Friday brought another 36 tournaments into the Q4QS database, and although it was a quieter night in terms of tournament numbers, there was certainly no shortage of quality.
Four players shared the highest recorded average of 107.36: Michael Bean, Luke Newport, Kevin Mills and Dan Nicholls.
There were also some excellent tournament-winning performances across the South and South West. Henry Cooper took the title in Taunton, Steve Boundy won at Portishead, Mark Bowles came through in Yeovil and Mills produced an outstanding evening in Cardiff.
Further afield, there were strong performances in Wales, the Midlands and across the Vault circuit.
Four players share Friday's highest average
It's not often that the biggest average of the evening is shared by four different players, but that was the case on Friday.
At the Bullseye Bar in Lichfield, Michael Bean recorded 107.36, although Clayton Edge eventually took the title, defeating Bean in the final.
At the Royal Oak in Rhyl, Luke Newport also reached 107.36, adding another superb 100.20 during his run.
However, Newport didn't take the trophy. That went to Kelson Hughes, who defeated Darren Southall 3–0 in the final.
In Cardiff, Kevin Mills hit 107.36 at Splott Albion Pavilion, while Dan Nicholls matched the figure at Tipton Sports Academy.
Unlike Bean and Newport, both Mills and Nicholls went on to win their respective tournaments.
Four identical headline averages, but four rather different evenings.
Henry Cooper produces a quality display in Taunton
One of the strongest performances closer to home came at Pegasus 68 Club in Taunton.
Henry Cooper recorded 93.34, 88.41, 87.60 and 87.47, an excellent collection of averages across the tournament.
Cooper eventually defeated Paul Gardiner 3–0 in the final and finished with seven victories.
Jayden Scadden also impressed, averaging 90.07 in his match against Cooper, while James Male and Richard Frost each recorded five wins.
For me, this was one of the standout tournament-winning performances of the evening.
Cooper didn't need a single enormous average to catch the eye. He put together several high-quality performances and finished with the title.
Boundy wins again at Portishead
There was another competitive Friday open at Portishead Workmens Darts, with 75 matches recorded.
Steve Boundy came through with nine victories, defeating Darren Clark 3–0 in the final.
Boundy recorded averages of 88.41, 83.50 and 82.65 among his leading performances.
The highest individual average belonged to Liam Trotman, who hit 91.09 against Sarah Goddard.
Trotman finished with six victories, while Christopher Staples and Darren Clark each recorded seven.
It's worth pointing out that this was an open competition offering a prize for the furthest-progressing under-55-average player, rather than an exclusively under-55 tournament.
Another strong result for Boundy, and another busy evening at Portishead.
Bowles takes Yeovil title as Bisset impresses
At Bullets Sports Bar in Yeovil, Mark Bowles defeated Phil Bisset 3–0 to take the Vault title.
Both players finished with five victories, while Jack Davey collected four.
Bisset produced the highest average of the tournament, reaching 88.41 against Ashley Little and adding 77.08 against Jordan Tucker.
Bowles may not have topped the average charts, but he did what mattered in the knockout stages.
Another example of why the daily results are about more than simply listing the highest averages.
Mills combines 107.36 with Cardiff title
At Splott Albion Pavilion in Cardiff, Kevin Mills produced one of Friday's most impressive all-round performances.
Mills averaged 107.36 against Llewelyn Summerhayes, followed by 93.94, 88.44 and 85.55 in other matches.
He eventually defeated Tom Breward 3–2 in the final, finishing with seven victories.
Breward, Edward Manley and Jose Van Angeles each recorded six wins.
There were some very strong individual averages across Friday's competitions, but Mills deserves particular recognition for combining a huge peak performance with the consistency needed to win the event.
Nicholls hits 107.36 and wins at Tipton
Dan Nicholls was another player who managed to combine outstanding scoring with a tournament victory.
At Tipton Sports Academy, Nicholls hit 107.36 against David Harris and added 88.73 and 88.41 elsewhere in the event.
He defeated Jayden Moss 3–2 in the final and finished with eight victories.
Moss collected seven wins, while Mike Breckell impressed with averages of 93.94 and 91.09.
A particularly strong event, with several players producing excellent numbers.
Strong Welsh performances from Rhyl to Swansea
Friday's Welsh results provided plenty of talking points.
At the Royal Oak in Rhyl, Kelson Hughes won the tournament with eight victories, beating Darren Southall 3–0 in the final.
Hughes recorded 96.97 and 88.41, while Luke Newport produced the exceptional 107.36 and 100.20 already mentioned.
At Oliver's Sports Bar in Swansea, Louis Melville averaged 104.86, but Corey Milward took the title.
