Milton Keynes (Night 16)
Peter Wright v Michael Smith
You do have to say that Snakebite will be favourite in this one, based on the level of play he has achieved over the course of the Milton Keynes evenings, plus how composed he has been in defeat and in victory. He hasn’t looked stressed at any point, and unfortunately that cannot be said for Michael. Bully Boy has let too many games slip and has not been able to cross the finishing line in winning positions enough throughout this Premier League for me to give him the nod here. There is no doubting his talent, and I firmly think he will win a big title soon, but in order to do so, I think he needs to open his mind as to why he hasn’t thus far, and then gain some assistance to help him in that area. It is conceivable that there could be double figures of 180’s in this best of 14 contest, and these two are most likely to find the perfect leg right now, having both hit one in this PL, so if they do, the £50,000 bonus will be theirs. This could be their focus for the night. Result wise, you have to back Peter, and if he gets the start he had against MVG in his 8-1 mauling of the world number 1, it could be a big margin. It’s all about the start though.
Match – Peter Wright to win 8-4
Tip – Over 8.5 x 180’s in the match and Peter to win by 3 clear legs
Michael Van Gerwen v Daryl Gurney
With Gurney playing for pride and MVG facing all sorts of questions about his state of confidence, this could be one of the most intriguing encounters of the evening. Gurney has a decent shout in this and may fancy a big outing as he bows out of the event. We know he has the ability to scrap and live with the elite, as he showed against Anderson earlier in the week, and a state of relaxation may help Gurney against an MVG who a lot of people think is struggling with some sort of discomfort on stage, and an inability to find consistent performances day in day out. Michael does have to get his act together. Whatever is troubling him, he may just need a period of time where he is constantly playing and learning about the player he is becoming, and a transitional period may be on the cards. Every great sportsperson has this in their career, even Phil Taylor, so maybe not winning. this Premier League might be a blessing. We all learn more from mistakes than from success, so right now its time to listen to the learning process and evolve. As for this game, I sneakily think Gurney might clinch it, but only if he is leading after 7 legs. Otherwise, we could have a draw here.
Match – 7-7 draw
Tip – Both players to have more than 2 x 180’s in the match
Nathan Aspinall v Glen Durrant
What a contrast in styles you have with this match, and you have someone who has taken points off Durrant this year in Aspinall. Nathan has been like a new spice, added to an already very tasty curry this year in the Premier League, and I for one hope he is part of it for many years. Glen may not wish that because of previous results and even though Duzza is already qualified for the play-offs, he will try and maintain that steely focus and composure in this to try and get one back on The Asp. Glen has been borderline unbreakable in this campaign and even though he said he has ridden his luck, you can’t deny just how incredible it is to have both of these debutants battling it out on a final league night with a stack of points in the bank. It just goes to show, you do need fresh blood sometimes to jazz up an event, and they both deserve a lot of credit. This match though is all about Nathan, and if he can get out of the blocks and get an early lead, surely he will learn from the mistake he made against Gezzy where he let him back in late in the match. He still got that win, but he will know that he cannot do that to Duzza, who has come back from numerous big deficits to scrape points. I don’t think Durrant will want to take his foot off the gas and will use every piece of mental strength he has to extract points from Nathan, but I see Aspinall having big legs at key times, with celebrations to match. This game is tighter than my wallet when the barman calls for last orders, so I am going for the draw.
Match – 7-7 draw with it being nip and tuck all the way
Tip – Biggest finish of the night from Durrant. We haven’t seen much of the Duzza shuffle in the last couple of years, but he might break it out for a big checkout if its key
Gerwyn Price v Gary Anderson
There is no use talking about the previous bad blood between these guys, because it is ancient history, but what is applicable is how good this game could be. We all know that we have two elite players in this match, but what is barely talked about is how their styles actually suit each other. They both like to get on with it, and they both have similar strategies in how to construct a 501 winning leg. They like to stay straight, they aren’t too creative and prefer to leave double top if possible. That said to me that the first double hit in this one will be red. As for how they have performed lately, you have to hand it to Gary, with a a change of kit after The Matchplay, has adapted to this atmosphere faster than most and utilised some outrageous 140 shooting to some great effect. His doubles haven’t been pinpoint, but thats symptomatic of using new darts and not having a great deal of time to get used to them. Gezzy has been up and down like a sewing machine needle, but I see more steeliness in him than ever before, and realistically, the man who hasn’t got the genuine experience of the rest of the field is still learning. How scary is that for someone who has achieved what he has already! As the last game of the league phase, I want these guys to go out there and leave it on the board and show their desire. If it spills over into words, so be it, but if this is a damp squib, I won’t be impressed.
Match – Anderson to win 8-5
Tip – Anderson has been getting hot starts lately so why not have a flutter on him hitting a 180 to start the match. If he is to get a 9 darter, it will be in the first 5 legs, because that is how he rolls
