through to the finals in two national contests has revealed a secret weapon - a player who won £125,000 on the TV show Who Wants to be a Millionaire?

Syd Rawcliffe has been with the same quiz team for around 20 years. In that time the team has won countless contests and helped raise funds for their chosen charity, Macmillan Cancer Research.

The four-strong team, based at the Sydney Street WMC in Accrington, is through to the finals of two top quizzes - one celebrating the anniversary of MG Rover, the other held by the body which regulates workingmen's clubs.

If the team wins, the players could each walk away with a new car and a cash prize.

Their chances are helped by Syd, 45, of Alice Street, who correctly answered 12 of Chris Tarrant's brainteasers last year.

When Syd enters a TV quiz, he donates half the money he wins to Macmillan. But Syd, a father of two, modestly played down his role in the team - and admitted he struggled at sport questions.

He said: "It's very much a team effort. I can answer certain subjects, but then I struggle on a lot of areas of sport. It's very much all of us contributing different answers. But we don't like questions on country and western music!"

The team, comprising Syd, and friends Steve Smith, Graeme Ashworth, and John Hindle, all from the Accrington area, class themselves as 'mercenary' quiz players, and enter two or three a week.

Next month the team will take part in the MG Rover quiz, near Coventry, hosted by cricketer Phil Tufnell, and the players could each win a car.

Then in October there is the final of the CIU (Club and Institute Union) quiz in Derbyshire, where the team could win £1,000 to share.

Syd, whose specialist subjects are food and drink, and films, said: "We have become the first team from the North West to qualify for the CIU finals three times. Last year we were fifth.

"It's the same team taking part in both. We play from the Sydney Street Club, and take part in any charity quizzes round and about.

"Given a choice between the two quizzes I would settle for winning the MG Rover and coming last in the other one! .

"The secret to our success is that we all have specialist subjects, we go to plenty of quizzes and some suit us more than others."