Enjoy.
Countdown recap for Wednesday 23 March 2011.
C1: Champion Andy McGurn (6 wins, 520 points.) An Apteforumite from Leeds. One of his ambitions is to become an actor, saying that Buster Merryfield (Albert from Only Fools & Horses) inspires him as he didn't retire from being a bank manager till well later in life, before making it as an actor.
C2: Challenger Peter McLoughlin. An Apterite from Middlesex. He works as a company director. He likes playing golf and is a member of the Hillingdon Golf Club, as well as being a member of the England Fan Club. His nickname is "lastminutePete.com", mainly because of his terrible timekeeping.
DC: Susie Dent and Donal MacIntyre.
RR: Rachel Riley, whose dress seems to have sprouted wings today.
OT: Other words or solutions.
R01: N R D O E U B N G
R02: N S T E A M T E O
R03: R N D E E A T O I
R04: S R W E O Z I T V
R05: 50, 10, 10, 4, 6, 1. Target: 793.
TTT: EATSLEAN - "If you don't eat lean, this can pull in the fat"
R06: H R G O A F P E O
R07: D B R A E A P U O
R08: N R S A O E M G K
R09: P L L I A E S N L
R10: 75, 10, 3, 8, 8, 1. Target: 291.
TTT: CORNLEAF - "It sounds like Jenni keeps birds of prey"
R11: T H S U I O U J E
R12: C S M I E X R S O
R13: N Y W A I E M U I
R14: 25, 2, 8, 3, 10, 7. Target: 424.
R15: C A G Y W A L L S (conundrum)
And now a brief interlude before our main feature:
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Enjoy the show.
Round 1: N R D O E U B N G
C1: REBOUND (7)
C2: BOUNDER (7)
DC: BURGEON (7)
OT: BOUNDEN (7) DUNGEON (7) GUERDON (7) UNDERGO (7) UNROBED (7)
Score: 7–7 (max 7)
A very good start by our players in this one.
BOUNDEN means obligatory or compulsory.
Round 2: N S T E A M T E O
C1: NOTATES (7)
C2: MEANEST (7)
OT: METATES (7) NEATEST (7) STOMATE (7) TEMENOS (7) TOMENTA (7) TONEMES (7)
Score: 14–14 (max 14)
More flatness. Get the plates ready for some pancakes.
A TONEME is a phoneme consisting of a contrastive feature of tone in a tone language.
Round 3: R N D E E A T O I
C1: ORDINATE (8)
C2: DERATION (8)
DC: RATIONED (8) ORIENTED (8)
OT: DETAINER (8) RETAINED (8)
Score: 22–22 (max 22)
More pancakes.
Round 4: S R W E O Z I T V
C1: TOWERS (6)
C2: RIOTS (5)
DC: STOVE (5) STRIVE (6) SOVIET (6)
OT: RESTIO (6) RIVETS (6) SORTIE (6) STIVER (6) STROVE (6) SWIVET (6) TRIOSE (6) TROVES (6) VERIST (6) VIREOS (6) VIZORS (6) VOTERS (6) WRIEST (6) WRITES (6)
Score: 28–22 (max 28)
The first gap of the day, despite the fact there were loads of 6's available.
A STIVER (or STUIVER) is a former nickel coin of the Netherlands, equal to five Dutch cents.
SWIVET is a state of nervous excitement, haste, or anxiety.
TRIOSE is a monosaccharide that has three atoms of carbon.
A VERIST is someone who believes the theory that rigid representation of truth and reality is essential to art and literature, and therefore the ugly and vulgar must be included.
A VIREO is any of several small, insectivorous American birds of the family Vireonidae, having the plumage usually olive-green or gray above and white or yellow below.
Round 5: 50, 10, 10, 4, 6, 1. Target: 793.
C1: 793. ((10 + 6) x 50) - (10 - 4 + 1) (10)
C2: 793. ((10 + 6) x 50) - (10 - 4 + 1) (10)
Score: 38–32 (max 38)
And a nice easy numbers gives Andy a perfect first half. Although we were in the same position 2 weeks ago, and he only just scraped over the line then.....
Donal talks about his daughter, Tiger, and how he managed to help her get through nursery and getting her off the dummy.
