Special Spoilers For Monday July 30th 2012

[James Robinson]

So, the Olympics are underway at last.
Which of course means 2 weeks of sporting glory.
But, while all that is taking part in London's East End, oop north, we've got our own Olympics of sorts.

Well, I suppose you would say it's a decathlon with a pentathlon stuck on the end of it. But, the fact that today's competitors are both legends in their own right.

Mainly, because we have the Series Champions of both Series 64 & 65 facing off in a one-off battle to find the true champion of 2011, just like what happened when Kirk Bevins & Chris Davies faced off midway through Series 62.

Just in case you forgot what these 2 did to become their respective series, Edward McCullagh , whose 896 octototal is the 2nd highest for a #2 seed, got 10 centuries in his 11 games, and was literally 30 seconds off becoming the 2nd person to get a televised 15-round max game.

Whereas, Graeme Cole did what most people wanted to do in Series 65, wipe the sick smurk off Carl Williams' face, and he did it in the best way possible, by beating him in a sudden death tiebreak in the Series 65 grand final. Enough said.

In case you have forgotten, here's the statistics of these 2 powerhouses:

Firstly, Series 64 Champion Edward McCullagh - 11 Wins, 1,230 Points
Highest Score: 121 vs. Lalitha Thyagajaran (7th Game)
Lowest Score: 97 vs. David Clerkin (2nd Game)
9's Achieved: 4/5
Total Points/Max/%: 1230/1356 (91%)
Letters Points/Max/%: 841/921 (91%)
Numbers Points/Max/%: 309/325 (95%)
Conundrum Points/Max/%: 80/110 (73%)

Secondly, Series 65 Champion Graeme Cole - 11 Wins, 1,117 Points (Not Including Tiebreak Conundrum)
Highest Score: 125 vs. Mike Linnell (6th Game)
Lowest Score: 91 vs. Justin Maelzer (7th Game)
9's Achieved: 5/6
Total Points/Max/%: 1117/1353 (83%)
Letters Points/Max/%: 781/924 (85%)
Numbers Points/Max/%: 296/321 (92%)
Conundrum Points/Max/%: 40/110 (36%)

Don't forget also, that because of Glorious Goodwood, this is the only Countdown this week.

But, on the plus side, our guest in Dictionary Corner this week, will also be in DC all next week to compensate, and it happens to be none other than the swimmer, Mark Foster, clearly taking a break from all his presenting duties by the pool.

And as a special treat, for one day only, our recapper is none other than Mark "Deeksy" Deeks.

So, look out for him and this super-mega treat later.

[Adam Gillard]

So many Countdown / apterous dude(tte)s went to see this Special being recorded. There was a great atmosphere befitting these two great Champions. Looking forward to your recap, Mark! Don't neglect to mention how handsome Ed is.

[Eoin Monaghan]

Great show, very well played Edward and Graeme.

HAMERKOP as a beater in round 12(?).

[Jordan F]

Well done Ed, the standard you brought to that game was unbelievable. Unlucky Graeme that not only you had to come up against a standard like that but things like SIZABLE vs SIZEABLE that came up; regardless you definitely brought your own very high standard to this as well. My only question is whether either of you will ever trust Rachel ever again after that second numbers game.

[Jojo Apollo]

What a nice surprise, I had no idea that this special match had taken place. Great match, lads

Very well played, Ed, brilliant as ever Rachel nearly nobbled you with the numbers there again. Well done to Graeme also.

[Jack Worsley]

HAMERKOP as a beater in round 12(?).

Yes, great spot, well done. This was the only max Edward missed on the letters.

Great game, very well played both, particularly Ed, and Graeme too, as you were unlucky in a couple of rounds. The conundrum time was extremely impressive.

I managed one away on the second numbers: ((50x25+6)x75)/100 = 942.

INERTIAL, WRONGER, AUDITS, MAGNETO and MIGRAINE for a few equallers.

[Tony Atkins]

I wasn't sure who to cheer for: Edward being my series or Graeme being my town. So ended up just cheering
for good play and got plenty of that. Well done to both for a high standard game.

Alt for last numbers - well out of time - (((5x25)+9+10)x6)+3. Lots of ways of making 946 in the second...
so back to trying to make 940 (or 941)...

[szodiac]

I thought it was lots of fun watching two previous champs playing I managed 642 in the second numbers by doing 6x((100+50)+(75/25)+4)

Jessica (waiting for her own account to get the ok )

[James Robinson]

WHAT A SPECIAL THAT WAS!!!!!!

Fantastic work both of you guys. Super play by all.

[Graeme Cole]

Cheers everyone. In contrast with my previous game which took about a decade off my life, this one was, as Mark put it at the time, "the pudding", so it was always going to be a fun day and an enjoyable game regardless of the result. And as Mark points out in his recap of the game, (which is one of the greatest recaps I've ever read on here, even though I might be a little biased), Ed is one of the greatest players of all time. It was a joy to play him, and he deserved the win today.

Thanks to everyone who turned up to watch - they're pictured on that rather blurry photo on the recap. In some cases it was a long way to come, and it was really appreciated. Also apologies to Rychelle who would have come along if they'd heard about the special sooner.

See you all at Cobliv on Saturday.

[Martin Long]

Alternate 942 solution for the 4 large round:

(100+50+4+(75/25))*6

[Gavin Chipper]

Great game from both players. Edward showed the relentlessness he showed in his series that makes him an all-time great.

I have to say though, Graeme, SIZEABLE seemed the less risky option to me as well as being the longer word!

And why have we not had a Hurst/Garner match?

[James Robinson]

And why have we not had a Hurst/Garner match?

There was going to be one around a year ago (obviously), but it got cancelled for some reason or other. Doubt it'll happen now, but you never know............