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April3April 3, 2019

Barney Bows Out In Rotterdam

In a reception normally reserved for the likes of departing rock stars rather than Darts players, Raymond van Barneveld was treated to a hero’s send-off in Rotterdam last Thursday. Barney’s final Premier League Darts season, from which he had been relegated one night earlier, ended with a heavy 7-1 defeat to fellow Dutchman and former protégé Michael van Gerwen in Rotterdam.

We knew going into the match that this would be his farewell performance in the tournament, an event he won in 2014, as he was due to retire at the World Championships in London in December. Such a heavy defeat, however, coupled with such a glorious show of love from the 10,000-strong Barney Army, led an emotional Barney to announce his immediate retirement on home soil after the match. However, 24-hours later, after reflecting on his decision, Barney has decided that the lure of the Ally Pally was too strong and that he has decided to reverse his decision and fight on after all. Happy times for his devoted fans.

Barney’s relegation from his last ever Premier League campaign was assured on Wednesday after he was thrashed in another 7-1 defeat, this time by Daryl Gurney. In his match against van Gerwen, he found himself in very real danger of a whitewash after MVG stormed into a 4-0 lead, which would have been an even sorrier end for the people’s champion. But, much to the relief of his legion of followers, he finally got a leg on the board when Mighty Mike missed tops in the next. That was Barney’s only strike of the night as MVG threw for the match shortly after.

Other action from Night 9 of the Darts Premier League

Daryl Gurney’s hot streak continued in the night’s opener as he beat Mensur Suljovic 7-3 to record his third Premier League victory in a row. Only a few weeks ago, Superchin was languishing down near the bottom of the table but now finds himself on a four-game unbeaten run that includes last Thursday’s shock win over Michael van Gerwen. The Northern Irishman’s latest win, in which he averaged 98.28 compared to Suljovic’s 91.58, means he now has 11 points heading into Belfast on Thursday night. Gurney’s victory never really looked in doubt, despite having his early 2-0 lead pegged back by The Gentle, who soon found himself down 5-2 before long. Just as he had one night earlier, Suljovic hit a 12-darter that suggested he could mount a fightback similar to the one that beat Rob Cross on Wednesday but he instead went on to miss eight shots on double allowing Superchin to take all the points.

The Price was Wright for Gerwyn in match three where The Iceman shot down Snakebite 7-5. Peter Wright is fast becoming the player to end other players’ bad runs of form. Gerwyn Price used the occasion to end a run of three straight Premier League defeats and hopefully breathe new life into his flagging play-off challenge. Price will now be looking to Daryl Gurney, who is on a horrible stretch of his own in which he lost 7-0 and 7-1. He then played Wright, drew, and has since reeled off four straight wins to find himself fourth in the table. Here, the Welshman averaged 94.47 compared to Snakebite’s lowly 87.6 as he cruised into an early 2-0 lead. Wright, though, closed the gap and before long had moved ahead 5-4. The Iceman was level again by the sixth before returning in the next to bank at least a point for himself. Wright then missed the two darts that would have let him get away with a draw — much needed after his 7-1 mauling the night before — before Price pinned tops to take the spoils.

Having stumbled a night earlier against Mensur Suljovic, Rob Cross dug deep to get his title campaign back on track against the final of our contenders, Jeffrey de Zwaan. The young Dutchman, who received overwhelming support from the 10,000-strong Rotterdam crowd, began his night’s work with an 84 checkout as part of a fearless 12-darter, before finishing from 151 to stun Voltage into an early fright. After Cross pulled a leg back, JDZ immediately replied with yet another 12-darter, which this time included a deuce of 180s to restore his two-leg cushion. At 3-1 down, 2018 World Champion Voltage began to fight back by winning five legs on the spin to silence the vociferous Dutch support. De Zwaan, nicknamed The Black Cobra, managed to pull one back, but like each of the other contenders, was unable to win as Cross got the job done in the next, courtesy of his eighth 180 of the match.

In the final match of the night, James Wade came back from 3-1 down to defeat Michael Smith 7-4 and move up into third place in the table. 2018 runner-up Smith almost opened with a nine-dart finish but missed the final shot only to claim the first leg on his return. The Machine responded with a 12 darter of his own before Bully Boy took the next two legs in just 27 darts. Wade took over by reeling off three straight legs of his own. Although Smith briefly equalised, The Machine ran away with the match thereafter.

