Division 1
The battle for Division 1 is starting to take shape now, with the three teams at the top having six wins and one defeat from seven matches played, with the sides seperated only by the additional league points earned in each match for individual player wins. The Ammies 5-2 win against Wythenshawe sees them retain top spot, while second placed Timperleys impressive 6-1 win away at the John Alker sees them reduce the gap to six points. St Johns 7-0 win against the Volunteer sees them join the battle at the top, now lying just two points behind Timperley in third. The Victoria Burnage settled into their new surroundings with a 5-2 defeat of Broadheath Central, and The Victoria Withington claim a 5-2 win at the Cringlewood.
Ammies Darts 5 vs 2 Wythenshawe CSC
Another Ammies win means they retain that top spot which they have dominated in recent seasons, but they will have one eye over their shoulder at the two teams in hot pursuit, one of which has already beaten them this season, and the other hitting a rich vein of recent form since a heavy 7-0 defeat at the hands of the reigning champions. Wythenshawe’s loss sees them drop to fourth behind St Johns, with a record of four wins and four defeats from their eight games played.
Mike Morrison continued his unbeaten start to life with the Ammies with a 180 and an 18 dart leg during a comfortable 3-0 win against Martin Power in the evenings opening game, and after Karl Cooper replicated that scoreline against John Brown, with 8 ton plus scores, the hosts were two games to the good. Col Smith got Wythenshawe on the board with a 3-1 defeat of Pete Watson, but individuals champion Paul Devine restored the two game cushion with a 3-0 win against Mandy Smith. Andy Tucker delivered the 2 bonus points for the home side, making it 4-1 overall with a 3-1 defeat of David Peploe in game 5, while Adam Watson did what he does with 11 ton plus scores, a 15 darter and a 116 finish helping him to a 3-2 win against 180 hitting Jason Grimshaw. The final game of the night saw a further consolation point for Wythenshawe as Paul Taylor ran out a 3-1 victor against Scott Livingstone.
John Alker 1 vs 6 Timperley CC
This defeat against Timperley sees the John Alker suffer back to back losses against the top two sides in the division, but despite those recent hiccups they sit handily placed in fifth, four points behind next opponents Wythenshawe and with a game in hand. The win for Cup holders Timperley represents an immediate response to last weeks shock defeat against The Volunteer and moves them a point closer to the Ammies at the top of the table.
The visitors got off to a quick start and were soon 2-0 ahead following 3-1 wins for Andy Pearson and Andy Brownhill, Pearson’s 8 ton plus scores and a 17 darter helping him to a 76.12 average in the first game of the night. Baz Rowland’s 3-0 defeat of Wayne Ninian got the Alker underway to make it 2-1, but a 3-0 Craig Weston win over an out-of-sorts Gaz O’Donnell made it 3-1 overall, Craig finishing with a 71.57 average, an 18 darter and a 129 finish. Gary Sullivan earned Timperley the win with his third 180 of the season during a 3-1 win against Chris Wormald in game 5, and with the visitors looking at reducing the gap at the top they were not yet done, following that win with two more for Andy Broadhurst and Callum Loose to give a final score of the John Alker 1, Timperley 6.
Cringlewood 2 vs 5 The Victoria (Withington)
This win made it two on the trot for The Vic, who have bounced back strongly following a heavy home defeat at the hands of St Johns at the end of August. The Cringlewood’s search for a first match win continues, but the points earned by games won in their seven matches so far means that despite eing bottom they are just two points from relative safety of eighth position currently occupied by Broadheath Central.
