Alan Towe's BICC Report
Shropshire v Bedfordshire Well Shropshire’s luck just does not change and their string of defeats has now reached double figures as in their home fixture against Bedfordshire once again they lost making it ten games in a row, however it is certainly not down to lack of effort or commitment, they just need to keep the faith and their fortunes must surely change at some point. Saturday was not a bad day although it didn’t get off to the best of starts for the ladies ‘B’ as Bedfordshire opened up a 3-0 lead. Jennifer Thomas began the trio of wins when she won the opener against Sharon Harris 3-0 and adding to that win was Becky Minney and Donna Hutt who in turn both won 3-1 against Cheryl Owen and Caron Minton. With their backs to the wall the home team’s Debbie Davies at number four took on Michelle Lydiate and despite being pegged back to 2-2 after leading 2-0 she won the decider to register Shropshire’s first win. Game number five produced the home team’s lady of the match in the form of Sue Lane who after trailing 1-0 to Danielle Reed bounced back to take the next three legs for a 3-1 win and a 16.60 average. Sue’s win left the result hinging on the final game between Allison Gallagher (Shropshire) and Rachel Elgerton. Allison won the first leg, Rachel the second, but it was Rachel Gallagher who was first to find the finishing doubles in the following two legs for a 3-1 win to earn her team a share of the points in a 3-3 draw. The men’s ‘B’ team recorded their first win of the season in their last fixture away to Pembrokeshire and were looking to add to that win as Pete Eley got the ball rolling with a 3-1 win over Michael Dexter, Adam Thackray added to that making it 2-0 when he defeated Lloyd Wintle by the same 3-1 margin. Simon Parrott was another 3-1 winner as he opened Bedfordshire’s account with a win over Neville Quinton and then levelling the score was Luke Ely with a 3-0 success against Martin Riggs. Although Rob Harris lost the first leg to Mark Kingdon he went on to win the tie 3-1 only to see the running score level at the halfway point when Darren Battams beat Andre Knox 3-1 after Knox had won the first leg. As the second half got underway Shropshire went ahead for a third time when Andy Gilbert accounted for Dave Earl with a straight 3-0 result, but yet again the visitors drew level as Steve Spring won 3-1 against Rob Trumper. With the score at four each the hosts then moved up a gear to taking three in a row putting them in an unassailable 7-4 position. Chris Fox (Shropshire) went from 1-0 up to 2-1 down and then won 3-2 against Ashley Disson before Paul Bromley produced a man of the match display against Jamie Smith winning 3-0 in 20,17 and 24 darts giving him a 24.64 average. Completing the win in the penultimate game was Joe Cook who after being pegged back to 1-1 won his game against Aden O’Mahoney 3-1. The last game of the day saw Bedfordshire make the score look a little more respectable when Garry Morris with a 3-1 scoreline defeated Colin Hill to give a final result of 7-5 to Shropshire. With a narrow lead of 10-8 at the start of Sunday’s ‘A’ games the ladies found the first four games all went with the first throw advantage as Bedfordshire went ahead through a 3-0 win from Kerry King over Sophie Fawcett and Kat McLean levelled for Shropshire with her 3-2 win against Shirley Williams. The away team got their noses in front again in the third when Maria Perrin beat Julie Griffiths 3-2 but a fine display from Marie Riggs in the fourth took the score to two each. Marie