Macclesfield Quiz League
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Macclesfield Quiz League |
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There was no formal AGM this year, due to pressure of time. One rule change was agreed, which reversed the change made last season: the start time of matches reverted from 7:30 pm to the traditional 8:00 pm. (Many people found it hard to make the 7:30 start last season; and with lockdown a further year in the past, there seems to be less pressure to finish earlier so that licencees can close their premises to save on fuel costs.)
Haydn Thompson proposed that teams be asked to submit their results to him so that the website could be updated more promptly than we've become used to. This received a good response, and while we didn't get a full 100% return every week, most people co–operated by photographing the scoresheets following the final whistle (or should we say the reading of the supplementaries) and sending them to Haydn – mostly via WhatsApp.
Haydn also asked that sending the questions to him (also to go on the website) should be added to the list of setters' responsibilities. Having been posting them for some six years (not counting the lockdown sabbatical), he felt it should no longer be necessary to ask people to send them to him every week. Haydn also circulated some guidelines for the formatting of the questions, to reduce the amount of editing he needs to do to format them in the style he has developed. It has to be said that some people have taken these requests more seriously than others, and there is still some room for improvement – but we thank everyone for their efforts so far!
Last season the League was reduced to 17 teams with the resignations of the Nags Head and the King's Gambit. We played with eight teams in the A League and nine in the B League. This season we lost one more team: Harrington Diamonds resigned, having joined us in the 2007–8 season as the Knot Inn (Rushton Spencer).
In 2003–4 we had eight teams in each of the A and B Leagues. Dolphin Hammers were promoted from the B League to fill the space left by the Diamonds; there were no relegations and there was no room in the A League for the Waters Green Nags, B League runners–up in 2022–3 – who therefore stayed put.
Another consequence of the reduction to 16 teams was that all 16 played in the first round of the Cup competition. There was no team free to set the questions, so we took the unusual step of bringing in external setters. The good news was that we were able to have a Plate competition this year, and all the losing teams from Round 1 of the Cup played in the first round. This meant that there was still no team free to set the questions; this was resolved by having one team from each competition setting questions for the other competition: the Pack Horse Bowling Club were chosen to set questions for the Cup, and the Nags Head 'B' did the honours for the Plate.
As well as one resignation this season there are two changes of venue:
| 2022–3 | 2023–4 |
| Harrington Diamonds | Resigned |
| Queens | ... will play home games at the Castle (where they played in the closing weeks of last season) and will be known as the Queens of the Castle |
| Plough Horntails | ... move to the Bate Hall (on Chestergate), and are renamed Bate Hallers |
There was one significant rule change this year: it was decided to start games at 19:30, rather than 20:00. In this era of COVID, and rapidly–rising fuel costs, the resulting earlier finishes may be welcomed by some licensees who will save on heating, lighting etc., if we are the last to leave the premises.
We finished last season with 19 teams: seven each in the A and B Leagues, and five in the C League. We are sorry to have lost two of those teams, that have resigned from the League: Nags Head and King's Gambit. Although the King's Gambit were relative newcomers (indeed, they were the last new team to join the League), the Nags Head have been around, in various guises, since the 1998–9 season; and at least two of their regular players – Andy Johnson and Alasdair Reid – have been with us for as long as we've kept individual records (i.e. since at least 1987). Both teams will be sadly missed, but we were pleased to report that two of the Nags' other regular players had found a new home (see below).
At the time of the AGM we were hoping to have 18 teams, as the Shamrock Bar (formerly the Prince of Wales and the Brewers Arms) had said that they were returning to the fray this season. Unfortunately however this proved to be impossible due to an ongoing shortage of players. This left us with 17 teams, but the Shamrock did hope to be able to rejoin in the future.
Eighteen teams would have enabled us to have two leagues of nine teams each – an ideal arrangement in so many ways – but the Shamrock's last–minute resignation means that we had one league of nine teams and one of eight. It was decided that the A League would have eight teams and the B League nine – not least because the C League ended up with only five teams last season, and four of those teams are in the B League this time around.
