Warriors Wounded,Aces High

Warriors Wounded, Aces High 

Railwaymen 2 -4 Wombles

Singles

Geoff Higgs 3-0 Steven Caley Steve Brittle 1- 3 Glynn Harris Gav Pilling 1-3 Mick Swift Tom Sawford 3-0 James Thomas

Week 6 brings around the reverse fixture of the week before with teams starting to jostle for position before the first break of the season.

First of all, we head to the station in Rotherham via a blown-out tyre, emergency pick up and a detour round the New York Stadium due to roadworks, where the hosts were looking to overcome their previous defeat at the Woodbourne

It looked to be going to plan from the off as Geoff Higgs quickly ran out 3-0 winner over Steven Caley

Glyn Harris levelled the game up at 1-1 with a 3-1 victory over Steve Brittle (180)

Mick Swift (21) then put the away side Infront by defeating captain Gav Pilling 3 -1

Tom Sawford (17,21) then got the Railwaymen back on track as he despatched James Thomas 3-0 getting revenge on his opponent from last week 

Pairs

Brittle/Higgs 0-2 Caley/Thomas Pilling/Sawford 0-2 Harris/Swift

Unfortunately, the pairs didn’t go as to plan for the railway and their hopes of a victory got derailed as James Thomas checked out 127 in the first leg before Steven Caley checked out 92 in the second leg against Brittle/Higgs

Lastly the pairing of Harris and Swift proved to be too much for Pilling and Sawford (180) despite Shooter hitting a maximum to put the pressure on the double shot of the Wombles.

Aces 6 – 0 Warriors

Singles

Ian Speed 3-0 Nicola Bruce Lee Cropper 3-0 Ian Webster Becky Hoyland 3-1 Paul Brittle Mick Smith 3-0 Barry Brittle 

The Aces dealt the Warriors another 6-0 defeat propelling them up into 3rd position in the league, the winners and losers were: Ian “speedy” Speed beat Nicola Bruce 3-0, Lee Cropper beat Ian

Webster 3-0, Paul Brittle lost 3-1 to Becky Hoyland and Mick Smith (19,118c/o) won 3-0 against Barry Brittle

Pairs

Hoyland/Cropper 2-0 P Brittle/ A Brittle Speed/Smith 2-0 Bruce/Webster

Both Pairs games had a 2-0 score line with the combination of Hoyland/Cropper defeating the brittles and Speed/Smith took care of Webster/Bruce to give the Aces all 6

Stallions 1-5 Panthers

Singles

Colin Johnson 3-1 Dave Cliffe Anne Simmons 0-3 Trevor Burkhill Stuart Tunstill 0-3 Mick Hulley Wayne Pike 1-3 Russ Simmons

The Stallions were looking to put last week’s 6-0 loss behind them and get some points on the board against the panthers.

They achieved this straight away as Colin Johnson beat Dave Cliffe 3-1 to put the hosts in front, unfortunately it was the only point as Trevor Burkhill (15,21x2,106,170c/o) pressed the turbo with a 15 and two 21 dart legs, Burkhill definitely made the most of his time at the riverside by reeling in the big fish a 170 check out against Anne Simmons to win 3-0, Mick Hulley enjoyed the same scoreline against Stuart Tunstill, whilst Russ Simmons(180,21) beat Wayne Pike 3-1 to put the panthers 3-1 up 

Pairs

A Simmons/ S Simmons 1-2 Burkhill Meeson Johnson/Pike 0-2 Waller/Hulley

The stallions weren’t looking to roll over as the Simmons duo came out and took the first leg in the pairs against Burkhill and Meeson who then proved to have too much for the stallions stablemates and won 2-1, in the last game of the evening Johnson and Pike were left floundering at the hands of Waller and Hulley

Wolves 2-4 Hustlers

Singles 

Kieron Potts 0-3 Carl Farnsworth Laura Taylor 0-3 Lee Cushworth Mick Bower 3-0 Paul Harris Ray Grocutt 0-3 Bri Jones

It was a night of maximums as the wolves were looking to avenge their 6-0 defeat from the week before.

