OLD SHIP CLAIM SHIELD GLORY
THE OLD SHIP and The Meetings faced off on in Glenmalure on Friday night in the Second Division Shield final in Glenmalure. It had the potential to be a close final and that's what happened.
The Meeting's got off to a great start when they took the opening ' 1001' but the Old Ship hit straight back in the first doubles of the night when Joe Perry and Liam Craine produced some good darts to beat Des Doyle and John Moore 2-0.
Chris Arthur and Chris Canavan beat David Murphy and Paul Lacey 2-0 in the second doubles to put the Avoca men into a 2-1 lead and when Robert Moore beat Kathleen Perry 2-0 in the first singles of the night, to put the Meeting's into a 3-1 lead it looked like they would push on.
However, the Arklow men fought back strong. Liam Craine produced two quality legs of darts in the second singles which included a top class 124 finish on the bull to beat Des Doyle 2-0 and bring the score back to 3-2.
Veteran captain Joe Perry used all his experience to beat Noel Doran 2-0 in the third singles to level the scores. It was getting tight and tense at this stage as both sides realised what was at stake.
The fourth singles of the night saw David Murphy take on Chris Arthur. Murphy took the first leg but Chris produced a leg of immense quality to level it. The deciding leg could have went either way but Murphy got the crucial double to put the Old Ship into a 4-3 lead.
Paul Lacey took on Chris Canavan in the fifth singles and the pressure on both men was immense.
Lacey knew if he won he would win it for the Old Ship and Canavan knew he needed to win to save it for the Meetings.
Lacey rolled back the years though and he produced two very good legs of darts to win it for the Old Ship. Well done to both sides who helped contribute to what was a great game. Final score: The Old Ship 5 The Meeting's 3. Highest Checkout 124 Liam Craine
The Old Ship: Joe Perry, Kathleen Perry, Liam Craine, David Murphy, Paul Lacey, Butch Lacey, Johnny Merrigan.
The Meeting's: Chris Canavan, Chris Arthur, John Moore, Robert Moore, Noel Doran, Des Doyle, Craig Porter, Serena Moore.
No darts on Good Friday but the following Friday night will see the culmination of the league with finals night.