Sporting Life
Gary Anderson in action against Michael van Gerwen (Picture: Lawrence Lustig/PDC)
Gary Anderson in action against Michael van Gerwen (Picture: Lawrence Lustig/PDC)

Premier League Darts: Night 14 predictions, betting tips, acca, statistics, order of play and TV time

By Chris Hammer
Darts
Tue May 25, 2021 · 4y ago

Our match-by-match guide for Tuesday's Unibet Premier League Darts fixtures includes statistics, predictions, best bets and an acca.

With just three rounds of regular season matches remaining, the race for the play-offs is now realistically between six of the remaining eight players with James Wade mathematically eliminated and Peter Wright all but certain to follow him, while Gary Anderson is also on the brink of bowing out.

Only two points separate new leader Nathan Aspinall and fifth-placed Dimitri Van den Bergh so it say we're facing a photo finish is an understatement...

Premier League Night 14: May 25

James Wade (7/4) v Nathan Aspinall (11/10), draw (3/1)

  • Head to Head: 7-8 (TV: 2-2)
  • Meetings since start of 2020: 4-2 (TV: 1-1)
  • Last Meeting: 7-4 (Premier League Night Three, April 2021)
  • PDC Titles this season: 1-0 (TV: 1-0)
  • Premier League Average this season: 98.51 – 98.23
  • Premier League 180’s this season: 31 - 49
  • Premier League 100+ checkouts: 11-10 (High Finish: 152 – 161)
  • Premier League checkout percentage: 50.71% - 46.24%
  • Premier League Position & Points: 7th-1st (11 - 17)
  • Premier League leg difference: -5 / +20

The last time I was starting to get carried away about the prospect of my 22/1 title tip Nathan Aspinall lifting the trophy, he lost two matches in a row before the recent break to put him right back in the thick of the play-off race.

But he banished those memories in style with a fired up 8-3 victory over Michael van Gerwen to climb to the summit - albeit on legs difference - and the most encouraging aspect of the performance was that his average of 96 was well below the best we've seen from him this season.

The same could be said of MVG, of course, but in a tense, crucial fixture in front of a live crowd for the first time in what has felt like years, he held it together much better in key legs and put destiny firmly in his hands.

Although he's only two points ahead of fifth-placed Dimitri Van den Bergh with three games to go, he could all but seal a play-off spot tonight if he beats James Wade and the Belgian suffers defeat to Peter Wright, when you consider how big the legs difference margin will then subsequently become. It's currently 15.

Wade has nothing to play for after losing 8-4 to Wright last night left him mathematically out of the race although it would be naive to dismiss his chances solely for that reason as the lack of pressure can quite easily work as an advantage.

However, Aspinall's checkout percentage of 57% and two 120 checkouts last nights is a sign of a player who can cope in these situations and don't forget how well he fought last season to seal a play-off spot on his debut despite it going right down to the wire.

He's already been there, done that, so I'm confident he can go for the jugular tonight for another crucial victory. Having been so clinical this season and hit 49 maximums, those Player Performance targets below should be fairly routine to lift the odds to 2/1.

  • Score Prediction: 5-8
  • Suggested Bet: Nathan Aspinall to win the match, score over 2.5 180s and checkout over 83.5 at 2/1 (Sky Bet)

Jonny Clayton (11/8) v Jose De Sousa (11/8), draw (3/1)

  • Head to Head: 6-1 (TV: 3-0)
  • Meetings since start of 2020: 6-1 (TV: 3-0)
  • Last Meeting: 7-3 (Premier League Night Three, April 2021)
  • PDC Titles this season: 3-1 (TV: 0-0)
  • Premier League Average this season: 100.25 - 100.02
  • Premier League 180’s this season: 46-69
  • Premier League 100+ checkouts: 9-3 (High Finish: 150 – 164)
  • Premier League checkout percentage: 37.75% - 41.63%
  • Premier League Position & Points: 4th-3rd (16 - 16)
  • Premier League leg difference: +11 / +14

One of the biggest shocks for me last night was Jose de Sousa only hitting three 180s!

