Taylor out twice in week 12
Published:
Five best in Belfast
Things are getting serious in the Premier League darts season as we travel to the SSE Arena in Belfast for night 12 of the campaign. Punters have some interesting match-ups planned, and it’s Phil ‘The Power’ Taylor’s night to play twice.
It has been an unpredictable season so far, with plenty of big price upsets along the way. Nothing has been decided yet in terms of final places in the division, and we offer our thoughts on how this week should shape-up. Follow our Premier League Darts five-fold, with every £10 down paying £125.60.
Lewis beat Chisnall
We start with the easiest selection of the night, and although we have taken Jackpot on in recent weeks, a pretty terrible tactic, it must be said, we are going to learn from our mistakes and side with the former champion this time. He goes into the round just a point off the top-four, and now sets his sights on a Chizzy who doesn’t have an awful lot to play for. Let’s not forget that stunning nine-dart finish from Lewis last week. He starts us off at a value 5/6.
Anderson beat Taylor
The first of two outings for Phil Taylor in Belfast, and his most difficult of the night. Anderson has all the ability in the world, but just hasn’t been firing this season. A draw with Chisnall last week is almost unforgivable, given his opponent’s form, but we saw the worst of the Scotsman, followed by the best of him, when beating Peter Wright 7-2 in that top of the bill scrap. That was a big win against a player oozing confidence. Is he hitting form at the right time? We think so, and he’s backed at a cracking 4/5.
Wright beat Wade
Wright needs a win to get the confidence back, and Wade looks to be just the player to give him it. The Machine beat Taylor 7-5 last week, but that says more about how The Power is playing at the minute than it does on Wade. Snakebite is well-placed in the table, but can take nothing for granted, and could easily fall out of the top-four, just as things get serious. He lost to Wade earlier this week in the German Masters, but we’ll take a chance on quick-fire revenge at 8/15. The result of this match will tell us a lot about Wright’s chances.
Van Gerwen beat Barneveld
MVG is the only player you could hang your hat on to qualify. He sits top of the league on 17 points, and another win here would push him further clear of the chasing pack. Nerves are beginning to creep into the work of those around him, namely Wright, but Mighty has been impressive throughout, losing just once so far. Barney was crushed by Lewis last time, and I think he has played his best darts already. MVG won the German Masters earlier this week, and beat Raymond on route. 3/10 more of the same looks fair.
Taylor beat Chisnall
If we are correct with Phil’s earlier match, he will go into this looking to get back on track and score a much-needed win. Two defeats on week 12 would be the end of his chances, we’re sure. He hasn’t quite lived up to the hype so far, with fans expecting to see the record-breaking world champ bow out in style. Qualification is still a possibility, but even at his worst he has to be fancied vs Chizzy. The latter has a poor head-to-head record in this tie, and Taylor looks to have been overpriced at 10/11.
