WORTHINGTON’S MERTHYR & DISTRICT DARTS LEAGUE

IN A week that saw ghouls, ghosts, rockets and bangers, the fourth round of league action saw frights and fireworks as the teams fought it out at a red hot pace for all the available points with the divisions now beginning to take shape.

Now is the time to start showing your tungsten nerves or risk being given the rocket and being cut adrift at this early stage giving yourselves a lot to do.

DIVISION ONE BAILI-GLAS B .............. 11 HEOLGERRIG SOCIAL CLUB ............................... 0

THIS was a Nightmare on Twyn Hill as Heolgerrig suffered a Halloween Horror Show and Bonfire Night Rocket all in one as they were blitzed by their hosts in an 11-0 whitewash.

Iory Haines, Trad Davies and Meirion Evans were the first to feel the Baili’s firepower with Geraint Thomas 140, Jeff Pearce and Steve Haman breaking throw to put the hosts one-up and 2-0 soon followed with Matthew Quinlan 135, Andrew Rough 100 and Kevin Roberts holding over Ray Williams, Bob Watkins and Mike Evans 140 in the second and final triples.

The first pairs leg went the way of the Baili with Matthew Quinlan 100 and Andrew Rough breaking Iory Haines 140 and Colin Morgan and with Steve Haman and Mervyn Matthews then successfully holding over Mike Evans 3x100 and Bob Watkins in a hard fought game the hosts went 4-0 ahead. Geraint Thomas 100, 140, 105 out and Jeff Pearce then completed a clean sweep of the pairs and a five-zip lead going into the singles match-ups with a break over Meirion Evans and Trad Davies in the final pairs leg.

Jeff Pearce 105, 121, 134, 140, 180, including a 16dart first leg, held throw in the first singles (2-1) over Colin Morgan 100, 140 making it 6-0 with the Mighty Quinn Matthew Quinlan 3x100, 135, 137, 140, 145, including a 15dart second leg, adding to the hosts’ total with a break (2-0) against Iory Haines 100. The Prince of Style Geraint Thomas 100, 121, 140, 180 held (2-0) over Bob Watkins 101, 180 as the Baili surged further ahead with Mervyn Matthews 100, 117, 125, 140 in legs of 16 and 19 darts beating Mike Evans to make it 9-0. Andrew Rough 100, 140 held over Ray Williams as the home side kept the onslaught going with Steve Haman 100, 118, 140 then breaking Meirion Evans 121, 137 to complete a tremendous win for the hosts but a night to forget for the trounced travellers.

MERTHYR LABOUR CLUB ............................... 8 HILLS PLYMOUTH CRICKET CLUB ............. 3

THE Cric dumped their hosts out of the Worthington’s Cup in the second week of cup action at the beginning of the season so the Labour Club knew they were in for a hard battle and were hell bent on revenge for that cup defeat.

Wayne Davies 140, Jason Baynham and Chris Galleozzie served notice of intent in the opening triples with a break over Dean Lewis, Jason Castaldi 140 and Jason Woodford and 2-0 then appeared on the hosts’ half of the scoreboard with Gareth Dunn, Rob Evans 140 and David Rowlands 100, 140 holding throw over Craig Clayton 100, Rhys Lee 140 and Phil Lewis in the last of the triples.

Gareth Dunn 100 and Ron Morgan took the first pairs for the home side with a break over Jason Castaldi and Craig Clayton and then a hold from Chris Galleozzie 100 and Jason Baynham 140 over Rhys Lee and Phil Lewis saw the Labour Club take a commanding 4-0 lead. Dean Lewis and Jason Woodford 100 then got the visitors into the game with a hold over Wayne Davies and Kevin Mahoney to cut the deficit going into the vital singles matches.

Gareth Dunn 3x100, 180 held throw in the first singles (2-0) over Phil Lewis 100 making it 5-1 before Craig Clayton 4x100 beat Wayne Davies 3x100, 125, 3x140 with a 2-1 hold in a tremendous game to pull a second point back for the away side. Ron Morgan 4x100 held over Jason Woodford 2x100 extending the hosts’ lead and then a 2-1 break from Chris Galleozzie 2x100, 2x121, 140, 180 over Jason Castaldi 3x100, 110, 140 putting the home side 7-2 ahead. Jason Baynham 2x100, 102 held over Rhys Lee 140 further adding to the hosts’ total before Deadly Dean Lewis 3x100, 140, 147 out beat David Rowlands 5x100, 140, 119 out with a 2-1 hold in a fantastic game earning the visitors a vital third point.

GRAWEN ARMS ............ 6 MERTHYR VALE EX CLUB B (DAGGERS) ...... 5

THE Daggers’ struggling start to the season continues but this was a better performance as they were just pipped this week by their hosts at the Grawen Arms.

