Three way dance to see who goes down
And we've got bad news for Bully Boy
Amazingly, Robert Thornton proved nearly every critic and darts pundit wrong last week by not only grabbing his first win of the season against Michael Smith but also holding the world number one to a six all draw. Those three points lifted him out of the bottom two for the first time and at the most important moment. Can he survive? Our 6/1 treble will tell you the answer.
Dave Chisnall vs Peter Wright – Bet Now
Chizzy cannot lose. He’s out of this year’s tournament if he does. The only problem is his only victory of the season came in the whitewash against Thornton back in week one. Despite having a higher average than both Thornton and Smith (and Adrian Lewis) he’s in danger of going down. The one thing he can take a positive from is that due to his superior leg difference a draw will do.
Peter Wright has averaged over 101 for four straight games- but hasn’t managed to win any of them. He needs points soon as well if he wants to break into the top four. The Scot showed great determination to claw back from 6-4 down last week against Phil Taylor to nick a point.
Chizzy tops the head to head 9-5 and only two of Snakebites wins have come on TV. All or nothing for Chisnall – back him to come out swinging and win at
Paddy’s quickfire Judgement Night Treble
Phil Taylor, Dave Chisnall and Gary Anderson all to win – 6/1
Raymond van Barneveld vs Michael Van Gerwen – Bet NOW
MVG was uncharacteristically flat against Thornton, averaging under 100 for only the second time on TV since December. He’s still on top of the table but only on leg difference from Phil Taylor with the pair due to meet again in the final six weeks. He still has over 50% of a checkout average and the highest checkout of the season though.
It’s often the case that just when Van Gerwen seems unstoppable along comes Raymond Van Barneveld to beat him and remind him just who the biggest name in Dutch darts is. The Grand Slam final in 2012. The Masters in 2013, the Premier League final in 2014 and most recently the World Championship in January. Right now, Barney seems nailed on for 7th place – but could spring an upset and grab a draw at odds of
Robert Thornton vs Adrian Lewis – Bet NOW
I hold my hands up, I said that Robert Thornton would be relegated in Liverpool last week and I was wrong. He’s going to be relegated in Cardiff instead. Despite catching up with everyone by playing twice last week, Thornton didn’t improve his tournament average at all (it’s still 88). Only Smith has a worse leg difference than him.
He’s up against Adrian Lewis whose form has flip-flopped. Jackpot hasn’t put two wins together all season bu twon’t have a better chance to do so than Thursday against an opponent he usually wins against. Thornton has only ever beaten Lewis once on TV. Adrian Lewis win at
Michael Smith vs Phil Taylor – Bet NOW
You have to feel for Michael Smith. After a great year on the tour and in the majors he finally broke into the world’s top 10. Then he was put into the Premier League and his confidence now looks shot. It took Mark Webster nearly 18 months to recover from his debut campaign and Smith needs to win to keep his alive.
One problem. He’s playing Phil Taylor. Phil Taylor loves to beat Michael Smith, he’s done so in every TV meeting since 2013. That was when Smith first announced himself to the darting world by beating the Power in the World Championship. Taylor is continuing to write off his naysayers and will want to go top of the table with a victory. Phil Taylor win at
James Wade vs Gary Anderson – Bet NOW
These two have both won the Premier League and both realistically still have a chance. Gary Anderson after starting slowly has now won six on the spin. He’s statistically the second highest scorer in the league. This is Anderson’s 6th Premier League campaign and he’s made the playoffs four times.
The highest scorer in the league? Anderson’s opponent James Wade. Wade took the week off last week due to Thornton playing twice so will be refreshed as he tries to make the playoffs for the first time since 2013. Some are calling for Wade to change his darts in order to get to the top level again. Under the mentoring of Eric Bristow, he’s not far away, but Anderson is just too good these days. He’ll win at odds of