Week 13 July 29th

PREMIER TITLE RACE TIGHTENS UP AS LITTLEMORE LEGION STAY TOP

With two-thirds of the season now in the books, the race for the Premier Division title is shaping up to be one of the closest in recent years, with just four points separating the top four teams.
Littlemore British Legion 'A' continue to lead the way after an impressive 3-0 home victory over Masons Arms 'A'. The league leaders were in complete control throughout, taking the three legs 26-13, 25-19 and 24-20. Mark Bayliss and Kevin Stuart both enjoyed another outstanding evening, each hitting a baker's dozen with identical scores of 5-4-4 to keep the pressure firmly on their title rivals.

Second-placed White House missed the chance to stay within touching distance after dropping a valuable point away to Ampleforth Arms 'A'. Having dominated the opening two legs 29-12 and 30-26, they looked certain to complete the whitewash when set 22 in the final leg.
Instead, disaster struck. Their challenge faltered, leaving them stranded on 13 with just two players left to throw. Dick Walsh then breathed life back into the contest by crashing home a maximum six, leaving anchor man Ian McAteer requiring four dolls for victory. He could only manage three, forcing a three-stick shoot-out where Ampleforth held their nerve to claim the leg 10-7. Roger Goodall was once again White House's standout performer with an excellent 14 dolls (5-5-4).

North Leigh Football Club and Black Horse 'A' produced one of the games of the night before the hosts exploded in a remarkable final leg. North Leigh edged the opener 22-20, but Black Horse hit back immediately, snatching the second leg 19-18.
With Black Horse only able to set 17 in the decider, North Leigh seized their opportunity in devastating fashion, crashing an incredible 32 dolls to complete a memorable victory. Jeff Glenister led the charge with 13 dolls (5-3-5), while Charlie Buckingham's evening summed up the unpredictable nature of Aunt Sally. After opening with a one and then a blob, he finished with a spectacular maximum six to cap a remarkable turnaround.

In Section One, Blackbird tightened their grip on Section One and now appear to have one hand on the title following an accomplished 3-0 victory away at Black Horse 'B'. James Dineen (6-3-3) and Aaron Presley (3-6-2) both struck maximum sixes as Blackbird comfortably claimed the three legs 24-19, 25-19 and 21-17.

Jolly Sportsman showed tremendous character to recover from a nightmare start and defeat New Club 'A' 2-1. After setting and losing the opening leg 16-22, the hosts responded superbly, edging the second leg 25-23 before finishing strongly with a convincing 30-22 success in the decider. Mark Hewitson was the architect of the comeback, firing a superb 12 dolls (2-6-4), including a maximum six.

SECTION 2 TITLE RACE BLOWN WIDE OPEN

The Section Two title race is proving every bit as competitive as the Premier Division, with just six points separating the top half of the table. This week's results blew the promotion battle wide open as second-placed Donnington Club 'A' suffered a damaging 3-0 defeat away to New Club 'B'.
Despite the convincing score line, the match was far closer than it appeared. Donnington made a disastrous start, setting just 11 in the opening leg, a target New Club comfortably surpassed with 17. The visitors looked capable of levelling the match in the second after New Club could only muster 15, but another sluggish start left them with a mountain to climb. Tim Smith reignited hopes by clanging off four dolls, leaving anchor man Ben Carter needing four to force a tie. Carter could only find three, leaving Donnington one short on 14 and two legs adrift. New Club then set a modest 11 in the final leg, but Donnington's miserable night continued as they once again failed to find the crucial dolls, falling agonisingly short on 10 to hand the hosts a deserved whitewash.

Donnington Club 'C' capitalised on their club mates' slip-up by leapfrogging them into second place following an impressive home comeback victory over Catherine Wheel 'B'. The visitors drew first blood after setting 17, while two costly blobs restricted Donnington to just nine in reply. The hosts responded superbly, doubling their opening-leg tally by setting 18 in each of the remaining legs before edging the second 18-17 and sealing a hard-fought 18-14 victory in the decider.

Garsington Sports Club's struggles continued as they slumped to a fourth successive defeat, losing 2-1 at home to Donnington Club 'B'. Paul Sims produced the standout performance for the visitors with an excellent 12 dolls (3-6-3), including a maximum six, as Donnington claimed the opening two legs 22-18 and 21-14. Garsington prevented the whitewash by taking the final leg 15-13.

WADs Bar brought their three-match losing streak to an end with a deserved 2-1 victory over Queens Head 'A'. Mark Tilling led the way with a fine 12-doll haul (5-3-4) as WADs claimed the first and third legs 18-15 and 18-11, despite Queens Head taking the middle leg 17-12.

