c4countdown

Wow, with Chris Kirby managing to squeeze in at the end of the Series, there's simply not enough episodes to have another finalist after him on the table and with just three preliminaries to go, we now know who the final eight are now! (EDIT: Thanks to Tom Stevenson who informed us here that James Swinnerton, the #8 Seed was unable to make it, making him the first contestant in the top 8 since Robin Johnson way back in December 2018 to not appear!) Here are the matches as follows below and as per what Colin has mentioned a few weeks back, the Series will come to a close on the Friday before Christmas:

Quarter-Finals #1 (12 December): Chris Kirby (#1 Seed) vs Neil Holland (#9 Seed)
Quarter-Finals #2 (13 December): Fiona Wood (#2 Seed) vs Helen McGivern (#7 Seed)
Quarter-Finals #3 (16 December): Rob Barkess (#3 Seed) vs Terence Newnham (#6 Seed)
Quarter-Finals #4 (17 December): David Roe (#4 Seed) vs Alex Call (#5 Seed)

For the first time in 42 years, we have more than one person who was previously in the Finals in the show's history much earlier make it back, and with Colin saying this is probably the most open competition ever in many years (if you discount Chris' performance because he said that prior to his appearances), it begs to see how the matches will play out, so let's see if something like the last Series happens again! This Series will also guarantee the Grand Champion to be someone who isn't born in the 21st Century, a break after two straight years of the likes of Tom Stevenson, Ronan Higginson, Harry Savage and Arthur Page!

But, that being said, there's one major challenge some of the eight finalists will have to contend with, and that's the ODP Cull way back in July. They will surely have to be cautious of not risking too much or it'll backfire if the word is no longer inside. Let's also observe how this change will affect subsequent Series in later years, with this being the starting point.

I'm not going to be sharing any predictions and will be writing a review of the episode each day as per the last 12 Series, so if you have any feel free to post them here!

The poll will close on the day the First Quarter Final airs and you will be allowed to change your vote until then. Finally, if you happen to be reading this in the near future, apologies but you will not be able to vote.

Updated top 8- James Swinnerton couldn't make the finals due to a pre-planned holiday, so Neil Holland took his place. https://wiki.apterous.org/Series_90

I would say that Chris is the firm favourite to win, but that it could be a similar case to the last series where he has a closer game in his SF than the final. I'd wager that Fiona would be the other finalist, if not Rob, should they play in the SF and it goes to a crucial.

I don't foresee seeding upsets occurring in the quarters, although if one was to happen, then I'd say that Helen has an outside chance of beating Fiona should the letters and numbers fall her way.

Tom S wrote: ↑Sat Dec 07, 2024 10:29 am Updated top 8- James Swinnerton couldn't make the finals due to a pre-planned holiday, so Neil Holland took his place. https://wiki.apterous.org/Series_90

Thanks for the inside info! I've updated the poll accordingly too!

Rob Barkess is the only contestant to score above 125 points this series (so far). Don’t count him out.

Helen McGivern has offered the most nines as well.

I don't think those stats mean that much. Chris Kirby is definitely odds on to win this. He was playing at a level clearly higher than any of the others in the heats. Obviously in a one-off game, he can be beaten, but on balance he probably won't be.

Gavin Chipper wrote: ↑Sat Dec 07, 2024 1:44 pm I don't think those stats mean that much. Chris Kirby is definitely odds on to win this. He was playing at a level clearly higher than any of the others in the heats. Obviously in a one-off game, he can be beaten, but on balance he probably won't be.

Chris definitely favourite, but Fiona was pretty good - would just take a ponceau or two! Looking forward to seeing how it pans out!

What an epic finale that was, with Fiona Wood becoming our first female Grand Champion since 1998! I bet so many female finalists in the past few years who were watching this must be overwhelmed witnessing this moment. Nevermind to those that picked Chris Kirby, this last match was always going to go down to the wire and either one could have won!