Issue 13 (March 25, 2016)

Friday 25 March 2016

Darts Weekly

PREMIER LEAGUE

Thorn is off the bottom Pages 2-3 ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●● ●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●●

Count on Hankey to keep providing us the drama Page 8

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Friday 25 March 2016 Darts Weekly

Lewis is back in the top four after win over van Barneveld Adrian Lewis 7 Raymond van Barneveld 5 Adrian Lewis climbed back into the Betway Premier League play-offs with a narrow 7-5 win over Raymond van Barneveld in Liverpool last night.

Jackpot won five of the last seven legs to move up to fourth in the table, in a game which went all the way at the Echo Arena. Barney

took a 3-2 lead following back-toback 64 checkouts, before Lewis finished off 104 to win a fourth leg in a row to go 6-3 in front.

Barney responded in the 11th leg with his own 104 finish to force a final leg, which Lewis won with double eight to take the two points.

“I finished well and I’m happy with that but my scoring was terrible so I’ve still got something to work on,” Lewis said.

Wright digs in to draw with Taylor Phil Taylor 6 Peter Wright 6 Peter Wright stopped his recent losing run in the Betway Premier League as he fought back from 6-4 down to claim a share of the points with Phil Taylor in Liverpool.

Snakebite’s recent defeats to Michael van Gerwen, Adrian Lewis and Gary Anderson had seen the world number five drop down from top spot to sixth in the table.

And it looked like the former World Championship runner-up was on course for a fourth loss on the spin when Taylor was leading 6-4 and had tops left.

But the Power then squandered three darts at a double to see out the win, and he was punished as Wright produced a brilliant 111

checkout to break the Taylor throw for the first time in the match.

The first nine legs had all gone with throw and included checkouts of 130 and 141 before Taylor secured the first break in leg 10 with a classy 11 darter to go 6-4 up.

However, Wright’s 100+ out shot saw him then have the throw to rescue a point, which he did with a 13 dart leg to end his losing streak.

“I’m happy to get the draw but I wasn’t totally happy with my performance,” Snakebite said.

“It was my birthday the other week and Phil gave me a present today - he gave me a shot at the 111 and I had to take it.”

A frustrated Taylor said: “I’m gutted not to have taken both points but the draw was probably the right score.”

Thornton has fate in his own Michael van Gerwen 6 Robert Thornton 6 Robert Thornton heads into Judgement Night next week with his fate in his own hands after picking up three points from his two games last night. After beating

Michael Smith 7-5 in the opening game at Liverpool’s Echo Arena, the Thorn then performed superbly well to draw 6-6 with world number one Michael van Gerwen to end the night.

The match against MVG saw Thornton take a surprise 3-1 lead,

before the Betway Premier League leader battled back to win the next three legs to go 4-3 up.

The Thorn had taken out a stunning 140 checkout to draw level in leg two, but van Gerwen hit back in the seventh leg with a 130 out shot, just seconds after his

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Six of the best for Anderson puts him joint top of the pile Gary Anderson 7 Dave Chisnall 4 Gary Anderson is now level on points with Michael van Gerwen and Phil Taylor at the top of the Betway Premier League, as the holder defeated Dave Chisnall 7-4 to claim his sixth win in a row.

After losing his opening two games of the tournament, the Flying Scotsman has been in fine

form and never really looked in any trouble against Chizzy.

Anderson broke the Chisnall throw twice early on to establish leads of 2-0 and 4-1, with a 144 checkout in the seventh leg putting him 5-2 up and from then on the remaining legs all went with throw.

“I’m happy with how things are going,” Anderson said. “I made a few stupid mistakes but I stuck in and had a good last leg.”

Taylor battles back to draw with MVG

hands after draw with MVG opponent had missed double five to complete the same checkout.

Thornton stopped the rot in the next leg by holding throw with a 13 darter, but the Dutchman continued to pile on the pressure as the match stayed on throw as they headed into the final leg with

MVG leading 6-5. Yet in the final leg the trebles seemed to desert van Gerwen, as Thornton had plenty of time to hit tops and claim a deserved share of the points.