Nevertheless his relative lack of maximum making didn't stop the Special One entertaining the crowd with a 100 average in an 8-6 win over Dimitri Van den Bergh that lifts him into the top four and pushes the Belgian out of it.

De Sousa is now 10 180s short of equalling Gary Anderson's record for most maximums in a single season but his only real focus is finishing in the play-offs and if he can beat another shining debutant tonight he'll be almost there.

The head-to-head record doesn't make good reading for De Sousa, losing six of their seven meetings including all five that have happened this year.

All three televised matches at the 2020 European Championship (10-6), 2021 Masters (6-5) and this season's reverse Premier League fixture (7-3) have gone the way of the Ferret but in those last two of those, De Sousa averaged 101.29 and 108.48!

In fact he also averaged 105 and 104 in their two most recent floor matches as well and couldn't even earn a match dart so it's not as if he's doing too much wrong at all.

They are the only players who have a tournament average of over 100 this season - with Clayton edging it with 100.25 - while De Sousa has hit 69 of their combined 115 maximums, so we should see some fireworks in this fixture, especially after both maintained their momentums with 100+ averages last night.

Clayton thrashed Anderson 8-1 with an imperious display of consistently high scoring and clinical finishing (57%) and his three maximums would have been a lot higher had Anderson forced more legs.

Hard to call a winner but I'm going to side with De Sousa to get the victory his performances against Clayton have deserved but I'm heading for 180s market where you can get 11/8 on their being over 10.5 in the match.

  • Predicted Scoreline: 6-8
  • Suggested Bet: Over 10.5 180s in the match at 11/8

Gary Anderson (5/2) v Michael van Gerwen (8/11), draw (7/2)

  • Head to Head: 19-44, 3 draws (TV: 13-25, 3 draws)
  • Meetings since start of 2020: 1-4, 1 draw (TV: 1-2, 1 draw)
  • Last Meeting: 6-6 (Premier League Night Seven, April 2021)
  • PDC Titles this season: 0-0 (TV: 0-0)
  • Premier League Average this season: 97.85 – 98.62
  • Premier League 180’s this season: 49-31
  • Premier League 100+ checkouts: 7-17 (High Finish: 156 – 148)
  • Premier League checkout percentage: 37.57% - 39.70%
  • Premier League Position & Points: 6th-2nd (12 - 17)
  • Premier League leg difference: +16 / -7

Gary Anderson is drinking in last chance saloon tonight and nothing short of victory over the predictably inconsistent Michael van Gerwen will keep his play-off chances alive.

And unfortunately for the Flying Scotsman, MVG is now 'due' one of his brilliant performances after producing a very mediocre one against Nathan Aspinall last night.

Saying that any player or team is 'due' a certain kind of performance is usually as reliable as putting your usually finger in the air but just check out his Premier League match averages this year: 100.16, 92.16, 107.58, 90.91, 99.71, 87.63, 98.25, 104.72, 91.01, 110, 95.83, 107.44 and 96.68.

Even if he is now 'due' a 100+ average to bounce back, it may have to be one of his thrillingly high ones in a rollercoaster season to defeat Anderson, who has now produced three of his own in a row to suggest there's a lot of life in the old dog yet.

Sure he lost 8-1 last night but he averaged 104.48 compared to Clayton's 101.24 and of his seven misses to win a leg, four were at the bullseye to complete checkouts of 81, 121 (x2) and 124 while another was at tops when trying to take out 70.

It was a misleading scoreline that could have been a lot lot closer.

Anderson's previous two averages before the break were 104.63 in an 8-3 victory over Peter Wright and 107.85 in beating Dimitri Van den Bergh 8-4 so at least he managed to pick the scoring up where he left off.

I am tempted to go for Anderson to win and also hit the most 180s at 3/1 but considering he's a best of 13/5 just to pick up the two points, I'll play a little safer.

