Week 6 Recap

Report by Olly Nunn

Kicking off this week’s recap is Foxhill and District As against the Riverside Warriors. Ben Cooper got the hosts off to a good start with a 3-0 win against the Riverside’s Ian Webster, only for the visitors to take the second game also by a 3-0 scoreline, with Colin Johnson beating Jack Walker. Martin Bridge moved Foxhill ahead once more with a 3-1 win over Angie Brittle, but again things became level again shortly after as Barry Brittle beat Morgan Mullins. Much like last week, the fifth and final singles offered a chance for either team to go one away, and it was Dale Blackwell who took it for Foxhill, beating Riverside captain Paul Brittle 3-1. With momentum on their side, Foxhill won both doubles, with the pairings of Blackwell and Karl Howden and Cooper and Walker delivering 2-0 victories for the home side. This brought the tie to a close with an overall score of 5-2 to Foxhill.

The Woodbourne Mouses were looking to avoid a repeat of their 6-1 loss to the Railwaymen when they travelled to the Station Hotel, yet by the end of the singles games the situation was looking familiar. A 3-1 win for Geoff Higgs against Glynn Harris and a 3-2 win for Pete Roebuck against Steve Caley put the Railwaymen ahead early doors. Gav Pilling beat Tank 3-0 in a game that saw two 17 darters from the Station captain, and although John Cartledge got the Mouses on the board with a 3-1 win over Glen Payne, Lee McDonald clinched the tie for the league leaders, taking the last singles 3-1 against the Mouses’ Jordan Caley. A repeat of last Thursday’s scoreline looked possible, however the Mouses were able to end on a high with wins in the pairs from Cartledge and Wright and Caley and Harris. Overall, though, the honours went to the Railwaymen, with a 4-3 victory and two 180s (one from Higgs and another from Payne) to go with it.

Thorncliffe’s Finest were at home against the Raging Bull, yet it was the visitors who got off to a better start, with Adam Chadwick securing a 3-0 win over Lewis Wroe. The second game was a close affair, as the Thorns’ Oliver Parfrement and the Raging Bull’s Liam Kent went all the way to a fifth leg. In the end, it was Kent who took the decider and the 3-2 win. Bri Jones then gave the Raging Bull their third win of the night, beating Dylan Farmer 3-1. Josh Hall won an important game for the Thorns against Jason Marsh, with a score of 3-1, yet victory for Matty Pierce over Logan Higgins in the last singles by the same margin ensured the away team would come out with the win. In the first pairs, Chadwick and Jones won 2-1 to make it 5-1 overall to the Raging Bull, and in the second Parfrement and Hall took one back for the Thorns with a 2-0 win. With all matches played, the final score was 5-2 to the Raging Bull.

There was a big game at the Uni Arms this week as the first leg of the derby between the Accy D’s and Understudies was played. A 3-0 win for Jack Newton against Elliot Hopkins got the Accy D’s up and running, although Jack Quinn responded for the Understudies with a 3-0 of his own versus Dan Booth. Arguably game of the night was the Accy D’s Tom Jepson against the Understudies’ Nathan Okeeffe, a high-quality match that went all the way to a deciding leg. Jepson took it with a 66 checkout to seal a 3-2 win. Two 3-0 wins for the Accy D’s then followed, with Lewis Forrest beating Tom Graham and (in a highly anticipated grudge match) Joe Hopkins beating Cory Van Tongeren. Adam Warner and Joe Burniston won the first pairs for the Accy D’s 2-0 against Damien Reed and Jack Stoddard, and Jack Lewis and Olly Nunn took the second pairs, also 2-0, beating Okeeffe and Jimmy Knott. This brought proceedings to an end with a 6-1 win for the Accy D’s.

Finally, at the Woodbourne, Vintage were against the Swallownest Miners. There was little to separate the two teams in the singles, with all but two of the games going to a fifth leg. Chris Keane and Dave Cliffe won 3-2 and 3-1 for Vintage, while Kev Allinson, Kev Hatfield, and Tim Whiting won 3-1, 3-2, and 3-2 for the Miners. This meant the Miners held a slight advantage going into the pairs. However, Vintage dug deep to take the last two games, thanks to wins from Rich Brown and Russ Simons and Dave Cliffe and Mick Hulley, for a 4-3 overall win. All in all, a good showing from both teams that saw low-dart legs, a 105 checkout from Whiting, and 180s (one from Whiting and one from Allinson).

Looking at the table, the Railwaymen are now on 34 points, while the Accy D’s have jumped to second with 27. The Raging Bull are now up to third with 26 points, while the Mouses and Vintage are tied with 25 each. From there, Foxhill, Riverside, the Thorns, Swallownest, and the Understudies round out the table. Things look finely poised, then, after a week that has seen drama, tension and quality darts.