Another consequence of the number of teams this season was that it was not practicable to have a Plate competition. This will be reviewed next season, when the number of teams may well change.
As we geared up for the resumption in November 2021, three teams had chosen not to continue. Two others had merged, and there were four changes of venue. This left us with 21 teams, which fitted rather neatly into three Leagues of seven teams each.
Then, just days before the start of the season, we learned that the Shamrock Bar (formerly the Brewers Arms) could not guarantee enough players to form a team each week and had resigned. Also, the King's Gambit had been told that Ye Olde King's Head was no longer able to accommodate them so they were looking for a new venue.
The Shamrock's withdrawal left only six teams in the C League. This meant that there would normally be only two games each week, with one team providing question masters and one team without a game. On one week in each half of the season there would be three matches, and the three home teams would each have to provide one question master.
The Shamrock did kindly agree to fulfil their obligation to set questions for Week 2. As for the King's Gambit: they will continue to be known by that name until such time as they find an new home.
Meanwhile, the A and B Leagues do still have seven teams each. This means that there will be 14 weeks of League games. In the A and B Leagues each team will play twelve games, no teams will have weeks off, and teams will only need to provide three question masters, instead of four, when it's their turn to ask the questions. In the C League, only two question masters will be required each week (except in the week when they're provided by the three home teams).
| 2019–20 | 2021–2 |
| Royal Oak | Resigned |
| Robin Hood | Resigned |
| Harrington 'B' | Resigned |
| Brewers Arms | Resigned, but agreed to set the General Knowledge questions for Week 2. Before being forced to resign, they had been planning to move to the Shamrock Bar on Mill Street |
| Waters Green Rams | Merged to form the Waters Green Weavers |
| Weaver | |
| Broken Cross Club | Returned, after just one actual season away, to their spiritual home at the Cock Inn |
| Church House Bollington | Moved around the corner to the Poachers |
| British Flag | Moved to the Queens Hotel, playing as the Queen Bs |
| King's Gambit | Expecting to move; new home and team name TBA |
The 2020–1 season was written off because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year Karyn Johnston undertook to publicise Macclesfield Quiz League in the hope of attracting some new participants. As the start of the season approached it seemed that no new teams would materialise, but at the very last minute a team was entered from Ye Olde King's Head – eventually settling on the name King's Gambit. Karyn was thanked for her efforts in this campaign.
The other good news was that all 24 teams from the previous season wished to continue. There were just three changes of venue, along with the one new team:
| 2018–19 | 2019–20 |
| Cock Inn | Moving to Broken Cross Club |
| Ox–fford | Moving to the Nags Head, playing as Nags Head 'B' |
| Ox–fford 'C' | Moving to the Queens Hotel, playing as the Queens |
| (New in 2019-20) | King's Gambit |
These three teams had played a total of 69 years at their previous venues, having not moved since 1992, 1994 and 2002 respectively. Neither of the first two had ever played anywhere else!
All fixtures were suspended on Monday 16 March 2020, as the coronavirus took a hold in the UK. Rather frustratingly, this left us with one round of League fixtures not played, as well as the Cup and Plate finals. On the resumption in November 2021, it was felt that the passgae of time and the team changes had made it impossible to finish this season. The tables were left as they stood after Week 17, and it was anticipated that trophies would be awarded accordingly.
We played this season with the same 24 teams, but two changes of venue:
| 2017–18 | 2018–19 |
| Wharfies | Rushton Diamonds (returning to Rushton Spencer, but to the Royal Oak) |
| Prince of Wales | Brewers Arms (returning after one season to their previous home on Bridge Street) |
This year we lost two teams, leaving 24 teams in three leagues of eight teams each. The A and B Leagues were each reduced from nine teams to eight. The Waters Green Rams, who finished as runners–up in the B League in 2016–17 and should by rights have been promoted to the A League, remained in the B League.
