Studying the fixutres

As is tradition, the tournament started with Round One of the Knockout. Doc Shakib and Commander Graham, as the two highest ranked members, were given byes into the second round. Paired off randomly, none of the five Division One members played each other at this stage of the competition, giving the lower league members the opportunity to upset the odds. The draw, for the first time made at the event, allowed Lieutenant Gareth and Professor King to renew their rivalry after being chosen to play Pete Sampras Tennis, while friends Agent Ziolek and Pilot Officer Pickering would see their first game against each other on Primal Rage. Liam Forrest Esquire and Fireman Sam were also able to go head-to-head again following the latter's promotion at the Nineteenth Championship. The Plumb was the only man who beat an opponent from the higher league, with a 2-0 victory over Samurai Taguchi on Mega Bomberman. Both Baron Von Hooton and Professor King came close to wins, however, Earl Holbrook (on Sonic 3) and Lieutenant Gareth (on Pete Sampras Tennis) were to prove to strong and advanced to the next round. Captain Maltby and Fireman Sam won convincingly in their games, while Agent Ziolek was the winner of the all Division Two tie on Primal Rage.

Baron Von Hooton (D2) and Viscount Elliott (D2)

The Plumb (D2), Commander Graham (D1)
and Samurai Taguchi (D1)

Doc Shakib (D1) is accused of
taking performance enhancing drugs

Wins for Doc Shakib on Micro Machines Military, Virtua Racing (twice) and Pete Sampras Tennis put him on top with an impressive 100% record. He led Commander Graham by four-points and with an eleven better goal-difference giving the Division One top two a familiar appearance. Captain Maltby became something of a shock statistic when he was defeated by Samurai Taguchi in the debuting league game of Mega Bomberman, however, his second victory on World Cup Italia '90 since the tournaments began and a tough battle on Streets of Rage 3 kept the Captain among the early pace setters.

Towards the foot of the table, Samurai Taguchi lead a group of three players on two-points. Earl Holbrook was doing his typical hovering about the relegation zone routine with his only victory a surprising 2-0 win over Lieutenant Gareth on Super Street Fighter 2. Fireman Sam was struggling to make any impact in the higher league, after convincingly winning Division Two at the Nineteenth Championship, although two of his three games had been against Commander Graham and Doc Shakib. Lieutenant Gareth held up Division One after spectacularly under-performing in the first quarter. Defeats on Pete Sampras Tennis, Super Street Fighter 2 and Micro Machines: Military gave him an unenviable total of zero-points and the maximum negative goal-difference he could have achieved at this stage.

In the Second Division, Baron Von Hooton was making an impact having being relegated from Division One at the Fifteenth Mega Drive Championship. Four-games played, three wins and one draw pushed him into top spot with seven-points. New member, Agent Ziolek, held the second promotion place; equal with The Plumb on points, a superior goal difference was all that separated the pair. Professor King, relegated at the previous tournament, had an average start to his return to Division Two; one win, one draw and one defeat kept him in fourth place.

Division One

Pld

G.D.

Pts

1.

Doc Shakib

4

+20

8

2.

Cmdr Graham

3

+9

4

3.

Captain Maltby

4

+1

4

4.

Samurai Taguchi

2

-2

2

5.

Earl Holbrook

3

-4

2

6.

Fireman Sam

3

-8

2

7.

Lt Gareth

3

-16

0

Division Two

Pld

G.D.

Pts

1.

B.V. Hooton

4

+7

7

2.

Agent Ziolek

3

+7

4

3.

The Plumb

3

+3

4

4.

Professor King

3

+6

3

5.

Liam Forrest Esq.

2

0

2

6.

P.O. Pickering

3

-3

2

7.

