Knock-out victory for Peter Newbould as Harrogate Darts League season gets underway

Chris Nelson and Tony Green were the beaten semi-finalists in what is a unique individuals tournament contested over just one leg of darts (501), but with an equal darts format.

Newbould went on to get the better of Paul Monaghan in the final, ending up with an average just shy of 80.

There was a defeat for reigning champions Harlow Hill when the team competition got underway.

They kicked off their title defence with a 7-2 loss against Starbeck Cons Mahoosive.

With a new format of best of five legs for Division One singles matches, Matty Vincent took advantage of an out-of-sorts Lee Carey (23), winning 3-1.

Meanwhile, Adam Gawthrop grabbed a second point for Starbeck with legs of 21, 23 & 21, which included a 115 finish to ease past Chris Leach.

Harlow’s Brian Ellison beat Ian Malkin by the same scoreline to reduce the deficit and make it 2-1, but Starbeck’s Sam Davey then triumphed 3-0 with legs of 21 and 23, before Leigh Rowley won 3-1 with a leg of 21.

Last up in the singles, Starbeck’s Paul Kennedy secured a 3-0 victory, which included a 15-dart leg, to make the overall score 5-1.

In the pairs, a 17-dart leg and 180 (Davey) helped Gawthorp and Davey stay in front and win their contest 2-0.

Harlow secured their second point with a brace of 23-darters from Ellison and Leach, but it was not enough as Malkin and Vincent wrapped up a fine result for Starbeck with a 2-0 win and another 23-dart leg in the final match.

Elsewhere, Bilton Working Men’s Club Dales beat Trades Hall Vikings 6-3.

Chris Nelson gave the Vikings an early advantage, beating James Pedel 3-0, before Rich Graham doubled it with victory over Shaun Sowray. He triumphed 3-2 in a furious encounter, producing in a 20-dart leg to win the match.

Rick Harper of the Dales restored parity with a 3-2 win, hitting 17 and 18-dart legs. James Hall then made the overall scoreline 2-2 with legs of 25 and 21 during his success.

Newly-crowned Les Hanslow Trophy champion Pete Newbould continued his fine form, bagging a 3-1 victory, before Chris Wood completed the Dales comeback, winning 3-1 to make it 4-2 on the night.

Pedel and Newbould dropped the first leg of the pairs, but rallied to fire in 24 and 20-dart legs, then Fleming and Harper took Dales’ final point of the evening with legs of 19 and 23

Nelson and Hargreaves did manage to hold off Wood (180) and Hall to give the Vikings their third point, but it was too little, too late to affect the outcome of the contest.

In what was an extremely close affair, Manhattan Madhatters edged out 1899 Trades Hall 5-4.

The Trades team got up and running with a win for Giles Holt, however Pop Herron equalised for the Madhatters.

He grabbed a 3-1 success despite the opening leg going to Richard Taylor with a 100 finish. Herron sealed the with his own 107 finish in a 24-dart leg.

Further wins for the Madhatters from Paul Monaghan, Danny Gamble and Ryan Blanchard (20) increased their lead to 5-1.

Next up for Trades Hall was Nick Hanlsow, who demolished his opponent with 20, 24 and 16-dart legs.

Hanslow then paired with Holt and the duo fired in legs of 17 and 20 to win the first pairs match, but it was the next pairing of Gamble and Monaghan (23) that secured the decisive point and subsequently tipped the balance in favour of the Madhatters.

​A slightly shorter format in Division Two means that teams will be competing over the best of three legs in singles matches and one leg of 701 in the doubles.

In another tight affair, Bilton Umpires beat Prince of Wales by a 5-4 scoreline.

Bilton’s Dion Glew won in 20 and 24 darts, with team-mate Jamie Saville winning in 21 darts.

Prince of Wales took the next two sets courtesy of triumphs for Jim Green and Shaun Smith, who banged in a 180, plus legs of 24 and 21.

The next two sets were shared to bring the overall score to 3-3. Neither team was giving an inch, but it was the home side that nicked it in the final pairs match.

Manhattan School of Darts’ showdown with Londesborough 2023 was a much more one-sided affair.

Manhattan recorded their biggest-ever win and sit top of Division Two for the first time having thrashed their opponents 8-1.

They set their stall out early with victories for Douglas Sneesby, Charlie Sykes, Christian McIntyre and Jono Bradley before Londesborough got their only point of the night through veteran player Sid Cole.

Manhattan’s Colin Bunyan shrugged off the set loss and took the last singles match win.

The pairs was all one-way traffic, with the home side going on to take all three points.

Anyone who would like to join a team or enter a team into the Harrogate Darts League can contact the league’s committee through their website www.harrogatedarts.co.uk or via the league’s Facebook page.

Alongside the Harrogate District Darts League, where fixtures take place on Wednesdays, there are a number of other leagues in the area offering different formats and challenges for players.

On Tuesdays, both the Knaresborough Darts League and Nidderdale Darts League play their games, while there is an individual format on Thursday evenings with two Premier Leagues running on alternate weeks at either the Manhattan Club or the Trades Hall.

On Sunday afternoons, players from across all the leagues come together to take part in the Yorkshire Super League, which is hosted at the Manhattan Club.