The First of this season's charity cups takes place in the Masonic this Saturday afternoon with the Davie Cooper Memorial Open Singles. Raising money for both the local RNLI and Fisherman's Mission, it is sure to be another fun day. As well as the main competition, there will be raffle prizes and other games such as a coin push on offer to all. Names in by 2.30pm.

With both the 'A' and 'B' leagues seeing quite a few postponements early doors, it is hard to get a true indication of the main contenders just yet. The Legion and Exiles are tied in top spot, with the Legion edging it on game difference just now. The Untouchables are however poised to leapfrog them both should they win their two games in hand. The Wanderers are clear top of the 'B' league having beaten two of the main challengers in recent weeks, although Quoyburray are only 2 points behind in second. Once all matches are caught up, the 'B' league could very well look completely different.

180s were scored by: Paul Foubister, Graham Firth, Stevie Garner, Ben Hogan, Bruce Moar, Stevie Linklater, Ian Linklater, Jamie Rendall, Keith Brumpton, Iain Wilkie, Raymond Foubister, Ivan Rendall, Ian Findlay (two), Gary Wilson (two), Gordy Rendall (two), Brian Moar (two), Trevor Shearer (three), Robbie Stanger (three), Kevin Gray (five). There were other big visits of 171, 174 and 177 from Toby Penwarden, Kevin Peace and Josh Alexander respectively.

High Checkouts: Kenny Gunn 100, Michael Montgomery 100, Karl Scott 101, Trevor Shearer 108, Ian Linklater 112, Keith Brumpton 115, Ryan Tulloch 146, Paul Foubister 146 and Wayne Monkman (114, 149).

Short Legs: Paul Foubister 15, Trevor Shearer 15, Bruce Moar 15, Robbie Stanger 15, Wayne Monkman 15, Jamie Drever 14, Alan Gray 13, Stevie Garner 13 and Kevin Gray (15, 15, 13).

Results:

'A' League:

Tankerness 6, Ale Stars 6

Sanday 6, OGC 6

Legion 12, Muppets 0

Exiles 3, Untouchables 9

'B' League:

Murray Arms 1, Toonies 11

Young Loons 8, Vikings 4

EMYFC 2, Quoyburray 10

Rough 'n' Rowdy 5, Bilco Boys 7

Wanderers 7, Sands 5

Quoyburray 7, Quoyburray B 5

Fixtures:

'A' League:

Muppets v Ale Stars

Legion v OGC

Sanday v Untouchables

Tankerness v Exiles

'B' League:

Quoyburray B v Toonies

EMYFC v Vikings

Bilco Boys v Shandy Bass

Rough 'n' Rowdy v Quoyburray

Young Loons v Sands

Murray Arms v Wanderers

Saturday November 9, Davy Cooper Memorial Cup (open), Masonic, 2.30pm

Pit Stop Cup, runner-up Ian Findlay, league president Robbie Norquoy, winner Robbie Stanger.

The Orkney Golf Club played host on Friday evening to the first of this season's ranking points competitions, with 39 eager souls toeing the oche in the Pitstop Cup in a bid to earn a place in the intercounty team for the trip to Shetland in April.

A top heavy draw so some hard hitting ties early on. Kevin Gray and Stevie Garner have been topping the individual statistics tables since the season started, so all eyes were on their first round tie. Kevin started with a 180, but it was Stevie who would go on to progress 3-0. Robbie Stanger and Bruce Moar played magnificantly to battle through to meet each other in the first semi-final, where Robbie was just too hot to handle, winning 4-0.

There are no easy games in the KDDL these days and, whilst the bottom half of the draw looked easier on paper, nobody was progressing without working hard for it. But for missed doubles, Martin Peace could have reversed his 3-0 defeat to Stevie Linklater in their quarter-final. Ian Findlay had a pretty tough run too, beating James Flett, Ryan Tulloch and Gary Wilson to meet Stevie in their semi. A veteran of many ranking finals, Stevie was hoping his experience would help but Ian was determined to break his ranking final virginity, and his scoring was on point as he won 4-2.

With both finalists having been in fine form, it was a shock that the standard in the opening few legs was pretty poor, with both players winning one apiece. As the match progressed, both improved their standard of play, but Robbie was beginning to really find his scoring form, deservedly coming out on top by 5 legs to 1.

180s were scored by: Jack Kirkpatrick, Kevin Sarling, Stuart Thomson, Brian Stevenson, Brian Moar, Keith Brumpton, Keith Bain, Wilfie Tulloch, Ryan Tulloch, Ian Findlay, Robbie Stanger, Paul Foubister, Wayne Monkman, Kevin Peace, Erland Ritch (two), Kenny Gunn (two), Erlend Lennie (two), Trevor Shearer (two), Brett Dickinson (two), Billy Ward (two), Ian Linklater (two), Martin Peace (two), Bruce Moar (three), Stevie Garner (four) and Kevin Gray (five).

High Checkouts: Aaron Mitchell 100, Kevin Gray 101, Jamie Drever 106, Keith Brumpton 108, Ryan Tulloch 109, Billy Ward 117, Kevin Peace 120, Robbie Stanger 122, Martin Peace 126, Bruce Moar (100, 101), Ian Findlay (100, 107) and Stevie Linklater (100, 126).

Short Legs: Robbie Stanger/Billy Ward 15, Stevie Garner/Gary Wilson 15, Robbie Stanger 15, Bruce Moar/Stevie Linklater 14 and Kevin Gray (15, 15, 13).

Results:

'A' League: Ale Stars 2, Exiles 10

OGC 7, Tankerness 5

Muppets 0, Sanday 12

Untouchables 7, Legion 5

'B' League: The Toonies 4, Wanderers 8

Vikings 3, Murray Arms 9

Shandy Bass 4, Young Loons 8

Sands 9, Rough 'n' Rowdy 3

Pitstop Cup Final: Robbie Stanger 5, Ian Findlay 1

Fixtures:

'A' League: Ale Stars v Sanday

OGC v Muppets

Untouchables v Tankerness

Exiles v Legion

'B' League: The Toonies v Young Loons

Vikings v Quoyburray B

Shandy Bass v EMYFC

Quoyburray v Bilco Boys

Sands v Murray Arms

Wanderers v Rough 'n' Rowdy

Saturday November 9, Davy Cooper Memorial Open Cup, Masonic, names by 2.30pm

Tom Notman Cup Final: Erland Ritch 2, Bruce Moar 1, cup presented by league president Robbie Norquoy, left.

The focus in the KDDL this week will be on the opening ranking points competition of the season, the Pitstop Cup, in the Orkney Golf Club this Friday. With that in mind, it was obvious from the scores registered in the league that players are ramping up their practice routines.

In the Williamsons Butchers 'A' League, it is the Exiles who have set the early pace, notching up another win over last seasons runners up the Orkney Golf Club. Defending champions Sanday lost out to the Legion, whilst newcomers to the top table Tankerness hammered the Muppets.

The Wanderers have run rampant at the start of the 'B' League, recording their second consecutive whitewash as they defeated Vikings. The battle of the newly formed teams saw Rough 'n' Rowdy inflict a reasonably heavy defeat on the Young Farmers. Murray Arms returned to winning ways with victory over Shandy Bass whilst Young Loons and Quoyburray had to settle for a draw.

Postponements are disappointing to see this early in the season, with three games off last week. Teams are reminded that first half matches must be caught up before the end of the last week before the christmas break. Captains are also reminded to not only inform the league secretary but also the home venue.

Erland Ritch took home his second piece of individual silverware of the season on Friday evening, narrowly defeating Bruce Moar 2-1 in the final of the Tom Notman Memorial Cup, held in memory of one of the seven founding members of the KDDL. The old league format of 301 double start, best of 3 legs is not to everyone's taste, but gives anyone a great chance to win as seen by the varied number of winners over time, but in recent years it generally has had a poor turnout. However for the second year running, entries were in the high 20's which is pleasing to see.

180s were scored by: Erlend Lennie, Wayne Monkman, Simon Parry, Nicol Gray, Kieran Doherty, Iain Wilkie, Ross McQuillan, Glen Foubister, Kevin Gray (two), Erland Ritch (three) and Trevor Shearer (three). Jamie Tulloch had a score of 177 whilst Erland lennie also registered 171.

