JDC FOUNDATION TOUR RETURNS WITH A BANG IN BRISTOL & ELLESMERE PORT
Knight at the double as Lewis’ perseverance pays off on Foundation Tour
Ryan Knight won two events in the South, while Harley Lewis lost two finals in last-leg deciders in the North – before ending the weekend with a victory on another absorbing two days of Foundation Tour Phase Two action.
There are four Advanced Tour places for 2027 available from both the North and South England editions of the tour – and the quality of darts again shone through at both venues.
In addition to Knight’s double win, Jack Tidbury and Ryan Mitchell also won in the South, while Zach Strong, Louis Jones and Declan Cragg triumphed in the North before Lewis signed off with victory in the final event of the weekend.
SOUTH
EVENT 5
Ryan Knight picked up where he left off on the opening weekend of Foundation Tour action, winning Event 5 with a 5-3 win over Rory Pearce in the final.
Knight raced into a 3-0 lead before Pearce broke and then held to cut the deficit to a single leg. But for the rest of the contest, it went with the throw, with Knight getting over the line on Double 4 to seal his third event win of the tour.
He played some impressive darts throughout the event, most notably in a 3-0 win over Woody Jewell in last 16, in which Knight averaged 80.52 with a 111 checkout in the first leg and a 15-darter in the second. Pearce enjoyed a good run to his first event final of the tour, beating Jacob Godber 3-2 in the quarter-finals with a 79.88 average, winning the deciding leg with a 15-darter in which he took out 72 after hitting 135 on his previous visit.
Mason Beaven was one player who caught the eye, despite his run being halted in the last 16. He hit a 170 finish in his 3-2 last-16 win over Arjun Sharma.
RESULTS
Final:
Ryan Knight 5-3 Rory Pearce
Semi-finals:
Ryan Knight 4-1 Jack Kempster
Rory Pearce 4-2 Tom Bristow
EVENT 6
Jack Tidbury won his first event of the season after a 5-2 win over Spencer Edwards in the Event 6 final.
The match went with throw for the first five legs, with Tidbury throwing first and Edwards drawing level with a 140 checkout. Tidbury restored his lead, before Edwards responded with another big checkout – taking out 108. But that was the last leg the Welsh player won, as Tidbury held, broke, and held again to take the title.
Tidbury produced a fine performance in the semi-final, beating Mason Dower 4-1 with an 82.97 average having lost the opening leg. He also averaged 86.71 in a 3-0 win over Sander Nevelsteen in the early rounds, which included a 126 checkout.
Edwards’ run to the final was not without drama. He won five of the six matches on his way to the final in deciding legs, beating Bert Croft 4-3 in the semis and Jacob Godber 3-2 in the quarters.
Edwards was 3-2 down against Croft but came good at the crucial time to seal the win. He had also trailed both Archie Bourne and Freddie Greenwood 2-1 earlier in the day.
RESULTS
Final:
Jack Tidbury 5-2 Spencer Edwards (Wal)
Semi-finals:
Jack Tidbury 4-1 Mason Dower
Spencer Edwards (Wal) 4-3 Bert Croft
EVENT 7
Ryan Mitchell won his second event of the tour as he beat Arjun Sharma 5-3 to follow up his Event 1 success from the opening weekend.
Mitchell stormed into a 3-0 lead, only for Sharma to get off the mark by hitting Double 1 – and then hitting Double 16 to move back to within a single leg. Mitchell steadied the ship by breaking, only for Sharma to break and make it 4-3. But a fourth straight break saw Mitchell clinch the title.
Mitchell had beaten Charlie Mossman 4-1 in the semis, losing the opening leg before reeling off four in a row – including a 90 checkout against the throw – to advance. Mitchell’s highest average of the day (80.44) came in the last 16 when he beat Freddie Greenwood 3-2, with a 110 checkout in the second leg.
Sharma played some fantastic darts on his way to the final, not least in producing an excellent 97.30 average in his 3-1 win over Event 6 winner Jack Tidbury in the last 16. Sharma hit winning legs of 15, 17 and 16, while Tidbury’s single leg was a 14-darter as he averaged 86.24 in defeat.
RESULTS
Final:
Ryan Mitchell 5-3 Arjun Sharma
Semi-finals:
Ryan Mitchell 4-1 Charlie Mossman
Arjun Sharma 4-2 Jack Divall
EVENT 8
Ryan Knight was celebrating again at the end of the weekend, as he had been at the start, after beating Jayden Moss 5-4 on Sunday afternoon.
