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The East-bourne Identity

The new year doldrums were particularly bleak last year with the absence of Surrey’s annual wintry jolly to the Eastbourne coast, due to lack of sponsors. It had become something of an event as car and minibus loads trundled down the A22 for a weekend at the aptly named Winter Gardens for a three day long orgy of tungsten tossing. With the event cancelled in 2008, it left many a darts player reduced to spending the January/February handover turning out the shed, being forced to fix that leaky tap and, horror of horrors, watching Saturday night TV!  

Joy of joys, then, when the England Darts Organisation took up the reins and restored the Eastbourne festival to the darting calendar, albeit in a more compact and bijou form.

Having been run for an extended halcyon era by JR darts, the new incarnation may take some time to gain momentum, but those who attended were appreciative of the opportunity to get back down to the icy promenade and its array of … ahem … earthy, bed and breakfasts, for more of what had become almost a must in the early part of the darting year.

Although not on the scale of previous festivals (more of a fête really), it was a successful weekend, especially for Surrey players, who figured prominently. The pairs title went to Woking pair Doug Harwood and Ian Long, and the mixed triples crown was also Surrey-bound as Spike Harris, Ronnie Godbeer & Apylee Jones emerged victorious.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Also encouraging was the appearance in the Quarter Finals of youth members Kurtis Atkins and Lauren Hitchens. Although both are newly-capped senior county players now, it shows a promising level of confidence that they should have reached such a stage, and the experience should only be beneficial to Surrey in the future.

Regular Eastbourne fans will be pleased with the return of their annual darts-fest in its new guise, and will hope that, under new management, the attendances will snowball from here. Talking of snowballs, let’s hope the weather isn’t so bitter next year as the global warming down at Eastbourne was incredibly chilly.

The Only Way is Up

As we pass the halfway point in the BICC Premier Division campaign, Surrey find themselves adrift at the bottom of the table, nine points from the nearest non-relegation place.

Defeat at Lancashire in Bolton has left the county with no option but to hum the theme to The Great Escape and look to future matches with an air of defiance. Considering the county has played the teams currently occupying the top three spots, there is still room for optimism, and we shouldn’t need a blind forger to do it, just some good battling displays.

It didn’t start too well against the lankies, with the Ladies B struggling to get Surrey off to a good start in a 1-5 defeat. Lisa Munt (23.12) who had been playing very well in the A side without any luck whatsoever, breathed a huge sigh of relief in being given a bit more leeway in the B and posted a more-than-capable 3-0 success. However, that was about it and the theme of the weekend seemed to have been set.

The Mens B compounded the gloom as they fell to a 0-5 deficit before a stirring rally that set Surrey pulses racing. A salvo of five straight victories followed, with the loss of just a single leg, and the visitors were back in the match with a bang.

Joint Man of the Match performances from Carl Ramsey (pictured left 26.37) and Alan Edge (the same, obviously), backed up by wins for Doug Harwood (25.05), Paul ‘Pretty Boy’ Neate (23.48) and Kurtis Atkins (26.24), saw the travelling contingent all a buzz. The ardour was somewhat dampened as the last two points went the way of the northerners, but a 5-7 defeat was fair in light of the stuttering start.

The Sunday saw the Ladies A draw 3-3 with victories from Apylee Jones (23.38), Laura Turner (19.78) and Sharon Cullip (17.10), but the Mens A match dashed any hopes of a rousing comeback as ex-Champs Lancs turned on the style to put our boys to the sword.

Barley-muncher Alan Yates (22.65) chipped in with a useful point, before Ian Long (26.65) took Man of the Match with a rare beating of recent Lakeside attendee Dave Chisnall (apparently, the last time Chissy lost, banks were still privately-owned … it was that long ago!). That was about it though as Lancashire ran out 10-2 winners in for a weekend scoreline of 25-11.

A mention must go to Carl Ramsey though, who hit a glorious 31.45 average, only to end up whitewashed by a stunning display from Lancashire’s Paul Whitworth (34.95). The darting equivalent of buying a Porsche, only to see your neighbour reverse a Maserati onto his drive.

So Surrey have four games to secure their Premier Division future. It’s backs to the wall stuff. It’s time for a steeling of nerves, and being ready for a battle. If the great escape is going to happen, we’re going to have to clear that barbed wire fence on the shonky motorbike. Not literally, obviously, so please no-one turn up against Hampshire dressed as Steve McQueen in a German uniform. It’s a British Legion club remember, I don’t reckon you’d get in.

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