Darts News - Alan Towe’s The Line On Darts – Nottinghamshire v Derbyshire
Life for Derbyshire, newcomers to division one of the BDO Inter County Championships does not get any easier as their results now stretch to played four and lost four the latest of which was an away game against neighbouring local rivals Nottinghamshire.
The ladies ‘B’ game didn’t get off to a bad start as Samantha Clarke got the ball rolling with a lady of the match performance against Kelly Stevens, Samantha winning 3-0 and averaging 20.59. Kelly Dean doubled Derbyshire’s lead when she added her 3-2 win over Tracey Johnson who had won the first leg and levelled in the fourth.
Alas that was where Derbyshire cheers ended Sara Faulkner was Nottinghamshire’s first winner a straight 3-0 success against Lynda Gilbert and with a 3-1 win by Kaylea Riley over Rachel Bird the home side were back on level terms.
For the first time in the game Nottinghamshire took the lead in the fifth a second consecutive 3-1 win this time supplied by Julie Pitchford against Dee Fenn.
The final score was taken to 4-2 to Nottinghamshire when Helen Harvey defeated Louise Rawson-Lee 4-2 after the Derby player had won the first leg and squared the game in the fourth, the defeat leaving the Derbyshire ladies ‘B’ still seeking their first win of the season.
It was Nottinghamshire that were quick off the starting blocks in the men’s ‘B’ game Mark Wilson beating Adrian Asprey 3-1 and Nicholas Bell winning by the same margin against Tony Cresswell. Micky Stocks looked odds on to make it 3-0 when he opened up a 2-0 lead over Paul Bettney but Bettney stuck to his task and went on to win the next three legs in 15, 12 and 20 darts for a great 3-2 win. Levelling the game at 2-2 was Ian Scobbie who took full advantage when his opponent Robert Riley failed on his doubles and he ran out the 3-0 winner.
It was then once more the turn of the hosts, another two in a row by Stuart Hay and Karl Askew to end the first half, each of them winning 3-1 against respective opponents Peter Slater and Richard Rawding.
As the second half began the gap widened to 5-2 to Nottinghamshire when Wes Dean beat Mark Walker 3-2 and it took a man of the match display from Sean Lambert to put a halt to the home teams run. Lambert playing against Ricky Gray had winning legs of 18,18 and 16 darts to give him a 28.90 average. Reducing the arrears even further was Steve Soar, despite losing the first leg to John Esam Soar bounced back to level the game with two seventeen darts legs and then went on to clinch a 3-2 win and keep Derbyshire in the game although still trailing 5-4.
Hopes were high that Nottinghamshire’s lead was going to be wiped out when Ashley Spencer went two up against Mick Pitchford but the home player responded well to take the next three legs and the 3-2 win which put his team in an unbeatable 6-4 position.
David Allcock (Derbyshire) showed his battling spirit when after twice being pegged back to level terms by former Derbyshire man Reece Spurr he went on to win 3-2 to give the last player Adrian Daniels an opportunity to earn his team a draw, and a 6-6 draw is what Derbyshire got as Daniels beat Dale Gadsby 3-1 in the last game of the day and at the same time giving the ‘B’ team their best result of the season so far.
With only one defeat in their opening three games the ladies ‘A’ were not doing too badly, however the one reversal came in their previous game when they went down 5-1 to Gwent, little did they think they were about to suffer a similar fate against Nottinghamshire.
Sara Faulkner opened for the hosts with a 3-0 win over Sara-Jane Harrison. A 3-1 win by Sarah Brent against Jackie Sweet took the score to 2-0 and moving it along to 3-0 was Nicola McNamara with her 3-0 win over Sara Jukes.
It took a lady of the match showing from Lauren Jackson to stop the rot, a straight 3-0 win over Margaret Bamford with an 18.11 average reducing the deficit to 3-1. The last two games also finished with a 3-0 scoreline former Derbyshire player Joanne Oldershaw beating Samantha Clarke and Kirsty Handford winning against Jennifer McCormick to give Nottinghamshire the 5-1 verdict.
Derbyshire’s men’s ‘A’ team had seen all three of their opening games finish with a 7-5 result, one win and two defeats and this their fourth game was not to be any different, it was going to be another 7-5.
