"The Wizard of Oz"? Sports? Trivia Quiz

Answer: Watford

Elton John had long been a fan of Watford Football Club and first became involved as a director in 1973; some three years later he became the chairman. Watford had traditionally been regarded as a lower division team but thanks to Elton's financial involvement and superb tactical skills shown by manager Graham Taylor they quickly moved through the ranks and gained a place in the top flight in 1982.

They finished in second place (behind Liverpool) in their first ever season in the top division; a quite remarkable achievement. Elton John relinquished his chairman's role in 2002 and took on the position of president.

Answer: Huddersfield Town

In the movie, Toto was played by a cairn terrier called Terry, however, some say that the dog illustrated in L. Frank Baum's book, "The Wonderful Wizard of Oz", is actually a Yorkshire terrier. Baum never actually specified the breed so it remains a matter of conjecture. Huddersfield Town's nickname is 'The Terriers' so I guess they are definitely Yorkshire Terriers. Bradford City's nickname is 'The Bantams', Leeds United's nickname is 'The Whites' (imaginative stuff!), and Sheffield Wednesday are known as 'The Owls'.

Answer: Edinburgh

Hearts (or Heart of Midlothian) are one of two major football teams to be found in Edinburgh. Their great rivals in the city are Hibernian or Hibs for short. Although it is fair to say that most of the Scottish footballing trophies go to Rangers and Celtic (both from Glasgow), Hearts have had their moments and have won all the major Scottish trophies at one time or another.

Answer: The Sussex County Cricket Club one-day team

The Sussex County Cricket Club one-day team is known as the Sussex Sharks.
The British and Irish Lions are an international touring side with players usually chosen from the English, Scottish, Irish, and Welsh teams. Uncapped players can be selected although in practice this rarely happens.
Millwall's nickname is 'The Lions'. Their home ground was known as The Den, and when they moved to a new stadium in 1993, they called it The New Den.
Swinton Lions are a successful rugby league side from the Greater Manchester area.

Answer: Scarlet, green, and white

Yes I know - it really should be orange and black if they are tigers, but the team have been wearing scarlet, green, and white since 1891. The origins of the 'Tigers' part of the name is unclear, but probably stemmed from the nickname of the local army regiment, The Royal Leicestershires, which was 'The Tigers'. Since the formation of the English Premiership in 1987, Leicester Tigers have won the league several times including four straight wins during the 1999-2002 seasons.

Answer: Warwickshire

The traditional Warwickshire badge features the bear and ragged staff design which probably has its origins with the 14th century Earl of Warwick. Warwickshire County Cricket Club have embraced the county coat of arms and their one-day side is known as Warwickshire Bears. Worcestershire rather grandly call themselves Worcestershire Royals, although fans often refer to them as 'The Pears', after the pears emblem on the club badge. Gloucestershire are known as 'The Gladiators', and Derbyshire call themselves 'The Phantoms', presumably because they haven't a ghost of a chance of winning anything (only joking).

Answer: Hampshire

It has to be said that Shane Warne was one of the very best spin bowlers of all-time. He came along when the art of leg-spin bowling had almost died out (outside of southern Asia), and he mesmerised batsmen all over the world.
His dismissal of England batsman Mike Gatting in The Ashes series of 1993, is generally referred to as 'the ball of the century'.

Answer: Hartlepool

The story goes that during the Napoleonic Wars a French ship ran aground off the coast of Hartlepool. The only survivor of the shipwreck was a monkey which presumably had belonged to one of the drowned sailors. Anti-French feelings were running high, and the residents of the town put the monkey on trial for spying.

The unfortunate creature was found guilty and promptly hung. These actions earned the townsfolk the nickname of 'monkeyhangers', and was originally viewed as a term of abuse. More recently however, the townsfolk have embraced the term and the fans of the Hartlepool United now seem quite proud of their erstwhile term of defilement.

The mascot for the team is called H'Angus the Monkey, and the town elected a mayor who seduced the voters with a slogan of "Free Bananas For Schoolchildren" (he reneged!).

Answer: Red Splash

Red Rum is almost certainly the most famous of all Grand National winners. He was the first horse to have won the race three times. His wins came in 1973, 1974, and 1977. He finished second in both 1975 and 1976, an amazing record indeed. There is a life sized statue of 'Rummy' at Aintree race course in Liverpool where The Grand National is run. Red Alligator won the race in 1968 and Red Marauder's win came in 2001. Red Splash never won The Grand National, but was the first-ever winner of the prestigious Cheltenham Gold Cup in 1924.

Answer: The Barbarians

The Barbarians (or Baa-Baas) is a British based rugby club which invites top players to play in matches against international sides and other top teams. It is considered a great honour to be chosen to play for The Barbarians. The Baa-Baas do not have a home ground as such and their matches are played at a variety of top venues such as Twickenham, Murrayfield, and The Millennium Stadium.

The Barbarians usually play in a black and white hooped shirt with black shorts, but players are expected to play wearing the socks in the colours of their own club sides. Saracens play their home games at Vicarage Road, Wasps play at Adams Park, and Harlequins play at The Stoop.