Teatime teaser: EATSLEAN -> ELASTANE
Round 6: H R G O A F P E O
C1: FORAGE (6)
C2: FOREGO (6)
DC: GOPHER (6)
OT: GHERAO (6) HOOFER (6) HOOPER (6)
Score: 44–38 (max 44)
More and more flatness. Ever get that feeling of being under a steamroller
Round 7: D B R A E A P U O
C1: ABOARD (6)
C2: PARADE (6)
OT: ABRADE (6) ABROAD (6) AUBADE (6) BAUERA (6) BURPED (6) DAUBER (6) EARBUD (6) PEROBA (6) POURED (6) PROBED (6) ROUPED (6)
Score: 50–44 (max 50)
Time to get the rolling pin out now....
To ABRADE is to wear off or down by scraping or rubbing.
An AUBADE, as Marcus will tell you, is a piece sung or played outdoors at dawn, usually as a compliment to someone.
A BAUERA is any small evergreen Australian shrub of the genus Bauera, having pink or purple flowers.
Round 8: N R S A O E M G K
C1: MOANERS (7)
C2: MOANERS (7)
DC: ORANGES (7) MANGOES (7) MEGARONS (8)
Score: 57–51 (max 58)
And Andy's max game prospects evaporate, as DC get the darrenic 8.
Round 9: P L L I A E S N L
C1: pallies
C2: pallies - and he forgot to mention he hadn't written it down either!
DC: SPANIEL (7) ALPINES (7)
OT: SPLENIAL (8)
Score: 57–51 (max 66)
Oh dear, a double blank round emerges. Can Peter possibly capitalise, as it's his numbers next.....
SPLENIAL relates to the SPLENIUM, which is a broad muscle on each side of the back of the neck and the upper part of the thoracic region, the action of which draws the head backward and assists in turning it to one side.
Susie's Origin Of Words talks about the dark origins of "plagiarism".
Round 10: 75, 10, 3, 8, 8, 1. Target: 291.
C1: 291. ((3 + 1) x 75) - (10 - (8 / 8)) (10)
C2: 290.
Score: 67–51 (max 76)
Or maybe not, as Andy solves it to get a wider margin of a lead.
Teatime teaser: CORNLEAF -> FALCONER
Round 11: T H S U I O U J E
C1: OUTJIES (7)
C2: housie
Score: 74–51 (max 83)
A very impressive darrenic 7 from Andy and he might have just blown the wind out of Peter's sails now.
Round 12: C S M I E X R S O
C1: MOSSIER (7)
C2: MOSSIER (7)
DC: EXORCISMS (18)
Score: 81–58 (max 101)
By the look at Peter's face before he picked the O, it looks like he might've picked another consonant leaving just 2 vowels on the board. As it is, both contestants get 7, while DC go darrenic with a 9.
Round 13: N Y W A I E M U I
C1: MEANY (5)
C2: MEANY (5)
DC: ANIME (5)
OT: AMINE (5) IMINE (5) WANEY (5) WINEY (5)
Score: 86–63 (max 106)
Working from 9 to 5, you might say.
But Andy won't care, as he has wrapped up win #7 now, and definitely has a very good chance of achieving his 2nd century.Round 14: 25, 2, 8, 3, 10, 7. Target: 424.
C1: 424. ((10 + 7) x 25) - (3 - 2) (10)
C2: 424. ((10 + 7) x 25) - (3 - 2) (10)
Score: 96–73 (max 116)
Another easy numbers means he is now locked on to the target, and he aims......
Round 15: C A G Y W A L L S
C2 buzzes on 1.5 seconds to say SCALLYWAG which is correct.
Final Score: 96–83 (max 126)
.....and misses, or rather, his opponent hits first, but it's been a very good game with the players getting 20 maxes between them
So, Andy will be heading into tomorrow, knowing that he'll either be #3 or #4 seed, as it's impossible for him to get anywhere close to Adam or Edward, but just needs to win with more than 49 points to topple Ned from 3rd place.
Join me tomorrow to see if he can do it.
Till then, bye bye.
Statistics Corner
Andy:
Total score - 96
Raw score - 96
Total % of max - 76
Raw % of max - 76
Total average score per round - 6.4
Raw average score per round - 6.4
Number of maxes - 11
Peter:
Total score - 83
Raw score - 95
Total % of max - 66
Raw % of max - 75
Total average score per round - 5.5
Raw average score per round - 6.3
Number of maxes - 9
Further summaries are at:
http://www.apterous.org/cdb/series.php?series=64