Division 1
Whilst the title is done and dusted, a few games remained to determine the final positions in the top division. Victoria Withington gained a big 6-1 win against already relegated Broadheath to claim fifth, Victoria Burnage claimed a close 4-3 win over The John Alker, and a thankful recovery from illness for nearly the entire Timperely team saw no ongoing ill effects with a comprehensive 6-1 defeat of Brooklands Tap.
John Alker 3 vs 4 Victoria Burnage
The John Alker finish their campaign with a narrow 4-3 defeat to Victoria Burnage, but retain the fourth position they have held for much of the season, while the Victoria Burnage retain a final position of sixth.
John Hawken gave the Alker the lead with a surprisingly quick 3-0 win against Dylan Wimbury, but Steve Moane levelled up with a 3-0 win of his own in game two. Andrew Day hit a 180 during a 3-0 win of his own to put the visitors ahead, and it was soon 3-1 after Tony Green hit a match high total of 6 ton plus scores and a 17 darter during a 3-1 win against Mike Nolan. Ewan Donegan reduced the defecit to 3-2 with a 3-1 win in game five, and after Chris Wormald won by the same score in game six, the match was destined for a deciding game. With it all going down to the final game, the visitors’ Pete Evans showed his class with a 3-0 win against Ray Townhill to claim the win for the Burnage side.
Victoria Withington 6 vs 1 Broadheath Central
Victoria Withington signed off for the season with a comprehensive 6-1 win over Broadheath Central, a win which sees them finish an up and down league season in fifth place, while Broadheath will play Division 2 darts next season after relegation was confirmed last week.
Sean Edwards fired the Withington side into an early lead with a 111 finish during his 3-0 win over Lee Darcey, and despite a fifth 180 of the season from Brandon Lawley in game 2, Connor Wigley’s deciding leg win made it 2-0 overall. I made it 3-0 with a 3-1 win against Shane Crellin in game 3, and after Matt Jepson shut out JonJo Devon by 3 legs to nil, the win was in the bag for the Vic. Terry Jepson soon made it 5-0 with a 3-0 defeat of Tim Dibben which included a 110 finish, but any worries of a whitewash for Broadheath were averted after Lee Marsh defied a 180 from Craig McGowan to win 3-1 and make it 5-1 overall. The final game was a cracker between two good players in Jack Jarvis and 180 hitting Leyton Jackson, but it was the Victoria’s Jarvis who underlined the recent improvement in his game with a 17 darter and 73.40 average during a 3-1 win.
While the league fixtures are now complete, the Vic still have one team game remaining, as they face league runners-up the Ammies in the KO Cup final next week.
Brooklands Tap 1 vs 6 Timperley CC
After last weeks withdrawl from their game with St Johns which handed the Division 1 title to the Wythenshawe side, Timperley were back in action with a fine performance which showed that their now fully recovered players were suffering no ill effects from the bout of sickness which had prevented them fulfilling the fixture last week. The win sees Timperley finish third, ten clear of fourth placed John Alker, but twenty points behind second placed Ammies.
The visitors were soon 2-0 to the good after 3-0 wins in the first two games for Andy Broadhurst and Kev Kelly, and that lead was extended to 3-0 after Andy Pearson hit a 14 darter and 74.61 average during a 3-1 defeat of Eddie Clare. Andy Brownhill’s 3-0 win against Dan Williams sealed the win for Timperley, before Callum Loose turned the screw further with a 76.42 average in his 3-0 win over Geoff Sanders. Ryan Kelly managed to get his side on the scoreboard with a 3-1 win against Craig Weston in game six, but it was Timperley’s night, and they rounded it off in style after a classy 3-1 win for Chris Stone against Callum Nolan, Chris hitting the second Timperley 14 darter of the night along with a 108 finish and 79.60 average, while Callum played well himself with a 17 darter in his winning leg and a 73.44 average overall.
Division 3
The promotion picture is a little clearer now, although the two teams who will be playing Division 2 darts with BHC Aces next season are remarkably still yet to be decided in what’s been an incredibly tight season-long battle in Division 3. Bull’s Head and Horseshoe currently occupy the promotion positions, but if Sale Excel can avoid losing heavily to Old Market Tavern, then they look almost certain of going up themselves at the Horseshoes expense. The Dog & Partridge are still in with an outside shot of going up and have it all to do, but a 7-0 win against the Vine in their final game will see them promoted regardless of what happens in the Excel game.
Broadheath Central Aces 5 vs 2 Sale Excelsior
The Division 3 Champions finished off their maiden league campaign in the South Manchester Darts League with a 5-2 win against promotion chasing Sale Excel, and can now look forward to next weeks KO Shield Final with Royal Oak A, before making plans for next season in Division 2. Despite the loss, The Excel will join them in Division 2 if they can pick up at least two points from their remaining game against Old Market Tavern, though that will need to be a minimum of three points if The Dog and Partridge can secure a whitewash win against the Vine.
Simon Wood put the Aces into the lead with a 2-1 win against Hannah Tague in the opener, and it was soon 2-0 after Captain Dave Wood claimed a 17th win in 21 games this season with a 2-0 defeat of Warren McCoubrey. Peter Sage got the Excel’s first point of the match with a 2-0 win against Martin Johnson in the third, but when Bob Hilton matched that scoreline against Jimmy Nolan, the Aces were on the brink of yet another win.
