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This puzzle (and its theme) were not specially demanding save for 26a which just does not appear to fit into the theme even by stretching imagination beyond its breaking point. Any help would be welcome!

My entry (an unclued one for those without a copy) is definitely thematic - and I've just confirmed that again online. The beginning of the answer is crucial...

As so often, thanks Malone. In over 60 years of watching the game at great grounds and small, I have never heard that one; nor is it in Chambers - which once, for better or worse, used to be the bible but now has been unceremoniously abandoned.

Peter284, glad I could help.

It is only in the last five or so years that I first heard the expression but I take only a passing interest in the sport.

The term at 26ac is mentioned in the Wikipedia article about the theme, and even has its own article. My problem is with 20d: I have five letters, but have checked all the uses I can find using any possible sixth letter with no success. Without giving the answer, could someone hint how the clue is constructed?

Luft... the first letter in the answer is listed in Chambers under the single letter, the middle means 'part of a nuclear reactor...'and the final letter comes from the final letter....

Lots is the definition.

Thanks Malone. That is what I assumed, but I was bewildered at the apparent lack of a definition.

Thanks, Luftmensch. Maybe lots,?????? of people wondered about the apparent lack of definition....

Peter284 @3, it is definitely a term you hear more on the village green than at the sacred home of the activity in question. I have often stood there!

Having said that, it is creeping into TV commentators’ vocabulary more given the prevalence of the forms of the game less - shall we say - to the taste of the purists.