High Checkouts: Brett Dickinson 100, Bruce Moar 100, Trevor Shearer 104, Erland Ritch 106, Martin Peace 107, Gary Wilson 112, Kevin Gray 115, Gordy Rendall 116, Simon Parry 120, Declan MacLeod 120, Brian Moar 130, Keith Brumpton 138, Daryl Robertson (102, 119) and Stevie Linklater (120, 160)

Short Legs: Paul Foubister/Trevor Shearer 15, Keith Brumpton/Simon Parry 15

Results:

Tom Notman Cup Final: Erland Ritch 2, Bruce Moar 1

'A' League: Exiles 8, OGC 4

Tankerness 10, Muppets 2

Legion 9, Sanday 3

'B' League: Wanderers 12, Vikings 0

Murray Arms 9, Shandy Bass 3

Young Loons 6, Quoyburray 6

Rough 'n' Rowdy 10, EMYFC 2

Fixtures:

'A' League: Tankerness v Ale Stars

Sanday v OGC

Legion v Muppets

Exiles v Untouchables

'B' League: Murray Arms v Toonies

Young Loons v Vikings

Quoyburray B v Shandy Bass

EMYFC v Quoyburray

Rough 'n' Rowdy v Bilco Boys

Wanderers v Sands

Friday October 25, Pitstop Cup (Ranking), Orkney Golf Club, 7.30pm

Saturday November 9, Davy Cooper Memorial Cup (open), Masonic, 1.30pm

The first week of action in the Kirkwall and District darts leagues showed that many of the players had shaken of the rustiness from the summer, with some great darts on show. 'A' league debutants Ale Stars had their first taste of the big time, with Kevin Gray putting them to the sword with some stellar scoring and finishing in the Legion's 10-2 win. Also making their top tier debut were Tankerness, who fared considerably better as they started their campaign against current Orkney team champions Sanday and earned themselves a draw. Having lost their best player Damian Stout to Sanday, the Muppets were expected to struggle this season and they were whitewashed by the Exiles who have been on fire in the cup competitions. The final match between the Golf Club and Untouchables was postponed.

With 3 promotion spaces up for grabs in the 'B' league, competition will be fierce with at least seven of the twelve teams in with a realistic chance, on paper at least. Newly reformed Wanderers wasted no time in setting a marker for the campaign, whitewashing Shandy Bass in a dominant display. The Toonies narrowly missed the cut last time out and they began by bullying newcomers Rough 'n' Rowdy 11-1. A similar fate befell other new boys East Mainland Young Farmers Club against Quoyburray B, who like Wanderers, were reforming for the first time since the Covid break. With plenty potential amongst the new teams, it will be interesting to see how they develop as they gain experience. Sands will be another team in the promotion mixer and they also won 11-1 against Vikings, bettering the 10-2 win that Quoyburray had over Murray Arms. The game of the week saw relegated Bilco Boys clashing with the steadily improving Young Loons, with Bilco just edging it 7-5.

The first of this season's ranking points competitions takes place in the Orkney Golf Club next Friday evening (October 25). Points accumulated over the 7 main ranking competitions determine who gets selected for the intercounty trip to Shetland at the end of the season. They also count towards the 'B' points system for 'B' league players for their representative match against our friends from the North, being added together with points from the 3 'B' ranking points competitions.

180s were scored by: Ian Findlay, Paul Foubister, George Low, Shane Rendall, David Shearer, Ross McQuillan, Michael Montgomery, Brian Moar, Keith Brumpton, Kieran Doherty, Ivan Rendall and Kevin Gray (four). Raymond Foubister recorded a score of 171.

High Checkouts: Brian Moar 100, Karl Scott 100, Ryan Tulloch 100, Nicol Gray 102, Erlend Eunson 104, Paul Foubister 108, Davy Henderson 111, Des Gillespie 113, Iain Wilkie 122, Andrew Moar 122, Erlend Lennie 126, Erland Ritch 127, Ian Findlay 131, Kevin Gray 131 and Jamie Tulloch 142.

Short Legs: Erland Ritch 14 and Kevin Gray (12, 14, 15, 15).

Results:

'A' League: Ale Stars 2, Legion 10

Muppets 0, Exiles 12

Sanday 6, Tankerness 6

'B' League: The Toonies 11, Rough 'n' Rowdy 1

Vikings 1, Sands 11

Shandy Bass 0, Wanderers 12

Quoyburray 10, Murray Arms 2

Bilco Boys 7, Young Loons 5

EMYFC 1, Quoyburray B 11

Fixtures:

'A' League: Ale Stars v Exiles

OGC v Tankerness

Muppets v Sanday

Untouchables v Legion

'B' League: The Toonies v Wanderers

Vikings v Murray Arms

Shandy Bass v Young Loons

Quoyburray v Quoyburray B

Bilco Boys v EMYFC

Sands v Rough 'n' Rowdy

Friday October 25, Pitstop Singles (Ranking), Orkney Golf Club, names for 7.30pm

With League matches now underway, the Swanney Cup rounded off this season's team cups last Monday evening and there was a pleasing entry this time of 9 teams. As is often the case these days, the teams were split into two groups with the top teams contesting the final.

Four of the five 'A' league teams involved were drawn together in the group of death, with Sanday progressing by winning all of their games. In the other group, the Exiles were clear favourites and again won all their matches, although they were pushed hard by the Wanderers.

The final was a pretty one sided affair. Sanday did miss a few chances at doubles, but the Exiles deservedly won out 3-1 in the end.

Then on Friday evening the future talent of Orkney darts got their chance to shine in the under 30's Open Singles. 22 players entered, not all of whom are currently registered to teams, and there were some interesting tussles throughout the night. With defending champ Jamie Tulloch not entering, Josh Alexander was the only previous winner taking part. He made it through to the semi-finals but narrowly lost out to Nicol Gray. Meanwhile Kieran Doherty was continuing to show his steady improvement in the other half of the draw, beating Aidan Robertson a little more comfortably in their semi.

Unfortunately for Kieran, he found Nicol in an unforgiving mood as he continued his early season run of form to take the title 4-0. All in all, it was an encouraging evening for the future of the sport in the county.

180s were scored by: Ally Linklater, Brett Dickinson, Robbie Stanger, Aidan Robertson, Keith Brumpton, Alan Findlay, Shane Rendall, Connor Crawford, Josh Alexander (two), Kevin Gray (two), Erlend Lennie (two) and Stevie Garner (two).

High Checkouts: Erlend Lennie 100, Brett Dickinson 102, Trevor Shearer 104, Nicol Gray 104 and Brian Moar 105.

Short Legs: Brett Dickinson 15, Robbie Stanger 13 and Stevie Garner (13, 14, 15).

Results:

Swanney Cup final: Exiles 3, Sanday 1

Under 30's Open Singles Final: Nicol Gray 4, Kieran Doherty 0

Fixtures:

'A' League: Untouchables v Ale Stars

Exiles v OGC

Tankerness v Muppets

Legion v Sanday

'B' League: Sands v Toonies

Wanderers v Vikings

Murray Arms v Shandy Bass

Young Loons v Quoyburray

Quoyburray B v Bilco Boys

Rough 'n' Rowdy v EMYFC

Friday October 18, Tom Notman Singles, Legion, 7.30pm

The early season team cups in the KDDL are drawing to a close now, with three more competitions played last week. 301 double start was the format this time out and the Exiles won the 301 Challenge Cup for 'A' teams by topping their round robin group. The following night the Wanderers topped their round robin group but it had already been agreed that the top two would play out a final, which The Toonies were fortunate enough to win on the gallon.

Friday saw teams from both leagues competing for the Royal Cup, once one of the most prestigious of the team cups in the season. Disappointingly none of last season's top four teams in the top league entered, leaving only two 'A' and three 'B' to slug it out in a round robin followed by top two final. Wanderers put up a stern challenge, but it was the top league pairing of Exiles and Tankerness who made it through. Exiles took a 3-1 lead, but Tankerness fought back and eventually took the biggest prize in their history with a 4-3 win on the gallon.

