Nathan Aspinall v Michael Smith
The impact that the contenders have had every week in the 2019 Premier League has been very evident. All you have to do is look at what John Henderson did last week in Aberdeen, and maybe it could be the same story for Nathan Aspinall, the newest major champion in the PDC.
A couple of months ago, Bully Boy would have thought that Aspinall wasn’t a bad draw for this new concept, now he will feel he’s been dealt the joker in the pack. Aspinall is flying, not just because he won in Minehead a couple of weeks back, but he has battered Van Gerwen on tour this year, had great consistency and he will undoubtedly prove tricky for Michael Smith this Thursday night in the Robin Hood city.
Really happy to win my first major last night even better to do it with a 170 finish just made it a little more special. Thank you to everyone for you support means a lot to me. @TargetDarts @Zxfsports @EasyTrimRoofing @TIMco_tweets pic.twitter.com/avPGqnuW8W
— Nathan Aspinall (@NathanAspi) March 4, 2019
Smith was simply outclassed by Cross in Scotland last week and will need an immediate response as he searches for valuable points to stave off potential relegation in the coming weeks.
This one is close, and could easily be another contender draw, but with Smith under the cosh from league position and a groin injury, he could find himself being the first contender casualty. A fit and flying Aspinall might be too much at this point for the St Helens ace.
James Wade v Mensur Suljovic
Make no mistake, James Wade is playing properly just now. The last two weeks have seen him put in arguably the best two PL performances of his illustrious career. After taking Van Gerwen out two weeks ago, he upped that ante even more by zilching Gurney in Aberdeen with some flawless scoring and pinpoint accuracy on doubles. He was simply perfect in that showing and he will eye the same against Mensur.
Suljovic on the other hand, has been very un-Mensur-like in the past few weeks. He has looked exasperated at times and almost fed up of playing at a lesser level than the last couple of seasons. He needs something to happen to ignite his inspiration, but this game is the stuff of nightmares for him just now as I don’t see Wade looking back after his recent form.
Wade will be too strong and will punish any missed opportunity that is given to him by the Vienna veteran. Expect Wade to hit the front early and stay there. I do not see a way that he doesn’t win this match, unless the energy levels of James suddenly grind to a halt.
James Wade after five nights of the @Unibet Premier League…
✅Joint-top overall tournament average
✅Highest match average
✅Highest tournament checkout %
✅Joint-second most 180sCheck out the latest tournament stats: https://t.co/33liLkTiYP pic.twitter.com/h0ycNTmuGN
— PDC Darts (@OfficialPDC) March 12, 2019
Rob Cross v Raymond van Barneveld
Does anyone have any good news for RVB right now? Well, not me because this Premier League is turning into a red sock in a white wash for him. His form has not been good enough, and even though his defiant social media comments say he isn’t going to give up, the statistics and the league don’t lie to us. Coming to Nottingham he has poor form, the media questioning his commitment and drive, and other negative press to handle, so when he bumps into Voltage, expect to be strapped into something resembling a darting electric chair.
Cross has answered all of his critics this season with some impervious play and some classic Rob Cross finishing. When he is playing this well, he is a joy to behold and you can see that he is playing with freedom, almost like when you’re playing with the house money in a roulette game, but this is darts and he knows how to bet. He has been so assured in his recent wins, and with the MVG drubbing now behind him, I see RVB being put on the butchers block here and if Raymond isn’t careful, this could get very ugly.
Cross will not care one jot for Van Barneveld’s worries and will take this one at a canter with similar play from a week ago in Scotland.
Cross to win – 4.5 legs – 16/5
Gerwyn Price v Michael van Gerwen
Every now and again we get a game that just makes your taste buds tingle, and in Nottingham, this is the one. What we want to see here is passion, noise, animosity and willingness to win from both of these players. By no means do these guys dislike each other, quite the contrary, but if they go at it all guns blazing this could be very special.
Gerwyn Price has proved this year that he can live with the best from a stats and standard perspective, and we all know what MVG has in the locker, so if they both turn up it could be one for the record books.
Price isn't afraid to ruffle the feathers of Michael, and if he is to get a result here he has to take that to the maximum. He has done that before but ultimately, he didn’t get the win he craved in a World Championship classic two years ago.
MVG has been ruffled a couple of times lately and that may play on his mind, and there will be a lot of people thinking that Price can get the two points especially as he is still unbeaten.
For me, this is a hard one to call, but one thing I do know is that it will be fiery.
If you’re doing an accumulator on this one and looking for a safe bet though, I wouldn’t back against MVG.
Peter Wright v Daryl Gurney
Snakebite showed a week ago just how to compound someone’s misery when it comes to Premier League darts. His accuracy against RVB in Aberdeen was outstanding and his relentless nature on his scoring was a joy to watch. He may have found an equipment combination that gives him both scoring prowess and doubling desire, and he really has no excuse to change these arrows now. If he plays like he did in Scotland, he wins this one easily and that’s worrying for Daryl.
Daryl is very aware that his first dart at the treble twenty has been lacking the last fortnight and he has to fix it fast. By not having that security blanket of a good first dart, he has been searching for scores all around the board and has been found wanting against Cross and Wade lately, and worryingly only won one leg. After a very encouraging start to this PL, he has started to stutter, but his confidence in himself hasn’t wilted and he honestly feels that if he keeps putting in the work he will reap the benefits. He will have to sort that soon as his league position is looking a tad precarious, only a little above RVB and Smith in the drop zone.
Struggling players seem to be coming up against form horses this week in Nottinghamshire and it’s hard to go against Peter here, simply because of the mojo he has and Daryl's last two results on the Unibet stage.
UniBets of the night
1 – Wade to be King of the oche – 5/1. All over this as his game is in prime shape to make this happen.
