New Winter League - 14th January 2013

Well, as of last night the new season is under way. A couple of new players have joined up which means a big welcome to Natasha and Sam: great to have you both on board!

Match Report
New player Natasha was drawn in the first match of the night. Although she hasn't played a lot of darts before, she didn't let this put her off and it was a brave effort against the more experienced Darren. She didn't manage to win a leg in this first match but she did score well enough to get down to a finish each time, and her scoring became more steady as the match progressed.

Play overall was steady, with that treble-20 looking elusive at times, not to mention a fair share of double-trouble meaning that nobody checked out more than a single dart total all night. There were a handful of ton plus scores with the honours for Highest Score going to Andy's 140 which pipped Tom's 127 and Darren's 125. Andy also won the Highest Checkout with 36 - a double-18. Finally a special mention for Ram's bad luck which saw two bounce-outs denying him treble-20 and 19, with the only dart to stick landing in the 1!

Thanks to everybody for coming along and joining in and I'll see you again next Monday.

• Results & Fixtures - 14th January
• League Table - 14th January

Next Week

Next week's fixtures:

Anne v Darren

James v Ram

Ram v Andy

Sam v Ben

Tom v Natasha

Knockout Results - 7th January 2013

Match Report
It was a respectable turnout for the first Monday of the new year with 8 players competing in our opening knockout.

First Round
Tom played Ben in the first match and outscored his opponent to reach his out first, but double trouble struck. Ben steadily reduced his total to set up a checkout and stole the legs: slow and steady won the match 2-0.

Second up were James H and Anne. Some good, steady scoring from James, including a 120, gave him a comfortable lead and he took two legs to book his spot in the semis: 2-0

They were followed by James Y against Darren. Forced to use a spare set of darts after losing his own, James looked uncomfortable and struggled against Darren's more consistent throwing. Result: 2-0 to Darren.

The fourth and final first round match pitched Ram against Andy in a close-fought encounter. Andy had the edge in scoring but it was his sharper finishing that proved the deciding factor, Ram missing the double for a 113 checkout in one leg, and Andy won 2-1.

Semi-Finals
In a change inspired by the FA Cup 4th Round draw the previous day the pairings for the semis were drawn at random. Ben was drawn against Darren, a pairing that both players relished, especially with the addition of a friendly side bet involving a pie for the winner. I'm not suggesting it was all down to the prospect of the pie, but Ben's darts were much more consistent than in the previous round and he had the edge in scoring over Darren. This in combination with a steady eye on the doubles was enough for a 2-0 win to Ben and the first final spot.

The other semi saw James H play Andy. Despite James's best performance so far, Andy's experience showed and he did enough to keep his nose in front, gaining the second berth in the final with a 2-0 win.

Final
Regular finalist Andy had to be the favourite against Ben, making his first appearance in a knockout final for quite some time, but it was Ben who got the advantage of first throw and put in some good scores, keeping the first leg fairly level. However Andy edged it and made the throw for his finishing double count to take the first leg. A shaky start by Ben in the second leg didn't help much, but there was no arguing with Andy's 180, followed shortly after by a 140 to set up a 2-dart out shot for a 22 dart leg - probably the best of the night - to win the match and the competition in style.

Congratulations to the winner Andy who took home £12.50, well done to Ben who trousered the runner-up prize of £7.50, and a big thank you to everyone else who took part. Thanks to those who came along to watch and support, and finally a big thank you from everybody to Anne for the lovely food: it had been missed.

Next Week
The Royal Standard Premier League Darts returns next Monday 14th and all the players from tonight have signed up. There are still places available if anybody else is interested: it is a friendly individual league involving a round-robin draw of matches against the other players in the league. This will be the third year I have run this league and it continues to be a lot of fun for everybody who takes part. See you next week!

Christmas Knockout - 17 December 2012

Well, that's it for 2012. Last night's Christmas Knockout rounded off the year, but before we set our sights on the new season there's the small matter of the match report.

Match Report
Nine players took part, a good turnout considering this was only the second week that the darts had been back up and running after the extended break since summer, and it was great to see two new faces. A big welcome to Tom and James H.

Matches were played as the best of 3 legs of 501: the usual format. The draw involved one preliminary round match to reduce the field to 8, the winners of that round going forward to the semi-finals and so on to the final: 8 matches in total.

Preliminary
Tom v Ram
Tom started well, getting a good lead over Ram in the first leg but experience tells and Ram carried steadily on while Tom struggled with his finishing. 2-0 to Ram.

First Round
Ram v James H
New player James H was more than modest about his throwing skills but put in a creditable performance against Ram, scoring consistently and reaching a finish in both legs; however Ram proved too strong and won the match 2-0.

Ben v James Y
After a cracking start - 75, 85, 125 - to build up a decent lead in the first leg Ben suffered yet again from the inconsistency that has dogged his game and allowed James to catch up. He put the pressure on by reducing his total to 40 but James responded in style by checking out 85 with a confident 15, 20, bullseye. The second leg followed for a fairly comfortable 2-0 win.

