Somerset v Derbyshire
After completing four fixtures in division three of the BDO Inter County Championships Derbyshire were on a high with a draw in their opening game against Merseyside followed by wins over Norfolk, Northumberland and Montgomery and Radnor, however their away game against Somerset was always going to be a real tester as their hosts were riding high at the top of the division’s promotional table.
The first game of the ladies ‘B’ saw Derbyshire gain the early lead as Rachel Ayres beat Hollie Whiteman in straight legs 3-0 and at the same time clinch her first lady of the match award for the season with a very creditable 20.04 average. The lead was quickly cancelled out by Somerset’s Vicky Pickford who with a similar 3-0 scoreline defeated Kat McAleney to take Somerset’s match award.
The home side took the lead for the first time in game three when Kara Gunter won 3-1 against Terri Bellamy only to see the score levelled once again in the fourth with a 3-2 win from Jennifer McCormick over Barbara Dyke in what was a rollercoaster of a game as Dyke took leads of 1-0 and 2-1 but was pegged back each time by McCormick who went on to win the deciding leg.
Emily Jones (Derbyshire) cancelled out Natalie Wadham’s lead twice before eventually going down 3-2 and with a 3-0 win over Dee Fenn in the final game by Kay Bisset the 4-2 result went to Somerset.
With three wins and a draw already under their belt Derbyshire’s men’s ‘B’ team went into the game undefeated but they didn’t have the best of starts as Mat Prosser (Somerset) beat Scott McCabe 3-2 after McCabe had gone 1-0 and 2-1 up and Lee Burnham took the score along to 2-0 with his 3-1 win over Steve Thompson despite Thompson having gone one up.
Gary Fenn was Derbyshire’s first winner when in the third game he beat Marcus Knapman 3-2, Knapman having levelled the game in the second and fourth legs before Fenn wrapped up not only his 3-2 win in the final leg but also the man of the match award for his 25.10 average. Benjamin Holmes squared the game in the fourth when he came from 1-0 and 2-1 down to Russell Lippett and went on to win 3-2.
The home team went ahead again in the fifth when Mark Stock beat Keith Cooper 3-1 and with Chris Hartrey coming back from 2-0 down to Andrew Gillott and going on to win 3-2 Somerset’s two games buffer was restored once again as at the halfway stage they held a 4-2 advantage.
Dean Lewer (Somerset) had outshots of 127 and 116 against Robert Hawker but it was not enough to avoid a 3-2 defeat as Hawker won the first game of the second half. Marc Ellis looked set to square the game for a second time when he opened up a 2-0 lead over Adam McNally but he then lost the following two legs and with missed doubles in the deciding leg went down 3-2.
The hosts guaranteed a share of the points in the ninth when Rob Lovell won 3-1 against James Parkin and with a 3-2 win from Darren Newton against Timothy Rippon in the tenth they were home and dry as they held an unassailable 7-3 lead.
Martyn Loaring added his 3-1 win over Henry Coates to Somerset’s account and with a 3-0 win for Jody Matthews against David Fritchley in the last game of the day the home team won the game 9-3.
Dawn Buckley (Derbyshire) got the ladies ‘A’ game underway and began with a win in the opening leg but then struggled on finishing doubles and her opponent Kate Hulme claimed the 3-1 win. The lead for Somerset was however short lived as Sammi Marshall beat Karen Littler 3-1.
Forging ahead in the third Somerset’s Tracey Stiling won her tie with Louise Rawson with yet another 3-1 margin and then making it four consecutive 3-1 results was Becky Taylor whose win over Carol Western took the home side’s lead to 3-1.
Sally Dart was well on her way to chalking up Somerset’s winning fourth game when she went 2-0 up against Jackie Sweet but the Derbyshire player had other ideas on that score and with wins in the final two legs reduced her teams deficit to 3-2 with a 3-2 victory.
Anchor player for Derbyshire was Rebecca Hoyland and for Somerset Donna Gullock. Hoyland stormed to a 2-0 lead and although she lost the third she won the fourth for a 3-1 win and put the final score at 3-3, plus Rebecca also took her team’s match award for her 20.27 average.