Kevin Downing, Lloyd Davies and Karl Manns held throw over a disappointed Phil Locke 100, Kerry Green and Jason Launchbury 140 as missed doubles cost dear giving the away side an early lead but it was short lived with Steve Thomas 2x100, Lyn Jones 100 and Roy Element successfully holding over Derek Dobbins, Phil Morris and Dai Phelps 100 for a level game.

Phil Morris 100, 140 and Karl Manns 100 produced a great hold over Phil Locke 125 and Lyn Jones in the first pairs with Warren Rees 100 and Kevin Downing then breaking Steve Thomas and Jason Launchbury to put the Daggers 3-1 ahead. A hold from Derek Dobbins 123 and Dai Phelps 100 over a battling Kerry Green 100, 125 and Roy Element 137 then saw the visitors go 4-1 and seemingly on course for a season’s first league win as the sides readied themselves for the singles battles.

Phil Locke 3x100, 140 sparked the Grawen into life in the first singles with a hard fought 2-1 hold over Derek Dobbins 137, 140 and then a superb break (2-1) from Steve Thomas 2x100, 121, 140 over Phil Morris 100, 139, 140 kept the hosts believing a comeback was on. The Evergreen Kerry Green 3x100, 140 battled past Warren Rees 100, 116 with a 2-1 hold levelling the match at 4-4 before the living legend Adrian Thomas 100, 135, 140 broke (2-0) over Karl Manns 132 edging the hosts into a 5-4 lead. Jason “the javelin” Launchbury 2x100, 140 beat Lloyd Davies 100 with a 2-0 break to put the Grawen into a 6-4 lead with Dai Phelps 4x100 then holding (2-1) over Lyn Jones 3x100, 125, 140 in a hard fought last game to complete the scoring for the away side.

DIVISION TWO MERTHYR CONSERVATIVE CLUB 7 PENTREBACH LABOUR CLUB ............................... 4

MERTHYR Con Club continue their great start to the season with another fine win, this time over the visiting Pentrebach Labour.

Jonathon Davies 100, Ron Phillips and C Thomas got the Con off to a great start with a break over M Price, Gwyn Jones and Josh O’Keefe but the lead was short lived as Tony Galliers, Gary Champion and Graham Price 140 broke back over Colin Lloyd, John Hulbert and Geoff Jackson to level at one apiece.

The first pairs saw the break-of-throw theme continue with C Thomas and Jonathon Davies 100, 140 edging past the veteran duo Tony Galliers 180 and Gary Champion but the Labour Club bounced back with Gwyn Jones and Graham Price getting the better of Eddie Cunnington and John Hubby. The fifth game of the match saw a fifth consecutive break of throw with Chris Price and Greg Howells beating M Price and Eddie Jones giving the Con a slender 3-2 lead heading into the singles matchups.

Red-hot C Thomas 3x100, 2x140, 60 out took the first singles with a (20) hold over Josh O’Keefe putting the Con 4-2 ahead but back came the away side with Tony “The Tiger” Galliers 4x100 holding (2-0) over Jonathon Davies 100, 135. Chris Price 100, 140 edged past Eddie Jones for a 5-3 lead before Gwyn Jones put a fourth point on the board for Pentrebach with a 2-1 hold over Colin Lloyd 119. Greg Howells 3x100 beat Gary Champion 100, 114 (2-0) putting the hosts 6-4 ahead with Eddie Cunnington 100 then completing the victory with a 2-1 break over a stunned Graham Price 3x100, 121.

PENYDARREN SOCIAL CLUB A ........................... 4 BAILI-GLAS A ................ 7

WOW! A second win on the trot for the Baili A – a revival and comeback could be on.

The Baili started well with Viv Morgan, Hywel Llewellyn 100 and Terry Morgan 100 holding throw over Glen Jones, Peter McCarthy and S Clark and a following break from Brian Roberts 100, Alan Mee and Tim Charleston over Wayne Lee , Michael Bond 100 and BS Thomas saw the visitors go 2-0 ahead going into the pairs legs.

The first pairs saw Brian Roberts 100 and Terry Morgan hold over Phil Bond and Jonathon Evans putting the visitors 3-0 ahead which then became 4-0 with Andrew Morgan 100 and Viv Morgan breaking the darts of Glen Jones 100 and Peter McCarthy. The final pairs went the way of the Baili in a clean sweep and a 5-0 lead with Hywel Llewellyn 100 and Ian Thomas successfully holding over Nigel Owen and Mike Bond.

The first of the singles games went against the throw with Viv Morgan 140 breaking Wayne Lee (2-0) giving the visitors a 6-0 lead but then they took their foot off the pedal as the Pen got flowing and mounted a spirited fightback. Nigel Owen 100, 135 beat Hywel Llewellyn 100, 180, including a 17-dart second leg, by a 2-1 break as Big H missed 12 darts at a double in the first leg, and Jonathon Evans 100, 140 then held 2-0 over Ian Thomas 100 as the home side put a second point on the board. Michael Bond 4x100 broke the throw (20) of Alan Mee 140 putting a third point up for the hosts but then a very hard fought tenth game saw Brian Roberts 2x100, 140 break Phil Bond 100, 125, 140 by a 2-1 margin to put the Baili 7-3 ahead before the home side took the last game with a 2-0 break as Glen Jones 100, 124, 125 beat Tim Charleston with the away player hitting the doubles next door to the ones he wanted. Again!