The young guns get their chance to strut their stuff this Friday, with the Legion playing host to the Under 30's cup, which is open to any players aged 18 to 29. With lots of exciting young talent bursting onto the scene, it is sure to be an interesting contest to see who comes out on top.

180s were scored by: Stevie Linklater, Ray Butcher, Jamie Tulloch, Brian Moar, Gary Wilson, Erland Ritch, Aaron Mitchell, Robbie Norquoy, Stevie Garner and Simon Parry (three). Trevor Shearer had a score of 171.

High Checkouts: Jim Brown 100, Stevie Linklater 101, Robbie Norquoy 112, Kevin Sarling 114, Iain Findlay 116, Stevie Garner 146, Damian Stout 150 and Ian Linklater (100, 115).

Results:

301 Challenge Cup: Exiles won the round robin to win

301 Double Start Cup final: The Toonies 4, Wanderers 3

Royal Cup final: Tankerness 4, Exiles 3

Fixtures:

Friday October 4, Under 30's (18-29) Open Singles, Legion, 7.30pm

Week commencing Monday October 7

'A' League: Ale Stars v Legion

OGC v Untouchables

Muppets v Exiles

Sanday v Tankerness

'B' League: The Toonies v Rough 'n' Rowdy

Vikings v Sands

Shandy Bass v Wanderers

Quoyburray v Murray Arms

Bilco Boys v Young Loons

EMYFC v Quoyburray B

It was the cricket format of darts cups to play for in the KDDL last week, and it was a real mixed bag in terms of attendances at each, with the eagerness to play from the young boys putting many of the seasoned players to shame.

An abysmal entry of only three 'A' teams saw the Lynnfield cup being played as two rounds of a round robin, with the Orkney Golf Club coming out on top. However, 9 teams entered the Foubister Cup for 'B' teams the following evening, admittedly made up of smaller teams, but it was great to see they were mostly the younger members of the league. Young Loons C put up a valiant fight, but in the final the experience of the Wanderers saw them lift the trophy

Having obviously enjoyed their taste of this different format, the same youngsters all showed up on Friday evening for the Cricket Singles and Doubles, which attracted a healthy entry of 22 singles and 11 pairs. Brian Moar and Keith Brumpton made steady progress to the final but found Craig Taylor and Robbie Stanger too hot to handle, winning by three legs to nil. Meanwhile it was a family affair in the Singles final, with Bruce Moar squaring up to brother Andrew, both of whom had thrown some excellent darts to reach that stage. Unfortunately for Andrew, Bruce was in an uncompromising mood and comfortably won three nil. Another fun evening of darts and it was great to see the hunger by the young players who stayed on to play games of killer once they were all out.

180s were scored by: Josh Alexander, Keith Brumpton, Kevin Gray, Brian Moar, Robbie Stanger and Jamie Tulloch, with Bruce Moar hitting a score of 174. Four players hit 6 wickets (3 x bullseye) in one throw, they were: Aaron Mitchell, David Shearer, Josh Alexander and Jamie Tulloch.

Results:

Lynnfield Cup: Orkney Golf Club won by topping the round robin table.

Foubister Cup: Wanderers 2, Young Loons C 1

Cricket doubles: Craig Taylor and Robbie Stanger 3, Brian Moar and Keith Brumpton 0

Cricket Singles: Bruce Moar 3, Andrew Moar 0

Fixtures:

Friday September 27, Royal Cup ('A' & 'B'), Masonic, 7.30pm

Monday September 30, Swanney Cup ('A' & 'B'), Masonic, 7.30pm

Friday October 4, Under 30's (18-29) Open Singles, Legion, 7.30pm

League matches begin on Monday October 7.

Friday night saw the first of this season's singles competitions take place in the Legion, with the Jimmy Miller Memorial Open attracting an excellent entry of 57 participants. With a number of non-regular players and women amongst the entries, a few slow games made for a long night, but there were some superb darts on show from the big guns.

Stevie Garner looked unplayable at times but fell foul of Ian Linklater at the semi-final stage, with Erland Ritch disposing of Ian Findlay in the other. The final was a close affair with Ian taking a two nil lead before Erland found his finishing touch and took the title with the next four legs in succession. Jimmy himself would have enjoyed the night's entertainment and would no doubt be thrilled to see yet another different name added to the cup, continuing the theme since it's inception.

Next up is the Cricket singles and doubles tomorrow night this Friday, before seperate 'A' and 'B' cups take place on Monday and Tuesday respectively.

180s were scored by: Graham Firth, Trevor Shearer, Gary Wilson, Erlend Lennie, Erland Ritch, Ian Findlay, Ian Linklater (two), Stevie Garner (three) and Kevin Gray (four).

High Finishes came from: Graham Firth 100, Ian Findlay 100, Erland Ritch 102, Trevor Shearer 104, Brett Dickinson 110, Kenny Gunn 125, Billy Ward 125, Stevie Garner (100, 100) and Ian Linklater (100, 117).

Short Legs (15 darts or less): Brian Moar/Keith Brumpton 15, Brett Dickinson 15, Graham Firth 14, Brian Moar 14, Kevin Gray 14, Ian Findlay 14, Erland Ritch (15, 15), Ian Linklater (15, 14) and Stevie Garner (14, 14, 14).

Results:

Spiers cup: Exiles 4, Sanday 0

Jimmy Miller Memorial Open Singles: Erland Ritch 4, Ian Linklater 2

Fixtures:

Friday September 20, Cricket Singles and Doubles, Legion, 7.30pm

Monday September 23, 301 Challenge Cup ('A'), Legion, 7.30pm

Tuesday September24, 301 Double Start Cup ('B'), Masonic, 7.30pm

Friday September 27, Royal Cup ('A' & 'B'), Masonic, 7.30pm

The KDDL season kicked off last week with the Allied Hotels cup for the 'A' league teams and the Untouchables showed their intent to improve on last years third place position by dominating the competition, beating Exiles 'A' 3-0 in the final following a round robin format.

The 'B' league boys had their time to shine the following night and again round robin groups were called for due to the low entries. In a strange evening where all teams ended up on the same number of points after winning and losing one apiece, it was the two teams from the Young Loons who progressed on game difference. Young Loons 'A' proved too much for Young Loons 'B' in the final, running out 4-0 winners.

This Friday sees the first singles competition of the season, the Jimmy Miller Memorial Open, take place in the Legion, which is always a great warm up for the season ahead. Then next week it's the cricket format of darts that comes to the fore, with 'A' and 'B' cups on Monday and Tuesday respectively, then the cricket singles and doubles on the Friday evening.

180s were scored by: Kevin Gray, Ian Linklater, Bruce Moar, Neil Croy, Kevin Peace, Gary Wilson, Stevie Garner, Keith Brumpton, Andrew Rendall, Logan Peace and Ryan Wilkie.

High Finishes came from: Stevie Garner 102, Robbie Stanger, 113, Trevor Shearer 121 and Jamie Tulloch 149.

Short Legs (15 darts or less): Trevor Shearer (15), Stevie Garner (15) and Brian Moar (15).

Results:

Allied Hotels Cup: Untouchables 3, Exiles 'A' 0

St.Ola Cup: Young Loons 'A' 4, Young Loons 'B' 0

Fixtures:

Friday September 13, Jimmy Miller Memorial Open Singles, Legion, names for 7.30pm

Monday September 16, Lynnfield Cup ('A'), Masonic, 7.30pm

Tuesday September 17, Foubister Cup ('B'), Legion, 7.30pm

Friday September 20, Cricket Singles and Doubles, Legion, 7.30p

It only seems a few short weeks ago since the Orkney Darts scene closed for the summer but, after 4 months off, the local darters will once more toe the oche, starting on September 2. 

Following the AGM the 2024-25 committee is: president Robbie Norquoy; vice-president Kevin Sarling; treasurer David Henderson; secretary Brian Moar. Committee members: Craig Taylor, Ian Linklater, Mark Shearer, Robbie Stanger and Martin Peace.