Following his 3-2 win for the ‘B’ team Paul Bettney was promoted to the ‘A’ and he didn’t disappoint as he put Derbyshire one up with his 4-1 win over Peter McConnville, but the lead was short lived as Tom Allies won 4-2 against Tim Daniels although Daniels had out tonned him hitting 15 three figure scores to Allies seven.
Wayne Pepper gave Nottinghamshire the lead with a very close 4-3 win over Richard Hanson after Hanson had won the first and then went 3-2 up before losing the final leg. Taking the score along to 3-1 was Aden Kirk who beat Alan Statham 4-0, but it was all square by the halfway mark as Derbyshire fought back first through Andrew McCracken who won 4-2 against Paul Harvey and then Paul Mellor who made it 3-3 with his 4-3 win over Melvyn Hopkins, Mellor including a 138 checkout in the fourth leg.
For a second time the home team took the lead in the seventh when Neil Birkin beat Gary Fenn 4-1 after Fenn had won the opener, their lead was extended to 5-3 when Nottinghamshire’s man of the match Kyle Anderson (30.62) won 4-2 against Darron Brown, Brown having won the fourth and fifth legs in 14 and 15 darts.
Darren Sinfield (Derbyshire) went 3-0 up against Andrew Kerr but was made to wait until the sixth leg before chalking up the winning fourth leg in which he hit a maximum.
Neil Ward assured the home team of at the worst a share of the point’s, his 4-2 win over Robert Smith giving the hosts a 6-4 lead
Nigel Daniels (Derbyshire) had a real battle with Jay Foreman as the lead went one way then the other, Daniels went 1-0 and 2-1 up before Foreman forged a 3-2 lead, but in 17 and 18 darts the last two legs went to Daniels to give him the 4-3 result.
The final game of the weekend was a bit of an anti climax as Lee Stanley in a couple of legs missed his doubles and Simon Birkett won the tie 4-0 to give the home side a 7-5 win and an overall 22-14 victory.
This their fourth consecutive defeat sees Derbyshire firmly rooted at the foot of the table with 45 points just two behind next to bottom Oxfordshire but a gap is now beginning to appear between themselves and two from bottom Dorset who are on 53 points the same number as the two teams above them Cleveland and Kent. So Derbyshire are hoping for some better fortune in 2016 as their opening three games against Dorset (home), Kent (home) and Oxforshire (away) could well decide where they will be playing next season.
Full Results:(Nottinghamshire names first):Men’s ‘A’:- Peter McConville 1 Paul Bettney 4, Tom Allies 4 Tim Daniels 2, Wayne Pepper 4 Richard Hanson 3, Aden Kirk 4 Alan Statham 0, Paul Harvey 2 Andrew McCracken 4, Melvyn Hopkins 3 Paul Mellor 4, Neil Birkin 4 Gary Fenn 1, Kyle Anderson 4 Darron Brown 2, Andrew Kerr 2 Darren Sinfield 4, Neil Ward 4 Robert Smith 2, Jay Foreman 3 Nigel Daniels 4, Simon Birkett 4 Lee Stanley 0, Men’s ‘B’:- Mark Wilson 3 Adrian Asprey 1, Nicholas Bell 3 Tony Cresswell 1, Micky Stocks 2 Paul Bettney 3, Robert Riley 0 Ian Scobbie 3, Stuart Hay 3 Peter Slater 1, Karl Askew 3 Richard Rawding 1, Wes Deane 3 Mark Walker 2, Ricky Gray 0 Sean Lambert 3, John Esam 1 Steve Soar 3, Mick Pitchford 3 Ashley Spencer 2, Reece Spurr 2 David Allcock 3, Dale Gadsby 1 Adrian Daniels 3, Women’s ‘A’:- Sara Faulkner 3 Sara-Jane Harrison 0, Sarah Brent 3 Jackie Sweet 1, Nicola McNamara 3 Sara Jukes 0, Margaret Bamford 0 Lauren Jackson 3, Joanne Oldershaw 3 Samantha Clarke 0, Kirsty Handford 3 Jennifer McCormick 0, Women’s ‘B’:- Kelly Stevens 0 Samantha Clarke 3, Tracey Johnson 2 Kelly Dean 3, Sara Faulkner 3 Lynda Gilbert 0, Kaylea Riley 3 Rachel Bird 1, Julie Pitchford 3 Dee Fenn 1, Helen Harvey 3 Louise Rawson-Lee 2.
