Derbyshire v Norfolk
Derbyshire’s second fixture in division three of the BDO Inter County Championships was a home game against Norfolk. Last season’s similar fixture was played at Norfolk and saw the home side run out 20-16 winners but Derbyshire have had a better start to this season kicking it off with an encouraging opening day 18-18 draw away to Merseyside and were looking for an even better result against Norfolk.
All four Derbyshire teams began the new season with a draw at Merseyside but the ladies ‘B’ side soon found that even with home advantage it was not enough against a Norfolk team that were on form on the day. Kerry Jobson gave the away team the lead with her 3-0 win over Emma Varnam and despite Jennifer McCormick twice cancelled out Lynsey Childs lead, Jennifer winning the second leg with a superb 116 finish, she finally went down 3-2.
Carol Weston looked odds on to reduce Norfolk’s lead when she went 2-0 up against Amanda Moore but doubles then deserted Weston and the away player went on to win 3-2.
At 3-0 up the visitors then rattled off three consecutive 3-0 win, Sue Brittain, Sarah Sharp and Dawn Standley in turn defeating Sara-Jane Harrison, Debbie Caven and Dee Fenn with all three Derbyshire players having throws at finishing doubles.
The final score 6-0 to Norfolk.
The first three encounters of the men’s ‘B’ game all went with the fist throw advantage Robbie Ellis giving Norfolk the early lead as he won 3-2 against Michael Ryall who won the first and fourth legs. Timothy Rippon replied for the hosts when he defeated Peter Taylof with another 3-2 result after Rippon had his lead cancelled out twice before winning the game. The visitors got their noses in front again in the third when James Hubbard beat Robert Needham 3-0. It was game number four that saw the sequence broken when Craig Venman won 3-1 against Keith Cooper.
Game four may have seen the sequence broken but game five was the start of a Derbyshire onslaught as after trailing 3-1 they romped to a 9-3. Henry Coates was the first of the nine winners as he came from 2-1 down against Nathan Potter to win 3-2. Levelling the score at three each with a win over Trevor Pearse was Andrew Gillott, Gillott’s 3-0 win emulated by Derbyshire’s next player Gary Fenn who not only beat Donny Forder but took the team match award for his tremendous 30.67 average in which he hit a maximum plus five scores of a ton or more and registered winning legs of 20, 15 and 14 darts.
The next four games all finished with 3-1 results as Scott McCabe, Lee Arkwright, Sean Lambert and Paul Williams beat respective opponents David Wilson, David Dearing, Brad Burnett and Andy Neve.
The final game of the day swayed one way then the other as Derbyshire’s Steve Thompson won the first leg against Adrian Siddle then Siddle won the next two. Thompson squared the game in the fourth and then went on to win the decider for a 3-2 win giving a terrific 9-3 result for the men’s ‘B’ team.
The ladies ‘A’ like the ladies ‘B’ suffered with finishing doubles which at the end of the day proved to be very costly.
Mandy Gray opened up for Norfolk with a 3-1 win over Rachel Ayres only to see Louise Rawson (Derbyshire) put up a great fight against Marie Stopher as she came back from 1-0 and 2-1 down to go on and win 3-2 and take the lady of the match for her 17.21 average.
Games three and four saw the away team’s Nikki Goldsmith and Roz Bulmer win 3-1 in turn against Terri Bellamy and Jackie Sweet to put their team within an ace of victory.
Sammi Marshall kept Derbyshire in the game as she added her 3-1 win over Sandra Page to their account to take the result to the deciding game between Rebecca Hoyland (Derbyshire) and Stephanie Mudd. The first leg went to Rebecca Hoyland but it was Stephanie Mudd who won the following three to win 3-1 and give Norfolk a 4-2 victory, the second ladies success for them of the weekend.
With only the men’s ‘A’ result to be added the overall running score was 13-11 to Norfolk but that was about to change.
Derbyshire were given a winning start by Robert Hawker who had winning legs of 20,16,17 and 14 darts as he won 4-2 against Hamish Varnon. Hawker taking the men’s ‘A’ man of the match award with his 29.22 average and although Connor Hodgkinson was taken to a seventh and deciding leg by Charles Wilson he made it 2-0 for the hosts with his 4-3 win.
Wayne Wall was Norfolk’s first winner, a 4-2 success against Stephen Paling in the third but the home team’s two games buffer was restored in the fourth when Peter Burgoyne beat Evan Wilson 4-1 and with a similar 4-1 win from Ian Clarke over Jon Sharp, Derbyshire’s lead was extended to 4-1 and by the midway point taken to 5-1 as Ian Allcock beat Glenn West 4-3.
Oliver King pulled one back for the visitors as the second half got underway as he won 4-3 in a close tie with Benjamin Holmes, however a share of the twelve games was assured for the home side in the eighth game when Tim Daniels went from 1-0 up to 2-1 down against Christopher Earll then went on to win 4-2.