Craig Taylor starts his 29th season on the committee, having joined back in 1995.

Good night on May 11th 2014 at the end of season presentation and Tattie Bogle shield which was won by Stevie Moar and Helen Corsie. When combined with the money raised at Steven Flett Memorial darts £500 will be donated from the league to Cardiac Risk in the Young for heart testing in the young in Orkney. Thanks to all for donating to raffles and prize boards. Thanks also to all who bought and sold tickets

Orkney League champions Sanday.  L to R Michael Muir (captain), Alan Gray, Trevor Shearer, Stevie Moar, Brian Moar and Paul Foubister

Orkney doubles winners Wayne Mionkman and Kevin Gray.

Orkney mixed doubles champions Gary Wilson and Noreen Bain.

Orkney Singles champion Kevin Gray.

The final domestic competition in the local darts calendar took place last Friday evening with the Kirkwall Legion playing host to the Orkney Championships – pitching the best from the West Mainland Darts Association against their counterparts from the Kirkwall & District Darts League in a grand finale.

Reaching it's conclusion first was the mixed doubles, where Noreen Bain and Gary Wilson from the Kirkwall league narrowly edged it in a final leg decider over Lorraine Sinclair and Mal Reid, winning 3-2.

Up next was the men's doubles which in truth failed to live up to it's billing, with Kevin Gray and Wayne Monkman taking the title with a 3-0 win over John Munson and Mal Reid in a match lacking the expected quality both pairs are capable of.

The standard increased for the men's singles where WMDA champion Gary Chalmers registered a 180 but, unfortunately for him, every time he scored big, Kevin Gray responded in kind, with the KDDL champ taking the title 3-0.

The night's action concluded with the team event where KDDL champions Sanday took on WMDA winners Pomona. The west mainland team put up a far sterner test than the scoreline suggested but, despite playing well throughout, they were simply outplayed by the Sanday team who ran out 11-1 victors. Playing for the Pomona were Erlend Pirie (captain), Chris Seator, Gary Aim, Sinclair Craigie, Keith Aim, Grant Nichol, Andrew Clouston and Ben Johnston. Sanday were Michael Muir (captain), Alan Gray, Trevor Shearer, Paul Foubister, Stevie Moar and Brian Moar.

The final event in the KDDL calendar is the presentation night in the Masonic on Saturday May 11. This is immediately followed by the names-out-of-the-hat Tattie Bogle Charity Mixed Doubles. All are welcome for what is always a fun end to the season where money is raised for charity and cups are filled...and emptied!

It is fair to say now that the local darts scene has fully recovered following the COVID-19 enforced hiatus and, with plenty of young talent now emerging, the future of the sport in Orkney is looking bright. The KDDL committee would like to thank all sponsors and players for their contribution, especially to those who have helped out at competitions or by allowing committee members to take much needed breaks when required.

KDDL Orkney beat Shetland 11-8 in a thrilling Inter-County. Full story on the Inter-County news and archive page.

The event was livestreamed and can be seen on the Rohallion Orkney YouTube page here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cx0wlkW3JwY

Kirkwall and District Darts League has presented its first charity cheque of the season - to the Fishermen’s Mission.

The charity was represented by Mission Area Officer for Orkney and Caithness Jackie Dodds and Assistant Operations Manager Ruth Charles, who received a cheque for £500, from money raised at the Davy Cooper Memorial Darts competition.

Pictured at the presentation with them are, back left to right, committee members David Henderson, Brian Moar, Craig Taylor, and Mark Shearer, and front row, league president Robbie Norquoy.

£500 was raised for Kirkwall RNLI at the same event, a presentation will take place in the near future.

You can find more about the Mission online here:

https://www.fishermensmission.org.uk

The Steven Flett memorial charity doubles was played on March 22 when 12 pairs entered. Final pairings were Senga & Craig Taylor vs Elizabeth Irvine & Stevie Linklater with Senga & Craig winning 3-2 and the shield for the first time.

Craig and Senga beat last years winners Robbie Stanger and daughter Charlotte on the way to the final, also beating Erlend Lennie and Gemma Alexander in the semis.

Remaining fixtures:

April 5th: League mixed doubles, Masonic. 7.30pm.

April 12th: East v West: A and B teams. Stromness Golf Club 7.30pm (team bus leaves Kirkwall Legion 6.30pm)

Thursday April 18th: LKDDL v Shetland ladies. 7.30 Kirkwall Legion.

Friday April 19th: Inter-county KDDL Orkney v Shetland Darts Association. Kirkwall Legion 7.30pm

Saturday April 20th: Anniversary Shield Open singles. Masonic 1.30pm

Friday April 26th: Orkney championship, Legion 7.30pm.

Saturday 27th April: KDDL B league challenge v Shetland Darts Association select. Lerwick Legion.

Saturday May 11th: KDDL & LKDDL trophy presentation and Tattie Bogle mixed doubles. 7.30pm

                    League Singles runner up Erlend Lennie with winner Kevin Gray.

The final ranking tournament of the season took place last Friday night in the Masonic. 

A slightly lower than expected turnout of 38 players took part in the League Singles. 

This was the final ranking tournament of the season with selection for the KDDL select team to represent the league in the annual match against Shetland up for grabs,

Some of the top players went out early on but by the semi-final stage it was regular semi finalists Kevin Gray up against Stevie Garner and Paul Foubister against the upcoming Erland Lennie. 

Kevin and Erland both won 4v1 in comfortable fashion,  the final itself produced some excellent darts but when Erland missed doubles in the 4th leg to tie up the match at 2 all Kevin took full advantage and reeled of the 2 legs in style to win 5v1 and claim his fifth title of the season and winning the league singles for the 7th time . There were 10 high checkouts on the night and 17 180s with Erland getting 5 of them . 

The ranking points were quickly added up and after a team meeting to select the 3 wildcards the following players have made the team to play shetland, with captain Craig Taylor. 

Kevin Gray, Iain Linklater, Brett Dickinson, Stevie Garner, Erland Lennie, Jaime Drever, Bruce Moar, Stevie Linklater, Brian Moar, Robbie Stanger, Wayne Monkman, and Paul Foubister,  reserves Erland Ritch, Ian Finlay, Stevie Moar, Josh Alexander. 

The B league select to play in Shetland was also finalised and is as follows, Josh Alexander, Ryan Tulloch, Davie Henderson, George low, Ali Linklater, Robbie Norquoy, Erland Eunson, Nicol Gray, Karl Scott, Jaime Marwick, Oscar Stout, and Jaime Tulloch,  Reserve Logan Peace.

Well done to all the above and good luck against the Auld Enemy. 

The final A league game was played on Monday night with the outcome deciding if it would be the Muppets who played already relegated Bilco boys, or the Murray Arms who went down in the end it was the Muppets who held onto their A league status winning 8v4 on the night to pip the Murray Arms on games difference,  so the Bilco boys and Murray Arms will drop back into the B league next season. 

Fixtures: Friday 22nd Steven Flett mixed dbls in the Kirkwall Legion names in for 7.30pm.

A league winners Sanday, P Foubister, S Moar,  M Muir, B Moar, T Shearer.

B league winners Tankerness, below, E Lennie, J Brown, R Norquoy, G low, G Miller,  E Eunson missing C Kirkpatrick and A Flett. 

The last week of the incredibly tight finish to both the A and B league season provided more twists than a roller coaster. 

In the A league the main excitement was in the Masonic with all 3 main contenders playing in the hall,

Sanday were up against the Untouchables and had to win to have any chance,  while The Legion were playing Exiles on the boards at the same time and again the Legion had to win to regain the title. 

It was advantage Sanday after the first half was completed going 4v2 up whilst the legion were loosing by the same score ,

The second half got underway and Sanday stamped their authority over the Untouchables winning the first 2 dbls matches whilst sharing the 4 singles to win 8v4 and end the Untouchables hopes, Meanwhile over in the other match the Legion new that only a stunning comeback could deny Sanday the title and when they won the first 3 games of the second half the Sanday boys were visibly turning white , but a nervy win for Stevie Garner sealed the deal and the Exiles completed the  season by winning the last 2 singles for a 7v5 victory. 

