CCCWC June 2018 competition results
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47 clues entered. 44 votes cast (38 competitors, 6 others).
UNION
It seems cruel that there should emerge a winner from two clues that are so similar but "wrecked" was JUST preferred to "destroyed"! So hearty congrats to Andy Smith who follows up his 3rd place last month with the victory and deepest commiserations to Satyen who just misses out in 2nd. A neat subtraction anagram and surprising that two entrants managed to find it.
A little way back in third was Vinit – his first podium for a few years, so well done – a simple enough anagram but a very convincing surface indeed!
Vinit pipped two of our stalwarts by a 1/2 point, who tied for 4th place. Tom achieves his 3rd podium finish of the year with a far from glowing advert for the grand old institution of marriage! John Tozer constructed a very neat reversed hidden &lit. for his 2nd podium of the year.
As always, well done to all for another fine competition, apologies for the delay in the results as I have been in foreign climes, but onwards now to VINDALOO!
Pos | No. | Name | Clue | Explanation | Points | Merits | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 14 | Andy Smith | Endless innuendo wrecked marriage | (INNU[-end]O)* | 74 | 3 | 3 |
2 | 13 | Satyen Nabar | Endless innuendo destroyed marriage | anag of INNU(-end)O | 71.5 | 6 | 3 |
3 | 25 | Vinit Wankhede | No fun essentially in arranged marriage (5) | NO+U(fun essentially)+IN anagram arranged=anagrind marriage = definition | 58.5 | 3 | 5 |
4 | 41 | Tom Borland | Suffering ennui? That's ordinary for English marriage | O for E in *ENNUI; def. marriage | 58 | 4 | 1 |
4 | 47 | John Tozer | What could be reversed in Reno in urgency | hidden rev. & lit.; ref. divorce capital of US | 58 | 1 | 2 |
6 | 27 | Peter Hartley | Noun I mistake for conjunction. | *NOUN I mistake (for) conjunction (def.) | 40.5 | 0 | 1 |
7 | 6 | Kevin Brown | British leave: sore point for alliance | bUNION | 27 | 3 | 2 |
8 | 17 | David McKie | Growth painful without British in Europe, say? | (B)UNION | 25 | 1 | 3 |
9 | 11 | Luciano Ward | Consortium partly backed casino in Utah | hidden ('partly') reverse ('backed'); def = consortium | 24 | 2 | |
10 | 22 | Bob Kellett | Marriage – anyone can see it might lead to tears if there's no love at the outset (5) | U (anyone can see [re films]) ONION remove the first O def marriage NB: U for "you" is supported by the latest editions of most dictionaries (as a txtmsg abbr) so no longer needs any further indication. | 15.5 | 4 | 1 |
11 | 30 | Order wedding ring | Multiple definition | 15 | 2 | 2 | |
12 | 39 | Sex gel court's banned | UN(ct)ION | 12 | 1 | 2 | |
13 | 1 | Agreement zero in UN resolution | *O+IN+UN; agreement=union; resolution=sorting out | 11 | 0 | 1 | |
14 | 38 | Retiring lead character in Greek Wedding | 'no 1' nu (all rev); ref My Great Fat Greek Wedding | 10.5 | 1 | ||
15 | 12 | Could be Oxford University cricket side | Def = "Could be Oxford" (ref. the Oxford Union); UNI[versity] + ON (side of field in cricket). | 10 | 0 | 1 | |
16 | 15 | Federation match (5) | Double definition | 8 | 1 | 1 | |
16 | 31 | Partnership is swelling when opener is dismissed (5) | def = partnership swelling = BUNION when opener is dismissed => remove B | 8 | 2 | 1 | |
16 | 33 | Peacekeepers keep nothing in the state of wedlock. | UN + iOn; def | 8 | 0 | 2 | |
19 | 40 | Some employees in university finding deduction from earnings acceptable | University (U), deduction from earnings (NI), Acceptable (ON); Ref. recent pension strikes | 7.5 | 2 | 1 | |
20 | 8 | Club champion returns to face one in France (5) | club = def; champion = number one = no. 1, returns = ion, one in France = un | 6.5 | 1 | 1 | |
20 | 32 | Partnership working after Cambridge, say. | defn = uni + on | 6.5 | 1 | 2 | |
22 | 26 | No one in the audience knew about a basic operation in set theory | Reversal (about) of NO I NU (homophone of KNEW); definition is "a basic operation in set theory" | 6 | 1 | 3 | |
