The second half of the Premier League Darts season begins on Thursday when the eight remaining men head for Dublin to continue the tournament. We now know the eight players who will be whittled down to four ahead of the playoffs next month and every night from here on in will carry plenty of significance.
As has been the case since the expansion to ten players for the tournament two men will play twice for the next four weeks. Raymond Barneveld and James Wade have that distinction on Thursday evening so it is a big night for both men.
James Wade vs Michael van Gerwen
With James Wade playing twice he begins the night against the Green Machine himself Michael van Gerwen. MVG heads into the week on top of the pile and he’ll be looking to extend that advantage while Wade has slipped away from the pack a little in recent weeks and needs points to latch back onto them.
When these two met in the reverse fixture van Gerwen was a 7-4 winner. He could have won easier than that but as is often the case when Wade was given chances he took them. I still don’t think Wade has the scoring power to go with MVG but the Dutchman seems to miss doubles against Wade which keeps it closer than it should be. Nothing stands out betting wise here.
Raymond Barneveld vs Phil Taylor
The form horse Raymond Barneveld takes on a man he has a huge rivalry with in Phil Taylor in what is the match of the night. Taylor won their reverse meeting 7-4 and if he can repeat that he will go above Barneveld in the table but a win for the Dutch legend will put a three point gap between himself and Taylor with Barney having another match to come on the evening.
It is hard to oppose Barneveld right now. He is flying right now and while Taylor has been getting the results in recent weeks there hasn’t been anything convincing about it. Barneveld has seen off van Gerwen, Anderson and Wade in the last three weeks and I fancy he’ll add Taylor to the list here.
Dave Chisnall vs Peter Wright
The need for wins for Dave Chisnall has now reached an urgent level and he heads into a clash with Peter Wright almost in the last chance saloon as far as his playoff hopes are concerned. Wright had the week off last week but can go top with a win here if Michael van Gerwen slips up.
It is difficult to take on Peter Wright in the form he is in at the minute but there might be a little pressure on him with a few people unhappy he got gifted a 7-0 win last week and he might want to silence those critics but those things can affect the mind. Chisnall is almost playing with freedom from here on in but I can’t bring myself to get involved in this one.
Adrian Lewis vs Gary Anderson
Two men scrapping hard to make it to the o2 next month meet in the penultimate match of the night. Gary Anderson is in the better position of the two at the minute but Adrian Lewis comes into the night off the back of winning a tour event at the weekend so he should be nicely tuned up for this one.
These two tend to produce decent matches and I don’t think there will be much between them throughout. Anderson powered away from Lewis when the two met last week but Lewis’ confidence will have been heightened since then. If I had to I’d still back Anderson to come through but he’s plenty short enough not to get involved.
James Wade vs Raymond Barneveld
For the second time in two weeks James Wade meets Raymond Barneveld. Regardless of what happens earlier in the night this will be a big match for the pair of them and one they will have their minds set on winning.
I rarely get involved in these matches when players are playing for a second time because you just never know how events earlier in the evening are going to affect them and with both having tough first opponents it is pure guesswork to determine what state either will be in for this one. I’m happy to sit this one out especially with a Barneveld win enhancing his o2 chances and with it our outright bet chances.
Premier League Darts – Tips
Back R.Barneveld to beat P.Taylor (DNB) for a 4/10 stake at 2.00 with Titanbet
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