Viscount Elliott

4

-20

0

The Knockout action began to heat up in Round Two as the eight remaining contenders fought for a place in the Semi-Finals. On paper the draw through out some very unpredictable ties. Of the two remaining Division Two members in the competition, Agent Ziolek faced an uphill struggle against Commander Graham on Streets of Rage 2, while The Plumb was selected to play the defending Mega Drive Champion, Doc Shakib, on the treacherous NHL '97. Captain Maltby beat Earl Holbrook on Micro Machines '96 and Lieutenant Gareth scraped out a 2-1 victory over Fireman Sam on Super Street Fighter 2. The Plumb produced the shock of the round when he not only beat, but thrashed, Doc Shakib on NHL '97, The Plumb increasing his reputation as a sports game wizard. Commander Graham convincingly eliminated Agent Ziolek from the contest.

Earl Holbrook (D1) and Captain Maltby (D1) clash on Micro Machines '96

The Plumb (D2) and Captain Maltby (D1)

Three of the four TV's blaze with 16-bit awesome

Pilot Officer Pickering (D2) and Agent Ziolek (D2)

Commander Graham and Doc Shakib continued to lead Division One and went head-to-head on Virtua Racing in their battle for the title. Doc Shakib had been undefeated upon this game up until the Eighteenth Mega Drive Championship when Captain Maltby narrowly earned a win on the Bay Bridge course. Commander Graham has, so far been inconsistent on this game, but the Bay Bridge would be the scene for another defeat for the Doc, as Commander Graham proved a worthy victor. Wins against Earl Holbrook on Columns and Samurai Taguchi on Pete Sampras Tennis pushed Commander Graham into top-spot, two-points ahead of Doc Shakib whose defeat on Mega Bomberman compounded a miserable second quarter. Fireman Sam had recovered well in the second phase of the competition and was able to produce three victories on four games, propelling him up the table into third place, behind Doc Shakib on goal difference.

Captain Maltby scored just one win from three games (Streets of Rage 3) and was largely disappointing, slipping to four-points behind Commander Graham, he now hovered just two-points above the relegation zone, although Earl Holbrook provided a buffer between. Earl Holbrook himself scraped two narrow victories on World Cup Italia '90 and Mega Bomberman in order to keep his head above water. Lieutenant Gareth finally got some points on the board with two wins on Golden Axe 2. He was beaten by Fireman Sam on Super Street Fighter 2, but his four-points were enough to lift him above Samurai Taguchi who woefully lost all four of his games in the second section and caused him to fall to the foot of the table.

Baron Von Hooton continued to push towards promotion, three-points ahead of The Plumb who had climbed into the promotion places at the expense of Agent Ziolek. The Plumb, Liam Forrest Esquire and Agent Ziolek all stood level with eight-points, however, The Plumb's skills on Sensible Soccer gave him a superior goal difference. In spite of an incredible 9-5 victory over Liam Forrest Esquire on NHL '97, Professor King had slumped into fifth place, three-points adrift of the promotion places. Pilot Officer Pickering held sixth place on goal difference, while Viscount Elliott scored his first victory in an unthrilling 1-0 game on Sensible Soccer against Pilot Officer Pickering, ending any looming fears that he might emulate Old Spice Lock.

Division One

Pld

G.D.

Pts

1.

Cmdr Graham

6

+21

10

2.

Doc Shakib

6

+16

8

3.

Fireman Sam

7

-2

8

4.

Captain Maltby

7

-4

6

5.

Earl Holbrook

6

-5

6

6.

Lt Gareth

6

-10

4

7.

Samurai Taguchi

6

-16

2

Division Two

Pld

G.D.

Pts

1.

B.V. Hooton

7

+15

11

2.

The Plumb

6

+9

8

3.

Liam Forrest Esq.

6

+2

8

4.

Agent Ziolek

7

+1

8

5.

Professor King

6

+6

5

6.

P.O. Pickering

6

-9

2

7.

