Premier League Darts: Wins for MVG, Anderson & Barney

The Flying Scotsman thrilled the crowd at the Motorpoint Arena as he averaged 107.13, hit five 180s and managed a 170 checkout in a dominant 7-3 triumph that meant he remained fourth in a congested table.

Michael van Gerwen ensured he ended the halfway point of the season on top of the pile as he bounced back from losing his unbeaten record last week by crushing Dave Chisnall 7-1.

He's one point ahead of Peter Wright after the Scotsman was awarded a default 7-0 win over relegated Kim Huybrechts, who was absent from Cardiff due to family reasons.

Van Barneveld kept hold of third spot as he recorded his fourth victory in a row by thrashing a below-par James Wade 7-2.

And in the opening match of the evening, Phil Taylor stayed in touch with the top four thanks to a superb comeback from 4-1 down against Jelle Klaasen.

The Power was facing a damaging defeat against the already-relegated Dutchman but a run of four successive legs and a timley 180 in the final leg of the match helped propel him to a 7-5 crucial victory.

The night marked the end of the first half of the Premier League Darts season, with Klaasen and Huybrechts now eliminated after finishing in the bottom two positions.

The remaining eight players will play each other once more before the top four advance to finals night at the O2 in London on May 18.

Below is a full statistical breakdown of each match as well as player reaction while we also rank their performances at the bottom of this article as well as provide the updated Premier League table.

CLICK HERE FOR FULL SEASON FIXTURES, RESULTS & TABLE 

Peter Wright 7-0 Kim Huybrechts *

*Kim Huybrechts withdrew due to family reasons. With Huybrechts already eliminated from the event, under the tournament rules the game will not be rescheduled and Peter Wright is awarded a 7-0 win.  

Phil Taylor 7-5 Jelle Klaasen

Phil Taylor boosted his top-four hopes as he produced a superb comeback to defeat Jelle Klaasen in Cardiff.

The Power took the opening leg but lost the next four as the already-relegated Dutchman looked as through he'd end his campaign on a high at the Motorpoint Arena.

Taylor upped his game to win four legs on the spin, including an 11-darter in the seventh, to take control before securing at least a point when taking out 81 to go 6-5 up.

Klaasen then looked on course to hold his throw in the final leg for a draw but a timley 180 from Taylor helped set him up for a finish from 42 and he made no mistake.

"It's another two points for me and they could all prove crucial at the end of the season," said Taylor. "It could prove the difference for getting into the Play-Offs - if I'd lost I think I'd have struggled to qualify.

"I think Jelle's injury affected him, at the beginning he was faring well but during the game he was struggling and he wasn't the same player. Fair play to him, it must be very frustrating but he's battled on."  

Three-dart averages
Taylor: 97.5
Klaasen: 91.78

SCORING:
100+ thrown
Taylor: 18
Klaasen: 12
140+ thrown
Taylor: 11
Klaasen: 7
180+ thrown
Taylor: 2
Klaasen: 2

CHECKOUTS
100+ checkouts
Taylor: N/A  (Highest: 81)
Klaasen: N/A  (Highest: 66)

Checkout percentage
Taylor: 46.67% (7/15)
Klaasen: 62.5% (5/8)

Gary Anderson 7-3 Adrian Lewis

Gary Anderson thrilled the Cardiff crowd with a 170 checkout as he stormed to a commanding 7-3 victory over Adrian Lewis that maintains his bid for a top-four spot.

The Flying Scotsman also hit five 180s and averaged 107.13 in a dazzling display of darts that left Jackpot with no answers.

Anderson found himself 2-1 down after Lewis broke his throw with a clinical finish from 81 but he won the next five legs in succession, culminating in back-to-back checkouts of 143 and 170.

Lewis managed to pull one back to keep alive his faint hopes of earning an unlikely point but Anderson, who took out seven of his nine attempts at doubles, got the job done on tops and he ends the night fourth in the table.

"I didn't think the performance was as good as the average, but I'll take it!" said Anderson. "There were some good scores and some bad scores - the 170 felt like it came from nowhere and I took out the 143 too.

 "We all want to get into the Play-Offs. When the tournament starts you don't want to be in the bottom two, and once you get past tonight it's a fight for the top four and everyone's trying for it."

Three-dart averages
Anderson: 107.13
Lewis: 96.67

SCORING:
100+ thrown
Anderson: 107.13
Lewis: 96.67
140+ thrown
Anderson: 9
Lewis: 14
180+ thrown
Anderson: 5
Lewis: 2

CHECKOUTS
100+ checkouts
Anderson: 170, 143
Lewis: N/A  (Highest: 81)

Checkout percentage
Anderson: 77.78% (7/9)
Lewis: 42.86% (3/7)

Raymond van Barneveld 7-2 James Wade

Raymond van Barneveld recorded his fourth successive Premier League victory as he beat a below-par James Wade 7-2 in Cardiff.