Premier League of Darts Betting Tips Night 10

The race for a Premier League play-off place continues in Belfast on Thursday, and having said goodbye to Raymond van Barneveld and the last contender, we’re down to the final eight. The first of our four matches sees James Wade take on Mensur Suljovic with The Machine only too aware that he does not have a good record against Suljovic. In fact, Wade has only won five of their previous 15 meetings and has already he was beaten in this campaign by The Gentle 7-3 in Nottingham during Night 6. Wade is playing with confidence right now and beat Michael Smith a week ago so will fancy his chances of breaking his duck against the Austrian this week. Suljovic will be looking to bounce back from his defeat last time out in Rotterdam. He was at least able to record a win in the first of last week’s two games when he came from behind to beat Rob Cross. I suspect he will come good again this week as well.

Michael Smith is out next in his match against Peter Wright. With the league shrinking by two places, Smith — runner up last year — narrowly avoided relegation last week but still finds himself occupying the bottom space and will hope that a match against Snakebite can halt that slide. Victories against Wright have worked wonders for both Daryl Gurney and Gerwyn Price and could prove to be the catalyst for Bully Boy too. Wright is second bottom himself having not won in four outings, and he has not beaten Smith in his last three Premier League games. I don’t see that changing here.

Next up are Daryl Gurney and Rob Cross. While Gurney is on a hot streak, having seen off competition from van Gerwen, van Barneveld and Suljovic over the past three Premier League nights, Rob Cross is one of the few players capable of challenging MVG for top spot. One dodgy result aside, he is playing like best in the world right now. It’s true that the Northern Irishman will be hard to stop in front of his home crowd, but I think Voltage should have too much in this particular meeting.

Finally, we would expect Michael van Gerwen to beat Gerwyn Price in the last of the night’s action. Mighty Mike was all action back home in Holland last week, winning both of his matches 7-1, and regaining top spot in the process. Price, on the other hand, ended a slump of three straight defeats by beating Snakebite but has lost each of his 15 matches against the Dutchman and that might well be a slump too far.

A four fold accumulator with the online bookmaker Betway placed on Mensur Suljovic, Michael Smith, Rob Cross and Michael van Gerwen all to win pays out at 16/1.

(13/8) Mensur Suljovic v James Wade (6/5)
(13/10) Michael Smith v Peter Wright (6/4)
(1/1) Rob Cross v Daryl Gurney (2/1)
(30/100) Michael van Gerwen v Gerwyn Price (13/2)

QUICK GLANCE AT THE DARTS PREMIER LEAGUE – WEEK 10

Venue: The SSE Arena, Belfast
Dates: Thursday 04.04.2019
Format: Best of 12 legs
Current Champion: Michael van Gerwen
Where To Watch: Sky Sports
When To Watch: (1900 GMT)

March28March 28, 2019

Raymond van Barneveld Darts Premier League Career Is Over After Defeat In Rotterdam

By Peter FryersIn

Darts Betting Tips

The curtain came down on Raymond van Barneveld’s distinguished Darts Premier League career last night in Rotterdam after the five-time world champion lost 7-1 to Daryl Gurney. The 2014 DPL champion, who retires at the Ally Pally at the end of the year, needed at least a draw to keep his survival hopes alive following Gerwyn Price’s defeat to Michael Smith in the opening match of the night.

Despite being given a hero’s welcome from the home crowd, Barney couldn’t channel it to his advantage as he averaged a disappointing 81.96, hitting just one 180 and successfully landing only one of his six shots at double. It was a sad ending to a brilliant career. The result flatters Gurney who himself only managed a single 180 while missing nine of his 16 darts at doubles. All of which means that Barney will now bow out on Thursday’s Judgement Night against fellow Dutchman Michael van Gerwen, ironically the player he beat to lift the trophy back in 2014.

A truly special atmosphere!

