However. Some kinds of themed puzzles straddle a dangerous divide between “very easy” and “very difficult”. The very easy is partly if one is quite familiar with the topic – as some above seemed to be in this case – and partly if one is terribly unfamiliar (as I), but figures out what to research. Once I had noticed “position” all over the place, I figured it wasn’t an anagrind but a theme, and made a “note to self” to dig out the WP diagram of cricket positions. Then either the Hs in HARRUMPH or LEFT WING made me look up RU, and right there was a diagram with five answers laid out for all to see. Then I could almost solve clues by matching letter counts!

Very hard of course is if one is unfamiliar and does not have resources available (or prefers to work without them). The last obviously comparable puzzle I remember was the one filled with WW2 airplanes (I found a list that included all but one on the ‘net, of course).

But I must say this for Paul – provided one was willing to enter some rather strange solutions, I do believe in hindsight, and with some light analysis, that all the themed clues were truly possible to solve correctly from the wordplay and checked letters.

Combining the above with some fairly easy clues and some hilariously devious and creative ones made for a very admirable puzzle, in my final opinion.

So thanks for the blog, mhl, although I didn’t “need” it in the sense that I managed parse all the wordplays along the way, and for the puzzle, Paul, please keep straining for the boundaries!

Oddly enough, I do like watching Rugby, although with the sound off because the commentators remind me of that awful monster who, all those years ago, insisted that I play it. So I never learnt the positions which formed the key theme of this puzzle. So, sorry Paul, I`ve let you down: from mhl`s blog, I`m sure that it was every bit as wicked, clever and devious as your arcane self. Keep `em coming, kid, I`ll murder the next one!

Failed to get half-loaf which isn’t an expression that I know unless it is utterly literal, in which case I’m being a bit dense.

Paul is still consistently my favourite and rewards plugging away when it gets tough.

But Andrew also said: “My only quibble would be that a potable ball isn’t necessarily an easy one, just one that is possible to pot” supported by Eileen et al.
Some commenters above (like Duncan @9 and robi @14) like/try to justify the missing T – probably because they do not want to harm Our Hero that much.
But let’s face it: it is a mistake.
No problem with that, because we all make mistakes.
Therefore I don’t see the point in trying to find a justification for that.

We did like the crossword.
My PinC more than I did, maybe due to the theme [I'm more, just like the much missed Rightback, "into round than into oval"] but perhaps also because I found the clueing less ‘open’ than usual with a Paul – whatever that means .

Unlike Eileen (and others) I háve seen the reversal of two animals in TACKLE before – so after the K was in place, I got it.

And even if I do not like clues like 18d (with the ‘gn’) at all [although my PinC found it Araucarian], the overall verdict is as always positive.

My favourite clue is probably HALF-LOAF – great surface.
And HYTHE is a very good one too.

Not so enthusiastic about the smuttiness of 10ac and 6d.
I am beyond that nowadays.
It does raise a smile, but …

Thanks Paul & mhl.

Cheers…