Hawkeye Kevin Doets seized the afternoon headlines beneath the Alexandra Palace lights, edging out two-time PDC major winner Nathan Aspinall in yet another seven-set Ally Pally epic that throbbed with tension and swung violently on moments of nerve.
The first true seismic shift came in set four. With The Asp holding a 2-1 lead, the door was ajar. Wide open, in fact. Chances were offered. Opportunities begged to be taken. But they weren’t. And at this level, hesitation is fatal. Doets, ever the predator, didn’t ask twice. He swept in, capitalised ruthlessly, and hauled the contest back onto level terms with a cold efficiency that spoke volumes.
Set five delivered irony in spades. A role reversal of the highest order. This time it was the Mancunian who pinched a set he had no divine right to claim, a crowd-pleasing Big Fish checkout detonating inside the Palace and denying the 27-year-old any chance of a response. Three-two Aspinall. Momentum, supposedly, restored.
For many, that would have been the emotional gut-punch. Heads drop. Belief wavers. Scripts unravel. Not Kevin Doets. What followed was an exhibition of composure and controlled brutality. The next two sets were claimed without concession. Not a single leg surrendered. Clinical. Merciless. A thunderous 164 checkout ripping the heart out of the contest and underlining that this was no accident, no lucky escape, but a statement forged in tungsten.
Another heavyweight exits stage left. And for the Dutch-born, Swedish-residing sharpshooter, the Hawkeye is already locked onto an even bigger target. A man he still views as the undisputed apex predator of the modern game – Luke Humphries. Take down Cool Hand and the landscape changes entirely. Possibility becomes belief. Belief becomes danger. And Kevin Doets, brimming with self-assurance and sharpened ambition, suddenly looks like a man very comfortable living in the latter stages of this tournament. Ally Pally has seen this story before. The question is – just how far does Hawkeye want to take it?
Somerset slinger, Justin Hood continues to script a debut drenched in fairytale and fizz, comfortably dismissing Ryan Meikle before sending his happy little feet waddling gleefully into the last 16. Hood may not have arrived beneath the chandeliers of Alexandra Palace as a household name, but with every victory – and every cheeky, knowing glance fired straight down the lens of the Sky cameras – the Glastonbury man is quietly, irresistibly winning hearts across the darting globe.
Three sets played, three sets claimed, all flowing in the Glastonbury throwers favour as he transformed Ally Pally into his own personal festival of fun. The vibes were immaculate. The balance between frolics and focus exquisitely judged. Meikle did eventually scribble his name onto the scoreboard, but it amounted to little more than a footnote. A consolation in a story already being written elsewhere.
The raw numbers tell a tale laced with intrigue. On the averages and scoring columns, the pair were barely separated – Meikle even nudging almost a full point higher. But darts matches are rarely won on surface beauty alone. Dig deeper, and the truth emerges. Despite Meikle’s highly respectable 50% doubling, compared to Hood’s scruffier 32.5%, the key lay in opportunity. Chances created. And here, Happy Feet ran riot, fashioning more than twice as many looks at the outer ring as his compatriot. Pressure, persistence, presence. That is where this contest was decided.
The 32-year old has already made public his dream destination should he somehow ascend the ultimate summit. Justin Hood: World Champion and restaurateur extraordinaire, funnelling the £1 million winnings into opening his own Chinese restaurant. Whether he has fully priced up such an oriental enterprise remains open to debate, but perhaps one more victory might at least get the doors open and the woks warmed. It is a lovely dream. And the way he is playing – who knows. Josh Rock or Callan Rydz await.
Elsewhere, another debutant is dining richly at the feast. Yorkshire youngster Charlie Manby also continues a tournament to remember, seeing off the mercurial Ricky Evans to book a mouth-watering last-16 showdown with back-to-back World Youth Champion Gian van Veen.
Evans, never knowingly underdressed or under-choreographed, binned his pre-Christmas Shakin’ Stevens walk-on in favour of Madonna, emerging brandishing pom poms like a man auditioning for centre stage in a West End revival. It was classic Rapid. Theatre first, tungsten second. But once the music faded and the darts flew, there was precious little rhythm from either.
After four sets, the scoreboard told a tale of perfect symmetry. Level. Locked. Half-time honours even. But midway through set five, something slipped. Evans’ range deserted him, the flamboyance curdled, and Manby pounced with ruthless clarity. Champagne Charlie uncorked his moment, took control, and suddenly the momentum swung violently.
From there, many expected Evans to dig in, steady the ship, and drag the contest back to parity. Instead, the wheels came clean off. Composure evaporated. Focus fractured. Manby, fuelled by his opponent’s increasingly audible frustrations with his own throwing arm, smelled blood. Three rapid-fire legs later, the deal was done. Former Development Tour foes will meet again, but this time on a far grander stage.
MONDAY 29th DECEMBER – Afternoon Session Report
Justin Hood 4-1 Ryan Meikle
Ricky Evans 2-4 Charlie Manby
Nathan Aspinall 3-4 Kevin Doets
—–ENDS—–
Images: PDC
