Week 17 Report

Report by Olly Nunn

There was an early start to fixtures this week as the Uni Arms Academicals and Raging Bull had to play their game on Tuesday. Up first was Jack Newton against Bri Jones, and it was Jones who took it for the Bulls with a 3-0 win and a 21 darter in the second leg. The same scoreline followed in the second game, as Jason Marsh doubled the Bull’s advantage versus Joe Burniston. Game three was Mark Thomson against Tom Jepson. Tomson started strong to establish a 2-0 lead, before Jepson took the third to keep the match alive. But a 16 darter from Thomson in the fourth sealed the tie 3-1. A tense game four followed, as Olly Nunn and Adam Chadwick battled all the way to a deciding leg, which Nunn took to win 3-2. A second win for the Accy D’s then followed, as Joe Hopkins beat Matty Pierce in straight legs to put the scores at 3-2 going into the pairs. In the first doubles, the Uni Lads threatened to make it level as Jepson and Nunn took the first leg, but from there Jones and Chadwick came from behind to win 2-1 and seal the overall for the Bulls. The second doubles also went to the Bulls, as Thomson and Pierce beat Luke Davies and Hopkins, meaning the final scoreline was 5-2 to the Raging Bull.

Moving onto Thursday’s games, Foxhill and District As hosted the Woodbourne Mouses. Glynn Harris got the better start over Morgan Mullins in game one, going 2-0 up, and although Mullins won the third to stay in it, Harris took the fourth to win 3-1. Game two also went to the Mouses, as Jimmy Haslam put in a commanding performance with 14 and 21 darters to win 3-0. Up next was Ben Cooper versus Jordan Caley, and although Caley held throw in the first leg, Cooper would win the next three on the trot to clinch the match 3-1 and get Foxhill a win on the sheet. John Cartledge looked to put the Mouses back in the driving seat in game four and went 2-0 up, but Dale Blackwell was able to come from behind to level the scores, hitting a 21 darter to force a decider. Yet Cartledge would win that fifth leg to seal a 3-2 victory. The last singles was between Jack Walker (Foxhill) and Tom Wright (Mouses), and Wright took it in a whitewash, meaning the singles ended 4-1 to the Mouses, guaranteeing the Woodbourne side the win. Both pairs would end 2-0, as Haslam and Kieran Barton got the Mouses’ fifth win and Tank and Cartledge got their sixth. 6-1 overall, and a good win for the Mouses.

Thorncliffe’s Finest were away against the Warriors, and got off to a winning start as Josh Hall beat Ian Webster 3-1 in the first game of the night. Dylan Farmer then beat Angie Brittle in straight legs, doubling the Thorns’ lead. Up next was Oliver Parfrement against Barry Brittle – the first three legs were all holds of throw, but then Parfrement found an all-important break in the fourth to take the match 3-1. The Thorns were now 3-0 up, but they would have to wait for that all-important fourth win, as Lewis Wroe, despite breaking throw in the first leg, fell 3-1 to Colin Johnson. Game four, between Dan Ashton and Paul Brittle, was the closest of the night – Brittle broke throw in the third leg to go 2-1 up, but Ashton came from behind, starting with a break back in the next leg, to win 3-2. The Thorns were now guaranteed a win, and in the pairs they added two more games to their tally, with Hall and Parfrement edging out Barry Brittle and Webster 2-1 and Ashton and Farmer beating Paul and Nicola Brittle 2-0. So, the Thorns took a 6-1 win, and an important win too in their battle in the table with Foxhill.

Woodbourne Vintage were at home in the first leg of their tie against the Uni Arms Understudies. Pat Meeson stepped up to get the hosts on the board, beating Tom Graham in straight legs in the first game of the night. The second match would be a close one, as Elliot Hopkins battled back from 2-0 down to make it 2-2 against Chris Keane. In that fifth leg, Keane got the job done, taking a 3-2 win. Moving onto game three, and a 180 was not enough for Patrick Hopkins as the Understudies man lost out to Mick Hulley 3-1. Game four produced win four for Vintage, as Will Lavery beat Jack Stoddard 3-0. Jack Quinn has been a reliable winner for the Understudies this season, but it was not to be tonight as Russ Simons produced a ton checkout and a 21 darter to win 3-1. Hulley and Keane took the first pairs for Vintage, beating Damien Reed and Quinn 2-0, before Lavery and Simmons won by the same scoreline against Patrick Hopkins and Elliot Hopkins. This completed a whitewash 7-0 win for the hosts, a good result as they look to push back into the top half of the table in the last two weeks.

Finally, the Swallownest Miners made the trip to Rotherham to play league leaders Station Railwaymen. Kev Hatfield was up first for the visitors, but there was little he could do as Pete Roebuck hit 21 and 16 darters on the way to a 3-0 win. Geoff Higgs won by the same score in game two, beating Rich Tingle in a whitewash. Game three was the captain’s match, as Gav Pilling looked to put Station 3-0 up and Tim Whiting aimed to get his team back in the tie. In the end, it was Pilling who took it 3-1, with a ton checkout and 18 darter to go with it. The last two games were both won in straight legs, with Glenn Payne and Tom Sawford, who capped off his win with a 180, seeing off Tom Tingle and Kev Allison. It was now 5-0 to the Railwaymen, and that became 7-0 after the pairs, with wins coming from Roebuck and Higgs (2-1 versus Hatfield and Allison) and Pilling and Sawford (2-0 against Whiting and Tingle).

This win brings Station's already insurmountable points tally up to 103. Further down the table, though, things can still change, and the teams will be under no doubt about how important the last games could be.