Details:
| 2016–17 | 2017–18 |
| Plough Taverners | Resigned |
| Cock–A–2 | Resigned |
| Brewers Arms | Prince of Wales (returning to their previous home in the Porters Ale House – a.k.a. the Prince of Wales – on Roe Street) |
We continued with the same 26 teams as last year, and the C League once again played with only eight teams. There was just one change of venue:
| 2015–16 | 2016–17 |
| Bate Taverners | Plough Taverners (returning to the venue that they left three years ago) |
This year we lost the Wharf, who were unable to fulfil their last four fixtures of last season. This left us with 26 teams, and one League would have to play with eight teams. After much discussion, the AGM decided by a majority of ten votes to three (each team having one vote) that the C League would take the hit this year. (This is where the Wharf would have been playing, had they continued.)
The Wharf were replaced at their home venue by the former Knot Arf. The Knot Know-Alls also left the Knot, and the Lamb's two teams moved across the road to the spiritual home of the more senior of them.
To summarise:
| 2014–15 | 2015–16 |
| Wharf | Resigned |
| Knot Arf | Wharfies (playing at the Wharf on Brook Street) |
| Knot Know-Alls | Royal Oak (returning to the Royal Oak in Rushton Spencer, just down the road from the Knot, where this team started from) |
| Lamb Inn | Sutton Club (returning after eight years to their spiritual home across the road) |
| Lamb Shanks | Sutton Mutton (joining their stablemates in a move across the road, after four years) |
This summer there were just two changes of venue:
| 2013–14 | 2014–15 |
| Bate Horntails | Moved back to the re–opened Plough (on Prestbury Road) and became once again the Plough Horntails. Note that the Bate Taverners stayed at the Bate Hall and are still the Bate Taverners. |
| Prince of Wales | Moved to the Brewers Arms on Bridge Street |
Last year's change from five mandated Specialist rounds to six (by separating Arts & Entertaiment into Art & Culture and Entertainment) was reversed, by a narrow majority of ten votes to nine at the AGM (each team being allocated one vote). It appears that the change failed to have the desired effect (see below).
Early MQL rules show that the five–category system has been in place since at least the 1984–5 season, so it's probably fair to say that it has stood the test of time. (In 1984–5 the five categories were History, Geography, Arts, Sciences and Sport; it was in the following season – 1985–6 – that the Arts round was reclassified as Arts & Entertainment.)
Unfortunately the Wharf were unable to fulfil their last four B League fixtures this season, and subsequently resigned from the League. The Committee considered expunging all of the Wharf's fixtures for the 2014–15 season from the League, but in the end took the view that the League standings should remain as they were, with the Wharf still included. All the teams that the Wharf failed to play were awarded two points for the win by default, but no points were awarded to be included in their 'season totals'. As it happened, the League standings were identical, regardless of whether the Wharf's results were included or not.
This looked like being perhaps the quietest summer on record, with only two changes of team name to report. But at the last minute it was announced that the Plough (on Prestbury Road) was closing, at least for the short term, so the two teams based there opted to relocate.
| 2012–13 | 2013–14 |
| Plough Horntails | Moving to the Bate Hall (on Chestergate) as the Bate Horntails |
| Plough Taverners | Moving to the Bate Hall (on Chestergate) as the Bate Taverners |
| Knot Originals | Now known as the Knot Arf |
| Waters Green Phoenix | Now known as the Waters Green Lemmings |
This season also saw the first significant change to the League rules for some time. The AGM decided to mandate six 'fixed' Specialist rounds instead of the previous five – the Arts and Entertainment round was split into two rounds, one called Art & Culture and the other Entertainment, leaving two rounds to the discretion of the question setters rather than three. It was hoped that this would eliminate some of the more "oddball" rounds we've had in the past ...
The only changes this year were two changes of venue:
| 2011–12 | 2012–13 |
| Albion | Wharf (the Albion was closed) |
| Puss in Boots | Park Timers (joining the Taverners on Park Lane) |
This summer we gained a new team: we welcomed the Robin Hood from Rainow, under the stewardship of Phil Moss. Bob Langstaff from the Waters Green Phoenix was thanked for his help in recruiting the new team. This brought the League up to a total of 27 teams, meaning that there were nine teams in each League and all teams would be fully occupied each week, either involved in a game or asking the questions.