  • Predicted Scoreline: 8-5
  • Suggested Bet: Gary Anderson to win at 13/5 (Boylesports)

Peter Wright (6/4) v Dimitri Van den Bergh (5/4), draw (3/1)

  • Head to Head: 7-2, 1 draw (TV: 0-0, 1 draw)
  • Meetings since start of 2020: 2-0, 1 draw (TV: 0-0, 1 draw)
  • Last Meeting: 6-6 (Premier League Night Four, April 2021)
  • PDC Titles this season: 0-1 (TV: 0-0)
  • Premier League Average this season: 95.44 - 99.58
  • Premier League 180’s this season: 38 - 56
  • Premier League 100+ checkouts: 8-11 (High Finish: 156 – 164)
  • Premier League checkout percentage: 41.67% - 39.90%
  • Premier League Position & Points: 8th-5th (11 - 15)
  • Premier League leg difference: -12 / +5

Peter Wright may not be mathematically eliminated yet but to say he requires a darting miracle to finish in the top four is quite some understatement. It's so unlikely it seems a waste of time explaining the permutations needed for him to qualify.

All he can focus on is winning his remaining three games and hoping for the best, starting with tonight's assignment against his old lodger and friend Dimitri Van den Bergh.

Both players have desperately missed entertaining a live crowd but whereas Snakebite's consistency and performance levels on TV have dipped over this long, barren period, Van den Bergh has managed to become a major champion, shoot up the rankings and produce an array of dazzling performances in the soulless environments. Even his floor game standard has improved markedly to the extend of winning his maiden ProTour title last month.

The only success Wright has enjoyed on TV since March 2020 was when he brilliantly won the European Championship back in October when Oberhausen could host a live crowd.

After beating James Wade last night with an encouraging average of 98.68 - which was more than his disappointing seasonal average of 95 - Wright said: "The crowd make such a difference, it was amazing. They inspired me and I feel so alive - it was so nice being nervous backstage!

"All the crowd played their part because I've missed them. Last year I won my last four games to make the Play-Offs so if I'm playing well then everyone else has got to watch out."

He was clearly pumped up during the match despite his perilous position in the league table and was grinning from ear to ear during the post-match press conferences. We really could be seeing a revived Snakebite of old over the coming days.

Strangely Van den Bergh was considerably below his sparkling best last night with an average of 95 but he did battle hard to take Jose de Sousa to a deciding leg in an 8-6 defeat, and even hit more 180s with four.

This will be a real test of character if he begins to feel like he's going backwards and for that reason I'm going to side with a buoyant Wright at 5/2 in the Player Performance markets, which requires him to win, score over 2.5 180s and have a checkout of over 82.5.

  • Predicted Scoreline: 8-5
  • Suggested Bet: Peter Wright to win the match, score over 2.5 180s and checkout over 82.5 at 5/2 (Sky Bet)

2021 Premier League Darts Table

  1. Nathan Aspinall P 13 W 7 D 3 L 3 LegD +20 Pts 17
  2. Michael van Gerwen P 13 W 7 D 3 L 3 LegD +16 Pts 17
  3. Jose de Sousa P 13 W 6 D 4 L 3 LegD +14 Pts 16
  4. Jonny Clayton P 13 W 7 D 2 L 4 LegD +11 Pts 16
  5. Dimitri Van den Bergh P 13 W 6 D 3 L 4 LegD +5 Pts 15
  6. Gary Anderson P 13 W 5 D 2 L 6 LegD -7 Pts 12
  7. James Wade P 13 W 4 D 3 L 6 LegD -5 Pts 11
  8. Peter Wright P 13 W 4 D 3 L 6 LegD -12 Pts 11
  9. Rob Cross P 9 W 3 D 1 L 5 LegD -3 Pts 7 (ELIMINATED)
  10. Glen Durrant P 9 W 0 D 0 L 9 LegD -39 Pts 0 (ELIMINATED)
  • The top four after 16 games qualify for the end of season play-offs, where the title will be decided
  • Players earn two points for a win, and one for a draw.
  • When players are tied on points, leg difference is used first as a tie-breaker, after that legs won against throw and then tournament average.

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