Carl Farnsworth (180,21) had other ideas as he beat Kieron Potts with a 180 and a 21 darter along the way

Next up for the home side was Laura Taylor looking to go one better than her result against Lee Cushworth (180x2) but it wasn’t to be as Cushworth won 3-0 hitting a pair of maximums

Mick Bower (19,17) secured the first point on the board for the Wolves has he sent Paul Harris packing with 19 & 17 dart legs

Ray Grocutt (180) hit a max but came up fruitless as Bri Jones (16x2) won 3 -0 with a deuce of 16 dart legs 

Pairs

Bower/Keane 0-2 Cushworth/Jones Bird/Grocutt 2-0 Farnsworth/Harris

Cushworth and Jones ensured that the away side would leave with a victory as they beat Bower and Keane 2-0 but the last game of the evening went to the home side as Bird and Grocutt (180) won by the same 2-0 scoreline against Harris and Farnsworth

Week six report by James Thomas

Panthers Sink Teeth In To Stallions

Panthers Sink Teeth In To Stallions

Panthers 6 -0 Stallions

Singles

Dave Cliffe 3-1 Stewart Tunstill Mick Hulley 3- 2 Colin Johnson Russ Simmons 3-0 Anne Simmons Trevor Burkhill 3-0 Sie Simmons

Week 5 sees a new round of fixtures as teams look to start gathering momentum as the old sports cliché goes. 

First of all, we head to SFL HQ for the Panthers who were looking to bounce back from last week’s defeat and get stuck in to the well-rested stallions

Dave Cliffe came out victorious after winning the first leg before Stewart Tunstill levelled at 1-1, winning by 3 legs to 1 putting the first point on for the panthers

Mick Hulley showed his desire to win by beating Colin Johnson in a last leg shootout following a very spirited comeback from Johnson.

Russ Simmons (21) beat namesake Anne 3-1 with a 21 darter along the way to ensure the panthers had secured the draw at worst case scenario

Trevor Burkhill(180,19x2) was up to his old tricks as he reeled off a max and two 19 dart legs to despatch Sie Simmons 3-0 and put the game past any doubt for the home side

Pairs 

Hulley/Waller 2-0 Pike/Baugh Meeson/Burkhill 2-0 S Simmons/A Simmons

The Panthers continued to show dominance heading into the pairs as Hulley and Waller saw off Pike and Baugh 2-0 whilst Meeson and Burkhill had the perfect 6 in their minds as they beat the Husband and wife partnership of the Simmons resulting in Sie making his own breakfast Friday morning

Warriors 0 – 6 Aces

Singles

Ian Webster 1-3 Ian Speed Angela Brittle 0-3 Mick Smith Barry Brittle 0-3 Lee Cropper Paul Brittle 2-3 Becky Hoyland

The Aces dealt the Warriors a 6-0 defeat the winners and losers were Ian “speedy” Speed beat Ian Webster 3-1, Mick Smith (19,20) beat Angie Brittle 3-0, Barry Brittle lost 3-0 to Lee Cropper (21) and Paul Brittle lost 3-2 in a lest leg shootout to Becky Hoyland (21)

Pairs

Webster/B Brittle 0-2 Speed/Smith P Brittle/A Brittle 0-2 Cropper/Hoyland

Both Pairs games had a 2-0 score line with the combination of Speed/Smith beating Webster/B Brittle and the husband/wife Brittles losing to Cropper and Hoyland

Wombles 4-2 Railwaymen

Singles

Mick Swift 3-0 Geoff Higgs Glynn Harris 3-2 Gav Pilling Steven Caley 1-3 Ryan Goffin James Thomas 3-2 Tom Sawford 

The wombles were looking to put last weeks loss behind them and get back to winning ways against the Railwaymen who was looking to get a head of steam

Mick Swift quickly despatched Geoff Higgs 3-0, Glynn Harris (20) beat Gav Pilling (109) 3-2 in a last leg decider with a 20 Darter, Ryan Goffin (16,19) beat Steven Caley (180,18) 3-1 whilst James Thomas beat Tom Sawford (180) in another deciding leg game.