An emotional Raymond van Barneveld makes his way to the stage for the penultimate time in Rotterdam…

The Barney Army out in full force! pic.twitter.com/U4CP35SCoP

— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) March 27, 2019

A Wednesday night recap

Barney faced a Mighty Mike that is back at the top of the table after he very nearly whitewashed Peter Wright but instead had to settle for a 7-1 win. MVG had dropped to fourth in the table after two defeats and a draw in his last three games, but he was back to his brilliant best against a very poor Snakebite. Back on home turf, van Gerwen produced a ruthless display to run away with a 6-0 lead as Wright’s head was wobbling. Just when MVG looked like banking his second whitewash of the season –- and 11th in Premier League Darts history –- Wright pulled back a consolation leg only to see van Gerwen successfully throw for the match one leg later. MVG averaged 101.29 compared to Wright’s 88.12 by the end of the contest.

Perhaps the night’s most surprising scoreline came in the battle between Rob Cross and Mensur Suljovic, where the Austrian came from 4-0 and 5-1 down to claim an unlikely 7-5 victory, knocking Cross off the top of the table. An in-form Voltage looked like he too was heading towards his own whitewash when checkouts of 74 and 89 took him into a 4-0 lead as Suljovic floundered. The Gentle finally got his name on the board in the next, only for Voltage to land a 13 darter and extend his advantage to 5-1. Then everything changed as Cross performed his best Peter Wright impression and spurned four darts at doubles over the next four legs allowing Suljovic to level the scores. Cross then wasted the chance to make a point safe when he blew another seven darts at doubles before being punished by a superb checkout from 136 from Suljovic, who followed that up with a finish from 120 to claim an unlikely –- and thrilling –- win.

In the night’s opener, Michael Smith saw off the challenge from Gerwyn Price to book a crucial 7-5 victory. Last year’s runner-up took advantage of some sloppy finishing from The Iceman, who missed five darts at a double in the opening two legs to allow Bully Boy to move into a 2-0 lead. The Welsh former Rugby player fought back in the next two legs to level things up before Smith won three of the next five legs in 15 darts or fewer. Price hit two superb checkouts from 116 and a match-high 141 to stay in the game before Smith moved further ahead by taking the game to 6-4, guaranteeing himself a point in the process. Price forced a deciding leg when he took the following leg, but Bully Boy held his nerve and landed the bullseye with the last dart in his hand to complete a 90 checkout.

The first of this week’s contenders, Dimitri van den Bergh, almost became the first Belgian ‘local’ hero to come away with a win after he took James Wade all the way to a tie. The two-time World Youth champion got off to a fast start when moving into a 2-0 lead before both players left the stage for around five minutes after James Wade made complaints of a draught coming through. Unfortunately for van den Bergh, the temporary pause, greeted by boos after Wade insisted on the walkout, nipped his momentum in the bud. Wade came back out on a mission and immediately landed a 14-darter followed by a 106 checkout to bring the match to 2-2. Van den Bergh then responded with his first 180 of the match as part of a 12-dart leg, a feat he repeated one leg later. The Machine drew back level again before DVDB again pulled clear. Before long he had booked himself a point with a leg to spare. Unfortunately for The DreamMaker, he missed his shot at double seven when attempting to take out 78 for the match, allowing Wade to step up to the oche and take out double 10 to tie the game.

Darts Premier League Night 9 Betting Tips

Following Barney’s elimination last night, Judgement Night isn’t really Judgement Night anymore but there is still plenty to look forward to in the second part of this week’s Rotterdam double-header. That said, the rest of the table is extremely tight with only four points separating Michael van Gerwen at the top and Michael Smith in eighth so the fight for playoff places is as healthy as ever.

The first match of the night pits Daryl Gurney against Mensur Suljovic with both players having won 24 hours earlier. Gurney claimed his victory against Barney to remain unbeaten in three games, while third-place Mensur produced a match-winning fightback against Rob Cross to win his third match in a row. Superchin averaged in the high 80s, a rather low score considering the size of the scoreline, but plays tonight with the freedom of knowing that the threat of relegation has passed so should be feeling less pressure. This is a match that could go all the way with a draw. I’d expect Gurney to start climbing up the table now and will back him to take maximum points from his two night trip to Rotterdam before he returns to the Belfast leg next week.

