Week 5 May 27th

BAYLISS STARS AS LITTLEMORE LEGION SWEEP TO VICTORY

The sunshine brought out some outstanding throwing performances this week, with Littlemore British Legion’s Mark Bayliss producing the display of the night as he clanged off a spectacular 15-doll haul (5-5-5) in a convincing 3-0 win away to Masons Arms ‘A’. The opening leg proved a tense affair. Legion could only set 21 and Masons looked well placed to overhaul the target after reaching 13 with half their side still to throw. However, the hosts faltered badly in the closing stages and finished three dolls short on 18. Masons responded with 21 again in the second leg, but Legion were in ruthless form and surged to an impressive 28 to establish a two-leg advantage. In the final leg, Masons once more posted 21. Legion reached 15 by the halfway point before a brief wobble left anchor man Kevin Stuart needing one to secure victory. Stuart calmly delivered, clanging off three dolls to complete the whitewash with a total of 23. Chris Webb was the standout performer for Masons with 12 dolls (2-5-5).

Premier Section leaders White House enjoyed another comfortable evening as they swept aside The Ampleforth Arms ‘A’ with leg victories of 27-18, 23-19 and 31-17. Top doll scorer, Roger Goodall continued his fine form with a 14-doll haul that included a maximum six (5-3-6), while Dick Walsh added a baker’s dozen (5-4-4).

Last season’s Section 1 champions Black Horse ‘A’ continue to struggle and slumped to a fifth successive defeat, this time at home to North Leigh FC. Spencer Buckingham starred for the visitors with 14 dolls (5-4-5), while brother Charlie chipped in with 12 (4-4-4) as North Leigh cruised to victories of 21-8, 22-18 and 27-15.

After losing their opening two matches of the season, New Club ‘A’ appear to have rediscovered last year’s form and claimed a third consecutive victory with a 3-0 success over the in-form Jolly Sportsman. New Club dominated the opening two legs 27-21 and 24-16 before setting a challenging 26 in the final leg. The Sportsman’s reply left anchor man Mark Revill needing a maximum six to tie the match. Revill came agonisingly close but fell one doll short as his side finished on 25. Pete Shepherd led the way for New Club with an excellent 14 dolls (5-3-6).

The Blackbird moved to the top of Section 1 by a single point after a surprisingly comfortable 3-0 home victory over previous leaders Black Horse ‘B’. Consistent throwing throughout saw Blackbird claim the legs 22-13, 23-15 and 24-12. Young Harry Dineen, playing his first season in the top sections, impressed with a solid seven-doll contribution (2-4-1).

SECTION 2 TITLE RACE WIDE OPEN AFTER ANOTHER DRAMATIC NIGHT

Section 2 remains incredibly tight with only three points separating the top seven teams following another dramatic round of fixtures.
Joint leaders Donnington Club ‘A’ suffered their second successive defeat as visitors New Club ‘B’ claimed a deserved 2-1 victory in a surprisingly low-scoring encounter. Donnington struggled throughout the evening and could only post 12 in the opening leg, a target New Club comfortably surpassed with 17. The home side’s difficulties continued in the second leg when New Club set 15 and Donnington could manage only 9 in reply. The hosts at least restored some pride in the final leg, edging home by the narrowest of margins after setting 16 and restricting New Club to 15.

Donnington Club ‘C’ moved level at the top alongside their ‘A’ team after recording an emphatic 3-0 whitewash away to Catherine Wheel ‘B’, who are still searching for their first win of the season. Lee Worrall starred for Donnington with an impressive 12-doll haul (3-5-4) as the visitors controlled all three legs with victories of 19-13, 19-11 and 22-13.

Catherine Wheel ‘A’ saw their unbeaten record come to an end after crashing to a 3-0 defeat at The Six Bells ‘C’. Wheel set 15 in the opening leg, but The Bells responded superbly with 24 to take an early advantage. The visitors improved in the second leg with a set of 19 and looked set to level the match after a slow start by The Bells left their anchor man needing five for victory. He almost produced it, clanging off four dolls to tie the leg before The Bells edged home on three sticks. The Six Bells completed the maximum win by taking the final leg 19-16. Despite defeat, Craig Hambridge impressed for Catherine Wheel with a superb 12 dolls (4-4-4).

Only two dolls separated Queens Head ‘A’ and WADs Bar across the entire match, but it was WADs who emerged with a hard-fought 2-1 victory. WADs took control by winning the opening leg 20-15 after Queens Head struggled in reply. Queens responded brilliantly in the second leg after managing only six dolls by the halfway stage. A strong finish from the lower order added 16 dolls to lift them to a respectable 22, leaving WADs well short on 17. The deciding leg proved equally tense. WADs set 19 and another sluggish start ultimately proved costly for Queens Head, who finished just two dolls short on 17 to hand victory to WADs.

Two double-figure scorers proved decisive as Donnington ‘B’ recorded an impressive 3-0 home victory over visitors Garsington Sports. Philip Cassidy and Sam Macer both starred for Donnington with excellent 10-doll hauls. Cassidy produced scores of 2-4-4, while Macer matched him with a consistent 3-3-4 performance. Donnington made the stronger start and claimed the opening leg 13-10 before being pushed all the way in a tense second leg that finished tied at 16-16. The hosts held their nerve in the three-stick shoot-out to edge further ahead. With confidence flowing, Donnington completed the whitewash in the final leg with a convincing 17-9 success to round off an excellent evening’s work.

