Coach & Horses 7 – 3 Chelmsford

A bit of a defeat tonight, but we never felt outclassed. We won the opening Team game, with me sinking the winning D1. On a really cold night up in Leadgate (they left the main fire escape doors open for the smokers) we never felt comfortable on their new two tiered oche, but matched them quiet closely throughout.

Tonight's report has to be a little self centric, with “nerves” being the main theme. I love nerves – they usually give you a push, and add a bit of adrenaline, but after having to fight for my place in the team, the nerves really surfaced tonight. No problem in the Team game where I scored well and finished on D1, and no problem in the Doubles game where I scored better but never got the chance to finish. No. It was the Singles game against the guy who knocked me out of a cup competition last year ; I totally cracked in the finishing, but somehow managed to sink my stupid D3 to win the game.

I only ever feel the nerves in three or four matches all season, so there's one of them out of the way. Hitting the winning double for 2 of our 3 point of the night really ought to make me feel more confident, but this was sheer relief. Not enjoyable, and you'll never play decent darts when you're not enjoying it.

Practice Night

I had a great practice night on Friday up at the Derwentside. I only won about a third of my matches, but there were some really strong players on one of the busiest darts nights up there for a while.

My DartPro stats (pictured) are on an upward curve, which I hope will bode well for Barbados in October. The graph may seem a little erratic, but with the exception of June 2007 it shows that I've completed my 501 games within 10 throws. I'll need to up my average to 56 before I am finishing the games in 9 throws.

These are all averages of course, and any slack finishing is badly punished. On the other hand my game on 1/9/2007 with an average of 100.20 really helped the average! It went 60, 180, 77, 78, and then a 106 finish. Oh to do that in a League game?

Chelmsford 3 – 4 Jolly Drovers

We're out of the Blackhill Ward knock-out cup in the first round, but only on the dominoes tie beaker. It's a mixed darts / dominoes format, where 3 team games of 1001 (Double Start, Double Finish) are played and 3 games of Singles dominoes. It was 3-3 after these 6 games, and the Drovers opted to play the tie-breaker on dominoes. Sadly, we lost decider, but it was a tight game all night and all the best to the Drovers in the next round.

We lost the opening darts game, with only Peter Mc playing a decent game. I wasn't selected due to last week's resounding 10-0 win, and the decision to stick with the winning formula was vindicated as we turned around the darts game and won 2-1, getting stronger as the games went on.

Only the dominoes let us down. No Man Of The Match stood out, but Peter Mc and Paul C scored steadily, with Roger and Mark H providing the finishing. Maybe there'll be no place for me in next week's team against Coach & Horses, but we're top of the league (honest!), playing well, and for the first time in a long while I feel we are a strong darting team. The season will tell!

Chelmsford 10 – 0 Castleside

Pictured : Practice in the house

This is a first for our team in my time with them – a perfect 10-0 victory. I wasn't available for selection due to being in Birmingham earlier in the day, but when I arrived at 21:30 we were already 4-0 up and looking good.

Castleside had made several changes to their team from last week, but unfortunately they faired no better despite the changes. All of the matches were close, but for once our finishing was far more accurate.

On a perfect showing like this it hard to select a Man Of The Match, but it goes to Willie for the second week running due to his slick 51 finish in two darts (S19, D16). Peter was playing, and with our new player Paul continuing his good form and Alan playing well (he was really unlucky to take 9 darts to finish from his 32 – all against the wire) there is a really strong look to our team this season.

So I missed this game due to travel, and Lena (Captain) will rightly stick with the winning team for next Tuesday's home game against Coach & Horses. I'll just have console myself with winning our only Domino point of the evening, beating Barry 3-1.

Castleside Inn 3 – 7 Chelmsford

Pictured : The Castleside Inn

A great start to the season for us, with 7 points in the bag and and all 6 of us winning all of our Singles games for the first time in my time with the team. Willie and I won our Doubles game for the other point, but we had a rocky start against a patched up Castleside team. They won the opening Team game and subsequently took a 3-1 lead.