COWLEY WORKERS TIGHTEN GRIP AS CON CLUB END LONG WAIT FOR VICTORY

Cowley Workers remain firmly in control of Section 3 after another commanding 3-0 victory, this time away at Queens Head 'B', to strengthen their grip at the top of the table.
The league leaders were rarely troubled in the opening leg, setting and comfortably winning 16-8. The second leg proved far more dramatic. Chasing a target of 17, Workers looked in complete control after a strong start before a middle-order collapse left anchor man Eamon Hannon needing four to win. Showing remarkable composure, Hannon whipped off the winning doll with his final stick to snatch an 18-17 victory by the narrowest of margins. Cowley then completed the whitewash in emphatic fashion, taking the final leg 21-14. Graham Morton was their star performer with an excellent 10-doll haul (2-4-4).

Littlemore Rugby Club emerged victorious from one of the closest matches of the season, edging Ampleforth Arms 'B' 2-1 after two of the three legs were decided by nerve-jangling three-stick shoot-outs.
Ampleforth laid down an early marker by setting a formidable 21 in the opening leg. Rugby looked beaten when they reached the halfway stage with only seven dolls on the board, but a superb recovery left Malcolm Bough needing five to snatch victory. He fell agonisingly one short, sending the contest into a shoot-out, where Rugby kept their nerve to prevail 7-6. Ampleforth hit back immediately, setting and winning the second leg 15-12, before the deciding leg finished locked at 12-12. Once again the shoot-out went Rugby's way, another 7-6 success sealing a memorable victory. Neil Jackson (4-4-2) and Adam Woodley (4-3-3) both impressed for the visitors with 10 dolls apiece.

Six Bells 'B' saw their title challenge continue to fade after slipping to a second successive defeat, losing 2-1 at home to Red Lion Yarnton. The hosts never recovered from a sluggish start, managing only seven dolls while chasing a modest target of 11 in the opening leg. Red Lion then posted 15 in the second, and although Bells battled hard, three costly blobs proved decisive as they finished just one doll short on 14. Bells at least avoided a whitewash by taking the final leg 12-10.

Catherine Wheel 'C' produced a superb comeback to claim a 2-1 victory away at Masons Arms 'B' after a dreadful opening leg.
The visitors could muster only eight dolls in the first leg, but Masons failed to capitalise fully, edging it 10-8. Catherine Wheel responded superbly in the second, more than doubling their opening score with 17 after Masons had set only nine. With the scores level, Masons improved to 13 in the decider, but Catherine Wheel found another gear, replying with 18 to complete an impressive turnaround.

At the foot of the table, Headington Con Club finally ended their miserable run with a morale-boosting 3-0 victory over fellow strugglers Littlemore British Legion 'B'.
Something had to give, with Legion arriving on the back of nine straight defeats and Con Club having lost six in succession. The home side edged a tense opening leg 13-12 before taking full control by setting and winning the second 12-7. Chasing 10 in the final leg, Con Club held their nerve to squeeze home with 11, completing a long-awaited clean sweep and sparking jubilant celebrations that could be heard all over Oxford as their losing streak finally came to an end.

SECTION 4 TITLE RACE REMAINS WIDE OPEN AS FRONT-RUNNERS KEEP WINNING

The battle for the Section 4 championship remains too close to call, with the leading contenders all recording convincing victories to ensure there was no change at the top of the standings.
Red Lion Cassington continue to set the pace after a comfortable 3-0 home success over Corner House. The league leaders were rarely troubled as they swept aside their visitors, winning the three legs 15-3, 12-3 and 14-9. Mark Finch was once again the standout performer, top scoring with an excellent 12 dolls (5-4-3) to keep Red Lion firmly in pole position.

Rose Hill 'A' bounced back in style from last week's surprise defeat, producing an emphatic 3-0 victory over Gardiner Arms to climb into second place. Dale Jacobs led the charge, firing a maximum six on his way to an impressive 10-doll haul (2-2-6). Rose Hill dominated throughout, taking the legs 14-10, 21-9 and 15-5 to underline their title credentials.

Bletchingdon Sports also strengthened their championship challenge while dealing a significant blow to Kidlington Sports' hopes with a superb 3-0 away win. A consistently solid display saw Bletchingdon edge the opening two legs 14-10 and 14-11 before completing the whitewash with a 15-10 victory in the final leg, keeping themselves firmly in the hunt for top spot.
Vikings Sports remain poised to capitalise on any slip by the teams above them after recording a straightforward 3-0 home victory over White Hart. The hosts controlled the contest from start to finish, claiming the three legs 14-7, 10-7 and 14-12 to maintain the pressure on the front-runners in what continues to be one of the closest and most competitive title races in the league.

SIXES
James Dineen, Aaron Presley (The Blackbird) Dick Walsh (The White House) Charlie Buckingham (North Leigh FC)
Dale Jacobs (Rose Hill 'A') Mark Hewitson (Jolly Sportsman) Paul Sims (Donnington 'C')

BLOBBERS
Bruno Griffin, Daniel Ward, (Corner House)

TOP SCORERS
14: Roger Goodall (White House)
13: Mark Bayliss, Kevin Stuart (Littlemore B.L.) Jeff Glenister (North Leigh FC)

TOP LADY SCORERS
47 Juliette Kemish (The Blackbird
43 Nikki Rudman (Littlemore Rugby Club)

TOP LEG SCORE
North Leigh FC 32 dolls

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