beat Hannah Meadwell 3-1 with winning legs of 22,23 and 24 darts for an award winning average of 20.08. The sequence was broken in the fifth game when the hosts Stephanie Clarke took out Jo Dilley with a straight 3-0 result to give her team a 3-2 lead with one to play. Michele Pritchard was last on for Shropshire and she struggled with finishing doubles which resulted in a 3-0 defeat at the hands of Sue Smith to put the final honours shared at 3-3. The men’s ‘A’ team similar to the overall results were without a win in their last nine games and their day didn’t get off to a very good start as their opponents opened up a 3-0 lead. Adam King was the visitor’s first winner, a 4-0 success against Nathan Storar. Following King came Paddy Clowery and Russell Stringer who both won 4-3 in their respective games against Louis Burley and Adam Thackray. Danny James earned Shropshire’s first stripe when he accounted for Richard Wood in a seven legs affair, James going 1-0 down, 3-1 up, was level at 3-3 and then won the deciding leg. Bedfordshire’s three games buffer was restored in the fifth when Chris Dilley beat Jamie Barrowman 4-3, Barrowman coming from 3-0 down to level terms before losing the game. By the midway point the score was 4-2 to Bedfordshire as Simon Pritchard added his 4-3 win over Dara Curran to the home teams tally. Pritchard won a hard fought battle against Curran as after losing the first leg he then went 2-1 up in 15 and 19 darts, Curran levelled at 2-2 only to see Pritchard open up a 3-2 lead, then despite his opponent taking the game to a seventh and deciding leg it was Shropshire’s Simon Pritchard who won it and at the same time win the man of the match award for his 23.77 average. The second half all went a little pear shaped as Bedfordshire rattled off five consecutive wins to give them a 9-2 lead. There were wins for Mark Holland, Mark Circuitt, Ben Hazel, Trevor Ellacott and Micky Reed who in turn defeated Andi Chatter (4-2), Brian Hickman (4-2), Neil Powell (4-0), Richard Parker (4-0) and Kevin Harris (4-2). The last game of the weekend went to Shropshire’s Derek Coulson who with a straight 4-0 scoreline defeated Bobby Lee to give a final score of 9-3 to Bedfordshire’s men’s ‘A’ team and an overall 20-16 for the visitors. Full Results:Shropshire v Bedfordshire (16-20):(Shropshire names first):Men’s ‘A’:- Nathan Storar 0 Adam King 4, Louis Burley 3 Paddy Clowery 4, Adam Thackray 3 Russell Stringer 4, Danny James 4 Richard Wood 3, Jamei Barrowman 3 Chris Dilley 4, Simon Pritchard 4 Dara Curran 3, Andi Chatter 2 Mark Holland 4, Brian Hickman 2 Mark Circuitt 4, Neil Powell 0 Ben hazel 4, Richard Parker 0 Trevor Ellacott 4, Kevin Harris 2 Micky Reed 4, Derek Coulson 4 Bobby Lee 0, Men’s ‘B’:- Pete Eley 3 Michael Dexter 1, Adam Thackray 3 Lloyd Wintle 1, Neville Quinton 1 Simon Parrott 3, Martin Riggs 0 Luke Ely 3, Rob Harris 3 Mark Kingdon 1, Andre Knox 1 Darren Battams 3, Andy Gilbert 3 Dave Earl 0, Rob Trumper 1 Steve Spring 3, Chris Fox 3 Ashley Disson 2, Paul Bromley 3 Jamie Smith 0, Joe Cook 3 Aden O’Mahoney 1, Colin Hill 1 Garry Morris 3, Women’s ‘A’:- Sophie Fawcett 0 Kerry King 3, Pat McLean 3 Shirley Williams 2, Julie Griffiths 2 Maria Perrin 3, Marie Riggs 3 Hannah Meadwell 1, Stephanie Clarke 3 Jo Dilley 0, Michele Pritchard 0 Sue Smith 3, Women’s ‘B’:- Sharon Harris 0 Jennifer Thomas 3, Cheryl owen 1 Becky Minney 3, Caron Minton 1 Donna Hutt 3, Debbie Davies 3 Michelle Lydiate 2, Sue Lane 3 Danielle Reed 1, Allison Gallagher Rachel Elgeton 1.der 21’s a 3-2 win plus an overall 9-6 victory.