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The ladies ‘B’ game didn’t get off to a bad start as Samantha Clarke got the ball rolling with a lady of the match performance against Kelly Stevens, Samantha winning 3-0 and averaging 20.59. Kelly Dean doubled Derbyshire’s lead when she added her 3-2 win over Tracey Johnson who had won the first leg and levelled in the fourth.
Alas that was where Derbyshire cheers ended Sara Faulkner was Nottinghamshire’s first winner a straight 3-0 success against Lynda Gilbert and with a 3-1 win by Kaylea Riley over Rachel Bird the home side were back on level terms.
For the first time in the game Nottinghamshire took the lead in the fifth a second consecutive 3-1 win this time supplied by Julie Pitchford against Dee Fenn.
The final score was taken to 4-2 to Nottinghamshire when Helen Harvey defeated Louise Rawson-Lee 4-2 after the Derby player had won the first leg and squared the game in the fourth, the defeat leaving the Derbyshire ladies ‘B’ still seeking their first win of the season.
It was Nottinghamshire that were quick off the starting blocks in the men’s ‘B’ game Mark Wilson beating Adrian Asprey 3-1 and Nicholas Bell winning by the same margin against Tony Cresswell. Micky Stocks looked odds on to make it 3-0 when he opened up a 2-0 lead over Paul Bettney but Bettney stuck to his task and went on to win the next three legs in 15, 12 and 20 darts for a great 3-2 win. Levelling the game at 2-2 was Ian Scobbie who took full advantage when his opponent Robert Riley failed on his doubles and he ran out the 3-0 winner.
It was then once more the turn of the hosts, another two in a row by Stuart Hay and Karl Askew to end the first half, each of them winning 3-1 against respective opponents Peter Slater and Richard Rawding.
As the second half began the gap widened to 5-2 to Nottinghamshire when Wes Dean beat Mark Walker 3-2 and it took a man of the match display from Sean Lambert to put a halt to the home teams run. Lambert playing against Ricky Gray had winning legs of 18,18 and 16 darts to give him a 28.90 average. Reducing the arrears even further was Steve Soar, despite losing the first leg to John Esam Soar bounced back to level the game with two seventeen darts legs and then went on to clinch a 3-2 win and keep Derbyshire in the game although still trailing 5-4.
Hopes were high that Nottinghamshire’s lead was going to be wiped out when Ashley Spencer went two up against Mick Pitchford but the home player responded well to take the next three legs and the 3-2 win which put his team in an unbeatable 6-4 position.
David Allcock (Derbyshire) showed his battling spirit when after twice being pegged back to level terms by former Derbyshire man Reece Spurr he went on to win 3-2 to give the last player Adrian Daniels an opportunity to earn his team a draw, and a 6-6 draw is what Derbyshire got as Daniels beat Dale Gadsby 3-1 in the last game of the day and at the same time giving the ‘B’ team their best result of the season so far.
With only one defeat in their opening three games the ladies ‘A’ were not doing too badly, however the one reversal came in their previous game when they went down 5-1 to Gwent, little did they think they were about to suffer a similar fate against Nottinghamshire.
Sara Faulkner opened for the hosts with a 3-0 win over Sara-Jane Harrison. A 3-1 win by Sarah Brent against Jackie Sweet took the score to 2-0 and moving it along to 3-0 was Nicola McNamara with her 3-0 win over Sara Jukes.
It took a lady of the match showing from Lauren Jackson to stop the rot, a straight 3-0 win over Margaret Bamford with an 18.11 average reducing the deficit to 3-1. The last two games also finished with a 3-0 scoreline former Derbyshire player Joanne Oldershaw beating Samantha Clarke and Kirsty Handford winning against Jennifer McCormick to give Nottinghamshire the 5-1 verdict.
Derbyshire’s men’s ‘A’ team had seen all three of their opening games finish with a 7-5 result, one win and two defeats and this their fourth game was not to be any different, it was going to be another 7-5.
Following his 3-2 win for the ‘B’ team Paul Bettney was promoted to the ‘A’ and he didn’t disappoint as he put Derbyshire one up with his 4-1 win over Peter McConnville, but the lead was short lived as Tom Allies won 4-2 against Tim Daniels although Daniels had out tonned him hitting 15 three figure scores to Allies seven.