“Patched up” though they were, I was amazed to see one of their new players miss a 164 finish by a whisker (T20, T18, miss on the bull) and that let us know that they were not to be taken lightly.

Man Of The Match goes to Willie who beat their senior player in the Singles. It was a crucial point for us.

I was really happy to sink two winning doubles without ever feeling comfortable in the games. At this early point it is just a relief to get some points, regardless of the opposition being under strength. We have definitely lost this type of game in the past.

Pre-Season Practice

Pictured : The walk to Derwentside

My results have been getting gradually better, but they are still swinging around wildly.


Last night was typical ; A 138 finish (T20, T18, D12), and then in two games of 501 I had a 3 dart average of just 25 (really bad finishing), followed closely followed by a 3 dart average of over 100 as I scored a 180 and finished really well. I don't know Which type of form I'll be showing in the League, and would settle for just a bit more consistency.

Targets

Pictured - Practice targets

These are the targets I've been concentrating on during the close season. I reckon that decent accuracy on these will improve my game, and I've made a way of converting my results into an accuracy percentage. 35% is my current record.

Close Season Practice

The Derwentside have been providing me with some great practice on Friday nights. As well as Graham, Norman, Mark, Alan and the rest of the Derwentside regulars people from other teams have been dropping in on some nights (Davy, Chris Chivers etc) giving me a really tough time.

I probably only won about 20% of my games in there, but I enjoyed the challenge and I might make Fridays up there a regular thing.

The Blog re-opens for the 2007-8 season!

I've had a good break from darts in the close season, but the blog is now back open for reports on the 2007-8 season. There will be another “Barbados Special” this year, and I can't wait to blog that one!

We start our campaign on Tuesday night, away from home at the Castleside Inn. There are 15 teams again this season :

Castleside Inn
Chelmsford
Chopwell Central
Coach & Horses
Commercial
Cricketers
Delves Club
Derwentside
Jolly Drovers
Leadgate Cricket Club
Shotley Club
Smelters
Stanley Masons
Turf
Weatsheaf

Practice Night at The Derwentside

Pictured : A nice, steady 60

I had a good night with the Derwentside people on Friday night. As promised, there were plenty taking part (including Dave and Chris from The Cricketers), and I got to play against some really strong players. I lost a fair few games, but I won a few too and really enjoyed it.

I might do a few more Fridays nights up there if they'll put up with me.

Darts for the new season

I've just received my new darts for next season. The other sets have taken some hammer and have lost a bit of their grip, so I've picked up a set of direct replacements ; Hi Tec “The Vice” 27grms. My attempts to move down a few grammes didn't really work for me. 26grms was OK, but 25grms was a step too far so I'll stick with the ones I've been throwing for the past two years since I moved up here.

This set are particularly well machined. The tips are perfectly true with no wobble when spun in the point protector. Also, the shark grip is far neater than the other ones. The points are 3mm longer, presumably because they have never been sharpened. I'll have to watch out for this and not overdo the sharpening.

The Harrows Natural Aluminium stems in the picture have been well and truly tried out by me, but I'm not going to use them any more. Aside from the usual problem of them becoming loose no matter how hard they are initially tightened they actually become bent on certain bounce outs when they hit the floor. I went through three of them in just one day, so it's back to the nylon ones for me. Sometimes the simple designs are the best, and if I go to Barbados again this year I don't want gear which will let me down.

Derwentside 4 – 6 Chelmsford (10/4/2007)

After last week's drubbing it was great to end the season on a high note and get just a bit of pride back.

Roger got us on track with a 44 finish in the opening Team game (12, D16 in two darts). Next, Peter and Alan won their team game to make it 0-2, but Mark/Roger and myself/Jean lost our Doubles games despite competing well and pressing.