“It was a really good night for me,” the reigning World Grand Prix champion said. “People know

I’m a fighter and I’m not going to be knocked down without a battle.

“This has been a big boost to my confidence going into Judgement Night and the big thing is that it’s in my hands now. I’m using new darts and I think I proved I’m almost back to my best.”

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Friday 25 March 2016 Darts Weekly

Momentum with Thornton as the Premier League gets set for Judgement Night Alex Moss CHIEF DARTS WRITER Three players are battling it out to avoid elimination from the Betway Premier League next week, but only one will end Judgement Night in eighth place to survive.

Robert Thornton, Dave Chisnall and Michael Smith are all embroiled in a fight for survival when the Premier League visits the Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff next Thursday night.

Following his 7-5 win over Smith and a 6-6 draw with Michael van Gerwen last night in Liverpool, it is Thornton who holds all the aces heading into week nine.

The Scot had just one point to his name before last night’s action at the Echo Arena, but was playing twice as he had a game in hand.

The win against Smith to kick-off the night was the perfect start for the Thorn, as he climbed above the Premier League debutant into ninth place and closer to safety.

A repeat of last year’s World Grand Prix final closed the night out, with Thornton once again proving to be, well, a thorn in the side of the world number one.

Thornton quite rightly said he would have snapped your arm off for three points from his two games and quite rightly so.

With van Gerwen posting incredible averages in the 120s and 110s in recent weeks, some feared the Thorn could be in for another whitewash defeat last night.

But MVG did not find that form, and to his credit, Thornton took full advantage to claim a deserved point against the league leader.

That unexpected point could prove to make all the difference in Cardiff next week, as Thornton now has his Premier League fate in his own hands.

Even if Smith beats Phil Taylor and Chisnall overcomes Peter Wright next week, Thornton knows

he will avoid elimination by beating Adrian Lewis.

The Thorn may not even have to win in Cardiff though. If Smith and Chisnall both lose then Thornton will go up on stage knowing he will remain in the tournament at the end of Judgement Night.

The precedent therefore is firmly on the current bottom two of Chisnall and Smith. They need to get a result next week or they will be going home.

Legs difference could play a part in determining which player finishes the night in eighth, and having tasted two whitewash defeats this season, Thornton’s -20 legs difference may be a factor.

Smith’s legs difference is slightly worse at -24, while Chisnall’s -12 shows how close most of his defeats have been.

Four of Chizzy’s six defeats in the Premier League this season have been by a 7-4 scoreline and another has been closer at 7-5.

Despite going into Judgement Night now in the bottom two for the first time this season, Chisnall will have the belief that he can put in a performance which will enable him to avoid elimination.

If he was getting thrashed 7-0, 7-1 or 7-2 every week then his survival hopes would be a lost cause, but Chizzy is only really looking to hit another gear next week to give him a chance of beating Wright.

Although Wright produced a good fight back to draw with Taylor last night, his persistent tinkering with his darts may lead to a below par performance in Cardiff on Thursday night.

We’ve seen it before when Snakebite somehow managed to sneak a win against Raymond van Barneveld, but if it happens next week then the chance will be there for Chisnall to get a crucial win.

Smith will probably need to beat Taylor next week if he is to stand a chance of avoiding elimination.

The race to avoid elimination

Robert Thornton If momentum were the main factor, Thornton would be odds on favourite to avoid being eliminated next week.

Last night the Scot climbed out of the bottom two for the first time this season as he picked up three points from games against Michael Smith and Michael van Gerwen.

After a disastrous start to the tournament, which saw him lose 7-0 to Dave Chisnall on the opening night in Leeds and then miss out playing in the second week through illness, Thornton has taken time to settle in and rediscover his best form.

