There are four places left in the second stage of the PDC Home Tour and the first of those will be filled on Friday night when four men once again battle in a round robin format to keep us entertained through lockdown.
Three of the four men in action in Group 29 of the competition are getting a second chance to qualify, while one is appearing for the first time. The action has gone up a level in recent nights and hopefully that trend continues here.
The Format
Each night four players will battle it out in a round robin format with the group winner progressing to the next stage of the tournament. All six matches in each group will be the best of nine legs with two points awarded for a win. If players finish level on points then leg difference will decide the outcome. If that cannot separate players then the head to head will settle the group winner. Were three players to be tied on points and leg difference the player with the highest overall average goes through. The entire tournament is being streamed live on PDC.tv, the Sky Sports App and various bookmaker sites.
Thursday Recap
There was a shock over the course of the night on Thursday as heavy favourite Michael Smith was dumped out for a second time. This time it was Luke Humphries who denied him a spot in the next round of the competition. ‘Cool Hand’ Humphries won all three of his matches including a win over Smith where he averaged well over 100. Smith was second with a couple of wins and there was one win for Andy Boulton. Mike van Duivenbode went empty handed on the night despite playing well.
We ended the night in profit courtesy of the 180s. We wanted 20 180s over the course of the evening and that was exactly the number we got. We also wanted five or more 180s when Michael Smith took on Luke Humphries and although the match was pretty one-sided we got the five we needed. It was nearly a clean sweep but Mike van Duivenbode couldn’t get rid of 200 or so in nine darts in the deciding leg with Andy Boulton and lost out. Nevertheless, it was another profitable night.
Group 29 Line Up
Danny Noppert is the highest player on show on Friday night. He looked very good in his first match of his first group but faded fast and the longer the night went on the worse his doubling got. By the end of the evening you had no faith in him pinning the outer ring whatsoever and that is a massive concern. That said, he was one of the better players on the circuit prior to the COVID-19 stoppage and if a little extra familiarity with the format and the setup brings his best form out he will still be the one to beat.
John Henderson is the second highest ranked player in this group. He was very disappointing in his first attempt to make it into the next stage, To be fair he came out on top in two of his matches but beat nobody of any note and averaged less than 88 for the entire evening. Based on what we’ve seen in recent nights he is going to have to significantly raise his game to come through here but he did hit seven 180s in that first group and more consistent scoring would give ‘The Highlander’ every chance.
Cristo Reyes will be looking to take advantage of his only opportunity to make it through to the second round, and join his countryman Jesus Noguera in the process. Reyes is yet to have a tilt at a group in this competition which is clearly a disadvantage, and over the last 12-15 months his form has done a disappearing act. He is however a pretty decent scorer but he can be prone to a number of missed doubles from time to time. He wouldn’t be able to afford that luxury if he is going to justify the 7/2 quotes about his progression.
Ryan Meikle is the lowest ranked player in the group and the 5/1 outsider as a result but actually he is the one who played the best in his first group, and there could possibly be more to come from the youngster. With internet darts and webcam tournaments being all the rage there is a good possibility that Meikle would have been keeping his eye in by playing some of those events and we saw the benefits that brought Luke Humphries on Thursday evening. Meikle averaged a shade under 95 in beating Jelle Klaasen in his first group and that sort of performance would have him very competitive here.
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Outright Betting
I’m going to take a chance on the outsider in the field here in Ryan Meikle. I wouldn’t say it is the most confident punt I’ve ever placed but I saw nothing earlier in the competition to suggest he is a 5/1 shot to win this group, especially when you factor in the potential for him having played a fair bit since then. Noppert and Henderson scored alright in their first outings but their finishing became horrendous as the nights wore on and that is a massive concern.
I’ve always been a fan of Cristo Reyes and I’m certainly not ruling him out of proceedings here, although the lack of a prior run out is certainly a concern for me. He is more than a point shorter than Meikle though and it is the youngster who has the throw in their match too which might be significant if that game is the important one. There could well be more to come from Meikle and as such I’ll have a dabble at the 5/1 he comes out on top.
Match Betting
There isn’t a whole lot that I like about the matches over the course of the evening I have to admit but there is one bet that interests me in the second encounter of the night, the one between John Henderson and Cristo Reyes. You would need to be a brave man to predict the winner of this because there are likely to be a lot of missed doubles involved if their form over the last 12 months or so stands up to this test.
Instead I am going to take over 3.5 180s to be hit in the match. Both these men know their way around the 60 and what I like about this bet is both are reluctant when it comes to switching to the treble 19. That often leads to more scoring visits offering up 180 potential not just in how they are thrown but also by the numbers they leave themselves on which don’t require early switches to the 19 or elsewhere on the board to set up finishes. We’re only looking for a couple of maximums each and in a match that should have plenty of legs I think we’ll get that.
Tips
Back R.Meikle to win Group 29 for a 2/10 stake at 6.00 with William Hill
Back him here:
WON – Back J.Henderson vs C.Reyes – Over 3.5 180s for a 3/10 stake at 2.00 with Betfair
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