Clayton Reigns Supreme on Scottish Soil Yet Again in Premier League
Jonny Clayton beat Michael van Gerwen 6-3 in the Final of Premier League Night 13 to go six points clear at the top of the table.
The Ferret beat the Dutchman in the Final back in Aberdeen on Night 11 and has repeated the trick in Glasgow to book his place in Berlin on June 13th but whether he remains top is yet to be decided, with just three weeks of the league format now left to play.
Clayton averaged 99.81 in the Final and included some impressive finishing ability, winning the third leg on 78 with his second dart at double twelve to hold throw in the third leg and lead 2-1 in the Final.
Van Gerwen hit double two with his last dart to level at 3-3 but from then on, Clayton went on to win the next three legs including a 68 out on double sixteen to close out victory and earn himself his fourth night win of the competition.
The Dutchman has moved three points clear of James Wade in third after he lost in the Quarter Finals, with his run to the Final all but confirming his Play Off spot, as he sits thirteen points clear of fifth placed Joe Cullen.
Gary Anderson won his first match since Nottingham on Night 6 after beating Peter Wright 6-2 in the opening match of the night in Glasgow, with the finishing from Anderson looking as strong as ever. The Flying Scotsman hit a checkout of 110 on double eighteen to break the World Number One in the opening leg, before a score of 177 followed by double twelve on his first dart gave Anderson a 4-1 lead and a break after his opponent missed two darts at tops.
Wright finished 116 in the following leg on double eighteen to break back and earn his second leg of the match, but it was Anderson’s day on the oche after five out of six darts found the treble twenty, before returning to the board to finish double tops with his first dart to reach his third Semi Final of the competition so far.
Jonny Clayton avenged last week’s Final in Dublin by defeating James Wade 6-2 in the second Quarter Final averaging 95.55 on the Glasgow stage. The Welshman raced into a 3-0 lead after hitting double tops to finish 78 and hold after breaking The Machine in the second leg.
Wade won his second leg of the match after hitting his favourite double ten in the sixth leg, but that was to be his last as Clayton hit 64 on double four to lead 5-2 before a 75 check out on tops to break the Wade throw and send him packing in Scotland yet again.
Michael Smith made it back-to-back Quarter Final victories after beating play off chasing Gerwyn Price in the third Quarter Final 6-3 averaging just shy of a ton. Bully Boy included two maximums on stage and took 80 out on double tops with his last dart to lead 3-1 and hold throw.
The World Number four closed out victory with a 107 checkout on double tops to earn another two points in the League after his victory over Gary Anderson last week in Dublin.
Michael van Gerwen dealt Joe Cullen a major blow in his Play Off chances after winning a last leg decider in the final Quarter Final of the night, winning 6-5 and including six maximums on the oche. The Dutchman hit a thirteen-dart leg on double eight after hitting six perfect darts to leave the famous 141 nine dart finish to take a 3-1 lead.
Mighty Mike needed seven darts to close out leg eight, hitting double four to hold and lead 5-2 against Cullen. The Rockstar showed real signs of life from then on reeling off the next three legs including a 58 out on tops to send the match into a last leg after van Gerwen missed his second match dart at the bullseye. The Dutchman closed out victory on double ten with his second dart to leave Cullen pointless for the second week running.
Jonny Clayton beat Gary Anderson in the opening Semi Final 6-4 with an average of 98.53 and three maximums in what was tough circumstances, with the Scottish crowd behind their hometown hero. Back-to-back World Champ Anderson opened the match with a 12 dart hold of throw, finishing 150 on double fifteen to lead 1-0 in the Semi.
The Ferret showed why he was the league leader in the fourth leg though, finishing 141 on double twelve after hitting a 180 to leave the outshot in the previous visit. The Flying Scotsman hit three ton plus checkouts in the match with a 115 out in the seventh leg on tops before hitting the same target in the ninth leg to finish 110.
Clayton made it through a real battle including a ton plus checkout of his own in the eighth leg to finish 116 on tops to take a 5-3 lead before closing the match out on double four with his fourth match dart to reach yet another night Final. Three legs in a row were finished on a ton plus checkout on tops in the match in a high-quality finishing display from both in Glasgow.
Michael Van Gerwen came through his second last leg decider of the night after beating Michael Smith 6-5 in the second Semi Final on Night 13. The match saw six maximums with four in favour of Smith who averaged just over 100 in what was the better average in the match. Bully Boy also missed just three darts at double recording a 62.5% checkout percentage.
Smith raced into a 4-2 lead but was punished by van Gerwen in the seventh leg who finished 108 on double tops to break throw and go within one of his opponent.
The Englishman hit a brilliant bullseye set up shot to leave tops in the ninth leg, to return to the oche and take a 5-4 lead with his first dart finding the boards top segment.
It was to be another Final appearance for Michael van Gerwen who held on tops to finish a 70 checkout, before hitting 104 on double fourteen to break Smith’s throw and win another classic on the oche.
The Euro Tour Action returns tomorrow with the European Darts Open beginning in Leverkusen with Daryl Gurney facing Kevin Burness in one of many first-round matches in the fifth European event of the year.
Quarter Finals:
Gary Anderson 6-2 Peter Wright
Jonny Clayton 6-2 James Wade
Michael Smith 6-3 Gerwyn Price
Michael van Gerwen 6-5 Joe Cullen
Semi Finals:
Jonny Clayton 6-4 Gary Anderson
Michael van Gerwen 6-5 Michael Smith
Final:
Jonny Clayton 6-3 Michael van Gerwen
League Table:
Jonny Clayton: 34pts
Michael van Gerwen: 28pts
James Wade: 25pts
Peter Wright: 20pts
Joe Cullen: 15pts
Gerwyn Price: 13pts
Michael Smith: 12pts
Gary Anderson: 9pts
—–ENDS—–
Words: Harry Masterson
Images: Steve Welsh/PDC
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