We fared better in the Singles games though, with wins for Peter, Alan, myself, and Jean.

I was up against Andrew, but thankfully he wasn't on the same form with which he dumped me out of the Singles competition earlier in the year, and I was able to take advantage and finish on 40.

What a bizarre end to the season in the final game of the night; Jean was slugging it out as her opponent couldn't hit his D1. When she hit her D4 there was just silence – it didn't seem to be “in” from our positions. She took a few steps forward and announced “it's in” before the silence was finally broken in the pub.

Our Man of The Match was Peter, who scored a 180 and led the line as usual.

Graham (their captain) was saying they have good Friday night sessions on the darts board, and I'll join them up there soon now that the season is over.

The season is over for a few months, and I ended up winning 48% of my Singles games, and 40% of my Doubles games . I'm actually quite pleased with that, given the quality of the oppos and the strength of the league. And anyway, it's just supposed to be a fun night out – if you're gullible enough to believe that ;o)

Chelmsford 1 – 9 Derwentside (3/4/2007)

Pictured : The Derwentside

An awful drubbing for us, playing at home against a team who are immediately above us in the league. I don't think any of us were battered in our games, but we were found short in nine of the of the games, so the result has to be accepted.

So, you either win or you learn, and here's how the education went! :

We quickly fell behind in the scoring in the 1001X Team game. It set the tone, and we lost the next 5 Doubles and Singles games before Alan grabbed our only point of the night in his Singles game.

I played against Norman in the Singles, and was up against someone who was hitting the T19's with regularity with his 12grm darts. I didn't play badly though, and might have hit my finish if I'd thrown first.

An extremely disappointing result, and a real low point to approach the end of the season with. We've only been beaten by this margin on two occasions by Castleside and Cricketers this season, so to do it against the team just above is in the League effectively consigns us to 12th from 14.

Chelmsford 7 – 3 Commercial (20/3/2007)

Pictured : Practice darts

A great result for us, and we managed to reverse the previous week's defeat by exactly the same margin. It was absolutely no thanks to me though, and I was the only one not to win my Doubles or Singles game.

Roger and I were beaten in our Doubles game by virtue of a spectacular 157 from John.

Mark Henderson continued his impressive form by sinking the D1 in the team game which got us on our way. He also finished another D1 in his Singles game.

Special mentions to Mark, Jean, and Peter. They all won both their Doubles and Singles games.

Commercial 7 - 3 Chelmsford

Pictured : The Commercial

The Commercial are just below us in the league, so that made this game a real 20 pointer. We were only able to get 6 of them (I'm confusing myself now :) due to a brilliant display from them.

We won the opening Team game, with Mark continuing his good form and sinking the tricky D1. Peter and Alan then made it 0-2 to us in their Doubles game.

I won our only Singles game of the night with Jason from their team having a total nightmare. When he did find the trebles he had awful luck with several bounce outs and we all hate it when that happens.

Joe beat our senior player Peter in the singles. I think that's Peter's only Singles defeat of the season (shift worker - doesn't play in all the games), so that really was a blow to us. Joe's scores of 100, 140, 100 had him looking at a 14 dart finish at one point.

No Man Of The Match this week, as none of us stood out on a night dominated by The Commercial, who notched a 180 in the Singles games and gave us a harder game than some of the teams at the top of the league.
Great hospitality and food from them again, and all the best to them in every game where they don't meet us - especially next Tuesday!

Leadgate Cricket 6 – 4 Chelmsford

Pictured : A practice shot in the house

A close game which swung both ways throughout the evening (there was a late-ish start) before ultimately LC took a narrow victory.

Alan hit his third 180 of the season in the opening Team match. John S had opened with a 140, followed by Alan's 180. I was third up to the oche needing to follow that great start, but saw my first dart hit S1. Luckily I brought it back to a decent 81 to my relief. I hate the throw in LC and never do well on it. It must be all in the mind, as there is no one thing I could point to as being a problem.

