Match Reports - Week 19 - 22nd. Jul. 2008

POP's matched up against 2 & 6 this week at Harley's Bar. Meeting up with the number 6 team in the league was a bit intimidating and starting off by getting beat by well over 200 points in the first team game added to the pressure. Mark started off with a whopping 2 points after beating Wes for closest to the bull and Wes couldn't hit a double. Luckily, Vivian tossed in a double 20 for POP's to get us started but 2 & 6 were just too strong to keep up with. First round of singles had to have been the best round for POP's against any team!! Wes pulled a come from behind win against Mark, followed by quick losses by Tracy and Vivian against Julia and Eddie but then ... Joy took a great game from Craig - finishing with a 95 check out, Iris won her match with a third dart double 1 and Jo Ann, in only her 3rd week of dart play took yet another win - I think that makes 5 in 3 weeks!!! Second round of singles did not go quite as well but Wes and Joy managed to each take a point. Score after singels: 7:6 in favor of 2 & 6. With such a close game after singles, POP's team was riding high and seriously contemplating the possibility of a major upset. Unfortunately, 2 & 6 also saw the danger and picked up thier games. I believe that every doubles match had both teams with shots at the double and the win but, in every case, 2 & 6 got there first. Only real game of note was the Wes/JoAnn vs Mark/Julia game where instead of trying to win we all keep seeing how close we could come to double 1 without actually hitting it. Finally, with pressure from his team mates, who were growing bored with it all, Mark decided to end the game and hit the double 1. Taking all 3 doubles matches sealed the victory for 2 & 6 with the score 13:6. MM for fun: Mark and Wes didn't impress anyone to start the game, with only 1 - 20 each (and a triple for Mark) but Eddie and Julia quickly closed 20's and 19's and put the first 39 points on the board for 2 & 6. After that it was almost all 2 & 6 until all the numbers were closed and them racking up over 300 points before POP's could close off the numbers and only 72 points on POP's side of the black board. With all but doubles and bulls closed and far behind POP's girls suddenly came alive!! Iris with an amazing FIVE bulls while 2 & 6 still had none, began adding some serious points to POP's side and giving the team hope. Wes and JoAnn didn't add anything but Tracy and Vivian combined to add 75 more points to POP's score and put them down by just over 100 points. Time ran out though before POP's could pull a truly amazing come back out for the 3 points when 2 & 6 tossed in the final bull for their side. Final score: 16:6 in favor of 2 & 6 BUT a much closer match than the final score might indicate. Aside from a floor that makes one feel like they are on a boat sailing in high seas - Harley's is always a great venue for darts with plenty of room and good boards. And, of course, playing against Mark, Craig, Rod and the rest of the 2 & 6 team is fun for all involved. Great sports - even Craig who only cried in his beer for a minute or two after Joy's stunning 95 check out sent him back to the bench!!! MVP's for the night: Hard to pick one for 2 & 6 as they combined for 11 -100's and 2 -140's but I'd have to say jointly held by Eddie and Julia who combined for 5 wins and set the pace in MM for 2 & 6. For POP's also a hard one and again I think it goes to 2 players this week. Joy with a team high check out of 95 and 2 singles wins and Iris with 1 win and that excellent career high 5 bulls in 3 darts! Thanks to 2 & 6 and to Harley's for a great night and specifically to Rod for those deadly tequilla shots. Wes July 22, 2008