Other changes were necessitated by the closure of the Castle, and there was one other move:
| 2010–11 | 2011–12 |
| New team | Robin Hood (Rainow) |
| Castle | Cock-A-2 (paying from the Cock Inn, Henbury) |
| New Castle | Park Taverners (playing from the Park Tavern. Park Lane) |
| Sutton Church House | Moved to the Lamb Inn, where they will play as the Lamb Shanks |
The Robin Hood started in the C League, as is customary, and this meant that the Albion and Harrington Academicals were spared the relegations (from the B and A Leagues respectively) that they had anticipated.
Andy Bailey, captain of the Baths Speedos (f.k.a. Puss Artists) and last season's C League Individual champion, relocated to the Milton Keynes area over the summer of 2010 in connection with his work at AstraZeneca, and for various reasons the remainder of the team felt unable to continue without him; so the Speedos are no more.
However ... another team, namely the Crown, has gone the other way and has separated into two teams. Both will be based at different venues (i.e. neither will play from the Crown): Andy Ridgway will lead the Prince of Wales, and Glyn Bradley the Puss in Boots. Both teams were warmly welcomed, and both were allocated places in the C League this season.
This left us with 26 teams – the same number as last season – and the league structure was unchanged, with eight teams in the A League and nine each in the B and C Leagues.
There was one further change of venue, and one change that became effective part way through last season. Firstly, the lease at the Royal Oak in Rushton Spencer is up for renewal, so the team of that name have relocated to join the Knot Inn. The team of the latter name will be known as the Knot Originals, while the former Royal Oak are now the Knot Know-Alls.
The change that became effective part way through last season is that the Pussycat Guys left the Puss in Boots and became known as the Nags Head.
To summarise:
| 2009–10 | 2010–11 |
| Baths Speedos | Resigned |
| Crown | Now two separate teams: Prince of Wales and Puss in Boots |
| Royal Oak | Moved to the Knot Inn, and are now the Knot Know-Alls |
| Knot Inn | Now known as the Knot Originals |
| Pussycat Guys | Relocated to the Nags Head on Waters Green |
In addition, it was noted that managerial changes were in the offing for both the Castle and the Lamb Inn. The teams that were based at these venues stayed put for the time being, to see what transpired.
The two teams that joined us last season – the Byron Bards and the Byron Laureates – were unable to continue. We were anticipating their merger into one team, but ultimately this proved unmanageable.
We did however gain one new team: the Royal Oak, from Rushton Spencer – a near neighbour of the Knot Inn. A very warm welcome was extended to them; they joined the C League, as is customary.
This left us with 26 teams, and after much discussion at the AGM it was decided that the A League would play with eight teams this season. The upshot of all this was that the runners–up in both the B and C Leagues – namely the Knot Inn and the Crown – were denied the promotions that they had been entitled to expect.
There were also four changes of venue (or three, depending on how you looked at it) and one name change. To summarise all changes:
| 2008–9 | 2009–10 |
| Byron Bards | Resigned |
| Byron Laureates | Resigned |
| (New team) | Royal Oak (Rushton Spencer) |
| Principals | Now playing from the Weaver in Thornton Square |
| George & Dragon | Joined the Plough Taverners at the Plough on Prestbury Road, as the Plough Horntails |
| Puss Artists | Moved to the re–opened Baths Hotel, playing as the Baths Speedos |
| Baths Hotel | Staying at the Pack Horse Bowling Club, where they moved to following the closure of the Baths |
| Puss Heads | Staying at the Puss in Boots, but now known as the Pussycat Guys |
Note: the team formerly known as the George & Dragon was listed in the 2009–10 fixture list as the Plough Plodders. In the 'Changes' document, apparently published at the same time, their name was given as the Plough Horntails, and this is the name by which they've been known ever since. (The horntail is another name for the wood wasp.)