We have a very clear Man of the Match for this one ; Mark Henderson won every game he was involved in, and although he has played less than 15 games for us he is learning how to graft wins from difficult games.

A good team effort from us ; Alan's 180, my Doubles point, John's opening 140 which helped us to win the Team Game, Mark's MOTM, and Jean winning the vital final Singles point to turn a possible 7-3 into a 6-4.

Chelmsford 5 – 5 Leadgate Cricket

Pictured : Practice darts

This was a game between two very well matched teams, and the 5-5 score leaves it perfectly poised for the return leg on Tuesday.

As usual we lost the opening Team Game of 1001X, but Alan and Roger equalised in their Doubles game. Mark and Jean lost theirs, but I hit the X8 with the first dart for a doubles win with Willie to make it 2-2.

Next, Alan, Roger, and Mark all won their Singles game to give us a 5-2 lead, but I then started the rot by losing my singles game to Jan. No complaints from me, because I threw first and even hit a cheeky T16 when trying to cover on the T19. Sometimes it just doesn't happen and you just shake hands and hopefully put it behind you.

Willie then lost his Singles game to make it 5-5 on the night, leaving me a little disappointed to be the one to give LC hope towards the end of the game.

Man Of The Match was Alan P for his Doubles and Singles wins, but Mark is mentioned in dispatches for his Singles win over senior player Alan, who was their best player on the night.

Thomas Family Championship 2007

The Thomas Family Championship was held in Ebchester on 25/02/07 at The Chelsmford. We had a meal in The Lounge before hitting the dart board in The Bar.

Middenrat, myself, and my mother all played each other twice, and a clear unbeaten champion emerged, my Mum. I obviously don't take after her, because she hit her doubles without problem and cruised to the title.

What a great day, and this may become an annual event.

Cricketers 8 – 2 Chelmsford

Pictured : The teams

A correction from last week, which Nicky of The Cricketers pointed out to me: The Cricketers are not County players. Some of them have played for The County in the past, and most of them should have played for them in my humble opinion. I need to get my facts right, and on with the report :o)

After our previous 1-9 beating on 7/2/07 it was “more of the same” tonight, and chances were few and far between for us. We went 1-0 down in the 1001X Team Game, needing more than 400 points on the board as they sunk the double and took the point. The Doubles games didn't go any better, with just a single dart at the Bull and some large out-shots being our only chances to take a point. None taken.

Peter and me won our Singles games to get our only points on the night. I was disappointed with my performances in the Team game and my Doubles game with Alan, but I played reasonably well against Nev in my Singles match, and was more than relieved to hit the 15 finish (7, D4), but I still felt the nerves a good 10 minutes after the game.
Still, we were pleased with the way we played, and we'd have perhaps won against some other teams.

Congratulations to Nicky and Tim of The Cricketers on their 180's. They are the second team this season to hit two maximums against us – ouch!

Pub Master Competition

We Didn't have a League match tonight, so seven of our team fought it out to see who would be the pub champion to progress to the 1st round proper of yet another Pub Master Cup competition.

Roger drew up the fixtures and we all played against each other in single legs of 501 for points. I started off a little shakily but squeezed past Jean in the first game. I got better as the night went on, and ended up facing Alan in the final.

In the best of 3, 501 final I had become very stable and was able to win 2-0 and represent The Chelmsford in the next round. I had vivid memories of taking a 1-0 lead in Cirencester and then not pressing the advantage, so I was relieved to clinch this one.

To be honest I think only Alan and I were really keen on progressing, but I always want to compete in these things and I give it my all. Remember the fun I had in Newcastle (regional finals), Barbados, and Cirencester! Win or lose it's a proper oche and a day out with the darts, and this kept me focused to remain unbeaten in my games on the night. I'd practiced for it during the week, and for once it went as I'd like on the night.