Pairs

Thomas/Caley 0-2 Higgs/Sawford Swift/Hulley 2-0 Goffin/Jackson

With the game still in the balance Higgs and Sawford beat Thomas and Caley, in the final game Swift and Harris Beat Alan Jackson and Ryan Goffin to give the points to the home side

Hustlers 6-0 Wolves

Singles

Nigel Ikin 3-0 Kev Bird Lee Cushworth 3-2 Laura Taylor Adam Chadwick 3-1 Ray Grocutt Carl Farnsworth 3-1 Mick Bower 

The Hustlers took all 6 against a Wolves side looking to build on their win last week

Nigel Ikin beat Kev Bird 3-0, Lee Cushworth (16,128c/o) won a last leg decider against Laura Taylor 3-2, Adam Chadwick beat Ray Grocutt (180) 3-1 despite Grocutt hitting a 180, Carl Farnswoth (21) beat Mick Bower 3-1 to put the home side 4-0 up at the interval

Pairs

Cushworth/Chadwick 2-0 Chris?/Bowers Farnsworth/Ikin 2-0 Taylor/Grocutt

The pairs both went in the favour of the home side also with Cushworth and Chadwick beating Chis and Bowers, Farnsworth and Ikin took care of Taylor and Grocutt to gain maximum points

Week five report by James Thomas

Railwaymen Punish Panthers

Railwaymen Punish Panthers 

Hustlers 4 -2 Aces

Singles

Carl Farnsworth 2-3 Lee Cropper 

Nigel Ikin 3- 0 Becky Hoyland 

Adam Chadwick 3-1 Ian Speed 

Bri Jones 0-3 Mick Smith 

160 checkout

Week 4 see’s the second round of the reverse fixtures as the teams have sized up their opponent from the previous week

It all looked to be a case of déjà vu as the draw was made as the first two games opponents had faced off the week before. This time it was outcomes reversed as Lee Cropper (18,19) beat Carl Farnsworth (20) 3-2 by hitting a 19 darter in the tie break leg

Nigel Ikin then got sweet revenge on Becky Hoyland winning 3-0, despite Becky hitting a maximum

Ian Speed took the first leg in the third game before Adam Chadwick (15,160c/o) taking the next two legs and finishing nicely with a 15 darter

Lastly Mick Smith (20) faced Bri Jones with Smith coming out a 3-0 victor levelling the game up at 2-2 going into the pairs

Pairs

Chadwick/Jones 2-1 Hoyland/Cropper 

Farnsworth/ Ikin 2-1 Speed/Smith

The Hustlers pairing of Chadwick & Jones took the first pairs 2-1 despite Hoyland & Cropper taking the first leg, then it was Smith/Speeds turn to try and rescue a draw but the pairing of Farnsworth/Ikin took the remaining game 2-1 to return the favour of last week and come out 4-2 winners 

Warriors 0 – 6 Academicals

Singles

Nicola Bruce 0–3 Jack Lewis 

Ian Webster 2-3 Joe Hopkins 

Barry Brittle 0-3 Nathan Hennessy 

Paul Brittle 0-3 Adam Warner 

Next, we make a trip over the border to The Midland as they face The Academicals

Nicola Bruce was first up for the warriors against Jack Lewis unfortunately it wasn’t to be for Nicola as she lost 3-0

Next up was the wizard Ian Webster who went the closest of the warriors to earning a victory losing in the last leg shootout courtesy of a 21-dart leg by Joe Hopkins (21)

It was unlucky for the brittle men as they both lost 3-0. firstly, Barry losing to Nathan Hennessy before Adam Warner (21,18) saw off Father Paul with an 18 & 21 darter along the way

Pairs

Bruce/A Brittle 0-2 Hennessey/Hopkins 

Webster/B Brittle 0-2 Warner/Smith

The Warrior Ladies of Bruce & Brittle was up first in the pairs unfortunately they lost 2-0 to a combination of Hennessy/Hopkins and lastly was Webster/Brittle hoping to try get a point on the board unfortunately they came off second best against Warner & Smith 

Panther 1-5 Railwaymen

Singles

Pat Meeson 2-3 Jeff Higgs 

Graham Waller 0-3 Gav Pilling 

Dave Cliffe 0-3 Ryan Goffin 

Trevor Burkhill 3-0 Tom Sawford 

This game last week was the game of the evening and it wasn’t to disappoint this time round either with another stat filled scoresheet

First up for the home side was the Landlord Pat meson who raced out to a 2-0 lead before Jeff Higgs (18,19,21) took the next three legs in 21,18,19 darts respectively

