The County started their season in the worst possible way with a hefty 23-13 defeat at the hands of Champions Yorkshire. Always a difficult fixture for any County but to start your season off with that is a tough act. Ladies B had two winners in their section with Marian Conway and Lady of the Match Denise Keyte. Only three winners in the Mens B with Rob Hawker, Mangal Singh and the Man of the Match Ian McFarlane on his return to County Darts. That was the end of a very tough day for the Bears but with a little bit of luck we may have had a few more points. 13-5 down overnight the Ladies A had to scrap for their two points as Yorkshire seemed to be pulling out all the stops. Wins came from Donna Pinch and Lady of the Match the New Ladies Manager Sue Gulliver. Mens A got off to a disastrous start with only one win form the first six with Mark Westgarth taking a fine win. However a back six for the County where we gained all but one of the games with wins from Noel Grant, Bobby Nixon, Antony Allen, Mark Strong and Man of the MatchNigel Heydon on his return to the County stage with a 32.32. The A side were superb throughout and maybe could and should have taken a few more but a running average of 27.56 is impressive to say the least. Onto the next battle with newly promoted Nottinghamshire.
