Week 1:

Week 2:

This week the journey required a few extra legs, as we trekked all the way down to Essex Street to play.  Although Rich and Rebecca had recently returned from the homeland of darts (and even saw The Power versus Barney while in a pub), they were suffering from serious jet leg, which led to much mid-match napping.

Channeling the power of The Power, Rich somehow pulled a victory to start off the night.  But things fell like like water over Sipi Falls, with four straight losses before Mindy posted a win.  But The Ship was down 2-4 early on, and it had the makings of a rough night.

To kick-off Cricket Mindy and Rebecca, the "Pearls of The Ship", roused themselves and played two phenomenal games.  Unfortunately, despite being in both games right to the end, the were edged out each time.  Fred / Nacho dropped two close games, as well, despite posting some strong AS points.  Rich / Andrew rolled in their first game, and nearly came back in game two before being edged out.  With just one win in Cricket, The Ship found itself in a deep hole at 3-9.

Fred / Mindy managed a win in the first game, giving some hope to The Ship.  But Rebecca / Nacho and Rich / Andrew were unable to quell the rebellion, and the final result was a slaughter worthy of Idi Amin, as The Ship fell in a 5-13 loss.

Props:
Mindy - Hurry [girl], it’s waiting there for you.

Week 3:

It has been a rough couple of weeks to start the season, as The Ship searches for its groove.  Back at home this week, we hoped to escape from our enclave and rise to new heights.  Luckily, we ran into a team with only four players, which seriously helped us in our bid to turn around the season.

It seemed our exile would never end, when Rich dropped the opening game.  But Rebecca, Andrew and Michael all followed with wins.  With two forfeits tacked on, we ended S501 with a refreshing 5-1 lead.  Cricket held more of the same.  Michael / Rebecca split their opening games, but John / Nacho swept, and two forfeits gave us a 10-2 lead.

Of course anything can happen in D501, and there is always the chance for a coup to upset your reign.  But not this evening.  John / Nacho continued their strong run with a win in game one, followed by a win from Rich / Andrew.  With a 16-2 drubbing, The Ship regained its form and is back on track for the season.

Props:
Andrew, John, Nacho - All with "virtual sweeps" for the night.

Week 4:

Despite being packed into a small area, the night started off strong for The Ship.  Rich posted a win, as did Andrew, Michael and John.  In between, Fred played a huge game in which he opened with a Ton and a Ton-Forty, but lost in a controversial ending.  We dropped the final game, but still had a strong 4-2 lead after S501.

We really hit our stride in Cricket.  Rebecca/ Michael lead off with a sweep of their games.  Fred / John also swept, as Fred added another 200 AS points to his total for the night.  Rich / Andrew finished the round off with a sweep of their own, and The Ship was suddenly out to a 10-2 lead.

Things were looking good for The Ship, but in D501 the opposition posed a revolt akin to the 8888 Uprising.  Fred / Heidi jumped out to a big lead in their game, and looked poised to end it, before being caught at the very end.  Luckily, Fred found time to tack another Ton onto his total for the evening.  In the second game, Michael / Rebecca had a rare loss.  However, Rich / Andrew posted a win in the final game to give The Ship a solid 12-6 win on the night.  The win was enough to pull us into third place in the division heading into Week Five.

Props:
Rich / Andrew - Bringing home sweeps from The Bay at Mandalay.
Fred - Putting the "My" in Myanmar, with 540 AS points.

Week 5:

The Ship returned home this week, but our game remained mired in southeast Asia.  And just like the Yankees and the Rangers, it felt like we got trounced by a million elephants.

Andrew's game was the only highlight in S501.  Not only did he put up the only win in the round for The Ship, but he threw 330 AS points in the process.  Down 5-1, we were feeling as repressed as the masses of the proletariat class.

Andrew / Rich opened up Cricket with some hope, splitting the first round of games.  Michael / Rebecca had a rare defeat in their games, and Fred / John followed with another split.  But even this effort couldn't turn the tide too much, and we ended Cricket down 9-3.

Fred / John went right back at it to start D501, and walked away with a big win in game one.  Rich / Andrew dropped the ball with a loss in game two, and Michael / Rebecca ran into a buzz-saw in game three, so we were only able to walk away with 2 points in D501.  The final score was a 13-5 Ship loss, but we are steeled for a big rebound the rest of the season.

Props:
Andrew - Shelter in the midst of the monsoon.

Week 6:

Things started off hot when Rich, Fred and Andrew all posted early wins.  Michael played a tough game, but was caught at the end.  But we turned the heat back up when Rebecca and Mindy followed up with wins, and we were off to a 5-1 lead.