Graham Waller was next up but came off second to Gav Pilling (18) who started off with an 18-dart leg before taking the other two legs to win 3-0

Dave Cliffe came off with the same result against Ryan Goffin (17,21) who cruised to the 3-0 victory hitting a 17 & 21 darter

The singles game highlight saw Trevor Burkhill (18,18,20) against Tom Sawford (18) for the second time in as many weeks, the result went in the way of Trevor hitting 2x18 and a 20-dart leg to win 3-0 despite Tom hitting his first maximum of the evening 

2x180s

Pairs

Burkhill/Cliffe 1-2 Bramley/Pilling 

Meeson/Hulley 1-2 Goffin/Sawford 

The pairs saw 2 maximums and both games going to the last leg decider, in the first game maximum scorers was Trevor Burkhill and Gav Pilling with the result going 2-1 for the away side of Pilling/Bramley leaving Burkhill/Cliffe licking their wounds

Not satisfied with a 180 in his singles game Tom Sawford hit his second max of the night for himself and partner Ryan Goffin, Pat Meeson returned the favour for himself and partner Mick Hulley but it was not enough as Sawford/Goffin took the deciding leg 

Wombles 4-2 Wolves

Singles

Glynn Harris 1-3 Mick Bower 

Alex Sproston 2-3 Kieron Potts 

James Thomas 0-3 Laura Taylor 

Mick Swift 3-1 Kev Bird 

In our last game saw the wolves out for revenge against the Wombles

First up was Glynn Harris taking on Mick Bowers, Bowers went in front before Harris equalised but then failed to keep the momentum going as bowers ran out 3-1 winner

Alex “Bernie” Sproston went toe to toe with Kieron Potts, unfortunately for Bernie Potts broke throw to take the final leg

Next up was James Thomas looking to get his side their first point of the evening against Laura Taylor unfortunately it wasn’t to be as Taylor took the point and the first three legs to win 3-0

Last up was Mick Swift (17) who faced Kev Bird, Mick took the first two legs and seemed to be cruising until Kev took the third leg, fortunately Mick got his head back in the game and rattled off a 17 darter to get the wombles their first point

Pairs

Thomas/Harris 0-2 Taylor/Bowers Swift/Sproston 2-0 Bird/Edwards

The partnership of Bowers and Taylor beat the one of Harris and Thomas 2-0 to ensure the wolves wouldn’t be beaten tonight before the SAS of Swift and Sproston had too much firepower for Edwards and Bird resulting in the final point for the Wombles

Week four report by James Thomas

Wombles Tidy Up In The Woodbourne

Wombles Tidy Up In The Woodbourne

Aces 4 -2 Hustlers

Singles

Lee Cropper 2-3 Carl Farnsworth Rebecca Hoyland 3-2 Nigel Ikin Ian Speed 3-1 Lee Cushworth Mick Smith 3-1 Adam Chadwick

Week 3 see’s the hustlers looking to keep their perfect start to the season against a team who spent the previous week at the seaside for the British Open: the Aces.

It all looked to be going well as Carl Farnworth won the last leg shootout against Lee Cropper who hit 19 & 21 darters to level it at 2-2 but couldn’t replicate that form in the final leg as Farnsworth took the win

Derbyshire County star Rebecca Hoyland soon levelled things up for the Aces by beating Nigel Ikin 3-2 before Mr 180 himself Ian speed beat Lee Cushworth 3-1 with another 180 and a 18 darter to boot

The last singles game saw Mick smith come away with a 3-1 victory over Adam Chadwick meaning the Aces was guaranteed a point 

Ian Speed

Pairs

Hoyland/Cropper 0-2 Farnsworth/Harris Speed/Smith 2-0 Cushworth/Chadwick

The Hustlers took the first pairs 2-0 as Farnsworth and Harris brushed aside Hoyland and Cropper before Speed and Smith repaid the favour beating the same opponents that they had played in the singles in Cushworth and Chadwick 2-0 to come out 4-2 winners 

Academicals 5 – 1 Warriors

Singles

Conal Doughty 3–0 Nicola Bruce Ste Smith 3-2 Barry Brittle Johnny Stevens 3-1 Ian Webster Adam Warner 3-0 Paul Brittle

The University arms hosts the warriors as they search for points on the board

The first game of the evening saw Conal Doughty outsmart Nicola Bruce 3-0 with a fantastic 16 darter in the second leg

Next up saw Barry Brittle be a much smarter opponent for Ste Smith but unfortunately, he came second best as Smith took the last leg decider to win 3-2, Johnny Stevens beat Ian Webster 3-1

before Adam warner gave Paul Brittle a lesson on the oche beating him 3-0 to put the Academicals 4-0 at half term.