The match was played in great spirits and with an eclectic but interesting soundtrack of jukebox tunes that will likely never be played in that order again. Lewis Holley got the Vic underway with a 3-0 defeat of Ladies individuals champion Lianne Lauder, the win aided by a magnificent 149 finish for an 18 darter to win the game. Connor Wigley claimed an ‘Insomnia’ inspired 3-1 win in the second to stretch the Vic’s lead to 2-0, but 7 ton plusses and a match high 71.57 average helped Rob Lauder reduce the defecit to 2-1. The Vic’s Dave Stanley then hit a 126 finish during a 3-0 win over Hayley Mulhern, and when the returning Terry Jepson claimed a 3-1 win against Ryan Coffey the bonus points belonged to the Vic. Matt Jepson hit a 123 finish in stretching the Vic’s lead to 5-1, and in the final game of the night my 18 darter and 6 ton plusses werent enough to beat veteran Phil Lauder who showed class is permanent, hitting a 110 finish, and winning the deciding leg of our game to make the final score 5-2.
The Volunteeer 0 vs 7 St Johns
The Volunteer finally broke their winless streak last week with a fine victory against title chasing Timperley, but they came crashing back down to earth this week with their biggest loss of the season suffered at the hands of another title hopeful, the upwardly mobile St Johns. The Saints now move up into third position and if it wasnt for that heavy 7-0 defeat against the Ammies – their only loss this season – they could be even higher.
St John’s were at it from the off, and had the game wrapped up in the shortest possible time with four consecutive 3-0 wins, Kaine Goldie with a 180 in the opener against Gary Williams, Oliver Clarke and Jez Saunders making it 3-0 and Alan Dawson wrapping up the bonus points in the fourth with a defeat of Dan O’Donnell.
The fifth game saw the controversial introduction of Volunteer newcomer R. Kelly, who would have believed he ‘could fly’ and perhaps even ‘touch the sky’ (and hopefully only touch that) on his Volunteer debut, but whilst he might see ‘nothing wrong with a little bump and grind’ the only grinding done was by Kraig Loose who bumped out another 3-0 win. To Ryan… sorry about associating you to that – welcome to the league 🙂 and dont worry I’m now waiting with baited breath for a Patrick Diddy or Sean Combs to register.
Any hopes St Johns had of winning the match without losing a leg were over as Callum Nolan hit a 16 darter while taking two legs off Martin Tyson, although this wasnt enough to prevent a 3-2 loss with Tyson knocking out a 140 finish to boot. In the previous weeks win against Timperley, Volunteer captain Geoff Sanders had put in a fine performance from seventh position to win the game, and may have hoped to salvage a point for his side from the same draw position this week but it wasnt to be as St Johns talisman Mike Shaw ran out a comfortable 3-0 victor to secure the whitewash.
The Victoria (Burnage) 5 vs 2 Broadheath Central
Both sides came into this one off the back of heavy defeats last week, The Victoria Burnage (formerly The Levenshulme A), who lost 6-1 to St Johns, were making their first appearance at their new home venue, against a Broadheath Central side still reeling from last weeks 7-0 defeat against The Victoria Withington. A 5-2 win provided a happy house-warming for the home side, who make it 3 wins and 3 losses from their six matches played to remain in seventh place, but in their favour they have a game in hand on every other team in the division.
The first half of the match was an even affair as the first four games were shared. Game 1 saw Leyton Jackson put Broadheath in front with a final leg win against Pete Evans, Steve Moane hit a maximum while beating Dan Cross 3-1 to make it 1-1, Brandon Lawley’s 3-0 win against Mick Cooney put Broadheath back in front again, before a deciding leg win for Ant Hargreaves Sr over Lee Darcey saw the sides level once again. Dylan Wimbury hit a 14 dart leg in his 3-0 win in game 5 which put the Vic Burnage into the lead for the first time, and it was a lead they would not relinquish, as Tony Green sealed the win for the home side, winning 3-0 in game 6, before Andrew Day finished the job with a 3-1 defeat of Shane Crellin in the final game of the evening.
Division 2
In a week of close 4-3 results in Division Two, The Royal Oak bucked that trend with a 5-2 win against bottom placed Malt Shovels to establish a four point lead at the top of the table. Urmston move up to second place after inflicting Ashton-on-Mersey’s second defeat of the season with a 4-3 home win, and now sit one point above their beaten opponents who drop to third. Trafford’s 4-3 win against St Anthony’s see them move into fourth, The Melville get back to winning ways with a 4-3 defeat of strugglers LMRCA, and the Roebuck get a last game win against the Carters to sit in 6th place, although because the division is that tight, they are only nine points off second place and have a game in hand.