Lee Stanley made sure of a men’s ‘A’ win for Derbyshire when he handed out a straight 4-0 defeat to Vinny Mudd to put his team 7-2 up.
Jason Lovett was Norfolk’s third winner as he came from one down against David Fritchley to go on and win 4-1. Lovett’s win proving to be Norfolk’s last as Ryan Hassell beat Adam White 4-2 and in the last game of the weekend Richard Hanson had a 4-1 win over Darren Goldsmith to give a final score of 9-3 to the men’s ‘A’ team, the second 9-3 win of the weekend for Derbyshire’s men’s teams.
The overall result was 20-16 to Derbyshire which completely reversed last season’s 20-16 win for Norfolk.
Full Results:Division Three:Derbyshire v Norfolk (20-16)🙁Derbyshire names first):Men’s ‘A’:- Robert Hawker 4 Hamish Varnon 2, Connor Hodgkinson 4 Charles Wilson 3, Stephen Paling 2 Wayne Wall 4, Peter Burgoyne 4 Evan Wilson 1, Ian Clarke 4 Jon Sharp 1, Ian Allcock 4 Glenn West 3, Benjamin Holmes 3 Oliver King 4, Tim Daniels 4 Christopher Earll 2, Lee Stanley 4 Vinny Mudd 0, David Fritchley 1 Jason Lovett 4, Ryan Hassell 4 Adam White 2, Richard Hanson 4 Darren Goldsmith 1, Men’s ‘B’:- Michael Ryall 2 Robbie Ellis 3, Timothy Rippon 3 Peter Taylof 2, Robert Needham 0 James Hubbard 3, Keith Cooper 1 Craig Venman 3, Henry Coates 3 Nathan Potter 2, Andrew Gillott 3 Trevor Pearse 0, Gary Fenn 3 Donny Forder 0, Scott McCabe 3 David Wilson 1, Lee Arkwright 3 David Dearing 1, Sean Lambert 3 Brad Burnett 1, Paul Williams 3 Andy Neve 1, Steve Thompson 3 Adrian Siddle 2, Women’s ‘A’:- Rachel Ayres 1 Mandy Gray 3, Louise Rawson 3 Marie Stopher 2, Terri Bellamy 1 Nikki Goldsmith 3, Jackie Sweet 1 Roz Bulmer 3, Sammie Marshall 3 Sandra Page 1, Rebecca Hoyland 1 Stephanie Mudd 3, Women’s ‘B’:- Emma Varnam 0 Kerry Jobson 3, Jennifer McCormick 2 Lynsey Childs 3, Carol Western 2 Amanda Moore 3, Sara-Jane Harrison 0 Sue Brittain 3, Debbie Caven 0 Sarah Sharp 3, Dee Fenn 0 Dawn Standley 3.
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Northumberland v Derbyshire
Derbyshire’s third fixture in division three of the BDO Inter County Championships was an away game against Northumberland and they returned from the north with their best result of the season so far.
The ladies ‘B’ game got underway with a straight 3-0 win from Sara-Jane Harrison who defeated Christine Caldow. A Sara-Jayne with a “Y” this time Sara-Jayne Gowens squared the match for Northumberland when she won by the same 3-0 margin against Dee Fenn. Derbyshire went ahead again in the third when Carol Western (Derbyshire) not only beat Rachael Brown 3-1 but also took her team’s match award for her 15.33 average. A third 3-0 result and the second for Derbyshire was provided by Jennifer McCormick who accounted for Lilian Frost to put the away team 3-1 up.
Unfortunately a win was not to be as Louise Kidd and Gemma Slipper in turn won 3-0 against Katrina McAleney and Dawn Buckley to take the final score to three each.
The honours were even after the first two games of the men’s ‘B’ match as Sean Lambert put Derbyshire ahead with a 3-1 win over Drew Mole and Lee Harrison replied for Northumberland with a similar 3-1 win against Steve Thompson. From there on it was all change as Derbyshire romped to a 5-1 lead by the break. Timothy Rippon won 3-2 against Ian Cooper, Keith Cooper beat Joseph Reed 3-1, Michael Ryall won 3-2 against Elliott French and taking the visitors advantage to five games was Benjamin Holmes with his 3-1 win over Dave Wallace.
The start of the second half saw the hosts chalk up their second winner when Rikki Oversby won 3-1 against Darren Webster before Derbyshire’s man of the match was found in the form of Andrew Houghton who was another 3-1 winner in his tie with David Wilson, Houghton recording winning legs of 14, 20 and 28 darts to give him an average of 25.93.
The next game saw the visitors get their win as Scott McCabe beat Jamie Martin 3-2 to open up a 7-2 lead and with Henry Coates coming from two down to Reece Aitman and then win 3-2 that lead moved along to 8-2.
The final score was a tremendous 10-2 to Derbyshire with Robert Needham adding his 3-1 win over Simon Ward and Gary Fenn rounding off the day’s play with a 3-2 success against Bob Smith.