The first five games of the men’s ‘A’ match saw all of the results go against the first throw advantage and in the opening four all of the results were 4-1. Leigh Taylor put Somerset one up with his 4-1 win over Andrew Houghton only to see Sean Lambert cancelling the win out with his 4-1 success against Russell Joyner.
The home team’s lead was restored in the third when Justin Hood beat Steven Soar and again wiped out in the very next game thanks to a Michael Ryall win over Dean Baker. For a third time the hosts went ahead this time through a very close 4-3 win from Mervyn Adams over an unlucky Tim Daniels who had gone 1-0, 2-1 and 3-2 up.
It was game number six when the sequence was broken and it was the home side that were responsible for it as their Tony Shook won 4-1 against David Fritchley to give Somerset a 4-2 lead at the midway point. That lead looked as though it would be extended when Neil Raikes began the second half by opening up a 3-0 lead over Paul Williams but Williams fought back magnificently to win the last four legs for a 4-3 win.
Levelling the game at four each was Gary Fenn who had an unbelievable weekend as after he had won the man of the match award for the ‘B’ team the previous day he then took the ‘A’ team’s award with a 4-2 win over Steve Hoddinott in which he recorded winning legs of 19,17,19 and 16 darts giving him a 27.25 average.
Game number nine saw Somerset take the lead for a fourth time as Leon Taylor won 4-2 against Connor Hodgkinson who after winning the first leg his only other success was in the fourth. Taking the hosts within an ace of victory was Mark Stock who won 4-0 against Robert Needham. However Somerset were made to wait for their win as Lee Stanley handed out a similar 4-0 whitewash to his opponent Adam McNally and at the same time keep hopes alive for Derbyshire of a draw.
Adi Acott (Somerset) won the first leg of the final game against Ian Allcock and although Allcock drew level with a 17 darts leg he was unable to capitalise on it and finished on the wrong side of a 4-1 scoreline to see Somerset win the game 7-5 and also record an overall win of 23-13 for the weekend.
The defeat leaves Derbyshire fourth in the table on 105 points their opponents topping the table on 119 but closely followed by second placed Cleveland with 115 points and in third place is Merseyside who are just one point to the good on Derbyshire.
Full Results: Division Threer:Somerset v Derbyshire (23-13):Somerset names first):Men’s ‘A’:- Leigh Taylor 4 Andrew Houghton 1, Russell Joyner 1 Sean Lambert 4, Justin Hood 4 Steven Soar 1, Dean Baker 1 Michael Ryall 4, Mervyn Adams 4 Tim Daniels 3, Tony Snook 4 David Fritchley 1, Neil Raikes 3 Paul Williams 4, Steve Hoddinott 2 Gary Fenn 4, Leon Taylor 4 Connor Hodgkinson 2, Mark Stock 4 Robert Needham 0, Adam McNally 0 Lee Stanley 4, Adi Acott 4 Ian Allcock 1, Men’s ‘B’:- Mat Prosser 3 Scott McCabe 2, Lee Burnham 3 Steve Thompson 1, Marcus Knapman 2 Gary Fenn 3, Russell Lippett 2 Benjamin Holmes 3, Mark Stock 3 Keith Cooper 1, Chris Hartrey 3 Andrew Gillott 2, Dean Lewer 2 Robert Hawker 3, Adam McNally 3 Marc Ellis 2, Rob Lovell 3 James Parkin 1, Darren Newton 3 Timothy Rippon 2, Martin Loaring 3 Henry Coates 1, Jody Matthews 3 David Fritchley 0, Women’s ‘A’:- Kate Hulme 3 Dawn Buckley 1, Karen Littler 1 Sammi Marshall 3, Tracey Stiling 3 Louise Rawson 1, Becky Taylor 3 Carol Western 1, Sally Dart 2 Jackie Sweet 3, Donna Gullock 1 Rebecca Hoyland 3, Women’s ‘B’:- Hollie Whiteman 0 Rachel Ayres 3, Vicky Pickford 3 Kat McAleney 0, Kara Gunter 3 Terri Bellamy 1, Barbara Dyke 2 Jennifer McCormick 3, Natalie Wadham 3 Emily Jones 2, Kay Bisset 3 Dee Fenn 0.
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