Harden v Brighouse

Adjudicators: JK, AB

Timing: 10: 20 and 12:15

Prices: 1.25 and 1.10

Harden opened the game with a still ever-so-slightly warm pie, which was hungrily devoured by the Adjudicators with some gusto…..enough gusto to attract the attention of a passing lady, who first asked if the Adjudicators were enjoying their pies……and then, once she caught a whiff of the freshly cooked pie……opened her nostrils wide, breathed in, smiled, and started to rub her tummy, emitting some sort of contented noises that this Adjudicator rarely hears…. The Pie was good….not at all over salted, lightly seasoned, with nicely moist jelly. The crust was deemed tasty……but the very rim at the top, was noticeably hard….and may have caused problems, for the part-qualified Adjudicator, had he been present.

The Adjudicators were more than happy with this offering……and quickly drove up to The George in Cullingworth, famous for opening early for Adjudicators, and providing The George Bellybuster Breakfast, a treat that the Adjudicators have promised themselves……but only after completing their seasonal duties. The George, as ever, was staffed by young and pleasantly welcoming young girls, who the Adjudicators left in peace, to discuss their boyfriends, whilst they sat outside and pondered future Pie League developments.

The journey to Brighouse was interrupted by a visit to the  New Coley Nurseries…….where one Adjudicator bought more Kohl Rabi seedlings than he should have…..and also regretted not having bought some vividly coloured plants a week earlier…….which were now sold out.

A couple of Harden pies were dropped off at 12th Avenue, where one Adjudicator admired the construction put in place by Murphy Wigwam Services to cater for the needs of the Alderman Peas planted by the other Adjudicator. As it happened, the CEO of MWS chose to accompany the Adjudicators to Brighouse for the second half. This proved to be a costly mistake…….but more later……please note, that one Adjudicator did suggest he try the Pie before we set off. Brighouse, already without a chance of reaching the play-offs, chose to field some new talent, but they produced a rather disappointing performance……whilst the Adjudicators were unable to highlight any particularly bad qualities……some dissatisfaction was expressed over the crust…..and the oversalted  meat content…..the Adjudicators had no qualms about awarding this game to Harden…..before even taking their post-game drinks. These were taken at The Big Chicken……where the Adjudicators sampled the Jamaica Ginger, served by a young girl, who sang the praises of some 7.5% Moonshine Cider…….which this Adjudicator noted as something to get into, when he was not driving. And it was at this point that the full extent of the MWS CEOs misjudgement became apparent…..first came a photo of one pie and some crumbs……where there had been two…….followed by a photo of a 91 year old man, polishing off the second pie………..the CEO put on a brave face……..but he was clearly distraught.

So…….we have reached the end of Round 3……and I think that in both leagues, at least three teams are still fighting for places in the play- offs for the Grand Final. League Tables and remaining fixtures will be sent out in due course.