CENTRAL Club won 4½-2½ at Cringlewood in Monday's top-of-the-table clash in the Altrincham and Sale Round the Board Darts League.

Central won the first three games, then Cringlewood hit back with a game of their own.

Geoff Kellett, of Central, took on Danny O’Donnell, of Cringlewood, in the fifth game and drew before Central's Dennis Hand secured the win in the sixth game before Cringlewood clinched the last match.

Joint leaders Timperley Cons kept up their winning ways with a 6-1 victory over The Station, while British Rail had a close match against Old Hall, which they won 5-2.

The previous week saw the pairs knockout take place at Broadheath Central.

A total of 25 pairs from league teams took part, playing down to the last two pairs with the final set for next May.

In the early rounds there were some big hitters clashing – Kevin Legg and his partner Graham Mathers from Budenburgs took on Darren Wood and Chris White from Central and it took an extra leg to separate them, won by the latter pairing.

Elsewhere, Dennis Hand and Geoff Kellett, of Central, lost a tight match to Cringlewood's Callum Nolan and Alan Dawson.

After the first round it came down to 16 pairs and the highlight of this round was between John Chisnall and Andy Brownhill, of Timperley Cons, and Budenburgs' Andy Hopkinson and Mark Knight, with the Cons pair winning.

Another notable match saw Gary Sullivan and Andy Kindred of Timperley Cons beat Danny O’Donnell and Dave Pep from Cringlewood after some real quality darts.

In the last eight there were some heavyweight clashes with Paul Andrews and Callum Loose of Cringlewood beating Nigel Beeton and Rob Downes of British Rail.

Steve Holt and Gary Starkey, of Central, played against Mark Denning and Adam Burke, from Old Hall, and came out on top after it went down to who could hit the bull first and Starkey did just that.

The semi-finals saw Tony Feesey and Alan Gleeve, of British Rail, lose out to Andrews and Loose, while Kindred and Sullivan saw off Holt and Starkey in the other last-four tie.

The winners next May will receive their own personal trophy as well as the coveted Pairs Trophy that has all the previous winners on it and goes from winners to winners every year.