DIVISION THREE CYFARTHFA ARMS ...... 8 RED LION ....................... 3

THE Cyfarthfa finally opened their account for the 2017/18 campaign as they silenced the roar of the visiting Red Lion in a very entertaining game.

S Ridgeway, H Jones 125 and S Greenaway got the hosts up and running with a fine break over John Vrettos, Jamie Chamberlain and Jake Howard and soon it was 2-0 with Jarred Russell 100, Dominic Illari and M Abbruzzese holding over Richard Calahane, Allen Moore and Richard Howard in a nip ’n’ tuck game.

M Abbruzzese and Dominic Illari kept the home side moving along with a break in the first pairs over John Vrettos 100 and Jamie Chamberlain and a great hold from H Jones 140 and N Price over Paul Scott-Thomas and Jake Howard then saw the home side go 4-0 ahead. Jarred Russell 100 and S Ridgeway then put the Cyfarthfa just one point away from their first win with a break over Richard Calahane and Allen Moore for a 5-0 lead ahead of the singles legs.

Allen Moore 140 got the Lion to find its voice in the first singles with a break over S Ridgeway with Paul Scott-Thomas then adding a second with a hold over N Price. A battling Richard Calahane broke Dominic Illari in the next leg which gave the Lion hopes of a remarkable comeback, but this was dashed in the next game with H Jones breaking a desperately unlucky Richard Howard 3x100 to put the hosts 6-3 ahead. M Abbruzzese held throw over Jamie Chamberlain in game 10 and with Jarred Russell breaking Jake Howard in the last game, the home side took the game 8-3 for a great win.

VNU ................................ 3 DYNEVOR ARMS .......... 8

THE “Dyn” made the trip “uptown” to face the VNU and found the venue very much to their liking with a fine 8-3 away win.

Errold Jones 100, Gareth Jenkins and Mark Hadley got the hosts off to a good start with a break over M Edmunds, N Jones and B Edmunds 140 but the lead was brief as Ashley Mayne 100, NC Jones, S Barnett 123 broke back over Rhiannon Jenkins, O Clayton and Steve Darlow for a level game.

Kendrick Howe and Graham Elias lost in the first pairs as M Edmunds and B Edmunds produced the first hold of the game putting the Dyn 2-1 ahead but the scores were soon level again with Tracey Goode and Gareth Jenkins 121 getting the better of A James and NC Jones. The final pairs went with throw as Ashley Mayne and Steve Barnett 120 beat Clive Powell and Rhiannon Jenkins to give the visitors the lead heading into the singles legs.

Ashley Mayne 2x140 was in great shape with a first singles break over Steve Darlow putting the Dyn 4-2 ahead but the home side cut the deficit to a single point with Errold Jones breaking M Edmunds putting a third point on the board for the VNU. The visitors then went into overdrive with B Edmunds 140 breaking Gareth Jenkins 100 and A James 120 holding over Clive Powell 100 putting the away side 6-3 ahead. W Morgan broke Mark Hadley putting the Dyn 7-3 up with Steve Barnett then completing the win with a hold over Kendrick Howe.

COLLIERS CWTCH ....... 5 SILVER BULLET ............ 6

THIS was a closely fought contest which could have gone either way with both sides giving their all.

Steven Walker, Dean Jenkins and Christopher Davies 123 started well for the Bullet holding over G Jones 100, Vic Harding and P Beck but the lead was short lived with Aaron Beck, R Davies and G Williams 100 fighting back against Marc Roberts, C Howells and Steffan Williams for a level match.

Dean Jenkins and Christopher Davies 100 regained the lead for the visitors with a hold in the first pairs over Owain Locke and J Watts but again the Cwtch caught up with H Lawrence and J Bowcott edging past Steffan Williams and C Howells 100 apiece. The fifth game saw a fifth hold of throw with Sharif Rasul and Brian Birch 100, 140 beating P Beck and G Jones for a slender 3-2 lead heading into the singles.

Steffan “Van” Williams 100 made it 4-2 with a break over Owain Locke but the home side replied in some style with H Lawrence 3x100 and J Watts beating Christopher 100 and Steven Walker respectively to level at four apiece. Brian Birch 100 edged the visitors ahead again with victory over J Bowcott 2x100 and then a fine hold from Sharif Rasul 133 over G Williams 100 put the Bullet 6-4 ahead. G Jones then added a fifth point to the hosts’ total with a hard fought break over Marc Roberts in the final game of the match. Week Three reports – page 7