LMRCA 3 vs 4 The Melville
The Melville suffered a heavy defeat to Ashton in their previous fixture, but got back on track at the Railway Club against bottom side LMRCA. A back and forth match went down to the final game of the night as the hosts belied their league position to put up a good performance in defeat and show there is still plenty of life in them as we approach the halfway point of the season.
Derek Ostick put the home side ahead with a 3-1 win in the first game of the night, but The Melville responded immediately as a 3-0 win for Jake Powell was followed by a 3-1 win for Tom Powell which moved the visitors into a 2-1 lead. Ron Cooke had an 18 darter during a 3-0 win in game 4 which helped him pull LMRCA level, but a 3-1 Owen Powell win in the fifth saw the Melville move ahead once again. LMRCAs Tony Spilsbury won the sixth game 3-0 to draw the sides level once again, and send the match to a deciding game, but Melville captain Jon Powell proved too strong for Tony Feesey as he got his teams fourth win of the night (and the fourth by a Powell) to claim the bonus points.
The Roebuck 4 vs 3 Carters Arms
With this win, the Roebuck have now been involved in six consecutive 4-3 scorelines in league and cup, with only last weeks loss to Trafford Social going against them in that time. Despite lying in sixth position, they have lost only two games all season – the fewest in the division, but the problem is its such a tight division that four other teams also share that distinction.
The Carters took an early lead following a 3-0 Gavin Halton win, but The Bucks took the next three games courtesy of wins for Steve Preston, Chris Reddy and Ste Reddy to put themselves 3-1 to the good and one game away from victory. The Carters showed some mettle to battle back to 3-3, with deciding leg wins in each of the next two games for Dave Sills and debutant Jonathan Thierens, but The Roebuck’s Rick Kiel made it 7 wins from 8 games this season with a 3-0 defeat of John Thierens to claim the win for his side.
Royal Oak A 5 vs 2 The Malt Shovels
This match saw the side in top position versus the team in bottom place, and when the bottom team could only field six players it would be fair to expect a big win for the leaders. And whilst The Royal Oak gained 7 more points with a 5-2 win, they certainly didnt have it all their own way, having to recover from 2-0 down and then seeing three of the four remaining games go to deciding legs.
The visitors took an early two nil lead following a 3-2 win for James Golds, who inflicted a first defeat of the season on Steve Lawless, and a 3-1 James Roberts win against Pete Perry. With the Malts a player down, their 2-0 lead was effectively 2-1, and when the Oak’s Lee Medd hit a 67 average in beating Luke Loveitt 3-0 the sides were level. With three games remaining, each were to go the distance and each went in favour of the home side, Tony Kirby hitting 7 ton plusses while putting his side ahead, Ryan Crook securing the bonus points against Dean Power, and Jordan Perry making it 5-2 while overcoming a sprirted performance from Dave Hindmarsh which featured 7 ton plusses and a 113 finish.
Trafford SC 4 vs 3 St Anthonys
Trafford Social record a second 4-3 win in succession and now sit in fourth place just a point behind Ashton-on-Mersey who they face back to back, away then at home, in their next two league matches. St Anthony’s defeat was a third on the bounce but leaves them comfortably seventh and with a game in hand on several teams above them.
Urmston SC 4 vs 3 Ashton-on-Mersey
Ashton-on-Mersey suffer a league defeat for the first time since the start of August, a result which sees them slip to third in the table but they have the consolation of being only five points off the top, having a game in hand on everyone around them, and already having the best game difference in the division. Urmston’s win sees them move into second place and their last three wins now include victories over the teams in third and fourth.