Anne v Andy
If there was a prize for entertainment value Anne would win hands down: a real crowd-pleaser who always gets the audience behind her. Unfortunately she didn't manage to exert the same influence over her darts and her scoring, usually decent, let her down. Andy put in a slightly below par performance - not as many treble-tops as we are used to seeing - but in the end it was more than enough and he won 2-0.

Matt v Darren
Matt has played in a few of our knockouts over the past couple of years and showed a marked improvement over time so Darren couldn't underestimate his opponent here. Scoring-wise Matt looked steadier but was weak in the finishing: when the first leg got down to both players in the madhouse (double-1) it could have gone either way. Shades of last week's opening leg for Darren - he was in a similar position - but he managed to find the bed eventually to take the longest leg of the night. The scores in the second leg were also close but Darren's finishing proved much better this time and he won 2-0.

Semi Finals
Ram v James Y
Strongbow- and Doritos-fuelled James was confident enough going into this match and with good reason after winning last week's knockout. However Ram had found his range by this point and simply threw better than James to win 2-0.

Andy v Darren
I don't know whether it was the pressure of the match or the pressure on his bladder that got to Darren but he couldn't find the form that he showed last week when he put dart after dart into the treble-19. Against scoring like Andy's that proved fatal and Andy won 2-0 to book his spot in the final.

Final
Ram v Andy
Twenty to eleven and the two finalists were ready on the oche. Andy landed nearest the bull to secure the opening throw and we were away. Both players showed a little more inconsistency than we have come to expect but it was a close first leg that Andy won to gain the advantage. Ram opened in the second leg but fell behind in the scoring as Andy tightened up his throw. Despite a little shakiness on the checkout Ram was too far behind to mount a serious challenge and Andy sealed the match and the title 2-0. Ram was presented with the runner-up prize of £7.50 while Andy received £15 and the trophy. Many thanks to everybody who played and also to those who came along to watch and support.

Winner Andy is presented with the trophy

New Year, New Season
There will be no darts for the next two weeks as it is Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve and other events are taking place in the pub (and elsewhere no doubt), so we will return on Monday January 7th for a knockout and to sign up for the new Premier League season. If I don't see you before then have a great holiday and I hope to see you in the New Year.

A Final Note
I've been asked by Tom to put out a request for people who are interested in playing competitive darts in a local league (Aldershot & District) to get in touch. The winter league has already started so this will be for the summer league. You can contact me directly or via the Royal Standard and I'll pass on your details to Tom. Thanks.

Knockout - 10 December 2012

Darts returned on Monday night with surprisingly few teething problems. The board had been replaced two inches too high and the new carpet meant that the rubber mat with the oche wouldn't stay put. It didn't take long to reposition the board but we spent some time experimenting with taping the mat in place before resorting to a simple strip of tape on the carpet at the appropriate distance. I'm happy to report that a more permanent solution has been found: two metal strips are now in place at 7' (for the ladies) and 7' 9¼". The lighting in that part of the pub is poor - I couldn't see well enough to fit the flights on my arrows - and we had to appropriate a table from elsewhere, but otherwise it's not a bad location.

Match Report
Six of us played in this opening knockout, not a bad turnout after the unexpectedly long break. James and Andy were drawn first with Andy hitting some very respectable scores including a 132 but his finishing let him down and James won 2-1. Darren and Ben played next; Ben's darts were all over the place with a 3-dart average that must have been hovering around 20! but when Darren failed time after time to hit double-1 Ben sneaked in a finish to take one of the unlikeliest legs ever. There was no way that was going to be repeated and Darren finished up the winner 2-1, scoring three 133's along the way.

With the preliminary round out of the way it was on with the semis. First up were Ram and Anne who received byes in the draw. After a shaky start by Ram this settled down into a familiar pattern with Anne scoring some decent totals along the way but not able to keep up with Ram's more consistent darts: 2-0 to Ram.

The two qualifiers, James and Darren, completed the semi-final line-up. I don't know whether it was through warming up in the previous round or the effects of the cider but James certainly found his form this time. Darren continued throwing consistently, hitting another 133, but James was ahead all the way, achieving the night's highest score of 140 along the way to a 2-0 victory and a spot in the final.

All James had to do was keep on throwing that consistently and against Ram in the final that was exactly what he did. Ram looked a little rusty after the months away from the oche, as did most of us compared to the heights of last season, but James seemed to find his old form and won convincingly 2-0.

Next Week
The Christmas Knockout is next Monday, the 17th. Starting between 8 and 8:30 it will be £2.50 per player to enter and is open to everybody. Even if you don't play why not come along and watch?

Back In Business

After a longer than planned break, Monday Night Darts returns to the Royal Standard on the 10th December, the first Monday after the pub reopens following the refurb. There will be an open knockout competition on the 10th - all welcome, £2.50 to enter, starts at 8pm.