They didnt have long to wait, as Darren Wood’s 2-0 win against Danny Chua in game 5 ensured the Aces had a 21st win from their 22 games played, but the Excel had enough left in the tank to claim another vital point in the promotion race after an impressive 2-1 win for Connor McCorkell handed Andy McCormack only his 3rd defeat of the season. The Ace’s werent finished though, and the final game of the night went the way of the new Champions as Joe Hughes registered a 2-0 win over Andy Cheetham to give a final score of 5-2.
Horseshoe 3 vs 4 Buck Inn-eers
The Horseshoe have had a fine first season, and could have almost guaranteed promotion to Division 2 with a good win against The Buck Inn-eers, but while the three points earned in this final game defeat keeps them in third, they would now need Sale Excel to suffer a 6-1 or 7-0 defeat in their final game against second-bottom Old Market Tavern, whilst also hoping the Dog & Partridge fail to beat the Vine 7-0.
The Buck Inn have also had a great first season, and notably an excellent second half of the season with seven wins in the last nine games, but with one game left they lie ten points behind the Horseshoe with a maximum of nine possible from their final game against The Old Market Tavern. They will be one to watch for next season though, thats for sure.
Horseshoe’s Keiran Chapman recorded a 14th win from his 18 league games with a fine performance in the nights opener, a 2-0 win against Charlotte Bloomfield in which he hit a 21 darter and finished with a 65.35 average. Deciding leg wins in games 2 and 3 saw the Buck’s first level the match up through Joshua Craven, before Peter Bloomfield gave them a 2-1 lead and that lead was extended after Rick Hindle claimed a 2-0 win over Oscar Coutts.
With the Buck Inn-eers on the brink of victory, George Moss delayed matters with a 2-0 win of his own over Nigel Foster to make it 3-2, and in doing so registered his 18th win in 21 games this season, but the delay was short lived as Declan Law’s 2-0 defeat of Ben Harrington ensured another win for the Buck’s and put a spanner in the works of Horseshoe’s promotion bid. The Horseshoe did manage to get one more point however when Josh McQuillan beat George Banner 2-0 in the final game of the night, but with only a small 2 point lead over Sale Excel, its likely to be another season of Division 3 darts next season for the Levenshulme side.
Old Market Tavern 3 vs 4 Dog & Partridge
This was a win which just about keeps the Dog & Partridge in with a mathematical chance of promotion to Division 2, but they would have hoped for a couple more points from this game in order to give them a little more leeway in their final game against the Vine who have only just fallen out of the promotion battle themselves. As it is, the Dog & Partridge now need a 7-0 win against the Vine, a good side with a very similar record to the Dog, although should they manage it, it’ll be Division 2 fixtures in Didsbury next season.
The Old Market Tavern will likely finish this season in the second bottom position they currently occupy, but have unexpectedly found themselves in the thick of the promotion battle in recent weeks, with a win against the Vine effectively ending their chances of going up, while narrow 4-3 losses against The Bulls Head and now the Dog and Partridge have seen those sides lose ground in their own battles to go up. Not to mention that they could still have a final say with a game against Sale Excel yet to come.
OMT took an early lead when Angela Haycocks beat Vincent Benson 2-0 in game 1, but the Dog were soon level after a 2-0 win for Saj Sharrif in game 2. The Dog then took the lead with a 2-1 win for Elliot Wynne against Steven Foster, but the OMT turned the game on its head as a 2-1 win for Les Potts against Graham Beech was followed by a 2-0 victory for Howard Haycocks over Chris Conduit, and suddenly the Dog’s promotion bid was looking to be over. With two games left to salvage things, the Dog responded accordingly as 2-0 wins for Tom Spillane and Dave Cook pinched the win which made sure they still have a fighting chance of going up going into their final game of the season.
The Vine 3 vs 4 Bulls Head
The Bulls Head put themselves in with a great shout of promotion with this narrow 4-3 win against The Vine, a result which places the Bulls second with 111 points after completing all their fixtures. They now have to play a waiting game, but will be assured of promotion if The Dog and Partridge fail to beat the Vine 7-0 next week.
The Vine’s own slim chance of going up was ended by this result, however realistically that was just a mathematical long shot, and in reality their bid was damaged irreperably after five of their nine losses this season came in the last eight games.
Billy Sanders put the Vine one up after beating Chris Cordingley in the nights first game, but Rob Barber brought the Hale Barns side level with a 2-0 victory over Tom Slattery in game 2. The Vine soon retook the lead in game 3 as Charlie Sanders took a 2-0 win over Steve Hazelhurst, but it was all square once again when Iain Fish claimed a 2-0 win of his own against Josh Bailey. In game five, Jaimie Harris put The Bulls Head into the lead for the first time with a deciding leg win against Dave Goulden, and when Gareth Shaw also won 2-1 in game six, the Bulls had secured the bonus points that took them into second place. Just one more point would have been enough for promotion, but Kyran Eyes’ 2-0 win against Bo Bowman in the last game of the night meant the Bulls Head must now hope their beaten opponents can win at least one game next week.
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