This year we lost the Park Tavern (previously known as the Wharf) due to work commitments, but we gained two new teams. The newcomers are both from the Lord Byron on Chapel Street; they are the Byron Laureates and the Byron Bards. While lamenting the loss of the Park, we were very pleased to welcome the two new teams.
This left us, for the first time in a few years, in the happy position of having three complete Leagues – nine teams in each. The effect of the comings and goings over the summer was that the New Castle and the Baths Hotel, who would have been relegated from the A and B Leagues respectively, remained in the same League as last season.
There were also two changes of venue and one name change. To summarise all changes:
| 2007–8 | 2008–9 |
| Park Tavern | Resigned |
| (New team) | Byron Bards |
| (New team) | Byron Laureates |
| Three Crowns | Puss Heads (now playing at the Puss in Boots, alongside the Puss Artists) |
| Prince of Wales | Crown (now playing from the Crown on Bond Street) |
| Waters Green Wonderers | Waters Green Phoenix (a name change – evoking, hopefully, the spirit of the mythical bird rather than the club |
This year, for the first time for a few years, we gained a team over the summer: we welcomed the Knot Inn from Rushton Spencer. This gave us a total of 26 teams, so the B League was expanded to its full complement of nine teams and only the A League played with eight teams this season.
There was also one change of venue:
| 2006–7 | 2007–8 |
| Sutton Club | Lamb Inn (at Sutton, only a few yards from the Sutton Club) |
Also this season, and for the second year in succession, there was a change to the way we marked the questions. This year, teams were still asked to give a subjective mark out of 10 for each set of questions, which should reflect their "entertainment value" (or otherwise). In addition, marks were awarded for "balance" and "difficulty"; these were (and still are) calculated by an Excel spreadsheet from the scores each week.
The new system was devised and is operated by Haydn Thompson (from the Ox–fford 'C'). You can read Haydn's explanation of how it works here.
We lost one team over the summer of 2006, leaving us with 25 teams. It was decided that the B League should be reduced from nine teams to eight. Consequently there are eight teams in each of the A and B Leagues, and nine in the C League.
| Resigned | Crown Jewels |
In addition, three teams have moved home and one other has a new name:
| 2005–6 | 2006–7 |
| Crown Principals | Principals (returning to the Prince Albert) |
| St. Dunstan | Three Crowns (the Holt's pub on Mill Green) |
| Beehive | Baths Hotel (off Davenport Street, behind Kwik–Fit) |
| Puss in Boots | Puss Artists (change of name only; still playing at the Puss in Boots) |
A further significant change this year was that we began awarding marks for the (subjective) balance of the questions as well as their entertainment value.
This season we lost one team and gained a new one. The team that resigned would have played in the C League this season (having been relegated from the B League), so the new team has taken its place; all other leagues and teams are unaffected.
Nick Cusack, of the Waters Green Wonderers, was thanked for his part in bringing the new team into existence.
| Resigned | Franklin |
| New team | Prince Albert |
In addition, two teams have moved home and two others have changed their names:
| 2003–4 | 2004–5 |
| Macclesfield Cricket Club | Bruce Taverners |
| Travellers Rest | Albion (London Road, near the Byrons Lane junction) |
| Crown Principals | Crown Prince |
| Brocklehurst Arms | Ship Inn (name changed to represent the venue that they moved to last season) |
This summer saw the most fundamental change in the League structure for some years.
We finished last season with 33 teams: eight each in the A, B and C Leagues, and nine in the D League. Over the summer we lost six teams, and no replacements could be found despite the best efforts of the Committee (and others).
The resignations resulted almost exclusively from people moving away from the area (usually the person who organised the team), and changes to work patterns (shifts, working away from home, etc.). No one actually said they were dropping out because they were completely fed up with it, which was heartening, but the need to recruit some new blood over the next twelve months or so was recognised.
