1.   It was a diversion from an inevitable loss and an inevitable dull game.

2.   It was a dull game until the finish, no better than Ruiz-Holyfield III.

3.   It will always, as Red Smith once observed, remain a dull game only for the pitiable people in permanent possession of dull minds.

4.   Some are prepared, but a bunker mentality might also come in handy if you listen to some explain why this dreadfully dull game is so worth watching.

5.   The Hayes episode breathed life into what had been a dull game.

6.   There have been a few dull games at the Aqua Wing in the last week, but from the outset, it was clear this would not be another.

7.   Without Bill Clinton, the Backwoods Bambino, politics is a dull game and the Democrats have no chance of winning the pennant.

8.   The defensive-minded Australians, already assured of elimination, connected on their first dangerous chance and brought life to a relatively dull game.

9.   The goal brought life to a relatively dull game.

10.   The reduced schedule has produced conservative play, dull games and frustration for stars such as St. Louis winger Brett Hull.