The Dutchman shocked Gary Anderson and Michael van Gerwen in his previous two games but this time he started as favourite to continue his revival with another two points.

Aided by a poor display from his opponent, who didn't even have a dart at a double until the fourth leg, Barney surged into a 5-0 lead as he threatened a whitewash before Wade won two of the next three to salvage a crumb of credibility to the scoreline.

The 2014 Premier League champion, who wasn't at his best with an average of 95.38, sealed his victory in the next which ensures he ends the night in third. 

Van Barneveld, who now has the longest winning run of the Premier League     season so far, said: " That's four wins on the trot so I'm very happy. It's so tight in the league table so I had to focus and you have to play well against everyone. 

"James didn't play as well as he could and I was surprised at that but I'm happy with the win."

Three-dart averages
Van Barneveld: 95.38
Wade: 84.97

SCORING:
100+ thrown
Van Barneveld: 15
Wade: 14
140+ thrown
Van Barneveld: 8
Wade: 6
180+ thrown
Van Barneveld: 1
Wade: 0

CHECKOUTS
100+ checkouts
Van Barneveld: N/A (Highest: 87)
Wade:  N/A (Highest: 70)

Checkout percentage
Van Barneveld: 36.84% (7/19)
Wade: 66.67% (2/3)

Michael van Gerwen 7-1 Dave Chisnall

Michael van Gerwen ensured he reached the halfway point of the Premier League Darts season on top of the table after a resounding 7-1 victory over Dave Chisnall.

The world champion headed into the clash with Chizzy, who he'd beaten in 13 previous meetings, one point behind Peter Wright after the Scotsman was handed a default 7-0 win due to Kim Huybrechts' absence in Cardiff.

Van Gerwen was also looking to bounce back from last week's defeat to Raymond van Barneveld, which ended his unbeaten record, as well as losing to Wright in Sunday's German Darts Championship final.

And he did so in typical MVG style, averaging 104.25 and also threatening a whitewash when charging into a 5-0 lead.

Chisnall hit five 180s and averaged over 100 himself but his poor finishing let him down, managing to hit just one double from six attempts.

"I had to play well tonight and I'm happy that I did," said Van Gerwen. "The pressure was on me because I want to be back on top of the table where I belong and where I've worked hard for.

"When you lose a game, like last week, you're upset but tonight I enjoyed it again. I'm a happy man and I'm already looking forward to next week."

Three-dart averages
Van Gerwen: 104.25
Chisnall: 100.79

SCORING:
100+ thrown
Van Gerwen: 9
Chisnall: 8
140+ thrown
Van Gerwen: 7
Chisnall: 3
180+ thrown
Van Gerwen: 3
Chisnall: 5

CHECKOUTS
100+ checkouts
Van Gerwen: N/A (Highest: 44)
Chisnall: N/A (Highest: 40)

Checkout percentage
Van Gerwen: 50% (7/14)
Chisnall:  16.67% (1/6)

Premier League Darts 2017 Table

MVG P 9 W 6 D 2 L 1 LegD +19 Pts 14
Wright P 9 W 6 D 1 L 2 LegD +16 Pts 13
RVB P 9 W 5 D 2 L 2 LegD +8 Pts 12
Anderson P 9 W 4 D 3 L 2 LegD +10 Pts 11
Taylor P 9 W 4 D 3 L 2 LegD +5 Pts 11
Lewis P 9 W 4 D 1 L 4 LegD 0 Pts 9
Wade P 9 W 3 D 2 L 4 LegD -3 Pts 8
Chisnall P 9 W 3 D 0 L 6 LegD -16 Pts 6
Klaasen P 9 W 1 D 1 L 7 LegD -16 Pts 3
Huybrechts P 9 W 0 D 3 L 6 LegD -23 Pts 3

* Klaasen & Huybrechts relegated after week nine 

Premier League Darts Week Nine: Statistics

Three-dart averages
Gary Anderson: 107.13
Michael van Gerwen: 104.25
Dave Chisnall: 100.79
Phil Taylor: 97.5
Adrian Lewis: 96.67
Raymond van Barneveld: 95.38
Jelle Klaasen: 91.78 
James Wade: 84.97

180s Thrown
Gary Anderson: 5
Dave Chisnall: 5
Michael van Gerwen: 3
Phil Taylor: 2
Jelle Klaasen: 2
Adrian Lewis: 2
Raymond van Barneveld: 1

Checkouts over 100
Gary Anderson: 170
Gary Anderson: 143 

Checkout percentages
Gary Anderson: 77.78% (7/9)
James Wade: 66.67% (2/3)
Jelle Klaasen: 62.5% (5/8)
Michael van Gerwen: 50% (7/14)
Phil Taylor: 46.67% (7/15) 
Adrian Lewis: 42.86% (3/7)
Dave Chisnall: 16.67% (1/6)
Raymond van Barneveld: 36.84% (7/19)