Anyway ... we were left with 27 teams, and the good news was that this divided neatly into three Leagues of nine teams each. As a result of the changes, there were effectively no relegations this year. Two teams moved from the B League to the A League, four moved from C to B, and the seven remaining teams from last season's D League joined the two that remained in the C League.
As well as the six teams that resigned, five teams moved home and one of the moves necessitated a change of name for a sixth team. Details:
| Resigned | Puss in Boots, Franklin (would have played in the B League); Church House, Robin Hood (C League); Nags Head, Bruce Arms (D League) |
| 2002–3 | 2003–4 |
| Bridgewater | Moved to the Dolphin |
| Prince Albert | Moved to the Crown, Bond Street – playing as the Crown Principals |
| Crown | Renamed the Crown Jewels |
| Ivy House | Moved to the Franklin (replacing the team that resigned) |
| Wharf | Moved to the Park Tavern |
| Brocklehurst Arms | Moved to the Ship Inn, Beech Lane – but still known as the Brocklehurst Arms |
Two further consequences of the reorganisation were highlighted in the Information Pack:
| 1 | As we now have only 27 teams, and 36 sets of questions are required (18 Specialists and 18 General Knowledge), some teams will need to set two sets. The AGM decided that each A League team would set both sets of questions for one week, and the B and C League teams would pair up on the other weeks. |
| 2 | There will be four games in each League, every week. This means that the one team in each League that has no game must provide four question masters, and there are no 'spare' teams to call on if anyone is unable to do so. |
Old hands will have noticed that each of these changes takes us back, in a sense, to the early days of the League. It's no coincidence that we have nine teams in each League whenever possible; this means that eight teams can play each week and the ninth team can provide the requisite number of question masters. IMHO this is a far better arrangement than in some other quiz leagues, where the home team must provide a question master. As for the question setting: I've been around long enough to remember when only A and B League teams were assigned question setting duties and each week's questions were set by just one team. I can remember the AGM agreeing to include C, D and E League teams on the question setting rota, but can't remember when it happened. All I know (from the information we have in the Archive) is that it was some time between 1987 and 1994.
This summer we lost two more teams and welcomed one new one. This left us with 33 teams, and it was decided that the C League should be reduced from nine teams to eight. Promotion and relegation happened as normal, except that the St. Dunstan (who finished seventh out of eight in the B League last season) stayed in that League.
We also had three changes of venue.
| Resigned | New teams |
| Plough Pioneers Railway View |
Sutton Church House |
| 2001–2 | 2002–3 |
| Star Inn | Moved to the Ox–fford, playing as the Ox–fford 'C' |
| Rising Sun 'A' | Moved to the Robin Hood (Rainow) |
| Rising Sun 'X' | Moved to the Waters Green Tavern, playing as the Waters Green Wonderers |
This summer we lost three teams and gained two new ones. This left us with 34 teams, and it was decided that the B League should join the A League in having eight teams this season.
As two of the teams that resigned had been playing in the A League, and the other in the B League, this (along with the reduction in the B League from nine teams to eight) left two vacancies in the A League. Consequently no teams were relegated this year, but two teams were promoted from each of the B, C and D Leagues as normal. The two new teams joined the D League, also according to custom, neatly filling the vacancies left by the two promoted teams.
Andy Ridgway and Alan Hodgson were thanked for their roles in bringing the new teams into existence.
There was also one change of venue, and one change of team name as a consequence of one of the resignations.
In summary:
| Resigned | New teams |
| CAP Nags Head 'A' Sparta Waters Green |
Bruce Arms Prince of Wales |
| 2000–1 | 2001–2 |
| White Swan | Moved to the Travellers Rest |
| Nags Head 'B' | Renamed Nags Head |
We lost one team this year, in rather unfortunate circumstances: Howard Richardson, captain of the Railway View 'B', died suddenly during the summer after a short illness, and the rest of the team felt unable to carry on without him. Condolences were offered to them, and to all of Howard's friends and family.