The World Grand Prix holder looked dead and buried after losing 7-0 to Phil Taylor two weeks ago, but an improved performance in the defeat to James Wade a week later gave him renewed belief, which helped him to beat Smith and draw with MVG last night.

Verdict Fate is in own hands but may need to beat Adrian Lewis next week to keep his place. 9th Fixtures Mar 31 Adrian Lewis

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darts firsts The former world finalist, Alan Norris, talks us through his darts memories First darts memory?

That would be watching the BDO World Championship at the Lakeside with my dad.

First darts hero?

My first hero I would say was Eric Bristow.

First set of darts?

They were a set of Harrows darts, which were brass and I think they were 26 grams.

Dave Chisnall

Michael Smith

After thrashing Robert Thornton 7-0 on the first night of this year’s Premier League to stand at the top of the table, few would have predicted Dave Chisnall to be embroiled in a battle to avoid elimination.

But that is the reality for last year’s semi-finalist, who since beating Thornton has drawn one and lost six of his next seven games and last night dropped into the bottom two for the first time this season.

Apart from a 7-2 thrashing at the hands of Michael van Gerwen in Nottingham though, all of Chizzy’s defeats have been close affairs. 7-4 losses to Adrian Lewis, James Wade, Gary Anderson and Raymond van Barneveld, as well as a 7-5 reverse to Phil Taylor will give him hope that he can possibly get the better of Peter Wright in Cardiff next week on Judgement Night.

Verdict Will fancy his chances of turning over Wright next week to avoid elimination. 8th Fixtures Mar 31 Peter Wright

Like Robert Thornton, Michael Smith has occupied a bottom two place for almost all of this year’s Premier League so far.

A slow start to his debut season in the competition could be what results in elimination for Bully Boy next week, with the former world youth champion almost certainly needing to beat Phil Taylor to stand a chance of survival.

Smith had to play twice on his debut night in Leeds after Gary Anderson withdrew through illness, and after picking up three legs in total across the two games, any confidence he had from being selected for the Premier League looked to have quickly evaporated.

His current tournament average of 90.76 will need to be improved if he is to climb off the bottom on Judgement Night next week and keep his place for the rest of the season.

Verdict Has the toughest game out of the three and will need to pull off an upset to stay in. 10th Fixtures Mar 31 Phil Taylor

First darts team?

The first team I played for was a pub in Plymouth called The Queens Dock.

First game on TV? Going back a few years now but I it was the 2008 Welsh Open while I was playing in the BDO. I beat Ian Jones 2-1 in the quarter-finals and then lost 3-1 to Gary Anderson in the next round.

First nine darter?

My first nine darter came while I was practicing a very long time ago. I hit one on my PDC debut while coming through Qualifying School last year which was brilliant to do.

First professional tournament win?

My first tournament win came while I was playing in the BDO and was the French Open back in 2010.

If I remember rightly I think I beat Kim Huybrechts 5-3 in the final to win it, so it was a good way to win it. Before that I did win the Sweden National Championships in 2007 as well, and I’ve had a few more tournament wins since then, including the British Classic and open events across the world.

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Friday 25 March 2016 Darts Weekly

De Vos and Labanauskas pick up first wins of 2016 in Venray Lithuania’s Darius Labanauskas came through a deciding set to win the HAL Open on Sunday.

The 39-year-old, nicknamed Lucky D, came from a set down to edge past Wesley Harms 3-2 in the final at the Evenementenhal in Venray at the weekend.

Harms took the first set 3-0 to take an early lead, before Labanauskas fought back, winning the next two sets 3-1 and 3-2 to go in front for the first time.

Sparky forced a deciding set by claiming the fourth set 3-1, but Labanauskas clinched the decider 3-1 to pick up the €2,500 prize.

The Lithuanian began the tournament in fine form as he saw off both Dave Hostmann and Mark Craddock in the early rounds 4-0.

It would not be so easy in the last 64 though, as Labanauskas squeezed past Ricardo Kleyer 4-3, and then defeated Ahmad Ahmaddy in a close encounter 4-2 to progress into the last 16.

