OLIVER MEIKLE LEADS THE WAY IN THE NORTH

Series 6 of the JDC Volt is well underway, with events taking place across the UK and Ireland.

Today, we take a look at last week's goings-on in North, West Midlands, Wales, Scotland and Ireland.

 

NORTH

Benjamin Smith sits 2nd in the North of England after winning four events in a row. He has won in Stokesley, Peterlee, Middlesbrough and Stokesley again over eight days last week, and sits just behind Oliver Meikle at the top of the standings.

After beating Alfie Blunsdon in the Stokesley final, Smith saw off Joseph Bruce 3-1 in Peterlee, and then beat Peter Clark 3-0 in Middlesbrough with an 85.08 average. He extended his magnificent run with a 3-0 win over George Parker on Thursday in the final in Stokesley, having averaged 100.20 – including a 150 checkout – in his 3-0 semi-final victory against Jayce Dawson.

Meikle sits at the summit of the standings, after he followed up his back-to-back event wins the previous week with a pair of semi-finals. Meikle was beaten by eventual winner and fellow high-flyer Smith in Peterlee, losing 3-1 having previously lost only one leg throughout the event, Smith sealing the win with a 78 checkout. Meikle reached another semi-final in Seaham, losing 3-1 to Lennon Ruddock, who went on to defeat Bruce 3-2 in the final.

WEST MIDLANDS

Codey Exall has a comfortable lead in West Midlands, even though his four-event winning streak came to an end in Halesowen on Tuesday.

Exall was beaten 3-0 by Jack Turner in the final, having fought back from 2-0 down to beat Ethan Coll in the semis, hitting a brilliant 146 checkout in the fourth leg to draw level.

Joel Walton is third overall after winning in Lichfield and reaching the semi-final in Cannock. He beat Noah Howe 3-1 in the Lichfield final, before going down 3-0 against Jake Whitehead in Cannock. Whitehead was then beaten 3-2 by second-place Harvey-Lee Nelson-Harris in the final. Mckenzie Jones was the winner in Rugeley, beating Jay Cottier 3-1 in the final after beating eleventh-placed Alfie Moore by the same scoreline in the semis, with a 120 checkout in the third leg.

WALES

James Prettyjohn and Spencer Edwards are engaged in a fascinating tussle for top spot in Wales, with Edwards boosting his cause by winning four events in a row.

After triumphing in Resolven and Ogmore Vale, he won two further events in Resolven last week to underline his status as an emerging force in the Welsh game.

He beat Enrico Thomas 3-0 in Tuesday’s final, hitting a 136 checkout for a 12-darter, after averaging 76.87 in his semi-final win over Prettyjohn. Edwards backed up his win on Thursday, beating Callum Smith 3-2 in the final, having trailed 2-1. He had earlier beaten Liam Hughes 3-0 in the semi-final.

George Jones is in third place having reached a quarter-final in Resolven and claimed a title in Carmarthen. He beat Thomas 3-0 in the Carmarthen decider, securing the title on double 19. Rhys Evans is in fourth place having won in Port Talbot on Wednesday, beating Hughes 3-0 in the final with a 104 checkout to seal the win.

SCOTLAND

Alfie Robertson is top of the pile in Scotland after going back-to-back in Glenrothes. Having beaten Brandon Scott in the previous week’s final, he was celebrating again after beating Logan Paterson – his closest pursuer in the rankings - 3-0 in Wednesday’s final.

Robertson had trailed 2-1 against Callum Wood in the semi-final before winning the last two legs to continue his excellent recent record. Robert Sutherland reached last weeks semi-final in Glenrothes, beaten 3-2 by Paterson. These two have had plenty of battles in recent years, and at 2-0 up, Sutherland must have fancied his chances. But Paterson stuck to his task, winning the decisive two legs on the unorthodox doubles of 7 and 9 to advance to the final.

IRELAND

Jack Caulfield is setting the pace in Ireland, having won back-to-back events in Waterford.

He defeated Jamie O’Brien 3-0 in last week’s final, averaging 72.73 (109 with his first nine darts), after beating Tommy O’Brien by the same scoreline in the semis with an 83.50 average.

Jamie O’Brien is second overall having added a semi-final in Kilkenny to his final in Waterford. He lost to Tyler O’Connor, who is third in the rankings, before O’Connor beat Ryan Phelan 3-2 in the final, clinching the deciding leg with a 72 checkout.

Jamie Cunningham is in fourth, having followed up his win in Cork the previous week with another final, which he lost 3-0 to Sean Hutchinson. Hutchinson averaged 81.98, including an 11-dart leg, as he made his first appearance of the Volt season.