The Premier League Darts competition exits England again this week as Night 11 of the competition comes from Aberdeen. There are just five regular evenings remaining after this one so the moniker that every match matters is beginning to ring true.
James Wade was victorious last week and he is now safely in the top four and those outside the top four are beginning to need wins urgently to remain a factor in the race for finals night as the regular season draws to a close.
Jonny Clayton vs Gary Anderson
The opening match of the night sees the second placed Jonny Clayton taking on bottom of the pile Gary Anderson who could really do with making the most of playing in front of a raucous home crowd to get himself up the league table.
That won’t be easy because Clayton has been in great form in recent weeks but you would imagine that the situation of where he is in the competition will motivate Anderson to have put some work in and if he can win this match he’ll know he has the throw for the remainder of the night and also that he tends to improve the longer a night goes on. Despite that, the numbers would suggest that Clayton is the man to beat here but I’m not going to take him when he’s taking on the crowd.
Peter Wright vs Joe Cullen
The second quarter final of the night sees Peter Wright looking to consolidate his top four position when he takes on a Joe Cullen who needs to win matches to get himself in the top four after fading away a touch recently.
It looks like Wright has had enough of losing based on his comments over the last week. He has now lost his last four matches including from 5-2 up to Scott Waites in Berlin over the weekend and he has committed to sticking to a set of darts and the ones which took him to the world title. That might spell trouble for Cullen who has been the very model of inconsistency recently. He made the final in the Premier League last week but then lost in his first match in the European Tour event with an average of less than 90. I suspect we’re going to see a good run of form from Wright over the next few months and that can begin with a comfortable win here.
Special Offer
OPEN AN ACCOUNT WITH 888SPORT AND BET £10 TO GET £30 IN FREE BETS PLUS A £10 CASINO BONUS! PERFECT OFFER TO USE ON THIS TOURNAMENT! CLICK THE IMAGE BELOW TO JOIN. USE CODE 30F. NEW ACCOUNTS ONLY. 18+ T&Cs apply (See image for significant terms). Gamble Aware.
James Wade vs Michael Smith
The third quarter final on the evening will see the winner from last week in James Wade taking on the man who is now the only player who hasn’t won one of these weekly nights so far in the form of the world finalist Michael Smith.
This is an interesting one because the results of Wade in this tournament have been excellent but the number are nowhere near as good as those of Smith in terms of averages and 180s and even checkout percentages at times yet Smith is 10pts behind Wade in the table. If Smith doesn’t win this one you would think that is the top three he can’t catch so this is huge for him. I would imagine he’ll give himself the chances to win this but I’m aware that Wade is looking good so this isn’t a match I’m massively keen to get involved in.
Gerwyn Price vs Michael van Gerwen
The last of the quarter finals is very much the pick of them as Gerwyn Price will look to get his Premier League campaign back on track when he takes on the current table topper Michael van Gerwen, who was put in his place in fine style at the European Tour event at the weekend.
Price missed that competition because of illness so the first question will be whether he is fine after that. He also has the issue with his hand which is another concern. I suspect that being put in his place by Luke Humphries on Monday will make van Gerwen come out fighting here and I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see him deliver some amazing darts here. If I was forced to back one of these two I would go with MVG but I’m not in the habit of rushing to take on a gutsy Price who has the throw in this match.
Tips
Back P.Wright (-1.5 legs) to beat J.Cullen for a 3/10 stake at 2.10 with Coral
Back him here:
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2022
