Darts Super League – Round 5 Report

Friday the 10th of February saw the penultimate round of league matches in the Isle of Man Darts Super League take place at the Legion in Peel.

East 10-8 West 

The clash between the top two teams was an absolute cracker that could have gone either way, and both teams will fancy their chances of taking the title in the top 2 play-off in April.

As with the previous match-up between these teams, the West got off to a strong start, with Mark Venables kicking off with a 3-0 victory over Steve Moran and Aaron Bradley following that up with a 3-1 win against Ian Fields. However, Rachel Robertson managed to squeeze past Vicki Cannan 3-2 to get the East on the board.

Ady Hogg then levelled things up at 2-2 with a 3-1 win over Barry Gilsenan in an excellent performance that included a 155 finish and a 12-dart leg. Robbie Nelson then put the East ahead with a comfortable 3-0 win over Paul Watterson. When Nikki Bardsley then beat Jess Corlett 3-1, the East were in control at 4-2.

Paul Sertin extended the East lead with a fine 3-1 win against Walter McCarthy that included two 17-dart legs, but Peter Sayle pulled one back for the West, beating Glenn Moorley 3-2 in a quality encounter. When Sophie Hicklin then beat Janet Maynard 3-1, the East lead was suddenly cut to 5-4.

The West had the momentum and won the next two men’s singles at a canter, with Willie Biggane and Chris Gilbert not dropping a leg against Tony Kennaugh and Rob Corrin respectively, including 16- and 17-dart legs from Chris. However Janine Halsall held her nerve in the last ladies singles to beat Louise Gregory 3-2 and level the match at 6-6 going into the pairs. Once again it was the ladies doing the heavy lifting for the East, with Rachel Robertson & Nikki Bardsley beating Vicki Cannan & Louise Gregory 2-1 before Janet Maynard and Janine Halsall survived a number of match darts in a 2-1 win over Debbie Faragher & Storm Williamson to give the East an 8-6 advantage.

Ian Fields & Steve Moran won the first Men’s pairs 2-1 against Kevin Biggane & Paul Williamson to guarantee the East at least a draw but Aaron Bradley & Peter Sayle had a fine 2-0 win against Robbie Nelson & Rob Corrin to keep the match alive. However, the East clinched the match in the next game, as Ady Hogg & Paul Sertin beat Willie Biggane & Barry Gilsenan 2-0. Walter McCarthy and the impressive Chris Gilbert beat Glenn Moorley & Tony Kennaugh 2-1 in the last game to give a final score of 10-8.

North 11-7 South

The North picked up their first win of the season with victory over their southern rivals. The South got off to a steady start with Island Champ Sarah Taylor beating Nic Libreri-Lane 3-1, before the Northern men turned the game in their favour, with Jamie Kelly beating Gary Jones 3-1, including a 15-dart leg and Ryan Teare winning the battle of the island internationals 3-2 against Jack Saxon, despite two 18-dart legs from Jack.

Judith Wellings extended the North’s lead with a 3-2 win against Viv Frew and Brian Gelling made it 4-1 with a 3-2 win against Kevin Christian. Danny Cowin then got the South another point on the board with a 3-2 win against Ben Pickett.

Margaret Kelly closed the gap with a fine 3-1 victory against Laura Howard. The next two men’s games were then split, with Chris Gelling beating Josh Cowley 3-1 and Wayne Harrison beating Robbie Lawson 3-0, leaving the North with a slender 5-4 lead.

The last singles games all went the way of the North, with Cat Tracy beating Sophe Moore 3-0, Harley Christian beating Kyle Lunn 3-2 and Kevin Lane beating Colin Tyrer 3-0, giving the North an 8-4 lead heading into the pairs.

The Southern ladies did their part in the pairs, with Margaret Kelly & Sophie Moore and  Sarah Taylor & Ann-Marie Martinez both winning 2-0 against Cat Tracy & Nic Libreri-Lane and Judith Wellings & Laura Howard respectively, to close the gap to 8-6. 

However, the Northern men made sure of the win, with Kevin Lane & Jamie Kelly beating Colin Tyrer & John Halsall 2-0, including a 17-dart leg, before Andy Foulis & Billy Howland wrapped up the match with a 2-1 win against Jack Saxon & Kyle Lunn. Ben Parsons & Wayne Harrison pulled one back for the South with a 2-0 win against Harley Christian & Jak Stott before the pairing of Ryan Teare & Brian Gelling extended the winning margin for the North with a 2-1 victory over Josh Cowley & Kevin Christian.

Thanks to everyone who turned out and helped make for another successful night for darts on the island and to our hosts the Peel Legion for their support. The next Super League fixtures take place on Friday 24th March 2023 at the Manor in Douglas, with a 7.30pm start. 

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