The first half of this match was a back and forth affair, with Will Radcliffe’s 3-1 defeat of Jacaub Worrall putting Ashton ahead in the opener, before James Heslop’s 3-0 win brought Urmston level. Mike Buckley hit a 180 during his 3-1 win against Harry Fitton to put Ashton back in front, but a deciding leg win for Luke Lonergan over James Compton saw the sides level once again. With a game poised at 2-2 its pretty handy to have three time Lakeside World Championship semi-finalist Darryl Fitton up next, and so it proved as The Dazzler’s second appearance of the season for Urmston saw his second 180, a 14 darter and 79.11 average during a 3-0 defeat of Stephen Orton. Stephen Lye followed that up by securing the win for Urmston after a 3-1 defeat of Harry Guthrie, but a 3-0 win for Ashton’s Chris Chapman in the final game of the night gave a final score of 4-3 to Urmston SC.
Division 3
BHC Aces march on with a 5-2 victory over The Royal Oak B, The Bulls Head drop to fifth after a 5-2 defeat at the hands of The Levenshulme B, Sale’s Excelsior WMC are back up to second with a 5-2 win against The Old Market Tavern, Stretfordians claim a 5-2 win against the Bent Brook, The Buck Inn-eers make it three wins in a row with a fine 5-2 win against the now fourth placed Nelson Didsbury, and the Vine Inn are back up to third with a 5-2 defeat of the Jolly Butcher.
Broadheath Central Aces 5 vs 2 The Royal Oak B
Visitors the Royal Oak B suffer a third successive defeat and sit in tenth position in the league, while BHC Aces make it 8 from 8 in the league, and look to be on course to better last seasons winners The Malt Shovels who won the division 3 title with a perfect 14 wins from 14 played. I say they are on course to better it, because to go unbeaten in this years expanded league The Aces will need to win 22 from 22.
Broadheath went one up after newcomer Dennis Hand put them ahead with a deciding leg win over Andrew Mossop in the opening game, before Dave Wood continued a fine season so far with a 19 darter and 73.32 average during a 2-0 win against Jaydon Strong to make it 2-0. It was to be no procession for the league leaders though as The Royal Oak B immediately fought back to make it 2-2 after a pair of 2-0 wins for Tommy Mitchell and Mark Gilmore. Andy McCormack put the Aces back in front with a 2-0 win in game five, and after Martin Johnson took a last leg decider against Michael Hayward the win for the Aces was assured. Darren Wood added an extra bit of gloss to the win with a 104 finish during a 2-1 win against Rob Whiteside.
The Bulls Head 2 vs 5 The Levenshulme B
The Bulls Head seem to be going through a win one, lose one spell at the moment, and having moved to second place after a 5-2 win last week, now drop to fifth after a 5-2 loss in this round of fixtures. The Levenshulmes win sees them move up to sixth, just two points behind the Bulls, with both teams having won four and lost four from eight games played.
Rob Barber claimed a 2-0 win in the first game of the night to put the home side into the lead, but after consecutive deciding leg wins for Josh McQuillan and Rob Moss The Levenshulme were 2-1 ahead. Iain Fish won a deciding leg to bring the Bulls Head level, but the final three games were all to go in favour of the visitors as George Moss’ 2-0 win made it 3-2 in game five, before Kieran Chapman hit a 105 finish during another 2-0 win which won the match for the Levenshulme. In the final game, The Levenshulme’s David Duffy rounded things off with a 2-1 defeat of Chris Cordingley to give a final score of 5-2.
Excelsior WMC 5 vs 2 The Old Market Tavern
The Excel claimed a solid 5-2 win over bottom placed Old Market Tavern to move back up to second place in the division, but 14 points behind the runaway leaders BHC Aces. They occupy second, despite the Vine in third having won one more match, due to a higher total of points gained from player games won in the teams’ respective fixtures. The Old Market Tavern are the only team in the division yet to win, but are only four points behind The Jolly Butcher despite the Butcher having two wins under their belt.
