American rock band Green Day kindly asked in one of their songs to be woken up when September ends. But there’s no snoozing on the Vault 14.0, as the top amateur tungsten train hurtles towards the end of the month with almost 400 events to cover.
Naturally, that’s far too many to report on individually, so once again I’ll focus on the hat-trick heroes, the familiar names still doing the business, and those performances equivalent to a 30-yard screamer finding the top corner.
Just for a change, I’m going in reverse alphabetical order for those walking home with a match ball. Which brings me nicely to Terry Nash, who didn’t just get a hat-trick – he stuck in another for good measure. Four wins in three days for Mr. Nash, including a cheeky Sunday double. His averages weren’t shabby either as he terrorised Wrexham, including a bingo hall where he clearly wasn’t there to cross off numbers – unless they were on a dartboard.
Up on the north-east Lancashire coast, Stuart Holden was busy in Morecambe, winning more knockouts than local resident Tyson Fury. Holden spaced his titles out on Monday, Wednesday and Friday, suggesting he popped out to throw darts while the missus watched Corrie.
Sion Thomas bagged three in Llandysul – which, after a quick Google, is indeed Welsh and translates as “the church of St Tysu.” For Thomas, it meant three wins and a tidy few quid in his back pocket. From Wales, up to Scotland, where Martyn Cameron impressed in Kirkcaldy and Inverness. Conor Petersen also grabbed three in Falkirk with some high-80s averages, while Brendan Clark claimed his trio in North Lanarkshire.
Then there’s the darts player with the greatest nickname in history – Mark “Frosty the Throwman.” If you’ve wondered where he’s been, I can tell you in the past few days the answer is Stoke-on-Trent, scooping three Vault titles.
Keegan Brown also gets a mention. He only won one event – naturally on the Isle of Man – but he recently bagged a MODUS Super Series weekly win and, frankly, he’s a good fella. So, take the applause, Keegz!
Jordan-Lee Rawlings, so good they named him twice, notched a hat-trick spread across High Wycombe, Newbury and Shepperton. Few collect their match ball in two different counties, but JLR put in the miles. Fair play.
Shropshire belonged to Jamie Chaplin, who split four wins between Dawley and Shrewsbury. He may share a famous comedic name, but I doubt his opponents were laughing much.
Now to my hometown – Warrington. Of course made more famous by Luke Littler and, dare I say, Kerry Katona. Harrison Leigh is a talent, and one of his three victories came at the thriving Nuke’s academy at The Brass Monkey. Nice work, mate.
Dan Nicholls was at it again in Tipton, throwing averages that make it impossible for anyone else to get a look-in. He smashed an almost 91 tournament average at the local Sports Academy. At this rate, the only way to get fresh winners there is to stick him on Pub Watch.
Finally, the vastly experienced Aaron Turner. While his wife Laura was busy at the WDF World Cup in South Korea, he was cleaning up at home in anywhere with “-on-Thames” in the name.
Before we wrap up, hats off to Tom Sykes for the week’s highest tournament average – a blistering 93.88 in Barnsley. With the winter nights closing in and the temperatures cooling, the Ginger Yorkshireman is prowling more often, no doubt raising funds for his 2026 factor-60 sun cream bill.
And if you fancy a crack at Vault glory, Belfast was your best bet last week – a 54 average was enough to win. Failing that, Tunbridge Wells wasn’t great either. But Tipton? Best avoid it until Dan Nicholls decides to holiday in the Canaries.
——ENDS—–
Images: PDC
