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Electronic Scoreboards

 

Electronic Scoreboards have been around for a number of years now and more pubs seem to be installing them. Admittedly they have some benefits but they are not all good. Perhaps the main reason for their proliferation is that there is no chalk dust produced which must be a problem for the pub cleaners to continually remove.

The scoreboards usually carry a notice saying that they are league approved but the truth is that not all leagues do permit their use. Indeed it is only a couple of years ago that the Weston & Trent Valley Darts League removed a rule forbidding their use. The rule stated that “Scoring must be carried out by the subtraction method using chalk and a board to record the score.” This was quietly dropped as more pubs insisted on not using chalk.

 

There are a number of different types of scoreboards available that record the score differently. The first one pictured only shows the last score for each player which makes it difficult to check previous scores. The scores can be revealed from the memory but few people know how to do this.  Also it makes it difficult to count the number of darts used as there is a prize for this in our league. The second scoreboard pictured from another club is far better as it shows the last 5 scores made on each side.

  Another benefit with electronic scoreboards is that they are easier and quicker for most people to record the scores made, than using chalk and working out the score remaining by hand. However this laziness is encouraging young players who can’t count properly, which is all very well, but it can be very off putting to a player when looking for a finish if they have to stop and ask the marker what is left. I know of one young player who plays county darts and is very good but could be a lot better if he learned to count.

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