And so Sanday were crowned 2024 A league champions for their first ever title,  well done lads whilst those results allowed The Golf club who's victory over the Bilco Boys allowed them to overtake both the legion and the Untouchables for second spot and also relegated the later back to the B league. 

The final remaining rearranged match between the Muppets and the Bilco Boys will decide the other relegation place with the Muppets needing a victory to leapfrog the Murray Arms and stay up .

Meanwhile the previous Tuesday evening saw the completion of the Equally exciting B league,  the main focus was on the Golf club where Tankerness entertained The Toonies in a winner takes all showdown whilst it was possible that the looser of the match would fail to even gain promotion. 

The game was all square at half time 3v3 but Tankerness won both the doubles to move within touching distance of a first ever league win, and despite their best efforts the Toonies couldn't recover and Tankerness duly sealed the deal with a convincing 8v4 victory. 

It was a tough night for the young West lads as the Ale Stars pipped them on game difference to gain the second promotion place after a 9v3 win against Shandy Bass  The Sands won 7v5 against the Quoyburry , the Wooden Spoons drew 6 all against the Vikings whilst The Murray Arms 7v5 win against the Young loons condemned The Vikings to the wooden spoon.

So another excellent league season has almost drawn to a close and we look forward to the last ranking tournament The League Singles this Friday in the Masonic and thereafter the East v West matches and various mixed dbls and charity dbls,  

And then on Friday the 19th of April the big one in the Legion will see our Inter league team look to regain the the Trophy from Shetland in what is bound to be another high intensity evening of superb entertainment. 

Fixtures Fri 16th league singles in the Masonic names for 7.30 pm.

A huge thank you to everyone who came along to the JW Gray & Co Tennent’s Kirkwall Open.

Organised by the committee of Kirkwall & District Darts League, there were 106 entries, with players from Shetland to the Scottish Borders (making an epic drive yet again) joining local players from here in Orkney.

In total £1080 was won in prize money, with Brian Moar (£500) retaining the title he won last year, this time beating Wayne Monkman (£200) 5-4 in the final. Brian had beaten Bruce Moar in the semi, while Wayne beat Ramsay Hogg in his semi final.

The £100 for the furthest lady went to Irene Thomson, with the £100 for the furthest KDDL B player going to Jamie Drever.

Thanks to Scott Burns Kirkwall manager from sponsor JW Gray & Co who came along for the event and prize presentation. Huge thanks to Gray’s and Tennent’s for the continued support and the bar staff of the Masonic for hosting us, including Mitzi for keeping us all fed throughout the day.

More pictures, video and details can be found on the Orkney Darts Facebook page.

Winner Kevin Gray, Graham Ried who presented the trophies, runner-up  Brett Dickinson.

Last Friday saw the rearranged ER&T Craigie singles take place in the Kirkwall Legion, 

39 player's took part looking for points in the penultimate ranking tournament of the season,  there was an even split of both A and B players taking part with several of the B players gaining valuable points towards qualification for the respective inter league matches. 

By the semi-final stage it was 4 of the league's on form players who took to the oche,  the irresistible Kevin Gray beat Steve Garner 4v2 while the second semi-final had a similar score with Brett Dickinson beating teammate Robbie Stanger,  Kevin again for the second time this season proved to strong for Brett securing maximum points and the trophy with a 5v2 victory with just under an 85 average for the 7 legs , thanks must go to Graham Reid for presenting the trophy and the Legion for hosting us . The ranking points table and incredibly close league tables can be seen on the Orkney Darts Facebook page .

In the A league only 2 points now separate the top 4 with 2 sets of fixtures still to be played with massive games between those teams over the 2 weeks, 

The on form Exiles are having a big say despite being out of the reckoning , a 12v0 victory over the Muppets was followed up with a 6 all draw with the Golf Club in a catch up game which knocked the Golf Club of the top of the table, the legion drew 6 all in the main fixtures with the Golf Club while Sanday won 9v3 at the Bilco boys and the Untouchables defeated the Murray Arms 10v2 everything is to play for in the perhaps the closest finish in years.

The B league is no different although by the time this report is being read the destination of the title will be known as will the final promotion place , last weeks results saw Toonies gain a massive win 8v4 in the Sands which ended the home team's title ambitions whilst keeping the West Mainland lads two points clear of Tankerness who won 7v5 against the Vikings,  Ale Stars can still grab a promotion place after wins against Murray Arms 10v2 and Wooden Spoons 11v1 Young loons secured fifth spot with a 7v5 win against Quoyburry whilst Shandy Bass beat Wooden Spoons 8v4 . The final weeks fixtures played on Tuesday night will have decided who the champions are with a title decider between Tankerness and the Toonies in the Golf club a draw would do the new boys while anything other than a win could see the East Mainland lads loose out on not only the title but also promotion. 

There are to many 180s to mention but surely 6 from Kevin Gray 7 from Steve Garner and 8 from Robbie Stanger is worth a shout while Wayne Monkman's 170 matches the earlier one from Stevie Linklater,.

It's the big one this weekend with JW Gray &Co Tennent's Kirkwall Open taking place in the Masonic with names in for 1.30 and play getting underway at 2 pm with players coming from as far afield as the Borders and Shetland an excellent day's darts is guaranteed. 

An extra money in money out open competition has been arranged for the Masonic on Friday evening with names in for 7.30 

Fixtures Friday the 8th open singles Masonic 7.30pm

Saturday 9th JW Gray Tennent's Kirkwall Open Masonic 1.30pm

Mon 11th A league final fixtures 

Exiles v Legion,  Bilco boys v OGC , Murray Arms v Muppets, Sanday v Untouchables 

League doubles runners-up Brian and Stevie Moar, league president Robbie Norquoy, winners Kevin Gray and Wayne Monkman.

The KDDL league doubles took place in the legion last Friday evening with a healthy entry of 18 pairs,  over the the course of play some tremendous darts were thrown with Steve Garner and Gary Wilson throwing 7 perfect darts but missing out on a 9 darter with the 8th one.

By the final stages defending champions Steve and Brian Moar ousted Untouchables pair Brett Dickinson and Craig Taylor while Wayne Monkman and Kevin Gray denied Bruce and Andrew Moar a battle of the brothers as they also made it into the final,  the first 4 legs of the final were shared and Brian and Steve missed doubles in the 5th to allow the legion pair to move ahead, this was with the help of 4 180s from Kevin in the first 4 legs, a fifth 180 from Kevin in the 7th leg helped seal the deal as the legion lads ran out 5v2 winners. 

This Friday its the turn again of the B league lads with their singles cup being played in the Masonic with names in for 7.30.

The league season this year both in the A league and B league has thrown up once again two incredibly close title run ins. 

In the A league the Legion moved into pole position with an 8v4 win over former leaders Sanday while the Untouchables and the Golf club joined Sanday on 37 points 2 behind the legion with wins over the Bilco boys 12v0, and Muppets 10v2, Exiles also won 12v0 over the Murray Arms and a catch up game also saw Sanday go down 7v5 against the Golf club.

In the B league newcomers The Toonies still lead the way despite dropping more points in a 7v5 defeat to the Ale Stars who stayed in 4th spot only 3 points adrift, The Sands closed to within a point defeating Wooden Spoons 10v2, while Tankerness remain a further point behind in 3rd after a big win 11v1 over Shandy Bass, Young loons beat Vikings 8v4, and Quoyburry denied Murray Arms a first point narrowly winning 7v5 

Fixtures Friday 23rd B league singles (ranking)

A league Mon 26th Exiles v Muppets, Legion vOGC , Bilco boys v Sanday,  Murray Arms v Untouchables. 

B league Tue 27th , Vikings v Tankerness,  Wooden Spoons v Shandy Bass,  Quoyburry v Young loons,  Murray Arms 2 v Ale Stars Toonies v Sands .

180s W Monkman, B Ward, M Peace, J Rendall, R Tait, R Norquoy, S Wilson, K Peace, 

S Linklater 2, K Brumpton 2, S Thomson 2, GB Moar 2, S Moar 2, I Linklater 2, G Wilson 2, S Garner 3, T Shearer 4, R Stanger and K Gray 6,

P Foubister B Moar 177.