A whitewash 4-0 win over Wilco Vermeulen booked Labanauskas his second quarter final of the year, where he played the conqueror of Co Stompe and Scott Mitchell, Scotland’s Ross Montgomery.

After beating the Boss 5-3 to keep his run going, Labanauskas then defeated Abdelaziz Hammouchi 2-0 in sets to progress through to his first final on the BDO circuit in almost a year.

There he came through a decider to beat Harms and lift the trophy, which was his first tournament victory since winning the Polish Open last May. Geert de Vos ended his year long wait for his next BDO title as he won the HAL Masters on Saturday.

The Belgian beat England’s Bradley Kirk 3-1 in the final to claim his first trophy since the BDO World Trophy in March 2015.

De Vos never had it easy on his way to the €1,250 winner’s cheque, coming through close games right from the very start. A 4-2 win over

Sebastien Lemmer in the last 256 got Foxy’s tournament started, before he edged past Raymond van den Ende 4-3 in the next round to progress to the last 64.

De Vos then defeated Steve Douglas, Shaun Carroll and Stephen Lennon all 4-2 to reach the quarter-finals, where he saw off the challenge of recent Scottish Open winner Danny Noppert 5-2.

A 2-0 win in sets over Davyd Venken secured the Belgian’s place in the final, where he got the better

Weekend wins: HAL Open champions Lisa Ashton and Darius Labanauskas (top) and HAL Masters winners Geert de Vos and Ashton (below) PICTURE: Henk Westerdaal of Kirk to end his trophy drought.

Lisa Ashton continued her recent good form by winning both the HAL Masters and HAL Open ladies titles at the weekend.

Ashton defeated Aileen de Graaf in both finals to clinch the double. victory.

Darts Weekly Friday 25 March 2016

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Database BDO HAL MASTERS (legs/sets) (Evenementenhal, Venray) Men’s singles last 32 - M Adams 4-2 B Zander, S Visser 0-4 D Noppert, D Koenen 3-4 S Lennon, S Carroll 2-4 G de Vos, D Venken 4-1 K de Boer, J Hendriks 1-4 D Labanauskas, D van Baelen 4-2 R Montgomery, A Fordham 2-4 S Mitchell, R Radsma 2-4 R Edwards, T Hankey 3-4 W Mandigers, J van Egdom 2-4 E de Koff, B Raman 1-4 R Veenstra, M McGeeney 2-4 B Kirk, F Roosenbrand 4-3 M Meaney, R Janssen 2-4 W Vaes, G Vos 1-4 W Harms.

Last 16 - M Adams 1-4 D Noppert, S Lennon 2-4 G de Vos, D Venken 4-1 D Labanauskas, D van Baelen 4-1 S Mitchell, R Edwards 1-4 W Mandigers, E de Koff 4-3 R Veenstra, B Kirk 4-0 F Roosenbrand, W Vaes 4-3 W Harms. Quarter finals - D Noppert 2-5 G de Vos, D Venken 5-2 D van Baelen, W Mandigers 4-5 E de Koff, B Kirk 5-3 W Vaes. Semi finals - G de Vos 2-0 D Venken, E de Koff 1-2 B Kirk. Final - G de Vos 3-1 B Kirk.

