to get his team back into the game cost them five points, it was second time lucky as he half-guessed, as he later admitted on LAM, the sum of the first 1,000 positive integers to be 500,500. Two more starters (including one on Inception that really does date this episode!) and a good haul of bonuses put them level again, only for Mr Shaw to take the lead back for Warwick. But an educated guess from Jim, a quick buzz from Ms Ace, and Jim visibly beating at least three Warwick players to the buzzer on the final starter secured them the victory. 185-160 was their winning score, but it was a great game; Warwick could feel unlucky to have fallen in the knockouts.

 

Match 20, Round 2 Match 4: St George's vs Lancaster

The final game of 2012 began in disappointing fashion, as both sides dropped a full set of bonuses, before two penalties set the London side’s score back to zero. Things soon improved though, and the two teams were even for the rest of the first half of the game, with Lancaster’s better start giving them the slight advantage.

 

The turning point came after the music round when Lancaster lost five on two starters in a row; St George’s took both, the resulting bonuses helped them take the lead, and a run of three further consecutive starters was ultimately what won them the game. One amusing moment saw Paxo momentarily mishear an (incorrect) answer of ‘Rimbauld’, causing him to remark “I thought you meant Sylvester Stallone for a moment!”! Lancaster did bounce back well and deservedly reached three figures, but that mini run had put the game beyond them. St George’s won 230-140, and would be joining their old friends King’s in the second round.

 

So, that's another three shows in the bag. Another three coming up next week, as well, hopefully, as news on the new series; watch me on Twitter for a quicker update if there is one. Anyway, see you then...