High checkouts,  K Peace 100, S Moar 102, J Marwick 108, K Gray 111, T Shearer 112, E Lennie 116, S Garner 116, I Linklater 118, D Firth 120, I Finlay 125, S Linklater 145, R Stanger 160, D Henderson 102,140, W Monkman 100,110,112, B Moar 100,114,118.

Winner of the Under 30's trophy was debut player Jamie Tulloch who beat John Boyd in the final. Pictured centre is KDDL vice-president Kevin Sarling.

Last weeks catch up game between defending champions Untouchables and leauge leaders Sanday threw the direction of the A league title back in the melting pot . A tight match saw the champions sneak a 7v5 win , thus opening up the title race for themselves ,The Legion who won 9v3 in the Murray Arms and the Golf club who's match versus Sanday was postponed, the only other game to go ahead saw Exiles winning 9v3 to consolidate 5th place whilst the Untouchables v Muppets was also postponed,  

Meanwhile in the B league Tankerness kept their hopes of promotion alive with a 7v5 win over the Sands, Ale Stars had a good 10v2 win over the Vikings whilst the Toonies held on to top spot also winning 10v2 against Murray Arms 2, Young loons won 7v5 over the wooden spoons and Quoyburry recorded a similar win against Shandy Bass .

There will be some massive games in both league's over the course of the last third of the season .

Last Friday it was the turn of the young guns in not only the Kirkwall league's but also from all over the county as the under 30s open was played out. 28 entrants played out an excellent competition with newcomer Jamie Tulloch making the final at his first tournament after coming through 4v3 over favourite Josh Alexander whilst John Boyd who had travelled in from Sanday defeated the on form Ryan Wilkie 4v1 to make it through to face Jamie. 

It was Jamie who kept his form going with a fine 5v1 victory for what's sure not to be his last triumph. 

This Friday the 16th sees the league doubles take place in the Legion with names in for 7.30pm.

180s this week were from B Ward, G Wilson, D Firth, A Firth J Marwick, K Learmonth, G low, D Henderson, L Peace, J Tulloch 2 , R Stanger 2, I Linklater 2, J Alexander 2 , R Tulloch 2, J Tulloch 2, Shane Rendall 3 .

S Griffiths 174, 

High checkouts S Rendall 100, A Mitchell 111, I Wilkie 108 , J Drever 117, A brown 126, S Wilson 139, T Shearer 140, A Finlay 102,126, B Dickinson 106 114, J Tulloch 100, 128 and 154, 

Fixtures mon 12th Exiles v Murray Arms,  legion v Sanday,  OGC v Muppets, Bilco boys v Untouchables, 

Tue 13th Vikings v Young loons,  Wooden Spoons v Sands,  Tankerness v Shandy Bass, Toonies v Ale Stars,.

We'd 14th Quoyburry v Murray Arms 2 .

Taylor Singles, from left, runner up Steve Gardner, five times in a row winner Kevin Gray, with cup donor Craig Taylor.

Last Friday evening saw the first ranking tournament of the second half of the season the Craig Taylor singles taking place in the kirkwall Legion. 

A lower than expected turnout of 39 players toed the oche in search of more points in the scramble to represent the league in the annual challenge matches versus the Shetland County team's with just over half the entries coming from B league players of which several collected points towards selection for their match. 

By the semi final stage it was regular finalists Kevin Gray who had a tight win over Iain Linklater whilst the other semi final saw Steve Garner just pipping Ian Finlay in another tight match, the final itself was another cracking game with the players swapping legs at 3 all Steve was looking like taking the important 7th leg but Kevin had other ideas and a 115 checkout snatched the leg and he followed up with a 116 to win 5v3 it was another excellent display of composure from Kevin and really tough on Steve who actually outscored Kevin and had the higher average. 

This Friday sees the under 30s singles take place also in the Legion with names in for 7.30pm.

In the league there were comfortable wins for the top 4 with Sanday winning 9v3 over the Muppets, legion 8v4 v the Bilco boys, Untouchables 8v4 against The Exiles and The Golf club whitewashed The Murrays 12v0.

In the B league Tankerness slipped of the top spot again loosing 8v4 versus a resurgent Young loons, The Toonies 8v4 over the QB and Sands 10v2 versus the Shandy Bass both moved above them whilst both the other games were postponed and should be rearranged at the earliest possible date.

Fixtures for next Monday 12th are: Exiles v Murray,  Legion v Sanday, OGC v The Muppets and Bilco boys v Untouchables. 

Tuesday 13th:  Vikings v Young loons, Wooden Spoons v The Sands, Tankerness v Shandy Bass,  Quoyburry v Murray Arms 2, and The Toonies v Ale Stars .

180s were scored by GB Moar,  S Thomson,K Brumpton, E Ritch, J Alexander, C Taylor, T Shearer, S Moar, K Sarling, B Ward, W Small, R Ballantyne, K Holland, N Gray, G low , I Linklater 2, S Linklater 2, R Tulloch 2, B Dickinson 2, R Wilkie 2, W Monkman 3, I Finlay 3, S Garner 3, K Gray 4, R Stanger 5, 

I Linklater and W Monkman 177, A Nicolson,  E Lennie and P Foubister 171 

High checkouts J Drever, M Montgomery and J Alexander 100, M Peace 101, R Norquoy 104, I Linklater 105, B Moar 107, A Finlay 108, T Shearer 110, A Moar 118, R Stanger 132, N Gray 140, J Flett 156, K Gray 104,115, and 116 .

Jaimie Drever and Ryan Tulloch won the B league doubles for the second year in a row , beating Ryan Wilkie and Karl Scott 5v3 in a tight final.

The top match in the A league this week was postponed between Untouchables and Sanday,  the legion had the opportunity to close the gap but failed to capitalise in a 6 all draw with the Exiles, the Golf club closed up with a comfy 9v3 win over their Golf buddies the Bilco boys whilst the Muppets moved out of the bottom two with their second win in a row 8v4 over the Murray Arms.

In the B league Tankerness remain on top after an excellent second half gave them an 8v4 win over fellow league contenders the Ale Stars Toonies remain a point behind beating Shandy Bass 9v3 whilst a further point behind them are the Sands who were held to a 6 all draw by the Young loons , Quoyburry won 9v3 against the Vikings whilst at the bottom Murray Arms 2 remain pointless narrowly going down 5v7 v Wooden Spoons.

Friday night saw the B league doubles take place in the Masonic with a good turnout of 18 pairs , favourites and defending champions Ryan Tulloch and Jaime Drever came through a tough top half of the draw to face off against Ryan Wilkie and Karl Scott, 

Ryan and Karl took the first of the nine legs but Jamie and Ryan T then hit back to go 3v1 up including a 14 dart leg , the next 3 legs were then shared with the score at 4v3 to the sands boys and their overall heavier scoring saw them take the win 5v3 for their second win in a row. 

President Robbie Norquoy presented the trophies and cup and thanked the Masonic for hosting and Stevie Linklater for marking the final and helping to run the tournament on the night. 

This Friday sees the Craig Taylor singles (ranking) taking place in the legion with names in for 7.30, 

And the following Friday the under 30s takes place also in the legion.

League fixtures mon5th Bilco boys v Exiles,  Murray Arms v legion, Sanday v OGC (played on the 31st Jan, ), Untouchables v Muppets 

Tue 6th Ale Stars v Vikings, Young Loons v Wooden Spoons,  Tankerness v Sands , Murray Arms 2 v Toonies,  Shandy Bass v Quoyburry. 

Last weeks 180s 

A Mitchell 2, GB Moar,  S Garner 2, K Gunn, W Monkman,  D Firth, K Holland,  J Brown, L Peace, R Macpherson, J Drever 2, J Alexander. 

High checkouts. K Holland 100,110, J Alexander 109,156, J Brown 111,123, G Low 106, E Lennie 138, J Drever 110,120, A Pirie 132 , G Reid 107, R Tulloch 127.

The ER&T Craigie Cup, an A&B league ranking cup, has been rearranged until later in the season, see post below….please also note change of venue to the Kirkwall Legion.