First on for Derbyshire ladies ‘A’ was Jackie Sweet who after leading 1-0 against Ang Turnbull then trailed 2-1 but fought back magnificently to win the game 3-2. Sammi Marshall lost her first leg against Marie Silk but again the away player stormed back to go on and win 3-1. For a third time in the opening three games the visiting player fell behind, on this occasion it was Louise Rawson who went 1-0 down, 2-1 up then 2-2 but won the fifth leg for a 3-2 win to put Derbyshire into a commanding 3-0 lead.
Ashley Halliday was Northumberland’s first winner, a 3-1 victory over Terri Bellamy before lady of the match Rebecca Hoyland put up the winning strike for Derbyshire when she beat Dawn Longstaff 3-0 to take the award for her 19.78 average.
The final game saw Joy Wanless make the score a little more respectable for the hosts when she won 3-1 against Rachel Ayres to give a final score of 4-2 in favour of Derbyshire.
What better way could there be to start the men’s ‘A’ game than to see your captain hand out a 4-0 defeat to his opponent and in the process win the man of the match award. That is exactly what happened as Lee Stanley opened up for Derbyshire and beat Christopher Bewick in 18,14, 22 and 18 darts for a superb 27.83 average. Robert Hawker came from 2-0 and 3-1 down to Ian Dawson to level his game at 3-3 but then lost the decider in 15 darts to see Northumberland square the game at one each.
The away side then strung together three successive wins as Ian Allcock beat Shaun Brown 4-1, Richard Hanson won 4-3 against Christopher Harvey and with a 4-2 win for Michael Ryall over Sam Gibson Derbyshire were 4-1 up. David Fritchley looked all set to make it 5-1 at the midway point when he opened leads of 1-0 and 3-2 against Micky Ord but it was Ord who went on to win the game 4-3.
Tim Daniels began the second half for Derbyshire in style as he won the first leg against Richard Gerry with a fantastic 143 game shot in 15 darts. He then went 3-0 up with further legs of 22 and 17 before Gerry came back with three winning legs to take the game to a seventh and deciding leg. Both players struggled with high scores in the last leg but it was Daniels with a 76 finish that won it and the game 4-3.
Two successive 4-1 wins from Paul Williams and Ian Clarke over respective opponents Paul Bell and Lee Harbottle secured the win for Derbyshire as their successes took the score along to 7-2.
Jimmy Blakey (Northumberland) trailed 2-0 to Lee Arkwright, he then went 3-2 up but was taken to a final leg before securing his team’s third win of the match and with a 4-2 win for Simon Tate over Connor Hodgkinson Northumberland had reduced the arrears to 7-4.
The final game of the weekend saw Stephen Paling (Derbyshire) go one up against his namesake Stephen Wanless but then trail 2-1. Paling went on to win the last three legs in 21, 21 and 24 darts to win 4-2 and take the final score to 8-4 for Derbyshire.
Derbyshire’s 25-11 win has seen them climb the league table and take over in second place with 70 points just seven short of current leaders Somerset.
Full Results: Division Three:Northumberland v Derbyshire (11-25)🙁Northumberland names first):Men’s ‘A’:- Christopher Bewick 0 Lee Stanley 4, Ian Dawson 4 Robert Hawker 3, Shaun Brown 1 Ian Allcock 4, Christopher Harvey 2 Richard Hanson 4, Sam Gibson 2 Michael Ryall 4, Micky Ord 4 David Fritchley 3, Richard Gerry 3 Tim Daniels 4, Paul Bell 1 Paul Williams 4, Lee Harbottle 1 Ian Clarke 4, Jimmy Blakey 4 Lee Arkwright 3, Simon Tate 4 Connor Hodgkinson 2, Stephen Wanless 2 Stephen Paling 4, Men’s ‘B’:- Drew Mole 1 Sean Lambert 3, Lee Harrison 3 Steve Thompson 1, Ian Cooper 2 Timothy Rippon 3, Joseph Reed 1 Keith Cooper 3, Elliott French 2 Michael Ryall 3, Dave Wallace 1 Benjamin Holmes 3, Rikki Oversby 3 Darren Webster 1, David Wilson 1 Andrew Houghton 3, Jamie Martin 2 Scott McCabe 3, Reece Aitman 2 Henry Coates 3, Simon Ward 1 Robert Needham 3, Bob Smith 2 Gary Fenn 3, Women’s ‘A’:- Ang Turnbull 2 Jackie Sweet 3, Marie Silk 1 Sammie Marshall 3, Angela Best 2 Louise Rawson 3, Ashley Halliday 3 Terri Bellamy 1, Dawn Longstaff 0 Rebecca Hoyland 3, Joy Wanless 3 Rachel Ayres 1, Women’s ‘B’:- Christine Caldow 0 Sara-Jane Harrison 3, Sara-Jayne Gowens 3 Dee Fenn 0, Rachael Brown 1 Carol Western 3, Lilian Frost 0 Jennifer McCormick 3, Louise Kidd 3 Katrina McAleney 0, Gemma Slipper 3 Dawn Buckley 0.
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