Pairs

Wright/Godfrey 0-2 Brittle/Webster Hopkins/Doughty 2-0 P Brittle/A Brittle

Barry Brittle and Ian Webster made sure that the Warriors wouldn’t leave empty handed as they comprehensively beat Wright and Godfrey 2-0 before Hopkins and Doughty beat Mr and Mrs Warrior Paul and Angie Brittle resulting in a 5-1 victory for the Academicals 

Railwaymen 3-3 Panthers 

Ryan Goffin,Tom Sawford and Trev Burkhill

Singles

Geoff Higgs 3-1 Curtis Thorpe Gav Pilling 3-0 Mick Hulley Ryan Goffin 1-3 Russ Simmons Tom Sawford 1-3 Trevor Burkhill

We now head to Rotherham for what could be mistaken for a superleague night with 10 sub 21 dart legs and 2 maximums as the Railwaymen look to get their league campaign rolling along

The action was hot from the very start as Curtis Thorpe opened the evening with a 20 dart leg, unfortunately for him that’s where it ended as Geoff Higgs took the next 3 legs with a 21 darter along the way

Next up saw Mick “Potter” Hulley versus Gav Pilling in what was set to be a magical encounter, unfortunately unlike the books it wasn’t a happy ending for Potter as Pilling hit 17,20 & 19 dart legs resulting in a 80+ average to kill the game off.

Russ Simmons (180) continued his good run of form in beating Ryan Goffin 3-1, Russ started off with a 20 dart leg which was then raised by Goffin’s 14 darter unfortunately the first two legs was not replicated with Simmons taking them for the away side

The last singles game saw Tom “Shooter” Sawford (180) versus Trevor ”Turbo” Burkhill, with Shooter firing in a 18 darter to get himself going but it was Turbo who took the next 3 legs with a 18 & 20 darter to level it up going into the pairs

Pairs

Higgs/Pilling 0-2 Burkhill/Thorpe Goffin/Sawford 2-0 Cliffe/Hulley

The winning singles players paired up for the Railway looking to put them in front against Burkhill and Thorpe unfortunately it wasn’t to be as Higgs and Pilling crashed out 2-0. In the final pairs game Goffin and Sawford proved their worth to the new side by getting the win over Cliffe and Hulley to ensure a draw

Wombles 4-2 Wolves

Singles

Kieron Potts 2-3 Kieron Potts Mick Bower 3-0 Scott Willis Kev Bird 0-3 James Thomas Laura Taylor 1-3 Glynn Harris

In our last game saw a new Woodbourne derby as the Wolves hosted the Wombles

Kieron Potts took on Mick Swift in the first game whereas nothing too exciting happened until the 4th leg with Swift missing double 16 for a 102 finish to win the match to then watch Potts sink a 106 c/o to tie the game at 2-2 fortunately Swift didn’t dwell and took the deciding leg

Next up was Mick Bowers taking on Scott “St Dave” Willis, Bowers made sure that the wolves got a point on the board beating St Dave 3-0

Sue Edwards

The next match had the same score line but for the away side this time as James Thomas saw off Kev Bird 3-0 with an 18 darter and 124 checkout along the way

The last game of the singles saw Laura Taylor against Glynn Harris, Taylor took the first leg but it was Harris for the victory with the next 3 legs and a 20 darter in the mix 

Pairs

Bowers/Taylor 1-2 Swift/Harris Bird/Edwards 2-1 Thomas/Wilis

The partnership of Bowers and Taylor was put under strain tonight as they lost out by a fine margin 2-1 to Swift and Harris to give the victory to the wombles before Bird and Edwards took advantage of the missed doubles of Thomas and Willis to take the final pairs making the result 4-2 to the wombles

Week three report by James Thomas