It looks like a reasonably close game though despite the scoreline, as five of the seven games went to a deciding leg, including all of the first four. Steven Foster beat Hannah Tague to put the OMT ahead in game 1, before Jimmy Nolan brought the sides level with a 93 finish during his win over Sally Corfield. Mandy Haycocks put the OMT back in front with victory in game 3, but Peter Sage levelled things up once again, before Andy Cheetham’s 2-0 win put the Excel in front for the first time in the match. At 3-2 up the Excel needed only one more win, and it arrived in the next game courtesy of a 2-1 win for Connor McCorkell who along with gaining the match points also hit his first maximum of the season. At 4-2, the wind went out of the OMT sails, and the Excel’s Danny Chua claimed the final game of the night to make it 5-2.
The Bent Brook 2 vs 5 Stretfordians
A fourth win of the season for Stretfordians moves them joint seventh in the table level on points and game difference with their beaten opponents the Bent Brook, with both sides only 4 points off fourth place and 8 off second.
Stretfordians claimed an early 2-0 lead after wins for Morgan Nickson and Jack Newsham, but Alex Morton reduced the defecit for the Brook with a 2-1 win in game 3. Stretfordians were up for this one though, and further 2-0 wins for Lindsay Rice and Adam Jackson made it 4-1 and gave their side the bonus points after only five games played. The remaining games of the night were shared, as Ken Turnock claimed a consolation point for the Brook, before a 2-0 Rory Sullivan win ensured Stretfordians got their third 5-2 winning scoreline of the season so far.
The Nelson Didsbury 3 vs 4 The Buck Inn-eers
Prior to last weeks 4-3 reverse against the Royal Oak B, The Nelson had been in fine form, and despite another defeat by the same scoreline this week, they still sit handily placed in fourth only four points off the second promotion spot. As far as the Buck Inn-eers are concerned, it doesnt seem that long ago that I was writing about a search for an elusive first win, but thats consigned to history now as a third win in succession has seen them move up the table to 9th, and within touching distance of the teams directly above them.
Charlotte Bloomfield put the Buck Inn-eers ahead with a 2-0 win in the opening game, but the Nelson responded immediately with wins for Elliot Wynne and Chris Conduit putting them into a 2-1 lead. George Banner hit back for the Buck Inn-eers (and also hitting his teams first ever 180) to level it up after game four, but a 2-0 Tom Spillane win put the Nelson back in front with five games played. With the game on the line, the Buck Inn’s Matt Kershaw brought the teams level once again whilst extending his own unbeaten run this season with a 2-1 win and a creditable 65.5 average. It all came down to a final game shoot out between The Buck’s Rick Hindle and Nelson’s Derek Winess, and following a 2-0 win for the man from the Buck Inn, the bonus points were secure and his side had made it three wins on the bounce.
The Vine Inn 5 vs 2 The Jolly Butcher
The Vine return to form after last weeks defeat with this good win against the Jolly Butcher and sit comfortably placed in third, right in the mix up for the second promotion spot. The Jolly Butcher have now lost three in a row since beating the Buck Inn at the end of August, and have dropped into the bottom two in division 3, but are just 3 points behind The Royal Oak B and share an identical game difference with them, despite having won one game fewer.
The Vine were well up for atoning for the previous weeks defeat and shot into an early 2-0 lead following consecutive 2-0 wins for Charlie Sanders and Wayne Hough. Next up though saw the first league appearance this season of the ferocious Tracy Wesemeyer for the Butcher (how appropriate), who I’m literally still hiding from after receiving a kaleidesope of threats for not doing a write-up last season for a week that featured her first win. Although Tracy took this one to a final leg, Kyran Eyes won the decider to put the Vine 3-0 up. Steve Foster and Mike Swindells managed to pull it back to 3-2 on the night with wins in games four and five against Tom Slattery and Josh Bailey, but after consecutive 2-0 wins for the Vine’s Dave Goulden and Stuart Tait in the final games of the night, the home sides victory was assured.
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