Terriers (fixture 5) & Tornados (Fixture 8)

17.12.23:

The Terriers played Derbyshire at home. The last time their paths crossed was in the 2018/19 since when, due to relegation/promotion, they have managed to avoid one another. The composition of both teams have changed substantially since then (and the visitors also have a smart new strip) and although Derby came away with a victory back then, this felt almost like a fresh fixture. The front runners in the Terriers were the Triples and Fours who both only dropped 2 points and to these 16 were added 6 by the Pairs and 4 by the Singles giving them their 3rd victory of the year by 26-14 (197-162). They remain in 2nd place for now just 16 shots ahead of Derby who have a game in hand.

The Tornados were also at home and expecting a tough match against Staffs who averaged nearly 30 points per match last year to end up as Champions by a substantial margin. The morning session went well with the home side winning 10-6 but it was a different story in the afternoon where we could only add another 5. This left the final mat score at 17-15 to the visitors. A disaster? Not quite, as a full set of bonus points (aggregates) came to the rescue with the Tornados remaining undefeated with their 8th win by 23-17 (196-163).