Warwickshire v Lancashire After suffering two consecutive defeats Warwickshire’s middle of the season fixture in the Premier Division of the BDO Inter County Championships was a home tie against second in the table Lancashire, a fixture that Warwickshire had won for the last two seasons, and once again it got off to a good start as the ladies ‘B’ side won the opening two games. Lisa Delandes was first on for the home side and although she trailed twice to Debbie Baxter she stuck to the task and went on to win 3-2. Doubling Warwickshire’s lead with a lady of the match performance was Wendy Adams who despite being pegged back to level terms after winning the first leg went on to win 3-1 with a 20.29 average. Lancashire pulled one back in the third when Tracey Cunningham won 3-0 against Caroline Pike but that proved to be their one and only winner as Angela Jones beat Sue Corry 3-2 then by the same scoreline Chloe McKivett won against Danni-Lea Platt and rounding off a superb 5-1 win was Melanie Jones who defeated Anne-Marie Millership, again the result was 3-2. Simon Power got the men’s ‘B’ side off to a good start showing real fighting spirit as he came from within an ace of losing when he went 3-1 down to Gary Davey then go on to win 4-3. From one down Lancashire strung together a run of four successive wins Alan Fitzpatrick beginning the quartet of wins when he won 4-2 against Richard Foster. Sam Cromwell put the visitor’s noses in front for the first time in game number three with a 4-1 win over Tom Ryan and with further 4-2 wins for Tony Clarke and Chris O’Connor at the expense of Robert Comben and Mark Strong the away team were 4-1 up. By the midway point the score had been made a little more respectable as Carl Green laid on a man of the match performance against Barry Kerfoot beating him in four straight legs in 17,15,20 and 16 darts including a 136 checkout in the second leg to give him a superb 29.47 average. The second half began as did the first with Warwickshire taking first blood thanks to a 4-2 win from Ian Shaw against Tony Baker but it also looked as though Lancashire were going to repeat their first half performance when Darren Hebb beat Mark Carter 4-1 then James Caton won by the same margin against Ashley Hykin but fortunately the tide then turned. James Hykin had tough battle with Martin Barratt as he won the first leg then lost the next two. Hykin levelled in the fourth and then went 3-2 up only to see Barratt square the game at 3-3. The deciding leg could have gone either way but it was Hykin with a 20 game shot that got the 4-3 verdict. Keeping Warwickshire in the hunt for a draw was Karl Reynolds who like Hykin was made to fight for a result as he was taken to a seventh leg by Les Fitton. Fitton took a 2-0 lead and although Reynolds levelled at two each it was Fitton who went ahead again in the fifth. However with winning legs in 22 and 20 darts Reynolds wrapped up a 4-3 win to put the onus on the last two players of the day. The final game turned out to be a battle of the Adam’s, Adam Paxton for Warwickshire and for Lancashire Adam Scott. Paxton had his lead cancelled out three times before he finally got the 4-3 verdict with a 17 darts leg, his opponent left stranded on 130. Paxton’s win put the final score at 6-6. Despite being without a win since the opening day’s 4-2 success against Yorkshire the ladies ‘A’ team looked full of confidence as they stormed into a winning 4-0 lead. Team captain Sue Gulliver got the ball rolling when she opened up with a 3-1 success against Amy Eden and in the process secured her third lady of the match award in five games when she averaged 22.18. Marian Conway doubled the lead with her straight 3-0 win over Allyson Smith and securing a draw was Kat Spanswick when she accounted for Joanne Clements in a five legs affair. Chalking up the all important fourth stripe was Nina Bolt who with a 3-1 scoreline got the better of Maria Ronson. It was game five before Lancashire recorded a win, Sue Cusick winning 3-0 against Donna Pinch and with a final 3-0 win for Natalie Gilbert over Gina Jones the ‘A’ team emulated the ‘B’ side result of 5-1. With only one defeat so