As we now have 35 teams, it was necessary to reduce one League from nine teams to eight, and it was decided that the A League should take this hit. (It was pointed out that teams in the higher Leagues tend to play more games in the knockout competitions.) Consequently it was decided that the bottom two teams in each of the A, B and C Leagues should be relegated according to the standard procedure, but only one team would be promoted from each of the B, C and D Leagues. The three runners–up who thus missed out on promotion were the Castle, Church House and Cock Inn.
Two teams played under new names this season.
In summary:
| 1999–2000 | 2000–1 |
| Railway View 'B' | Resigned – Railway View 'A' renamed Railway View |
| Waters Green XL5 | Sparta Waters Green |
| Harrington 'A' | Harrington Growlers |
'Growler' is a traditional dialect word for a pork pie. If my memory serves me well, it was said at the time that the pork pie was a speciality of the Harrington Arms, and that the term is local to Cheshire. A quick search on Google, however, found more evidence of its being claimed by Yorkshire.
This year the centre for collecting questions and leaving score sheets moved across the Market Place to the Waters Green Tavern. We are still using the same psychedelic wallet.
Two teams resigned from the League and were replaced by two new teams. There was also one change of venue, necessitating a change to another team name, and one unrelated change of team name:
| 1998–9 | 1999–2000 |
| Resigned: Three Crowns Bruce |
New teams: Brocklehurst Arms Plough Pioneers |
| Dolphin | moved to the Nags Head, becoming the Nags Head 'B' – previous Nags Head team is now the Nags Head 'A' |
| Waters Green Wolverines | renamed Waters Green XL5 |
The teams that left us were both in the D League last season, so they were directly replaced by the two new teams. As last season, we have four Leagues with nine teams in each.
The Wood Ox having disappeared without trace last year after playing just one friendly game, we were left with 38 teams at the end of the season: four leagues of eight teams each and one of six. The Ox–fford Hotel 'A' resigned over the summer, and the Boarhound followed suit after attending the AGM and signing up to play. Two of last season's teams then joined forces, and one entirely new team was warmly welcomed. This means effectively that we lost three teams and gained one, giving us 36 teams this season. They will play in four Leagues of nine teams each.
In summary:
| 1997–8 | 1998–9 |
| Boarhound | Resigned |
| Ox–fford Hotel 'A' | Resigned – Ox–fford Hotel 'B' renamed Ox–fford |
| Church House 'B' | Amalgamated with St. Dunstan – Church House 'A' renamed Church House |
| New team: Three Crowns | |
| Weavers | Relocated to the British Flag |
| Waters Green Wolverines | Renamed Waters Green XL5 |
| Prince of Wales | Relocated to the Waters Green Tavern, playing as Waters Green Rams |
| The George | Relocated to the White Swan |
The consolidation into four leagues means that the E League is disbanded after being in existence for eleven years (having been formed in the 1987–8 season). The eight teams from last season's E League will contest the D League this season, along with newcomers the Three Crowns. Somewhat similarly, last season's six surviving C League teams remain in the C League for this season.
Four teams (Waters Green Wolverines/XL5, Prince of Wales/Waters Green Rams, Harrington 'A' and Puss in Boots) are promoted from the C to the B League. The Beehive and the Dolphin (Champions and runners–up respectively in the E League last season) unfortunately lose out on promotion in all but name.
In the A League, last season's eight teams are joined by the Star Inn. The other five survivors from last season's B League remain in that division.
The most important change this season (according to the annual information pack) was that the the centre for collecting questions and leaving score sheets changed from the Millstone next door to Bar 108. We still used the same psychedelic bag (which in fact is still in use 21 years further on!).
The following moves and changes were announced at the start of the season:
| 1996–7 | 1997–8 |
| Parkside Social Club | Resigned |
| Woodman | Wood Ox (playing at the Durham Ox) |
| Nags Head 'B' | Dolphin |
| Waters Green Tavern | Waters Green Wolverines ("in the spirit of RL") |
| Butley Ash | George & Dragon 'B' (Rainow Road) |
| Geo and Dragon | George & Dragon 'A' (Rainow Road) |
| Millstone | Boarhound |
| Brewers | The Wharf |
With the departure of the Parkside Social Club team, the D League was left with seven teams; the other four leagues had eight each. Some friendlies were identified for the D League; these did not count for team scores, but individual scores did count.
