Cleveland look set for promotion as they continue to dominate the L-Style Division One, leading second-place Suffolk by 14 points with a game in hand.
The weekend saw the top two teams meet, with Cleveland’s Women’s B securing an early 4-2 lead. Cleveland’s Men’s B won their sixth game of the season in emphatic style, beating the visitors 10-2 to cement their place at the top of the section.
The Women’s A held out for a draw, with the Women’s A performance of the division coming via Welsh International Leanne Topper (pictured). Suffolk’s Men’s A are sitting at the top of their standings as they managed a 7-5, but the spoils went the way of Cleveland, winning 22-14 overall.
Merseyside remain in third place as they won 22-14 over Nottinghamshire. The Women’s B teams are first and second of their league standings, so the 3-3 result seemed a likely outcome, which was replicated by the Women’s A squads.
Both Merseyside’s Men’s A and Men’s B teams ran out 8-4 winners to ensure the win, with Terry Roach’s 28.36 average for the victors was the highest Men’s B average in Division One.
Fourth-placed Gwynedd also took a solid victory this weekend over Somerset. Nothing could split the teams going into Sunday’s A matches, with both the Women’s and Men’s B holding out for draws.
Gwynedd’s Women’s A put the first bit of distance between the two, winning 4-2, backed up by an 8-4 win for their Men’s A and an overall 21-15 result.
Surrey have leapfrogged into fifth place as they were the runaway winners in their match against Clwyd, who are in tenth position.
It was a steady start for both teams as the Women’s B result ended in a draw, before Surrey’s Men’s B romped home 10-2. Surrey’s Women’s A’s long wait for a win came to an end, as they triumphed 6-0 and secured the win for the weekend. The match ended with a 6-all draw for the Men’s A and a 25-11 result in Surrey’s favour overall.
The final match between Derbyshire and Worcestershire saw the latter lose 21-15, despite two league topping performances for Sophie Hadley (21.78) in the Women’s B and Ant Butler (34.55) in the Men’s A.
Worcestershire flew out of the traps with the Women’s B winning 5-1, before Derbyshire’s Men’s B swung it back in their favour with a 9-3 win. Derbyshire’s Women’s A have yet to lose a match this season, and they continued their strong form with a 6-0 win. Worcestershire’s Men’s A finished with a 7-5 win, but the weekend was Derbyshire’s overall.
L-style Division One results: Nottinghamshire 14 – 22 Merseyside, Cleveland 22 – 14 Suffolk, Derbyshire 21 – 15 Worcestershire, Surrey 25 – 11 Clwyd, Somerset 15 – 21 Gwynedd
L-style Division One table: https://ukdartsassociation.com/l-style-division-one-tables/