COWLEY WORKERS EXTEND LEAD AT THE TOP OF SECTION 3

Cowley Workers continue to go from strength to strength in Section 3 and have opened up a three-point lead at the top of the table. After losing their opening match of the season, The Workers have now strung together four consecutive victories, the latest coming in a hard-fought 3-0 home success over Queens Head ‘B’, who were a player short. The opening leg was finely balanced and ended tied at 15-15, with Cowley Workers taking the leg on three sticks. Workers then struggled to a modest set of 12 in the second leg, but Queens Head failed to take advantage as a couple of costly blobs left them one doll short on 11. Queens recovered well in the final leg to post a respectable 18, but Workers raised their game at the crucial moment and replied with 20 to complete the maximum win.

Littlemore British Legion ‘B’ and Headington Con Club finished level on overall dolls, but it was the Con Club who edged a tense contest 2-1. Headington could only set 9 in the opening leg and Legion looked favourites to take it after leaving their anchor man needing two for victory. However, he blobbed out, as had three earlier team-mates, leaving Legion agonisingly short on 8. Legion then set just 8 in the second leg and this time it was Headington anchor man Brayden Shields left requiring two to win. Shields held his nerve superbly and whipped off both dolls to secure the leg 10-8. Legion at least earned a deserved point by taking the final leg 11-9.

Ampleforth Arms ‘B’ continue to struggle after suffering a fourth straight defeat, this time at home to Littlemore Rugby Club. A first-leg set of 9 never looked enough to trouble the visitors, who comfortably replied with 11. Ampleforth responded strongly in the second leg, more than doubling their earlier effort to post an impressive 19. Rugby Club battled hard in reply but fell short on 16. The deciding leg could not have been tighter, finishing tied at 13-13 before Littlemore Rugby Club edged the shoot-out on three sticks, the winning stick coming from the last stick of the night, to secure both the leg and the match.

Catherine Wheel ‘C’ slipped up in their pursuit of the Section 3 title after a 2-1 home defeat to Masons Arms ‘B’. The damage was done early by The Masons, who claimed the opening two legs 15-12 and 16-12 to secure the overall victory. Catherine Wheel responded well in the final leg, setting and winning it 17-12 to at least earn a hard-fought point.

Red Lion Yarnton produced one of the surprises of the night by defeating title challengers Six Bells ‘B’ 2-1 at home. The Lion laid the foundations for victory by taking the opening two legs 14-12 and 17-14. They narrowly missed out on a whitewash in the final leg after the scores finished tied at 13-13, with Six Bells winning the three-stick shoot-out to claim a valuable point. Terry Lester was the standout performer for Six Bells with an excellent 10-doll haul (4-2-4).

RED LION CASSINGTON MANTAIN UNBEATEN START TO LEAD SECTION 4

Red Lion remain one of only two unbeaten teams in the league and continue to lead the way in Section 4 following another impressive victory, this time away at The Corner House. The Lion were in complete control throughout the evening, sweeping all three legs with comfortable victories of 9-2, 14-8 and 16-6. Mark Finch was the standout performer with an excellent nine-doll haul (2-2-5).

Bletchingdon Sports strengthened their title challenge with a hard-fought 2-1 success over the in-form Kidlington Sports Club. Bletchingdon made a flying start by taking the opening two legs 12-10 and 17-13 to secure the overall victory. Kidlington responded strongly in the final leg, setting an impressive 19, but Bletchingdon could only manage 13 in reply as the visitors earned a valuable point.

Two strong opening legs at home put Rose Hill ‘A’ firmly in command against The Tandem as they recorded a convincing 3-0 victory. Rose Hill claimed the first two legs 16-7 and 19-11 before standards dipped slightly in the final leg. Despite that, they still edged home by the odd doll with a 9-8 win to complete the whitewash. Tony Elles led the way for Rose Hill with an impressive 10 dolls (4-4-2).

White Hart and Vikings Sports shared 64 dolls overall in one of the most entertaining contests of the night, with White Hart eventually edging the match 2-1. White Hart set all three legs and took the first two 10-8 and 9-7 before posting a challenging 13 in the final leg. Vikings responded superbly and comfortably surpassed the target with 17 to secure a well-earned point.

League newcomers Gardiners Arms are still searching for their first victory after suffering a 3-0 home defeat to Rose Hill Club ‘A’. Steve Pitson starred for the visitors with a fine 10-doll haul (3-4-3) as Rose Hill won all three legs 13-5, 17-10 and 13-7.

With five games of the season already played there are just two teams that remain unbeaten and four teams seeking their first win. There have been 15 maximum sixes hit by 12 different players but 39 blobbers hit by 33 different players. Roger Goodall from The White House and Mark Bayliss form Littlemore British Legion ‘A’ has hit the most dolls in one night, 16 while the White House has hit the most dolls over three legs with 84. There are 10 players who are averaging double figures already with four players on course to hit the magical 200 dolls, however everything can change on one bad night!


SIXERS: R.Goodall (White House) P.Shepherd (New Club)

BLOBBERS: D.Sealey, D.Turner (Littlemore Legion B) I.Golby, R.Kenny (Gardiner Arms) D.Ward (Corner House) B.Cotgreave, H.Findlay (The Tandem) S.Wyatt (Garsington Sports)

HIGHEST SCORERS
15: M.Bayliss (Littlemore B.L. ‘A’)
14: R.Goodall (White House) S.Buckingham (North Leigh FC) P.Shepherd (New Club)
13:D.Walsh (White House)


HIGHESTS LEG: White House 31


OVER THREE LEGS: White House 81

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