The deciding-leg victory gave Knight his third win of the tour, as he fought back from 4-3 down to take the last two legs and the title. The first eight legs of the contest went with throw – with Knight finding the perfect time to produce the first break of throw. The highlight was a 14-dart leg in which Knight took out 100 at the first time of asking, while he showed nerves of steel to take out 53 for the match with Moss waiting on 20. Knight had also come through a last-leg decider in the semi-finals, beating Mason Dower 4-3 having trailed 3-1.
Moss reached his first final of the tour – his previous best having been the last 32 – by beating Jack Tidbury 4-1 in the semis.
RESULTS
Final:
Ryan Knight 5-4 Jayden Moss
Semi-finals:
Ryan Knight 4-3 Mason Dower
Jayden Moss 4-1 Jack Tidbury
NORTH
EVENT 5
Zach Strong won his first event of the tour by beating Harley Lewis 5-4 in a thrilling final – sealing the crown with a brilliant 170 checkout.
Strong, who played consistently throughout the event, only once dropped below an average of 75 – and that was in the final itself. He trailed Lewis 3-1 before winning four of the last five legs to take the title, including that brilliant big fish in the decider as Lewis waited on tops.
Strong had earlier beaten Tom Phillips 4-0 in the final and produced an 86.71 average in an earlier 3-0 win over Cynan Owen-Jones. Lewis was also outstanding throughout the event, as he was for much of the weekend, averaging 93.94 as he beat Vinnie Hill 3-0 in the quarters, before a 4-1 win over Charlie Devoy in the semis.
RESULTS
Final:
Zach Strong 5-4 Harley Lewis
Semi-finals:
Zach Strong 4-0 Tom Phillips
Harley Lewis 4-1 Charlie Devoy
EVENT 6
Louis Jones won his second event of the tour as he beat Josh Quinn 5-2 in the final. The first three legs went with throw before Jones bucked the trend by taking out 108 to grab a 3-1 lead. He held in the next leg to take full charge of the final, and wrapped things up two legs later.
After a scrappy opening win against Harley Walley-Wold, Jones produced five successive 81-plus averages to take the title, with the highest being 91.57 in his 3-1 quarter-final win over Aaron Hustwaite. He followed that up by throwing 87.03 in a 4-1 semi-final win over Arley Gill, sealing the win and his place in the final with a 117 checkout.
Quinn reached his first final of the season after beating Harvey Thompson 4-3 in the semis having trailed 3-1. Quinn took out 60 against the darts to win the deciding leg and advance to the final.
RESULTS
Final:
Louis Jones 5-2 Josh Quinn
Semi-finals:
Louis Jones 4-1 Arley Gill
Josh Quinn 4-3 Harvey Thompson
EVENT 7
Declan Cragg won his first event of the season as Harley Lewis again ended up on the wrong side of the result in a deciding leg in a final.
Just as he had against Zach Strong the previous day, Lewis lost 5-4 in the final, with Cragg taking the last two legs to fight back from 4-3. The final ebbed and flowed, with five breaks of throw, as Cragg produced the highest checkout (104) when throwing against the darts. He clinched the win with another leg against the darts, taking out 38 with his third dart to celebrate the win. Cragg’s 4-3 semi-final win over Louis Jones clearly prepared him for the battle he was to face in the final, taking out 86 against the darts to progress.
Lewis beat Declan Mainwaring 4-1 in the semis, losing the opening leg before rallying, after again producing some high-quality darts throughout the event.
RESULTS
Final:
Declan Cragg 5-4 Harley Lewis
Semi-finals:
Declan Cragg 4-3 Louis Jones
Harley Lewis 4-1 Declan Mainwaring
EVENT 8
Harley Lewis finally got the event win his performances across the two days had merited when he beat Louis Jones 5-3 in the final game of the weekend.
Lewis raced into a 3-0 lead including checkouts of 85 and 75 but must have been thinking ‘not again’ as Jones fought back to 3-3 including an 89 checkout against the darts as Lewis waited on Double 1. But Lewis produced a brilliant 14-darter at exactly the right time to edge back in front – and then broke Jones’ throw to clinch his second event win of the tour.
Lewis’ 4-1 semi-final win over Zach Strong must have felt sweet, too, after his disappointment in the final the previous day, while 81-plus averages against Dylan Cowley and Tom Partington underlined his quality.
Jones himself went on another superb run to reach the final, throwing a 100.22 average in his 3-1 win over Ben Lundstrom in the last 32.
RESULTS
Final:
Harley Lewis 5-3 Louis Jones
Semi-finals:
Harley Lewis 4-1 Zach Strong
Louis Jones 4-0 Brooklyn Brough