Match two sees Gerwyn Price take on Peter Wright with the Welshman on a run of three straight defeats. However, Wright is also out of form and has himself gone three matches without a win and was only one dart away from suffering a whitewash last night against MVG. Despite this, Wright has been the better of the two over recent weeks as The Iceman’s performance levels have dipped following an excellent start to the campaign. While I wouldn’t rule out Price’s chances of getting back on track tonight, I’m going to go for Snakebite for the win and hope that the better version of himself shows up. The Welshman has an awful head-to-head record of just two wins from 15 matches against the Scotsman which is good enough for me.

Last night also saw the end of Rob Cross’ four-game winning run as he dropped off the top of the table. The former world champion will be keen to bounce back against this week’s contender Jeffrey de Zwaan, who he has beaten on the two previous occasions they have met. So far, none of the previous eight replacements for Gary Anderson have managed to win, although Dimitri van den Bergh came close last night. de Zwaan is the last chance they have to bank a win — I can’t see it though.

It’s an all-Dutch affair in Rotterdam for match four where the Darts Premier League officially says goodbye to Raymond van Barneveld. Barney has been involved in every Premier League since his debut in 2006 and last won it against MVG back in 2014. Tonight, he goes up against Michael van Gerwen who is unlikely to show any sentiment to his countryman in his farewell. Barney beat van Gerwen here last year but Mighty Mike is back in the groove after walloping Wright last night to go back to the top of the table and will only cement his position there further tonight.

In the night’s final game, Michael Smith takes on James Wade. Smith, who was last year’s runner up, is another who plays tonight knowing his continuing participation is safe. Wade, roundly booed last night after he further boosted his pantomime villain reputation following the walkout he arranged, twice came back from a two-leg deficit to draw with Dimitri van den Bergh. Another draw tonight wouldn’t surprise.

At Betway, one line on Daryl Gurney, Peter Wright, Rob Cross, and a tie pays 51.39/1

(13/8) Daryl Gurney v Mensur Suljovic (6/5)
(13/10) Peter Wright v Gerwyn Price (6/4)
(4/7) Rob Cross v Jeffrey de Zwaan (7/2)
(15/2) Raymond van Barneveld v Michael van Gerwen (1/4)
(6/4) James Wade v Michael Smith (13/10)

QUICK GLANCE AT THE DARTS PREMIER LEAGUE – Night 9 Judgement Night

Venue: Rotterdam Ahoy
Dates: Thursday 28.03.2019
Format: Best of 12 legs
Current Champion: Michael van Gerwen
Where To Watch: Sky Sports
When To Watch: (1900 GMT)

April25April 25, 2018

Barney Beats Michael van Gerwen In Holland

By Peter FryersIn

Darts Betting Tips

Dutch fans in attendance in Rotterdam were treated by their two heroes — Raymond van Barneveld and Michael van Gerwen — going head to head in a match in which Barnveld delivered a surprising upset.

It was billed as the match of night and it didn’t disappoint as the two finest players the Netherlands has ever produced served up a classic in which Barney fought off a late comeback attempt from the world’s best player, Michael van Gerwen, to win 7-5. Barney, at one point 6-3 ahead, looked to have let victory slip through his fingers as Mighty Mike fought back to almost draw level, before Barney landed a treble 20 followed by double four for the win.

Oddly, this was van Gerwen’s second defeat in as many nights, made even weirder by the fact he was playing back in his homeland. This contrasted Barney, however, who was struggling for form prior to returning to The Netherlands but picked up maximum points over both days.

Matchnight 13 Recap

Michael Smith returned to winning ways with a 7-1 destruction of Simon Whitlock. Smith lost badly on Wednesday to Gary Anderson, but went above the Scot in the table a night later after he sent early league leader Whitlock packing. It was The Wizard who took the first leg when Smith missed two important darts, but Bully Boy took over soon after and reeled off seven legs in succession. The defeat for Whitlock means the Aussie is propping up the rest at the bottom of the table while Smith stays fourth and on target for a playoff place in London a month from now.

Two-time world champion Gary Anderson produced an imperious display against Daryl Gurney to win 7-3. Anderson, who one night earlier almost banked a nine-dart finish against Rob Cross, came close again on Thursday as he opened up with 177 and 180 before blowing it for the second night in a row. He didn’t blow the the match however, as he took out 88 to claim a 4-2 lead before hitting 13 and 11 dart legs, leaving one more for the win which came courtesy of a ruthlessly executed 92.