In the event, the Wood Ox played just one friendly in Week One, after which they appear to have resigned. The D League continued with six teams.
This year we lost four teams and welcomed two new ones. The E League played with seven teams and it was hoped that a few friendlies could be arranged. We also had six changes of venue, and one of those meant a name change for a seventh team.
| 1993–4 | 1994–5 |
| Sema at the Millstone Franklin 'A' George II George & Dragon (R) 'A' |
Resigned |
| New teams | Railway View 'A' Ox-fford 'B' |
| Chestergate | moved to the Star Inn |
| Wagon & Horses 'A' | moved to become the Railway View 'B' |
| Boarhound | moved to the Barnfield |
| Solos | playing from the George, Hibel Road |
| Franklin 'B' | now have the venue to themselves and are renamed the Franklin |
| Wagon & Horses 'B' | similarly renamed the Wagon & Horses |
There were no rule changes this year, but as usual there were several venue and name changes.
The Jolly Sailor resigned at very short notice (after the fixture list had been published and the draw for the First Round of the Cup had been made) and were fortuitously replaced by the Wagon & Horses 'B'.
| 1992–3 | 1993–4 |
| Jolly Sailor | Resigned |
| New team | Wagon & Horses 'B' |
| Sema | Sema at the Millstone (the venue's in the team name) |
| George I | Rising Sun 'X' (the Rising Sun in question being the one in Rainow) |
| Cock & Pheasant | Wagon & Horses (still in Bollington) |
| Rising Sun 'B' | George & Dragon (R) 'B' (George & Dragon, Rainow Road) |
| Sutton Club | The Lamb (having moved over the road in Sutton) |
| Welsh Castle | Now known as the New Castle |
| Solos | play fom the Crompton Road Tavern (in Crompton Road, funnily enough) |
| Oxford Hotel | Now more ... ermm ... idiosyncratically known as the Ox–fford Hotel |
This year we welcomed four new teams and three teams dissolved (causing us all much sorrow). Four teams moved and so took up new names.
| 1991–2 | 1992–3 |
| Softies YPU Beehive |
Resigned |
| New team | Cock Inn, Henbury |
| New team | Waters Green Tavern |
| New team | Oxford Hotel |
| New team | Durham Ox |
| Lamb 'A' | Now playing at and as the Prince Albert |
| Lamb 'B' | Now playing at the Cock & Pheasant, Bollington |
| Prince of Wales | Now playing at the Castle (in the middle of town) as the Welsh Castle |
| Boarhound | Now playing at and as the Jolly Sailor (on Sunderland Street) |
Also this season, Primary and Secondary question setters were appointed. Each week the two teams would decide which would set the Specialist questions and which the General Knowledge. Each team was responsible for vetting the other's questions, and the Primary setters were responsible for getting the questions to the Millstone on time.
As the Millstone is being renovated (I hope they keep the jigsaw picture), the collection point for question masters and the drop-off point for score sheets will be the Castle. Watch this space.
| 1988–9 | 1989–90 | |
| A League | Town Hall Club | Castle 'A' |
| Millstone 'A' | Castle 'B' | |
| White Swan 'A' | Bridgewater 'A' | |
| B League | White Swan 'B' | Bridgewater 'B' |
| D League | Magician's Nephew | Prince of Wales |
| A League | Softies | Bulls Head, Marketplace |
| CAP | St. Dunstan, Langley | |
| B League | YPU | British Flag, Coare Street |
| Gardners QT | Dog & Partridge, Bollington | |
| C League | Wanderers | Bulls Head, Broken Cross |
| Sema | Dog & Partridge, Bollington | |
| Solos | Bulls Head, Marketplace | |
| George & Dragon (S) | George & Dragon, Sunderland Street | |
| E League | George & Dragon (R) | George & Dragon, Rainow Road |
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