Team Knockout Week 2

Report by Olly Nunn

After the first games last week, this Thursday the Team Knockout continued, with eight teams in action.

Starting with Group A, the Raging Bull were at home against the Swallownest Miners. First up was Mark Thomson for the Bulls against Kev Hatfield for the Miners. Thomson began with 19 and 21 darters, and although Hatfield responded with a 21 darter of his own, Thomson took the fourth leg to seal a 3-1 win. On next for the hosts was Bri Jones, who had a successful night that included a 180. In his game against the Miners’ Kev Allison, though, Jones would be pushed all the way to a deciding leg. Ultimately, Jones won out in the decider to put the Bulls 2-0 up. Miners captain Tim Whiting beat Adam Chadwick 3-0 to get the visitors back in the tie, but from there 3-0 and 3-1 wins for Matty Pierce and Jason Marsh, against Tom Tingle and Rich Tingle respectively, ensured the Raging Bull had the required four wins. A fifth win would be added in the pairs, as Jones and Chadwick edged Tingle and Allison 2-1. But Whiting and Hatfield’s 2-0 victory against Pierce and Thomson meant the Miners could end on a high. So, 5-2 to the Raging Bull overall, and their good start to the Team Knockout continues.

The other Group A game was at the Riverside, where the Station Railwaymen began their Team Knockout campaign. The Warriors were left ruing missed chances in the first two games, as Colin Johnson and Ian Webster both went 2-0 up against Geoff Higgs and Pete Roebuck. The Railwaymen were able to force their way back into the matches, reeling off three consecutive legs in each to record 3-2 wins. Station pressed on from there, starting with Lee McDonald beating Paul Brittle 3-1. Ryan Goffin then won 3-0 versus Angie Brittle, with 21 and 20 darters, and Gav Pilling won by the same margin against Nicola Brittle, with a 19 darter. The Railwaymen did not let off in the pairs either, as Roebuck and Higgs beat Webster and Johnson 2-0 and Pilling and McDonald beat Paul and Nicola Brittle, also 2-0. A 7-0 whitewash win for the Railwaymen, then, to start their campaign strongly.

Moving on to Group B, Woodbourne Vintage played one of last week’s winners, Thorncliffe’ Finest. Pat Meeson played his first game this season and started well, with a 3-1 win and a 21 darter to give Vintage the first match. The Thorns’ Josh Hall then took a straight-legs victory in the second game to make things even. An important game followed, as Vintage’s Mick Hulley and the Thorns’ Dan Ashton fought all the way to a deciding leg. Hulley took the first, only for Ashton to reply with the second and third, and then Hulley won the fourth to force a fifth leg. And in that decider, it was Hulley who won out, putting Vintage ahead again. Vintage then made good on their lead, with 3-0 wins for Russ Simons against Dylan Farmer and Rich Brown against Oliver Parfrement giving them the overall win. The pairs games would be split between the teams, with the first going to Vintage courtesy of a 2-0 win for Hulley and Simons and the second to Thorns with a 2-1 win for Hall and Parfrement. Along with the doubles win, Parfrement also hit his first 180 of the season. But it was Vintage who, at the end of the night, would have been happiest, with a 5-2 win.

The other Group B game saw the Woodbourne Mouses travel to the Uni Arms to play the Understudies. Up first was Tom Graham for the Understudies versus Jordan Caley for the Mouses. Although scoring decently, Graham had double trouble, and Caley was there to clean up, producing a 3-0 win for the visitors. It wasn’t too long before the Mouses had their second game, as Glynn Harris beat Elliot Hopkins, also 3-0. Another straight-legs win followed as Tom Wright beat Nathan Okeeffe to put the Mouses one away from the win. And John Cartledge would then secure the overall, with 21 and 20 darters highlights of his game against Adam Butcher. At this point, the Understudies were 4-0 down and without even a leg on the board. When James Thomas took the first leg of his game against Jack Quinn with a 20 darter this looked to be continuing, but Quinn then won the next three to beat Tank 3-1 and take one back for the home side. The Mouses bounced back in the pairs, though, as Cartledge and Steve Caley beat Quinn and Damien Reed 2-0. In the final pairs, Okeeffe and Graham put in a good effort, but in the end Harris and Jordan Caley had enough to win 2-1 and secure the Mouses’ sixth game of the night. 6-1 the final score, making the Mouses another team to have kicked off their Team Knockout campaign well.