22 | 36 | Red problem for Foot putting British off? | (B)union & lit., ref. Michael F.'s attachment to trade unions, red= colour/left-wing | 6 | 4 | 4 | |
24 | 28 | Noun I work for? (5) | (NOUN + I) anagram = UNION (the place I work for). | 5 | 0 | 2 | |
25 | 20 | Kim Jong's first meeting with heartless US president? | U[n] + NI[x]ON, whole clue as def | 4.5 | 1 | 5 | |
26 | 7 | Cloth buffers taken off bunions. | bUNIONs, def. Cloth, 'union' is a fabric of mixed materials, e.g. cotton with linen or silk. | 3.5 | 1 | 1 | |
27 | 3 | Bard's unique pearl: a remarkable non-u one. | Def +anag(non-u = uncultured + i) | 3 | 1 | 3 | |
27 | 9 | Combination without British corn (5) | direct=combination. corn = Bunion: B = British, "without" removes the B leaving "union". | 3 | 0 | 2 | |
27 | 10 | Compound noun with one coupling | *noun & I*, "compound" (verb, to create by mixing or combining) as anagram indicator, "coupling" as definition. | 3 | 2 | 1 | |
27 | 34 | Pearl's a bit of a lump, but less tubby at heart | union ² (Chambers). BUNION – (TU)B(BY) | 3 | 0 | 1 | |
27 | 42 | Topless fun makes leader return for sex (5) | [f]UN + ION (No. 1 returning)- | 3 | 1 | 1 | |
32 | 5 | Bond in essence after one gets hitched to another one | UN + I + bONd; &lit | 2 | 2 | ||
32 | 16 | Federation of countries welcoming contentious region with love | Federation = def; UN around NI+O; contentious region = Northern Ireland | 2 | 1 | 3 | |
32 | 43 | Trinity Bursar reported having a swelling. Term didn't start. | Trinity (union) Bursar reported (bursa [ sac-like cavity on joint, particularly on big toe ] – swelling = bunion). Term (word – bunion) didn't start = (b) union | 2 | 0 | 2 | |
32 | 44 | United refusal over Italy’s Northern League | U + NO over I (has) N; league as definition | 2 | 0 | ||
32 | 46 | Universal replaced nothing in a tear-jerker – "Marriage". | U (=Universal [Studios]) for first o in "onion" (= tear-jerker)/def. | 2 | 2 | ||
37 | 23 | Marriage function without touches of traditional fruit cake (5) | Def: Marriage Touches of Traditional Fruit Cake is TFC FUNCTION-T-F-C. (No anagram only deletion ) Harry’s and Meghan’s wedding was the first without a fruitcake | 1.5 | 2 | ||
38 | 2 | As a bit of fun I once swallowed a large pearl | As a bit of … swallowed (containment); f UN I ON ce ; a large pearl = def.. | 1 | 2 | 1 | |
38 | 19 | It's used by plumbers working after leading parts of ugly new instllations | Definition: 'It's used by plumbers'; 'working' = ON; 'leading' (pronounced 'ledding'), is a plumbing term; 'leading' (pronounced 'leeding') parts of 'ugly new installations' = UNI which comes before ON. | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
40 | 4 | Bond in antimatter? | 'Bond' = union, 'antimatter?' = un-ion | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
40 | 18 | Head's beginning to go putting on uniform for meeting | (o)<U>NION [onion = head; slang] | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
40 | 21 | Local one regularly disowns bard’s fine, large pearl | UN + alternate letters | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
40 | 24 | Marriage little queen escapes: "No, I run away" | (NO, I rUN)* | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
40 | 29 | Nun worried about perfect marriage (5) | Definition: marriage; Wordplay: (NUN)* about IO (ten, so perfect), anagram indicator – worried | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
40 | 35 | Pungent bulb loses head to take the first universal league (5) | Pungent bulb=ONION League=def | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
40 | 37 | Reduction of college term lost support of dons after getting together. | college term = UNI/versity + (d)ON(s) | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
40 | 45 | Universal name of invocation and incorporation of federal states | U + n + io + 'n' = def | 0 | 0 | 1 |