Railway Youngers have regained the Newark and District Double Board Darts League’s ladies winter league title after an emphatic victory over the Collingham Mother Chuckers in their final match of the season enabled them to snatch the crown from reigning champions Castle and Falcon Bangers.
The Youngers went into their final match of the campaign needing to pick up seven points to enable them to claim a fifth title in six seasons but anything less and the Bangers would retain their crown.
Earlier in the season the Youngers had defeated the Collingham side 14-1 but the opening stages of this encounter suggested this may be a tighter affair after the Youngers emerged with a 3-1 lead following the pairs encounters.
The opening singles tie between Anice Wells and Karina Hillier ended in a draw before The Youngers, leading 4-2, then edged to within a point of the title as Linda Gregory overcame Sharon Hovey to extend their advantage to 6-2. The Youngers, who have dominated the ladies’ scene since clinching their first league title in 2002, then secured their 16th winter league title as Louise Fletcher took the opening leg against Lyn Jarrett.
Despite having regained their crown the Youngers didn’t let up as skipper Debbie Braithwaite defeated Rachel Raikes before she also recorded the season’s highest score of 120 in the concluding team leg which was secured by Fletcher’s checkout to complete a resounding 13-2 victory.
The newly crowned champions will now turn their attention to retaining the knock-out cup but it promises to be a tight affair as they face Castle and Falcon Bangers who will be determined to bounce back from the disappointment of missing out in the league.
The subsidiary cup final will see RHP Ladies take on Caffs Ladies after the latter fought back from 7-3 down to snatch victory over Falcoholics in their re-arranged semi-final.
The Falcoholics ,who had led 3-1 after the pairs, maintained their lead as the opening singles match was drawn before skipper Sherri Hall defeated opposition captain Chris Henderson to extend their advantage to 6-2.
Caffs’ Eugene Hallam then kept the match alive as she drew with Stacey Grand-Scrutton before her side staged a terrific comeback as Jane Hartley overcame Di Nuttall in the final singles tie.
She landed the decisive double in the team leg to snatch a thrilling 8-7 win.
The men’s division saw the opening matches of the summer league and it was Castle and Falcon Projectile Dysfunction, who have finished bottom in their two league campaigns achieving the standout result.
They defeated league new boys Just The Tip by 4-1.
John Esam was in fine form as he hit a hat-trick of checkouts and hit a 130 as Wheatsheaf Bellies and Bullseyes defeated newcomers Railway Club 5-0.
Neil Ward landed the other two finishes.
Railway’s Matthew Glover recorded the highest average of the opening week with 61.4.
Reigning champions Castle and Falcon BBC2s started their defence with a 4-1 win over RHP Darts of Hazzard with finishes from skipper James Brown, Luke Haswell, Nigel Parr and Stuart Hay before Paul Gallacher’s final leg finish rescued a point and averted the whitewash.
Winter league champions Rose and Crown Marauders, who finished as runners-up last summer, got their campaign off to a winning start.
Finishes from Stephen Tranter, skipper Tom Greenhalgh and a brace from Phil Tranter put them 4-0 up against Castle and Falcon Arrows before their opponents rescued a point as Mick Sale holed out in the concluding leg.