Peter Wright’s weird form continued as he dug deep to earn a 6-6 draw with Rob Cross. Only 24 hours earlier, Snakebite had surprisingly seen off Michael van Gerwen but was often struggling to hang in there in Thursday’s match against the World Champ. Cross took the lead early on, throwing triple 140s, before landing an 81 to give him a 12-dart opener. Voltage followed this by breaking Wright’s throw in leg two after fans were treated to the familiar site of Peter repeatedly missing important darts at double, in this case four. Before long, Cross was up 5-2, but Snakebite was determined to make a fight of it, winning the next three to draw level. Having fought back, Cross began to wobble, missing six darts at the double but somehow pulled ahead 6-5 ahead before Wright came back to claim a share of the points.

Daryl Gurney returned to the oche for the last of the night’s action needing to put his earlier defeat to Gary Anderson behind him. He did so in emphatic fashion as he beat Simon Whitlock 7-1, the Aussie’s second such reverse of the night. Gurney averaged just south of 100 and scored three maximums on his way to a comfortable victory.

Premier League Darts Betting Tips

Matchnight 14 takes place this Thursday at the Manchester Arena with all the action broadcast live on numerous Sky Sports channels from 1900 GMT.

Michael Smith has the opportunity to effectively eliminate many by closing off the top four this week should he pick up two points from his two matches. The first of these is the night’s opening game against Peter Wright, although increasingly erratic, should be in confident mood having taken three points off MVG and Rob Cross in Rotterdam. Michael had a tight grip on first but has now slipped down to fourth, but he remains three points ahead of Snakebite with a game in hand. Smith to win and shut out the others? Why not. Bet of the match: Smith to hit the most 180s, no 100+ checkout in the match and both players to average under 100 for 5/1.

Next up is Daryl Gurney and Michael van Gerwen in a match that looks unlikely to throw up any surprises. MVG is the other player playing twice this week and although pegged back slightly last week, two wins on the night would provide him with a cushion at the top of the table as we start to look forward to the play offs in London. Superchin stands a slight chance of making the top four himself, but I expect Mighty Mike to extinguish that here. Add to Michael’s value by jumping on van Gerwen to win by over 2.5 legs, hit a 120+ checkout and over 7.5 total 180s for 11/2 at Betway.

Simon Whitlock, who has an even more remote chance of progression than Gurney, is out next for his match against Gary Anderson, a near certainty for the O2. Like the previous match, this matchup looks unlikely to shock anyone — the Flying Scotsman all the way. For 11/4, I think it’s worth backing Anderson to win by over 2.5 legs, hit the most 180s and a 100+ checkout.

Barney enjoyed his time back in Holland last week, picking up maximum rewards for seeing off Simon Whitlock and Michael van Gerwen. He goes again here against Rob Cross, who also handled the Dutch experience well, taking three points from three games. Like Gary Anderson, Voltage is still in the running to get that number one spot, sitting just a point behind MVG. Raymond’s form last week looked more like a flash in the pan and proved he still had the class of old. Back in the UK, I think the young blood of the World Champion will win out. I’ll go with Cross to win, hit the most 180s and hit a 100+ checkout for 4/1.

The two Michaels finish off the night’s action, and assuming both win earlier on in the night, both will be in buoyant mood for the night’s finale. That said, MVG will be looking to bank his place on top of the pack and should dominate Smith, who is deserving of a place in the play-offs even if he loses out here. Betway continues to make things interesting by offering van Gerwen to win by over 3.5 legs, average over 100 and under 7.5 total 180s at 9/4.

The line on Smith, MVG, Anderson, Cross and MVG pays at a rate of 11.15/1, while Betway have also boosted the following treble to 5/1; Wright, Anderson and Cross to win.

(11/10) Peter Wright v Michael Smith (7/4)
(6/1) Daryl Gurney v Michael van Gerwen (30/100)
(6/1) Simon Whitlock v Gary Anderson (30/100)
(5/2) Raymond van Barneveld v Rob Cross (4/5)
(11/2) Michael Smith v Michael van Gerwen (1/3)