The first round of Cricket was a fierce battle for dominance, on par with the battle for Estonian freedom.  But, instead of battling Germans and Russians, Rich / Andrew were fighting for bullseyes in two very tight games.  A tactical error by Rich in the first game led to a loss, but we battled back in game two to earn a split.  Michael / Rebecca were more effective in repelling the troops, as they pulled off a sweep in their games.  Fred / Mindy pulled a split in the last round, giving The Ship a dominating 9-3 lead.

In D501 we really turned up the head and melted away the last of those glacial ices.  Fred / Heidi jumped out to a big lead, and then managed to hold on to win on Heidi's double-4.  Michael / Rebecca followed that game with a steamroll win in game two, capping off a big night for the duo.  In the last game, Andrew doubled in and out to give Rich / Andrew the win, and seal a 15-3 win for The Ship.  According to a recent survey, Estonians are the least religious people in the European Union, but a night like this might make even an Estonain believe that the dart gods are smiling on The Ship.

Props:
Rebecca -  An undefeated night. (Eek!)

Week 7:

Rich started off the night trapped in a sticky (rice) situation, falling behind early.  But two tons and a quick out set the night off on a good note.  Nacho followed with a win, as did John and Michael, and we were off to a quick 4-2 start after S501.

In the first round of Cricket, Rich / Andrew had a veritable muay thai battle in two games, and scored a split.  Apparently violating local custom, Nacho / Mindy received a caning in their two games.  Michael / John won their first game easily, and in game two this effort was repeated like a spicy bowl of Tom Yam Goong, giving us a 7-5 lead.

But suddenly The Ship got caught up in a monsoon, which is common occurrence to the Thai people.  Michael / Mindy played a great game, but were surprised by a gust of wind that led to their loss.  John / Nacho followed up with another great game, but they too were drenched.  But in the last game, Rich / Andrew were able to tie the score at 9-9 by pulling out a win.

Props:
Rich -  Three wins.  Oh wha tagoo Siam.

Week 8:

Early on, The Ship rolled over their opponents like a gang of Tibetan warlords, posting wins in the first five games.  This included Michael's match, in which he chucked like Ugyen Wangchuck, defeating his enemies and ending all forms of rebellion with 316 AS points in his win.

Leading 5-1, we entered Cricket on a major roll.  Rich / Andrew drew a spilt, followed by Michael / Rebecca who also split.  In the final round, Fred / John figuratively summited Mount Gangkhar Puensum with a sweep of two games, putting us up 9-3 going into D501.  Birthday-boy Fred even posted 200 AS points in preparation for his big day.

Riding a hot streak, Fred / John went back out for D501, but they dropped a close game in which they narrowly missed doubling-out about ten times.  But the Bhutan-shakin' continued when Rebecca / Michael and Rich / Andrew posted wins in the final two games of D501.  In the end, the 13-5 win drastically increased the team's Gross National Happiness (at least until we saw the car robbery on the walk home.)

Props:
Michael - For a spirited match before he departs on a spiritual journey.

Week 9:

It was a mellow evening early on, and things started slowly.  Rich gave away a bunch of AS points, along with a win, in game one.  But Fred and Andrew came back with big games, and when Heidi pulled a 50-out (18, double-16) in her game, The Ship was tied 3-3.

The first round of Cricket held some excitement, as Rich / Rebecca fell behind in the first game, but came back to win on a huge round by Rebecca and an explosive C4 from Rich to end the game.  But Andrew / Heidi dropped two, and Fred / Mindy earned a split, making the score 5-7 after Cricket, and meaning The Ship would need a comeback in order to win.

D501 signaled the time for us to rise up, and stand up for our rights.  Fred / Heidi started things out with a solid game.  Fred got in  right away, posted 320 AS points, and Heidi hit the double-out to put a quick end to game one.  Andrew / Rebecca continued to stir it up with an equally strong game, to post the second win for The Ship.  In the last game, "Crazy Baldhead" Rich / Mindy jumped out to a lead and never looked back, doubling-out before the other team even had a chance.  The D501 sweep completed the comeback in an 11-7 win for The Ship.  On second thought, as Mr. Smith says, don't call it a comeback.  We've been here for years, rockin' our peers and puttin' suckas in fear.

Props:
Heidi - Irie, mon

Week 10:

Week 11:

Amongst the lush green vistas of the Emerald Isle lies County Cork, who's motto is "a safe harbour for ships".  This week The Ship found itself back in its own safe harbor, amongst a plethora of corks.  After a week away from the oche, The Ship was feeling the effects of the "great darts famine" of 2006, and we were hungry for some breakfast. 