We will also advertise this closer to the time as a reminder.

Also, the mixed doubles will also be rescheduled with details to follow when arranged.

DUE TO SNOW AND ROAD CONDITIONS THIS CUP BEEN POSTPONED 

FURTHER DETAILS TO FOLLOW ONCE REARRANGED

The first week of the second half of the Kirkwall and District darts league got off with a bang,  halfway leaders the Legion were well beaten in the Golf Club by 9v3 as Sanday moved back to the top with an 8v4 win over the Bilco boys,  the Untouchables stayed in touch with a comfortable 11v1 win over the Murray Arms whilst Exiles Muppets was pp .

In the B league Tankerness look to have ended the Quoyburry challenge with a 9v3 win while all the other top 4 also had comfortable wins .

Monday the22nd sees another humdinger with Untouchables home to Sanday other fixtures for the week are legion v Exiles , Ogc v Bilco boys , Muppets v Murray Arms, 

B league 

Tuesday 23th Qb v Vikings,  MA2 v wooden spoons,  Ale Stars v Tankerness, Young loons v Sands and Shandy baas v The Toonies. 

Last Friday saw the legion doubles played with Stevie Linklater doing the double with brother Iain in a tight 3v2 win over Martin Peace and Ian Finlay with 14 pairs having entered. 

This Friday in the St Andrews Hall he ER & T CRAIGIE Singles is played with everyone looking for more ranking points for both the main Inter league match v The Shetland league and also for our B league team selection for their challenge match v a Shetland B select , There will be a bar in the hall and doors will open at 6.30 names in for 7.30.

The following week sees the B league dbls played with more ranking points available for the B select ,

180s were scored by R Stanger,B Dickinson, A Green,  K Gray, K Brumpton, I Finlay, A Savage, L Peace, G Linklater, J Drever, M  Montgomery and 2 from T Shearer and  a 171 from A Brown

High checks K bain 124,S Moar 154,K Gray 110,D Firth 101,S Linklater 100, GB Moar 142,J Alexander 108,O Stout 118,W Small 126,S Griffiths 102 and J Drever 100 

Last Friday saw the Legion singles played with an excellent turnout of 19 players taking part .

By the final stage it was two of Kirkwalls on form players players Stevie Linklater and Bruce Moar both from the OGC team after a tight tussle it was Stevie who came out on top by 3v2.

Fixtures for this coming week include the legion dbls this Friday the 12th and the first of the second half ranking competitions , the ERandT Craigie singles in the St Andrews Community Centre on Friday the 19th ,

Fixtures for Mon 15th include a belter between the Legion and Untouchables, and other fixtures are Exiles v OGC , Bilco Boys v Muppets,  Murray Arms v Sanday .

Tues16th B league, 

Vikings v The Toonies,  Wooden Spoons v Quoyburry,  Tankerness v M Arms 2 , Sands v Ale Stars , Young Loons v Shandy Bass.

The Williamsons Butchers sponsored 'B' league reached its halfway point last week and things could not be tighter at the top, with a real four horse race in progress. Sands are top with both Ale Stars and The Toonies just a point adrift, with Tankerness two points further behind. Meanwhile Quoyburray and Young Loons remain just about in contention but can afford no more slip ups when the action resumes.

Sanday remain top of the 'A' league but only by two points following a narrow loss to closest challengers the Legion. The Untouchables demolished Bilco Boys to keep their slim hopes alive whilst the Golf Club will need to ensure they win their match in hand to stay in contention.

All league matches resume in the week beginning Monday 8th January.

The Kirkwall and District Darts League committee would like to wish all players and followers of the league a very merry Christmas and all the best for a prosperous new year.

180s were scored by:

Paul Foubister, Ian Linklater, Craig Taylor, Daryl Robertson, Ian Findlay, Wayne Monkman, Oskar Stout, George Low, Davy Henderson, Jamie Drever, Ryan Tulloch, Ally Linklater, Jamie Marwick, Gary Wilson (two), Kevin Gray (two) and Brian Moar (two).

High Finishes came from:

Kieran Learmonth 113, Aidan Robertson 114, Stevie Moar 114, Gavin Linklater 120, Erlend Lennie 146 and Kevin Gray (100, 134).

Short Legs (15 darts or less):

Brett Dickinson 15, Billy Ward 14, Paul Foubister 14, Ian Linklater/Craig Taylor 14, Wayne Monkman 12, Ryan Tulloch 11 and Kevin Gray 15, 14.

Results:

'A' League:

Murray Arms 1, Exiles 11

Sanday 5, Legion 7

Untouchables 12, Bilco Boys 0

'B' League:

Vikings 5, Wooden Spoons 7

The Toonies 7, Tankerness 5

Quoyburray 3, Sands 9

MA2 2, Young Loons 10

Ale Stars 9, Shandy Bass 3

With cup fixtures finished for the calendar year, the focus swung back towards the leagues this week, with all outstanding fixtures caught up in addition to the scheduled matches.

Sanday top the Williamsons Butchers 'A' league with 9 wins out of 9 so far, but there is a long way to go in a league where any of the top 5 are more than capable of beating each other. Sanday started the week with a high pressure but narrow win over Orkney Golf Club, before a hugely important victory over defending champions Untouchables later in the week. The Legion currently sit five points adrift despite a thumping win over the Murray Arms. The Bilco Boys showed continued improvement even though they lost out to the Exiles, whilst the Muppets still occupy the wooden spoon position following defeat to the Untouchables.

Things are incredibly tight down in the 'B' league with a measly three points separating the top five teams as they race for the two promotion slots. Robbie Norquoy hit the seasons highest checkout thus far, his 167 finish helping Tankerness to a win over the Wooden Spoons and leapfrogging the others to first place at this time. The Sands narrowly lost out to the The Toonies but remain one point clear of them and the Ale Stars in second place. Sitting a further point behind in fifth are Quoyburray who recorded a win over the Young Loons.

The 'B' league starts their festive break a week earlier than the 'A', with all league matches resuming in the week beginning Monday 8th January.

180s were scored by:

Gary Wilson, Daryl Robertson, Erland Ritch, Keith Brumpton, Brian Moar, Damian Stout, Brett Dickinson, Kieran Learmonth, Josh Alexander, Alan Findlay, Ryan Wilkie, Jamie Marwick, Malcolm Coghill, Shane Rendall, Wayne Monkman (two), Ian Findlay (two), Stevie Linklater (two), Robbie Stanger (two), Nicol Gray (two), Ian Linklater (three) and Billy Ward (three). Billy Ward also registered a score of 171, with Paul Foubister scoring 177.

High Finishes came from:

Bruce Moar 100, Kevin Gray 101, Adam Savage 101, Allan Brown 103, Brett Dickinson 104, Brian Moar 110, Erlend Lennie 117, Davy Henderson 131, Gavin Linklater 148, Robbie Norquoy 167, Stevie Linklater (106, 107) and Billy Ward (108, 110).

Short Legs (15 darts or less):

Davy Henderson 15, Kevin Gray 15, Bruce Moar 15, Kevin Gray/Wayne Monkman 15, Craig Taylor/Ian Linklater 15, Erland Ritch 14, Billy Ward/Robbie Stanger 13 and Brett Dickinson/Robbie Stanger 13.

Results:

'A' League:

Exiles 8, Bilco Boys 4

Legion 11, Murray Arms 1

OGC 5, Sanday 7

Muppets 3, Untouchables 9

Sanday 8, Untouchables 4

'B' League:

Tankerness 10, Vikings 2

Shandy Bass 10, Wooden Spoons 2

Sands 5, The Toonies 7

Young Loons 4, Quoyburray 8

Ale Stars 11, MA2 1

Wooden Spoons 1, Tankerness 11

Vikings 7, MA2 5

Fixtures:

Week beginning December 18th

'A' League:

Exiles v Sanday,

Legion v Muppets

OGC v Untouchables

Bilco Boys v Murray Arms

Week beginning January 8th

'A' League:

Muppets v Exiles

OGC v Legion

Sanday v Bilco Boys

Untouchables v Murray Arms

'B' League:

Shandy Bass v Vikings

The Toonies v Wooden Spoons

Quoyburray v Tankerness

MA2 v Sands

Ale Stars v Young Loons

Back row: KDDL committee members Robbie Norquoy (President), Robbie Stanger, Kevin Sarling (Vice-President), Brian Moar (Secretary) and Craig Taylor.