Viscount Elliott

6

-24

2

Prior to the tournament the benevolent Tournament Administration has chosen Golden Axe III for the Challenge game at the Twentieth Mega Drive Championship. This Asia only released game is quite similar to its prequels, however, each character has varying degrees of ability and special moves - not that anybody was able to successfully to pull them off. Members were paired off randomly and went head-to-head in a knockout style competition. Doc Shakib and Professor King were awarded byes as the highest ranked Division One and Two members respectively. The instruction manual was mocked for being written in Japanese before complaints were made when Samurai Taguchi was allowed to glance through it. Samurai Taguchi would progress no further than the semi-final where he was beaten by Lieutenant Gareth. Professor King, who won the Challenge at both the Eighteenth and Nineteenth tournaments, was unable to add a third victory to his name, as he was defeated by Commander Graham in the semis. This left Commander Graham and Lieutenant Gareth to go head-to-head in the final. Although for the early part both players were clearly nervous, but they both got stuck into the battle and it was Commander Graham who got his nose in front and refused to relinquish his lead to win the Golden Axe III Challenge.

Lieutenant Gareth (D1), Samurai Taguchi (D1)
and Lord Dilks

Deep into the heart of the competition,
passion and purity is rife!

Delighted Challenge Winner, Commander Graham (D1)
shows us his shaking hand

An additional three wins in the third phase pushed Commander Graham six-points ahead of a floundering Doc Shakib. Wins on Pete Sampras Tennis, Mega Bomberman and World Cup Italia '90 pushed him to within one-point of his first ever tournament title. Only Doc Shakib and Fireman Sam could mathematically catch Commander Graham, however, goal difference made Fireman Sam's task nigh impossible and Doc Shakib’s form since the first quarter of the competition had been inconsistent at best.

Yet the race for qualification to Team England was alive as it never had been, with two-points now separating 2nd - 6th. Doc Shakib, Fireman Sam, Captain Maltby, Earl Holbrook and Lieutenant Gareth each had a realistic shout of achieving this opportunity, but this also opened up the danger of relegation for all five members. One win in three games had effectively ended any aspirations Doc Shakib had of defending the title, while Fireman Sam continued to hold a position near the top of the table. Three players boasted eight-points, with Captain Maltby marginally ahead of Earl Holbrook and Lieutenant Gareth - who still languished in a relegation place, but with two wins on Sonic the Hedgehog 2, he now had a realistic opportunity of avoiding the drop. Samurai Taguchi scored his second win of the competition, with a 2-0 victory over Doc Shakib on Ball Jacks, however, four-points from safety, relegation was now all but a certainty going into the final quarter.

In Division Two five members bunched together at the top of the table, with three-points separating the top five and two promotion places available, there was still everything to play for going into the final quarter. Baron Von Hooton continued to lead the race for Division One, but his three-point lead now slashed to just one. The Plumb scored two wins from three games in order to keep his place in the top-two. A quaint anomaly meant the draw had given Professor King three successive games on Sonic 3, of which he won all three, hauling himself up from fifth place into third, one-point behind The Plumb. Liam Forrest Esquire and Agent Ziolek were both level on ten-points, but with Esquire holding a marginally better goal difference.

Division One

Pld

G.D.

Pts

1.

Cmdr Graham

9

+30

16

2.

Doc Shakib

9

+17

10

3.

Fireman Sam

9

-1

10

4.

Captain Maltby

9

-3

8

5.

Earl Holbrook

9

-10

8

6.

Lt Gareth

10

-14

8

7.

Samurai Taguchi

9

-19

4

Division Two

Pld

G.D.

Pts

1.

B.V. Hooton

9

+16

13

2.

The Plumb

9

+16

12

3.

Professor King

10

+15

11

4.

Liam Forrest Esq.

9

0

10

5.

Agent Ziolek

9

-1

10

6.

P.O. Pickering

9

-19

4

7.

