Bosses were forced to fight fires this year – exemplified by the emissions scandal at VW, which crept out of nowhere to take the scalp of chief executive Martin Winterkorn and the pride of Germany's industrial jewel.
He made his name as the chief of Joint Special Operations Command, the "black" special forces whose men took the scalp of, among others, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, the bloody leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq.
As the two-day final progressed, Coral and Steve Davis must have been mightily concerned; Thorne's game was showing no signs of cracking, and for a significant proportion of the match it looked as if he would take the scalp of a fourth world champion on the way to his second major win.
Petrescu was understandably emotional as his team took the scalp of Sevilla – even if the result was saturated with good fortune as their Spanish opponents, who could afford to stroll as they were already qualified, presented them with an own goal that was magnificent in its absurdity.
Yes, Oxford had taken the scalp of Manchester United the year before, run Everton close in a match that turned Howard Kendall's fortunes around, and were currently leading the Second Division, but as First Division leaders Arsenal swarmed all over their opponents, it seemed as if those hoping for a cup shock would have to look elsewhere.
It was not an entirely wasted night for Ennis but, having clocked 12.83sec for third place in her 100m hurdles heat, and taken the scalp of former world indoor champion Lolo Jones, she would have been hoping to crack her lifetime best of 12.79sec in a super-fast final.
The company is also talking up its potential to take the scalp of legacy players.
Her superb 2010 season had exploded into life when she took the scalp of world champion Spofforth in the 100m backstroke at the British Championships.
But Wales have not taken the scalp of a Tri Nations super-power for 14 games since beating Australia in Cardiff in November 2008.
