Newark & District Double Board Darts League’s Summer season mixed pairs competition won by John Esam and Mandy Walker
John Esam and Mandy Walker brought the curtain down on the Newark & District Double Board Darts League’s Summer 2024 season with victory in the mixed pairs competition held at RHP Sports and Social Club immediately following the league’s presentation evening.
Esam, who had won last season’s competition alongside Kathy Buttong, was looking for a third summer league mixed pairs title in six seasons having also won in 2017.
The duo’s opening contest saw them come from behind to edge out Castle & Falcon’s Jack Oldfield and Kerri Nuttall 2-1 before a 2-0 quarter-final victory over Railway Club’s Craig Roberts and Kelly Stevens.
Their semi-final clash pitted Esam against Wheatsheaf team-mate Neil Ward and Jo Ward and it was a tight affair with Esam and Castle & Falcon Bangers’ Walker securing a place in the final with a slender 2-1 win.
Their opponents in the final were RHP Darts of Hazzard’s Paul Gallacher and Donna Stevens, who reached the final without dropping a leg following successive 2-0 victories over Dave Thompson and Di Nuttall, and Martin Fryer and Stacey Grand-Scrutton, before a brace of finishes from Stevens helped them secure another 2-0 win in their semi-final clash with Kevin Rose and Karen Whittaker.
The final was a fitting end to a competitive night of darts with the match needing a deciding leg to determine the winner in a tight encounter.
The opening leg saw Esam give his side the early advantage as he holed out on double-8 with their rivals lying in wait for a shot at double-top. The second leg saw the RHP pairing respond by outscoring their opponents and, with their rivals still requiring 108, Gallacher drew his side level as he checked out on 10 with a single-2, double-4 finish.
Esam and Walker edged ahead again in the third after both sides saw chances come and go before Walker sunk double-2 with the opposition requiring 9. The fourth leg saw the two pairings matching each other in the scoring stakes but this time it was Gallacher who ensured the match would go to a decider as he checked out on 32 with Esam waiting in vain for a shot at 36.
The fifth and final leg continued in the same vein with neither pairing able to pull ahead but after Stevens had just failed to take out 61, leaving Gallacher waiting in hope for a shot at 32, up stepped Esam who held his nerve to land double-8 to clinch a hard-fought victory 3-2 and secure the mixed pairs crown.
Results: Mixed Pairs first round: N Ward/ J Ward 2-0 S Willis/ F Paterson; J Esam/ M Walker 2-1 J Oldfield/ K Nuttall; C Roberts/ K Stevens 2-0 C Brown/ D Braithwaite; M Glover/ D Walker 2-0 L Hubbard/ K Buttong; JJ Ward/ D Thompson 1-2 K Rose/ K Whittaker; P Gallacher/ D Stevens 2-0 D Thompson/ D Nuttall; A Wallis/ F Lawrence 0-2 M Fryer/ S Grand-Scrutton.
Quarter-finals: J Tooke/ L Wilkinson 0-2 N Ward/ J Ward; J Esam/ M Walker 2-0 C Roberts/ K Stevens; M Glover/ D Walker 1-2 K Rose/ K Whittaker; P Gallacher/ D Stevens 2-0 M Fryer/ S Grand-Scrutton.
Semi-finals: N Ward/ J Ward 1-2 J Esam/ M Walker; K Rose/ K Whittaker 0-2 P Gallacher/ D Stevens.
Final: J Esam/ M Walker 3-2 P Gallacher/ D Stevens.