Front Row: Semi finalist Ian Linklater, Runner up Brett Dickinson, Winner Kevin Gray and Semi finalist Stevie Linklater. 

The midway point in this season's ranking points events was reached with the Festive open singles taking place in the Masonic on Friday evening. If ever there was an advert for the standard of darts in Orkney, this would have been it.

180s and high checkouts were raining in from the word go, with some serioulsy tasty encounters thrown up by the draw. 'B' league players put up a great account of themselves with six earning ranking points, the pick of which were Robbie Norquoy and Derrick Firth who both got as far as the quarter finals.

The last four remaining were some of this season's best thus far in the league stats. Kevin Gray saw off Stevie Linklater 4-2 while Brett Dickinson punished missed opportunites from Ian Linklater to progress 3-2 to his first ranking event final.

Both players had been on fire the whole week, and by the end of the final Brett would finish the week with two 180s, three high checkouts and having been involved in four legs of 15 darts or less. Hugely impressive but completely dwarfed by Kevin who would be posting seven 180s, three big finishes and ten leg contributions of 15 darts or less. Utter Madness!

Unfortunately for Brett, Kevin was just too hot to handle right from the start. As Kevin reeled away to a 3-0 lead, Brett's throw was showing signs of nerves as he struggled to release his dart properly throughout the match. Had the fourth leg not been ruined by numerous missed darts at double from both, which Brett eventually took, Kevin could potentially have registered a 90+ average by the end. As it was, Kevin quickly dealt the killer blow, cruising the last two legs to take home the trophy and £100 first prize with a 5-1 victory. Disappointment for Brett, but he will take a lot of experience and encouragement from reaching his first final and, considering his current form, it is unlikely to be his last.

The annual Festive Prize Raffle was drawn on the night with Sandy Davidson winning the big drinks hamper and Morag Linklater claiming the second prize hamper. The KDDL committee would like to thank all who bought and sold tickets, which is a vital fundraiser each season.

180s were scored by:

Robbie Stanger, Ian Linklater, Gary Wilson, Gordy Rendall, Bruce Moar, Ray Butcher, Jim Brown, Jamie Drever, Josh Alexander, Alan Findlay, Keith Brumpton, Ian Findlay (two), Dennis Watt (two), Brett Dickinson (two), Ryan Tulloch (three), Stevie Linklater (four) and Kevin Gray (seven)

High Finishes came from:

Jim Brown 100, Brian Moar 101, Paul Foubister 105, Andy Green 106, Wayne Monkman 108, Karl Scott 114, Ross MacPherson 118, Ian Linklater 125, Lee MacPherson 126, Jamie Marwick 149, Jamie Drever (100, 109), Michael Scollie (104, 113), Trevor Shearer (114, 116), Kevin Gray (101, 113, 158) and Brett Dickinson (104, 108, 124).

Short Legs (15 darts or less):

Brian Moar 15, Stevie Linklater 15, Jim Brown 15, Wayne Monkman 15, Gordy Rendall 15, Brett Dickinson/Ian Linklater 15, Dennis Watt 14, Jamie Drever 14, Brett Dickinson (15, 15, 15), Kevin Gray/Wayne Monkman (15, 15, 14) and Kevin Gray (15, 15, 15, 15, 15, 13, 12, 11).

Results:

Festive Singles: Kevin Gray 5, Brett Dickinson 1

'A' League:

Untouchables 10, Exiles 2

Bilco Boys 0, Legion 12

Murray Arms 3, OGC 9

Sanday 8, Muppets 4

'B' League:

Vikings 3, Sands 9

The Toonies 4, Young Loons 8

Quoyburray 7, Ale Stars 5

MA2 4, Shandy Bass 8

Fixtures:

'A' League:

Murray Arms v Exiles

Sanday v Legion

Muppets v OGC

Untouchables v Bilco Boys

'B' league:

Vikings v Wooden Spoons

The Toonies v Tankerness

Quoyburray v Sands

MA2 v Young Loons

Ale Stars v Shandy Bass

Albyn Videogames Shield presentation photo L to R:  Oskar Stout, Josh Alexander and Robbie Norquoy KDDL president.

With places up for grabs in the 'B' intercounty team to face Shetland at the end of April next year, it was time for the 'B' league players to show what they can do in the first of their ranking competitions last Friday, the Albyn Videogames Shield. Points from the three 'B' league specific ranking competitions are added to those gained from the main ranking points events,with the top 12 players qualifying for the trip north.

31 players entered, with some tasty first round draws produced. Ally Linklater quickly dispatched last weeks main event runner-up Erlend Lennie early doors, blowing the top quarter of the draw wide open, which ranking event debutant Oskar Stout capitalised on. Meeting him in the first semi-final was George Low, who had dispatched the on-form Ben Hogan in the quarters, but it was Oskar who was to progress with a 4-1 victory.

Jamie Marwick had been on fire all week and he made steady progress to the semi's, hitting some big finishes along the way. Josh Alexander would be his opponent, having come through an unfeasibly tough draw by beating Davy Henderson, Jamie Drever and Nicol Gray, all of whom would have been potential winners at the start of the evening. Josh once again proved too strong, running out 4-2 winner.

The Toonies were only formed this season so it was perhaps a surprise to see two teammates slugging it out in the final. Josh has been one of the players to watch this past year, with numerous victories including the under 30s cup and Davy Cooper singles and his greater experience was to prove vital. Oskar played well but heavier scoring from Josh was the difference as he ran away with it, winning 5-0.

This friday the Masonic plays host to the Festive Open Singles, the last ranking event of the calendar year, which also carries with it a £100 first prize. The annual KDDL festive raffle will also be drawn on the evening.

180s were scored by: Stevie Garner, Gary Wilson, Erland Ritch, Kevin Peace, Stevie Linklater, Keith Bain, Martin Peace, James Flett, Andrew Moar, Brett Dickinson, Billy Ward, Ally Linklater, Toby Penwarden, Oskar Stout, Logan Peace, Josh Alexander, Jamie Marwick, Kevin Gray (two), Nicol Gray (two), Dennis Watt (three) and Robbie Stanger (four). Erlend Lennie also registered a score of 171.

High Finishes came from: Wayne Small 100, Andrew Moar 100, Ryan Tait 100, Gary Wilson 104, Ian Findlay 104, George Low 105, Kevin Gray 106, Davy Henderson 111, Allan Brown 113, Gordy Rendall 115, John Thomson 116, Josh Alexander 121, Bruce Moar 123, Erlend Lennie 124, Scott Wilson 130, Oskar Stout (102, 112) and Jamie Marwick (100, 114 and 145).

Short Legs (15 darts or less): Bruce Moar 15, Stevie Linklater 15, Robbie Stanger 15, Jamie Marwick 15, Stevie Garner/Gary Wilson 15, Kevin Gray/Wayne Monkman 15, George Low 14, Kevin Gray 15, 14 and Brett Dickinson 15, 15 and 13.

Results:

Albyn Videogames Shield: Josh Alexander 5, Oskar Stout 0

'A' League:

Exiles 5, Legion 7

Bilco Boys 2, OGC 10

Murray Arms 8, Muppets 4

Bilco Boys 3, Untouchables 9

'B' League:

Young Loons 7, Vikings 5

Sands 8, Wooden Spoons 4

Shandy Bass 1, Tankerness 11

Ale Stars 8, The Toonies 4

MA2 2, Quoyburray 10

Fixtures:

'A' League:

Exiles v Bilco Boys

Legion v Murray Arms

OGC v Sanday

Muppets v Untouchables

'B' league:

Tankerness v Vikings

Shandy Bass v Wooden Spoons

Sands v The Toonies

Young Loons v Quoyburray

Ale Stars v MA2

Friday 1st December, Festive Open Singles (Ranking), Masonic, 7.30pm