Wayne Pepper gave Nottinghamshire the lead with a very close 4-3 win over Richard Hanson after Hanson had won the first and then went 3-2 up before losing the final leg. Taking the score along to 3-1 was Aden Kirk who beat Alan Statham 4-0, but it was all square by the halfway mark as Derbyshire fought back first through Andrew McCracken who won 4-2 against Paul Harvey and then Paul Mellor who made it 3-3 with his 4-3 win over Melvyn Hopkins, Mellor including a 138 checkout in the fourth leg.
For a second time the home team took the lead in the seventh when Neil Birkin beat Gary Fenn 4-1 after Fenn had won the opener, their lead was extended to 5-3 when Nottinghamshire’s man of the match Kyle Anderson (30.62) won 4-2 against Darron Brown, Brown having won the fourth and fifth legs in 14 and 15 darts.
Darren Sinfield (Derbyshire) went 3-0 up against Andrew Kerr but was made to wait until the sixth leg before chalking up the winning fourth leg in which he hit a maximum.
Neil Ward assured the home team of at the worst a share of the point’s, his 4-2 win over Robert Smith giving the hosts a 6-4 lead
Nigel Daniels (Derbyshire) had a real battle with Jay Foreman as the lead went one way then the other, Daniels went 1-0 and 2-1 up before Foreman forged a 3-2 lead, but in 17 and 18 darts the last two legs went to Daniels to give him the 4-3 result.
The final game of the weekend was a bit of an anti climax as Lee Stanley in a couple of legs missed his doubles and Simon Birkett won the tie 4-0 to give the home side a 7-5 win and an overall 22-14 victory.
This their fourth consecutive defeat sees Derbyshire firmly rooted at the foot of the table with 45 points just two behind next to bottom Oxfordshire but a gap is now beginning to appear between themselves and two from bottom Dorset who are on 53 points the same number as the two teams above them Cleveland and Kent. So Derbyshire are hoping for some better fortune in 2016 as their opening three games against Dorset (home), Kent (home) and Oxforshire (away) could well decide where they will be playing next season.
Full Results:(Nottinghamshire names first):Men’s ‘A’:- Peter McConville 1 Paul Bettney 4, Tom Allies 4 Tim Daniels 2, Wayne Pepper 4 Richard Hanson 3, Aden Kirk 4 Alan Statham 0, Paul Harvey 2 Andrew McCracken 4, Melvyn Hopkins 3 Paul Mellor 4, Neil Birkin 4 Gary Fenn 1, Kyle Anderson 4 Darron Brown 2, Andrew Kerr 2 Darren Sinfield 4, Neil Ward 4 Robert Smith 2, Jay Foreman 3 Nigel Daniels 4, Simon Birkett 4 Lee Stanley 0, Men’s ‘B’:- Mark Wilson 3 Adrian Asprey 1, Nicholas Bell 3 Tony Cresswell 1, Micky Stocks 2 Paul Bettney 3, Robert Riley 0 Ian Scobbie 3, Stuart Hay 3 Peter Slater 1, Karl Askew 3 Richard Rawding 1, Wes Deane 3 Mark Walker 2, Ricky Gray 0 Sean Lambert 3, John Esam 1 Steve Soar 3, Mick Pitchford 3 Ashley Spencer 2, Reece Spurr 2 David Allcock 3, Dale Gadsby 1 Adrian Daniels 3, Women’s ‘A’:- Sara Faulkner 3 Sara-Jane Harrison 0, Sarah Brent 3 Jackie Sweet 1, Nicola McNamara 3 Sara Jukes 0, Margaret Bamford 0 Lauren Jackson 3, Joanne Oldershaw 3 Samantha Clarke 0, Kirsty Handford 3 Jennifer McCormick 0, Women’s ‘B’:- Kelly Stevens 0 Samantha Clarke 3, Tracey Johnson 2 Kelly Dean 3, Sara Faulkner 3 Lynda Gilbert 0, Kaylea Riley 3 Rachel Bird 1, Julie Pitchford 3 Dee Fenn 1, Helen Harvey 3 Louise Rawson-Lee 2.
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