BDO HAL OPEN (legs/sets) (Evenementenhal, Venray) Men’s singles last 32 - A Hammouchi 4-2 M Atkins, K McDine 3-4 D Noppert, D Reynolds 3-4 V van der Kuijl, S Wens 1-4 G de Vos, D Fitton 1-4 W Vermeulen, A Ahmaddy 2-4 D Labanauskas, D Harbour 3-4 R Montgomery, A Fordham 0-4 S Mitchell, N van Duivenboden 2-4 J Hendriks, R Gokoel 1-4 R Janssen, D van Baelen 4-1 J van de Ven, W Vaes 4-3 R Veenstra, M McGeeney 4-1 B Kirk, S Lennon 4-1 A Bell, M Razma 4-1 T O’Shea, M Lie Ten 1-4 W Harms. Last 16 - A Hammouchi 4-2 D Noppert, V van der Kuijl 0-4 G de Vos, W Vermeulen 0-4 D Labanauskas, R Montgomery 4-2 S Mitchell, J Hendriks 2-4 R Janssen, D van Baelen 4-2 W Vaes, M McGeeney 4-3 S Lennon, M Razma 2-4 W Harms. Quarter finals - A Hammouchi 5-3 G de Vos, D Labanauskas 5-3 R Montgomery, R Janssen 5-2 D van Baelen, M McGeeney 4-5 W Harms. Semi finals - A Hammouchi 0-2 D Labanauskas, R Janssen 0-2 W Harms. Final - D Labanauskas 3-2 W Harms.

PDC UNICORN CHALLENGE TOUR (legs) (Robin Park Tennis Centre, Wigan) Event One last 16 - C Quantock 5-1 E Dootson, J Kelling 5-4 M Todd, M Lawrence 5-4 J Landon, A Kirk 5-4 K Shepherd, B Lynn 5-3 M Turner, K Dowling 5-2 G Parsons, R Cross 5-1 P Mitchell, R Eidams 5-3 A Hunt. Quarter finals - C Quantock 5-4 J Kelling, M Lawrence 5-3 A Kirk, K Dowling 5-4 B Lynn, R Cross 5-2 R Eidams.

Semi finals - C Quantock 5-4 M Lawrence, R Cross 5-3 K Dowling. Final C Quantock 5-3 R Cross.

Event Two last 16 - B Lynn 5-4 N Birch,

The Paignton Darts Academy with Miss Torbay and her lady in waiting took part in a nine dart challenge for Sport Relief last week. Send in your darts photos to dartsweekly@gmail.com R Searle 5-0 P Amos, E Dootson 5-3 S Dale, B Claydon 5-4 M Lukeman, R Modra 5-2 C Loose, T Pehkonen 5-3 J Jukes, C Fowler 5-4 J Bain, E White 5-1 N Fullwell.

Quarter finals - B Lynn 5-1 R Searle, E Dootson 5-4 B Claydon, R Modra 5-3 T Pehkonen, C Fowler 5-4 E White. Semi finals - B Lynn 5-3 E Dootson, R Modra 5-3 C Fowler. Final - B Lynn 5-4 R Modra.

Event Three last 16 - R Cross 5-4 R Harrington, R Edhouse 5-0 M van der Horst, R Searle 5-1 A Johnson, M Michels 5-2 A Howarth, M Dudbridge 5-3 B Lynn, B de Hoog 5-4 C Quantock, S Groen 5-3 K Parry, N Fullwell 5-0 P Hudson. Quarter finals - R Edhouse 5-2 R Cross, R Searle 5-2 M Michels, M Dudbridge 5-3 B de Hoog, N Fullwell 5-3 S Groen. Semi finals - R Edhouse 5-3 R Searle, M Dudbridge 5-2 N Fullwell. Final - R Edhouse 5-0 M Dudbridge.

Event Four last 16 - R Baillle 5-0 S Brown, P Hudson 5-3 M Forman, S Maish 5-1 M Padgett, R Sudale 5-4 M Todd, B Holmes 5-1 D Martin, H Ward 5-4 K Simm, B de Hoog 5-2 N Birch, T Burkhill 5-2 D Russell. Quarter finals - P Hudson 5-0 R Baillle, R Sudale 5-3 S Maish, H Ward 5-4 B Holmes, B de Hoog 5-4 T Burkhill.

Semi finals - P Hudson 5-4 R Sudale, B de Hoog 5-3 H Ward. Final - B de Hoog 5-4 P Hudson.

