THE battle for the Premier Section crown is alive after leaders Six Bells C lost for the second match in succession, writes ANDY BEAL.

A week after their unbeaten run came to an end, the front-runners went down 2-1 at home to Red Lion A Eynsham.

Six Bells got off to a good start, winning the opening leg 24-17, but Lion roared back to take the next two 33-25, 31-25.

Three Pigeons edged a point closer after a scrappy 2-1 home win over Gladiators.

They edged the first leg 26-25, before cruising to take the next 34-24.

But despite two sixes from Kevin Giles (6-2-6), they missed out on maximum points as Gladiators, led by Denis Butler (5-4-4) pinched the final leg 26-23.

Kevin Baker (6-3-5) and Den Sellar (4-5-5) whipped off 14 dolls apiece as Cricketers B kept their title hopes intact with a 31-14, 28-21, 29-26 win at home to Garsington Sports A.

Yarnton British Legion opened up a five-point gap at the top of Section One after beating Rose Hill A 3-0.

Mark Poulter (4-4-5) starred in the 25-19, 21-18, 24-19 away triumph.

Chequers A scored fewer dolls than hosts Three Horseshoes but still won 2-1 in Section 2.

A six from Roger Clements helped the visitors take the first leg 17-16 and they also edged the next 16-15.

The Horseshoes hit back to claim the final leg 22-18.

Pete King (4-5-4) hit form as the Woodman whitewashed Team Monarch 22-18, 23-21, 28-13.

Jeff Cox clanged off his first six after playing for 43 years to help Ampleforth Arms A win 2-1 at home to Vikings B.

The hosts fell behind 22-17, but bounced back to win the next two legs in style 27-15, 28-19.

Simon King (5-4-4) was top dog as Red Lion B Eynsham demolished visitors Red Lion Kidlington 27-14, 23-15, 26-15.

Bullnose Morris A remain top of Section 3 after surviving a scare to beat Six Bells A Kidlington 19-17, 19-20, 26-18.

Lee Mason (3-6-5) led Brill Sports Club A to a 2-1 win at home to New Club B in Section 5.

The visitors pinched the opening leg 14-12, but Brill hit back to win 24-12, 21-17.

King & Queen B leapt to the top of a tight Section 6 with a 11-7, 17-15, 16-10 win at Chandos Arms.

It was enough to take top spot as previous leaders Ampleforth Arms B lost 3-0 at home to North Oxford Con Club A.

They were never in the match, which finished 22-16, 15-11, 21-14.

Rory Mangan (4-6-3) hit his first maximum as Section 8 leaders Chequers C whitewashed Littlemore British Legion 20-15, 17-8, 16-15.

Kings Arms A came out on top in Section 9’s top-of-the-table clash at Golden Ball.

The visitors went ahead 22-16 and doubled their lead on three sticks after the second leg was tied 16-16.

Golden Ball hit back to win 21-11.

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