The Göttingen faithful were quite literally a bullseye away from celebrating a home-grown triumph as Saturday afternoon at the European Darts Trophy almost began in dreamlike fashion for the German supporters.
Machine Gun Fires Back To Silence The Masses
Following a tremendous tungsten tussle – and a repeat of a 2025 Players Championship final – Jermaine Wattimena edged past Lukas Wenig in a dramatic encounter that momentarily silenced the Lokhalle crowd. The Marburg native will undoubtedly reflect upon two agonising missed darts that would have propelled him into a commanding 5-2 advantage. Yet immense credit must go to the Dutchman, who demonstrated admirable resilience and relentless scoring prowess. Rattling in a remarkable eight maximums, Wattimena fought back with ferocious intent to secure a deserved victory. His reward is the guarantee of facing a compatriot on Sunday afternoon, as he now awaits the outcome of the evening session’s all Dutch duel between Niels Zonneveld and Michael van Gerwen.
FULL DETAILS WITH DARTSDATABASE: The 2025/26 season’s events in facts and stats
The Heat Finally Breaks Euro Tour Duck
Damon Heta then renewed acquaintances with the ever-enthusiastic master of ceremonies Phillip Brzezinski after sealing his first European Tour victory since last August’s triumph in Antwerp. Six legs into his contest with Lithuania’s seasoned campaigner Darius Labanauskas, the spoils were evenly shared in what initially appeared to be a finely balanced affair. However, the Australian soon seized the initiative with characteristic authority, accelerating away to secure passage into round two without further concession. Posting a robust ton plus average, the Perthonian will take considerable confidence from the performance as he prepares to face either Kevin Doets – fresh from a magnificent 117 average in his opener – or Cam Crabtree, who remarkably flew back from a holiday in America to compete after realising he was listed as a reserve.
Noppie Races To Victory Over Rapid Ricky
Former UK Open champion Danny Noppert (above) proved to be the rapid one in his triumph over the player who owns that famous moniker, Ricky Evans. The Freeze wasted little time dispatching his opponent with ruthless efficiency, surrendering just a solitary leg in a clinical display that set up a Sunday showdown with either Gerwyn Price or Joe Cullen. It was by no means the most scintillating performance of Noppie’ s career, but it proved more than sufficient against an Evans display that never truly ignited. Rapid Ricky will likely be keen to consign this particular outing to the depths of memory as swiftly as possible.
Smudger Erases Much Improved Chizzy
Elsewhere, two English arrow smiths steeped in European Tour experience collided in a compelling encounter. Ultimately it was Ross Smith who narrowly overcame eight-time Euro Tour champion Dave Chisnall in a gripping battle that ebbed and flowed throughout. Borrowing a line from Smudger’s walk on anthem, “red light spells danger,” his opponent in yellow also threatened to place the Dover thrower in serious peril. However, a crucial break of throw in the ninth leg provided Smith with the platform he needed to subsequently hold and secure victory. Next up could be another compatriot in Stephen Bunting, although Germany’s Niko Springer will be determined to ensure he is the one standing in Smith’s path.
Dirk Edges A Thriller To Stun Voltage
This year’s European Darts Trophy then lost its first seed of the weekend, as Dirk van Duijvenbode edged past Rob Cross in a thrilling encounter. The Aubergenius surged into a commanding 4-1 lead and looked comfortably poised for a round two clash with either Mensur Suljovic or Karel Sedlacek. However, resilient as ever, former World Champion Cross battled his way back to restore parity. Ultimately though, he was unable to secure the crucial additional break of throw required to keep his campaign alive, allowing the Dutchman to hold firm and progress. Lights out for Voltage.
Nijman Compounds De Decker’s Misery
Another player hailing from the Netherlands, Wessel Nijman then emphatically booked his place in the final day of action, and in doing so continued Mike De Decker’s recent oche woes. The Belgian has struggled to rediscover the heights he reached when lifting the 2024 World Grand Prix, and Nijman did nothing to ease those concerns with an excellent ton plus display to advance. Next up, the Dutchman could potentially face another top-class young talent from his homeland in the nation’s number one, Gian van Veen, or the dangerous Polish Eagle Krzysztof Ratajski, who has been quite flying high of late.
Dobes Punishes Woody’s Troubles on Doubles
Still hunting for that elusive maiden Euro Tour title, Chris Dobey began his campaign in Göttingen with a polished and professional display to ease past Luke Woodhouse. In the second all-English clash of the afternoon, the Geordie benefited enormously from his compatriot’s frustration with his own double finishing. Those missed opportunities were punished emphatically by the former Masters champion, who now advances and will not have long to wait before discovering his next opponent. It will be whoever prevails in the evening session’s opening match when Josh Rock and Paul Krohne collide.
Heavy Metal Sends Superchin Flying Home
Concluding the first half of Saturday’s proceedings, Ryan Searle ensured his place in Sunday’s action by once again, getting the better of two-time PDC major winner Daryl Gurney. Heavy Metal may not be blessed with the sharpest vision, but his darting acumen is beyond reproach – something he demonstrated recently with an impressive semi-final run at Ally Pally. Superchin has been enjoying something of a resurgence of late. But for Searle, he marches on and will next face either crowd favourite and German number one Martin Schindler, assuming The Wall climbs over Richard Veenstra.
Check Out Our Devoted PDC Area
That’s it for a few hours and a relatively scar free afternoon for the seeds with just Rob Cross and Mike De Decker falling, albeit to highly credible tungsten talents. When the action resumes at 6pm GMT, Göttingen will once again witness one of their home-grown players open the show, as Paul Krohne attempts to leap over the tricky boulder-nicknamed Rocky.
EUROPEAN DARTS TROPHY (ET2)
Göttingen, Germany (13-15 March)
ROUND TWO: Saturday Afternoon Session Results
Jermaine Wattimena 6-5 Lukas Wenig
Damon Heta 6-3 Darius Labanauskas
Danny Noppert 6-1 Ricky Evans
Ross Smith 6-4 Dave Chisnall
Dirk van Duijvenbode 6-5 Rob Cross
Wessel Nijman 6-2 Mike De Decker
Chris Dobey 6-1 Luke Woodhouse
Ryan Searle 6-3 Daryl Gurney
ROUND TWO: Saturday Evening Session Fixtures
Josh Rock v Paul Krohne
Gerwyn Price v Joe Cullen
Martin Schindler v Richard Veenstra
Michael van Gerwen v Niels Zonneveld
* Karel Sedlacek v Mensur Suljović (* late replacement for Luke Humphries)
Gian van Veen v Krzysztof Ratajski
Stephen Bunting v Niko Springer
* Cam Crabtree v Kevin Doets (* late replacement for Jonny Clayton)
—–ENDS—–
Images: PDC
