Dart Casters take title in tense battle

AFTER a thrilling duel, during which the lead exchanged hands a number of times, Dart Casters were finally crowned Empangeni Social Darts League champions after beating Fernandos Flying Squad 6-4 in the finals at Casa Nietos on Wednesday evening.

The team which topped the log at the end of the round robin stages, maintained their composure under pressure and threw pin-point darts to claim their first title.

The final started with a ‘cricket’ game which saw the home side ‘bowling’ first.

After nailing the bulls to dismiss the visitors for a low tally, the home side passed the total needed and ‘bowled’ the chasing team out in their second innings to take an early 1-0 lead.

Their fine form continued when their team one beat Fernandos’s team one in a Nomination Killer game to extend their lead to 2-0.

But the visitors refused to go down without a fight and bounced back to win the next two Nomination Killer games to level the score at 2-all.

Father and son duo, Mike and Naas Strydom, then closed their 501 match-up in 15 darts to take Fernandos into a 3-2 lead.

This ‘lethal’ team threw two 140 scores and a single 100 score in their game to win by miles.

But the home side bounced back and won the next 501 game to level matters yet again at 3-all.

Dart Casters’ Jerry Bezuidenhout and Mitchell ‘Max’ Killian then stepped up to the plate to win their 501 match-up to regain a narrow 4-3 lead for their side.

The highlight in this game was when Bezuidenhout threw a trip 15, followed by a double 15 to close 75 to win the game for his side.

Leading from the front

Dart Casters captain Kevin Rudolph and partner David Pereira then took the lead, throwing huge darts to win their Nomination Killer game and extend their team’s lead to 5-3.

Just when the spectators and supporters thought the game was done and dusted, Fernandos bounced back yet again to take the score to 5-4.

It all came down to Killian/Bezuidenhout and Greg Raynor/Herman Erasmus in a Nomination Killer game to decide the final outcome.

But Killian and Bezuidenhout proved unbeatable, closing all their numbers first with a score of 271 to secure the victory and take the final score to 6-4.

Players will now take a break over the festive season before the start of the new league on 20 January.

For anyone interested in registering their team for the new league or requiring information on the league, contact Willie van Rooyen on 081 0981800.