Viscount Elliott

9

-27

4

Into the final stretch - members desperately scrabble for points

Commander Graham (D1) and Captain Maltby (D1)

Liam Forrest Esquire (D2) and Professor King (D2) jostle for
league position, in the background other battles rage

The Knockout draw had provided two dismal games for the semi-finals. Teenage Mutant Hero Turtles: Tournament Fighters was the better of the two games, a two-button fighter in which players take on the role of their favourite hero in a half shell and attempt to knockout their opponent. Combat Cars is abject tosh and is essentially Micro Machines with all the fun and excitement extracted. Commander Graham and Lieutenant Gareth were drawn on Tournament Fighters while Captain Maltby and The Plumb (the last remaining Division Two member in the competition) were forced to endure Combat Cars. While Lieutenant Gareth has shown excellent form in recent Knockouts, indeed he beat Commander Graham in the final of the Eighteenth Tournament on Primal Rage, he was unable to overcome an opponent who was well practiced on their game. Commander Graham advanced to the Knockout Final for the third time in three tournaments. His opponent was The Plumb who successfully overcame his higher league counterpart, Captain Maltby, in order to reach the final for the first time in his tournament history.

Beating Samurai Taguchi on Mega Bomberman was enough for Commander Graham to win the Twentieth Mega Drive Championship. This marked the end of a long road of steady, positive progress that has seen him climb from Division Two at the Sixteenth Tournament to establish himself as one of the best players in the competition. Fireman Sam finished in second, crucially beating Doc Shakib on Columns. Earl Holbrook surprised many with a very strong finish of three wins in three games, on Super Street Fighter 2, Streets of Rage 3 and Ball Jacks, to earn himself third place and the opportunity to participate in Team England. Doc Shakib finished in fourth, a win against Commander Graham on Streets of Rage 3 the only solace for the defending Champion who slid down the table.

Captain Maltby's victory on Pete Sampras Tennis, over Lieutenant Gareth, spelled the death knoll for Samurai Taguchi who was unable to climb from the relegation places. The second relegation spot went to Lieutenant Gareth, who was defeated, 5-0, by the unquenchable Commander Graham on Golden Axe 2. Captain Maltby scored points in the final game of the contest, against Doc Shakib on Micro Machines: Military, however, by that point, he was mathematically safe from relegation.

Baron Von Hooton pulled away from the pack with three wins from three games to secure the Division Two title and, with promotion, the opportunity to battle in Division One for the first time since the Fifteenth Mega Drive Championship, when he was relegated following a game of Ball Jacks against Captain Maltby. Liam Forrest Esquire silently surged up the table in the final quarter to surprisingly secure the second promotion place, much to the despair of The Plumb who missed out on promotion by two-points. Pre-Tournament favourite, Professor King, finished three-points behind the top two while Agent Ziolek, who has started well faded into fifth place with ten-points. At the foot of the table both Pilot Officer Pickering and Viscount Elliot ended with six-points, however, it was the superior goal difference of Pilot Officer Pickering that placed him in the higher position.

With the league over for another year attention switched to the Knockout Final. For Commander Graham, hunting a never before achieved treble of league, Knockout and Challenge, this was his third successive Knockout final, but of he had only won the contest once at the Nineteenth Championship. The Plumb has no significant history in the Knockout and this marked his debut in the final. The game selected was Eternal Champions upon which Commander Graham is statistically the best player. Arguably the best Knockout Final of all time; representing the Second Division against the new Mega Drive Champion, The Plumb won the first round, however, Commander Graham would not be subdued and came back strong to win the second round. The third round was very, very close and, with the audience on a knife-edge, The Plumb scored the shock result to the adulation of the spectators.

The Finalists:
The Plumb (D2) and Commander Graham (D1)

The Hall of Warriors: The battle rages to find out whose
name will be added to the list of the greats

So the buttons of the controllers are now cooled and we can reflect upon what was the most successful and enjoyable Mega Drive Championship to date. With his first Mega Drive Championship title, Commander Graham is only the fourth man to have ever won the league competition. This achievement places his names with the true elite of English Mega Drive game play. He also came close to recording a never before achieved treble of league, Knockout and Challenge - not bad for a SNES man! The Plumb will also see his name live in infamy, engraved upon the Tournament Knockout Shield, it will stand as a testament through time of his success while the awesomeness of the Knockout final will not easily fade from memory. The next Mega Drive Championship will take place in Summer 2010, but before that there is the 2009 European Mega Drive Championship in Lisbon and the chance for England to embarrass themselves on the International stage once again.