Milward defeated Melville 3–1 in the final and finished with eight victories, while Melville collected six.
At Min-Y-Ddol in Aberystwyth, Martin Thomas produced one of the most consistent performances of the night.
Thomas recorded 93.94, 91.09, 86.71 and 85.89, eventually defeating Rhydian Ellis Jones in the final and collecting eight victories.
Elsewhere, Jamie Lewis won at Towy Sports Bar in Carmarthen, beating Shon Rowcliffe 3–1.
And at Briton Ferry Workingmen's Club, Bobby Short collected eight victories to take the title against Colin Anthony Jones.
Plenty of quality across Wales, and several performances that deserve recognition beyond the biggest individual averages.
More Vault winners across the country
There were plenty of other strong performances around the circuit.
At GWRSA Club in Didcot, Roger Crook recorded 96.97, 93.94, 88.41 and 86.71, finishing with eight victories and beating Tonko Jenkinson 3–0 in the final.
At Danny's Bar in Banbury, Chris Howse won the tournament against Richard Meadows. Meadows had earlier recorded 93.94 and 91.09.
At Beechwood Club in Blackburn, Kirk Shepherd collected eight victories and defeated Seth Oldale 3–1 in the final. Both Shepherd and Jay Voorhees reached 91.09.
At South Croydon Conservative Club, Edgar Znutins produced a remarkably consistent set of averages: 93.94 twice, followed by 92.02, 88.41 and 85.89. He won eight matches and took the title against Charlie Little.
At Sarisbury Green Social Club near Southampton, Joey Cole won with eight victories, beating Tom Crocker 3–0.
And at Worthies Sports and Social Club in Winchester, Mike Gillet recorded several averages above 85 and finished with eight wins, defeating Delaney Brookes in the final.
Street and Severn competitions keep delivering
Away from the Vault circuit, there was plenty happening at other regular competitions.
At Street Darts Organisation, Darren Herbert won the Open Series event with nine victories, defeating Ben Collins in the final.
Herbert recorded averages of 84.00, 83.50 and 81.24, while Clayton Dando and CJ Ayres both reached 85.89.
In the Street U50 Round Robin, Theo Weston took the title against Scott Briffett, finishing with eight wins.
At Severn Darts Organisation, Jason Davies won the Challenge Series event against Tracey Dean, also finishing with eight victories.
Davies recorded 81.24 and 77.08 among his strongest averages.
These competitions deserve attention too. They provide regular competitive opportunities across a wide range of standards, and their results contribute to the wider Q4QS picture.
Junior darts: Exall impresses and Wills wins in Ryde
There was another interesting evening of junior darts.
In the Soccer Zone Under-16 Junior League, Codey Exall produced an excellent series of averages.
Exall reached 85.08 and recorded two separate 83.50 averages before defeating George Hobbs 3–2 in the final.
He finished with five victories, while Charlie Lowin and Hobbs each collected four.
At the Junior Volts event at Simeon Arms in Ryde, Charlie Wills defeated Quinn Adams in the final and finished with six victories.
Brendan O'Reilly produced the highest average of the event at 77.08, adding another 73.32 during his run.
It's another reminder that some of the most interesting performances in the Q4QS database are coming from younger players.
Women's darts and WADC
There were no tournaments explicitly labelled WADC among Friday's 36 competitions in this export.
That doesn't mean women's darts was absent from the results, but there isn't a separately identified WADC event to report on this occasion.
With the recent growth in WADC competitions, I'll continue including their results whenever they appear in the daily data.
Five performances that caught my eye
- Kevin Mills – 107.36 and Cardiff title. An excellent combination of peak scoring and tournament consistency.
- Dan Nicholls – 107.36 and Tipton title. Eight victories and several strong averages.
- Henry Cooper – 93.34 and Taunton title. Four recorded averages above 87 in a very solid winning performance.
- Steve Boundy – nine wins at Portishead. Another title from a sizeable open competition.
- Edgar Znutins – five averages above 85 and South Croydon title. One of the most consistent scoring performances in the export.
Another 36 tournaments added to Q4QS
Friday may have produced fewer tournaments than some recent evenings, but there was plenty of quality.
Four players reached 107.36, several tournament winners put together excellent sequences of averages, and there was competitive darts across the South West, Wales, the Midlands and beyond.
Once again, the results show why it's worth looking beyond the biggest individual average.
Every tournament adds more information to the Q4QS rankings, player histories, venue records and form data.
And even on a relatively quiet Friday, there are plenty of stories worth telling.
Explore more grassroots darts results, rankings and player statistics at Quest For Q School.