Annual Christmas Knockout
Monday 17th will be the Christmas knockout. Entry will be £2.50 as usual with cash prizes for the winner and runner-up.

I hope to see you all there for a super, smashing, great night of darts fun!

Finals Night Match Report - 9th July

Match Report
The league was wrapped up in fine style last night with the Finals Knockout followed by the presentation of prizes.

The draw was based on league position with the top 4 getting the advantage of a second chance if they lost their opening match.

Ben and Sam played first with Ben taking the first leg for an early lead. However Sam came back strongly with consistent scoring to win the match 2-1 and knock Ben out. Andy and James were next up. Andy's finishing letting him down and James won 2-0 with an excellent 113 checkout.

Darren took on Anne and despite a close match scoring-wise he hit his doubles first and knocked Anne out: 2-0. Completing the first round were Ram and Craig. Ram started strongly while Craig took longer to get up to speed and won 2-0 in a fast-paced match.

That set up the elimination quarter-finals between Darren and Andy, Sam and Craig. In the first eliminator Andy struggled to find the form he showed through the league season and Darren proved to be the sharper finisher to book his slot in the semis with a 2-1 win, knocking Andy out. Sam put in her best performance of the season in a very close match against an improving Craig but lost narrowly in the deciding leg, going out 2-1.

Into the semi-finals and first up were Darren and Ram, both undefeated so far. Darren fought hard and put in some good scores but Ram was steady and powered into the final with a 2-0 victory. James, like Ram, had gained his place in the semis by winning in the first round while Craig had to battle through two matches to get here; however he suffered a dip in his form at this crucial stage and Craig won fairly comfortably 2-0.

It was after time had been called at the bar when our two finalists stepped up to the oche. The pairing might have been a repeat of their first round meeting but the result was not. Ram's aim was not tight enough this time around, while Craig looked very sharp and was obviously not tired after playing three rounds to get here. The final scoreline was 2-0 to Craig, a quality performance and a well-deserved win.

Prizes
For scoring the highest checkout on the night, 113, James won £5. He added to this his half of the £5 for highest score, shared with Darren who also hit a 140.

James also won £10 for the highest checkout throughout the league with 121, while Sam won £10 for the league's highest score of 165.

Ram as runner-up received £20 while last but certainly not least was our overall winner Craig who received the trophy and £40.

A big thank you from me as the organiser to everybody who took part, and to Trevor from the RNLI for agreeing to present the prizes. I had a lot of fun taking part as well as running the show and I hope you will all be back for the next league.

Coming Up
The league will take a break for a few weeks but there will be various knockouts and other friendly competitions over the coming weeks until the league starts again.

League Results - Round 14 - 25th June

Match Report
It was a full schedule for the final round of this league with the remaining six matches played in a single night. Everybody was there and Anne made some lovely pies and cakes to feed the players.

Craig had three matches to play because of postponed fixtures and his first was against Ram. There were few signs of any rustiness as both players made a steady start and there were a few ton-plus scores in there. In the end there was little to separate the two and it finished a 2-2 draw.

James and Andy met next, with James starting strongly while Andy took a couple of legs to settle into his rhythm. James seemed to suffer a blow to his confidence after busting 132 with a throw of 140 and after that his consistency was affected. Andy continued strongly to win the match 3-1, scoring a 140 of his own along the way.

Craig's second match was against Sam, where he continued to throw accurately in the face of a spirited challenge from Sam. Despite some good arrows, Sam couldn't match Craig's scoring and deadly finishing and he won 3-0.

Anne played Darren, hitting some good scores and taking a leg. She narrowly missed getting the draw when her attempt at double-4 landed just outside the wire and Darren won 3-1 in the end.


The penultimate match pitted Ram against Ben and the first two legs were very close, with both players scoring steadily and Ben hitting a 94 checkout for 1-1 halfway through. But then Ben's old inconsistency raised its head and he was lucky to even get down to a finish before Ram checked out to win 3-1.

With the clock ticking its way to last orders the final match of the league got under way with Craig taking on Darren. Although Darren put in a creditable performance, Craig was in such strong form that he took all three legs to win 3-0.

Some good darts there, and two players hit 140's and shared the prize for highest score: Andy and Craig. Ben won the highest checkout with his 94. Andy topped the league thanks in part to the bonus points he won for his high scores through the season, but was only one point above runner-up Ram.

• Complete Results - 25th June
• Final League Standings - 25th June

League Best Scores
The highest score in the league was 165, scored by Sam on 19th March. Next highest were several 140's scored by Andy, Ben, Craig, Darren, James and Ram.

The highest checkout was 121, scored in the first round by James. Second highest was Ben's 94 in the final round.

Bonus points for highest score and checkout accounted for 35 points overall, with Andy winning the most (8) followed by Craig, Ram and Darren each with 6.

Next Week
There will be a knockout next week - it would have been a catch-up week if there had been any fixtures left to play. The following week, Monday 9th July, will be finals night with the usual end of league playoffs followed by the presentations to the prize winners.