Four-time Lakeside World Champion Lisa Ashton added the PDC Women’s World Matchplay title to her already overcrowded trophy cabinet with a thrilling 6–5 victory over inaugural winner Fallon Sherrock.
The Lancashire Rose remains the only woman to compete on the PDC Pro Tour – and on Sunday afternoon, under the iconic lights of the Winter Gardens, she dug deep into her vast reserves of experience and steel to claim one of the biggest prizes of an already glittering career.
Heading into the event, all eyes were firmly on back-to-back champion and heavy favourite Beau Greaves – with many assuming it was a case of when, not if, she’d lift a third title.
Lisa, however, had other ideas. She began with a solid-if-unspectacular 4–2 win over Robyn Byrne – a match where neither player really hit top gear, but Ashton’s finishing was enough to get the job done. A semi-final clash with Beau followed – and this was where things got interesting.
While Greaves scored brilliantly throughout, she missed key doubles at crucial times – the darting equivalent of running a marathon in record pace only to trip on the final step. Ashton, ever the professional, didn’t need a second invitation.
She took out five of her ten darts at doubles, capitalised on Beau’s rare off-day on the outer ring, and walked away with a deserved 5–3 win. Clinical, cold, and classic Lisa.
Then came the final – a showdown between two of the most recognisable and influential figures in the women’s game. Ashton vs Sherrock. The Lancashire Rose vs The Queen of the Palace. If ever a final needed no introduction, this was it.
Ashton made the brighter start, racing into a 2–0 lead before Fallon roared back. The pair traded legs all the way to 4–4 – effectively turning it into a best-of-three sprint for the title.
Fallon held throw to edge 5–4 ahead. Lisa responded in kind to level at 5–5. And so, it came down to a one-leg shootout – Sherrock with the darts, Ashton with the nerve.
You’d have fancied Fallon at that point. A 140 opener gave her the early edge, especially after Lisa replied with just 60.
But darts is a game that laughs in the face of logic. Lisa kept chipping away, stayed cool under pressure, and somehow found her moment.
The 54-year-old dug in, dug deep, and claimed her first PDC Women’s World Matchplay crown.
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Images: T Lanning | PDC