DPA HARROWS AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX (legs) (Australian Anglo Indian Association, Perth) Event Seven quarter finals - K Kokiri 6-2 C Bridge, G Mathers 6-1 L Ryder, C

Ugle 6-2 T Hoefel, D Platt 6-4 C Cadby.

Semi finals - K Kokiri 6-5 G Mathers, D Platt 6-4 C Ugle. Final - D Platt 6-3 K Kokiri.

Event Eight quarter finals - D Heta 6-3 H Kemp, C Cadby 6-3 S Tichowitsch, J Weber 6-2 T Hoefel, D Platt 6-3 K Kokiri.

Semi finals - C Cadby 6-0 D Heta, D Platt 6-4 J Weber. Final - D Platt 6-4 C Cadby.

PDC BETWAY PREMIER LEAGUE (legs) (Echo Arena, Liverpool) Week eight - M Smith (92.48) 5-7 R Thornton (92.88), G Anderson (103.25) 7-4 D Chisnall (100.01), A Lewis (96.57) 7-5 R van Barneveld (98.35), P Taylor (101.51) 6-6 P Wright (103.40), M van Gerwen (97.57) 6-6 R Thornton (95.59).

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Friday 25 March 2016 Darts Weekly

ALEX MOSS CHIEF DARTS WRITER

Hankey will always be a box office attraction Edward Hankey, better known as Ted or by his nickname the Count, will always be remembered as one of the biggest characters in the history of darts.

From the age of nine-years-old Hankey has been throwing darts, and it’s an association with the sport which has spanned almost 40 years and included numerous tournament victories around the world on the BDO circuit.

Twice Ted has conquered Lakeside and won the BDO’s World Championship, and while his talent is unquestioned, wherever he goes, controversy is never too far behind.

Take last weekend in Venray for example. After losing 4-3 to Roy Gokoel in the last 128 of the HAL Open it was reported that the Count refused to stay at the board and chalk the next game.

It is understood that the organisers of the tournament have said Hankey will not be welcome back next year, yet you can rest assured it will not be the last time we see the two-time world champion in a bit of bother before he calls it a day in the sport.

Earlier this week we asked our readers on Twitter for their best memories of Hankey, and as you could expect they ranged from the sublime to the downright outrageous.

Beating Phil Taylor in the 2010 Grand Slam of Darts, winning his first world title with a 170 checkout and his thrilling semi-final against Chris Mason that same year were high on the list of responses.

While Gregg Huish recalls the Count ‘coming to an exhibition and

playing his A game all night without a smile. Got drunk and then went home.’

The 2008 BDO World Championship was perhaps where Hankey’s rage on the oche reached its highest, as he punched the board during his 5-0 defeat to Simon Whitlock in the quarterfinals of the tournament.

Referee Barry Gilbey issued a warning to the Count and after the

"The stakes may be smaller but the Count will always grab the headlines” match an emotional Hankey told the BBC he was considering his future in the sport.

Controversy continued to follow Ted that year as while playing in the International Open he complained about the air conditioning on the stage and threw his darts without much care before exiting the tournament.

After a turbulent year on the oche, Hankey came back with a

bang by winning his second world title at the start of 2009.

It prompted an invite to the Grand Slam of Darts for the first time later that year, where again the Count and the crowd did not get on.

At the start of 2012 more controversy ensued as Hankey suggested the air conditioning had been deliberately switched on during his world semi-final defeat to Christian Kist at Lakeside.

Ted moved to the PDC for the 2012 season and his two years with the organisation will largely be remembered for his contrasting performances in the Grand Slam.

Hankey revealed he had suffered a stroke following his group stage defeat to Michael van Gerwen in the 2012 event, which saw him visibly struggling with an average of 59.

The Count came back with a vengeance a year later as he came from 6-1 down to beat Whitlock 10-9 to reach the quarter-finals, before he withdrew his entry for QSchool at the start of 2014. Hankey is back on the BDO circuit and although the stakes may be smaller, he’ll always grab the headlines.