A Steely Performance

After last week's debacle in which my 2-seed Magdalen got knocked off by my 16-seed Darwin, let's see if my predicted ratings for the second Round 2 matchup are any better.

I had Sheffield ranked 10th and Strathclyde ranked 15th. Sheffield lost their first round match, but made it through the repechage comfortably, while Strathclyde faced the lowest-scoring opposition in round 1.

If Strathclyde win this, then my predictions really will look terrible. Here's your first starter for ten.

Dobbie recognises the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency to get Sheffield off the mark, and they took a couple of bonuses on early romantic art, which is what you get if you do a sketch on a napkin during a first date. Elsisi strikes fast with Bonaparte on the second starter, and a few more bonuses put Sheffield 40 points clear.

Elsisi makes this 50 with Diane Arbus, earning a bonus set on Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn series. Which I got very excited about, as it is a great series and I thought the questions would be layups for me. But as is often the case with UC questions on slightly less well-known subjects, they are not actually asking about the Mistborn series. They are asking about metals. Sheffield take a hat-trick, nonetheless, despite a throwaway guess of brass on the last one. Unfortunately, none of the metals were steel.

Price grabs the picture starter, and they race to another hat-trick on national passports. Couloumb gives Price another ten points, and they take a remarkable hat-trick on Aussie Rules Football. Sheffield are cooking, and Rajan hits Strathclyde with an obligatory 'there's still plenty of time', but on this form, Sheffield will be tough to catch.

Dobbie continues the rout with Eleanor Roosevelt, and they finally miss a bonus (though only one) on hypnotising chickens. Another for Dobbie and a third for Elsisi makes it 160-0, which is pretty bloody brutal.

No one knows about a glands, before Strathclyde captain Stirling (from Inverness) finally gets the Scottish side on the board. For a moment there, it was looking like a historic demolition, like what Trump just did to the White House. They won't win, but at least they won't end with zero.

Price gets Sheffield running after the ignominy of missing a single starter question, before a second from Stirling gets Strathie up to 30 points and drops them out of the top 3 lowest scores of all time. Notoriety averted.

Or not... Johnston immediately loses five of those precious points with an incorrect interruption. Price picks up the question and Sheffield continue their relentless charge. Dobbie and Elsisi join in the fun and the Yorkshire quartet are closing in on 300 points. Despite this, and their clear impending victory, Rajan seems very upset at not being allowed to give them the points for saying custard apple rather than soursop on a picture bonus (there are at least six fruits known as custard apple, apparently).

Foucoult swings the pendulum of history back in Strathclyde's favour. Stirling was one of the best buzzers of the first round with 9 starters, and this is his third tonight, enough to take them well out of the lowest ten scores, but not enough to challenge for the win.

Sheffield 290 - 60 Strathclyde

A stunning performance from Sheffield, who are now brimming with confidence and overpowered Stirling on the buzzer. My predictions are safe for another week at least.

1. Merton
2. Magdalen
3. Warwick
4. UCL
5. Imperial
6. LSE
7. Southampton
8. Trinity
9. Churchill
10. Sheffield -->
11. Manchester
12. Edinburgh
13. Bristol
14. Lincoln
15. Strathclyde
16. Darwin -->

Next time out, we'll see Southampton (7) vs Imperial (5)

Then Bristol (13) vs Warwick (3)