Michael returned from his James Joyce-like epic journey, and promptly posted a win to start the night.  Unfortunately, we couldn't keep the Orinoco Flow going, and Rich, Andrew and Rebecca dropped three straight games.  But John hiked up his tartan and got things back on track with a win, followed by Heidi, who took a break from the corkboard she was fecking around with to even the match at 3-3 with a win in the final S501 game.

The first two rounds of Cricket were as divided as Ireland itself, with Michael / Rebecca splitting the first round and John / Mindy splitting the second round.  But Rich / Andrew were in no mood to feed the wagon, and went for broke, which resulted in two wins (despite very close games).  So The Ship ended round two up 7-5, but it was clearly a close night that was going to go down to the wire.

We hoisted a round of Guinness when Michael / Mindy played a brilliant game to open D501.  Andrew / John dropped game two in a close one, though, making the last game the difference between a win and a tie.  Rich / Heidi were able to get in and then finish with an 84-out, and it ended up being a beautiful day, with an 11-7 Ship win.

Props:
Rich - Darty McDartstein.
Michael - A true Corkonian.

Week 12:

In singles, John led off with strong play and a quick win, which proved to be a positive omen of things to come. Andrew followed with a great game, including a 121, but ended up being vanquished by one of Biddy's star players. Fred jumped into the lead on his game, including a 110, and quickly hit his double out. Heidi hung in there during a long, close game, and pulled out a win. Nacho played a solid game, but trouble with the double out allowed his opponent to grab the win. Finally Michael played his usual solid game and rolled to victory, giving The Ship 4 of 6 points.

In Cricket, John and Fred had a couple of fast-paced, tight games, ending with a split. Nacho and Heidi battled like Vikings, but ended up losing two. Finally, Michael and Andrew attacked like the D-Day invasion with some great throwing, winning both of their games, including an R5 for Andrew an R6 and C3 from Michael.  So, The Ship grabbed 3 of 6 points in the second round.

In doubles 501, despite doubling in late and a smörgåsbord of points from their opponents, Fred and John stayed on course to line up their double out and get the win. Nacho and Heidi got off to a slow start, with trouble on the double in, and weren't able to catch their opponents. Finally, Andrew and Michael played yet another strong game, giving The Ship 4 of 6 in D501 and pulling out an 11 to 7 victory and a great birthday present for Rich.

Props:
Melky - For a super catch.
Rebecca - For a super surprise.
The Ship - For a super present, and for letting me know what happened.

Week13 :

After a long delay, the night started out on a high note, as Fred posted a win.  However, in what would prove to be a pattern for the night, Andrew followed the win with a tough loss.  Rich then posted a win, followed by a loss from Rebecca.  John won the next game, after being told by Rebecca that he was due.  To round things out and complete the seesaw, Mindy lost the last game, making the score 3-3 after S501.

Rich / Andrew kicked off Cricket right where the pattern left off, sweeping the first two games.  Fred / John had two close games, but were swept in their round.  Maybe it was the pattern of the night that said that The Ship would bring home two wins.  Maybe our opponents saw two women and took them lightly.  Or maybe these ladies can just throw deadly darts.  All I know is that Mindy / Rebecca played two of the most exciting, determined and dominating games of the season to walk away with a sweep, and a 7-5 lead for The Ship.

Frustratingly, the night's pattern continued into D501, as Rich / Andrew lost a bit of a shocker in the opener of D501.  Fred / John staged an impressive comeback, and a big out, to keep the pattern alive with a win in game two.  Unfortunately for The Ship, the fates were expecting us to lose the final game and end the night in a tie.  But the fates are no match for deadly, poisonous darts, and the opposition was no match for Mindy / Rebecca.  A close battle was waged, but a 58-out from Rebecca was the final death blow, ending the game and the night with an 11-7 Ship win.

Props:
Mindy - For deadly accuracy, including 4 wins and 200 AS points.
Rebecca - For staying tough and posting 4 wins in the face of constant muttering.

Week 14:

Season Notes:

The 2006 World Tour was another great one for The Ship.  We officially own 3rd place in division C, having finished there for the fourth season in a row.  We beat or tied every team in  our subdivision, and we were dominant from Week 6 on (6-1-1).  For the first time ever, we had three players finish with more than 2000 AS points, and we tallied our highest team total ever (10,048 - the first time we have broken 10-grand!).

Season-Ending Props: