The entire outcome hinged on a Men’s A match that the Sarnians lost 5-4 on Jersey soil, which settled the score on a varied weekend where Guernsey won the B equivalent 7-2 before falling by that same margin in the women’s category.
Guernsey Darts Association president Yvonne Le Gallic, who was also captaining the women’s team, admitted it would have meant a lot to defend the Channel Islands Team Trophy they had won for the first time last year.
‘Last year was special because we’d never won it before,’ she said.
‘It would have been nice to do it two years on the trot.
‘It was a shame, but the men’s B played so well, winning 7-2, then unfortunately our ladies’ team lost 7-2.
‘It was down to the men’s A and it could not have been closer to have lost 5-4.
‘But it was a brilliant weekend again and it was amazing to watch from both sides.’
The Guernsey men’s A team went over missing several big names but still put up a real fight against the old enemy.
Captain Mick Le Gallic got the Greens off to a great start at the Best Western Royal Hotel, edging Stuart Moon 4-3.
Guernsey then found themselves behind with three successive losses before the in-form Aaron Billien got a much-needed win on the board, beating Mark Buckingham 4-2.
Leyton de la Mare backed that up with a straightforward 4-0 victory over Nigel Greenwood.
But Adam Gontier was unfortunate to lose a seven-leg battle against Dave Parlby, which left talented youngster Lewis Bell to deliver the kill shot with a 4-0 victory against Kyle Hutchinson.
Jersey were already over the line at that point and so Adie Exall’s 4-1 win over great stage player Steve Eusebini proved to be a mere consolation.
‘There were some cracking matches actually,’ Le Gallic added.
‘Jersey had a very good team, and we had the best team that we could have for the weekend.’
Much of Guernsey’s downfall had been missed doubles, which prompted the GDA president to add: ‘It shows no matter how well you score, getting 180s and ton-40s, if you can’t finish the leg with a double it costs you. It cost us.’
The men’s B team had laid a fantastic foundation for the Greens with a 7-2 victory the previous day.
Phil Martel, Jamie Roussel, Neil Hutchinson, Paul Wall, Morgan Gontier, Billy Forman and Micky Marsh all claimed victories for a side featuring a few new faces and future promise.
First-time representative Wall was particularly impressive in his 4-0 victory against Dave Moore.
In contrast, Jersey raced to a 4-0 lead in the women’s match to put them on the brink of a very early win.
But relative newcomer Sophi Langford shook off the pressure of her first inter-insular cap to shoot down Caz Hillion 4-1.
Sharon Le Page then built on that momentum with a straight-legs defeat of Courtney Picot.
However, Casey Lodwidge’s subsequent victory over Ann Fallaize got the hosts over the line for category honours, with another two wins later added for emphasis.
Jersey also won five of the seven CI Championships titles available.
This included Lewis Bell winning the men’s individual title in dominant fashion, going 4-0 against Carl Gauvain.
But Le Page made sure Guernsey won the women’s equivalent and took out opposing ‘inters’ captain Ema Love 4-1.
Yvonne Le Gallic and Lee Savident were convincing winners in the mixed pairs, which they took 4-1 against Buckingham and Lodwidge.
Tina Enevoldsen won 3-2 against Mimi House in the West Legion’s recent clash against Alderney, not the other way around as originally reported. We apologise for the error.