far this season for the men’s ‘A’ side it was that fine form that saw them open up an early 3-0 lead. First on for the host’s was Charlie Symons who after going 1-0 and 2-1 down to Martin Atkins went on to win 4-3. Taking the score to 2-0 was Steve Hine who won 4-1 against Sam Cromwell, Steve in top form with winning legs of 18,15,14 and 18 darts to give him an award winning average of 29.31. Nigel Heydon’s straight 4-0 win against Dave Adshead then took the score along to 3-0. Chris O’Connot stopped the home team’s charge as he beat Carl Green 4-0 but it proved to be just a minor setback as Kevin Dowling added his 4-2 win over Darren Hebb after Hebb had taken 1-0 and 2-1 leads. Mark Westgarth then registered his 4-0 win over Andy Johnson to give Warwickshire a commanding 5-1 lead at the break. Lancashire got their second winner in game seven when Graham Lalor beat Prakash Jiwa 4-1 but once more the home team came back taking another two in a row through Noel Grant and Anthony Allen who in turn 4-3 against Gary Jackson and Mick Oversby to put Warwickshire in an unassailable 7-2 lead. Tom Aldridge won the first leg against Dave Airey but it was Airey who went on to win 4-1 before Antony West made it 8-3 to the home team when he won 4-2 against Carl Sneyd. The final game of the weekend saw Dean Stewart (Warwickshire) go three up against Lee Shewan, however Shewan turned the screw and in 21,14,17 and 13 darts won the last four legs and the tie 4-3 to put the score at 8-4 to Warwickshire giving them an overall result of 24-12 to lift them two places in the table to fourth eleven points short of third placed Glamorgan who Warwickshire take on in their next fixture. Full Results:Warwickshire v Lancashire (24-12):(Warwickshire names first):Men’s ‘A’:- Charlie Symons 4 Martin Atkins 3, Steve Hine 4 Sam Cromwell 1, Nigel Heydon 4 Dave Adshead 0, Carl Green 0 Chris O’Connor 4, Kevin Dowling 4 Darren Hebb 2, Mark Westgarth 4 Andy Johnson 0, Prakash Jiwa 1 Graham Lalor 4, Noel Grant 4 Gary Jackson 3, Anthony Allen 4 Mick Oversby 3, Tom Aldrige 1 Dave Airey 4, Antony West 4 Carl Sneyd 2, Dean Stewart 3 Lee Shewan 4, Men’s ‘B’:- Simon Power 4 Gary Davey 3, Richard Foster 2 Alan Fitzpatrick 4, Tom Ryan 1 Sam Cromwell 4, Robert Comben 2 Tony Clarke 4, Mark Strong 2 Chris O’Connor 4, Carl Green 4 Barry Kerfoot 0, Ian Shaw 4 Tony Baker 2, Mark Carter 1 Darren Hebb 4, Ashley Hykin 1 James Caton 4, James Hykin 4 Martin Barratt 3, Karl Reynolds 4 Les Fitton 3, Adam Paxton 4 Adam Scott 3, Women’s ‘A’:- Sue Gulliver 3 Amy Eden 1, Marian Conway 3 Allyson Smith 0, Kat Spanswick 3 Joanne Clements 2, Nina Bolt 3 Maria Ronson 1, Donna Pinch 0 Sue Cusick 3, Natalie Gilbert 3 Gina Jones 0, Women’s ’B’:- Lisa Deslandes 3 Debbie Baxter 2, Wendy Adams 3 Sharon Seed 1, Caroline Pike 0 Tracey Cunningham 3, Angela Jones 3 Sue Corry 2, Chloe McKivett 3 Danni-Lea Platt 2, Melanie Jones 3 Anne-Marie Millership 2.
Congratulations to Warwickshire’s Nigel Heydon who has been selected for the forthcoming British International to be held in Merthyr Tydfil in early April. Nigel was in line for a call up some years ago but a career in the PDC delayed that decision, however his recent form has earned him a place in the English team. Another Warwickshire player to be selected and making a well deserved debut for his country is Kevin Dowling. The best of luck to both players
After the Christmas break the Warwickshire Youth teams played a home game against Staffordshire and produced some top form to beat their visitors 9-6 and put them top of the league table. The Under 18’s had wins from opener and man of the match Mackenzie Nixon, Joe Pitchford-Morris, Ben Liggins and Matthew Cain to give them a 4-3 win. The young ladies team won 2-1 with Courtney Hine taking the match award and Laura Bowley guaranteeing the win. Rounding off the fixture was the Under 21 games where after going 1-0 down Lewis Bayliss levelled the score and award winner Charlie Symonds put the home team 2 1 up. Staffordshire levelled in the fourth only to see George Ross win the final game to give the Under 21’s a 3-2 win plus an overall 9-6 victory.
By Alan Towe Website: www.alantowedarts.co.uk