Summer Competition Report - Round 9

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The first game of the Round took place at the Top Pub in Broadford on Monday night, with the Renegades going toe-to-toe with the Golf Club Aces. With the Renegades still searching for their first win of their maiden A Grade season, having fallen just short several times in the first right round, but with both sides missing key personnel, this match-up loomed as a danger game for both teams. The Aces got the lion's share of the team games to take a 2-1 lead into the singles. The first four singles were a real tug-of-war, with both sides trading blows and neither gaining the ascendancy, or two wins in a row to open up a lead - until the Aces got back-to-back wins in the opening reverse singles game. But the ‘Gades immediately returned serve with consecutive wins of their own to force the result to the final game of the night & set up a nail biter finish. Despite the home team’s best efforts, the Aces won the final game of the night to take home a 6-5 victory, extending the Renegades winless streak for another week as they fall agonisingly short once again. Aaron Ballantyne made his debut with the Renegades, notching two singles wins as well as throwing four tons, a 118 & a 122, Roger McCallum battled hard with a ton, a 120, 121 & a 135, Roscoe Penny smashing in a 102 and Justin Billman scored a ton & a 121. Mark Jones saved the day for the Aces in the final game of the night, he also smacked in four tons & a 140, Dave Ring nailed five finishes, including a high peg of 97, as well as throwing a 121, Craig Stephens made a cameo appearance and score a 121 & 125 and Alan Sharp rounded out the night with a high score of 133.
The second A Grade game of the night was another absolute belter, with the Snipers locking horns with the Pirates at the Broadford Hotel, with a massive 48 ton-plus scores and eight 180’s thrown between the two sides! The Pirates got an early 4-2 lead before the Snipers fought back to level the scores at four-all, but back-to-back wins to the Pirates saw them collect the four points & put the result to bed with one left to play, which the Snipers cleaned easily up to set a final score line of 6-5. Mark Robinson was colossal for the Snipers, firing in three 180’s, a 140, a 125, 121, a ton and a team high peg of 101 in a true captain's knock, Steve Ritchie speared in two tons, a 121, 125 & a 140, Jason Masters nailed two tons & 180 of his own and Darren Withoos banged five tons and yet another 180! The recently announced Australian Junior Selection & Pirates young gun, Zane Kilroy, was unbeaten after smashing in the maximum six finishes, seven tons, a 121, 138, three 140’s and two 180’s, Steve Kilroy hammered in five tons, a 105 and another 180, Dan Kilroy snagged a 125 & a 140 and Seth Kilroy pounded in a Round high peg of 130 to go with eight tons & three 140’s.
The final A Grade matchup was between the Kings and Badass and despite the excitement of the opening two games of the Round, these two didn’t drop the ball on the theme and produced yet another thrilling finish! The Broadford Badass burst out of the blocks like a rocket, careening out to a 4-0 lead that put the Kings on the back foot & had the Badass feeling comfortable. But the Kings have proven throughout the season why they are the reigning champs, & as they do, they reigned in the Broadford team, winning five games on the trot to pinch the lead in what should have been a near impossible come back! Badass won the second to last game of the night to level the scores and keep their hopes alight, but the Kings juggernaut was in full swing by that point & they steamed home to complete the incredible fight back and bank the four points. The highlights for the Kings included eleven tons and a 140 for Rob Welsh, captain Terran Crispin slotted a 180 as well as throwing a ton, a 121 & two 140’s, Anthony Bohlmann bashed in two tons a 120 & a 140 and Adam Lynch slotted three tons & a 125. Badass’ captain Peter Myles was the standout for the visitors, he slipped in seven tons, a 121, 123, 125 & two 140’s as well as five pegs, Gary Power threw four tons & a 138, Wayne Cartner guided in high scores of 144, 127 & 133 & a high peg of 70 and Rick Wylie chimed in with two tons in his first outing for the year.
The first B Grade match for Round 9 took place at the Broadford Golf Club, with the Marauders taking on the Kilmore Convicts. The Convicts were clinical in the opening stanza, notching W’s in all three team events before the Marauders managed to find their feet and launch an offensive of their own, and despite half the eight singles match ups going to a tie-breaker, the Convicts cruised home to an 8-3 victory. The Marauders only highlight for the night was when Daniel Chandler slotted the highest B Grade finish for the round, an impressive peg of a 102. The Convicts’ own young gun, Jackson Browne, continues to impress in his first season of competitive darts, he slotted two tons a 118 & two 140’s, captain Peter Browne steered in five finishes, a ton & a 105 and Eoin Flynn snuck in a ton.
The Jacarandas and Ducks went head-to-head in the next game of the night, with the two going into battle at the Royal Hotel in Seymour. The Jacarandas got the jump on the visitors early, but the Ducks kept their cool & hit back to level the scores, but their comeback was short lived as the Jacarandas dropped the hammer & plucked wins in six of the next seven games to send the Ducks down 8-3. Renee Henke snagged a 126 and Jose Mason threw a ton & a 102 for the Jacarandas, while Yolanda DiNavi scored a ton and Davis Stokes smacked in a ton & a 136 for the Ducks.
The final game of the Round saw a top of the table clash play out at the Royal Oak Hotel in Kilmore, with the Cobras squaring up against the Royal Rascal crew. Both sides shared in the spoils of the opening four games, but despite the promising start, the Rascals struggled to really get going as the Cobras slithered their way to a five-2 lead, just a single win away from securing the victory and taking home the choccies. The Rascals rallied together & with consecutive wins they kept their hope alight with two games left to play, but those hopes were snuffed out when the Cobras struck back as fast as their namesake and won the night 7-4. The Cobras Rob Davon finished the night with five pegs to his name, he also scored three tons & a 140, Cobras captain Crystal Bird slammed in two tons, a 127 and a match high peg of 70 and Josh Read chipped in with a ton & a 125. The Rascals highlights included high scores of 121 & 140 for Brendan Rogers, Noel Whitling chucked a 116 and Aaron Peacock nailed a ton.